‘East Indies, n. n. India and the adjacent regions of South-East Asia. In later use usually: the islands of South-East Asia, esp. the Malay Archipelago. . . 1602 Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor i. iii. 64 They shall be my East and West Indies, and Ile trade to them both. 1647 A. Cowley Mistresse 19 Mine, mine her faire East Indies were above, Where those Suns rise that cheare the world of Love. 1705 Observator No. 4. 22 His pretending to bring witnesses from the East Indies seem'd liker a fair jank than any proper defence. ………… Tory, n. and adj. < Anglicized spelling of Irish *tóraidhe 1. a. In the 17th c., one of the dispossessed Irish, who became outlaws, subsisting by plundering and killing the English settlers and soldiers; a bog-trotter, a rapparee; later, often applied to any Irish Papist or Royalist in arms. Obs. exc. Hist. . . 1657 T. Burton Diary 10 June (1828) II. 210 Major Morgan... We have three beasts to destroy, that lay burdens upon us,—1st, is a public Tory, on whose head we lay 200l., and 40l. upon a private Tory's... 2d. beast, is a priest, on whose head we lay 10l., if he be eminent, more. 3d. beast, the wolf, on whom we lay 5l. a head if a dog; 10l. if a bitch. . . 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. ii. 257 The bogs of Ireland..afforded a refuge to Popish outlaws, much resembling those who were afterwards known as Whiteboys. These men were then [temp. Chas. II] called Tories.
. . 2. With capital T: A nickname given 1679–80 by the Exclusioners (q.v.) to those who opposed the exclusion of James, Duke of York (a Roman Catholic) from the succession to the Crown. According to Roger North Examen (1740) ii. v. ⁋9 The Bill of Exclusion ‘led to a common Use of slighting and opprobrious Words; such as Yorkist. That..did not scandalise or reflect enough. Then they came to Tantivy, which implied Riding Post to Rome... Then, observing that the Duke favoured Irish Men, all his Friends, or those accounted such by appearing against the Exclusion, were straight become Irish, and so wild Irish, thence Bogtrotters, and in the Copia of the factious Language, the Word Tory was entertained, which signified the most despicable Savages among the Wild Irish’.
3. a. Hence, from 1689, the name of one of the two great parliamentary and political parties in England, and (at length) in Great Britain. . . 1755 Johnson Dict. Eng. Lang. Tory. (A cant term, derived, I suppose, from an Irish word signifying a savage.) One who adheres to the ancient constitution of the state, and the apostolical hierarchy of the church of England: opposed to a whig . .
4. a. U.S. Hist. A member of the British party during the Revolutionary period; a loyal colonist . . ‘ (OED)
‘put off v. < Old English . . . . 9. trans b. To dispose of (a commodity) by sale; to sell . . Obs. . . 1662 W. Gurnall Christian in Armour: 3rd Pt. 454 As if it were of little more importance to marry a child, than it is to put off a horse or cow at a fair. 1705 tr. W. Bosman New Descr. Coast of Guinea xx. 390 He may put off every Pipe for the worth of Twopence . . ‘ (OED)
‘sate, v. < Apparently a pseudo-etymological alteration of sade v., after Latin sat, satis enough . .
