school-fellows together; and I said nothing of it. But he took notice of
my speech the other day at the bar of the House; and indeed I perceive he
is a wise man by his manner of discourse, and here he do say that the town
is full of it, that now the Parliament hath resolved upon L300,000, the
King, instead of fifty, will set out but twenty-five ships, and the Dutch
as many; and that Smith is to command them, who is allowed to have the
better of Holmes in the late dispute, and is in good esteem in the
Parliament, above the other. Thence home, and there, in favour to my eyes,
stayed at home, reading the ridiculous History of my Lord Newcastle, wrote
by his wife, which shews her to be a mad, conceited, ridiculous woman, and
he an asse to suffer her to write what she writes to him, and of him.

["The Life of the thrice noble, high, and puissant Prince, William
Cavendish, Duke . . . of Newcastle," by his duchess, of which the
first edition, in folio, was published in 1667.]

Betty Turner sent my wife the book to read, and it being a fair print, to
ease my eyes, which would be reading, I read that. Anon comes Mrs. Turner
and sat and talked with us, and most about the business of Ackworth,

[William Acworth, storekeeper at Woolwich, was accused of converting
stores to his own use (see "Calendar of State Papers," 1667-68, p.
279).]

which comes before us to-morrow, that I would favour it, but I do not
think, notwithstanding all the friendship I can shew him, that he can
escape, and therefore it had been better that he had followed the advice I
sent him the other day by Mrs. Turner, to make up the business. So
parted, and I to bed, my eyes being very bad; and I know not how in the
world to abstain from reading.