Not only the on-going costs Terry pointed us to, but in addition, who paid for the cork last week? ... and on July 12: "By and by called to wait on the Duke, the King being present; and there agreed, among other things, of the places to build the ten new great ships ordered to be built, and as to the relief of prisoners in Holland. "
True, England will need ten new great warships very soon, and getting 5,000 sailors home from Holland would be helpful ... but how much do warships cost and who's going to pay for them???? (Deficit spending off budget without competitive bidding with my old company answers Cheney.)
“Up, and by water to Sir G. Downing’s, there to discourse with him about the reliefe of the prisoners in Holland; which I did, and we do resolve of the manner of sending them some.” … “By and by called to wait on the Duke, the King being present; and there agreed, among other things, ... and as to the relief of prisoners in Holland.”
L&M note those in the gaol at Flushing/Vlissingen were in need of food and medical attention.
Pepys went to see Sir George Downing about the prisoners because (taken from Evelyn's Diary):
"12 July, 1666. We sat the first time in the Star-Chamber. There was now added to our HOSPITAL commission Sir George Downing (one that had been a great against his Majesty, but now insinuated into his favor; and, from a pedagogue and fanatic preacher, not worth a groat, had become excessively rich), to inspect the hospitals and treat about prisons."
Not only was Downing Pepys' former boss, but he had spent years at The Hague as the representative from England for both Charles II and Parliament, so he knew everyone, and probably speaks the language.
Downing joins John Evelyn, Sir William D'Oyly, Sir Thomas Clifford and Col. Bullen Reymes as a Commissioner for taking Care of Sick and Wounded Seamen.
Pepys went to see Downing about the Flemish prisoners because -- from Evelyn's Diary tomorrow [SPOILER[:
"12 July, 1666. We sat the first time in the Star-Chamber. There was now added to our HOSPITAL commission Sir George Downing (one that had been a great against his Majesty, but now insinuated into his favor; and, from a pedagogue and fanatic preacher, not worth a groat, had become excessively rich), to inspect the hospitals and treat about prisons."
So Downing joins John Evelyn, Sir William D'Oyly, Sir Thomas Clifford and Col. Bullen Reymesas -- the Commissioners for taking Care of Sick and Wounded Seamen. The COMMISSION FOR SICK AND WOUNDED PRISONERS link is https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Plus of course Downing had spent years at The Hague representing England for both Charles II and Parliament, so he knows everyone and probably speaks the language.
How confusing. We have the English Charles II telling tales on the Spanish Charles II (for clarity, we should agree to call him Carlos II).
"the King did speake most in contempt of the ceremoniousnesse of the King of Spayne, that he do nothing but under some ridiculous form or other, and will not piss but another must hold the chamber-pot."
To which Terry gives us the L&M comment: "Charles had paid only one very brief visit to Spain, to Saragossa and Fuenterrabia, at the end of 1659, but knew the Spanish court at Brussels well in his exile. Cf. the comment of John Sheffield, Duke of Buckingham on Charles (Works, 1740, ii, 81): 'He had so natural an aversion to formality ... he could not on premeditation act the part of a King for a moment, either at Parliament or Council ... which carried him into the other extreme ... of letting all distinction and ceremony fall to the ground as useless and foppish.'"
I think the John Sheffield, Duke of Buckingham quote is about the character of England's Charles II, not Carlos II.
Carlos II and Louis XIV were competitors for glory and prestige -- Charles II's travels during the Interregnum had taught him to know better, but he also understood that some ceremony and grandeur was expected of him and necessary.
Saltpetre is one of the three basic ingredients for gunpowder. England never organized her production of saltpetre (unlike the rest of Europe), which caused Charles I considerable difficulty during the Civil War as the three major production centers of gunpowder were under Parliamentary control: London, Hull and Portsmouth.
An interesting book on the subject is Saltpeter: The Mother of Gunpowder -- by David Cressy -- Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2013, ISBN: 9780199695751; 256pp.
In Chapter seven, ‘Saltpeter for a global power’, he documents a change of focus from the activities of the English saltpetermen to that of importing using the East India Company.
Whereas King Charles in the 1630s was struggling to achieve a target of 288 tons of saltpetre a year, imports from India topped 1,000 tons during various years of the reign of Charles II.
The volume of saltpetre supplies available to later Stuart monarchs surpassed that from all previous conflicts.
In those days gunpowder was a fortuitous mix of sulphur, charcoal and saltpetre. It was that last ingredient that was the most vital and the hardest to obtain.
John Evelyn's family made gunpowder at several locations for the Royalist armies during the Civil Wars, which explains his inclusion on the Saltpetre Commission.
What do the night soil men do with their haul? They either sold it to the garden markets around London -- or to the saltpetremen to make gunpowder.