1. a. trans. To fill or satisfy to the full (with food); to indulge or gratify to the full by the satisfaction of any appetite or desire. . . 1639 W. Whately Prototypes (1640) ii. xxvi. 84 So that no outward benefits may glut and satt our hearts. 1713 R. Steele in Guardian 20 Mar. 2/1 As his Resentment was sated, he now began to reflect . . ‘ …………. (OED)
‘tune, n. < A peculiar phonetic variant of tone n., appearing first in 14th cent. < Greek τόνος . . . . 3. b. fig. in phr. in tune, out of tune, in or out of order or proper condition; in or out of harmony with some person or thing . . . . 1605 S. Rowlands Hell's broke Loose 21 If Silver in my Pockets do not ring, All's out of tune with mee in eu'ry thing. . . c1680 W. Beveridge Serm. (1729) I. 332 If our bodies be out of tune so are our minds too . . ‘ …………. (OED)
Re: ‘ . . with great seriousness and strangeness on both sides he said his part and I mine . . ’
‘strangeness n. < strange < Old French . . 2. a. Absence of friendly feeling or relations; discouraging or uncomplying attitude towards others; coldness, aloofness. Obs. . . 1607 G. Chapman Bussy D'Ambois ii. 26 Alas, I feare my strangenesse will retire him. 1669 R. Montagu in Buccleuch MSS (Hist. MSS Comm.) (1899) I. 452 The King here lives at so much distance and strangeness with me . . ‘ ………... Re: ' . . since there must be some condescension, that it do become me to begin it . . ‘
‘condescension, n. < late Latin . . . . 3. Gracious, considerate, or submissive deference shown to another; complaisance. ? Obs. . . 1692 R. Bentley Boyle Lect. ii. 5 In condescension to the Custom of their Country. 1693 J. Ray Three Physico-theol. Disc. (ed. 2) Pref. sig. av, He did it only in condescension to their weakness . .
†4. The action or fact of acceding or consenting; concession. Obs. 648 T. Manton Englands Spirituall Languishing 2 In obedience to your Order, and condescension to the requests of some Friends, I have now made it [this Sermon] publick. 1664 Dk. Albemarle in A. Marvell Wks. (1875) II. 99 That some condescentions and abatements be made for peace sake . . ‘
RE; ‘my wife and I hand to fist to a very fine pig.’
‘hand to fist, adv. . . 2. Without pause, continuously; heartily. Chiefly with reference to drinking. [1653 A. Wood Life 4 Mar. in Thomæ Caii Vindiciæ antiquitatis Academiæ Oxoniensis (1730) II. 489 Going to the Alehouse..they set hand to fist, and drunk very desperatly.] 1706 G. Farquhar Recruiting Officer iii. 31 Many, many a dry Bottle have we crack'd hand to fist . .’
‘convenient, adj. and n. < Latin . . . .4. b. Suitable to the conditions or circumstances; befitting the case; appropriate, proper, due. Obs. . . 1670 Duke of Richmond Let. 11 Feb. in A. Marvell Wks. (1875) II. 299, I thought convenient to advise you, that I intend to prosecute this businesse . .
5. Morally or ethically suitable or becoming; proper. Obs. . . 1511–12 Act 3 Hen. VIII c. 23 §5 It is not convenient nor standing with good and indifferent ordre that the said sir Robert shuld be Auditour and Juge of hymself. . . 1684 tr. H. C. Agrippa Vanity Arts & Sci. (new ed.) xviii. 62 She sang and danc'd more exquisitely than was convenient for an honest woman . . ‘
Re: ‘ . . who told me largely how the King still do doat upon his women . . ’
‘largely, adv.. . . . 5. With reference to speech or writing: at (great) length; fully. Now rare. . . 1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. i. 109 The feast is largely described by Plutarch . . ‘
or
‘ . . 7. Freely, without restraint. Obs. . . 1645 E. W. Life & Death William Lawd 17 He should have cleared himself of that Crime before he spake so largely of the King . . ‘ ……………….. Re: ‘ . . he would have played the Jacke with me . . ’
‘Jack, n.1 < A pet-name or by-name, used as a familiar equivalent of John . . . . 2. b. Phr. to play the jack: to play the knave, to do a mean trick. Obs. . . 1668 S. Pepys Diary 23 Feb. (1976) IX. 88 Sir R. Brookes overtook us coming to town; who hath played the Jacke with us all and is a fellow that I must trust no more . . ‘ ………………..
That the ordinary man was better off and ate better than his French counterpart was common knowledge 80 years after Our Day:
' . . Hogarth was not impressed when he visited France in 1748, and decided to return home early. While waiting at Calais for a boat, he sat down to sketch the city gate - only to be arrested in error for espionage and sent home. O The Roast Beef of Old England was his revenge.
In the centre a waiter buckles under the weight of a sirloin destined for British tourists. The ultimate symbol of English red-blooded heartiness, it is envied by the feeble-looking French soldiers - one in fact is an Irish mercenary - who sup at gruel. A fat monk salivates too: this is a country where the priests alone are well fed.
