Monday 14 October 1661

This morning I ventured by water abroad to Westminster, but lost my labour, for Mr. Montagu was not in town. So to the Wardrobe, and there dined with my Lady, which is the first time I have seen her dine abroad since her being brought to bed of my Lady Katherine. In the afternoon Captain Ferrers and I walked abroad to several places, among others to Mr. Pim’s, my Lord’s Taylour’s, and there he went out with us to the Fountain tavern and did give us store of wine, and it being the Duke of York’s birthday, we drank the more to his health. But, Lord! what a sad story he makes of his being abused by a Dr. of Physique who is in one part of the tenement wherein he dwells. It would make one laugh, though I see he is under a great trouble in it. Thence home by link and found a good answer from my father that Sir R. Bernard do clear all things as to us and our title to Brampton, which puts my heart in great ease and quiet.

24 Annotations

First Reading

daniel  •  Link

"by a Dr. of Physique who is in one part of the tenement wherein he dwells."

hmm, obviously too much of a, uhh, good thing can be bad!

Glyn  •  Link

"and found a good answer from my father"

He got a letter from his father on the 12th and replied to it immediately. So I wonder if this is his father's response to the letter that he sent 2 days ago - if so, then the mail is surprisingly fast.

Judy B  •  Link

I just noticed in the link that Lady Katherine lived 96 years! What a period of history this lady must have seen!

Josh  •  Link

And what memories might Lady K. have had of Mr. Pepys?

vicente  •  Link

Just my thougtht Glyn, in the 1930's mail from London town posted before 8am was delivered by late after noon to of the beat farm same day. In the 80's it took at least 2 days, One way that is say.
This ??? "...I received a letter this day from my father, ..."
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
and to-days comment by Sam seems to indicate a good service, no 1d stamp either. mail faster than modern post. London to Ely and back never took two days.
"...Thence home by link and found a good answer from my father...."
He does say Answer other wise it was by ESP and truly excellent.

Ruben  •  Link

a good answer from my father:
I suggest that after sending the last letter, his father received the good news that Brampton was clear. Knowing Sam's anxiety (because of the uncertainty of the title), he inmediatly (ipso facto) sent a new letter, this time with the good news.

Pedro.  •  Link

On this Day..

The 2nd or Tangier Regiment of Foot was raised by beat of drum on 14th October 1661 at Putney from soldiers of the old Commonwealth Army.
On return from England, the Regiment was established as "our most dear consort the Queen's Regiment", and as "The Queen's" was one of the Regiments not generally known by number or by its Commanding Officer's name.

http://www.queensroyalsurreys.org…

PHE  •  Link

Fountain Tavern
This building still stands on Fleet St - now housing a permanent Pepys exhibition. It is one of the very few houses that survived the Great Fire and still stands. For more info, follow link below and select file: 03_Fleet St.pdf.
http://www.smartgroups.com/vault/…

J A Gioia  •  Link

...my Lady Katherine.

what, one wonders, was it like to live in a world where a grown man, albeit one needing to curry favor nearly constantly, was obliged to call an infant 'my lady'?

David A. Smith  •  Link

"of my Lady Katherine"
What kind of a world? In some ways, a more genteel one:
"Some people did not like this ceremonial style. But after all when you have to kill a man it costs nothing to be polite." -- Winston Churchill

Bardi McLennan  •  Link

In reply to J.A.Gioia - it's called "respect and good manners." Sadly, a strange concept in the 21st century.

A.Hamilton  •  Link

Sir R. Bernard do clear all things as to us and our title to Brampton

Atlast,clear title to the property at Brampton!

Glyn  •  Link

PHE's source is probably correct about the Fountain Tavern, but it is a little confusing because that is in Fleet Street rather than the Strand.

And there is another Fountain Tavern that is in the Strand and is commemorated on a pair of ornate plaques on either side of the road just east of Simpson

vicente  •  Link

An aside: mails, modern headline [this date]:"Royal Mail complaints rise 300 per cent as targets are missed:...."
no poste haste?

Paul Chapin  •  Link

Clear title at Brampton?

I'm not sure that this passage means the whole Brampton property business has been settled. I interpret it, rather, as a reference to the doubts Sir R. Bernard raised about the matter a couple of days ago, which evidently Sir R. has now resolved to his satisfaction. If I remember correctly what other annotators have said about the future that hasn't yet been revealed to us daily readers, it will be another year or two before the whole matter is finally settled.

