J Minnes, my Lady Batten, and I by coach to Bednall Green, to Sir W Rider’s to dinner A fine merry walk with the ladies alone after dinner in the garden the greatest quantity of strawberrys I ever saw, and good This very house⁴⁸ was built by the blind beggar of Bednall Green, so much talked of and sang in ballads, but they say it was only some of the out-houses of it At table discoursing of thunder and lightning, Sir W Rider did tell a story of his own knowledge, that a Genoese gally in Legorne Roads was struck by thunder so as the mast was broke a-pieces, and the shackle upon one of the slaves was melted clear off his leg without hurting his leg Sir William went on board the vessel, and would have contributed toward the release of the slave whom Heaven had thus set free, but he could not compass it, and so he was brought to his fetters again.

29th Up and down the streets is cried mightily the great victory got by the Portugalls against the Spaniards, where 10,000 slain, 3 or 4000 taken prisoners, with all the artillery, baggage, money, &c, and Don John⁴⁹ of Austria forced to flee with a man or two with him.

30th Public matters are in an ill condition Parliament sitting and raising four subsidys for the King, which is but a little, considering his wants, and yet that parted withal with great hardness They being offended to see so much money go, and no debts of the public’s paid, but all swallowed by a luxurious Court, which the King it is believed and hoped will retrench in a little time, when he comes to see the utmost of the revenue which shall be settled on him, he expecting to have his £1,200,000 made good to him, which is not yet done by above £150,000 as he himself reports to the House The charge of the Navy intended to be limited to £200,000 per annum, the ordinary charge of it, and that to be settled upon the Customes The King gets greatly taken up with Madam Castlemaine and Mrs Stewart, which Heaven put an end to.

July 1st Being in the Parliament lobby, I there saw my Lord of Bristoll come to the Commons House to give his answer to their question, about some words he should tell the King that were spoke by Sir Richard Temple A chair was set at the bar of the House for him, which he used but little, but made an harangue of half an hour bareheaded, the House covered His speech being done, he come out into a little room till the House had concluded of an answer to his speech, which they staying long upon, I went away And by and by out comes Sir W Batten, and he told me that his Lordship had made a long and a comedian-like speech, and delivered with such action as was not becoming his Lordship He confesses he did tell the King such a thing of Sir Richard Temple, but that upon his honour the words were not spoke by Sir Richard, he having taken a liberty of enlarging to the King upon the discourse which had been between Sir Richard and himself lately, and so took upon himself the whole blame and desired their pardon, it being not to do any wrong to their fellow-member, but out of zeal to the King He told them, among many other things, that as to religion he was a Roman Catholick, but such a one as thought no man to have right to the Crown of England but the Prince that hath it, and such a one as, if the King should desire counsel as to his own, he would not advise him to another religion than the old true reformed religion of this kingdom as it now stands, and concluded with a submission to what the House shall do with him, saying, that whatever they shall do, -- ‘thanks be to God, this head, this heart, and this sword, (pointing to them all) will find me a being in any place in Europe’ The House hath hereupon voted clearly Sir Richard Temple to be free from the imputation of saying those words, but when Sir William Batten come out, had not concluded what to say to my Lord, it being argued that to own any satisfaction as to my Lord from his speech, would be to lay some fault upon the King for the message he should upon no better accounts send to the impeaching of one of their members Walking out, I hear that the House of Lords are offended that my Lord Digby⁵⁰ should come to this House and make a speech there without leave first asked of the House of Lords I hear also of another difficulty now upon him, that my Lord of Sunderland⁵¹ (whom I do not know) was so near to the marriage of his daughter, as that the wedding- clothes were made, and portion and every thing agreed on and ready, and the other day he goes away nobody yet knows whither, sending her the next morning a release of his right or claim to her, and advice to his friends not to enquire into the reason of this doing, for he hath enough for it, and that he gives them liberty to say and think what they will of him, so they do not demand the reason of his leaving her, being resolved never to have her To Sir W Batten, to the Trinity House, and after dinner we fell a- talking, Mr Batten telling us of a late triall of Sir Charles Sedley⁵² the other day, before my Lord Chief