Monday 28 September 1663

Up, though with pain in my head, stomach, and ear, and that deaf so as in my way by coach to White Hall with Sir J. Minnes I called at Mr. Holliard’s, who did give me some pills, and tells me I shall have my hearing again and be well. So to White Hall, where Sir J. Minnes and I did spend an hour in the Gallery, looking upon the pictures, in which he hath some judgment. And by and by the Commissioners for Tangier met: and there my Lord Teviott, together with Captain Cuttance, Captain Evans, and Jonas Moore, sent to that purpose, did bring us a brave draught of the Mole to be built there; and report that it is likely to be the most considerable place the King of England hath in the world; and so I am apt to think it will. After discourse of this, and of supplying the garrison with some more horse, we rose; and Sir J. Minnes and I home again, finding the street about our house full, Sir R. Ford beginning his shrievalty to-day and, what with his and our houses being new painted, the street begins to look a great deal better than it did, and more gracefull.

Home and eat one bit of meat, and then by water with him and Sir W. Batten to a sale of old provisions at Deptford, which we did at Captain Boddily’s house, to the value of 600l. or 700l., but I am not satisfied with the method used in this thing.

Then home again by water, and after a little at my office, and visit Sir W. Pen, who is not very well again, with his late pain, home to supper, being hungry, and my ear and cold not so bad I think as it was. So to bed, taking one of my pills. Newes that the King comes to town for certain on Thursday next from his progresse.

25 Annotations

First Reading

TerryF  •  Link

"Sir R. Ford beginning his shrievalty to-day"

Shriev´al`ty
n. 1. The office, or sphere of jurisdiction, of a sheriff; sheriffalty.
It was ordained by 28 Edward I that the people shall have election of sheriff in every shire where the shrievalty is not of inheritance.
- Blackstone.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/…

TerryF  •  Link

"Newes that the King comes to town...from his progresse."

prog·ress n.
1. Movement, as toward a goal; advance.
2. Development or growth: students who show progress.
3. Steady improvement, as of a society or civilization: a believer in human progress.
4. A ceremonial journey made by a sovereign through his or her realm.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/…

Methinks definition 4. may be intended here.

in aqua  •  Link

Replacement value be ten timea more, my guess it be. "...to the value of 600l. or 700l., but I am not satisfied with the method used in this thing..." Government sales be always good bargain when on private bidding.

{An Airline got started with purchase of excess military aeroplanes, the aviation fuel left in the tanks paid off the auction price. Nice jeep bought on blind bid for price of a brand new bycycle}

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"...I called at Mr. Holliard’s, who did give me some pills, and tells me I shall have my hearing again and be well."

Well, in that case...Off to Mrs. Lane's.

jeannine  •  Link

So Robert -the way you see it is like this...

Off to Mr. Holliard who gives me some pills
Then off to Mrs. Lane, who gives me some thrills!

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"Newes that the King comes to town for certain on Thursday next from his progresse."

I wonder if Charles' progresses were as dreaded by the nobility as Elizabeth I's...

"His Majesty's servants will require 1 ton of provisions per day...Shelter for 1000 persons...Fodder for 200 horse...Oh and any pretty wenches, including your wife and daughters. You are indeed honored to have His Majesty as your guest."

in aqua  •  Link

Not after he gets the pill bills

Wim van der Meij  •  Link

Warrington has the following on Sir Richard Ford: "He lived in Hart Street and the Navy Board had been in treaty for his house."

A. Hamilton  •  Link

shrievalty

Another of Sam's OED hits!

SECOND EDITION 1989

({sm}{sh}ri{lm}v{schwa}lt{shti}) Also 6 shreav-, shreev-, (shrevaltry), 6-7 shrev-, 7 shrief(f)-, shriv-, shreiv-. [f. shrieve (see prec.) + -alty, representing OF. -alte (F. -auté):{em}L. -alit{amac}tem, as in admiralty, principalty.]

