things so well done and in all things to my mind that I do set up
my trust upon it that I cannot have a better, nor any man else have so
good for this purpose, this being of my own ordering. By and by we sat
all the morning dispatching of business, and then at noon rose, and I
with Mr. Coventry down to the water-side, talking, wherein I see so much
goodness and endeavours of doing the King service, that I do more and
more admire him. It being the greatest trouble to me, he says, in the
world to see not only in the Navy, but in the greatest matters of State,
where he can lay his finger upon the soare (meaning this man's faults,
and this man's office the fault lies in), and yet dare or can not remedy
matters. Thence to the Exchange about several businesses, and so home
to dinner, and in the afternoon took my brother John and Will down to
Woolwich by water, and after being there a good while, and eating of
fruit in Sheldon's garden, we began our walk back again, I asking many
things in physiques of my brother John, to which he gives me so bad or
no answer at all, as in the regions of the ayre he told me that he
knew of no such thing, for he never read Aristotle's philosophy and Des
Cartes ownes no such thing, which vexed me to hear him say. But I shall
call him to task, and see what it is that he has studied since his going
to the University. It was late before we could get from Greenwich to
London by water, the tide being against us and almost past, so that to
save time and to be clear of anchors I landed at Wapping, and so walked
home weary enough, walking over the stones. This night Sir W. Batten and
Sir J. Minnes returned [from] Portsmouth, but I did not go see them.

9th (Lord's day). Up, and leaving my brother John to go somewhere else,
I to church, and heard Mr. Mills (who is lately returned out of the
country, and it seems was fetched in by many of the parishioners, with
great state,) preach upon the authority of the ministers, upon these
words, "We are therefore embassadors of Christ." Wherein, among other
high expressions, he said, that such a learned man used to say, that if
a minister of the word and an angell should meet him together, he would
salute the minister first; which methought was a little too high. This
day I begun to make use of the silver pen (Mr. Coventry did give me) in
writing of this sermon, taking only the heads of it in Latin, which
I shall, I think, continue to do. So home and at my office re