Diary of Samuel Pepys, 1669 N.S. Complete

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18th (Lord's day). Up, and all the morning till 2 o'clock at my Office,
with Gibson and Tom, about drawing up fair my discourse of the
Administration of the Navy, and then, Mr. Spong being come to dine with
me, I in to dinner, and then out to my Office again, to examine the fair
draught; and so borrowing Sir J. Minnes's coach, he going with Colonel
Middleton, I to White Hall, where we all met and did sign it and then to
my Lord Arlington's, where the King, and the Duke of York, and Prince
Rupert, as also Ormond and the two Secretaries, with my Lord Ashly and Sir
T. Clifton was. And there, by and by, being called in, Mr. Williamson did
read over our paper, which was in a letter to the Duke of York, bound up
in a book with the Duke of York's Book of Instructions. He read it well;
and, after read, we were bid to withdraw, nothing being at all said to it.
And by and by we were called in again, and nothing said to that business;
but another begun, about the state of this year's action, and our wants of
money, as I had stated the same lately to our Treasurers; which I was bid,
and did largely, and with great content, open. And having so done, we all
withdrew, and left them to debate our supply of money; to which, being
called in, and referred to attend on the Lords of the Treasury, we all
departed. And I only staid in the House till the Council rose; and then
to the Duke of York, who in the Duchess's chamber come to me, and told me
that the book was there left with my Lord Arlington, for any of the Lords
to view that had a mind, and to prepare and present to the King what they
had to say in writing, to any part of it, which is all we can desire, and
so that rested. The Duke of York then went to other talk; and by and by
comes the Prince of Tuscany to visit him, and the Duchess; and I find that
he do still remain incognito, and so intends to do all the time he stays
here, for avoiding trouble to the King and himself, and expence also to
both. Thence I to White Hall Gate, thinking to have found Sir J. Minnes's
coach staying for me; but, not being there, and this being the first day
of rain we have had many a day, the streets being as dusty as in summer, I
forced to walk to my cozen Turner's, and there find my wife newly gone
home, which vexed me, and so I, having kissed and taken leave of Betty,
who goes to Putney to school to-morrow, I walked through the rain to the
Temple, and there, with much ado, got a coach, and so home, and there to
supper, and Pelling comes to us, and after much talk, we parted, and to
bed.

19th. Up, and with Tom (whom, with his wife, I, and my wife, had this
morning taken occasion to tell that I did intend to give him L40 for
himself, and L20 to his wife, towards their setting out in the world, and
that my wife would give her L20 more, that she might have as much to begin
with as he) by coach to White Hall, and there having set him work in the
Robe Chamber, to write something for me, I to Westminster Hall, and there
walked from 10 o'clock to past 12, expecting to have met Deb., but whether
she had been there before, and missing me went away, or is prevented in
coming, and hath no mind to come to me (the last whereof, as being most
pleasing, as shewing most modesty, I should be most glad of), I know not,
but she not then appearing, I being tired with walking went home, and my
wife being all day at Jane's, helping her, as she said, to cut out linen
and other things belonging to her new condition, I after dinner out again,
and, calling for my coach, which was at the coachmaker's, and hath been
for these two or three days, to be new painted, and the window-frames gilt
against May-day, went on with my hackney to White Hall, and thence by
water to Westminster Hall, and there did beckon to Doll Lane, now Mrs.
Powell, as she would have herself called, and went to her sister Martin's
lodgings, the first time I have been there these eight or ten months, I
think, and her sister being gone to Portsmouth to her Y husband, I did
stay and talk and drink with Doll . . . . So away:; and to White Hall,
and there took my own coach, which was now come, and so away home, and
there to do business, and my wife being come home we to talk and to sup,
there having been nothing yet like discovery in my wife of what hath
lately passed with me about Deb., and so with great content to bed

