Diary, Feb/Mar 1668/69 | Page 9

Samuel Pepys
and so
home, and there Pelling hath got me W. Pen's book against the Trinity.
[Entitled, "The Sandy Foundation Shaken; or those . . . doctrines of one
God subsisting in three distinct and separate persons; the impossibility
of God's pardoning sinners without a plenary satisfaction, the
justification of impure persons by an imputative righteousness, refuted
from the authority of Scripture testimonies and right reason, etc.
London, 1668." It caused him to be imprisoned in the Tower. "Aug. 4,
1669. Young Penn who wrote the blasphemous book is delivered to his
father to be transported" ("Letter to Sir John Birkenhead, quoted by
Bishop Kennett in his MS. Collections, vol. lxxxix., p. 477).]
I got my wife to read it to me; and I find it so well writ as, I think, it is
too good for him ever to have writ it; and it is a serious sort of book,
and not fit for every body to read. So to supper and to bed.

13th. Up, and all the morning at the office, and at noon home to dinner,
and thence to the office again mighty busy, to my great content, till
night, and then home to supper and, my eyes being weary, to bed.

14th (Lord's day). Up, and by coach to Sir W. Coventry, and there, he
taking physic, I with him all the morning, full of very good discourse of
the Navy and publick matters, to my great content, wherein I find him
doubtful that all will be bad, and, for his part, he tells me he takes no
more care for any thing more than in the Treasury; and that, that being
done, he goes to cards and other delights, as plays, and in summertime
to bowles. But here he did shew me two or three old books of the Navy,
of my Lord Northumberland's' times, which he hath taken many good
notes out of, for justifying the Duke of York and us, in many things,
wherein, perhaps, precedents will be necessary to produce, which did
give me great content. At noon home, and pleased mightily with my
morning's work, and coming home, I do find a letter from Mr. Wren, to
call me to the Duke of York after dinner. So dined in all haste, and then

W. Hewer and my wife and I out, we set her at my cozen Turner's
while we to White Hall, where the Duke of York expected me; and in
his closet Wren and I. He did tell me how the King hath been
acquainted with the Treasurers' discourse at the Lords Commissioners
of the Treasury, the other day, and is dissatisfied with our running him
in debt, which I removed; and he did, carry me to the King, and I did
satisfy him also; but his satisfaction is nothing worth, it being easily got,
and easily removed; but I do purpose to put in writing that which shall
make the Treasurers ashamed. But the Duke of York is horrid angry
against them; and he hath cause, for they do all they can to bring
dishonour upon his management, as do vainly appear in all they do.
Having done with the Duke of York, who do repose all in me, I with
Mr. Wren to his, chamber, to talk; where he observed, that these people
are all of them a broken sort of people, that have not much to lose, and
therefore will venture all to make their fortunes better: that Sir Thomas
Osborne is a beggar, having 11 of L1200 a-year, but owes above
L10,000. The Duke of Buckingham's condition is shortly this: that he
hath about L19,600 a-year, of which he pays away about L7,000 a-year
in interest, about L2000 in fee-farm rents to the King, about L6000
wages and pensions, and the rest to live upon, and pay taxes for the
whole. Wren says, that for the Duke of York to stir in this matter, as his
quality might justify, would but make all things worse, and that
therefore he must bend, and suffer all, till time works it out: that he
fears they will sacrifice the Church, and that the King will take
anything, and so he will hold up his head a little longer, and then break
in pieces. But Sir W. Coventry did today mightily magnify my late
Lord Treasurer, for a wise and solid, though infirm man: and, among
other things, that when he hath said it was impossible in nature to find
this or that sum of money, and my Lord Chancellor hath made sport of
it, and tell the King that when my Lord hath said it [was] impossible,
yet he hath made shift to find it, and that was by Sir G. Carteret's
getting credit, my Lord did
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