his Lieutenant and challenging him to fight, which comes not within any
article of the laws martiall. But upon discourse the other day with Sir
W. Coventry, I did advise Middleton, and he and I did forbear to give
judgment, but after the debate did withdraw into another cabin, the Court
being held in one of the yachts, which was on purpose brought up over
against St. Katharine's, it being to be feared that this precedent of our
being made Captains, in order to the trying of the loss of "The Defyance,"
wherein we are the proper persons to enquire into the want of instructions
while ships do lie in harbour, evil use might be hereafter made of the
precedent by putting the Duke of Buckingham, or any of these rude fellows
that now are uppermost, to make packed Courts, by Captains made on purpose
to serve their turns. The other cause was of the loss of "The Providence"
at Tangier, where the Captain's being by chance on shore may prove very
inconvenient to him, for example's sake, though the man be a good man, and
one whom, for Norwood's sake, I would be kind to; but I will not offer any
thing to the excusing such a miscarriage. He is at present confined, till
he can bring better proofs on his behalf of the reasons of his being on
shore. So Middleton and I away to the Office; and there I late busy,
making my people, as I have done lately, to read Mr. Holland's' Discourse
of the Navy, and what other things I can get to inform me fully in all;
and here late, about eight at night, comes Mr. Wren to me, who had been at
the Tower to Coventry. He come only to see how matters go, and tells me,
as a secret, that last night the Duke of York's closet was broken open,
and his cabinets, and shut again, one of them that the rogue that did it
hath left plate and a watch behind him, and therefore they fear that it
was only for papers, which looks like a very malicious business in design,
to hurt the Duke of York; but they cannot know that till the Duke of York
comes to town about the papers, and therefore make no words of it. He
gone, I to work again, and then to supper at home, and to bed.