"the world do suspect that his son Lowther, who is sick of a sore mouth, has got the pox" Contrary to the rollover and link, "pox" here surely refers to syphilis, not smallpox.
"Betterton and Harris could not contain from laughing in the midst of a most serious part from the ridiculous mistake of one of the men upon the stage"
Nowadays that outtake would appear as an extra feature on the DVD.
"Us males make the big decisions and the better halves make the minor ones" CGS's comment reminds me of a joke I've always found pertinent. A man told his friend, "My wife and I have worked out a good division of labor. She makes the small decisions and I make the big ones." The friend asked for some examples of the decisions the wife made. "Oh, what house to buy, what car to buy, where to send the kids for school, that sort of thing." The friend said, "Gee, those sound like pretty big decisions to me. So what decisions do you make?" "I decide what American policy in the Middle East should be, where the Federal Reserve should set the interest rate, how the Supreme Court should decide major cases, ..."
Last Friday night I had the rare opportunity to hear a theorbo in concert performance. It was one of four instruments accompanying the Santa Fe Desert Chorale in the Monteverdi Vespers of 1610. The theorbist was John Lenti, a student of Nigel North.
The instrument sounds much like a lute, but with a fuller sound and of course deeper bass notes, owing to its extra set of long bass strings. I was taken with its great length. It looked to be nearly six feet long. David Van Edwards' catalog, linked above, lists theorbos of up to 178 cm, or five feet ten inches. A photo of one beside a man (Nigel North) to give scale is at http://www.nigelnorth.com/picture…
Welcome, Lisa. Feel free to add your own annotations when you feel moved to do so. Even though you are several years behind us in the day-to-day unfolding of the diary, your entries will show up on the "Recent Activity" page, and people will read them and maybe respond to them.
I had the same reaction as Bradford to the line about the guitar. I would guess, though, that the lute or the theorbo, plucked instruments that Sam likes well, are more likely than bowed viols to be instruments to which he compares the guitar and finds it wanting.
Todd, I think that "9" has to be a mis-scan. I noticed the same thing. Yesterday he was up at three AM and didn't call it "betimes," nor say how sleepy he was as a result. Perhaps someone can check L&M?
I also shared Michael L's confusion about the term "sow gelder." Thanks to TF for clearing that up.
Of absolutely no relevance to the 17th century, but just to keep the records straight: Herman Hupfeld wrote "As Time Goes By," and Dooley Wilson sang it in "Casablanca." The song is not listed in Louis Armstrong's discography: http://michaelminn.net/armstrong/…
Thanks again to Terry for providing us the continuing delight of the Hooke Folio. One can only marvel at the prescient insights by Hooke in geology and atmospheric chemistry. I'm curious why dulcification of vinegar seemed to be a matter of such importance to them. And I hadn't realized that asbestos was known at that time. Turns out, according to Wikipedia, that it was known to the ancient Greeks. A real treasure trove of interesting material.
Robert Boyle's views of the possibilities of the future
The following article, by Charity Brown, appeared in The Washington Post on June 22, 2010. It can be accessed on line (probably for a limited time) at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-…
In the 1660s, English chemist Robert Boyle wrote an extraordinary document, a combination of wish list and predictions of what science might achieve in the coming centuries. Found in his private papers, the list is a centerpiece of the exhibition "The Royal Society: 350 Years of Science," running until November at the society's headquarters in London.
Boyle -- who was a founder of the society, the world's oldest scientific academy in continuous existence -- seems to have envisioned airplanes, organ transplants, submarines, commercial agriculture and psychotropic drugs. Some wishes, such as "The Recovery of Youth, or at least some of the marks of it, as new Teeth, new Hair colour'd as in youth," seem to have come true, while others, such as "The Transmutation of Species," remain unfulfilled.
This is the first time the papers have been made available for public viewing. "This document provides us with an amazing window into one of the most extraordinary minds of the 17th century," says Jonathan Ashmore, an exhibition spokesman.
Samples from Boyle's list:
-- The Prolongation of Life.
-- The Recovery of Youth, or at least some of the Marks of it, as new Teeth, new Hair colour'd as in youth.
-- The Art of Flying.
-- The Art of Continuing long under water, and exercising functions freely there.
-- The Cure of Wounds at a Distance.
-- The Cure of Diseases at a distance or at least by Transplantation.
-- The Emulating of Fish without Engines by Custome and Education only.
-- The Acceleration of the Production of things out of Seed.
-- The makeing of Glass Malleable.
-- The Transmutation of Species in Mineralls, Animals, and Vegetables.
-- The making Armor light and extremely hard.
-- The use of Pendulums at Sea and in Journeys, and the Application of it to watches.
-- Potent Druggs to alter or Exalt Imagination, Waking, Memory, and other functions, and appease pain, procure innocent sleep, harmless dreams, etc.