In the rest of Europe each country had organized the making of saltpetre; in Sweden you could pay your taxes with it. But not England -- I wonder why. Charles I's efforts to take communities' stashes of gunpowder made him very unpopular -- but his saltpetremen's strong-arm methods to take people's dung from their stables, etc., contributed to unrest leading to the Civil Wars.
Under Charles II the government conceded home production was inadequate, and started importing it in earnest from India through the East India Company.
An interesting book on the subject is Saltpeter: The Mother of Gunpowder -- by David Cressy -- Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2013, ISBN: 9780199695751; 256pp.
Good point, Jonathan. I think you solved the dilemma. And no, Phil, St, James's Park was open to all ... read the poem I linked by Rochester to see just how open!
junk (n.1) mid-14c., junke "old cable or rope," cut in bits and used for caulking, etc., a nautical word of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French junc "rush, reed," also used figuratively as a type of something of little value, from Latin iuncus "rush, reed" (but OED finds "no evidence of connection").
It was extended to "old refuse from boats and ships" (1660s), then to "old or discarded articles of any kind" (1884), usually with a suggestion of reusability. Meaning "salt meat used on long voyages" is from 1762. Meaning "narcotic drug" is from 1925. Junk food is from 1971; junk art is from 1961; junk mail first attested 1954; junk bond from 1979.
junk (n.2)
"large, seagoing Chinese sailing ship," 1610s, from Portuguese junco, from Malay (Austronesian) jong "ship, large boat" (13c.), probably from Javanese djong. In English 16c. as giunche, iunco.
junk (v.)
1803, "to cut off in lumps," from junk (n.1). The meaning "to throw away as trash, to scrap" is from 1908. Related: Junked; junking.
New settlers (who should always be here as early in the spring as possible) begin to cut down the wood where they intend to erect their first house. As the trees are cut the branches are to be lopped off, and the trunks cut into lengths of 12 or 14 feet. This operation they call junking them; if they are not junked before fire is applied, they are much worse to junk afterwards. [letter dated Charlotte Town, Nov. 29, 1820, in "A Series of Letters Descriptive of Prince Edward Island," 1822]
The Royal Society today at Gresham College — from the Hooke Folio Online
IIuly. 18. 1666. ... There was tryed an expt. wth. Sal Armon: & salt peter to see which of the two had the greatest force to cool. the expt. not being orderd as it should be. The Curator [ Hooke ] was charged to Lett it be made at the next meeting wth. both the salts putt into an aequall quantity of water, in the same vessell obseruing the same time with both.
And for those of us following Evelyn's Diary:
2 July, 1666. Came Sir John Duncomb and Mr. Thomas Chicheley, both Privy Councilors and Commissioners of His Majesty's Ordnance, to visit me, and let me know that his Majesty had in Council, nominated me to be one of the Commissioners for regulating the farming and making of saltpeter through the whole kingdom, and that we were to sit in the Tower the next day.
3 July, 1666. I went to sit with the Commissioners at the Tower, where our commission being read, we made some progress in business, our Secretary being Sir George Wharton, that famous mathematician who wrote the yearly Almanac during his Majesty's troubles.
Saltpeter (nitre) is needed for the production of gunpowder. Evidently England needs to be making more of it. Evelyn is an F.R.S. so he may have asked the Royal Society for help improving it?
"Sir W. Coventry did publickly move, that if his Royal Highness had this of a certainty, it would be of use to send this down to the fleete, and to cause it to be spread about the fleete, for the recovering of the spirits of the officers and seamen; who are under great dejectedness for want of knowing that they did do any thing against the enemy, notwithstanding all that they did to us. Which, though it be true, yet methought was one of the most dishonourable motions to our countrymen that ever was made; and is worth remembering."
Remember on Thursday 12 July, 1666, Pepys listened to Coventry's dejected appraisal of where things stood. Pepys concluded: "In fine, I do observe, he [COVENTRY] hath no esteem nor kindness for the Duke’s matters, but, contrarily, do slight him and them; and I pray God the Kingdom do not pay too dear by this jarring; though this blockheaded Duke I did never expect better from."
Coventry reads all the Duke of York's dispatches. He knows what the real figures are. Today, in front of everyone, Coventry questions whether or not the Duke's figures are correct, and if York is prepared to stand behind them, they should be publicized etc. This can be read as Coventry challenging York about sending bogus intelligence to the fleet to bolster morale with lies. Pepys, being on the inside, listens with astonishment to the deceit.
I wonder which Duke was the blockhead on July 12, Albemarle or York?
"It has been a long time since Pepys has seen a play."
It has. And he won't see one for a while yet ... in fact:
"I away before to White Hall, and into the new playhouse there, the first time I ever was there, and the first play I have seen since before the great plague.
