rse could properly afford the expense of them. The
truth is that Mistress Barbara's behaviour spurred me on. I had no mind
to be set down a rustic; I could stomach disapproval and endure
severity; pitied for a misguided be-fooled clod I would not be; and the
best way to avoid such a fate seemed to lie in showing myself as
reckless a gallant and as fine a roisterer as any at Whitehall. So I
dipped freely and deep into my purse, till Jonah groaned as woefully for
my extravagance as for my frivolity. All day he was in great fear lest I
should take him with me to Court to the extreme peril of his soul; but
prudence at last stepped in and bade me spare myself the cost of a rich
livery by leaving him behind.

Now Heaven forbid that I should imitate my servant's sour folly (for, if
a man must be a fool, I would have him a cheerful fool) or find anything
to blame in the pomp and seemly splendour of a Royal Court; yet the
profusion that met my eyes amazed me. It was the King's whim that on
this night himself, his friends, and principal gentlemen should, for no
reason whatsoever except the quicker disbursing of their money, assume
Persian attire, and they were one and all decked out in richest Oriental
garments, in many cases lavishly embroidered with precious stones. The
Duke of Buckingham seemed all ablaze, and the other courtiers and wits
were little less magnificent, foremost among them being the young Duke
of Monmouth, whom I now saw for the first time and thought as handsome a
youth as I had set eyes on. The ladies did not enjoy the licence offered
by this new fashion, but they contrived to hold their own in the French
mode, and I, who had heard much of the poverty of the nation, the
necessities of the fleet, and the straits in which the King found
himself for money, was left gaping in sheer wonder whence came all the
wealth that was displayed before my eyes. My own poor preparations lost
all their charm, and I had not been above half an hour in the place
before I was seeking a quiet corner in which to hide the poverty of my
coat and the plainness of my cloak. But the desire for privacy thus bred
in me was not to find satisfaction. Darrell, whom I had not met all day,
now pounced on me and carried me off, declaring that he was charged to
present me to the Duke of York. Trembling between fear and exultation, I
walked with him across the floor, threading my way through the dazzling
throng that covered the space in front of His