In the foreground a Jacobite Catholic soldier . . makes do with a raw onion. Hogarth depicts himself sketching, the heavy hand of the French law about to land on his shoulder. The message: French, Scottish and Irish Catholics, our enemies, are a pathetic lot. Rosbifs rule.' http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artwor…
Was it true in the 1660s? No doubt specialists in the period know the answer but I don't.
I recommend Peter Laslett’s The World We Have Lost on these topics - still the best introduction after 50 years:
‘ . . In 1965 he published The World We Have Lost, which was made up of a series of essays questioning particular assumptions about life in pre-industrial England. His findings overturned much conventional wisdom . . Laslett was a passionate believer in spreading the benefits of higher education to all, and he was instrumental in the foundation both of the Open University and the University of the Third Age.
Something of the same concern for ordinary people lay behind his work on the history of population and society: he felt indignant that academics should spend so much time studying the deeds of the prominent and should take so little interest in the most basic facts of the ordinary life of our ancestors – how long did they live? How did they treat their children? Did they get enough to eat? Nowadays we know a lot more about these issues (and take a lot more interest in them) than when Laslett was embarking on his work; for that alone, Laslett deserves much of the credit.’
Our Hero often uses this sense of ‘brave’ when he’s in a good mood:
‘brave, adj., n., and int. < French . . 3. loosely, as a general epithet of admiration or praise: Worthy, excellent, good, ‘capital’, ‘fine’, ‘famous’, etc.; ‘an indeterminate word, used to express the superabundance of any valuable quality in men or things’ (Johnson). arch. (Cf. braw adj.) a. of persons. . . a1616 Shakespeare As you like It (1623) iii. iv. 36 O that's a braue man, hee writes braue verses, speakes braue words . .
b. of things. . . 1653 I. Walton Compl. Angler 104 We wil make a brave Breakfast with a piece of powdered Bief . . ‘ (OED)
and, most famously:
‘ . . MIRANDA O, wonder! How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world, That has such people in't!
‘poser, n.1 < Middle English . . 1. A person who sets testing questions; an examiner; = apposer n. 1. Now hist. . . 1664 S. Pepys Diary 4 Feb. (1971) V. 38 To Paul's schoole..and up to hear the upper-form examined;..Dr. Wilkins and one Mr. Smallwood, posers . . ‘ (OED)
Re: ‘ . . of whom I doubted to hear something of the effects of our last meeting . . ‘
There can be no doubt that the sense here is:
‘doubt, v. < Middle English . . Branch II ‘to fear, to be in fear’, a development of the verb in Old French, was an early and very prominent sense of the verb and its derivatives in Middle English . . . . II. 5. trans. To dread, fear, be afraid of. . . b. With infinitive phrase or objective clause: To fear, be afraid (that something uncertain will take or has taken place). arch. and dial. . . 1665 S. Pepys Diary 27 Nov. (1972) VI. 387 Doubting that all will break in pieces in the Kingdom.
6. In weakened sense (app. influenced by I.): a. To anticipate with apprehension, to apprehend (something feared or undesired). . . 1703 N. Rowe Fair Penitent ii. ii. 588 Still I must doubt some Mystery of Mischief . . ‘
We'll learn more in future years about the problems our hero has in securing his wealth from fire, damp and nosy neighbours:
‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal . . ‘ - still just as true in 2017.
