Interesting that the Britannica cites: "Macaulay, writing of the year 1689, gives to them the name of Breedlings, and describes them as ‘a half-savage population … who led an amphibious life, sometimes wading, sometimes rowing, from one islet of firm ground to another.’" Whereas Sam writing in 1663 says: "the sad life which the people of the place which ... they do call the Breedlings’ ... sometimes rowing from one spot to another, and then wadeing". Did Sam meet Macaulay and pass on his notes, or is this a case of coincidence?
Boston (Lincolnshire) has a grand church - St Botolph's - which has the tallest parish church tower in England. It is visible over a very large area because of the flatness of the Fens and the height of its tower. It is better known as, ironically, The Boston Stump.
Susan, I had the same idea about the "Bawdy Song", except my mind jumped to "A Wizard's staff has a knob on the end". I found this site containing many Discworld songs: http://lspace.puntbow.net.au/fand…
IE 6 on Windows XP Professional SP2 also doesn't display Mumbai. Reports javascript error: Line: 52 Char: 42 Error: Expected ')' Code: 0 URL: http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
To knock-up, meaning to awaken by knocking on the door or window is still current, though old fashioned, British English. The "knocker-upper" was a man who tapped on the window in previous times to awaken people for work, in the days when alarm clocks were an expensive luxury.
Terry Pratchet writes affectionatly about the city constables and watch in most of his Discworld series. "Guards! Guards!" being the one where they are the centre of the action.
"...nothing to do with "end irons."" I see that now (lost my SOED disc, so I guessed the etymology) Strangely, despite the French origin of andiron, the French call them Chenets (little dogs) so same concept as English, though a different etymology (from Latin canus)
Fire dogs are iron stands at either side of the fireplace for placing logs across to allow air underneath for the draw. I think "andirons" is a corruption of "end irons". I have never heard of fire dogs being called that before today. Fire Irons are the tools for poking, moving logs and cleaning up after the fire, including tongs and shovels. Putting a grate across them is probably a a later modification. I have never used a grate with my fire dogs, though I have seen them in French ironmonger's shops.
The other problem, mentioned on the Pepys forum, is that many of the older annotations have neen truncated. It is difficult to see a pattern to the truncations as some long ones are complete while others have all their text removed.
"...she [took the occasion ] to carve, drink, and show me great respect. After dinner..." In the context, of food and drink, it appears she is carving the meat - a task normally reserved for the head of the household. Perhaps Pepys remarks upon it because it is unusual for a woman to do it.
Et is certainly not unusual in the north of England. (it is normal everyday speech), Listen to Stanley Holloway's recording of "Albert and the Lion" to hear it in the vernacular. "Yon lion 'as et our poor Albert..." There is probably a Beatles' song containing it but I can't think of one at present.
When you walk down the Victoria and Albert Embankments today, you are walking along the top of thr Victorian sewage system. It runs parallel to the Thames without polluting it. The embankment didn't exist in the 17th century.
I wonder if Tom Wilson remembered, or was told about, Pepys' previous stay in the Treasurer's bed, where he had been afeared of Edgeborrow/Edgeborough's ghost walking the room? Maybe the story about him thinking Pepys was Salmon, was just an excuse to frighten the wits out of a visiting bigwig (in clerk terms). Perhaps it is Wilson who will have the funny story to tell in the morning, about Sam being struck dumb and "starting, as if I would get out of the bed". Sam obviously thought he was being attacked by a ghost or a madman ("fearing he might be in some melancholy fit") at the time, and showed that fear. Salmon's fellow clerks will also no doubt "[fall] a-laughing as hard as [they can] drive" at the retelling.
H2SO4: The mnemonic I was taught at school - to warn us not to drink anything in the chemistry lab, and remind us of the formulae of two common liquids - was:
Johnny's dead, and is no more, for what he thought was H2O, was H2SO4.
By the way, litmus paper is a better test for an acid than dropping one unknown liquid into another. Glycerine in water - no problems; Glycerine in a mixture of nitric and sulphuric acid - do not shake, do not drop, leave the building quickly and quietly.
The Clink: According to the panel in the middle of this photograph, the Clink on Clink street is "The prison that gave its name to all others". http://static.flickr.com/39/11052…
The negotiations were held at an Uxbridge inn now called the Crown and Treaty house. Above the door is written: ‘Ancient Treaty House where the ill-fated Charles I held the memorable, but unsuccessful treaty with his Parliament in January 1645’. When I lived in Uxbridge in the 1970's, this was the only pub in town selling real ale. More at http://www.olivercromwell.org/Uxb…
Beecham's (laxative) pills ("Worth a Guinea a box") weren't marketed until 1842, but their mixture of Aloes, Ginger and soap sounds like the sort of folk ingredients that might have found their way into Sam's pills.
Comments
First Reading
About Friday 18 September 1663
GrahamT • Link
Interesting that the Britannica cites:
"Macaulay, writing of the year 1689, gives to them the name of Breedlings, and describes them as ‘a half-savage population … who led an amphibious life, sometimes wading, sometimes rowing, from one islet of firm ground to another.’"
Whereas Sam writing in 1663 says: "the sad life which the people of the place which ... they do call the Breedlings’ ... sometimes rowing from one spot to another, and then wadeing". Did Sam meet Macaulay and pass on his notes, or is this a case of coincidence?
About Friday 18 September 1663
GrahamT • Link
Boston (Lincolnshire) has a grand church - St Botolph's - which has the tallest parish church tower in England. It is visible over a very large area because of the flatness of the Fens and the height of its tower. It is better known as, ironically, The Boston Stump.
