Wednesday 13 August 1662

Annotations

• N dirk on Sat 13 Aug 2005, 11:08pm

  Today the official foundation of the “Royal Society” - Evelyn’s diary:

  “To Lond. Our Charter being now passed under the Broad-Seale, constituting us a Corporation under the Name of the Royal-Society, for the improvement of naturall knowledge by Experiment: to Consist of a President, Council, Fellows, Secretaries, Curators, Operators, Printer, Graver & other officers, with power to make laws, purchasse land, have a peculiar Seale & other immunities & privileges &c: as at large appears in our Graunt, was this day read, & was all that was don this afternoone, it being very large:”
  

• N dirk on Sat 13 Aug 2005, 11:12pm

  “they having eightpence per yard allowed them by pretence of a contract, where no such thing appears; and it is threepence more than was formerly paid”

  It appears the flagmakers granted themselves a raise. Comes along that annoying man from London…
  

• N Terry F. on Sat 13 Aug 2005, 11:23pm

  “how it will prove we shall soon see.”

  L&M note: “The Jemmy (25 tons); for her race again the Dutch yacht [Bezan] see [September 5]. She was built by Commissioner Pett. The Royal Society [of “virtuosos”] appears to have had no part in this enterprise.”

• N Cumgranissalis on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 02:42am

  “…Shipp …” be a pub or be it afloat?

• N Terry F. on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 02:58am

• N Cumgranissalis on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 03:15am

  for those of enquiring mind, J.Evelyn can be found ‘ere:
  http://www.geocities.com/Paris/LeftBank/1914/ed_1662.html

• N Mary on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 07:56am

  Flagmakers, hemp suppliers, timber merchants, dockyards…..

  Pepys is energetically pursuing his role as the new broom. He must be feeling very sure of his position to be stirring up so many potential hornets’ nests at the same time.

• N Tony Eldridge on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 09:43am

  John Evelyn.
  Thanks for the link, Grain o’ salt. Another character in our 17th century soap opera.

• N Tony Eldridge on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 09:48am

  Pleasure boats.
  Does anyone have any information on these? They sound a bit like a Ferrari - a combination of status symbol and performance - with the former being the most important.

• N A. Hamilton on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 05:27pm

  “drawing a letter to the yards of reprehension and direction for the board to sign”

  Meaning? I take “yards” to mean shipyards, and “reprehension” to suggest that the yards are being warned against paying more than the market price for goods, and being warned to test offerings for quality. But who knows?

• N Terry F. on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 06:37pm

  Pleasure boats.

  Tony Eldridge, check here for general info about “yachts” (including the “Jamie/Jemmy”): http://www.pepysdiary.com/p/2703.php

  (the helpful notes by vincent/cumgrannissalis are rather obscurely hid)

• N Terry F. on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 06:50pm

  A. Hamilton your take on

• N Robert Gertz on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 10:00pm

  Hmmn. Sam’s offering the board his own flagmaking deal, eh? Interesting. Not that I’m suggesting it wouldn’t be a better deal than the current one for the Navy. I wonder who would be turning them out? Dad? Some lucky ‘friend’ of Sam’s?

  Image of Elisabeth, Jane, and a truly pissed Will Hewer…Damn there was not a thing about sewin’ flags in my clerkship papers…Diligently sewing away at Pepys.

  “Letters of reprehension…” The dynamic Sam and Mr. Coventry did find things very amiss the other day, the letters could include a stiff rebuke on that score-negligence and sloth, as well as the others mentioned above.

• N Robert Gertz on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 10:11pm

  “And the money came rolling in…From everywhere…”

  “Sam’s little arms reached out and they reached wide…Now, you may think the flag deal should have been opened to the best bid. But that’s not point my friend…”

  “When Duty is being done, you don’t ask questions. You can tell our boy’s done well by Coventry’s approving looks. Now you may think a little of the cash might go…astray. But that’s not the point, my friend…”

  
  (If you don’t tell Lloyd Webber, I won’t…)
  

• N Australian Susan on Sun 14 Aug 2005, 11:02pm

  Isn’t Sir William B going to have a lot to talk over with Sir William P when he returns from Ireland!

• N Robert Gertz on Mon 15 Aug 2005, 02:06am

  And wouldn’t one like to be there to see Sir Will P’s cherubic face turn beet red?

• N David A. Smith on Mon 15 Aug 2005, 02:35pm

  “I do find it the greatest cheat that I have yet found”
  The righteousness of the young and newly empowered. I think the diary serves in part to allow Sam to vocalize to himself what things really are, or what he thinks they are, without having to mind his language. That’s part of what makes it so fresh.