‘place, n.1 < Latin . . III. Senses relating to position or situation with reference to its occupation or occupant. . . 14. a. A job, office, or situation . . . . 1612 W. Strachey Lawes in P. Force Tracts (1844) III. ii. 24 If any officer shall so doe [sc. strike any soldier], hee shall bee..held vnworthy to command, so perverting the power of his place and authority. . . 1710 J. Addison Tatler No. 162. ¶1 In my younger Years I used many Endeavours to get a Place at Court. 1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones III. vii. viii. 61 Good Servants need not want Places . . ‘ ……………... Re: ‘ . . in order to the engrossing (of) it . . ’
‘engross, v. < Anglo-Norman engrosser I. To write in large. 1. a. trans. To write in large letters; chiefly, and now almost exclusively, to write in a peculiar character appropriate to legal documents; hence, to write out or express in legal form. Also absol. . . 1632 in S. R. Gardiner Rep. Cases Star Chamber & High Comm. (1886) 164 Bampton and his wife brought their answere readie drawen to him and desired him to engrosse it. 1664–5 S. Pepys Diary II. 337 The story of the several Archbishops of Canterbury, engrossed in vellum . . ‘
Re: ‘40 pounds is an enormous amount of money for those days . . ‘
Indeed - a moderate capital sum. The appropriate inflator is ‘economic status value’ = ‘income value’ = per capita GDP = 5,200 x £40 = c. £200,000 to us in 2017. This happens to be the current average UK house price.
‘dote | doat, v.1 < Early Middle English . . . . 3. To be infatuatedly fond of; to bestow excessive love or fondness on or upon; to be foolishly in love. Const. + of (obs. rare), upon, on. . . a1616 Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) iv. iv. 80 You doate on her, that cares not for your loue . . ‘ ………. Re: ‘ . . cut off all my beard clear . . ’
‘beard, n. < Germanic . . 1. a. The hair that grows upon the chin, lips, and adjacent parts of an adult man's face; now usually excluding the moustache, or hair of the upper lip.’ ………. Re: ‘ . . I will have a fall . . ’
‘fall n. < Germanic . . . . 16. fig. a. A succumbing to temptation; a lapse into sin or folly. In stronger sense: Moral ruin. . . a1656 Bp. J. Hall Shaking of Olive-tree (1660) ii. 415 He who before fel in over pleasing himself, begins to displease himself at his fall . . ‘ ………. Re: ‘ . . have their snaps at her . . ’
‘snap, v. < Middle Dutch 2. slang. a. A share 3. A small piece or portion; a scrap, fragment, or morsel. b. In general use. ? Obs. (freq. in 17th cent.). 1642 T. Fuller Holy State v. xiv. 411 He may get some almes of learning, here a snap, there a piece of knowledge, but nothing to purpose . . ‘ ……….
' . . betimes my wife and I to the French church . . '
'betimes, adv < betime v.* 3. In good time, in due time; while there is yet time, before it is too late. . . 1667 Milton Paradise Lost iii. 186 To appease betimes Th' incensed Deitie . .
* a. intr. To betide. 1. a. intr. To happen, befall . . . . 1591 Spenser Prosopopoia in Complaints 37 A strange adventure, that betided Betwixt the Foxe and th' Ape . . ' (OED)
Re: ‘ . . when the loggerhead knows nothing almost that is sense.’
‘loggerhead, n. < logger n.2* . . 1. a. A thick-headed or stupid person; a blockhead. . . 1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Teste de boeuf, a ioulthead,..logerhead; one whose wit is as little as his head is great .. .
. . 3. a. An iron instrument with a long handle and a ball or bulb at the end used, when heated in the fire, for melting pitch and for heating liquids. 1687 in J. Strype Stow's Survey of London (1720) II. v. xviii. 288/2 Not to suffer Pitch, Tar, Rozin, &c. to be heated on board by Fire, Loggerhead Shot, or any other thing . .
* dial. a. A heavy block of wood fastened to the leg of a horse to prevent it straying (1777 in Eng. Dial. Dict.).’
Comments
Second Reading
About Monday 15 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
‘East Indies, n. n. India and the adjacent regions of South-East Asia. In later use usually: the islands of South-East Asia, esp. the Malay Archipelago.
. . 1602 Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor i. iii. 64 They shall be my East and West Indies, and Ile trade to them both.
1647 A. Cowley Mistresse 19 Mine, mine her faire East Indies were above, Where those Suns rise that cheare the world of Love.
1705 Observator No. 4. 22 His pretending to bring witnesses from the East Indies seem'd liker a fair jank than any proper defence.
…………
Tory, n. and adj. < Anglicized spelling of Irish *tóraidhe
1. a. In the 17th c., one of the dispossessed Irish, who became outlaws, subsisting by plundering and killing the English settlers and soldiers; a bog-trotter, a rapparee; later, often applied to any Irish Papist or Royalist in arms. Obs. exc. Hist.
