Monday 16 June 1662

Up before four o’clock, and after some business took Will forth, and he and I walked over the Tower Hill, but the gate not being open we walked through St. Catharine’s and Ratcliffe (I think it is) by the waterside above a mile before we could get a boat, and so over the water in a scull (which I have not done a great while), and walked finally to Deptford, where I saw in what forwardness the work is for Sir W. Batten’s house and mine, and it is almost ready. I also, with Mr. Davis, did view my cozen Joyce’s tallow, and compared it with the Irish tallow we bought lately, and found ours much more white, but as soft as it; now what is the fault, or whether it be or no a fault, I know not.

So walked home again as far as over against the Towre, and so over and home, where I found Sir W. Pen and Sir John Minnes discoursing about Sir John Minnes’s house and his coming to live with us, and I think he intends to have Mr. Turner’s house and he to come to his lodgings, which I shall be very glad of. We three did go to Mr. Turner’s to view his house, which I think was to the end that Sir John Minnes might see it.

Then by water with my wife to the Wardrobe, and dined there; and in the afternoon with all the children by water to Greenwich, where I showed them the King’s yacht, the house, and the park, all very pleasant; and so to the tavern, and had the musique of the house, and so merrily home again. Will and I walked home from the Wardrobe, having left my wife at the Tower Wharf coming by, whom I found gone to bed not very well … [she having her month’s upon her. – L&M] So to bed.

27 Annotations

First Reading

Bradford  •  Link

. . . "I walked home from the Wardrobe, having left my wife at the tower wharf coming by---whom I find gone to bed not very well, she having her month's upon her. So to bed."
---as given in "The Shorter Pepys"

Australian Susan  •  Link

What a busy day for Sam - showing his usual way of doing things - Go And Have A Look Yourself: he goes to inspect the troublesome tallow and have firsthand information as well as keeping an eye on the workmen - he seems surprised they have got on with so much work so fast without someone perpetually around to chivy them along (which is how Sam seems to view house alterations). And then a lovely pleasure trip with the children he so enjoys being with. Alas, poor Elizabeth had her usual trouble and a badly timed reminder of their childlessness.

A. De Araujo  •  Link

"whom I found gone to bed not very well"
Probably PMS,she was somewhat irritaded yesterday.

language hat  •  Link

Joyce's tallow and Irish tallow:
Nice references for Bloomsday!

Australian Susan  •  Link

Dirk, where *do* you find these lovely websites! This one is a delight! I have been looking at all the dolls - you're right: the lute player and his lady are very much reminiscent of our Sam and his good lady. I also found, further on in the site, a Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett. Thank you for this pleasant interlude in my day.

Australian Susan  •  Link

Blooms Day.
All we need now is for Sam to have fried kidneys or other offal.

But, back to the tallow: was this for candles? or a food source?

C.J.Darby  •  Link

Tallow was probably used for waterproofing ropes on the ships as a substitute for tar,if i'm right it was also used in yarn for stitching sails.

Mary  •  Link

tallow.

One of its principal uses was as a lubricant.

doj  •  Link

Was not tallow used for candle production as well? If I recollect, whiter tallow would make a brighter (or at least less smoky) candle.

David Ross McIrvine  •  Link

dirk writes:

http://www.jillbennettdolls.co.uk…

I suspect Leopold Bloom ordered doll #4 to be sent to his secret P.O. Box, in a plain brown wrapper. Yesterday, in the Postal Office, with the pencil.

Tom Burns  •  Link

Tallow and candles

Tallow was the principal ingredient for candle in Sam's time because it was readily available - it is simply rendered animal fat. Purity would have been an issue because tallow stank when it burned and, presumably, the purer stuff was less odiferous. An alternative material was beeswax, but this was used only by the wealthy because of its expense.

A. De Araujo  •  Link

"because tallow stank when it burned"
Mrs C is deaf so she did not know what a commotion she was creating.She is very sensitive on the subject of bad odors.Candles have to be taken out of the room to be snuffed.She finds violets oppressive.Can only tolerate a single kind of rose.Tea rose she will not have in her room.
cf Mary Chestnut's Civil War(American that is)

Robert Gertz  •  Link

Leopold and Samuel strolling some alternate universe's merged London and Dublin together on a Monday morning...Now there's a walk I'd like to be in on. Though I would also like to catch things in the Bloom parlor where Molly instructs Bess on how to manage a troublesome husband.

dirk  •  Link

I noted the following message on the Discussion Group site, which I think should be repeated here:

From: Martha Rosen

On Monday, June 16, 1662, Pepys writes "Then by water with my wife to the Wardrobe, and dined there; and in the afternoon with all the children by water to Greenwich, where I showed them the King's yacht, the house, and the park, all very pleasant; and so to the tavern, and had the musique of the house, and so merrily home again.”

Who were the children?