20th. Up; and to the Office, and my wife abroad with Mary Batelier, with
our own coach, but borrowed Sir J Minnes's coachman, that so our own might
stay at home, to attend at dinner; our family being mightily disordered by
our little boy's falling sick the last night; and we fear it will prove
the small-pox. At noon comes my guest, Mr. Hugh May, and with him Sir
Henry Capell, my old Lord Capel's son, and Mr. Parker; and I had a pretty
dinner for them; and both before and after dinner had excellent discourse;
and shewed them my closet and my Office, and the method of it to their
great content; and more extraordinary, manly discourse and opportunity of
shewing myself, and learning from others, I have not, in ordinary
discourse, had in my life, they being all persons of worth, but especially
Sir H. Capell, whose being a Parliament-man, and hearing my discourse in
the Parliament-house, hath, as May tells me, given him along desire to
know and discourse with me. In the afternoon we walked to the Old
Artillery-Ground' near the Spitalfields, where I never was before, but
now, by Captain Deane's invitation, did go to see his new gun tryed, this
being the place where the Officers of the Ordnance do try all their great
guns; and when we come, did find that the trial had been made; and they
going away with extraordinary report of the proof of his gun, which, from
the shortness and bigness, they do call Punchinello. But I desired
Colonel Legg to stay and give us a sight of her performance, which he did,
and there, in short, against a gun more than as long and as heavy again,
and charged with as much powder again, she carried the same bullet as
strong to the mark, and nearer and above the mark at a point blank than
theirs, and is more easily managed, and recoyles no more than that, which
is a thing so extraordinary as to be admired for the happiness of his
invention, and to the great regret of the old Gunners and Officers of the
Ordnance that were there, only Colonel Legg did do her much right in his
report of her. And so, having seen this great and first experiment, we
all parted, I seeing my guests into a hackney coach, and myself, with
Captain Deane, taking a hackney coach, did go out towards Bow, and went as
far as Stratford, and all the way talking of this invention, and he
offering me a third of the profit of the invention; which, for aught I
know, or do at present think, may prove matter considerable to us: for
either the King will give him a reward for it, if he keeps it to himself,
or he will give us a patent to make our profit of it: and no doubt but it
will be of profit to merchantmen and others, to have guns of the same
force at half the charge. This was our talk: and then to talk of other
things, of the Navy in general: and, among other things, he did tell me
that he do hear how the Duke of Buckingham hath a spite at me, which I
knew before, but value it not: and he tells me that Sir T. Allen is not my
friend; but for all this I am not much troubled, for I know myself so
usefull that, as I believe, they will not part with me; so I thank God my
condition is such that I can; retire, and be able to live with comfort,
though not with abundance. Thus we spent the evening with extraordinary
good discourse, to my great content, and so home to the Office, and there
did some business, and then home, where my wife do come home, and I vexed
at her staying out so late, but she tells me that she hath been at home
with M. Batelier a good while, so I made nothing of it, but to supper and
to bed.

21st. Up; and with my own coach as far as the Temple, and thence sent it
to my cozen Turner, who, to ease her own horses, that are going with her
out of town, do borrow mine to-day. So I to Auditor Wood's, and thereto
meet, and met my Lord Bellassis upon some business of his accounts, and
having done that did thence go to St. James's, and attended the Duke of
York a little, being the first time of my waiting on him at St. James's
this summer, whither he is now newly gone and thence walked to White Hall;
and so, by and by, to the Council-Chamber, and heard a remarkable cause
pleaded between the Farmers of the Excise of Wiltshire, in complaint
against the justices of Peace of Salisbury: and Sir H. Finch was for the
former. But, Lord! to see how he did with his admirable eloquence order
the matter, is not to be conceived almost: so pleasant a thing it is to
hear him plead. Then at noon by coach home, and thither by and by comes
cozen Turner, and The., and Joyce, in their riding-clod: they being come
from their lodgings to her husbands chamber, at the Temple, and there do
lie, and purpose to go out of town on Friday next; and here I had a good
dinner for them. After dinner by water to White Hall, where the Duke of
York did meet our Office, and went with us to the Lords Commissioners of
the Treasury; and there we did go over all the business of the state I had
drawn up, of this year's action and expence, which I did do to their
satisfaction, and convincing them of the necessity of providing more
money, if possible, for us. Thence the Duke of York being gone, I did
there stay walking with Sir H. Cholmly in the Court, talking of news;
where he told me, that now the great design of the Duke of Buckingham is
to prevent the meeting, since he cannot bring about with the King the
dissolving, of this Parliament, that the King may not need it; and
therefore my Lord St. Albans is hourly expected with great offers of a
million of money,--[From Louis XIV. See April 28th]--to buy our breach
with the Dutch: and this, they do think, may tempt the King to take the
money, and thereby be out of a necessity of calling the Parliament again,
which these people dare not suffer to meet again: but this he doubts, and
so do I, that it will be to the ruin of the nation if we fall out with
Holland. This we were discoursing when my boy comes to tell me that his
mistress was at the Gate with the coach, whither I went, and there find my
wife and the whole company. So she, and Mrs. Turner, and The., and
Talbot, in mine: and Joyce, W. Batelier, and I, in a hackney, to Hyde
Park, where I was ashamed to be seen; but mightily pleased, though
troubled, with a drunken coachman that did not remember when we come to
'light, where it was that he took us up; but said at Hammersmith, and
thither he was carrying of us when we come first out of the Park. So I
carried them all to Hercules-Pillars, and there did treat them: and so,
about ten at night, parted, and my wife, and I, and W. Batelier, home; and
he gone, we to bed.

