Perhaps unsurprisingly, the muse came to me in a big jolt earlier and I’m now speeding through the first movement of the work, which essentially deals with passages from 1660. And for those of you who are interested, here are the texts I'll be using:
Jan 1st 1660: Blessed be God, at the end of last year I was in very good health, without any sense of my old pain but upon taking of cold. I lived in Axe Yard, having my wife and servant Jane, and no more in family then us three. My wife, after the absence of her terms for seven weeks, gave me hopes of her being with child, but on the last day of the year she hath them again... My own private condition very handsome, and esteemed rich, but indeed very poor; besides my goods of my house, and my office, which at present is somewhat uncertain.
Jan 4th 1660: It snowed hard all this morning and was very cold, and my nose was much swelled with cold
Jan 16th 1660: I sat up till the bell-man came by with his bell, just under my window ...and cried, “Past one of the clock, and a cold, frosty, windy morning.” I then went to bed and left my wife and the maid a-washing still.
Jan 29th 1660: Spent the afternoon in casting up of my accounts; and do find myself to be worth 40l and more, which I did not think, but am afraid that I have forgot something
Feb 12th 1660: My wife and I had some high words upon telling her that I would fling the dog which her brother gave her out at the window if he pissed the house any more
August 19th 1660: My wife tells me that (her little) bich hath whelp(ed) four young ones and is very well... My wife having had a great fear that she would die thereof, the dog that got them being very big... After dinner my wife went and fetched the little puppys to us, which are very pretty ones
August 28th 1660: I spent this morning beginning to teach my wife some skill in Musique, and find her apt beyond imagination...
September 25th 1660: And afterwards did send for a Cupp of Tee (a China drink of which I never had drank before)
October 13th 1660: “I went out to Charing Cross to see Maj.-Gen Harrison hanged, drawn and quartered... he looking as cheerfully as any man could do in that condition. He was presently cut down and his head and his heart shown to the people, at which there was great shouts of joy... Thus it was my chance to see the King beheaded at Whitehall and to see the first bloodshed in revenge for the blood of the King at Charing Cross.”
If any of you have any thoughts on this, I’d love to hear from you. Obviously there's another 8 and a half years of quotes to feature in the work, so there isn't scope for a huge amount of material!
Thursday 8th March 1660, and Pepys spent a morning in Westminster Hall where there was still a great deal of uncertainty regarding the return of the monarchy. Pepys noted that everyone he encountered seemed either edgy or glum or as he perfectly worded it "a general damp over men’s minds and faces". Rumours of military rebellion were rife and people were still losing their jobs hand over fist. No problems in this respect for Pepys, however, who continued to shine like a beacon with countless people coming up to him and offering favours for favours.
Later in the day, he took his wife shopping on Paternoster Row to buy some Paragon (a kind of heavy duty fabric) for a petticoat. The new swaggering Pepys was beginning to place appearance right at the top of his list of priorities and Elizabeth would become a glamorous, nouveau-riche extension. Pepys had money almost constantly on his mind and the world was suddenly tempting him with almost limitless possibilities. He met up with Captain Philip Holland, who gave him advice about how to make money out of his forthcoming trip to sea by hiring extra servants, and siphoning off some of their pay, or worse still, pocketing the pay of fictitious servants who would never set foot on board the ship!
It seems Captain Holland was a somewhat shady character with extremely loose morals. Wider reading reveals he deserted the British for the better-paid Dutch in 1667 at the height of the war, when all was looking pretty glum for the home team. After a spell in prison, he switched sides again and agreed to become a spy for the English, no doubt sensing another opportunity to make a fast buck.
It’s interesting to wonder whether Pepys considered Holland's suggestions to be corrupt, or whether he was beginning to dip his toe into a world where taking bribes and skimming the cream was simply de riguer, very much like his wife's Paragon Petticoat.
Yay...I am really pleased that the funding has come through! Well done :-) Natasha x
ReplyDeleteI would suggest that Sam found Holland's schemes to be entirely corrupt ... but at the same time, they cracked opened the door just a little on a brave new world. His mindset was truly conservative (as in, conserve his wealth, conserve his hide) as well as curious and rational. He would wait and observe, check the winds, see what befalls other men who attempt similar stunts ... then partake with gusto.
ReplyDeleteI think that sums it up most efficiently, Sir. I would agree. Look how he managed to extricate himself from the scandal that eventually did for Montagu!
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