late Lord Mayor, Sir W.
Bolton, in cheating the poor of the City, out of the collections made
for the people that were burned, of L1800; of which he can give no
account, and in which he hath forsworn himself plainly, so as the Court
of Aldermen have sequestered him from their Court till he do bring in an
account, which is the greatest piece of roguery that they say was ever
found in a Lord Mayor. He says also that this day hath been made appear
to them that the Keeper of Newgate, at this day, hath made his house the
only nursery of rogues, and whores, and pickpockets, and thieves in the
world; where they were bred and entertained, and the whole society met:
and that, for the sake of the Sheriffes, they durst not this day committ
him, for fear of making him let out the prisoners, but are fain to go by
artifice to deal with him. He tells me, also, speaking of the new street
that is to be made from Guild Hall down to Cheapside, that the ground
is already, most of it, bought. And tells me of one particular, of a man
that hath a piece of ground lieing in the very middle of the street
that must be; which, when the street is cut out of it, there will remain
ground enough, of each side, to build a house to front the street. He
demanded L700 for the ground, and to be excused paying any thing for
the melioration of the rest of his ground that he was to keep. The Court
consented to give him L700, only not to abate him the consideration:
which the man denied; but told them, and so they agreed, that he
would excuse the City the L700, that he might have the benefit of the
melioration without paying any thing for it. So much some will get by
having the City burned! But he told me that in other cases ground, by
this means, that was not 4d. a-foot before, will now, when houses are
built, be worth 15s. a-foot. But he tells me that the common standard
now reckoned on between man and man, in places where there is no
alteration of circumstances, but only the houses burnt, there the
ground, which, with a house on it, did yield L100 a-year, is now reputed
worth L33 6s. 8d.; and that this is the common market-price between one
man and another, made upon a good and moderate medium.

4th. At the office all the morning. At noon to dinner, and presently
with my wife abroad, whom and her girle I leave at Unthanke's, and so to
White Hall in expectation of waiting on the Duke of York to-day, but
was prevented therein, only at Mr. Wren's chamber there