Thursday 14 April 1664

Up betimes, and after my father’s eating something, I walked out with him as far as Milk Streete, he turning down to Cripplegate to take coach; and at the end of the streete I took leave, being much afeard I shall not see him here any more, he do decay so much every day, and so I walked on, there being never a coach to be had till I came to Charing Cross, and there Col. Froud took me up and carried me to St. James’s, where with Mr. Coventry and Povy, &c., about my Lord Peterborough’s accounts, but, Lord! to see still what a puppy that Povy is with all his show is very strange. Thence to Whitehall and W. C[oventry] and I and Sir W. Rider resolved upon a day to meet and make an end of all the business.

Thence walked with Creed to the Coffee-house in Covent Garden, where no company, but he told me many fine experiments at Gresham College; and some demonstration that the heat and cold of the weather do rarify and condense the very body of glasse, as in a bolt head with cold water in it put into hot water, shall first by rarifying the glasse make the water sink, and then when the heat comes to the water makes that rise again, and then put into cold water makes the water by condensing the glass to rise, and then when the cold comes to the water makes it sink, which is very pretty and true, he saw it tried.

Thence by coach home, and dined above with my wife by her bedside, she keeping her bed … [those being upon her. – L&M] So to the office, where a great conflict with Wood and Castle about their New England masts?

So in the evening my mind a little vexed, but yet without reason, for I shall prevail, I hope, for the King’s profit, and so home to supper and to bed.

28 Annotations

First Reading

Terry F  •  Link

"dined above with my wife by her bedside, she keeping her bed . . . ."

"dined above with my wife by her bedside -- she keeping her bed, those being upon her." So L&M: "those" again.

Terry F  •  Link

"some demonstration that the heat and cold of the weather do rarify and condense the very body of glasse"

Cf. Robert Hooke, *Micrographia* Novem. 23. 1664.
Observ. VII. _Of some _Phænomena_ of Glass drops._
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15…

cumsalisgrano  •  Link

FRS. May be someone with appropiate credentials can get a copy of the newly found Hookes minutes covering this slide show?

Dan Jenkins  •  Link

The terminal period became included in the link on the Galilean Thermometer. Here is the link without the terminal period:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gali…

Terry F  •  Link

"a bolt head"

L&M's Select Glossary identifies this as "a globular glass vessel with long straight neck"

Thanks kilroy (and Dan Jenkins) for the Galileo Thermometer. The claim about the rarification and condensation of "the very body of glasse" was what drew me to Hooke's "Assertions" (results he claimed):

"First, That the parts of the Glass, whilst in a fluid Consistence and hot, are more rarified, or take up more room, then when hard and cold.
Secondly, That the parts of the drop do suffer a twofold contraction.
Thirdly, That the dropping or quenching the glowing metal in the Water makes it of a hard, springing, and rarified texture.
Fourthly, That there is a flexion or force remaining upon the parts of the Glass thus quenched, from which they indeavour to extricate themselves.
Fifthly, That the Fabrick of the drop, that is able to hinder the parts from extricating themselves, is _analogus_ to that of an Arch.
Sixthly, That the sudden flying asunder of the parts proceeds from their springiness.
Seventhly, That a gradual heating and cooling does anneal or reduce the parts of Glass to a texture that is more loose, and easilier to be broken, but not so brittle."

Hooke's clearly onto something interesting!
Whether this is what we have from Pepys second-hand account I'm not sure (but not necessarily because it's second-hand).

AussieRene  •  Link

and there Col. Froud took me up and carried me to St. James's,

Wonder what the etiquette was in those days when one was picked up or offered a lift in a coach? Did one just politely accept the lift or did one offer to pay a portion or go halves in the fare?

AussieRene  •  Link

This is assuming, of course, that said coach is not owned by either pickerupper or pickupee.

Martin  •  Link

CGS: Oldenburg was secretary at this time, not Hooke. So the minutes have been neatly filed in the archives since the 17th century. I don't think they're on line though.

