Saturday 22 November 1662

This morning, from some difference between my wife and Sarah, her maid, my wife and I fell out cruelly, to my great discontent. But I do see her set so against the wench, whom I take to be a most extraordinary good servant, that I was forced for the wench’s sake to bid her get her another place, which shall cost some trouble to my wife, however, before I suffer to be.

Thence to the office, where I sat all the morning, then dined; Mr. Moore with me, at home, my wife busy putting her furniture in order. Then he and I out, and he home and I to my cozen Roger Pepys to advise about treating with my uncle Thomas, and thence called at the Wardrobe on Mr. Moore again, and so home, and after doing much business at my office I went home and caused a new fashion knocker to be put on my door, and did other things to the putting my house in order, and getting my outward door painted, and the arch.

This day I bought the book of country dances against my wife’s woman Gosnell comes, who dances finely; and there meeting Mr. Playford he did give me his Latin songs of Mr. Deering’s, which he lately printed.

This day Mr. Moore told me that for certain the Queen-Mother is married to my Lord St. Albans, and he is like to be made Lord Treasurer.

Newes that Sir J. Lawson hath made up a peace now with Tunis and Tripoli, as well as Argiers, by which he will come home very highly honoured.


16 Annotations

First Reading

Terry F  •  Link

"This day Mr. Moore told me that for certain the Queen-Mother is married to my Lord St. Albans, and he is like to be made Lord Treasurer."

L&M note: "Both accounts were untrue....St. Albans was a close friend of Henrietta-Maria and managed her finances. The rumour about their marriage was widespread...."

Thursday http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1… we wondered about the job description of "Messenger" -- if Mr Moore is not a Messenger, he is a Courier, bringing Pepys the daily buzz.

"Newes that Sir J. Lawson hath made up a peace now with Tunis and Tripoli, as well as Argiers, by which he will come home very highly honoured."

L&M note: "This treaty (on 5 October 1662) differed slightly from that with the Algerines (q.v. 22 May, 1662 http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1… ). For its terms and its negotiation (much protracted by the pirates' keenness to do each other in the eye), see CSPVen.... There is a copy of the Tunis treaty in the Pepys papers in Rawls.... For the growth of Lawson's repute (and Sandwich's jealousy of it), see 27 June http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1… ."

Bradford  •  Link

And just a few days back books were too expensive to spend on frivolously. But music hath charms to soothe &c&c, and one assumes that English country dances do not, as in some regions of the US, require clogs.

A. De Araujo  •  Link

"and caused a new fashion knocker to be put on my door"
Was it a little anchor? if it was it has endured!

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"...I was forced for the wench’s sake to bid her get her another place, which shall cost some trouble to my wife, however, before I suffer to be."

Hmmn...? As in Bess will have to make nice-nice to our staunch Sam to get him to release Sarah from her post (while all the time he'd encouraged her to be gone)? Or will he insist Bess find her a place?

Gotta say, on this one my sympathy's a bit with Sam...He seems to be standing up for a servant who for all her faults has done her job well and dutifully. However we aren't on the scene and it is only Sam's pov and he is not there all day with Sarah and Bess.

Australian Susan  •  Link

Maybe Sam means he will not look out for a replacement for Sarah, so Elizabeth will be one pair of hands short in the household.

Pauline  •  Link

"...be one pair of hands short in the household.'
With no thought that Gosnell makes up the difference. It is easy to see Sarah's position with this new "hire"; that she loses status and still gets to do the hard work. Gets identified with the hard work. I've lost good ol' Jane in this consideration. Perhaps her position is more secure in that she serves the master of the house more directly; and that this Gosnell woman is coming in, ostensibly, for Elizabeth? With Sarah feeling pushed down to something more menial than she has been perceiving herself as being?

language hat  •  Link

"Gotta say, on this one my sympathy’s a bit with Sam"

Well, Sam's sympathy is with Sam, and it's his point of view we're getting. But as you say, it's not him who's there all day with Sarah and Bess, and it's quite possible (even likely, from Bess's reaction) that the maid was sweet as pie with Sam and quite unpleasant to milady.

celtcahill  •  Link

I dunno. I've read the Wheatly and I really like Liz and think she comes up short with Sam doing all the socializing - trying to keep the Stuart's et al's paws off'n the wife by leaving her home so much - but I think Liz is not so easy to live with either, especially as their Social rank rises.

Reading from the period literature has long been the source of my greatest delight that my ancestors left - one: Chandler: possibly a relative in the Diary near Hatfield-Bishop's Stortford.

Terry F  •  Link

The ongoing theme of Uncle Robert’s Will

"I to my cozen Roger Pepys to advise about treating with my uncle Thomas"

It surely can't be about the abatement for Piggott’s money demanded by Mr. Phillips, since we haven't heard that Sam has heard from his father, whom he wrote Tuesday night [and posted just Wednesday]. http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…

I wonder what this is about; there are other matters of which we are not told, and not just what Sam can't know.

language hat's caution reminds me of the usefulness of the Johari Window - a graphic model of interpersonal relationships http://www.augsburg.edu/education…

Terry F  •  Link

To be more precise, the Johari Window is about awareness in interpersonal relationships; in the interpersonal relationships we have with Samuel Pepys and his world (and with one another) there are hidden matters all around ("Noises Off!"); there are also matters of which we can be aware that others -- Sam'l included -- are not.

Glyn  •  Link

Celtcahill is absolutely right, I think, Elizeth isn't easy to live with for whatever reasons, and she's gotten rid of servants before this one. My sympathies are all with Sarah, I hope she moved to a better job.

A. Hamilton  •  Link

she’s gotten rid of servants before this one

Occurs to me we could use a Background section on Sam's household, including links to where he's lodged, occasions on which he has begun and finsihed improvements, household servants and their relatiosnhips to Sam. Its a lot to try to keep in the head. Maybe Phil could set up a section & some subheads, and we could annotate as needed when time permits. What do you think?

in Aqua Scripto  •  Link

Sam be conversing with a wide range of characters, and poor old Liz be without her soap Operas of the day, 'nutink' like a bit of local scandal to cheer up the day, so that be why the dancing lessons, in order to find that hidden self, and by loosning up the partner, to find the hidden in them.

Terry F  •  Link

"we could use a Background section on Sam’s household", etc.

A. Hamilton, keen suggestion: for this shuffle about Sarah, Jane, W. Gosnell, etc., I went to the L&M Companion for such a section; individual Background info soon in need of updates (Sarah's not gone yet) in vain. Here's another something we could add to L&M's excellent apparatus.

Phil, ref. http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

The Johari window is a technique created in 1955 by two American psychologists, Joseph Luft (1916–2014) and Harrington Ingham (1914–1995), used to help people better understand their relationship with self and others.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joh…

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"This day I bought the book of country dances against my wife’s woman Gosnell comes, who dances finely;"

L&M say this is probably Playford's Dancing Master
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The…

"and there meeting Mr. Playford he did give me his Latin songs of Mr. Deering’s, which he lately printed."

L&M ID this as Dering's Cantica Sacra (1618) which contains 6-part motets
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ric…

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