22nd. Up, and to the Office, where all the morning. At noon home to
dinner, and Captain Deane with us; and very good discourse, and
particularly about my getting a book for him to draw up his whole theory
of shipping, which, at my desire, he hath gone far in, and hath shewn me
what he hath done therein, to admiration. I did give him a Parallelogram,
which he is mightily taken with; and so after dinner to the Office, where
all the afternoon till night late, and then home. Vexed at my wife's not
being come home, she being gone again abroad with M. Batelier, and come
not home till ten at night, which vexed me, so that I to bed, and lay in
pain awake till past one, and then to sleep.

23rd. Going to rise, without saying anything, my wife stopped me; and,
after a little angry talk, did tell me how she spent all day yesterday
with M. Batelier and her sweetheart, and seeing a play at the New Nursery,
which is set up at the house in Lincoln's Inn Fields, which was formerly
the King's house. So that I was mightily pleased again, and rose a with
great content; and so by water to White Hall, and there to the
Council-Chamber, and heard two or three causes: among others, that of the
complaint of Sir Philip Howard and Watson, the inventors, as they pretend,
of the business of varnishing and lackerworke, against the Company of
Painters, who take upon them to do the same thing; where I saw a great
instance of the weakness of a young Counsel not used to such an audience,
against the Solicitor-General and two more able Counsel used to it.
Though he had the right of, his side, and did prevail for what he
pretended to against the rest, yet it was with much disadvantage and
hazard. Here, also I heard Mr. Papillion' make his defence to the King,
against some complaints of the Farmers of Excise; but it was so weak, and
done only by his own seeking, that it was to his injury more than profit,
and made his case the worse, being ill managed, and in a cause against the
King. Thence at noon, the Council rising, I to Unthanke's, and there by
agreement met my wife, and with her to the Cocke, and did give her a
dinner, but yet both of us but in an ill humour, whatever was the matter
with her, but thence to the King's playhouse, and saw "The Generous
Portugalls," a play that pleases me better and better every time we see
it; and, I thank God! it did not trouble my eyes so much as I was afeard
it would. Here, by accident, we met Mr. Sheres, and yet I could not but
be troubled, because my wife do so delight to talk of him, and to see him.
Nevertheless, we took him with us to our mercer's, and to the Exchange,
and he helped me to choose a summer-suit of coloured camelott, coat and
breeches, and a flowered tabby vest very rich; and so home, where he took
his leave, and down to Greenwich, where he hath some friends; and I to see
Colonel Middleton, who hath been ill for a day or two, or three; and so
home to supper, and to bed.

24th. Up, and to the office, where all the morning, and at noon home to
dinner, Mr. Sheres dining with us by agreement; and my wife, which
troubled me, mighty careful to have a handsome dinner for him; but yet I
see no reason to be troubled at it, he being a very civil and worthy man,
I think; but only it do seem to imply some little neglect of me. After
dinner to the King's house, and there saw "The General" revived--a good
play, that pleases me well, and thence, our coach coming for us, we parted
and home, and I busy late at the office, and then home to supper and to
bed. Well pleased to-night to have Lead, the vizard-maker, bring me home
my vizard, with a tube fastened in it, which, I think, will do my
business, at least in a great measure, for the easing of my eyes.

