I
find him a sober gentleman, and a man that hath seen much of the world,
and I think may do good. Thence after dinner to the office, and there
did a little business, and so to see Sir W. Pen, who I find still
very ill of the goute, sitting in his great chair, made on purpose for
persons sick of that disease, for their ease; and this very chair,
he tells me, was made for my Lady Lambert! Thence I by coach to my
tailor's, there to direct about the making of me another suit, and so
to White Hall, and through St. James's Park to St. James's, thinking to
have met with Mr. Wren, but could not, and so homeward toward the New
Exchange, and meeting Mr. Creed he and I to drink some whey at the
whey-house, and so into the 'Change and took a walk or two, and so home,
and there vexed at my boy's being out of doors till ten at night, but
it was upon my brother Jackson's business, and so I was the less
displeased, and then made the boy to read to me out of Dr. Wilkins his
"Real Character," and particularly about Noah's arke, where he do give
a very good account thereof, shewing how few the number of the several
species of beasts and fowls were that were to be in the arke, and that
there was room enough for them and their food and dung, which do please
me mightily and is much beyond what ever I heard of the subject, and so
to bed.

28th. Up, to set right some little matters of my Tangier accounts, and
so to the office, where busy all the morning, and then home with my
people to dinner, and after dinner comes about a petition for a poor
woman whose-ticket she would get paid, and so talked a little and did
baiser her, and so to the office, being pleased that this morning my
bookseller brings me home Marcennus's book of musick,' which costs me
L3 2s.; but is a very fine book. So to the office and did some business,
and then by coach to the New Exchange, and there by agreement at my
bookseller's shop met Mercer and Gayet, and took them by water, first
to one of the Neat-houses, where walked in the garden, but nothing but a
bottle of wine to be had, though pleased with seeing the garden; and so
to Fox Hall, where with great pleasure we walked, and then to the upper
end of the further retired walk, and there sat and sang, and brought
great many gallants and fine people about us, and, upon the bench, we
did by and by eat and drink what we had, and very merry: and so with
much pleasure to the Old Swan, and walked with them home, and there lef