"By and by Mr. Pierce comes, bringing my wife and his, and Knipp. By and by the King and Queene, Duke and Duchesse, and all the great ladies of the Court; which, indeed, was a fine sight. But the play being “Love in a Tub,” a silly play, and though done by the Duke’s people, yet having neither Betterton nor his wife, and the whole thing done ill, and being ill also, I had no manner of pleasure in the play. Besides, the House, though very fine, yet bad for the voice, for hearing. "
https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/… -- since the theater was at Whitehall, it wasn't burned by the Great Fire. But it is new, so it is probably being planned or under construction now.
Anyone else know what happened to the theater companies after they returned from the plague hiatus at Oxford?
Cork has been found in tombs dating back to ancient Egypt. The Greeks and Romans also made use of it, and it has been found used in floats for fishing nets, sandals, wine bottle stoppers and personal flotation devices for fishermen. It was used to insulate homes: it made floors comfortable to walk on and was resistant to attack from insects and other pests.
Until the mid-1700’s, it was usually harvested from where it was growing naturally, but its increasing use led to it being purposefully cultivated. Cork was adopted when glass bottles needed stoppers, at a time when wine or beer was safer to drink than most water, this was vital. Starting in 1688, Pierre Perignon used corks held in place with wire to seal bottles of his latest creation, champagne.
[The strong bottles needed to withstand the fermenting process were developed in England, and the fermenting process was developed for Somerset cider production -- the Royal Society discussed these developments a couple of years before this -- sds]
Cork is the outermost layer of bark of two different species of oak tree that grow in the Mediterranean and Iberian region. It is harvested when the tree reaches 20 years, and then every 9 years after that. The productive life of the tree averages about 150 years, and the best quality cork comes from older trees, so producers are best served by allowing the trees to grow undisturbed in large stands.
Cork is harvested from oak trees using a special hatchet. Vertical and horizontal cuts are made through the bark, being careful not to hurt the living part of the tree. Usually this is done on the trunk, but on some larger trees the lower branches are also utilized. The layer is then gently removed using the wedge shaped side of the hatchet, so the trees are not damaged.
The slabs are left to cure outside for up to 6 months. This strengthens and flattens them. After that, they are treated using heat and water to remove dirt and unwanted chemicals. This leaves the cork flexible and soft.
Once it is ready, the poorer quality cork is scraped away, and the remaining portion is left to cure and dry in darkness and with controlled humidity. This high quality material will be made into wine stoppers, while the lower quality cork will be ground and made into agglomerated cork. There is no waste product.
So cork was used for lots of things.
In July 1666 Pepys bought some cork from a Mr. Hill of Thames Street. I suspect that he is the same man as John Hill, the tar merchant of Thames Street. He sounds like a general importer of industrial raw materials and Pepys probably bought all he had in stock. My guess is Coventry sent Pepys out to buy as much as he could find, rather than specifying 5 tons of it.
Cork has been found in tombs dating back to ancient Egypt. The Greeks and Romans also made use of it, and it has been found used in floats for fishing nets, sandals, wine bottle stoppers and personal flotation devices for fishermen. It was used to insulate homes: it made floors comfortable to walk on and was resistant to attack from insects and other pests.
Until the mid-1700’s, it was usually harvested from where it was growing naturally, but its increasing use led to it being purposefully cultivated. Cork was adopted when glass bottles needed stoppers, at a time when wine or beer was safer to drink than most water, this was vital. Starting in 1688, Pierre Perignon used corks held in place with wire to seal bottles of his latest creation, champagne.
[The strong bottles needed to withstand the fermenting process were developed in England, and the fermenting process was developed for Somerset cider production -- the Royal Society discussed these developments a couple of years before this -- sds]
Cork is the outermost layer of bark of two different species of oak tree that grow in the Mediterranean and Iberian region. It is harvested when the tree reaches 20 years, and then every 9 years after that. The productive life of the tree averages about 150 years, and the best quality cork comes from older trees, so producers are best served by allowing the trees to grow undisturbed in large stands.
Cork is harvested from oak trees using a specially hatchet. Vertical and horizontal cuts are made through the bark, being careful not to hurt the living part of the tree. Usually this is done on the trunk, but on some larger trees the lower branches are also utilized. The layer is then gently removed using the wedge shaped side of the hatchet, so the trees are not damaged.
The slabs are left to cure outside for up to 6 months. This strengthens and flattens them. After that, they are treated using heat and water to remove dirt and unwanted chemicals. This leaves the cork more flexible and soft.
Once it is ready, the poorer quality cork is scraped away, and the remaining portion is left to cure and dry in darkness and with controlled humidity. This high quality material will be made into wine stoppers, while the lower quality cork will be ground and made into agglomerated cork. There is no waste product.
So cork was used for lots of things. I suspect the Mr. Hill of Thames Street above is the same as John Hill, the tar merchant of Thames Street. I guess he was a general importer of industrial raw materials and Pepys probably bought all he had in stock.
