our blots, as among others, that we reckon the ships full manned from the beginning. They gone, and my heart eased of a great deale of fear and pain, and reckoning myself to come off with victory, because not overcome in anything or much foiled, I away to White Hall, and there among the ladies, and saw my Lady Castlemaine never looked so ill, nor Mrs. Stewart neither, as in this plain, natural dress. I was not pleased with either of them. So home, and there find my father and my brother come to towne-my father without my expectation; but glad I am to see him. And so to supper with him, and to work again at the office; then home, to set up all my folio books, which are come home gilt on the backs, very handsome to the eye. This night W. Pen told me W. Batten swears he will have nothing to do with the Privateer if his son do not go Lieutenant, which angers me and him; but we will be even with him, one way or other.

4th. Up, and mighty betimes, to Sir W. Coventry, to give him an account of yesterday's work, which do give him good content. He did then tell me his

speech lately to the House in his owne vindication about the report of his selling of places, he having a small occasion offered him by chance, which he did desire, and took, and did it to his content, and, he says, to the House's seeming to approve of it by their hum. He confessed how long he had done it, and how he desired to have something else; and, since then, he had taken nothing, and challenged all the world. I was glad of this also. Thence up to the Duke of York, by appointment, with my fellow officers, to complaine, but to no purpose, of want of money, and so away. I to Sir G. Carteret, to his lodging, and here discoursed much of the want of money and our being designed for destruction. How the King hath lost his power, by submitting himself to

this way of examining his accounts, and is become but as a private man. He says the King is troubled at it, but they talk an entry' shall be made, that it is not to be brought into example; that the King must, if they do not agree presently, make them a courageous speech, which he says he may do, the City of London being now burned, and himself master of an army, better than any prince before him, and so I believe. Thence home, about noon. After dinner the bookbinder came, and I sent by him some more books to gild. I to the office all day, and spent most of it with Sir W. Warren, and when all is done I do find him a mighty wise man as any I know, and his counsel as much to be followed. Late with Mr. Hater upon comparing the charge and husbandry of the last Dutch war with ours now, and do find good roome to think we have done little worse than they, whereof good use may and will be made. So home to supper, and to bed.

5th. Up, and with my father talking awhile, then to the office, and there troubled with a message from Lord Peterborough about money; but I did give as kind an answer as I could, though I hate him. Then to Sir G. Carteret to discourse about paying of part of the great ships come in, and so home again to compare the comparison of the two Dutch wars' charges for Sir W. Coventry, and then by water (and saw old Mr. Michell digging like a painfull father for his son) to him, and found him at dinner. After dinner to look over my papers, and comparing them with some notes of his. Then examined and liked well my notes, and away together to White Hall, in the way discoursing the inconvenience of the King's being thus subject to an account, but it will be remedied for the time to come, he thinks, if

1 In the Journals of the House of Commons.

we can get over this, and I find he will have the Comptroller's business better done, swearing he will never be for a wit to be employed on business again. Thence home, and back again to White Hall, and there walked till night that the Committee came down, and there Sir W. Coventry tells me that the Sub-committee have made their report to the Grand Committee, and in pretty kind terms, and have agreed upon allowing us 47. per head, which I am sure will do the business. But I have more worke cut out for me, to prepare a list of the extraordinaies, not to be included within the 4/., against Monday. So away, and met with the Vice-Chamberlain, and I told him I had this evening in coming hither met with Captain Cocke, and he told me of a wild motion made in the House of Lords by the Duke of Buckingham for all men that had cheated the King to be declared traitors and felons, and that my Lord Sandwich was named. This put me into a great pain; so the Vice-Chamberlain, who had heard nothing of it, having been all day in the City, away with me to White Hall; and there came to me and told me that, upon Lord Ashly's asking their direction whether, being a peer, he should bring in his accounts to the Commons, which they did give way to, the Duke of Buckingham did move that, for the time to come, what I have written above might be declared by some fuller law than heretofore. Lord Ashly answered, that it was not the fault of the present laws, but want of proof; and so said the Lord Chancellor. He answered, that a better law, he thought, might be made: so the House laughing, did refer it to him to bring in a Bill to that purpose, and this was all. This day, coming home, Mr. Kirton's kinsman, my bookseller, came in my way; and so I am told by him that Mr. Kirton is utterly undone, and made 2 or 3,000l.

worse than nothing, from being worth 7 or 8,000l. That the goods laid in the Churchyarde fired through the windows those in St. Fayth's church; and those coming to the warehouses' doors fired them, and burned all the books and the pillars of the church, so as the roof falling down, broke quite down, which it did not do in the other places of the church, which is alike pillared (which I knew not before); but being not burned, they stand still. He do believe there is above 150,000l. of books burned; all the great booksellers almost undone : not only these, but their warehouses at their Hall, and under Christchurch, and elsewhere being all burned. A great want thereof there will be of books, specially Latin books and foreign books; and, among others, the Polyglottes1 and new Bible, which he believes will be presently worth 40/. a-piece.

6th. Up, and having seen my brother in his cassocke, which I am not the most satisfied in, being doubtfull at this time what course to have him profess to soon, to the office and there busy about a list of the extraordinaries of the charge of the fleete this war; and was led to go to the office of the ordnance to be satisfied in something, and find their accounts and books kept in mighty good order, but that they can give no light, nor will the nature of their affairs. permit it to tell what the charge of the ordnance comes to a man a month. So home and to dinner, there coming Creed to me; but what with business

1 Bishop Walton's great work, published in 1657, entitled "Biblia Sacra Polyglotta," in six large folio volumes. Nine languages are used in it, though no one book of the Bible is printed in so many. It was printed by subscription, under the patronage of Oliver Cromwell; but the Protector dying before it was finished, the bishop cancelled two leaves of the preface commendatory of his patron, and others were printed complimentary to Charles II. Hence the distinction of republican and loyal copies. The former are the most valued.

and my hatred to the man, I did not spend any time with him, but to Westminster Hall and then to St. James's, and there found Sir W. Coventry waiting for me, and I did give him a good account to his mind of the business he expected about extraordinaries and then fell to other talke, among others, our sad condition by want of a Comptroller;1 and it was his words, that he believes, besides all the shame and trouble he hath brought on the office, the King had better have given 100,000l. than ever have had him there. He did discourse about some of these discontented Parliament-men, and says that Birch is a false rogue, but that Garraway is a man that hath not been well used by the Court, though very stout to death, and hath suffered all that is possible for the King from the beginning. But discontented as he is, yet he never knew a Session of Parliament but he hath done some good deed for the King before it rose. I told him the passage Cocke told me of his having begged a brace of bucks of the Lord Arlington for him, and when they came to him, he sent them back again. Sir W. Coventry told me, it is much to be pitied that the King should lose the service of a man so able and faithfull; and that he ought to be brought over, but that is always observed, that by bringing over one discontented man, you raise up three in his room; which is a State lesson I never knew before. But when others discover you fear, and that discontent procures favour, they will be discontented too, and impose on you. This morning my wife told me of a fine gentlewoman my Lady Pen tells her of, for 201. per annum, that sings, dances, plays on four or five instruments and many other fine things, which pleases me mightily: and she sent to have her see

1 Sir John Minnes performing the duties inefficiently.