-- A Ship to saile with All Winds, and A Ship not to be Sunk.
-- Freedom from Necessity of much Sleeping exemplify'd by the Operations of Tea and what happens in Mad-Men.
-- Pleasing Dreams and physicall Exercises exemplify'd by the Egyptian Electuary and by the Fungus mentioned by the French Author.
-- Great Strength and Agility of Body exemplify'd by that of Frantick Epileptick and Hystericall persons.
"Towards night I with Mr. Kinaston to White Hall about a Tangier order"
While it is charming to think of Sam being accompanied by Ned Kynaston, the transgender actor, on this grubby bit of business, as the rollover and link indicate, this is surely rather Mr. Edward Kinaston, a merchant involved in the Tangier victualing business. See http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
Glyn, I did this exercise back in July of '09, and calculated that 1000L in gold coins would weigh about 18.5 pounds. Reference: http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
So 1300L would be 1.3 times 18.5, or about 24 pounds, plus the weight of the container.
Don't know what they did about security, but I would guess simply stealth. Highwaymen couldn't rob every coach on that busy road (especially busy with gentry fleeing the Dutch), and nobody but father John and Elizabeth knew what they had with them.
Hollar's claim to be "one that trauailled [traveled? travailed?] throughout the whole kingdome, for its purpose" may be overblown. His map of East Anglia (from the BM collection) looks remarkably like a Hondius map of the same region that I owned for many years, which I believe was published in the Mercator atlas of 1606.
Can Evelyn and Pepys really be describing the same day?? If the Dutch were burning English ships at Chatham, how could Sam not have known it? And if he knew it, how could he not have mentioned it?
Comments
First Reading
About Friday 6 September 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"the world do suspect that his son Lowther, who is sick of a sore mouth, has got the pox"
Contrary to the rollover and link, "pox" here surely refers to syphilis, not smallpox.
About Wednesday 4 September 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"Betterton and Harris could not contain from laughing in the midst of a most serious part from the ridiculous mistake of one of the men upon the stage"
Nowadays that outtake would appear as an extra feature on the DVD.
About Tuesday 3 September 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"Us males make the big decisions and the better halves make the minor ones"
CGS's comment reminds me of a joke I've always found pertinent. A man told his friend, "My wife and I have worked out a good division of labor. She makes the small decisions and I make the big ones." The friend asked for some examples of the decisions the wife made. "Oh, what house to buy, what car to buy, where to send the kids for school, that sort of thing." The friend said, "Gee, those sound like pretty big decisions to me. So what decisions do you make?" "I decide what American policy in the Middle East should be, where the Federal Reserve should set the interest rate, how the Supreme Court should decide major cases, ..."
About Tuesday 27 August 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"I could name some of the chief." Mr. Evelyn is more circumspect in his diary-making than Mr. Pepys.
About Theorbo
Paul Chapin • Link
Last Friday night I had the rare opportunity to hear a theorbo in concert performance. It was one of four instruments accompanying the Santa Fe Desert Chorale in the Monteverdi Vespers of 1610. The theorbist was John Lenti, a student of Nigel North.
The instrument sounds much like a lute, but with a fuller sound and of course deeper bass notes, owing to its extra set of long bass strings. I was taken with its great length. It looked to be nearly six feet long. David Van Edwards' catalog, linked above, lists theorbos of up to 178 cm, or five feet ten inches. A photo of one beside a man (Nigel North) to give scale is at
http://www.nigelnorth.com/picture…
About Friday 21 November 1662
Paul Chapin • Link
Welcome, Lisa. Feel free to add your own annotations when you feel moved to do so. Even though you are several years behind us in the day-to-day unfolding of the diary, your entries will show up on the "Recent Activity" page, and people will read them and maybe respond to them.
About Monday 5 August 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
I had the same reaction as Bradford to the line about the guitar. I would guess, though, that the lute or the theorbo, plucked instruments that Sam likes well, are more likely than bowed viols to be instruments to which he compares the guitar and finds it wanting.
About Wednesday 31 July 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"my wife and I to pipe"
I.e. to play music, presumably on the flageolet, not to smoke.
About Thursday 25 July 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"the eeriest rogue"
Probably should be "the veriest rogue." We had this mis-scan once before.
About Monday 1 July 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
Todd, I think that "9" has to be a mis-scan. I noticed the same thing. Yesterday he was up at three AM and didn't call it "betimes," nor say how sleepy he was as a result. Perhaps someone can check L&M?
I also shared Michael L's confusion about the term "sow gelder." Thanks to TF for clearing that up.
