Diary, Sep/Oct 1663 | Page 8

then to my office on Phillips
having brought me a draught of the Katherine yacht, prettily well done
for the common way of doing it. At the office all the morning making
up our last half year's account to my Lord Treasurer, which comes to
L160,000 or there abouts, the proper expense of this half year, only
with an addition of L13,000 for the third due of the last account to the
Treasurer for his disbursements, and L1100 for this half year's; so that

in three years and a half his thirds come to L14,100. Dined at home
with my wife. It being washing day, we had a good pie baked of a leg
of mutton; and then to my office, and then abroad, and among other
places to Moxon's, and there bought a payre of globes cost me L3 10s.,
with which I am well pleased, I buying them principally for my wife,
who has a mind to understand them, and I shall take pleasure to teach
her. But here I saw his great window in his dining room, where there is
the two Terrestrial Hemispheres, so painted as I never saw in my life,
and nobly done and to good purpose, done by his own hand. Thence
home to my office, and there at business late, and then to supper home
and to bed, my people sitting up longer than ordinary before they had
done their washing.

9th. Up by break of day, and then to my vials a while, and so to Sir W.
Warren's by agreement, and after talking and eating something with
him, he and I down by water to Woolwich, and there I did several
businesses, and had good discourse, and thence walked to Greenwich;
in my way a little boy overtook us with a fine cupp turned out of
Lignum Vitae, which the poor child confessed was made in the King's
yard by his father, a turner there, and that he do often do it, and that I
might have one, and God knows what, which I shall examine. Thence
to Sir W. Warren's again, and there drew up a contract for masts which
he is to sell us, and so home to dinner, finding my poor wife busy. I,
after dinner, to the office, and then to White Hall, to Sir G. Carteret's,
but did not speak with him, and so to Westminster Hall, God forgive
me, thinking to meet Mrs. Lane, but she was not there, but here I met
with Ned Pickering, with whom I walked 3 or 4 hours till evening, he
telling me the whole business of my Lord's folly with this Mrs. Becke,
at Chelsey, of all which I am ashamed to see my Lord so grossly play
the beast and fool, to the flinging off of all honour, friends, servants,
and every thing and person that is good, and only will have his private
lust undisturbed with this common . . . . his sitting up night after night
alone, suffering nobody to come to them, and all the day too, casting
off Pickering, basely reproaching him with his small estate, which yet
is a good one, and other poor courses to obtain privacy beneath his
honour, and with his carrying her abroad and playing on his lute under
her window, and forty other poor sordid things, which I am grieved to

hear; but believe it to no purpose for me to meddle with it, but let him
go on till God Almighty and his own conscience and thoughts of his
lady and family do it. So after long discourse, to my full satisfaction
but great trouble, I home by water and at my office late, and so to
supper to my poor wife, and so to bed, being troubled to think that I
shall be forced to go to Brampton the next Court, next week.

10th. Up betimes and to my office, and there sat all the morning
making a great contract with Sir W. Warren for L3,000 worth of masts;
but, good God! to see what a man might do, were I a knave, the whole
business from beginning to end being done by me out of the office, and
signed to by them upon the once reading of it to them, without the least
care or consultation either of quality, price, number, or need of them,
only in general that it was good to have a store. But I hope my pains
was such, as the King has the best bargain of masts has been bought
these 27 years in this office. Dined at home and then to my office again,
many people about business with me, and then stepped a little abroad
about business to the Wardrobe, but missed Mr. Moore, and