llion; but no persons of quality being in it,
all do hope that it cannot amount to much. Here I saw Mrs. Stewart this
afternoon, methought the beautifullest creature that ever I saw in my
life, more than ever I thought her so, often as I have seen her; and I
begin to think do exceed my Lady Castlemayne, at least now. This being
St. Catherine's day, the Queene was at masse by seven o'clock this
morning; and. Mr. Ashburnham do say that he never saw any one have so
much zeale in his life as she hath: and, the question being asked by my
Lady Carteret, much beyond the bigotry that ever the old Queen-mother
had. I spoke with Mr. Maya who tells me that the design of building the
City do go on apace, and by his description it will be mighty handsome,
and to the satisfaction of the people; but I pray God it come not out
too late. The Council up, after speaking with Sir W. Coventry a little,
away home with Captain Cocke in his coach, discourse about the forming
of his contract he made with us lately for hempe, and so home, where we
parted, and I find my uncle Wight and Mrs. Wight and Woolly, who staid
and supped, and mighty merry together, and then I to my chamber to even
my journal, and then to bed. I will remember that Mr. Ashburnham
to-day at dinner told how the rich fortune Mrs. Mallett reports of her
servants; that my Lord Herbert would have had her; my Lord Hinchingbroke
was indifferent to have her;

[They had quarrelled (see August 26th). She, perhaps, was piqued at
Lord Hinchingbroke's refusal "to compass the thing without consent
of friends" (see February 25th), whence her expression,
"indifferent" to have her. It is worthy of remark that their
children intermarried; Lord Hinchingbroke's son married Lady
Rochester's daughter.--B.]

my Lord John Butler might not have her; my Lord of Rochester would have
forced her;

[Of the lady thus sought after, whom Pepys calls "a beauty" as well
as a fortune, and who shortly afterwards, about the 4th February,
1667, became the wife of the Earl of Rochester, then not twenty
years old, no authentic portrait is known to exist. When Mr.
Miller, of Albemarle Street, in 1811, proposed to publish an edition
of the "Memoires de Grammont," he sent an artist to Windsor to copy
there the portraits which he could find of those who figure in that
work. In the list given to him for this purpose was the name of
Lady Ro