Ruben  •  Link

Clear title at Brampton?

Sam knows only his present and his past.
If his father wrote that "Sir R. Bernard do clear all things as to us and our title to Brampton, which puts my heart in great ease and quiet.", well, that is a reality you can not discuss.
Sam does not know what will happen next year (1662) more than you know what will happen to you in 2005!

Pauline  •  Link

Clear title at Brampton
And clear title at Brampton is just one piece of the various things left at the death of Uncle Robert.

Because L&M treated this legacy under the entry for Uncle Robert, the information given in the L&M Companion is entered under his entry in our Background: http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…

upper_left_hand_corner  •  Link

No use complaining about the postal system.

When there was only one way to find out things at a distance, people made sure it was fast as humanly possible.

These days news travels at light speed and the other uses of mail don't require the same urgency, as important as it might be to you to get that magazine you're expecting.

Paul Chapin  •  Link

Brampton

If Ruben thinks I was ascribing clairvoyance to Sam, he has misinterpreted my annotation. What I suggested was that Sam is simply relieved that Sir Robert Bernard no longer harbors the doubts expressed in the October 12 entry:
"I received a letter this day from my father, that Sir R. Bernard do a little fear that my uncle has not observed exactly the custom of Brampton in his will about his lands there, which puts me to a great trouble in mind, and at night wrote to him and to my father about it, being much troubled at it."
I'm reasonably certain that Sam understands very well that Sir R.B. doesn't have the final say on the disposition of the estate, and that there is more to be done before it is settled. He is just happy to have this one potential barrier removed.

Second Reading

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

"... but lost my labour."

Before modern instant communications, so much time must have been wasted by people chasing each other around.

Edith Lank  •  Link

Some time in the 1980s I found myself in a bookstore in London, and found that year's just-released volume of the Diary, which hadn't been available yet in the States -- (you're hearing from an old lady, vague on specifics). What I do remember is that the store had a poster, a blow-up of Pepys' portrait, and they said yes, I could have it. They offered to mail it to my hotel, I said I was leaving the next day, they said no problem, it'd arrive on time for me to pack it -- and it did. It's a bit battered, but still on the wall in my office.

Third Reading

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

From Sandwich's log, in the bay of Tangier:

October 14. Monday.
I sent the Forester with a packet from the Governor of Tangier and Mr. Myles to the Governor of the Algarves at Lagos: and a packet of my own to him including letters to the Conde da Ponte, Sir R. Fanshawe, the D. of Y., Mr. Coventry, Lord Chancellor, S. Pepys, Lady Sandwich.

Copied from
The Journal of Edward Mountagu,
First Earl of Sandwich
Admiral and General-at-Sea 1659 - 1665

Edited by RC Anderson
Printed for the Navy Records Society
MDCCCCXXIX

Section III - Mediterranean 1661/62

@@@

The Forester - probably a frigate, with Capt. Finch in charge
https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
The Governor of Tangier -- Don Luis d'Almeida, count d'Avintes, Governor of Tangier (he must also have been the Captain General, as he gets other correspondence in that role) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lui…
Mr. Myles -- he came aboard Sandwich's ship on September 22
https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
The Governor of the Algarves at Lagos -- ideas anyone?
Lagos, Portugal https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
Lagos is one of the Algarve’s top destination cities. Boasting a historic oldtown, marina, cultural attractions, with some incredible beaches and scenery it combines much of what the Algarve is famous for. ... It’s a perfect place to spend a long weekend, or longer holiday. With a wide variety of bars, pubs, and restaurants it’s a lively place that doesn’t suffer from seasonality.
https://wetravelportugal.com/lago…
Amb. Francisco de Mello e Torres, Conde da Ponte
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Amb. Sir Richard Fanshawe https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
The D. of Y., the boss, James, Duke of York, and presumably the Lord High Admiral's private Secretary
Mr. [WILLIAM] Coventry https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon, the Lord Chancellor
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Lady Sandwich -- yes, he didn't say my wife, or Jemima as this is a formal record of events, maintained for the Admiralty
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…

LKvM  •  Link

Thanks again, San Diego Sarah, for the quote from Sandwich's diary, which i enjoy following, and the detailed information on the locations and addressees.
Regarding calling an infant "Lady Katherine," tiny babies were called the "Duke of Whatever" etc. I read a note that Chancellor Hyde deviated from that norm when, instead of calling his daughter's royal offspring by their lordly titles, he said, "How do the children?"

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