Monday 3 June 1667

Up, and by coach to St. James’s, and with Sir W. Coventry a great while talking about several businesses, but especially about accounts, and how backward our Treasurer is in giving them satisfaction, and the truth is I do doubt he cannot do better, but it is strange to say that being conscious of our doing little at this day, nor for some time past in our office for want of money, I do hang my head to him, and cannot be so free with him as I used to be, nor can be free with him, though of all men, I think, I have the least cause to be so, having taken so much more pains, while I could do anything, than the rest of my fellows. Parted with him, and so going through the Park met Mr. Mills, our parson, whom I went back with to bring him to [Sir] W. Coventry, to give him the form of a qualification for the Duke of York to sign to, to enable him to have two livings: which was a service I did, but much against my will, for a lazy, fat priest. Thence to Westminster Hall, and there walked a turn or two with Sir William Doyly, who did lay a wager with me, the Treasurership would be in one hand, notwithstanding this present Commission, before Christmas: on which we did lay a poll of ling, a brace of carps, and a pottle of wine; and Sir W. Pen and Mr. Scowen to be at the eating of them. Thence down by water to Deptford, it being Trinity Monday, when the Master is chosen, and there, finding them all at church, and thinking they dined, as usual, at Stepny, I turned back, having a good book in my hand, the Life of Cardinal Wolsey, wrote by his own servant, and to Ratcliffe; and so walked to Stepny, and spent, my time in the churchyard, looking over the gravestones, expecting when the company would come by. Finding no company stirring, I sent to the house to see; and, it seems, they dine not there, but at Deptford: so I back again to Deptford, and there find them just sat down. And so I down with them; and we had a good dinner of plain meat, and good company at our table: among others, my good Mr. Evelyn, with whom, after dinner, I stepped aside, and talked upon the present posture of our affairs; which is, that the Dutch are known to be abroad with eighty sail of ships of war, and twenty fire-ships; and the French come into the Channell with twenty sail of men-of-war, and five fireships, while we have not a ship at sea to do them any hurt with; but are calling in all we can, while our Embassadors are treating at Bredah; and the Dutch look upon them as come to beg peace, and use them accordingly; and all this through the negligence of our Prince, who hath power, if he would, to master all these with the money and men that he hath had the command of, and may now have, if he would mind his business. But, for aught we see, the Kingdom is likely to be lost, as well as the reputation of it is, for ever; notwithstanding so much reputation got and preserved by a rebel that went before him. This discourse of ours ended with sorrowful reflections upon our condition, and so broke up, and Creed and I got out of the room, and away by water to White Hall, and there he and I waited in the Treasury-chamber an hour or two, where we saw the Country Receivers and Accountants for money come to attend; and one of them, a brisk young fellow, with his hat cocked like a fool behind, as the present fashion among the blades is, committed to the Serjeant. By and by, I, upon desire, was called in, and delivered in my report of my Accounts. Present, Lord Ashly, Clifford, and Duncomb, who, being busy, did not read it; but committed it to Sir George Downing, and so I was dismissed; but, Lord! to see how Duncomb do take upon him is an eyesore, though I think he deserves great honour, but only the suddenness of his rise, and his pride. But I do like the way of these lords, that they admit nobody to use many words, nor do they spend many words themselves, but in great state do hear what they see necessary, and say little themselves, but bid withdraw. Thence Creed and I by water up to Fox Hall, and over against it stopped, thinking to see some Cock-fighting; but it was just being done, and, therefore, back again to the other side, and to Spring Garden, and there eat and drank a little, and then to walk up and down the garden, reflecting upon the bad management of things now, compared with what it was in the late rebellious times, when men, some for fear, and some for religion, minded their business, which none now do, by being void of both. Much talk of this and, other kinds, very pleasant, and so when it was almost night we home, setting him in at White Hall, and I to the Old Swan, and thence home, where to supper, and then to read a little, and so to bed.

26 Annotations

First Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

George Deyes to Ormond
Written from: Waterford
Date: 3 June 1667

The Dutch have so many small capers [ privateers ] of six or eight guns, nimble in sailing, - so that our frigates cannot compare with them - that they "will interrupt our wool whilst the War lasts" ...
_____

Arlington to Ormond
Written from: Whitehall
Date: 3 June 1667, late at night

Does not, in any degree, approve of Lord Ossory's proposition of going into Flanders, unless he shall go at the head of three or four regiments at least; and the occasion for that cannot, as his Grace knows, happen this summer. Shall therefore beseech Lord Ossory to put aside those thoughts, for the present.

