Sunday 18 August 1667

(Lord’s day). Up, and being ready, walked up and down to Cree Church, to see it how it is; but I find no alteration there, as they say there was, for my Lord Mayor and Aldermen to come to sermon, as they do every Sunday, as they did formerly to Paul’s. Walk back home and to our own church, where a dull sermon and our church empty of the best sort of people, they being at their country houses, and so home, and there dined with me Mr. Turner and his daughter Betty. Her mother should, but they were invited to Sir J. Minnes, where she dined and the others here with me. Betty is grown a fine lady as to carriage and discourse. I and my wife are mightily pleased with her. We had a good haunch of venison, powdered and boiled, and a good dinner and merry. After dinner comes Mr. Pelling the Potticary, whom I had sent for to dine with me, but he was engaged. After sitting an hour to talk we broke up, all leaving Pelling to talk with my wife, and I walked towards White Hall, but, being wearied, turned into St. Dunstan’s Church, where I heard an able sermon of the minister of the place; and stood by a pretty, modest maid, whom I did labour to take by the hand and the body; but she would not, but got further and further from me; and, at last, I could perceive her to take pins out of her pocket to prick me if I should touch her again — which seeing I did forbear, and was glad I did spy her design. And then I fell to gaze upon another pretty maid in a pew close to me, and she on me; and I did go about to take her by the hand, which she suffered a little and then withdrew. So the sermon ended, and the church broke up, and my amours ended also, and so took coach and home, and there took up my wife, and to Islington with her, our old road, but before we got to Islington, between that and Kingsland, there happened an odd adventure: one of our coach-horses fell sick of the staggers, so as he was ready to fall down. The coachman was fain to ’light, and hold him up, and cut his tongue to make him bleed, and his tail. The horse continued shaking every part of him, as if he had been in an ague, a good while, and his blood settled in his tongue, and the coachman thought and believed he would presently drop down dead; then he blew some tobacco in his nose, upon which the horse sneezed, and, by and by, grows well, and draws us the rest of our way, as well as ever he did; which was one of the strangest things of a horse I ever observed, but he says it is usual. It is the staggers.

Staid and eat and drank at Islington, at the old house, and so home, and to my chamber to read, and then to supper and to bed.

18 Annotations

First Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"one of our coach-horses fell sick of the staggers, so as he was ready to fall down."

Is this the "Perennial Ryegrass Staggers" ?

"This neurotoxic condition of grazing livestock of all ages occurs only in late spring, summer, and fall and only in pastures in which perennial ryegrass ( Lolium perenne ) or hybrid ryegrass are the major components.....The strict seasonal occurrence of characteristic tremors, incoordination, and collapse in several or many animals grazing predominantly perennial ryegrass pastures strongly implicates this disease....."

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm…

Bradford  •  Link

Sam, you are lucky those two young ladies did not give you the staggers, however "usual" it is. Just the thing to while away a dreary sermon.

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"stood by a pretty, modest maid, whom I did labour to take by the hand and the body; but she would not, but got further and further from me; and, at last, I could perceive her to take pins out of her pocket to prick me if I should touch her again — which seeing I did forbear, and was glad I did spy her design. And then I fell to gaze upon another pretty maid in a pew close to me, and she on me; and I did go about to take her by the hand, which she suffered a little and then withdrew."

Lucky that wasn't a knife she pulled out, Sam, and that that able minister didn't catch you at your little game.

Mystery man in the church...Not quite Gerty and Bloom as far as young woman #2 goes but...

cum salis grano  •  Link

The ' hatpin ' was always a maidens best friend so said my Grand mother.

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"Are you a gentleman of the Court, sir?" eager gaze.

Benevolent smile...Pat of held hand.

"Young woman...You are speaking to Samuel Pepys, Clerk of the Acts...The right hand of the King himself in affairs of the Royal Navy. A gentleman of the highest..."

"There he is, Archie! The bug-eyed lech I had to fight off with me pins in the very church!!" pin lady points.

