Wednesday 10 April 1667

Up, and to my office a little, and then, in the garden, find Sir W. Pen; and he and I to Sir W. Batten, where he tells us news of the new disorders of Hogg and his men in taking out of 30 tons of wine out of a prize of ours, which makes us mad; and that, added to the unwillingness of the men to go longer abroad without money, do lead us to conclude not to keep her abroad any longer, of which I am very glad, for I do not like our doings with what we have already got, Sir W. Batten ordering the disposal of our wines and goods, and he leaves it to Morrice the cooper, who I take to be a cunning proud knave, so that I am very desirous to adventure no further. So away by water from the Old Swan to White Hall, and there to Sir W. Coventry’s, with whom I staid a great while longer than I have done these many months, and had opportunity of talking with him, and he do declare himself troubled that he hath any thing left him to do in the Navy, and would be glad to part with his whole profits and concernments in it, his pains and care being wholly ineffectual during this lack of money; the expense growing infinite, the service not to be done, and discipline and order not to be kept, only from want of money. I begun to discourse with him the business of Tangier, which by the removal of my Lord Bellasses, is now to have a new Governor; and did move him, that at this season all the business of reforming the garrison might be considered, while nobody was to be offended; and I told him it is plain that we do overspend our revenue: that the place is of no more profit to the King than it was the first day, nor in itself of better credit; no more people of condition willing to live there, nor any thing like a place likely to turn his Majesty to account: that it hath been hitherto, and, for aught I see, likely only to be used as a job to do a kindness to some Lord, or he that can get to be Governor. Sir W. Coventry agreed with me, so as to say, that unless the King hath the wealth of the Mogul, he would be a beggar to have his businesses ordered in the manner they now are: that his garrisons must be made places only of convenience to particular persons that he hath moved the Duke of York in it; and that it was resolved to send no Governor thither till there had been Commissioners sent to put the garrison in order, so as that he that goes may go with limitations and rules to follow, and not to do as he please, as the rest have hitherto done. That he is not afeard to speak his mind, though to the displeasure of any man; and that I know well enough; but that, when it is come, as it is now, that to speak the truth in behalf of the King plainly do no good, but all things bore down by other measures than by what is best for the King, he hath no temptation to be perpetually fighting of battles, it being more easy to him do those terms to suffer things to go on without giving any man offence, than to have the same thing done, and he contract the displeasure of all the world, as he must do, that will be for the King. I did offer him to draw up my thoughts in this matter to present to the Duke of York, which he approved of, and I do think to do it. So away, and by coach going home saw Sir G. Carteret going towards White Hall. So ’light and by water met him, and with him to the King’s little chapel; and afterwards to see the King heal the King’s Evil, wherein no pleasure, I having seen it before; and then to see him and the Queene and Duke of York and his wife, at dinner in the Queene’s lodgings; and so with Sir G. Carteret to his lodgings to dinner; where very good company; and after dinner he and I to talk alone how things are managed, and to what ruin we must come if we have not a peace. He did tell me one occasion, how Sir Thomas Allen, which I took for a man of known courage and service on the King’s side, was tried for his life in Prince Rupert’s fleete, in the late times, for cowardice, and condemned to be hanged, and fled to Jersey; where Sir G. Carteret received him, not knowing the reason of his coming thither: and that thereupon Prince Rupert wrote to the Queen-Mother his dislike of Sir G. Carteret’s receiving a person that stood condemned; and so Sir G. Carteret was forced to bid him betake himself to some other place. This was strange to me. Our Commissioners are preparing to go to Bredah to the treaty, and do design to be going the next week. So away by coach home, where there should have been a meeting about Carcasse’s business, but only my Lord and I met, and so broke up, Carcasse having only read his answer to his charge, which is well writ, but I think will not prove to his advantage, for I believe him to be a very rogue. So home, and Balty and I to look Mr. Fenn at Sir G. Carteret’s office in Broad Streete, and there missing him and at the banker’s hard by, we home, and I down by water to Deptford Dockyard, and there did a little business, and so home back again all the way reading a little piece I lately bought, called “The Virtuoso, or the Stoicke,” proposing many things paradoxical to our common opinions, wherein in some places he speaks well, but generally is but a sorry man. So home and to my chamber to enter my two last days’ journall, and this, and then to supper and to bed. Blessed be God! I hear that my father is better and better, and will, I hope, live to enjoy some cheerful days more; but it is strange what he writes me, that Mr. Weaver, of Huntingdon, who was a lusty, likely, and but a youngish man, should be dead.

22 Annotations

First Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Creed to Sandwich
Written from: Hinchinbroke
Date: 10 April 1667

Reports the good health of the Earl's family, and their eager expectation of his return to England.

The deplorable illness of Prince Rupert, and the belief that the Duke of Albemarle is "necessary on land, and fitter [there] than at sea", have given increased currency to reports of the King's intention to recall the Earl from Spain, in order that he "might have the naval conduct this summer". .

http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/s…

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"...he tells us news of the new disorders of Hogg and his men in taking out of 30 tons of wine out of a prize of ours, which makes us mad; and that, added to the unwillingness of the men to go longer abroad without money..."