“A wonderful dark sky, and shower of rain this morning, which at Harwich proved so too, with a shower of hail as big as walnuts.” How did Pepys know this?
Taking my estimate of 4 hours of hard riding for a Navy messenger to get from Harwich to Westminster, if he left after the hail – guess 10 a.m. – he’d be at Westminster and meeting with Coventry by 2 p.m.
“Up in the afternoon, and passed the day with Balty, who is come from sea for a day or two before the fight, …” The fleet is at or riding off Harwich. So perhaps Balty is the messenger???
Wednesday 25 April 1666 – “So I away to Westminster (Balty with me, whom I had presented to Sir W. Coventry)” So Coventry knows Pepys is Balty’s brother-in-law. Coventry therefore logically sends Balty to Pepys, and notifies the offices that if they have mail to go to Harwich, they have about 36 hours to get it written up and to Balty before he returns for the fray.
Also on April 25: “I to present Balty to Sir W. Penn, who at my entreaty did write a most obliging letter to Harman to use him civilly,…”
And on Sunday 25 March 1666 L&M tells us that Balty St. Michel served the summer of 1666 in Sir John Harman's fleet in the capacity of Muster Master.
With his background of a year fighting with the Dutch, Balty is the perfect, trusted, experienced messenger. Instead, Balty asks Pepys if there is anything he can do so he can honorably miss his ship sailing. I think Pepys was gracious about that … but I don’t think he wants Esther Watts St. Michel as another dependent either.
The distance between Harwich and City of London is 106 kilometers (66 miles) as the crow flies. Let’s guess this was 100 miles to Westminster in Stuart times.
Horses gallop an average 40 to 48 kilometres per hour (25 to 30 mph). The world record for a horse galloping over a short, sprint distance is 88 kilometres per hour (55 mph).
I therefore estimate a messenger, taking a relay of horses, could get from Harwich to Westminster in about 4 hours of hard riding.
I think Pepys was trying to have a lighthearted day off. To me, "So home and supped and away went Michell and his wife, of whom I stole two or three salutes, ..." fits this definition:
1688 R. HOLME Armoury III. 169/2 In Dances,..a Salute, a Kiss, or Kiss of the hand with a bow of the Body.
I imagine him farting all the way home in the coach, and having to make light of it there and then at dinner to the Mitchells. Now he and Elizabeth are standing at the front door saying goodnight ... and he does a mock-gallantry "after you, Alphonse" routine holding Betty Howlett Mitchell's hand and making everyone laugh so he feels forgiven -- all the while squeezing her pretty little hand so she knows that he knows that she knows.
In 1661 Edmund Waller entitled “A Poem on St. James’s Park as lately improved by his majesty”, which offers an idealized version of the park, a formerly marshy area near the royal palace that had been made a park in the 16th century.
Charles II turned the park into a formal garden, on the model of the French gardens that had impressed him when he was living in exile near Paris.
Where Waller flatters the King for having transformed it into a kind of paradise, around this time the recently welcomed back to Court and appointed as a new Gentleman of the Bedchamber, John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester writes of the seamy underside of the sexual assignations that were apparently also commonplace there for members of all classes in his epic, "A Ramble in St. James's Park".
A Ramble was published in 1680 (the year he died), but who knows when this was circulated in written form to his friends. It is found in "Poems on Several Occasions: By the Right Honourable, The E. of R--" (Antwerpen, 1680?): 14-19. John Wilmot, earl of Rochester, Poems on Several Occasions [1680?] (Scolar Press, 1971): 14-19. British Library X.989/13650
Charles II had remodeled some small ponds into one long lake, often referred to as a "canal". I presume this was where Pepys took his nap. For someone "having no great mind to be found idling" at Whitehall, sleeping in St. James's Park seems a curious acceptable alternative.
Remembering that last week Pepys unsuccessfully tried to meet with the Commissioners of Excise, I wonder if that's why he invited John Hunt to lunch? According to the L&M footnote for 12 Mar. 1660/61, by early 1666 John was serving as a sub-commissioner for Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. It does not say it, but I presume that he was still in the Excise Office. Help on the inside of any organization often helps solve problems.
Comments
Second Reading
About Thursday 19 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
"So at noon home to dinner, Balty and his wife with us." ... "... the fleet is sailed this morning; ..."
Balty got his wish.
About Thursday 19 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
"Full of wants of money ..."
Not only the on-going costs Terry pointed us to, but in addition, who paid for the cork last week? ... and on July 12: "By and by called to wait on the Duke, the King being present; and there agreed, among other things, of the places to build the ten new great ships ordered to be built, and as to the relief of prisoners in Holland. "
True, England will need ten new great warships very soon, and getting 5,000 sailors home from Holland would be helpful ... but how much do warships cost and who's going to pay for them???? (Deficit spending off budget without competitive bidding with my old company answers Cheney.)
