Wednesday 28 September 1664
Up and by water with Mr. Tucker down to Woolwich, first to do several businesses of the King’s, then on board Captain Fisher’s ship, which we hire to carry goods to Tangier. All the way going and coming I reading and discoursing over some papers of his which he, poor man, having some experience, but greater conceit of it than is fit, did at the King’s first coming over make proposals of, ordering in a new manner the whole revenue of the kingdom, but, God knows, a most weak thing; however, one paper I keep wherein he do state the main branches of the publick revenue fit to consider and remember. So home, very cold, and fearfull of having got some pain, but, thanks be to God! I was well after it. So to dinner, and after dinner by coach to White Hall, thinking to have met at a Committee of Tangier, but nobody being there but my Lord Rutherford, he would needs carry me and another Scotch Lord to a play, and so we saw, coming late, part of “The Generall,” my Lord Orrery’s (Broghill) second play; but, Lord! to see how no more either in words, sense, or design, it is to his “Harry the 5th” is not imaginable, and so poorly acted, though in finer clothes, is strange. And here I must confess breach of a vowe in appearance, but I not desiring it, but against my will, and my oathe being to go neither at my own charge nor at another’s, as I had done by becoming liable to give them another, as I am to Sir W. Pen and Mr. Creed; but here I neither know which of them paid for me, nor, if I did, am I obliged ever to return the like, or did it by desire or with any willingness. So that with a safe conscience I do think my oathe is not broke and judge God Almighty will not think it other wise.
Thence to W. Joyce’s, and there found my aunt and cozen Mary come home from my father’s with great pleasure and content, and thence to Kate’s and found her also mighty pleased with her journey and their good usage of them, and so home, troubled in my conscience at my being at a play. But at home I found Mercer playing on her Vyall, which is a pretty instrument, and so I to the Vyall and singing till late, and so to bed. My mind at a great losse how to go down to Brampton this weeke, to satisfy Piggott; but what with the fears of my house, my money, my wife, and my office, I know not how in the world to think of it, Tom Hater being out of towne, and I having near 1000l. in my house.
23 Annotations
First Reading
Terry F • Link
"And here I must confess breach of a vowe in appearance, but I not desiring it, but against my will, and my oathe being to go neither at my own charge nor at another's, as I had done by becoming liable to give them another, as I am to Sir W. Pen and Mr. Creed; but here I neither know which of them paid for me, nor, if I did, am I obliged ever to return the like, or did it by desire or with any willingness. So that with a safe conscience I do think my oathe is not broke and judge God Almighty will not think it other wise."
What a bunch of malarkey! http://www.answers.com/topic/mala…
cape henry • Link
Well said, TF - malarkey indeed. As his income has grown, so have the elaboration of the self justifications grown. Sam is now fully enmeshed in the established 'system' that he pretends to decry. Sam is indeed a lot of things, and one of them is human being, that sad sad creature.
JWB • Link
"...how in the world to think of it..."
Send the 1000L to Alderman Backwell @ 6% along with Dr. Hollier.
Patricia • Link
Surely when he married Sam took a vow forsaking all others, etc. I find it interesting that he suffers more soul-searching over breaking his vow about play-going than when he fools around with other women.
Cum grano salis • Link
".....O wad some Power the giftie gie us
To see oursels as ithers see us!
It wad frae monie a blunder free us,
An' foolish notion....
: Poem "To a Louse"
http://www.worldburnsclub.com/poe…
We all see ourselves thru tinted specs.
'tis the lawyer in us to justify.
Rob • Link
Well said, Patricia!
Bryan M • Link
Malarkey? I'm not so sure.
Sam faced a choice of breaking his vow or offending (or being ridiculed by) two powerful associates by refusing to go to the play with them. He broke the vow and tried to rationalise it to himself. It's clear from the context here and previously that the purpose of these vows is to limit frivolous expenditure. Since there was no expense for him or necessity to repay the favour, Sam thinks he's in the clear... maybe - "and so home, troubled in my conscience at my being at a play."