About Thursday 17 September 1663
GrahamT • Link
Susan, I had the same idea about the "Bawdy Song", except my mind jumped to "A Wizard's staff has a knob on the end". I found this site containing many Discworld songs:
http://lspace.puntbow.net.au/fand…
About Google Maps in the Encyclopedia
GrahamT • Link
IE 6 on Windows XP Professional SP2 also doesn't display Mumbai. Reports javascript error:
Line: 52
Char: 42
Error: Expected ')'
Code: 0
URL: http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
About Google Maps in the Encyclopedia
GrahamT • Link
Firefox 1.5.0.6 on Windows XP Professional SP2.
Mumbai completely blank, even with refresh; Tower of London - working normally
About Friday 11 September 1663
GrahamT • Link
To knock-up, meaning to awaken by knocking on the door or window is still current, though old fashioned, British English.
The "knocker-upper" was a man who tapped on the window in previous times to awaken people for work, in the days when alarm clocks were an expensive luxury.
Terry Pratchet writes affectionatly about the city constables and watch in most of his Discworld series. "Guards! Guards!" being the one where they are the centre of the action.
About Monday 7 September 1663
Grahamt • Link
"...nothing to do with "end irons.""
I see that now (lost my SOED disc, so I guessed the etymology)
Strangely, despite the French origin of andiron, the French call them Chenets (little dogs) so same concept as English, though a different etymology (from Latin canus)
About Monday 7 September 1663
GrahamT • Link
Fire dogs are iron stands at either side of the fireplace for placing logs across to allow air underneath for the draw. I think "andirons" is a corruption of "end irons". I have never heard of fire dogs being called that before today.
Fire Irons are the tools for poking, moving logs and cleaning up after the fire, including tongs and shovels.
Putting a grate across them is probably a a later modification.
I have never used a grate with my fire dogs, though I have seen them in French ironmonger's shops.
About Annotations should be working now
GrahamT • Link
The other problem, mentioned on the Pepys forum, is that many of the older annotations have neen truncated. It is difficult to see a pattern to the truncations as some long ones are complete while others have all their text removed.
About Thursday 6 August 1663
GrahamT • Link
"...she [took the occasion ] to carve, drink, and show me great respect. After dinner..."
In the context, of food and drink, it appears she is carving the meat - a task normally reserved for the head of the household. Perhaps Pepys remarks upon it because it is unusual for a woman to do it.
About Thursday 6 August 1663
Grahamt • Link
his wife, an ugly pusse, ...
Not heard so often now, but a common phrase from my childhood. More common now as sourpuss.
About Wednesday 5 August 1663
Grahamt • Link
Re: ...like a charioteer could steer the spirits...
But isn't that putting Descartes before de horse?
About Saturday 25 July 1663
Grahamt • Link
Et is certainly not unusual in the north of England. (it is normal everyday speech), Listen to Stanley Holloway's recording of "Albert and the Lion" to hear it in the vernacular. "Yon lion 'as et our poor Albert..." There is probably a Beatles' song containing it but I can't think of one at present.
About Tuesday 28 July 1663
Grahamt • Link
When you walk down the Victoria and Albert Embankments today, you are walking along the top of thr Victorian sewage system. It runs parallel to the Thames without polluting it.
The embankment didn't exist in the 17th century.
About Monday 13 July 1663
GrahamT • Link
Frances Stewart was born in 1648 so would be 14 or 15 years old at the time of this entry.
Re:hats and "...trying one another’s, but on another’s heads, and laughing." thus transporting any lice and fleas to new hosts.
About Saturday 11 July 1663
GrahamT • Link
I wonder if Tom Wilson remembered, or was told about, Pepys' previous stay in the Treasurer's bed, where he had been afeared of Edgeborrow/Edgeborough's ghost walking the room?
Maybe the story about him thinking Pepys was Salmon, was just an excuse to frighten the wits out of a visiting bigwig (in clerk terms).
Perhaps it is Wilson who will have the funny story to tell in the morning, about Sam being struck dumb and "starting, as if I would get out of the bed". Sam obviously thought he was being attacked by a ghost or a madman ("fearing he might be in some melancholy fit") at the time, and showed that fear.
Salmon's fellow clerks will also no doubt "[fall] a-laughing as hard as [they can] drive" at the retelling.
About Sunday 5 July 1663
GrahamT • Link
H2SO4:
The mnemonic I was taught at school - to warn us not to drink anything in the chemistry lab, and remind us of the formulae of two common liquids - was:
Johnny's dead,
and is no more,
for what he thought was H2O,
was H2SO4.
By the way, litmus paper is a better test for an acid than dropping one unknown liquid into another. Glycerine in water - no problems; Glycerine in a mixture of nitric and sulphuric acid - do not shake, do not drop, leave the building quickly and quietly.
About Friday 3 July 1663
GrahamT • Link
The Clink:
According to the panel in the middle of this photograph, the Clink on Clink street is "The prison that gave its name to all others".
http://static.flickr.com/39/11052…
About Uxbridge
GrahamT • Link
The negotiations were held at an Uxbridge inn now called the Crown and Treaty house. Above the door is written:
‘Ancient Treaty House where the ill-fated Charles I held the memorable, but unsuccessful treaty with his Parliament in January 1645’. When I lived in Uxbridge in the 1970's, this was the only pub in town selling real ale.
More at http://www.olivercromwell.org/Uxb…
About Saturday 27 June 1663
GrahamT • Link
Beecham's (laxative) pills ("Worth a Guinea a box") weren't marketed until 1842, but their mixture of Aloes, Ginger and soap sounds like the sort of folk ingredients that might have found their way into Sam's pills.