25th (Lord's day). Up, and to my Office awhile, and thither comes Lead
with my vizard, with a tube fastened within both eyes; which, with the
help which he prompts me to, of a glass in the tube, do content me
mightily. So to church, where a stranger made a dull sermon, but I
mightily pleased to looks upon Mr. Buckworth's little pretty daughters,
and so home to, dinner, where W. Howe come and dined with us; and then I
to my Office, he being gone, to write down my journal for the last twelve
days: and did it with the help of my vizard and tube fixed to it, and do
find it mighty manageable, but how helpfull to my eyes this trial will
shew me. So abroad with my wife, in the afternoon, to the Park, where
very much company, and the weather very pleasant. I carried my wife to
the Lodge, the first time this year, and there in our coach eat a
cheese-cake and drank a tankard of milk. I showed her this day also first
the Prince of Tuscany, who was in the Park, and many very fine ladies, and
so home, and after supper to bed.

26th. Up, having lain long, and then by coach with W. Hewer to the Excise
Office, and so to Lilly's, the Varnishes; who is lately dead, and his wife
and brother keep up the trade, and there I left my French prints to be put
on boards; and, while I was there, a fire burst out in a chimney of a
house over against his house, but it was with a gun quickly put out. So
to White Hall, and did a little business there at the Treasury chamber,
and so homeward, calling at the laceman's for some lace for my new suit,
and at my tailor's, and so home, where to dinner, and Mr. Sheres dined,
with us, who come hither to-day to teach my wife the rules of perspective;
but I think, upon trial, he thinks it too hard to teach her, being
ignorant of the principles of lines. After dinner comes one Colonel
Macnachan, one that I see often at Court, a Scotchman, but know him not;
only he brings me a letter from my Lord Middleton, who, he says, is in
great distress for L500 to relieve my Lord Morton with, but upon, what
account I know not; and he would have me advance it without order upon his
pay for Tangier, which I was astonished at, but had the grace to deny him
with an excuse. And so he went away, leaving me a little troubled that I
was thus driven, on a sudden, to do any thing herein; but Creed, coming
just now to see me, he approves of what I have done. And then to talk of
general matters, and, by and by, Sheres being gone, my wife, and he, and I
out, and I set him down at Temple Bar, and myself and wife went down the
Temple upon seeming business, only to put him off, and just at the Temple
gate I spied Deb. with another gentlewoman, and Deb. winked on me and
smiled, but undiscovered, and I was glad to see her. So my wife and I to
the 'Change, about things for her; and here, at Mrs. Burnett's shop, I am
told by Betty, who was all undressed, of a great fire happened in
Durham-Yard last night, burning the house of one Lady Hungerford, who was
to come to town to it this night; and so the house is burned, new
furnished, by carelessness of the girl sent to take off a candle from a
bunch of candles, which she did by burning it off, and left the rest, as
is supposed, on fire. The King and Court were here, it seems, and stopped
the fire by blowing up of the next house. The King and Court went out of
town to Newmarket this morning betimes, for a week. So home, and there to
my chamber, and got my wife to read to me a little, and so to supper and
to bed. Coming home this night I did call at the coachmaker's, and do
resolve upon having the standards of my coach gilt with this new sort of
varnish, which will come but to 40s.; and, contrary to my expectation, the
doing of the biggest coach all over comes not to above L6, which is [not]
very much.

27th. Up, and to the Office, where all the morning. At noon home to
dinner, and then to the Office again, where the afternoon busy till late,
and then home, and got my wife to read to me in the Nepotisme,

[The work here mentioned is a bitter satire against the Court Rome,
written in Italian, and attributed to Gregorio Leti. It was first
printed in 1667, without the name or place of printer, but it is
from the press of the Elzevirs. The book obtained by Pepys was
probably the anonymous English translation, "Il Nipotismo di Roma:
or the history of the Popes nephews from the time of Sixtus the IV.
to the death the last Pope Alexander the VII. In two parts. Written
originally Italian in the year 1667 and Englished by W. A. London,
1669" 8vo. From this work the word Nepotism is derived, and is
applied to the bad practice of statesmen, when in power, providing
lucrative places for their relations.]

which is very pleasant, and so to supper and to bed. This afternoon was
brought to me a fresh Distringas upon the score of the Tangier accounts
which vexes me, though I hope it will not turn to my wrong.

