Saturday 26 October 1667

Up, and we met all this morning at Sir W. Pen’s roome, the office being fowle with the altering of our garden door. There very busy, and at noon home, where Mrs. Pierce and her daughter’s husband [L&M say “and her daughter, husband,” P.G.] and Mrs. Corbet dined with me. I had a good dinner for them, and mighty merry. Pierce and I very glad at the fate of the officers of Ordnance, that they are like to have so much blame on them. Here Mrs. Pierce tells me that the two Marshalls at the King’s house are Stephen Marshall’s, the great Presbyterian’s daughters: and that Nelly and Beck Marshall, falling out the other day, the latter called the other my Lord Buckhurst’s whore. Nell answered then, “I was but one man’s whore, though I was brought up in a bawdy-house to fill strong waters to the guests; and you are a whore to three or four, though a Presbyter’s praying daughter!” which was very pretty. Mrs. Pierce is still very pretty, but paints red on her face, which makes me hate her, that I thank God I take no pleasure in her at all more. After much mirth and good company at dinner, I to the office and left them, and Pendleton also, who come in to see my wife and talk of dancing, and there I at the office all the afternoon very busy, and did much business, with my great content to see it go off of hand, and so home, my eyes spent, to supper and to bed.

18 Annotations

First Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Written from: [Westminster] 26 October 1667

The Heads of Particulars with which the Earl of Clarendon was charged in the House of Commons

Document type: Contemporary report; as communicated to the Duke of Ormond

http://www.rsl.ox.ac.uk/dept/scwm…

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Written from: London, 26 October 1667

Anglesey to Ormond

Sir Nicholas Armorer brought to the Earl, on [ 19th ] [in MS.: "29th of this month"] inst, His Grace's letters which oblige him further ("if any addition can be made") to His Grace's service.

Mr Seymour, "in his accusation of the Earl of Clarendon, among other bribes, charged him with the sum of £50,000, received from Ireland; and made a transition, how fit it would be for the Commons to take into consideration, in due time the state and management of affairs in that Kingdom".

Adds that as Seymour left the House, a son of Sir F. Coventry quarrelled ("it is said, upon an old grudge [in MS.: "grutch"]") with him, and both were wounded.
_____

William Legge to Ormond

Has received the Duke's letter of October 15. Reports the proceedings in the House of Commons in relation to the impeachment of the Lord Chancellor Clarendon.

Mentions the coming from Ireland of persons disaffected to the Duke's government. What the writer has learned of their intrigues he has communicated to the Duke's son [ Lord Ossory ].
_____

Ossory to Ormond

Has received the Duke's letter of October 17th. Retains the opinion, formerly expressed, that it may not be unworthy the Duke's consideration whether Letters [ patent ] might not usefully be obtained, empowering him to constitute a Deputy, in the event of his affairs needing his own repair to England.

Thinks it to be quite possible that, in time, the attempts of the Duke's enemies "will be so far successful as to divest him of the Government", which, once lost, will not easily be recovered.

http://www.rsl.ox.ac.uk/dept/scwm…

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Written from: Kilkenny, 26 October 1667

Ormond to Arlington

... Whatsoever further application Barker shall make, the writer is highly satisfied with the vindication the judgment here given in his cause [ http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1… ] hath found, in the approval of the King and Council in England. If his cause required no further justice, it is certain his carriage in the prosecution of it deserved little favour. The persons to be satisfied & rewarded out of he has long so unwarrantably held are (1) the informer, Rutherne; (2) Colonel Edward Vernon; (3) those of the Nominees whose estates, or part of them, are in that proportion; (4 & last) Lord Clanmalier & such others as are left desperate by the Acts of Settlement and are the fittest objects of his Majesty's bounty & compassion.

Rutherne's proportion is 3,000 acres; which leaves 12,000 acres for distribution. ...
Adds particulars concerning the cases of Dr Loftus and of Richard Talbot. ...
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Ormond to Conway

Is glad to have Lord Conway on the place where the actions of all men in public employment are subjected to reproach & misinformation, by fancy, by malice, & by credulity.

The Duke knows these things well; but has suffered from aspersions, only until he could answer for himself.
Adds particulars as to the prize ship brought into Galway [by Sir Jeremy Smith], and sold.
_____

Ormond to Edward Vernon

Colonel Vernon's advices of 12th and 14th October relative to the conclusion, at its present stage, of Barker's appeal, have been duly received.

