Thursday 10 December 1668

Up, and to the Office, where busy all the morning: Middleton not there, so no words or looks of him. At noon, home to dinner; and so to the Office, and there all the afternoon busy; and at night W. Hewer home with me; and we think we have got matter enough to make Middleton appear a coxcomb. But it troubled me to have Sir W. Warren meet me at night, going out of the Office home, and tell me that Middleton do intend to complain to the Duke of York: but, upon consideration of the business, I did go to bed, satisfied that it was best for me that he should; and so my trouble was over, and to bed, and slept well.


4 Annotations

First Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

The Royal Society today at Arundel House — from the Hooke Folio Online

Dec. 10. 1668. there was made an Expt. Diuised by the curator to shew how rebounding depends vpon the Springynesse of bodys. it was made by a Springy plate of brasse bended in the form of an ouall, which being cutt or Burnt asunder did Reflect two wooden balls of Different sizes, soe as that they were conceiued to moue in Reciprocall proportion to their magnitudes, the expt. was orderd to be prosecuted the next Day. -

mr. Hooke acquainted the Company that Dr. Allen had Examind the Testicles of a horse, & found it to be made vp of Vessells

Dr. Wallis his Letter answering mr neils querys [vide Letter booke. Dec. 5. 68] -- books Deliuerd to Curator for Societys Library. Vz

Mr. Hooke acquainted the company that he had lately made an obseruatio of one of the Eclipses of the made by one of the Satelittes on Iupiter, and that it had happend at the very time assigned by Cassini in his Ephemerides Mediceorum.
[ http://books.google.com/books?id=… ] The same moued that mr Oldenburge might be desired to write to the said Cassinj to Learn whether he hath calculated other Ephemerides of any year to come and if soe, that he would please to comunicate them to the end that here as well as in Italy Obseruations may be made to fi[n]de out the precise Difference of Meridians. Mr Old: vndertooke to write to him for that purpose

http://webapps.qmul.ac.uk/cell/Ho…

Chris Squire  •  Link

‘coxcomb, n. Etymology: = cock's-comb n.
1. A cap worn by a professional fool, like a cock's comb in shape and colour; = cock's-comb Obs.
. . 3. a. A fool, simpleton (obs.); now, a foolish, conceited, showy person, vain of his accomplishments, appearance, or dress; a fop; ‘a superficial pretender to knowledge or accomplishments’ (Johnson).
. . 1667 S. Pepys Diary 13 Feb. (1974) VIII. 59 A vain coxcomb‥he is, though he sings and composes so well.’ [OED]

Second Reading

Eric the Bish  •  Link

“to the end that here as well as in Italy Obseruations may be made to fi[n]de out the precise Difference of Meridians.”

Close observation of the moons of Jupiter does provide a method of calculating longitude, that vital question for mariners, but the practical problems were insurmountable at sea. It would be 70 years before Harrison, with his clock H1, provided the necessary accuracy in measuring time which would allow the problem to be solved.

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

"... upon consideration of the business, I did go to bed, satisfied that it was best for me that he should; and so my trouble was over, and to bed, and slept well."

Brings to mind the Greek Stoic philosopher Epictetus, who observed as far back as the 1st century CE that “it’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.”

Pepys' home improvements and new coach are his visible answer to the storm around the Navy Board and the loss of the second Anglo-Dutch War. He is acting as if he is proud of his role, and a successful department head who should be treated with respect and as an equal. Let them prove otherwise.

He's also showing Elizabeth how much she has to lose if she pushes him too far, because Pepys has a breaking point with her histrionics, well deserved as they may be. She could find herself keeping house for dear old Pal and bro-in-law Jackson. Now that would be worth watching!

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