So let me get this straight Samuel Charles-Laughton-as-corrupt-royal-official Pepys...You boys have Hogg and co risk their lives capturing ships (hopefully at least ships sailing under the Dutch or French flag), you don't pay them (at least not immediately), and you complain when they keep some of the stuff you had them "legally" steal from the captured ship?

Heaven...

"Yes? What the devil is the fellow's problem?"

"Well, it does sound a bit hard on Hogg and his men. Not being paid while doing difficult, dreary work for you for years. Totally dependent on your good graces and promises of reward... I just mean I can understand the feeling." Bess sighs.

"How did this become about you? And if you've been reading these entries, you've been steadily going to Unthankes all this month."

"I suppose... But I still think the gentleman's idea a while back about us taking the Greyhound out ourselves would have been nice." Bess notes.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"afterwards to see the King heal the King’s Evil, wherein no pleasure, I having seen it before;"

13 April 1661: "I went to the Banquethouse, and there saw the King heal, the first time that ever I saw him do it...." http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…

ticea  •  Link

Forgive my ignorance, but what is the "King's Evil"? From what I gather from past posts, it's some sort of eye infection, but why would the King be considered a person to cure it? And why would anyone want to watch it, knowing the participants are diseased?

Obviously Sam knows well about contagion.

eric  •  Link

Find this hard to believe:
' taking out of 30 tons of wine out of a prize of ours...'
Tons!! I wonder if this is 'tonneaux' - barrels

Mary  •  Link

or even 'tuns' = a large cask, especially one for wine. Also the term for various measures of liquid capacity, usually about 954 litres.

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"...to Morrice the cooper, who I take to be a cunning proud knave..."

Assuming that it takes one to know one, a Pepys-in-training?

Robert Gertz  •  Link

If Sam did memo York about his thoughts on Tangier's failures I wonder if that stuck in the boys Stuart's minds...

Spoiler...

...Leading to his being called in as consultant on the abandonment of Tangier many years later.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

L&M transcribe "30 Tons."

Wine was the major cargo of the Lindenbaum, which is at Portsmouth. L&M note Hogg said he had nothing to do with the theft.

JWB  •  Link

30 tons

1 hogshead=64 gallons,
2 hogsheads=1 butt or 1 pipe or 128 gal.,
2 pipes=1 ton or 256 gals.;
therefore, 30 tons of wine=7680 gals. or 29,069 liters.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engl…

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"it was resolved to send no Governor thither till there had been Commissioners sent to put the garrison in order, so as that he that goes may go with limitations and rules to follow, and not to do as he please, as the rest have hitherto done."

L&M say that after last year's truce with the Berbers -- i.e., with the ever-treacherous Abdallah al-Ghailan ("Cidi Hader Gayland") on 2 April 1666 http://short.to/23waj -- "the Tangier Committee were now planning to....convert
[ Tangier ] into a colony."

This must be a class thing, a Governor being of too "high quality" -- a titled lord -- to be a hands-on civil administrator (like Pepys) who could mix with the community of the soldiery and merchants, et al., and set out who does what.

JWB  •  Link

" Sir Thomas Allen, which I took for a man of known courage and service on the King’s side, was tried for his life in Prince Rupert’s fleete, in the late times,..."

Can anyone expand on this?

Paul Chapin  •  Link

Like Mary, I thought the quantity of wine was maybe supposed to be in "tuns," but I had only the vaguest notion of how much that might be. Thanks to JWB's nice chart and Wikipedia link, we see that a tun is a ton is a tun. 256 gallons, about 2,048 pounds of liquid, about 969 liters.

Yet another bit of knowledge I was happy to glean from this great site.

Linda  •  Link

Yes -- the things one learns from this blog!
Jan. 1st is my birthday. I and others have always referred to Jan. 1st as New Year's Day, ergo "I was born on New Year's Day," but now, thanks to TF in the Lady Day entry, I know and can say, "I was born on Circumcision Day."
That ought to cause a pause in the conversation. I can't wait.

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"Prince Rupert wrote to the Queen- Mother his dislike of Sir G. Carteret’s receiving a person that stood condemned; and so Sir G. Carteret was forced to bid him betake himself to some other place. This was strange to me."

L&M: The incident occurred in November of 1650 when Allin lost his own and several other royal ships to Blake off Carthagena, allegedly through his anxiety to protect his cargo. He escaped before being brought to trial. Allin, vol. i, pp. xii-xiii; R.C. Anderson in Mar. Mirr., 21/63-4. Sir John Laughton in the DNB dismissed the story ass false.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"it is strange what [my father] writes me, that Mr. Weaver, of Huntingdon, who was a lusty, likely, and but a youngish man, should be dead."

L&M: Richard Weaver had been buried on the 5th.

mountebank  •  Link

It's amusing to see a reference to a likely lad.

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