Grand Seignor of him, and cut his head off: this he is sure of, and knows
as certain. Thence to Westminster Hall, where I met with Mr. Pierce,
chyrurgeon; and among other things he asked me seriously whether I knew
anything of my Lord's being out of favour with the King; and told me, that
for certain the King do take mighty notice of my Lord's living obscurely
in a corner not like himself, and becoming the honour that he is come to.
I was sorry to hear, and the truth is, from my Lord's discourse among his
people (which I am told) of the uncertainty of princes' favours, and his
melancholy keeping from Court, I am doubtful of some such thing; but I
seemed wholly strange to him in it, but will make my use of it. He told
me also how loose the Court is, nobody looking after business, but every
man his lust and gain; and how the King is now become besotted upon Mrs.
Stewart, that he gets into corners, and will be with her half an houre
together kissing her to the observation of all the world; and she now
stays by herself and expects it, as my Lady Castlemaine did use to do; to
whom the King, he says, is still kind, so as now and then he goes to have
a chat with her as he believes; but with no such fondness as he used to
do. But yet it is thought that this new wench is so subtle, that she lets
him not do any thing than is safe to her, but yet his doting is so great
that, Pierce tells me, it is verily thought if the Queene had died, he
would have married her. The Duke of Monmouth is to have part of the
Cockpitt new built for lodgings for him, and they say to be made Captain
of the Guards in the room of my Lord Gerard. Having thus talked with him,
there comes into the Hall Creed and Ned Pickering, and after a turne or
two with them, it being noon, I walked with them two to the King's Head
ordinary, and there we dined; little discourse but what was common, only
that the Duke of Yorke is a very, desperate huntsman, but I was ashamed of
Pickering, who could not forbear having up my Lord Sandwich now and then
in the most paltry matters abominable. Thence I took leave of them, and
so having taken up something at my wife's tailor's, I home by coach and