Tuesday 26 April 1664
Up, and to my Lord Sandwich’s, and coming a little too early, I went and saw W. Joyce, and by and by comes in Anthony, they both owning a great deal of kindness received from me in their late business, and indeed I did what I could, and yet less I could not do. It has cost the poor man above 40l.; besides, he is likely to lose his debt. Thence to my Lord’s, and by and by he comes down, and with him (Creed with us) I rode in his coach to St. James’s, talking about W. Joyce’s business mighty merry, and my Lady Peters, he says, is a drunken jade, he himself having seen her drunk in the lobby of their House.
I went up with him to the Duke, where methought the Duke did not shew him any so great fondness as he was wont; and methought my Lord was not pleased that I should see the Duke made no more of him, not that I know any thing of any unkindnesse, but I think verily he is not as he was with him in his esteem.
By and by the Duke went out and we with him through the Parke, and there I left him going into White Hall, and Creed and I walked round the Parke, a pleasant walk, observing the birds, which is very pleasant; and so walked to the New Exchange, and there had a most delicate dish of curds and creame, and discourse with the good woman of the house, a discreet well-bred woman, and a place with great delight I shall make it now and then to go thither.
Thence up, and after a turn or two in the ’Change, home to the Old Exchange by coach, where great newes and true, I saw by written letters, of strange fires seen at Amsterdam in the ayre, and not only there, but in other places thereabout.
The talke of a Dutch warr is not so hot, but yet I fear it will come to it at last. So home and to the office, where we sat late.
My wife gone this afternoon to the buriall of my she-cozen Scott, a good woman; and it is a sad consideration how the Pepys’s decay, and nobody almost that I know in a present way of encreasing them. At night late at my office, and so home to my wife to supper and to bed.
24 Annotations
First Reading
Terry F • Link
"Creed and I walked round the Parke...observing the birds"
Of late taking notice of these. The pretty ones. A major turn-on. 8-)
Jesse • Link
"strange fires seen at Amsterdam in the ayre"
Fast guess it's an Aurora Borealis. A quick google and "wrote Peter Lipton from Amsterdam. 'You don't see the Northern Lights very much down here [in] Amsterdam'" http://science.nasa.gov/headlines… .
Jesse • Link
"strange fires seen at Amsterdam in the ayre"
Oops, just looked and Amsterdam's not really that much further north than London. Unusual lightning "not only there, but in other places thereabout"?
cape henry • Link
"...observing the birds, which is very pleasant..."
Twitchers!
Terry F • Link
Jesse, L&M surmise an "auroral" phenomenon and cite Schove, D. J. 'London aurorae of 1661.' Journal of the British Astronomical Association, 63 (1953), 266-70. http://www.rhs.ac.uk/bibl/wwwopac…
Todd Bernhardt • Link
"and yet less I could not do"
I'm still a little puzzled why Sam feels such obligation to the Joyces, especially given his other feelings for them (annoyance, primarily). Yes, they're related, but somewhat distantly ... I know that this meant more then than it typically does now (at least 'round these parts), but still -- am I missing something here?
Maurie Beck • Link
a discreet well-bred woman, and a place with great delight I shall make it now and then to go thither.
Another opportunity for a tryst?
jeannine • Link
"My wife gone this afternoon to the buriall of my she-cozen Scott, a good woman; and it is a sad consideration how the Pepys's decay, and nobody almost that I know in a present way of encreasing them"
How horrible for she cozen Scott -I am guessing that this must be the illness related to a miscarriage that she had back in February where Sam noted:
"Then by coach home, calling at my cozen Scott's, who (she) lies dying, they say, upon a miscarriage. My wife could not be admitted to see her, nor anybody."
I can only imagine that the past 2 months must have been living hell for her.
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
cape henry • Link
Pepys sketch of the transition from the carriage ride [merry] to the audience with the duke [tense] shows how blisteringly sensitive he is to all things Sandwich. For his part, Sandwich is the foil of the duke. Wouldn't it be interesting, though, to view Sam through Sandwich's eyes now and again? One gets the sense from this entry that he at least considers Sam worthy enough of a place in the pecking order to be concerned about his own status in Sam's eyes. This is not a consideration he would give a servant. 'Esteem' is a gentleman's currency.
Terry F • Link
"It has cost the poor man above 40l.; besides, he is likely to lose his debt."
Is W. Joyce's "debt" his bail bond?
Robert Gertz • Link
"...yet less I could not do." Would be nice to know if it was primarily family solidarity or a sense of gross injustice on Sam's part. Charming by the way that my Lord Sandwich was so amused...Did he lift a finger?