. . 1657 T. Burton Diary 10 June (1828) II. 210 Major Morgan... We have three beasts to destroy, that lay burdens upon us,—1st, is a public Tory, on whose head we lay 200l., and 40l. upon a private Tory's... 2d. beast, is a priest, on whose head we lay 10l., if he be eminent, more. 3d. beast, the wolf, on whom we lay 5l. a head if a dog; 10l. if a bitch.
. . 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. ii. 257 The bogs of Ireland..afforded a refuge to Popish outlaws, much resembling those who were afterwards known as Whiteboys. These men were then [temp. Chas. II] called Tories.
. . 2. With capital T: A nickname given 1679–80 by the Exclusioners (q.v.) to those who opposed the exclusion of James, Duke of York (a Roman Catholic) from the succession to the Crown.
According to Roger North Examen (1740) ii. v. ⁋9 The Bill of Exclusion ‘led to a common Use of slighting and opprobrious Words; such as Yorkist. That..did not scandalise or reflect enough. Then they came to Tantivy, which implied Riding Post to Rome... Then, observing that the Duke favoured Irish Men, all his Friends, or those accounted such by appearing against the Exclusion, were straight become Irish, and so wild Irish, thence Bogtrotters, and in the Copia of the factious Language, the Word Tory was entertained, which signified the most despicable Savages among the Wild Irish’.
3. a. Hence, from 1689, the name of one of the two great parliamentary and political parties in England, and (at length) in Great Britain.
. . 1755 Johnson Dict. Eng. Lang. Tory. (A cant term, derived, I suppose, from an Irish word signifying a savage.) One who adheres to the ancient constitution of the state, and the apostolical hierarchy of the church of England: opposed to a whig . .
4. a. U.S. Hist. A member of the British party during the Revolutionary period; a loyal colonist . . ‘
(OED)
About Sunday 14 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . to put off a copper kettle . . ‘
‘put off v. < Old English . .
. . 9. trans b. To dispose of (a commodity) by sale; to sell . . Obs.
. . 1662 W. Gurnall Christian in Armour: 3rd Pt. 454 As if it were of little more importance to marry a child, than it is to put off a horse or cow at a fair.
1705 tr. W. Bosman New Descr. Coast of Guinea xx. 390 He may put off every Pipe for the worth of Twopence . . ‘
(OED)
About Saturday 13 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ Being sated with that we went away . . ‘
‘sate, v. < Apparently a pseudo-etymological alteration of sade v., after Latin sat, satis enough . .
1. a. trans. To fill or satisfy to the full (with food); to indulge or gratify to the full by the satisfaction of any appetite or desire.
. . 1639 W. Whately Prototypes (1640) ii. xxvi. 84 So that no outward benefits may glut and satt our hearts.
1713 R. Steele in Guardian 20 Mar. 2/1 As his Resentment was sated, he now began to reflect . . ‘
………….
(OED)
About Sunday 14 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . my uncle out of tune . . ‘
‘tune, n. < A peculiar phonetic variant of tone n., appearing first in 14th cent. < Greek τόνος . .
. . 3. b. fig. in phr. in tune, out of tune, in or out of order or proper condition; in or out of harmony with some person or thing . .
. . 1605 S. Rowlands Hell's broke Loose 21 If Silver in my Pockets do not ring, All's out of tune with mee in eu'ry thing.
. . c1680 W. Beveridge Serm. (1729) I. 332 If our bodies be out of tune so are our minds too . . ‘
………….
(OED)
About Friday 12 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . with great seriousness and strangeness on both sides he said his part and I mine . . ’
‘strangeness n. < strange < Old French
. . 2. a. Absence of friendly feeling or relations; discouraging or uncomplying attitude towards others; coldness, aloofness. Obs.
. . 1607 G. Chapman Bussy D'Ambois ii. 26 Alas, I feare my strangenesse will retire him.