About The Commission of Sick and Wounded Prisoners
San Diego Sarah • Link
Wednesday 11 July 1666
“Up, and by water to Sir G. Downing’s, there to discourse with him about the reliefe of the prisoners in Holland; which I did, and we do resolve of the manner of sending them some.” … “By and by called to wait on the Duke, the King being present; and there agreed, among other things, ... and as to the relief of prisoners in Holland.”
L&M note those in the gaol at Flushing/Vlissingen were in need of food and medical attention.
Pepys went to see Sir George Downing about the prisoners because (taken from Evelyn's Diary):
"12 July, 1666. We sat the first time in the Star-Chamber. There was now added to our HOSPITAL commission Sir George Downing (one that had been a great against his Majesty, but now insinuated into his favor; and, from a pedagogue and fanatic preacher, not worth a groat, had become excessively rich), to inspect the hospitals and treat about prisons."
Not only was Downing Pepys' former boss, but he had spent years at The Hague as the representative from England for both Charles II and Parliament, so he knew everyone, and probably speaks the language.
Downing joins John Evelyn, Sir William D'Oyly, Sir Thomas Clifford and Col. Bullen Reymes as a Commissioner for taking Care of Sick and Wounded Seamen.
About Wednesday 11 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
Pepys went to see Downing about the Flemish prisoners because -- from Evelyn's Diary tomorrow [SPOILER[:
"12 July, 1666. We sat the first time in the Star-Chamber. There was now added to our HOSPITAL commission Sir George Downing (one that had been a great against his Majesty, but now insinuated into his favor; and, from a pedagogue and fanatic preacher, not worth a groat, had become excessively rich), to inspect the hospitals and treat about prisons."
So Downing joins John Evelyn, Sir William D'Oyly, Sir Thomas Clifford and Col. Bullen Reymesas -- the Commissioners for taking Care of Sick and Wounded Seamen. The COMMISSION FOR SICK AND WOUNDED PRISONERS link is
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Plus of course Downing had spent years at The Hague representing England for both Charles II and Parliament, so he knows everyone and probably speaks the language.
About Wednesday 11 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
How confusing. We have the English Charles II telling tales on the Spanish Charles II (for clarity, we should agree to call him Carlos II).
"the King did speake most in contempt of the ceremoniousnesse of the King of Spayne, that he do nothing but under some ridiculous form or other, and will not piss but another must hold the chamber-pot."
To which Terry gives us the L&M comment: "Charles had paid only one very brief visit to Spain, to Saragossa and Fuenterrabia, at the end of 1659, but knew the Spanish court at Brussels well in his exile. Cf. the comment of John Sheffield, Duke of Buckingham on Charles (Works, 1740, ii, 81): 'He had so natural an aversion to formality ... he could not on premeditation act the part of a King for a moment, either at Parliament or Council ... which carried him into the other extreme ... of letting all distinction and ceremony fall to the ground as useless and foppish.'"
I think the John Sheffield, Duke of Buckingham quote is about the character of England's Charles II, not Carlos II.
Carlos II and Louis XIV were competitors for glory and prestige -- Charles II's travels during the Interregnum had taught him to know better, but he also understood that some ceremony and grandeur was expected of him and necessary.
About East India Company (English)
San Diego Sarah • Link
Saltpetre is one of the three basic ingredients for gunpowder. England never organized her production of saltpetre (unlike the rest of Europe), which caused Charles I considerable difficulty during the Civil War as the three major production centers of gunpowder were under Parliamentary control: London, Hull and Portsmouth.
An interesting book on the subject is Saltpeter: The Mother of Gunpowder -- by David Cressy -- Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2013, ISBN: 9780199695751; 256pp.
In Chapter seven, ‘Saltpeter for a global power’, he documents a change of focus from the activities of the English saltpetermen to that of importing using the East India Company.
Whereas King Charles in the 1630s was struggling to achieve a target of 288 tons of saltpetre a year, imports from India topped 1,000 tons during various years of the reign of Charles II.
The volume of saltpetre supplies available to later Stuart monarchs surpassed that from all previous conflicts.
Even this review is interesting:
http://www.history.ac.uk/reviews/…
About Wednesday 18 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
In those days gunpowder was a fortuitous mix of sulphur, charcoal and saltpetre. It was that last ingredient that was the most vital and the hardest to obtain.
John Evelyn's family made gunpowder at several locations for the Royalist armies during the Civil Wars, which explains his inclusion on the Saltpetre Commission.
What do the night soil men do with their haul? They either sold it to the garden markets around London -- or to the saltpetremen to make gunpowder.
In the rest of Europe each country had organized the making of saltpetre; in Sweden you could pay your taxes with it. But not England -- I wonder why. Charles I's efforts to take communities' stashes of gunpowder made him very unpopular -- but his saltpetremen's strong-arm methods to take people's dung from their stables, etc., contributed to unrest leading to the Civil Wars.