28th. Up, and was called upon by Sir H. Cholmly to discourse about some
accounts of his, of Tangier: and then other talk; and I find by him that
it is brought almost effect ([through] the late endeavours of the Duke of
York Duchess, the Queen-Mother, and my Lord St. Albans, together with some
of the contrary faction, my Lord Arlington), that for a sum of money we
shall enter into a league with the King of France, wherein, he says, my
Lord Chancellor--[Clarendon; then an exile in France.]--is also concerned;
and that he believes that, in the doing hereof, it is meant that he
[Clarendon] shall come again, and that this sum of money will so help the
King that he will not need the Parliament; and that, in that regard it
will be forwarded by the Duke of Buckingham and his faction, who dread the
Parliament. But hereby we must leave the Dutch, and that I doubt will
undo us; and Sir H. Cholmly says he finds W. Coventry do think the like.
Lady Castlemayne is instrumental in this matter, and, he say never more
great with the King than she is now. But this a thing that will make the
Parliament and kingdom mad, and will turn to our ruine: for with this
money the King shall wanton away his time in pleasures, and think nothing
of the main till it be too late. He gone, I to the office, where busy
till noon, and then home to dinner, where W. Batelier dined with us, and
pretty merry, and so I to the office again. This morning Mr. Sheres sent
me, in two volumes, Mariana his History of Spaine, in Spanish, an
excellent book; and I am much obliged for it to him.

29th. Up, and to the Office, where all the morning, and at noon dined at
home, and then to the Office again, there to despatch as much business as
I could, that I might be at liberty to-morrow to look after my many things
that I have to do, against May-day. So at night home to supper and to
bed.

30th. Up, and by coach to the coachmaker's: and there I do find a great
many ladies sitting in the body of a coach that must be ended by
to-morrow: they were my Lady Marquess of Winchester, Bellassis, and other
great ladies; eating of bread and butter, and drinking ale. I to my
coach, which is silvered over, but no varnish yet laid on, so I put it in
a way of doing; and myself about other business, and particularly to see
Sir W. Coventry, with whom I talked a good while to my great content; and
so to other places-among others, to my tailor's: and then to the
belt-maker's, where my belt cost me 55s., of the colour of my new suit;
and here, understanding that the mistress of the house, an oldish woman in
a hat hath some water good for the eyes, she did dress me, making my eyes
smart most horribly, and did give me a little glass of it, which I will
use, and hope it will do me good. So to the cutler's, and there did give
Tom, who was with me all day a sword cost me 12s. and a belt of my owne;
and set my own silver-hilt sword a-gilding against to-morrow. This
morning I did visit Mr. Oldenburgh, and did see the instrument for
perspective made by Dr. Wren, of which I have one making by Browne; and
the sight of this do please me mightily. At noon my wife come to me at my
tailor's, and I sent her home and myself and Tom dined at Hercules'
Pillars; and so about our business again, and particularly to Lilly's, the
varnisher about my prints, whereof some of them are pasted upon the
boards, and to my full content. Thence to the frame-maker's one Morris,
in Long Acre, who shewed me several forms of frames to choose by, which
was pretty, in little bits of mouldings, to choose by. This done, I to my
coach-maker's, and there vexed to see nothing yet done to my coach, at
three in the afternoon; but I set it in doing, and stood by it till eight
at night, and saw the painter varnish which is pretty to see how every
doing it over do make it more and more yellow; and it dries as fast in the
sun as it can be laid on almost; and most coaches are, now-a-days done so,
and it is very pretty when laid on well, and not pale, as some are, even
to shew the silver. Here I did make the workmen drink, and saw my coach
cleaned and oyled; and, staying among poor people there in the alley, did
hear them call their fat child Punch, which pleased me mightily that word
being become a word of common use for all that is thick and short. At
night home, and there find my wife hath been making herself clean against
to-morrow; and, late as it was, I did send my coachman and horses to fetch
home the coach to-night, and so we to supper, myself most weary with
walking and standing so much, to see all things fine against to-morrow,
and so to bed. God give a blessing to it! Meeting with Mr. Sheres, he
went with me up and down to several places, and, among others, to buy a
perriwig, but I bought none; and also to Dancre's, where he was about my
picture of Windsor, which is mighty pretty, and so will the prospect of
Rome be.

THE DIARY OF SAMUEL PEPYS M.A. F.R.S.

CLERK OF THE ACTS AND SECRETARY TO THE ADMIRALTY

TRANSCRIBED FROM THE SHORTHAND MANUSCRIPT IN THE PEPYSIAN LIBRARY
MAGDALENE COLLEGE CAMBRIDGE BY THE REV. MYNORS BRIGHT M.A. LATE FELLOW
AND PRESIDENT OF THE COLLEGE

(Unabridged)

WITH LORD BRAYBROOKE'S NOTES

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