(Actually, I’m not too sure myself who “all the children” are…)

Pauline  •  Link

"all the children"
Little Sandwiches picked up at the Wardrobe.
The two big boys are off studying in France (unless they have quietly returned), leaving:
Lady Jem, age 16
Paulina, age 13
Anne, age 9
Oliver, age 7
John, age 7
Charles, age 4
Catherine, age 1

If the smaller two are part of the expedition to Greenwich, for sure nursery maids are along too. For the rest, I imagine a governess or tutor or maid would be included for their own enjoyment of the outing as well as to assist with the children.

What do you think? Catherine stays home, but no way will Charles want to stay back in the nursery with her while the twins go off without him. I hope he got to go.

Australian Susan  •  Link

Tallow is used as a cooking oil in cheap burger establishments nowadays. Would the Navy have done this too?
Until paraffin wax became available (what most candles nowadays are made of), the poor had tallow (which smelt nasty) and the rich had beeswax (which smelt nice). Churches used beeswax candles. The poor used rushes as wicks, making lights for themselves by dipping the rush in melted fat. Burning the candle at both ends meant just that - the rush was twisted up so both ends could be lighted at the same time giving tqice the light for half the time. Beeswax candles are easy to make if you have a good sheet of beeswax with straight edges - you simply put a length of cotton wick in the middle and roll it up, then cut in into sections if you want smaller candles. Cotton wicks give the best light and need to be twisted and doubled in order to not burn down too quickly and outrace the wax and get lost in the candle. Would Sam have had cotton wicks by this time? Did they have access to Indian cotton? Or was it still rush wicks? But presumably candles purchased from a manufacturer. Or did Elizabeth have the maids dipping rushes to make their own supplies??

Australian Susan  •  Link

A further thought on oils - when did whale oil become available for domestic use? I know Whitby (NE England) sailors got whales in the 18th century, but I don't know when the industry started.

Pauline  •  Link

Oliver and Charles
Note, Oliver born in 1655 and Charles in 1658, and what this says about Lord Sandwich's political leanings (or calculations). Would be interesting to know how these names were felt by the lads themselves as they grew up and began to understand the recent history.

Son James is coming in 1664.

Australian Susan  •  Link

Not sure if this is a factoid, but I read somewhere that Princess Diana wanted to call her firstborn Oliver, until someone gently pointed out to her that calling the lad after someone who had caused her husband's ancestor's head to be cut off was a tad tactless to say the least.
Even today, William and George are not popular names in the Highlands, because ofthe aftrmath of the Highland Clearances and in Northern Ireland, calling a child these names brands you a "Prod". Oliver as a child's name in the late 17th century was probably akin to Adolf in the late 20th century.

dirk  •  Link

when did whale oil become available...

Susan, I dug up the following - it may answer at least part of your question:

"[...] for the poor cottager in Britain, if there was oil to be spared from food, it was likely to have come from fish. The wealthy could afford superior imported oils. [...]

Until paraffin oil became widely available, the difference in quality of oils was similar to that between tallow and wax candles. A higher price meant more light and less smell and smoke. In 1709 the tax imposed on candles was also levied on oil except from fish which, like rushlights, was exempted in recognition that this oil was a light of the poor. [...]

The finest and most expensive whale oil that produced a good light with little smell came from the sperm whale. It first became available in Britain in about l750."

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/h…

Patricia  •  Link

Once again we see that Elizabeth's periods are pretty regular (last mention on May 13th) which indicates she has a reasonably good diet, I think.

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"took Will forth, and he and I walked over the Tower Hill, but the gate not being open...."

This, say L&M was the gate at the SE end of the city wall in the range of buildings reaching almost to the N side of the Tower of London. It separated Great Tower Hill and Little Tower Hill.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"to Deptford, where I saw in what forwardness the work is for Sir W. Batten’s house and mine, and it is almost ready."

I.e. the timber frames for the new roof at the Navy Office (L&M note)

"he seems surprised they have got on with so much work so fast without someone perpetually around to chivy them along (which is how Sam seems to view house alterations)." But Aussie Sue, this work is being done in a shipyard where the carpenters are accustomed to work, and where, methinks, there are also others "perpetually around to chivy them along." No wonder it's "forward."

Chris Squire UK  •  Link

OED has:

‘tallow, n. < Middle English talȝ, talgh, known first in 14th cent . .
2. A substance consisting of a somewhat hard animal fat (esp. that obtained from the parts about the kidneys of ruminating animals, now chiefly the sheep and ox), separated by melting and clarifying from the membranes, etc., naturally mixed with it; used for making candles and soap, dressing leather, and other purposes. In quot. a1616, dripping.
. . a1616 Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) iii. ii. 99 Her ragges and the Tallow in them, will burne a Poland Winter.
1623 R. Whitbourne Disc. New-found-land 98 Diuersities of the ground..that hath come in the Tallo, on the end of the Lead.
. . 1839 A. Ure Dict. Arts 1225 Tallow..of the ox consists of 76 parts of stearine, and 24 of oleine . . ‘

Third Reading

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