1669 R. Montagu in Buccleuch MSS (Hist. MSS Comm.) (1899) I. 452 The King here lives at so much distance and strangeness with me . . ‘
………...
Re: ' . . since there must be some condescension, that it do become me to begin it . . ‘
‘condescension, n. < late Latin . .
. . 3. Gracious, considerate, or submissive deference shown to another; complaisance. ? Obs.
. . 1692 R. Bentley Boyle Lect. ii. 5 In condescension to the Custom of their Country.
1693 J. Ray Three Physico-theol. Disc. (ed. 2) Pref. sig. av, He did it only in condescension to their weakness . .
†4. The action or fact of acceding or consenting; concession. Obs.
648 T. Manton Englands Spirituall Languishing 2 In obedience to your Order, and condescension to the requests of some Friends, I have now made it [this Sermon] publick.
1664 Dk. Albemarle in A. Marvell Wks. (1875) II. 99 That some condescentions and abatements be made for peace sake . . ‘
(OED)
About Thursday 11 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
RE; ‘my wife and I hand to fist to a very fine pig.’
‘hand to fist, adv. . .
2. Without pause, continuously; heartily. Chiefly with reference to drinking.
[1653 A. Wood Life 4 Mar. in Thomæ Caii Vindiciæ antiquitatis Academiæ Oxoniensis (1730) II. 489 Going to the Alehouse..they set hand to fist, and drunk very desperatly.]
1706 G. Farquhar Recruiting Officer iii. 31 Many, many a dry Bottle have we crack'd hand to fist . .’
(OED)
About Thursday 11 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . but it is convenient I should do it.’
‘convenient, adj. and n. < Latin . .
. .4. b. Suitable to the conditions or circumstances; befitting the case; appropriate, proper, due. Obs.
. . 1670 Duke of Richmond Let. 11 Feb. in A. Marvell Wks. (1875) II. 299, I thought convenient to advise you, that I intend to prosecute this businesse . .
5. Morally or ethically suitable or becoming; proper. Obs.
. . 1511–12 Act 3 Hen. VIII c. 23 §5 It is not convenient nor standing with good and indifferent ordre that the said sir Robert shuld be Auditour and Juge of hymself.
. . 1684 tr. H. C. Agrippa Vanity Arts & Sci. (new ed.) xviii. 62 She sang and danc'd more exquisitely than was convenient for an honest woman . . ‘
About Monday 8 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . who told me largely how the King still do doat upon his women . . ’
‘largely, adv.. .
. . 5. With reference to speech or writing: at (great) length; fully. Now rare.
. . 1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. i. 109 The feast is largely described by Plutarch . . ‘
or
‘ . . 7. Freely, without restraint. Obs.
. . 1645 E. W. Life & Death William Lawd 17 He should have cleared himself of that Crime before he spake so largely of the King . . ‘
………………..
Re: ‘ . . he would have played the Jacke with me . . ’
‘Jack, n.1 < A pet-name or by-name, used as a familiar equivalent of John . .
. . 2. b. Phr. to play the jack: to play the knave, to do a mean trick. Obs.
. . 1668 S. Pepys Diary 23 Feb. (1976) IX. 88 Sir R. Brookes overtook us coming to town; who hath played the Jacke with us all and is a fellow that I must trust no more . . ‘
………………..
About Sunday 7 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
That the ordinary man was better off and ate better than his French counterpart was common knowledge 80 years after Our Day:
' . . Hogarth was not impressed when he visited France in 1748, and decided to return home early. While waiting at Calais for a boat, he sat down to sketch the city gate - only to be arrested in error for espionage and sent home. O The Roast Beef of Old England was his revenge.
In the centre a waiter buckles under the weight of a sirloin destined for British tourists. The ultimate symbol of English red-blooded heartiness, it is envied by the feeble-looking French soldiers - one in fact is an Irish mercenary - who sup at gruel. A fat monk salivates too: this is a country where the priests alone are well fed.
In the foreground a Jacobite Catholic soldier . . makes do with a raw onion. Hogarth depicts himself sketching, the heavy hand of the French law about to land on his shoulder. The message: French, Scottish and Irish Catholics, our enemies, are a pathetic lot. Rosbifs rule.'
http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artwor…
Was it true in the 1660s? No doubt specialists in the period know the answer but I don't.