Under Charles II the government conceded home production was inadequate, and started importing it in earnest from India through the East India Company.
An interesting book on the subject is Saltpeter: The Mother of Gunpowder -- by David Cressy -- Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2013, ISBN: 9780199695751; 256pp.
Even this review is interesting:
http://www.history.ac.uk/reviews/…
About Sunday 15 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
Good point, Jonathan. I think you solved the dilemma. And no, Phil, St, James's Park was open to all ... read the poem I linked by Rochester to see just how open!
About Junk
San Diego Sarah • Link
junk (n.1)
mid-14c., junke "old cable or rope," cut in bits and used for caulking, etc., a nautical word of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French junc "rush, reed," also used figuratively as a type of something of little value, from Latin iuncus "rush, reed" (but OED finds "no evidence of connection").
It was extended to "old refuse from boats and ships" (1660s),
then to "old or discarded articles of any kind" (1884), usually with a suggestion of reusability.
Meaning "salt meat used on long voyages" is from 1762.
Meaning "narcotic drug" is from 1925.
Junk food is from 1971;
junk art is from 1961;
junk mail first attested 1954;
junk bond from 1979.
junk (n.2)
"large, seagoing Chinese sailing ship," 1610s, from Portuguese junco, from Malay (Austronesian) jong "ship, large boat" (13c.), probably from Javanese djong. In English 16c. as giunche, iunco.
junk (v.)
1803, "to cut off in lumps," from junk (n.1). The meaning "to throw away as trash, to scrap" is from 1908. Related: Junked; junking.
New settlers (who should always be here as early in the spring as possible) begin to cut down the wood where they intend to erect their first house. As the trees are cut the branches are to be lopped off, and the trunks cut into lengths of 12 or 14 feet. This operation they call junking them; if they are not junked before fire is applied, they are much worse to junk afterwards. [letter dated Charlotte Town, Nov. 29, 1820, in "A Series of Letters Descriptive of Prince Edward Island," 1822]
From https://www.etymonline.com/word/j…
About Wednesday 18 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
The Royal Society today at Gresham College — from the Hooke Folio Online
IIuly. 18. 1666. ... There was tryed an expt. wth. Sal Armon: & salt peter to see which of the two had the greatest force to cool. the expt. not being orderd as it should be. The Curator [ Hooke ] was charged to Lett it be made at the next meeting wth. both the salts putt into an aequall quantity of water, in the same vessell obseruing the same time with both.
And for those of us following Evelyn's Diary:
2 July, 1666. Came Sir John Duncomb and Mr. Thomas Chicheley, both Privy Councilors and Commissioners of His Majesty's Ordnance, to visit me, and let me know that his Majesty had in Council, nominated me to be one of the Commissioners for regulating the farming and making of saltpeter through the whole kingdom, and that we were to sit in the Tower the next day.
3 July, 1666. I went to sit with the Commissioners at the Tower, where our commission being read, we made some progress in business, our Secretary being Sir George Wharton, that famous mathematician who wrote the yearly Almanac during his Majesty's troubles.
Saltpeter (nitre) is needed for the production of gunpowder. Evidently England needs to be making more of it. Evelyn is an F.R.S. so he may have asked the Royal Society for help improving it?
About Wednesday 18 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
"Sir W. Coventry did publickly move, that if his Royal Highness had this of a certainty, it would be of use to send this down to the fleete, and to cause it to be spread about the fleete, for the recovering of the spirits of the officers and seamen; who are under great dejectedness for want of knowing that they did do any thing against the enemy, notwithstanding all that they did to us. Which, though it be true, yet methought was one of the most dishonourable motions to our countrymen that ever was made; and is worth remembering."
Remember on Thursday 12 July, 1666, Pepys listened to Coventry's dejected appraisal of where things stood. Pepys concluded: "In fine, I do observe, he [COVENTRY] hath no esteem nor kindness for the Duke’s matters, but, contrarily, do slight him and them; and I pray God the Kingdom do not pay too dear by this jarring; though this blockheaded Duke I did never expect better from."
Coventry reads all the Duke of York's dispatches. He knows what the real figures are. Today, in front of everyone, Coventry questions whether or not the Duke's figures are correct, and if York is prepared to stand behind them, they should be publicized etc. This can be read as Coventry challenging York about sending bogus intelligence to the fleet to bolster morale with lies. Pepys, being on the inside, listens with astonishment to the deceit.
I wonder which Duke was the blockhead on July 12, Albemarle or York?
https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
About Saturday 14 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
"It has been a long time since Pepys has seen a play."
It has. And he won't see one for a while yet ... in fact:
"I away before to White Hall, and into the new playhouse there, the first time I ever was there, and the first play I have seen since before the great plague.