"Yes, a silly drunken jade. What's this, Pepys?" Sandwich eyes the letter a bowing Sam has offered.
"Ummn...My Lord...My Cousin Joyce asked me to present this bill of attainder for your furnishings. He still hasn't been paid in these past seven months, my Lord."
"Creed!!! Howe!!!!"
***
"...not that I know any thing of any unkindnesse, but I think verily he is not as he was with him in his esteem."
Hmmn...Seems odd with a naval war looming to antagonize your best naval commander. I wonder if Sandwich has expressed concerns about the upcoming war.
Mary • Link
W. Joyce's debt.
This is presumably the money for which he was pursuing Lady P. in the first place.
Mary • Link
a pleasant walk observing the birds.
These will be the caged birds in the Birdcage Walk royal aviary.
alanB • Link
'had a most delicate dish of curds and creame, and discourse with the good woman of the house'
'eating his curds and whey, when along came a spider and sat down beside him ...'
Robert Gertz • Link
"All right. We've completed steps one and two, and three is nearly complete. We've found the worst cause for war ever and gotten the merchants to press us for it. We've slapped together the worst war plan...If we even dare call it that. Now we've got Parliament ready to vote millions of pounds for a war we're sure to lose." Charles ticks off the Master Plan so far.
"Millions that will somehow mysteriously be lost along with said war. And following Louis of France's brief occupation and elimination of said Parliament will keep the Stuarts absolute monarchs till long past both our reigns." Jamie beams.
"Exactly. And now it's time to ensure our fleet is not only unready but fully commanded by the worst of the incompetents who lost our dad's throone...And remember, Jamie...Do everything possible to antagonize and humilate Lord Sandwich. The one thing that could destroy the Stuart Plan is if that fellow managed to actually pull off an English victory. We must have the Dutch sending our fleet down like lead and allowing Louis to send in his forces as their ally. This play of a war must close in disaster on opening night or Parliament will start asking where their money went."
A. De Araujo • Link
"to the buriall of my she-cozen Scott"
Looking up Pepys' Family Tree, besides Tom,a woman named Judith is the only relative to have died in 1664; is she the one?
jeannine • Link
"a woman named Judith is the only relative to have died in 1664; is she the one?" I beleive so -when you hit the link on her name it goes to Judith.
Robert Gertz • Link
Sam, as to continuing the family line, there's a little girl named Elizabeth who might appreciate a little tender care...And a wife who might love having a baby daughter.
Andrew Hamilton • Link
and it is a sad consideration how the Pepys's decay, and nobody almost that I know in a present way of encreasing them
Let us not forget that Uncle Wight is eager to do his duty(behind Sam's back)
Bradford • Link
We all can summon up the image of the scene that would ensue should Samuel and Elizabeth choose to do their part to Encrease the Pepyses. Much more difficult is the visualization required by the news that "my Lady Peters . . . is a drunken jade, he himself having seen her drunk in the lobby of their House."
Is "lobby" similar to "foyer"? Were there benches upon which Lady Peters could drunkenly loll? But given the elaborate nature of female aristocratic fashion at this time, it would seem her very dress would inhibit any overt exhibition of inebriation. Did she loosen her stays, and seize on one of her Lord's walking sticks, to layabout any servant who denied her request for "Another quart of canary!"? No, can't quite envision it. Requires the license of an old-time Hollywood costume-picture director.
cumsalisgrano • Link
"lobby" an ante chamber where the one can be stong armed by a zealoted special intereste group who needs your vote [monies].
AussieRene • Link
All right. We've completed steps one and two, and three is nearly complete. We've found the worst cause for war ever and gotten the merchants to press us for it. We've slapped together the worst war plan...If we even dare call it that. Now we've got Parliament ready to vote millions of pounds for a war we're sure to lose."
Sounds very much like Bush and Iraq, Bob Gertz.
cumsalisgrano • Link
As Hobbes would point out : "Force, and fraud, in are in war the two cardinal virtues."
Second Reading
San Diego Sarah • Link
"My wife gone this afternoon to the burial of my she-cozen Scott, ..." It sounds as if Elizabeth attended this funeral.
At Tom's funeral -- http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1… -- "And being come to the grave as above, Dr. Pierson, the minister of the parish, did read the service for burial: and so I saw my poor brother laid into the grave; and so all broke up; and I and my wife and Madam Turner and her family to my brother’s, ..." it sounds to me as if Elizabeth and Mrs. Turner attended.
Yet we established that women at this time did not attend funerals. Perhaps they sat in the parlor and waited for the men to return? Doesn't sound like that. Perhaps only close relatives attended funerals? Anyone got any information on this?