See
http://www.scienceblogs.org.uk/ar…

tonyt  •  Link

Milk Street and Cripplegate. Sam seems to have left his father at the junction of Milk Street and Cheapside, close to St Mary-le-Bow. The total distance from Seething Lane to Cripplegate is about one mile and they would have walked together for about two-thirds of this. For Sam, going to Charing Cross via Cheapside would have been only slightly out of his way. It seems sad, given that Sam feared he might never see his father again, that he did not go all the way to Cripplegate with him.
Presumably the coach departed from the north side of Cripplegate (a point close to where the Museum of London now stands) so as to avoid the congestion of the City of London. From there it seems most likely that it would have taken the western route north to Brampton using the Great North Road.

JWB  •  Link

"...He do decay..."

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

-- Dylan Thomas

Andrew Hamilton  •  Link

resolved upon a day to meet and make an end of all the. business.

Does anyone (L&M?) have an explanation for the random period?

Bradford  •  Link

"I shall prevail, I hope, for the King's profit":

The last phrase is not to be taken literally, being a pious periphrasis meaning "for my greater glory."

JWB  •  Link

heat & cold

Lisa Jardine, "Robert Hooke..." p 102 shows an "Engraved plate for Boyle's 'Experiment touching Cold (1664), drawn for Boyle by Hooke as his laboratory assistant."

Michael Robinson  •  Link

... he told me many fine experiments ...

"These demonstrations by Robert Hooke at the Royal Society are described in the minutes as follows: ' April 6, 1664. The experiment of stretching glass was made by Mr. Hooke, who was desired to give an account of the manner and success thereof in writing.'
'April 13. An account in writing was brought by Mr. Hooke of two experiments tried before the Society a the preceding meeting ... 2. of the stretching and shrinking of glass upon heating and cooling; both of which were ordered to be registered'
Birch, History of the Royal Society, vol i, pp. 409, 411."

Bolt head
"A long straight-necked glass vessel used for chemical distillation"

Both notes from Wheatley edn.

Michael Robinson  •  Link

where a great conflict ... about their New England masts

"On September 10, 1663, Sir William Warren contracted with the Navy Commissioners to deliver Gottenburg and Norway masts at the several dockyards. The contract, among the state papers, has annexed to it "Tender by Sir William Warren of 150 Gottenburg and 300 Norway masts, with three ship loads of New England masts, to be delivered free of charge at Portsmouth , Chatham and Deptford,' and "Account of the difference of price between the tenders of Sir William Warren and ---- Wood, the former being the cheaper"
Calendar of State Papers, Domestic, 1663-64 p. 270

Wheatly edn. note.

cumsalisgrano  •  Link

Thanks: "Oldenburg was secretary at this time" The Gent that communicated with the man of optical grinding fame, the non atheist expelled for thinking outside of the box , one Espinoza.

Re: falling apart, The Bard dothe say "Sans,Eyes....."

Dave  •  Link

Andrew

Does anyone (L&M?) have an explanation for the random period?

In The Shorter Pepys, edited by Robert Latham he writes
"resolved upon a day to meet and make an end of all that business."

cumsalisgrano  •  Link

Random has wandered from its earlier meanings, so here be a random [modern meaning]selections from OED :

[a. OF. randon (rendon, etc.), f. randir to run fast, gallop. The change of final -n to -m is independent of the very rare OF. form random: cf. RANSOM.]

A. n. I. 5. Gunnery. The range of a piece of ordnance; properly, long or full range obtained by elevating the muzzle of the piece; hence, the degree of elevation given to a gun, and spec. that which gives the utmost range (45°). Obs. 1571

1661 S. PARTRIDGE Double Scale Proport. 85 How far will a Cannon carry her Bullet at her best Randon, that carrieth it at point-blank 360 paces.