We cannot yet see day in the treaty at Breda. The Dutch hope to humble us to their conditions, by the appearance of their fleet on their Coast. And the French Ambassadors as yet give us no help ...

http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/s…

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"to enable him to have two livings"

L&M noted 29 May that Milles [sic] presumably had been private tutor to the young Sir Robert Brookes and now became non-resident Rector of Wanstead, Essex, where Brookes was Lord of the Manor he acquired from his father-in-law, Sir Henry Mildmay the regicide. http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
"An act of 1529 exempted chaplains of members of the royal family and of noblemen from the usual rules controlling pluralism [ holding more than one salaried position simultaneously ] and non-residence."

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"Trinity Monday, when the Master is chosen"

L&M note that Pepys doesn't mention Penn was chosen.

Paul Chapin  •  Link

"so much reputation got and preserved by a rebel that went before him"

Is this a reference to Oliver Cromwell?

Ruben  •  Link

"and all this through the negligence of our Prince, who hath power, if he would, to master all these with the money and men that he hath had the command of, and may now have, if he would mind his business. But, for aught we see, the Kingdom is likely to be lost, as well as the reputation of it is, for ever; notwithstanding so much reputation got and preserved by a rebel that went before him"
"reflecting upon the bad management of things now, compared with what it was in the late rebellious times, when men, some for fear, and some for religion, minded their business, which none now do, by being void of both."

Subversive talk! I think Pepys bones have to be removed from his grave and thrown to the dogs, at least!

Andrew Hamilton  •  Link

The meeting between Pepys and Evelyn, two men who pay close attention to their world, is almost Shakespearean. It sent me immediately to Richard II, Act 2, Scene 1, the dialogue between the Duke of York and John of Gaunt bewailing, in Gaunt's words, that

This land of such dear souls, this dear dear land,
Dear for her reputation through the world,
Is now leased out, I die pronouncing it,
Like to a tenement or pelting farm:
England, bound in with the triumphant sea
Whose rocky shore beats back the envious siege
Of watery Neptune, is now bound in with shame,
With inky blots and rotten parchment bonds:
That England, that was wont to conquer others,
Hath made a shameful conquest of itself.

York describes the king's ear as being

stopp'd with other flattering sounds,
As praises, of whose taste the wise are fond,
Lascivious metres, to whose venom sound
The open ear of youth doth always listen;
Report of fashions in proud Italy,
Whose manners still our tardy apish nation
Limps after in base imitation.
Where doth the world thrust forth a vanity--
So it be new, there's no respect how vile--
That is not quickly buzzed into his ears?
Then all too late comes counsel to be heard,
Where will doth mutiny with wit's regard.

Pretty good summary of the state of the court of Charles II at this time.

Carole in DC  •  Link

I suggest that a "poll of ling" is quite possibly (verging on probably) a mis-translation of a "joll of ling," which was a fish fillet used in pie. Other types included joll of sturgeon, and joll of salmon. The first meaning of "ling" in the OED is "A long slender gadoid fish, Molva vulgaris or Lota molva, inhabiting the seas of northern Europe." OED doesn't define "joll" this way, but I've found it in other sources, such as "The Queen-Like Closet" (1672) (the following cut-and-pasted from an online source and not checked):

Pasty of a Joll of Ling

Make your Crust with fine Flower, Butter, cold Cream, and two yolks of Eggs:

Roul it thin and lay it in your Bake-pan, then take part of a Joll of Ling well boiled, and pull it all in Bits, then lay some Butter into your Pasty and then the Ling, then some grated Nutmeg, sliced Ginger, Cloves and Mace, Oysters, Muscles, Cockles, and Shrimps, the yolks of raw Eggs, a few Comfits perfumed, Candied Orange Pill, Citron Pill, and Limon Pill, with Eringo Roots:

Then put in white Wine, and good store of Butter, and put on a thick lid, when it is baked, open it, and let out the steam.

Andrew Hamilton  •  Link

The best explanation I can come up with for "a poll of ling" (ling being a species of fish) is this entry from OED for poll, n. 1,

4b. A unit in numbering domestic animals, chattels, etc. (Plural after a numeral also poll.) Cf. head n.1 7c. Obs.

It suggests that a single fish is being described. If so the bet is for one of ling and two of carp, plus a "pottle." The phrase, "a poll, a brace and a pottle" has a formulaic, even ceremonial ring and I sense that Pepys enjoys the trope as much as the bet itself.

A. De Araujo  •  Link

"Trinity Monday, when the master is chosen"
If Penn was chosen then it explains Sam's jealous and angry mood, a little like Yago.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

“a poll of ling” -- L&M have a "pole of ling" and in the Select Glossary have

POLE: head; head-and-shoulder (of fish); pole tax.