The office or dignity of sheriff; a sheriff's jurisdiction or term of office.
1502 ARNOLDE Chron. (1811) p. xlii, This yere Robert Johnnson was dismissyd of his shreualtee. 1596 Sir T. More (Malone Soc.) Add. ii. 165 Shall we heare shreef moor speake. Doll. Letts heare him a keepes a plentyfull shrevaltry. 1633 HEYWOOD Engl. Trav. IV. i, In time Sir, you may keepe your Shreualtie; And I be one oth' Seriants. 1663 PEPYS Diary 28 Sept., Sir R. Ford beginning his shrievalty to-day. c1683 T. HUNT Def. Charter Lond. 38 The Shriefalties had not been before granted in Fee. 1692 LUTTRELL Brief Rel. (1857) II. 590 Sir Thomas Cook has laid by 10,000£ to spend in his shreivalty. 1771 Junius Lett. l. 259 Your next appearance in office is marked with his election to the shrievalty. 1870 LOWELL Among my Bks. Ser. II. (1873) 52 The shrievalty of the county of Cork. 1887 Law Rep. Weekly Notes 215/2 The vacancy of the shrievalty by reason of the decease of the sheriff.
attrib. 1810 BENTHAM Packing (1821) 124 In the shrievalty year 1807-8.

A. Hamilton  •  Link

finding the street about our house full, Sir R. Ford beginning his shrievalty to-day and, what with his and our houses being new painted, the street begins to look a great deal better than it did,

I'd enjoy knowing more about this apparent custom of sprucing up the street where the new sheriff lives. At whose expense? Public service has its perks. Snow removal in DC is notoriously slow on side streets, but in my old neighborhood one block was always plowed as quickly as the main thoroughfare, even though the city
councilman who previously lived there had left office as well as that address. The street was well-paved, too, in contrast to most of the others in the neighboring gird --the other exception being the street on which I lived. The local story was that the reason for the new paving on my block was that Chelsea Clinton sometimes spent the night at a classmate's on that street (in the house that my then wife and I later purchased). I suppose her Secret Service detail must have said something to someone.

A. Hamilton  •  Link

and after a little at my office, and visit Sir W. Pen, who is not very well again, with his late pain, home to supper, being hungry, and my ear and cold not so bad I think as it was. So to bed, taking one of my pills.

Here's another nice example of Sam's attentiveness to work and colleaques -- even crotchety ones -- in this case while he himself is in some discomfort. Do you think he was stiff upper lip about his own complaints, or was a sympathy seeker?

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"Captain Boddily"?

A million to one shot...This one will bear serious thought.

john  •  Link

"who did give me some pills"

Today's pill-based-medicine obsession seems to be much older than commonly believed.

Bradford  •  Link

Pepys does not like the method used in the purcahse of old provisions, and no doubt the Navy personnel had reason to agree. But at least all the preservatives they did use were Natural!

Moira  •  Link

Shrievalty was also connected to shire reeve (or sherriff) written about by Chaucer ie The Reeves Tale

Australian Susan  •  Link

The City of Lichfield were so pleased to be made a County in its own right and thus able to elect their own Sheriff (by Mary I) that they celebrated every year (still do) by the newly elected/appointed Sherriff riding the bounds of the city accompanied by others on horseback. Then there are races in the afternoon. See http://www.lichfield.gov.uk/event… for details.
Andrew Hamilton's comments on certain parts ofcities getting better treatment than others is true here, too, but usually when an area becomes a mariginal seat: all sorts of goodies are offered and then the duly elected person has to do something! Area near to us became a marignal seat at all three levels of govt so a bonanza of promises were made. The area got a new library, a new police station, a new high school, a new bikeway, a new hospice. Amazing. Sam would have recognised what was going on....
Ido wonder just how old the "old provisions"were. Yuck. The ship's biscuit could probably have transported itself if you could have trained the maggots to walk in step.

Mary  •  Link

sale of old provisions.

This is surely an instance of the Navy selling off provisions that are long past their best; the navy is the seller, not the buyer. Pepys is concerned that the navy should do better financially in this process than it does at present. The possibility of collusion between vendor's and buyer's agents is obvious.

