our great contract in hand with Sir W. Warren against Sir W. Batten,
wherein the Duke is very earnest for our contracting. Thence home to the
office till noon, and then dined and to the 'Change and off with Sir W.
Warren for a while, consulting about managing his contract. Thence to a
Committee at White Hall of Tangier, where I had the good lucke to speak
something to very good purpose about the Mole at Tangier, which was well
received even by Sir J. Lawson and Mr. Cholmely, the undertakers, against
whose interest I spoke; that I believe I shall be valued for it. Thence
into the galleries to talk with my Lord Sandwich; among other things,
about the Prince's writing up to tell us of the danger he and his fleete
lie in at Portsmouth, of receiving affronts from the Dutch; which, my Lord
said, he would never have done, had he lain there with one ship alone: nor
is there any great reason for it, because of the sands. However, the
fleete will be ordered to go and lay themselves up at the Cowes. Much
beneath the prowesse of the Prince, I think, and the honour of the nation,
at the first to be found to secure themselves. My Lord is well pleased to
think, that, if the Duke and the Prince go, all the blame of any
miscarriage will not light on him; and that if any thing goes well, he
hopes he shall have the share of the glory, for the Prince is by no means
well esteemed of by any body. Thence home, and though not very well yet
up late about the Fishery business, wherein I hope to give an account how
I find the Collections to have been managed, which I did finish to my
great content, and so home to supper and to bed. This day the great
O'Neale died; I believe, to the content of all the Protestant pretenders
in Ireland.

25th. Up and to the office, where we sat all the morning, and finished
Sir W. Warren's great contract for timber, with great content to me,
because just in the terms I wrote last night to Sir W. Warren and against
the terms proposed by Sir W. Batten. At noon home to dinner, and there