id tell me several instances of. By and by he parted, and we
took coach and to take the ayre, there being a fine breeze abroad; and
I went and carried them to the well, and there filled some bottles of
water to carry home with me; and there talked with the two women that
farm the well, at L12 per annum, of the lord of the manor, Mr. Evelyn
(who with his lady, and also my Lord George Barkeley's lady, and their
fine daughter, that the King of France liked so well, and did dance so
rich in jewells before the King at the Ball I was at, at our Court, last
winter, and also their son, a Knight of the Bath, were at church this
morning). Here W. Hewer's horse broke loose, and we had the sport to see
him taken again. Then I carried them to see my cozen Pepys's house,
and 'light, and walked round about it, and they like it, as indeed it
deserves, very well, and is a pretty place; and then I walked them to
the wood hard by, and there got them in the thickets till they had lost
themselves, and I could not find the way into any of the walks in the
wood, which indeed are very pleasant, if I could have found them. At
last got out of the wood again; and I, by leaping down the little bank,
coming out of the wood, did sprain my right foot, which brought me great
present pain, but presently, with walking, it went away for the present,
and so the women and W. Hewer and I walked upon the Downes, where a
flock of sheep was; and the most pleasant and innocent sight that ever I
saw in my life--we find a shepherd and his little boy reading, far from
any houses or sight of people, the Bible to him; so I made the boy read
to me, which he did, with the forced tone that children do usually read,
that was mighty pretty, and then I did give him something, and went to
the father, and talked with him; and I find he had been a servant in my
cozen Pepys's house, and told me what was become of their old servants.
He did content himself mightily in my liking his boy's reading, and did
bless God for him, the most like one of the old patriarchs that ever
I saw in my life, and it brought those thoughts of the old age of the
world in my mind for two or three days after. We took notice of his
woolen knit stockings of two colours mixed, and of his shoes shod with
iron shoes, both at the toe and heels, and with great nails in the soles
of his feet, which was mighty pretty: and, taking notice of them, "Why,"
says the poor man, "the downes, you see, are full of stones,