bookseller's in Paul's Church-yard, who takes it ill my letter last night
to Mr. Povy, wherein I accuse him of the neglect of the Tangier boats, in
which I must confess I did not do altogether like a friend; but however it
was truth, and I must own it to be so, though I fall wholly out with him
for it. Thence home and to my office alone to do business, and read over
half of Mr. Bland's discourse concerning Trade, which (he being no
scholler and so knows not the rules of writing orderly) is very good. So
home to supper and to bed, my wife not being well . . . . This evening
Mr. Gauden sent me, against Christmas, a great chine of beef and three
dozen of tongues. I did give 5s. to the man that brought it, and
half-a-crown to the porters. This day also the parish-clerk brought the
general bill of mortality, which cost me half-a-crown more.

[The Bills of Mortality for London were first compiled by order of
Thomas Cromwell about 1538, and the keeping of them was commenced by
the Company of Parish Clerks in the great plague year of 1593. The
bills were issued weekly from 1603. The charter of the Parish
Clerks' Company (1611) directs that "each parish clerk shall bring
to the Clerks' Hall weekly a note of all christenings and burials."
Charles I. in 1636 granted permission to the Parish Clerks to have a
printing press and employ a printer in their hall for the purpose of
printing their weekly bills.]

25th (Christmas Day). Up pretty early, leaving my wife not well in bed,
and with my boy walked, it being a most brave cold and dry frosty morning,
and had a pleasant walk to White Hall, where I intended to have received
the Communion with the family, but I came a little too late. So I walked
up into the house and spent my time looking over pictures, particularly
the ships in King Henry the VIIIth's Voyage to Bullen;