in aqua  •  Link

I dothe thinke that at this time provisions had a much wider meaning than grubs in ones cheese and old bickies. it be all that one needs to get from a to b.
OED:
a. F. provision (1320 in Hatz.-Darm.), ad. L. pr_ov_i sion em a foreseeing, forethought, precaution, providing, prevention, n. of action f. " providere" to provide.
1. Foresight, PREVISION; esp. (with trace of sense 2) foresight carefully exercised; looking ahead. Obs.
2. a. The action of providing; seeing to things beforehand; preparing, or arranging in advance; the fact or condition of being prepared or made ready beforehand.
1655 MARQUIS OF WORCESTER Cent. Inv. §6 According to occasion given and means afforded, Ex re natâ, and no need of Provision before-hand.
b. esp. The providing or supplying of necessaries for a household, an expedition, etc.
1630 R. Johnson's Kingd. & Commw. 52, I would not have him live at his owne provision, (especially in France) it will hinder his profiting, and onely further him with some few kitchen and market phrases.
c. Phr. to make ( to put provision to, to provide against (obs.). }" to take provision of, to have recourse to (obs.).
1622 Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 209 If there were not a present surrendry made, England must take provision of arms
3. The action of God in providing for his creatures; the divine ordination and over-ruling of events; the providential dealing of the Divine Being; providence; the action of Providence.
4. Eccl. Appointment to a see or benefice not yet vacant; esp. such appointment made by the pope in derogation of the right of the regular patron: cf. PROVIDE v. 6. Also, the document conferring such an appointment. Obs. exc. Hist
5. Something provided, prepared, or arranged in advance; measures taken beforehand; a preparation, a previous arrangement; a measure provided to meet a need; a precaution.
6. a. A supply of necessaries or materials provided; a stock or store of something.
1628 DIGBY Voy. Medit. (Camden) 59, I stayed here to gett some prouisions, as hoopes, tallow, tarre, pitch, wine, bread.
7. spec. A supply of food; food supplied or provided; now chiefly pl., supplies of food, victuals, eatables, and drinkables; in W. Indies = ground-provisions s.v. GROUND n. 18a.

1610 HOLLAND Camden's Brit. (1637) 394 The English for want of provisions were forced to breake up Siege. 1671 MILTON P.R. II. 402 With that Both Table and Provision vanish'd quite.
8. Each of the clauses or divisions of a legal or formal statement, or such a statement itself, providing for some particular matter; also, a clause in such a statement which makes an express stipulation or condition; a proviso.

9. A commission or percentage charged on mercantile transactions by an agent or factor. rare.
(So F. provision, Ger. provision, in same sense.)
[f. prec. Cf. F. provisionner (1556 in Godef.).]

a. trans. To supply with provisions or stores; esp. to supply with a stock of food. Also refl. b. intr. (for refl.) To supply oneself with provisions; to lay in provisions. Also with up.

vid1. Foresight, PREVISION; esp. (with trace of sense 2) foresight carefully exercised; looking ahead. Obs.

in aqua  •  Link

Store keepers by nature have a habit of collecting excess. A clean broom comes along to remove one mans junk as it be anothers treasure trove, so that friends can replace the lost tarp with a bran spanking new. How else can one get the money circulating, except by recycling, helping the under priviledge. Without this method of trickle down , one would not have rag or linen paper for all the printers to print the news of the day.

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"a sale of old provisions at Deptford...but I am not satisfied with the method used in this thing. "

The sale had been advertised on the Exchange on 19 September.
(Per L&M footnote)

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"the King comes to town for certain on Thursday next from his progresse."

He had made a progress during the past month to Bath, Bristol and the West, and was returning via Oxford. (L&M footnote)

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

Re "shrievalty", and the office of sheriff or "shire reeve".

About 10 miles from where I live, the ancient town of Laugharne in Carmarthenshire has a 'port reeve/portreeve' instead of a Mayor. Indeed, the office of Lord Mayor of London was also that of a portreeve.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lau…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Por…

'Reeve' also survives as a not uncommon English surname. The word derives the Anglo-Saxon 'ġerēfa' and its etymology is related to the German noble title of 'graf'.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ree…

Chris Squire UK  •  Link

Re: ‘ . . I am not satisfied with the method used in this thing. . . ’

It was probably a candle auction, the usual method at this date:

‘ . . It has been the custom in some places to set up an inch of lighted candle, the last bidder before the wick falls becoming purchaser of the property . .
1673 A. Marvell Rehearsal Transpros'd ii. 234 As in an Auction, to be sold by Inch of Candle.
. . 1728 E. Chambers Cycl. (at cited word), There is also a kind of Excommunication by Inch of Candle; wherein, the Time a lighted Candle continues burning, is allow'd the Sinner to come to Repentance, but after which, he remains excommunicated to all Intents and Purposes.
. .1797 E. Burke Lett. Peace Regic. France iv, in Wks. IX. 84 Where British faith and honour are to be sold by inch of candle‘.
(OED)

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