Were the Adventurers to advise with sober Counsel, and upon true statements, they would save charges to themselves, as well as trouble, in reply, to the Lord Lieutenant [ Ormond ].

http://www.rsl.ox.ac.uk/dept/scwm…

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"Mrs. Pierce and her daughter’s husband [L&M say “and her daughter, husband,” P.G.]" The eternally pregnant Betty would seem young to have a married daughter. Though stranger things have happened.

***
"Pierce and I very glad at the fate of the officers of Ordnance, that they are like to have so much blame on them."

Ghostly Hugh Aubry giving Sam a thumb's up...

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"...the two Marshalls at the King’s house are Stephen Marshall’s, the great Presbyterian’s daughters: and that Nelly and Beck Marshall, falling out the other day, the latter called the other my Lord Buckhurst’s whore. Nell answered then, “I was but one man’s whore, though I was brought up in a bawdy-house to fill strong waters to the guests; and you are a whore to three or four, though a Presbyter’s praying daughter!”"

I assume Charlie takes a cynical pleasure in seeing these two on his House's stage while picturing the father spinning in his grave.

sbt  •  Link

Somehow I doubt that the 'Mr Corbet' referenced is the one linked to,
he having, by this time, been deprived of his life, liberty, innereds
and bodily unity for some 5 years.

Robert Gertz  •  Link

But what a great Halloween tale for Sam... Dinner with Mr. Corbet and mighty merry. Sounds positively ghoulish (What has the RS been up to?).

Unless of course you go the "Scarlet Pimpernel Sam" route and Corbet emerges to dine from a secret room where he's been hidden the last five years. a heroic servant (isn't there always one?) having taken his place at the disemboweling block.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Marshalls

L&M note "Stephen Marshall (d. 1655) had been one of the leaders of the Presbyterian clergy during the Puritan Revolution; it was not he who was father to the actress, but an obscure provincial parson of the same surname, who as chaplain to the 2nd Lord Gerard of Gerard's Bromley (d. 1622), had been married off to the bastard daughter a Cheshire squire, John Dutton of Dutton."

We all have parents.

Glyn  •  Link

I just wanted to say that I'm extremely grateful that Terry F takes the trouble to post so many interesting postings here. So often they throw a whole new light on what Pepys is writing about.

Glyn  •  Link

Just out of curiosity, how long will it take people to compose in their mind and then write a diary entry of perhaps a couple of hundred words. Only an hour, or longer?

Ruben  •  Link

how long will it take people to compose in their mind and then write a diary entry

They are so many different angles to consider that you can write a book and not finish with it.
Somerset Maugham said about writing "I took to it as a duck takes to water".
Others that were better speaking than writing presumably said "I took to it as a chicken to water", but they never published this fact.
The rest of humanity stands between this two extremes.

Ruben  •  Link

"Terry F takes the trouble to post so many interesting postings here. So often they throw a whole new light on what Pepys is writing about."

YES.

Because of the cultural barrier between us, I do not always understand Terry's circumvolutious way of adressing a point, but when I do I enjoy the reading. So, I always read with interest a new Terry annotation.

Mary  •  Link

"I to the office and left them, and Pendleton also ..."

Is Sam counting on the other guests to ensure that nothing untoward takes place, or has he now completely got over his earlier jealous suspicions of Elizabeth and Pendleton's supposed relationship?

As for Mrs. Pierce's repulsive habit of painting red on her face, rouge/blusher is decidedly the most difficult cosmetic to apply well even nowadays. Given the comparatively unrefined nature of 17th century cosmetics, it must have been even more difficult then.

Carl in Boston  •  Link

How long to compose a diary entry? Ben Franklin once apologized for writing a long letter, for he hadn't the time to write a short one. I often think overnight, my ideas shrink to find the point of discussion, throw away half, try to stay on point, and then say my say, ready or not. Overnight is good, because sometimes less is more.

Second Reading

Phil Gyford  •  Link

The "Mr. Corbet" link has belatedly been corrected to "Mrs. Corbet" now.

Third Reading

Trevor M Randall  •  Link

I’m with Mary, did I miss something? Sam perfectly happy to leave Bess and Pendleton alone!? Not so long ago the mere thought would’ve given him ulcers.

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