About Saturday 6 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
I recommend Peter Laslett’s The World We Have Lost on these topics - still the best introduction after 50 years:
‘ . . In 1965 he published The World We Have Lost, which was made up of a series of essays questioning particular assumptions about life in pre-industrial England. His findings overturned much conventional wisdom . . Laslett was a passionate believer in spreading the benefits of higher education to all, and he was instrumental in the foundation both of the Open University and the University of the Third Age.
Something of the same concern for ordinary people lay behind his work on the history of population and society: he felt indignant that academics should spend so much time studying the deeds of the prominent and should take so little interest in the most basic facts of the ordinary life of our ancestors – how long did they live? How did they treat their children? Did they get enough to eat? Nowadays we know a lot more about these issues (and take a lot more interest in them) than when Laslett was embarking on his work; for that alone, Laslett deserves much of the credit.’
http://www.hist.cam.ac.uk/prospec…
About Friday 5 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . a brave morning . . ’
Our Hero often uses this sense of ‘brave’ when he’s in a good mood:
‘brave, adj., n., and int. < French
. . 3. loosely, as a general epithet of admiration or praise: Worthy, excellent, good, ‘capital’, ‘fine’, ‘famous’, etc.; ‘an indeterminate word, used to express the superabundance of any valuable quality in men or things’ (Johnson). arch. (Cf. braw adj.)
a. of persons.
. . a1616 Shakespeare As you like It (1623) iii. iv. 36 O that's a braue man, hee writes braue verses, speakes braue words . .
b. of things.
. . 1653 I. Walton Compl. Angler 104 We wil make a brave Breakfast with a piece of powdered Bief . . ‘ (OED)
and, most famously:
‘ . . MIRANDA
O, wonder!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,
That has such people in't!
PROSPERO
'Tis new to thee . . ‘
Shakespeare: The Tempest: Act 5, Scene 1
http://shakespeare.mit.edu/tempes…
About Thursday 4 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ’ Dr. Wilkins and one Mr. Smallwood, Posers.’
‘poser, n.1 < Middle English . .
1. A person who sets testing questions; an examiner; = apposer n. 1. Now hist.
. . 1664 S. Pepys Diary 4 Feb. (1971) V. 38 To Paul's schoole..and up to hear the upper-form examined;..Dr. Wilkins and one Mr. Smallwood, posers . . ‘
(OED)
About Monday 1 February 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . of whom I doubted to hear something of the effects of our last meeting . . ‘
There can be no doubt that the sense here is:
‘doubt, v. < Middle English . . Branch II ‘to fear, to be in fear’, a development of the verb in Old French, was an early and very prominent sense of the verb and its derivatives in Middle English . .
. . II. 5. trans. To dread, fear, be afraid of.
. . b. With infinitive phrase or objective clause: To fear, be afraid (that something uncertain will take or has taken place). arch. and dial.
. . 1665 S. Pepys Diary 27 Nov. (1972) VI. 387 Doubting that all will break in pieces in the Kingdom.
6. In weakened sense (app. influenced by I.):
a. To anticipate with apprehension, to apprehend (something feared or undesired).
. . 1703 N. Rowe Fair Penitent ii. ii. 588 Still I must doubt some Mystery of Mischief . . ‘
About Sunday 31 January 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
We'll learn more in future years about the problems our hero has in securing his wealth from fire, damp and nosy neighbours:
‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal . . ‘ - still just as true in 2017.
About Thursday 28 January 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . finding a place for her brother . . ‘
I agree with Sasha that the sense here is:
‘place, n.1 < Latin
. . III. Senses relating to position or situation with reference to its occupation or occupant.
. . 14. a. A job, office, or situation . .
. . 1612 W. Strachey Lawes in P. Force Tracts (1844) III. ii. 24 If any officer shall so doe [sc. strike any soldier], hee shall bee..held vnworthy to command, so perverting the power of his place and authority.