1669 STURMY Mariner's Mag. v. 71 The next Shot was at five degrees Random, and at that mounture the shot was conveyed 416 Paces.

fig. 1667 DENHAM Direct. Painter I. 26 The Duke himself..was not out of dangers random set
b. Phr. at random, at any range other than point-blank. Obs. 1588

B. adj. (from phr. at random: see A. 3).
1. a. Not sent or guided in a special direction; having no definite aim or purpose; made, done, occurring, etc., at haphazard. 1655

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Robert Hooke had conducted this experiment on 6 April. Creed was bow a Fellow of the Royal Society. (Per L&M footnote)

Hooke's notes of this experiment in the Hook Folio Online:

Ap.6. proued by Expt. Ap. 13. RH mentiond his own way of compressing water and tht water would not at all compresse by a strength that would condense water air into 1/11 he brought in 2 accounts 1 of Rising of water in bolt
http://www.livesandletters.ac.uk/…
head vpon immersion in cold water. of stretching & shrinking of glasse vpon cold & heat moray Slingsby godderd Hook curators for wighing all bodys RH shewd the proportion of Lead to water
RH suggested. 1 of pertrifying wood. 2 of softning & hardning it 3 of making it durable by boyling in tarr.
http://www.livesandletters.ac.uk/…

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

"Presumably the coach departed from the north side of Cripplegate (a point close to where the Museum of London now stands) so as to avoid the congestion of the City of London. From there it seems most likely that it would have taken the western route north to Brampton using the Great North Road."

Previously it has been established that on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays there was regular service to Buckden (close to Brampton). But this is Thursday, and my geography isn't the best, but they don't seem to be walking to The George at Holborn:

http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…

Monday 28 July 1662 "..., after my wife was ready, I walked with her to the George, at Holborn Conduit, where the coach stood ready to carry her and her maid to Bugden, ..."

The George Inn was used as London's point of departure for stage coaches after the 1650s. See advert in Mercurius Politicus, April 8, 1658, quoted in Martim de Albuquerque's "Notes and Queries" No. 14, page 146, published 1850: "All persons who desire to travel into the cities, towns and roads, herein herafter mentioned ... let them repair to the George Inn at Holborn Bridge, London, and thence they shall be in good coaches with good horses, upon every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, at and for reasonable rates" Pepys took his wife there on Monday 28 July, 1662, to take the coach to Bugden (Buckden in Cambridgeshire).

Anyone got any ideas? Maybe it was a short-lived alternative service? And it doesn't sound like dad took that big puppy Pepys wanted to get rid of last month.

Bridget Carrie Davis  •  Link

Bradford on 15 Apr 2007 • Link • Flag

"I shall prevail, I hope, for the King's profit":

The last phrase is not to be taken literally, being a pious periphrasis meaning "for my greater glory."

________
Wow! I did not know this! Was "... for the King's profit." a regularly used idiom in that time?

Tonyel  •  Link

Bridget, I suspect this was a little quiet humour on Bradford's part.

Gerald Berg  •  Link

Not to be too unkind to DT JWB but he failed his own words rather miserably by killing his light with alcohol. The poem is way too sentimental and unrealistic about the need for death to come. I am sure he realised that in the end.
It is my hope that Pepys senior gets a second wind. I would put this present diminishing to having a child die before oneself. That has to be a brutal experience.

john  •  Link

Whenever Elizabeth is bedridden with her period, Pepys eats dinner with her by bedside without fanfare. Such mature behaviour is in such contrast with the hysteria in the centuries to come.

Chris Squire UK  •  Link

OED has a list of ‘King’s . . ‘ phrases from ‘King’s Advocate’ to ‘king’s yellow’ (= arsenic trisulphide): ’King’s profit’ is not in it but ‘King’s purse’ is:

‘king's purse n. now hist. the royal treasury; the funds or revenue of a king.
. . 1651 Life & Reigne King Charls 28 What by sales procured by her solicitations, as much more was yearly drayned out of the Kings purse . . ‘

I suggest that it was an SP coinage which he was trying out in the diary before trying it on his peers: evidently they didn’t adopt it, perhaps they couldn’t grasp his meaning; after the Glorious Revolution (just 24 years in the future) it would only be used by Tories and Jacobites while the Whigs preferred a neutral phrase with republican overtones such as the ‘Public Purse’, which goes with that that mysterious entity still invoked today - the Public Interest.

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