"By and by Mr. Pierce comes, bringing my wife and his, and Knipp. By and by the King and Queene, Duke and Duchesse, and all the great ladies of the Court; which, indeed, was a fine sight. But the play being “Love in a Tub,” a silly play, and though done by the Duke’s people, yet having neither Betterton nor his wife, and the whole thing done ill, and being ill also, I had no manner of pleasure in the play. Besides, the House, though very fine, yet bad for the voice, for hearing. "
https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/… -- since the theater was at Whitehall, it wasn't burned by the Great Fire. But it is new, so it is probably being planned or under construction now.
Anyone else know what happened to the theater companies after they returned from the plague hiatus at Oxford?
About Cork
San Diego Sarah • Link
I got this from https://www.corkway.com/articles/…
Cork has been found in tombs dating back to ancient Egypt. The Greeks and Romans also made use of it, and it has been found used in floats for fishing nets, sandals, wine bottle stoppers and personal flotation devices for fishermen. It was used to insulate homes: it made floors comfortable to walk on and was resistant to attack from insects and other pests.
Until the mid-1700’s, it was usually harvested from where it was growing naturally, but its increasing use led to it being purposefully cultivated. Cork was adopted when glass bottles needed stoppers, at a time when wine or beer was safer to drink than most water, this was vital. Starting in 1688, Pierre Perignon used corks held in place with wire to seal bottles of his latest creation, champagne.
[The strong bottles needed to withstand the fermenting process were developed in England, and the fermenting process was developed for Somerset cider production -- the Royal Society discussed these developments a couple of years before this -- sds]
Cork is the outermost layer of bark of two different species of oak tree that grow in the Mediterranean and Iberian region. It is harvested when the tree reaches 20 years, and then every 9 years after that. The productive life of the tree averages about 150 years, and the best quality cork comes from older trees, so producers are best served by allowing the trees to grow undisturbed in large stands.
Cork is harvested from oak trees using a special hatchet. Vertical and horizontal cuts are made through the bark, being careful not to hurt the living part of the tree. Usually this is done on the trunk, but on some larger trees the lower branches are also utilized. The layer is then gently removed using the wedge shaped side of the hatchet, so the trees are not damaged.
The slabs are left to cure outside for up to 6 months. This strengthens and flattens them. After that, they are treated using heat and water to remove dirt and unwanted chemicals. This leaves the cork flexible and soft.
Once it is ready, the poorer quality cork is scraped away, and the remaining portion is left to cure and dry in darkness and with controlled humidity. This high quality material will be made into wine stoppers, while the lower quality cork will be ground and made into agglomerated cork. There is no waste product.
So cork was used for lots of things.
In July 1666 Pepys bought some cork from a Mr. Hill of Thames Street. I suspect that he is the same man as John Hill, the tar merchant of Thames Street. He sounds like a general importer of industrial raw materials and Pepys probably bought all he had in stock. My guess is Coventry sent Pepys out to buy as much as he could find, rather than specifying 5 tons of it.
About Saturday 14 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
Now you mention it, Elizabeth, I agree. I got this from https://www.corkway.com/articles/… :
Cork has been found in tombs dating back to ancient Egypt. The Greeks and Romans also made use of it, and it has been found used in floats for fishing nets, sandals, wine bottle stoppers and personal flotation devices for fishermen. It was used to insulate homes: it made floors comfortable to walk on and was resistant to attack from insects and other pests.
Until the mid-1700’s, it was usually harvested from where it was growing naturally, but its increasing use led to it being purposefully cultivated. Cork was adopted when glass bottles needed stoppers, at a time when wine or beer was safer to drink than most water, this was vital. Starting in 1688, Pierre Perignon used corks held in place with wire to seal bottles of his latest creation, champagne.
[The strong bottles needed to withstand the fermenting process were developed in England, and the fermenting process was developed for Somerset cider production -- the Royal Society discussed these developments a couple of years before this -- sds]
Cork is the outermost layer of bark of two different species of oak tree that grow in the Mediterranean and Iberian region. It is harvested when the tree reaches 20 years, and then every 9 years after that. The productive life of the tree averages about 150 years, and the best quality cork comes from older trees, so producers are best served by allowing the trees to grow undisturbed in large stands.
Cork is harvested from oak trees using a specially hatchet. Vertical and horizontal cuts are made through the bark, being careful not to hurt the living part of the tree. Usually this is done on the trunk, but on some larger trees the lower branches are also utilized. The layer is then gently removed using the wedge shaped side of the hatchet, so the trees are not damaged.
The slabs are left to cure outside for up to 6 months. This strengthens and flattens them. After that, they are treated using heat and water to remove dirt and unwanted chemicals. This leaves the cork more flexible and soft.
Once it is ready, the poorer quality cork is scraped away, and the remaining portion is left to cure and dry in darkness and with controlled humidity. This high quality material will be made into wine stoppers, while the lower quality cork will be ground and made into agglomerated cork. There is no waste product.
