New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-11-07

| infected house In London Upon inquiry, we found
that it was the chd OF very able citizen III Ora
cious Street, who, having lost already all thc resi- vi
| his children, and himself and wife being smut up,
ana in despair of escaping, impored only the hDely
of using the means FOR the saving oil TINS ohly p,pc
which, with difficulty, was allowed, anu lioS
suffered Ia deliver il, stripped naked out ~ WI
dow. into the aims Ct friend who Sh,lint i1i'
where. upon this information from Ai
| Hooker. we suffer it TO teman
Pepys's memoranda of the graccless Court OF
Charles H. are highly interesting. We see PLAINLY
enough the squalid poverty that accompanied the
! wasteful extravaganza" We have no end oil
anecdotes OF the wild frolics OF Charles the
| Seconds "misses" the subjects of the charming
| portraits of Lely, and of Grammonts exquisite
sketches in words. There is good story told OF
Grammont:
the Count remark that he served upon the knee
a mark of respect not common at other courts
thank your Majesty roI the explanation" answered
Grammont; Il thought they were begging pardon
for giving YOU so bad dinner
One of the most valuable features of Pcpys's
book is the light which it throws upon the English
manners of his time Thus he considered pretty
dinner to be brace of stewcd caIps, SIX roasted
chickens, and a jowl Of salmon hot, for the first
course; tansy and two meats tongues, and cheese,
the second" He was very proud of a dinner he
gave 10 some friends which consisted Of fricasee
of rabbits and chickens, leg OF mntton boiled
three carps in dish great dish OF a side OF anb.
a dish of roasted pigeons, dish o! four Holsters,
three tarts lamprcy pie Ia most rare piel, a dish
of anchovicS good wine of several sorts, and all
things mighty noble and to my great content 1t
was an era OF pies and Pcpys liked all kinds,
whatever tncy contained. Breakfast seems 10 have
been no more thought of i'll England then than
now. The drinking was deep and constant. The
theatres were held in high esteem. They were
opcn in the afternoon, s O'Clock being the usual
hour of performance and plays were Therefore
acted by daylight during the summer. The theatres
were SO badly rooted with glass that frequently the
rain made them very uncomfortable. OF the lnno-
walton of placing the orchestra under the stage
Pepys complains since the basScs could not tie
heard at all, and the trebles very family Gen
orally the theatres were very much crowded.
When EthcrcGgc's" She Would if She Could - was
first acted 900 persons were turned away be-
cause there was no loom n th" pit an hour before
the play commenced. People of fashion talked
loudly through the performance, sometimes to
Pcpys's great trouble his feelings being divided
between pleasure in hearing the wit AMI ANNOYANCE
in losing the play lie had other aunoyances,
which he bore good-uatureily. q Once he says,
Sc sitting in a dark place in the theatre, a lady
spit backward upon me by mistake. not seeing me.
bat after seeing her to be a very pretty lady |
was not troubled at IL NJ All III Noub ~ Hti"
to find more charming Pepysion incident than
this Pcpys canjIdly speaks OF Shakespeare, plays
as sad nonsense. but he appreciates Ben Jonson,
and finds in Every Man in His Humor the
greatest propriety OF speech that ever hc read in
his life
We can heartily commend this yoldmc. 1t covers
that period of English history which. if not the
most agreeable is perhaps instructive rs any.
The extraordinary reaction from the straightlaced
and Puritanical rglity of the Commonwealth,
the debauchcry OF the court, the folly Uf Charles,
the bigotry Of James the persecution to which
honest ana sober people subjected, the thrift
lessnc~s of the Government, the mean dependence
upon the gold of Louis XIV, could have but one
result-the speedy and final expulsion Of the
Stuarts. To PepyS and to John Evelyn we owe
the most valuable pictures of life, both private
and public in England at that pcriod and perhaps
1t would be we'll if MIR. Wheatey would do for
EVELYN what he has 50 well done for Pcpys.