the towne, meaning my wife, that she was crooked,
which was quite false, which my wife had the wit not
to acknowledge herself to be the speaker of, though
she has said it twenty times. But by this means
we had little pleasure in their visit; however, Knipp
and I sang, and then I offered them to carry them home,
and to take my wife with me, but she would not go:
so I with them, leaving my wife in a very ill humour,
and very slighting to them, which vexed me. However,
I would not be removed from my civility to them, but
sent for a coach, and went with them; and, in our
way, Knipp saying that she come out of doors without
a dinner to us, I took them to Old Fish Streete, to
the very house and woman where I kept my wedding dinner,
where I never was since, and there I did give them
a joie of salmon, and what else was to be had.
And here we talked of the ill-humour of my wife,
which I did excuse as much as I could, and they seemed
to admit of it, but did both confess they wondered
at it; but from thence to other discourse, and among
others to that of my Lord Bruncker and Mrs. Williams,
who it seems do speake mighty hardly of me for my
not treating them, and not giving her something to
her closett, and do speake worse of my wife, and dishonourably,
but it is what she do of all the world, though she
be a whore herself; so I value it not. But they
told me how poorly my Lord carried himself the other
day to his kinswoman, Mrs. Howard, and was displeased
because she called him uncle to a little gentlewoman
that is there with him, which he will not admit of;
for no relation is to be challenged from others to
a lord, and did treat her thereupon very rudely and
ungenteely. Knipp tells me also that my Lord
keeps another woman besides Mrs. Williams; and that,
when I was there the other day, there was a great
hubbub in the house, Mrs. Williams being fallen sicke,
because my Lord was gone to his other mistresse, making
her wait for him, till his return from the other mistresse;
and a great deale of do there was about it; and Mrs.
Williams swounded at it, at the very time when I was
there and wondered at the reason of my being received
so negligently. I set them both at home, Knipp
at her house, her husband being at the doore; and
glad she was to be found to have staid out so long
with me and Mrs. Pierce, and none else; and Mrs. Pierce
at her house, and am mightily pleased with the discretion
of her during the simplicity and offensiveness of
my wife’s discourse this afternoon. I perceive
by the new face at Mrs. Pierces door that our Mary
is gone from her. So I home, calling on W. Joyce
in my coach, and staid and talked a little with him,
who is the same silly prating fellow that ever he was,
and so home, and there find my wife mightily out of
order, and reproaching of Mrs. Pierce and Knipp as
wenches, and I know not what. But I did give her
no words to offend her, and quietly let all pass,
and so to bed without any good looke or words to or
from my wife.