Sam's candor is what makes the diary so interesting. Who is supposed to be deceiving? I can't see any evidence that he wasn't sincere.
And when does he decry the "system". Sam certainly has a word or two to say about the shortcomings of others, even Chucka 2 on occasion, but I can't recall him knocking the system. If we are talking about naval administration, this is the guy who built the system.
Bradford • Link
God is probably having a good laugh behind His hand. Nonetheless, should have liked to have been a mouse in the wainscot to hear him and Mercer duetting. Anyone care to lay bets on whether tomorrow's entry will bear the third mention in as many days about having a thousand pounds in the house?
Robert Gertz • Link
"...with Mr. Tucker down to Woolwich, first to do several businesses of the King's, then on board Captain Fisher's ship, which we hire to carry goods to Tangier. All the way going and coming I reading and discoursing over some papers of his which he, poor man, having some experience, but greater conceit of it than is fit, did at the King's first coming over make proposals of, ordering in a new manner the whole revenue of the kingdom, but, God knows, a most weak thing; however, one paper I keep wherein he do state the main branches of the publick revenue fit to consider and remember."
Hmmn...Could Sam sense an ambitious potential rival in Mr. Tucker and be attempting to kill him in his shell with scorn? While at the same time not disdaining to pick his brain...
Will be interesting should we hear Sam boasting of discerning a new manner of ordering the revenue of the whole kingdom.
Terry F • Link
"Will be interesting should we hear Sam boasting of discerning a new manner of ordering the revenue of the whole kingdom."
or quietly discovering new revenue streams for the Pepyses.
Robert Gertz • Link
"...the fears of my house, my money, my wife, and my office..."
?:
The house?
That the house will burn down? Be plundered? Sir John or one of the Sir Wills will move in?
The money?
That the money will be robbed. Entirely likely but what can you do except hope the SL complex is secure and keep mum?
Fear of Bess?
We hate to tell you, Sam but if she really wants to be unfaithful... Of course you could take her with you. (Geesh, Sam...In spite of your sometimes crude and neglectful treatment, Bess has always seemed steadfastly loyal and rather attached to you. Is she flirting madly with every guy passing her in the street or what?) On the other hand maybe he's rightly afraid she'll visit Whitehall in his absence and strike up a friendly conversation with Mrs. Martin.
The office?
That he'll lose credit and control in the office? (Sir John seizes control at last! All sea captains must quote Shakespeare when attacking! Ha, ha!) Important (potentially profitable) business will pass him by? Mr. Coventry will be a bit annoyed to find his good Pepys awol during wartime? Well, either you can depend on Will Hewer or no...(Interesting that he counts on Tom Hayter so much. Perhaps because he prefers to trust in the older, more experienced man?)
Robert Gertz • Link
Of course one can't help noticing that poor Bess is only third on the list. But at least she's ahead of the office...
jeannine • Link
I having near 1000l. in my house
Life is so unfair! Alas the only extra pounds I have hanging around my house are the ones I'm sitting on.....and I'd be glad if they disappeared!
Cum grano salis • Link
1000L be 450 gold 1 0z coin which if dug up today would have purchase power of 450 x 740$ [166,000 quid]that be a third of a mil dollars, but collectors would pay a premium.
I wonder how many million " Airs " have such a stash of coin, instead of that wax tab 'let' and using that wonderful word, equity in the land that they have.
Kevin Peter • Link
Patricia: I think Sam is more concerned about his play vows than his marriage vows because it's not the vows he's concerned about, but his money.
He took the vows about attending plays to spend less money and pay more attention to his business (thereby generating even more money). There's also a mandatory contribution to the poor box if he violates his vows about attending plays. There's no fine at all when he violates his marriage vows (if indeed marriage vows of that time even mentioned infidelity), so he doesn't appear worried at all about them.
He'll only be sorry when he gets caught.
Pedro • Link
Marriage.
Liza Piccard in her book Restoration London has this on marriage, the words taken from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.