. . 1710 J. Addison Tatler No. 162. ¶1 In my younger Years I used many Endeavours to get a Place at Court.
1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones III. vii. viii. 61 Good Servants need not want Places . . ‘
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Re: ‘ . . in order to the engrossing (of) it . . ’
‘engross, v. < Anglo-Norman engrosser
I. To write in large.
1. a. trans. To write in large letters; chiefly, and now almost exclusively, to write in a peculiar character appropriate to legal documents; hence, to write out or express in legal form. Also absol.
. . 1632 in S. R. Gardiner Rep. Cases Star Chamber & High Comm. (1886) 164 Bampton and his wife brought their answere readie drawen to him and desired him to engrosse it.
1664–5 S. Pepys Diary II. 337 The story of the several Archbishops of Canterbury, engrossed in vellum . . ‘
About Tuesday 26 January 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘40 pounds is an enormous amount of money for those days . . ‘
Indeed - a moderate capital sum. The appropriate inflator is ‘economic status value’ = ‘income value’ = per capita GDP = 5,200 x £40 = c. £200,000 to us in 2017. This happens to be the current average UK house price.
http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
https://www.theguardian.com/money…
About Monday 25 January 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ’ . . so all into his closet and did our common business, . . ’
‘closet, n. < Old French . .
. . 2. a. The private apartment of a monarch or potentate; the private council-chamber . . Obs . . ‘
About Wednesday 20 January 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . he do doat upon Mrs. Stewart only . . ‘
‘dote | doat, v.1 < Early Middle English . .
. . 3. To be infatuatedly fond of; to bestow excessive love or fondness on or upon; to be foolishly in love. Const. + of (obs. rare), upon, on.
. . a1616 Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) iv. iv. 80 You doate on her, that cares not for your loue . . ‘
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Re: ‘ . . cut off all my beard clear . . ’
‘beard, n. < Germanic . . 1. a. The hair that grows upon the chin, lips, and adjacent parts of an adult man's face; now usually excluding the moustache, or hair of the upper lip.’
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Re: ‘ . . I will have a fall . . ’
‘fall n. < Germanic . .
. . 16. fig. a. A succumbing to temptation; a lapse into sin or folly. In stronger sense: Moral ruin.
. . a1656 Bp. J. Hall Shaking of Olive-tree (1660) ii. 415 He who before fel in over pleasing himself, begins to displease himself at his fall . . ‘
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Re: ‘ . . have their snaps at her . . ’
‘snap, v. < Middle Dutch
2. slang. a. A share
3. A small piece or portion; a scrap, fragment, or morsel.
b. In general use. ? Obs. (freq. in 17th cent.).
1642 T. Fuller Holy State v. xiv. 411 He may get some almes of learning, here a snap, there a piece of knowledge, but nothing to purpose . . ‘
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About Sunday 17 January 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
' . . betimes my wife and I to the French church . . '
'betimes, adv < betime v.*
3. In good time, in due time; while there is yet time, before it is too late.
. . 1667 Milton Paradise Lost iii. 186 To appease betimes Th' incensed Deitie . .
* a. intr. To betide. 1. a. intr. To happen, befall . .
. . 1591 Spenser Prosopopoia in Complaints 37 A strange adventure, that betided Betwixt the Foxe and th' Ape . . '
(OED)
About Monday 11 January 1663/64
Chris Squire UK • Link
Re: ‘ . . when the loggerhead knows nothing almost that is sense.’
‘loggerhead, n. < logger n.2* . .
1. a. A thick-headed or stupid person; a blockhead.
. . 1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Teste de boeuf, a ioulthead,..logerhead; one whose wit is as little as his head is great .. .
. . 3. a. An iron instrument with a long handle and a ball or bulb at the end used, when heated in the fire, for melting pitch and for heating liquids.
1687 in J. Strype Stow's Survey of London (1720) II. v. xviii. 288/2 Not to suffer Pitch, Tar, Rozin, &c. to be heated on board by Fire, Loggerhead Shot, or any other thing . .
* dial. a. A heavy block of wood fastened to the leg of a horse to prevent it straying (1777 in Eng. Dial. Dict.).’
(OED)