Sunday 16 September 1666

(Lord’s day). Lay with much pleasure in bed talking with my wife about Mr. Hater’s lying here and W. Hewer also, if Mrs. Mercer leaves her house. To the office, whither also all my people about this account, and there busy all the morning. At noon, with my wife, against her will, all undressed and dirty, dined at Sir W. Pen’s, where was all the company of our families in towne; but, Lord! so sorry a dinner: venison baked in pans, that the dinner I have had for his lady alone hath been worth four of it. Thence, after dinner, displeased with our entertainment, to my office again, and there till almost midnight and my people with me, and then home, my head mightily akeing about our accounts.

13 Annotations

First Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

John Evelyn's Diary

September 16th. I went to Greenwich Church, where Mr. Plume preached very well from this text : " Seeing, then, all these things shall be dissolved," &c.[ 2 Peter 3:11-14 ], taking occasion from the late unparalleled conflagration to mind us how we ought to walk more holy in all manner of conversation.

http://www.archive.org/stream/dia…

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"Mr. Hater’s lying here and W. Hewer also, if Mrs. Mercer leaves her house."

L&M note Hewer lodged with the Mercers.

Mary  •  Link

"in bed talking with my wife"

In a house where there are several live-in servants, the marital bedroom is often one of the very few places where a confidential discussion between husband and wife can be held without fear of a third party intruding.

Mr. Gunning  •  Link

Why is everyone always eating venison?

It's like 17th century bush meat.

Did they never eat pork, beef or lamb?

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"At noon, with my wife, against her will, all undressed and dirty, dined at Sir W. Pen’s, where was all the company of our families in towne; but, Lord! so sorry a dinner: venison baked in pans, that the dinner I have had for his lady alone hath been worth four of it."

The Era of Good Feeling (Pennwise) established by Admiral Sir Will's work in saving Seething during the Fire seems to be over rather quickly...

I wonder what Bess would have considered worse...Being pressured to go to Penn's dinner "dirty and undressed" ("Sweetheart, the man saved our home and put me up for several days...") or finding out about Bagwell.

"Your mistress stopped by and wants you to know she's available Tuesday at Deptford from 5-7 but not Thursday."

Ummn...

"Now about this damned dinner today..."

CGS  •  Link

The mundane, routine, normal is never spoken of unless, it be by some one that has never seen knives and forks before and wants to be a sociologist and that is interested in the low fat diet of the times.

Epping forest be the nearest hunting ground for a game keeper to make a little extra income by culling the local roe deer and not get caught.

It would be nice if Samuell had kept the mistress's shopping list and his instructions of keeping the weekly expenses befow 15 shillings and show her skimming technique of a few hapeny's for her Pater & Mater..

As Tacitus would be misquoted. "I never seen that or heard that before, ain't it bludy marvelous, beef on the hoof."

"Omne ignotum pro maifico est".
Tacitus, De Vita ee Moribus Iulii agricolae, 30

Items mentioned by Mr Pepys were usually not the norm of the times.

Bradford  •  Link

Baked in pans! Too cheap to have crust for a pasty!

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Ormond to Orrery
Written from: Kilkenny

Date: 16 September 1666

Shelfmark: MS. Carte 48, fol(s). 64

Document type: Copy

Herewith is sent the best relation the Duke has seen of the most podigious calamity that ever befel London. It was not without reason, although it seems to be without ground, that the calamity was suspected to have proceeded from some treachery ... He prays that we may, and that our enemies may not, make a good use of this judgment. ... http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/s…

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Sept. 16. Portsmouth Dockyard.

156. Comr. Thos. Middleton to Sam. Pepys. Asks whether the ships left behind by the fleet are to have full repair, or only to be fitted for present service. The Slothany is a sad ship; Mr. Tippetts and Mr. Byland think that a fourth-rate might be built with the charge that must be laid out to make her fit for service. Was obliged to hire soldiers from the town to land the oak plank found in a fire-ship, the poor labourers being almost dead with getting provisions into the boats and other work on shore. Has had no time to make up any accounts, all has been done in hurry and confusion. It is not to be believed the many things delivered and nothing returned, some of the captains knew not how "to distinguish a horse head from a roman S" in their demands. Particulars of hemp tendered and stores required. "Without straw it will be hard to make brick," and without money the King's business must stand still. There is not a boat left belonging to the yard; workmen of all sorts are lessened, carpenters discharged, and townsmen dead; begs that these wants may be supplied before urgent necessity calls. The plague decreases; the governor will not admit any of the King's servants into the town. The labourers suffer during the wet and dirty weather, by being obliged to live four or five miles away from the yard. Has no cordage in store; the sails intended for Plymouth had to be issued out for the fleet; others shall be made in lieu of them. The fleet is at St. Helen's. [Adm. Paper, 4 pages.] CSPD https://books.google.com/books?id…

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

"He prays that we may, and that our enemies may not, make a good use of this judgment."

Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, James Butler, Earl of Ormonde is writing to Roger Boyle, Baron Broghill, who is now the Earl of Orrery, and:

president of Munster 1660-1672;
governor of Co. Clare 1661-1672;
constable of Limerick Castle 1661-d. 1679
And he is, of course, the older brother of Robert Boyle, FRS., and a playwright (Pepys wasn't a fan).

Around this time the Roman Catholic Murrough O'Brien, Earl of Inchiquin became reconciled with the Protestant Earl of Orrery. O’Brien’s heir, William O'Brien, married Orrery's daughter, Margaret Boyle, in 1665.

James Butler, Earl of Ormonde, the lord lieutenant of Ireland, resented Lord Orrey's virtually independent authority in Munster, and deplored his ‘vanity, ostentation and itch to popularity’, as well as his peevish, malicious jealousy; but Ormonde admitted that Orrery’s ‘industry, ability and ambition’ made him a dangerous enemy.

They are all worried that such a late season fight with the French and Dutch fleets may end up off coast of Ireland.

Information from http://www.historyofparliamentonl…

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

"Why is everyone always eating venison?"

If Mr. Gunning had clicked through on "venison" he would have seen Pedro's annotation from 2006:

"Anything taken in hunting or by the chase.
"Hence Jacob bids Esau to go and get venison such as he loved (Gen. xxvii. 3), meaning the wild kid.
"The word is simply the Latin venatio (hunting), but is now restricted to the flesh of deer."

We can reasonably assume this to be deer, since this is the time of year to cull the herds -- but we don't know that.
(Perhaps that's what he meant by next saying it was 17th century bush meat?)

And Bradford's "Too cheap to have crust for a pasty!" -- I bet the cook shop with the big ovens had either burned down, or the owners/staff were camping in Hyde Park and unable to get to work.

"where was all the company of our families in town" -- sounds like Lady Penn was taking care of a lot of people, possibly everyone from the office as well.

I thought Pepys' comments about the food stank of what we now call "white privilege" -- in a disaster you smile and say THANK YOU loudly, no matter what you are given. Ah, it's his Diary. He probably did say the right things.

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