Holy Matrimony is an honorable estate not by any to be enterprised, nor taken in hand, unadvisedly, lightly or wantonly, to satisfy men’s carnal lusts and appetites, like brute beasts that have no understanding, but reverently, discreetly, advisedly, soberly and in the fear of God; duly considering the causes for which Matrimony was ordained.
First it was ordained for the procreation of children, to be brought up in the fear and nature of God the Lord, and to praise his Holy Name.
Secondly it was ordained for a remedy against sin, and to avoid fornication; that such persons that have not the gift of continency might marry, and keep themselves undefiled members of Christ’s body.
Thirdly it was ordained for the mutual society, help and comfort, that the one ought to have on the other, both in prosperity and adversity.
Second Reading
Terry Foreman • Link
Bryan M is not so sure Pepys's discussion of his vows is malarkey, because "It's clear from the context here and previously that the purpose of these vows is to limit frivolous expenditure. Since there was no expense for him or necessity to repay the favour, Sam thinks he's in the clear... maybe"
A salient question is "Who paid for Samuel Pepys to go to the theatre today?"
He reports "here I neither know which of them paid for me, nor, if I did, am I obliged ever to return the like, or did it by desire or with any willingness."
San Diego Sarah • Link
"Thence to W. Joyce’s, and there found my aunt and cozen Mary come home from my father’s with great pleasure and content ..."
Good to hear William Joyce's broken head isn't that badly broken.
Terry Foreman • Link
""...with Mr. Tucker down to Woolwich, first to do several businesses of the King's, then on board Captain Fisher's ship, which we hire to carry goods to Tangier. All the way going and coming I reading and discoursing over some papers of his which he, poor man, having some experience, but greater conceit of it than is fit, did at the King's first coming over make proposals of, ordering in a new manner the whole revenue of the kingdom,"
John Tooker of Putney (now employed as a river shipping agent) had been an excise agent during the Protectorate. These papers have not been traced.
(Per L&M note).
I'm sure there were a number of such proposals.
Terry Foreman • Link
"And here I must confess breach of a vowe in appearance,"
L&M explain: the vow was not to go to theatres more often than once a month: https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
He had been to the LIE on 10 September.
Sasha Clarkson • Link
Today being National Poetry Day in the UK, I thought two little quatrains by William Blake (brought together by Dante Gabriel Rossetti) might be appropriate to mock poor Sam's worldliness:
"Since all the riches of this world
May be gifts from the Devil and earthly kings,
I should suspect that I worshipp’d the Devil
If I thank’d my God for worldly things.
The countless gold of a merry heart,
The rubies and pearls of a loving eye,
The idle man never can bring to the mart,
Nor the cunning hoard up in his treasury."
https://nationalpoetryday.co.uk/
Louise Hudson • Link
"I know not how in the world to think of it, Tom Hater being out of towne, and I having near 1000l. in my house."
Where did Sam keep his money before he accumulated 1000 pounds? Is there something magical about 1000 pounds? On many occasions in the past Sam has written of being worth something in the area of 900 pounds. Presumably a fair amount of his worth would have been in coin, but he seldom seemed so worried about his money being stolen before. Now he's not only worried about the money but his house, his wife and his office. It doesn't seem to me that any of those things are now more vulnerable to thieves or vandals, or whatever he's worried about, than they were before.
As for marriage vows I don't know how marriage vows were taken in Sam's time, but it's usually been the case that men think "forsaking all others" is intended only for the wives.
Chris Squire UK • Link
The magic of £1,000 lies both in its ‘round-numberedness’ and in the vast wealth it represented to the son of a tailor in the World We Have Lost*, the pre-industrial age: the appropriate multiplier for this is not the real price deflator usually used (120 - so that 1d (old penny) = £0.50 in today’s money) but somewhere between ‘economic status value = income value = per capita GDP = 5,200’ and ‘economic power value = share of GDP = 29,000’. https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
* https://www.amazon.co.uk/World-We…