About Wednesday 26 June 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
Of absolutely no relevance to the 17th century, but just to keep the records straight: Herman Hupfeld wrote "As Time Goes By," and Dooley Wilson sang it in "Casablanca." The song is not listed in Louis Armstrong's discography:
http://michaelminn.net/armstrong/…
About Thursday 27 June 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
Thanks again to Terry for providing us the continuing delight of the Hooke Folio. One can only marvel at the prescient insights by Hooke in geology and atmospheric chemistry. I'm curious why dulcification of vinegar seemed to be a matter of such importance to them. And I hadn't realized that asbestos was known at that time. Turns out, according to Wikipedia, that it was known to the ancient Greeks. A real treasure trove of interesting material.
About Robert Boyle
Paul Chapin • Link
Robert Boyle's views of the possibilities of the future
The following article, by Charity Brown, appeared in The Washington Post on June 22, 2010. It can be accessed on line (probably for a limited time) at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-…
In the 1660s, English chemist Robert Boyle wrote an extraordinary document, a combination of wish list and predictions of what science might achieve in the coming centuries. Found in his private papers, the list is a centerpiece of the exhibition "The Royal Society: 350 Years of Science," running until November at the society's headquarters in London.
Boyle -- who was a founder of the society, the world's oldest scientific academy in continuous existence -- seems to have envisioned airplanes, organ transplants, submarines, commercial agriculture and psychotropic drugs. Some wishes, such as "The Recovery of Youth, or at least some of the marks of it, as new Teeth, new Hair colour'd as in youth," seem to have come true, while others, such as "The Transmutation of Species," remain unfulfilled.
This is the first time the papers have been made available for public viewing. "This document provides us with an amazing window into one of the most extraordinary minds of the 17th century," says Jonathan Ashmore, an exhibition spokesman.
Samples from Boyle's list:
-- The Prolongation of Life.
-- The Recovery of Youth, or at least some of the Marks of it, as new Teeth, new Hair colour'd as in youth.
-- The Art of Flying.
-- The Art of Continuing long under water, and exercising functions freely there.
-- The Cure of Wounds at a Distance.
-- The Cure of Diseases at a distance or at least by Transplantation.
-- The Emulating of Fish without Engines by Custome and Education only.
-- The Acceleration of the Production of things out of Seed.
-- The makeing of Glass Malleable.
-- The Transmutation of Species in Mineralls, Animals, and Vegetables.
-- The making Armor light and extremely hard.
-- The use of Pendulums at Sea and in Journeys, and the Application of it to watches.
-- Potent Druggs to alter or Exalt Imagination, Waking, Memory, and other functions, and appease pain, procure innocent sleep, harmless dreams, etc.
-- A Ship to saile with All Winds, and A Ship not to be Sunk.
-- Freedom from Necessity of much Sleeping exemplify'd by the Operations of Tea and what happens in Mad-Men.
-- Pleasing Dreams and physicall Exercises exemplify'd by the Egyptian Electuary and by the Fungus mentioned by the French Author.
-- Great Strength and Agility of Body exemplify'd by that of Frantick Epileptick and Hystericall persons.
-- A perpetuall Light.
About Wednesday 26 June 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"so alone to the Swan, and thither come Mr. Kinaston to me"
Again the merchant, not the actor.
About Tuesday 25 June 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"Towards night I with Mr. Kinaston to White Hall about a Tangier order"
While it is charming to think of Sam being accompanied by Ned Kynaston, the transgender actor, on this grubby bit of business, as the rollover and link indicate, this is surely rather Mr. Edward Kinaston, a merchant involved in the Tangier victualing business. See http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
About Friday 21 June 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
According to CSG's OED excerpt, "vittle(s)" is the standard pronunciation.
About Tuesday 18 June 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
"The Quakers have offered to raise 6,000 men for the King’s service." [from News-Letter to Sir George Lane, thx to TF]
This seems anomalous. Weren't they always pacifists? Maybe the "service" was non-combat, like caring for the wounded.
About Thursday 13 June 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
Glyn, I did this exercise back in July of '09, and calculated that 1000L in gold coins would weigh about 18.5 pounds. Reference: http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
So 1300L would be 1.3 times 18.5, or about 24 pounds, plus the weight of the container.
Don't know what they did about security, but I would guess simply stealth. Highwaymen couldn't rob every coach on that busy road (especially busy with gentry fleeing the Dutch), and nobody but father John and Elizabeth knew what they had with them.
About Hollar's 'The kingdome of England & principality of Wales...'
Paul Chapin • Link
Hollar's claim to be "one that trauailled [traveled? travailed?] throughout the whole kingdome, for its purpose" may be overblown. His map of East Anglia (from the BM collection) looks remarkably like a Hondius map of the same region that I owned for many years, which I believe was published in the Mercator atlas of 1606.
About Monday 10 June 1667
Paul Chapin • Link
Can Evelyn and Pepys really be describing the same day?? If the Dutch were burning English ships at Chatham, how could Sam not have known it? And if he knew it, how could he not have mentioned it?