and told our gallants that it was a maid of Mr Wright’s carried away sick of the plague; which put the young gentleman into a fright had almost cost him his life, but is now well again.

5th I am told of a great ryott upon Thursday last in Cheapside; Colonel Danvers, a delinquent, having been taken, and in his way to the Tower was rescued from the captain of the guard, and carried away; one only of the rescuers being taken.

8th To my office a little, and then to the Duke of Albemarle’s about some business The streets empty all the way, now even in London, which is a sad sight And to Westminster Hall, where talking, hearing very sad stories from Mrs Mumford; among others, of Mr Michell’s son’s family And poor Will that used to sell us ale at the Hall-door, his wife and three children died, all, I think, in a day So home through the City again, wishing I may have taken no ill in going; but I will go, I think, no more thither The news of De Ruyter’s coming home is certain; and told to the great disadvantage of our fleet, and the praise of De Ruyter; but it cannot be helped.

10th By and by to the office, where we sat all the morning; in great trouble to see the Bill this week rise so high, to above 4000 in all, and of them above 3000 of the plague Home, to draw over anew my will, which I had bound myself by oath to dispatch by to-morrow night; the town growing so unhealthy, that a man cannot depend upon living two days.

12th The people die so, that now it seems they are fain to carry the dead to be buried by day-light, the nights not sufficing to do it in And my Lord Mayor commands people to be within at nine at night all, as they say, that the sick may have liberty to go abroad for ayre There is one also dead out of one of our ships at Deptford, which troubles us mightily; the Providence, fire-ship, which was just fitted to go to sea But they tell me to-day no more sick on board And this day W Bodham tells me that one is dead at Woolwich, not far from the Rope-yard I am told, too, that a wife of one of the groomes at Court is dead at Salisbury; so that the King and Queene are speedily to be all gone to Milton So God preserve us!

15th It was dark before I could get home, and so land at Churchyard stairs, where, to my great trouble, I met a dead corps of the plague, in the narrow ally just bringing down a little pair of stairs But I thank God I was not much disturbed at it However, I shall beware of being late abroad again.

16th To the Exchange, where I have not been a great while But, Lord! how sad a sight it is to see the streets empty of people, and very few upon the ‘Change Jealous of every door that one sees shut up, lest it should be the plague; and about us two shops in there, if not more, generally shut up This day I had the ill news from Dagenhams, that my poor Lord of Hinchingbroke his indisposition is turned to the small-pox Poor gentleman that he should be come from France so soon to fall sick, and of that disease too, when he should be gone to see a fine lady, his mistress I am most heartily sorry for it.

18th To Sheernesse, where we walked up and down, laying out the ground to be taken in for a yard to lay provisions for cleaning and repairing of ships, and a most proper place it is for the purpose.

19th Come letters from the King and Lord Arlington, for the removal of our office to Greenwich I also wrote letters, and made myself ready to go to Sir G Carteret, at Windsor; and having borrowed a horse of Mr Blackbrough, sent him to wait for me at the Duke of Albemarle’s door: when, on a sudden, a letter comes to us from the Duke of Albemarle, to tell us that the fleet is all come back to Solebay, and are presently to be dispatched back again Where-upon I presently by water to the Duke of Albemarle to know what news; and there I saw a letter from my Lord Sandwich to the Duke of Albemarle, and also from Sir W Coventry and Captain Teddiman; how my Lord having commanded Teddiman with twenty- two ships (of which but fifteen could get thither, and of those fifteen but eight or nine could come up to play) to go to Bergen; where, after several messages to and fro from the Governor of the Castle, urging that Teddiman ought not to come thither with more than five ships, and desiring time to think of it, all the while he suffering the Dutch ships to land their guns to the best advantage; Teddiman on the second presence, began to play at the Dutch ships, (whereof ten East India-men,) and in three hours’ time (the town and castle, without any provocation, playing on our ships,) they did cut all our cables, so as the