The Diary of Samuel Pepys [407]
miscarriages, and particularly in the business of the prizes and the not prosecuting of the first victory, only to give an affront to Sir W. Pen, whose going to sea this year does give them matter of great dislike.
27th. This day at noon comes Mr. Pelling to me, and shows me the stone cut lately out of Sir Thomas Adams's (the old comely Alderman) body; [Knight and Bart. alderman of London; ob. 1667. He founded an Arabic Professorship at Cambridge.] which is very large indeed, bigger I think than my fist, and weighs above twenty-five ounces: and which is very miraculous, he never in all his life had any fit of it, but lived to a great age without pain, and died at last of something else, without any sense of this in all his life. This day Creed at White Hall in discourse told me what information he hath had from very good hands, of the cowardize and ill-government of Sir Jer. Smith and Sir Thomas Allen, and the repute they have both of them abroad in the Streights, from their deportment when they did at several times command there; and that, above all Englishmen that ever were there, there never was any man that behaved himself like poor Charles Wager, whom the very Moores do mention with tears sometimes.
29th. To church; and there did first find a strange reader, who could not find in the Service-book the place for churching women, but was fain to change books with the clerke: and then a stranger preached, a seeming able man; but said in his pulpit that God did a greater work in raising of an oake-tree from an acorn, than a man's body raising it at the last day from his dust (showing the Possibility of the Resurrection): which was, methought, a strange saying. Harris do so commend my wife's picture of Mr. Hales's, that I shall have him draw Harris's head; and he hath also persuaded me to have Cooper draw my wife's, which though it cost 30l. yet I will have done. I do hear by several that Sir W. Pen's going to sea do dislike the Parliament mightily, and that they have revived the Committee of Miscarriages to find something to prevent it; and that he being the other day with the Duke of Albemarle to ask his opinion touching his going to sea, the Duchesse overheard and came in to him, and asked W. Pen how he durst have the confidence to offer to go to sea again to the endangering the nation, when he knew himself such a coward as he was; which, if true, is very severe.
30th. By coach to Common-garden Coffee-house, where by appointment I was to meet Harris; which I did, and also Mr. Cooper the great painter, and Mr. Hales. And thence presently to Mr. Cooper's house to see some of his work; which is all in little, but so excellent as, though I must confess I do think the colouring of the flesh to be a little forced, yet the painting is so extraordinary as I do never expect to see the like again. Here I did see Mrs. Stewart's picture as when a young maid, and now just done before her having the small-pox: and it would make a man weep to see what she was then, and what she is like to be by people's discourse now. Here I saw my Lord Generall's picture, and my Lord Arlington and Ashly's, and several others: but among the rest one Swinfen that was Secretary to my Lord Manchester, Lord Chamberlain (with Cooling), done so admirably as I never saw any thing: but the misery was, this fellow died in debt and never paid Cooper for his picture; but it being seized on by his creditors among his other goods after his death, Cooper himself says that he did buy it and give 25l. out of his purse for it, for what he was to have had but 30l. To White Hall and Westminster, where I find the Parliament still bogling about the raising of this money. And every body's mouth full now; and Mr. Wren himself tells me that the Duke of York declares to go to sea himself this year; and I perceive it is only on this occasion of distaste of the Parliament against W. Pen's going, and to prevent the Prince's: but I think it is mighty hot counsel for the Duke of York at this time to go out of the way; but, Lord! what pass are all our matters
27th. This day at noon comes Mr. Pelling to me, and shows me the stone cut lately out of Sir Thomas Adams's (the old comely Alderman) body; [Knight and Bart. alderman of London; ob. 1667. He founded an Arabic Professorship at Cambridge.] which is very large indeed, bigger I think than my fist, and weighs above twenty-five ounces: and which is very miraculous, he never in all his life had any fit of it, but lived to a great age without pain, and died at last of something else, without any sense of this in all his life. This day Creed at White Hall in discourse told me what information he hath had from very good hands, of the cowardize and ill-government of Sir Jer. Smith and Sir Thomas Allen, and the repute they have both of them abroad in the Streights, from their deportment when they did at several times command there; and that, above all Englishmen that ever were there, there never was any man that behaved himself like poor Charles Wager, whom the very Moores do mention with tears sometimes.
29th. To church; and there did first find a strange reader, who could not find in the Service-book the place for churching women, but was fain to change books with the clerke: and then a stranger preached, a seeming able man; but said in his pulpit that God did a greater work in raising of an oake-tree from an acorn, than a man's body raising it at the last day from his dust (showing the Possibility of the Resurrection): which was, methought, a strange saying. Harris do so commend my wife's picture of Mr. Hales's, that I shall have him draw Harris's head; and he hath also persuaded me to have Cooper draw my wife's, which though it cost 30l. yet I will have done. I do hear by several that Sir W. Pen's going to sea do dislike the Parliament mightily, and that they have revived the Committee of Miscarriages to find something to prevent it; and that he being the other day with the Duke of Albemarle to ask his opinion touching his going to sea, the Duchesse overheard and came in to him, and asked W. Pen how he durst have the confidence to offer to go to sea again to the endangering the nation, when he knew himself such a coward as he was; which, if true, is very severe.
30th. By coach to Common-garden Coffee-house, where by appointment I was to meet Harris; which I did, and also Mr. Cooper the great painter, and Mr. Hales. And thence presently to Mr. Cooper's house to see some of his work; which is all in little, but so excellent as, though I must confess I do think the colouring of the flesh to be a little forced, yet the painting is so extraordinary as I do never expect to see the like again. Here I did see Mrs. Stewart's picture as when a young maid, and now just done before her having the small-pox: and it would make a man weep to see what she was then, and what she is like to be by people's discourse now. Here I saw my Lord Generall's picture, and my Lord Arlington and Ashly's, and several others: but among the rest one Swinfen that was Secretary to my Lord Manchester, Lord Chamberlain (with Cooling), done so admirably as I never saw any thing: but the misery was, this fellow died in debt and never paid Cooper for his picture; but it being seized on by his creditors among his other goods after his death, Cooper himself says that he did buy it and give 25l. out of his purse for it, for what he was to have had but 30l. To White Hall and Westminster, where I find the Parliament still bogling about the raising of this money. And every body's mouth full now; and Mr. Wren himself tells me that the Duke of York declares to go to sea himself this year; and I perceive it is only on this occasion of distaste of the Parliament against W. Pen's going, and to prevent the Prince's: but I think it is mighty hot counsel for the Duke of York at this time to go out of the way; but, Lord! what pass are all our matters