night at any time.  Thence with him to the Parke, and there met the Queene coming from Chappell, with her Mayds of Honour, all in silver-lace gowns again:  which is new to me, and that which I did not think would have been brought up again.  Thence he carried me to the King’s closett:  where such variety of pictures, and other things of value and rarity, that I was properly confounded and enjoyed no pleasure in the sight of them; which is the only time in my life that ever I was so at a loss for pleasure, in the greatest plenty of objects to give it me.  Thence home, calling in many places and doing abundance of errands to my great content, and at night weary home, where Mr. Creed waited for me, and he and I walked in the garden, where he told me he is now in a hurry fitting himself for sea, and that it remains that he deals as an ingenuous man with me in the business I wot of, which he will do before he goes.  But I perceive he will have me do many good turns for him first, both as to his bills coming to him in this office, and also in his absence at the Committee of Tangier, which I promise, and as he acquits himself to me I will willingly do.  I would I knew the worst of it, what it is he intends, that so I may either quit my hands of him or continue my kindness still to him.

25th.  We staid late, and he lay with me all night and rose very merry talking, and excellent company he is, that is the truth of it, and a most cunning man.  He being gone I to the office, where we sat all the morning.  At noon to dinner, and then to my office busy, and by and by home with Mr. Deane to a lesson upon raising a Bend of Timbers,

[This seems to refer to knee timber, of which there was not a sufficient supply.  A proposal was made to produce this bent wood artificially:  “June 22, 1664.  Sir William Petty intimated that it seemed by the scarcity and greater rate of knee timber that nature did not furnish crooked wood enough for building:  wherefore he thought it would be fit to raise by art, so much of it in proportion, as to reduce it to an equal rate with strait timber” (Birch’s “History of the Royal Society,")]

and he being gone I to the office, and there came Captain Taylor, and he and I home, and I have done all very well with him as to the business of the last trouble, so that come what will come my name will be clear of any false dealing with him.  So to my office again late, and then to bed.

26th (Lord’s day).  Up, and Sir J. Minnes set me down at my Lord Sandwich’s, where I waited till his coming down, when he came, too, could find little to say to me but only a general question or two, and so good-bye.  Here his little daughter, my Lady Katharine was brought, who is lately come from my father’s at Brampton, to have her cheek looked after, which is and hath long been sore.  But my Lord will rather have it be as it is, with a scarr in her face, than endanger it being worse by tampering.  He being gone, I went home, a little