Accounts, wherein they demand of him an account upon oath
of all the sums of money that have been by him defalked or taken from any
man since their time, of enquiry upon any payments, and if this should, as
it is to be feared, come to be done to us, I know not what I shall then
do, but I shall take counsel upon it. At noon by coach towards
Westminster, and met my Lord Brouncker, and W. Pen, and Sir T. Harvey, in
King's Street, coming away from the Parliament House; and so I to them,
and to the French ordinary, at the Blue Bells, in Lincolne's Inn Fields,
and there dined and talked. And, among other things, they tell me how the
House this day is still as backward for giving any money as ever, and do
declare they will first have an account of the disposals of the last
Poll-bill, and eleven months' tax: and it is pretty odde that the very
first sum mentioned in the account brought in by Sir Robert Long, of the
disposal of the Poll-bill money, is L5000 to my Lord Arlington for
intelligence; which was mighty unseasonable, so soon after they had so
much cried out against his want of intelligence. The King do also own but
L250,000, or thereabouts, yet paid on the Poll-bill, and that he hath
charged L350,000 upon it. This makes them mad; for that the former
Poll-bill, that was so much less in its extent than the last, which took
in all sexes and qualities, did come to L350,000. Upon the whole, I
perceive they are like to do nothing in this matter to please the King, or
relieve the State, be the case never so pressing; and, therefore, it is
thought by a great many that the King cannot be worse if he should
dissolve them: but there is nobody dares advise it, nor do he consider any
thing himself. Thence, having dined for 20s., we to the Duke of York at
White Hall, and there had our usual audience, and did little but talk of
the proceedings of the Parliament, wherein he is as much troubled as we;
for he is not without fears that they do ayme at doing him hurt; but yet
he declares that he will never deny to owne what orders he hath given to
any man to justify him, notwithstanding their having sent to him to desire
his being tender to take upon him the doing any thing of that kind.
Thence with Brouncker and T. Harvey to Westminster Hall, and there met
with Colonel Birch and Sir John Lowther, and did there in the lobby read
over what I have drawn up for our defence, wherein they own themselves
mightily satisfied; and Birch, like a par