Andrew Hamilton  •  Link

Thanks, Terry

JWB  •  Link

Sir William Doyly

Just think what his young male descendants must have endured thru last 2 1/2 centuries of mandated playground attendance.. Enough to change name to Antimacassar.

Mary  •  Link

and a pottle
is a liquid measure, denoting four pints. Those will be Imperial pints of 20 fluid ounces each.

At that rate their dinner should leave them nicely mellow but not sozzled.

Mary  •  Link

"a brisk young fellow with his hat cocked like a fool behind, as the present fashion among the blades is, committed to the Serjeant."

I love this instance of Pepys coming over all stuffy about the foolishness of youth. That's not the way to wear a hat!

L&M have an interesting footnote to the effect that this may have been Mr. Price, Receiver for Herefordshire, who had been granted leave to 'go in the custody of the serjeant to get in his moneys.'

This refers to the Country Receivers, whose job it was to see to the collection of the land-taxes that had recently been voted through. On this particular day, warrants for the arrest and prosecution of several of them were ordered.

Bradford  •  Link

"his hat cocked like a fool behind": now, does this mean it's up in the back, and down in the front, in front of his face (or forehead at least)? I envision a three-cornered hat, but is that apt for this time and place? Which would force you to crane your neck back to see who you're talking to and where you're going. Not unlike the way some brisk young fellows wore their hair just a few years back.

Australian Susan  •  Link

I think Carole's tasty pie sounds more interesting than what the fish turns out to be: boiled head and shoulders.

Mary  •  Link

the tricorn hat.

Became fashionable towards the end of the 17th century and really flourished during the first part of the 18th. Most picture evidence at the current, Pepysian, date continues to show broad-brimmed hats with their brims worn au naturel, so to speak.

[There was a sound reason for the tricorn's eventual popularity. The curling of the brim funnelled rainwater towards either side of the shoulders and so saved one's back from a worse wetting].

cum salis grano  •  Link

Thank you Mary:
The days of practical self preservation.

Second Reading

psw  •  Link

the negligence of our Prince, who hath power, if he would, to master all these with the money and men that he hath had the command of, and may now have, if he would mind his business.

Is not the Prince here the King and not Rupert?

Phil Gyford  •  Link

That makes sense psw; I've changed the link now.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"the Dutch are known to be abroad with eighty sail of ships of war, and twenty fire-ships; and the French come into the Channell with twenty sail of men-of-war, and five fireships"

L&M: The Dutch had left the Texel and were to appear off the Suffolk coast a few days later: see https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/… Coventry sent to the Navy Board on this day a report (received from Holland) giving the numbers exactly as Pepys here records them: CSPD Add. 1660-85, p. 187. The Dutch fleet was in fact slightly smaller and consisted of 51 warships, 3 frigates, 6 armed yachts and 14 fireships: J. C. de Jonge, Geschiedenis van het nederlandsche zeewesen, ii. 177. (For the numbers in general, see also CSPD 1667, pp. 144, 146, 157; Clowes, ii. 295.) The French operated from Brest and did not come into the Channel. For a report about the French similar to Pepys's, see the newsletter (4 June) in HMC, Le Fleming, p. 49.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"Present, Lord Ashly, Clifford, and Duncomb, who, being busy, did not read [my report of my Accounts]; but committed it to Sir George Downing, and so I was dismissed"

L&M: Pepys's report is not mentioned in Downing's minute of the meeting: CTB. ii. 5-7.

Batch  •  Link

"and one of them, a brisk young fellow, with his hat cocked like a fool behind, as the present fashion among the blades is" -- reminds me of the present fashion among the blades in the US of wearing their baseball caps backwards.
Years back I saw a column by George Will in which he noted that Holden Caulfield already wore his cap this way in "Catcher in the Rye."

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

"and I to the Old Swan, ..."

Oh Pepys ... was Betty out? Michael lurking? You found you were too exhausted after this day to care where they were? Did you have a strong G&T after this day worrying about where these 80 warships and 20 fire ships are coming ashore, and quelling your jealousy that Penn was Master of Trinity House? How heavy was 'The life and death of Thomas Wolsey, cardinal: once archbishop of York and Lord Chancellor of England' anyways? Perhaps you gave it to your boy to take home when he brought the Treasury report to you at Whitehall? (How does he get the report to you by himself, anyways? By hackney coach? He can't walk. Or did he carry it all day as he followed you around? Perhaps Hewer brought it?) So much we don't know, and what to make of these throw away lines of tantalizingly irrelevant detail anyways?

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