So cork was used for lots of things. I suspect the Mr. Hill of Thames Street above is the same as John Hill, the tar merchant of Thames Street. I guess he was a general importer of industrial raw materials and Pepys probably bought all he had in stock.
About Monday 16 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
“A wonderful dark sky, and shower of rain this morning, which at Harwich proved so too, with a shower of hail as big as walnuts.” How did Pepys know this?
Taking my estimate of 4 hours of hard riding for a Navy messenger to get from Harwich to Westminster, if he left after the hail – guess 10 a.m. – he’d be at Westminster and meeting with Coventry by 2 p.m.
“Up in the afternoon, and passed the day with Balty, who is come from sea for a day or two before the fight, …” The fleet is at or riding off Harwich. So perhaps Balty is the messenger???
Wednesday 25 April 1666 – “So I away to Westminster (Balty with me, whom I had presented to Sir W. Coventry)” So Coventry knows Pepys is Balty’s brother-in-law. Coventry therefore logically sends Balty to Pepys, and notifies the offices that if they have mail to go to Harwich, they have about 36 hours to get it written up and to Balty before he returns for the fray.
Also on April 25: “I to present Balty to Sir W. Penn, who at my entreaty did write a most obliging letter to Harman to use him civilly,…”
And on Sunday 25 March 1666 L&M tells us that Balty St. Michel served the summer of 1666 in Sir John Harman's fleet in the capacity of Muster Master.
With his background of a year fighting with the Dutch, Balty is the perfect, trusted, experienced messenger. Instead, Balty asks Pepys if there is anything he can do so he can honorably miss his ship sailing. I think Pepys was gracious about that … but I don’t think he wants Esther Watts St. Michel as another dependent either.
About Harwich, Essex
San Diego Sarah • Link
The distance between Harwich and City of London is 106 kilometers (66 miles) as the crow flies. Let’s guess this was 100 miles to Westminster in Stuart times.
Horses gallop an average 40 to 48 kilometres per hour (25 to 30 mph). The world record for a horse galloping over a short, sprint distance is 88 kilometres per hour (55 mph).
I therefore estimate a messenger, taking a relay of horses, could get from Harwich to Westminster in about 4 hours of hard riding.
About Sunday 15 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
I think Pepys was trying to have a lighthearted day off. To me, "So home and supped and away went Michell and his wife, of whom I stole two or three salutes, ..." fits this definition:
1688 R. HOLME Armoury III. 169/2 In Dances,..a Salute, a Kiss, or Kiss of the hand with a bow of the Body.
I imagine him farting all the way home in the coach, and having to make light of it there and then at dinner to the Mitchells. Now he and Elizabeth are standing at the front door saying goodnight ... and he does a mock-gallantry "after you, Alphonse" routine holding Betty Howlett Mitchell's hand and making everyone laugh so he feels forgiven -- all the while squeezing her pretty little hand so she knows that he knows that she knows.
Nice friendly Uncle Pepys.
About Sunday 15 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
In 1661 Edmund Waller entitled “A Poem on St. James’s Park as lately improved by his majesty”, which offers an idealized version of the park, a formerly marshy area near the royal palace that had been made a park in the 16th century.
Charles II turned the park into a formal garden, on the model of the French gardens that had impressed him when he was living in exile near Paris.
Where Waller flatters the King for having transformed it into a kind of paradise, around this time the recently welcomed back to Court and appointed as a new Gentleman of the Bedchamber, John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester writes of the seamy underside of the sexual assignations that were apparently also commonplace there for members of all classes in his epic, "A Ramble in St. James's Park".
A Ramble was published in 1680 (the year he died), but who knows when this was circulated in written form to his friends. It is found in "Poems on Several Occasions: By the Right Honourable, The E. of R--" (Antwerpen, 1680?): 14-19. John Wilmot, earl of Rochester, Poems on Several Occasions [1680?] (Scolar Press, 1971): 14-19. British Library X.989/13650
And no, you're going to have to read it elsewhere!
https://rpo.library.utoronto.ca/p…
But I wouldn't be napping there.
About Sunday 15 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
"... lay down by the canaille, ..."
Charles II had remodeled some small ponds into one long lake, often referred to as a "canal". I presume this was where Pepys took his nap. For someone "having no great mind to be found idling" at Whitehall, sleeping in St. James's Park seems a curious acceptable alternative.
About Sunday 15 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
Remembering that last week Pepys unsuccessfully tried to meet with the Commissioners of Excise, I wonder if that's why he invited John Hunt to lunch? According to the L&M footnote for 12 Mar. 1660/61, by early 1666 John was serving as a sub-commissioner for Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. It does not say it, but I presume that he was still in the Excise Office. Help on the inside of any organization often helps solve problems.