"Er, pardon me...Urgent business..."

Louise H  •  Link

What does it mean to powder venison before boiling it, does anyone know?

Ruben  •  Link

Sixteenth century powdered goose:
"Grind the spices, zests and peppercorns to a powder and rub on to the legs. Place in a covered container, and refrigerate for 24 hours. Cover the legs evenly with the sea salt and place back in the refrigerator for another 8 hours..."
see: http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeand…

I presume the process was more or less similar for every meat, (except for the anachronistic refrigerator) including venison (that as Pedro annotated could be any meat).
For more on this, see encyclopedia - food and drink - food - meat and read the interesting and saliva stimulating annotations.

gingerd  •  Link

JWB - I don't think it was just plain salt (NaCl), I seem to recall, although I can't find a reference right now that powdering meat was done using Saltpeter.....Sodium or Potassium Nitrate.

cum salis grano  •  Link

refrigerator !!!!!!!!!

Beth Lee  •  Link

from the glossary of Prospect Books:
"POWDER, POWDERED. To powder is to sprinkle, as at 110 (with bay-salt), and powdered meat was meat sprinkled with salt, or perhaps saltpetre, to preserve or season it. (Robert May, 1660/1685)"
https://prospectbooks.co.uk/gloss…

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"one of our coach-horses fell sick of the staggers...and the coachman thought and believed he would presently drop down dead; then he blew some tobacco in his nose"

L&M: For the use of tobacco to clear the head, see R. Hooke, Diary (ed. Robinson and Adams), p. 17.

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

Pepys' vacation continues. Obviously no vows have been taken recently. Beer, plays and pretty girls. I suppose he's waiting for the other shoe to drop, and having fun while he can.

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

"... our church empty of the best sort of people, they being at their country houses, ..."

The workhorse and spokesperson of the Navy Board sounds a little wistful. In the last 2 years thousands have died of the plague, or lost their worldly goods to fire, and yet here he is, hounded for months by one Carkasse, surrounded by knaves and thieves, all of whom go off to party in the country and never invite him along. Poor Pepys. Will he ever succeed in being a "best sort of people"? Or is he on his way to the Tower?

john  •  Link

Terry F., another possibility is Paspalum Staggers (also due to neurotoxins produced by fungi in the grass: https://www.merckvetmanual.com/to…). Recovery is typically spontaneous so the horrible methods inflicted on the horses had no benefit. I must say that, in over 50y involvement with (non-racing) horses, I have never encountered staggers nor ever met someone who had encountered it.

Timo  •  Link

Sounds like young Sam has got his swagger back after his first legit leg over of the summer

Third Reading

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

This entry was used as an example in
"Sex, Lice and Chamber Pots in Pepys' London
By Liza Picard
Last updated 2011-02-17
https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/bri…

"Diary extract:

"18 August, 1667 '... but being weary, turned into St. Dunstan's church, where I hear an able sermon of the minister of the place. And stood by a pretty, modest maid, whom I did labour to take by the hand and the body; but she would not, but got further and further from me, and at last I could perceive her to take pins out of her pocket to prick me if I should touch her again ...'

"Background information

"Samuel Pepys, who enjoyed many sexual encounters, was not typical of his time. Surprisingly, the Puritan ethos enforced before the return of the "Merry Monarch", Charles II, lingered on. The rate of illegitimate births remained low. This was not achieved by contraception, which didn't exist as we know it. A man hoping for safe sex might tie on to his penis a sheath made of animal gut, or linen, but neither would be reliable as a contraceptive.

"Prostitution was rife. Syphilis had ravaged Europe since the 1500s. The treatment for it was horrific, and unlikely to succeed: mercury, which might well kill the patient before his disease did."

So Liza Picard thinks it likely this young woman -- I think the second one who is not in the excerpt is more likely -- was/were prostitutes!

Log in to post an annotation.

If you don't have an account, then register here.