Samuel Pepys: no longer a visible dick.

[pallas_athena]

Alas: after nine years, the Pepysdiary blog has come to its abrupt end. On 31 May 1669, Pepys did some business, kissed a former mistress and lamented the lack of time to do more, and went for a walk in the park with his wife and some friends. Then he writes:

And thus ends all that I doubt I shall ever be able to do with my own eyes in the keeping of my journal, I being not able to do it any longer, having done now so long as to undo my eyes almost every time that I take a pen in my hand; and, therefore, whatever comes of it, I must forbear: and, therefore, resolve, from this time forward, to have it kept by my people in long-hand, and must therefore be contented to set down no more than is fit for them and all the world to know; or, if there be any thing, which cannot be much, now my amours to Deb. are past, and my eyes hindering me in almost all other pleasures, I must endeavour to keep a margin in my book open, to add, here and there, a note in short-hand with my own hand.

And so I betake myself to that course, which is almost as much as to see myself go into my grave: for which, and all the discomforts that will accompany my being blind, the good God prepare me!

With that, his history passes into the hands of others.

I have one last morsel of Pepysdickery to report, from a dinner with the Spanish Ambassador on 5 May 1669:

And here was an Oxford scholar in a Doctor of Law’s gowne, sent from the College where the Embassador lay, when the Court was there, to salute him before his return to Spain: This man, though a gentle sort of scholar, yet sat like a fool for want of French or Spanish, but [knew] only Latin, which he spoke like an Englishman to one of the Fathers. [...] And I made much use of my French and Spanish here, to my great content. But the dinner not extraordinary at all, either for quantity or quality.

Pepys may boast of his French and Italian language skills, but we all know the only thing he uses them for is disguising his sexual escapades... poorly. Since we're bidding farewell to Pepys, maybe we should go back over some of his greatest hits:

I by water to Westminster-hall and there did see Mrs. Lane, and de la, elle and I to a cabaret at the Cloche in the street du roy; and there, after some caresses, je l’ay foutee sous de la chaise deux times, and the last to my great pleasure: mais j’ai grand peur que je l’ay fait faire aussi elle meme. Mais after I had done, elle commencait parler as before and I did perceive that je n’avais fait rien de danger a elle. Et avec ca, I came away; and though I did make grand promises a la contraire, nonobstant je ne la verrai pas long time.

************

...sat an hour or two talking and discoursing and faisant ce que je voudrais quant a la toucher; but she would not laisser me faire me l’autre thing, though I did what I pouvais to have got her a me le laisser. But I did enough to faire grand plaisir a moy-meme.

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...and so to Mrs. Martin and there did what je voudrais avec her, both devante and backward, which is also muy bon plazer.

**************

…. Anon to church, my wife and I and Betty Michell, her husband being gone to Westminster. Here at church (God forgive me), my mind did courir upon Betty Michell, so that I do hazer con mi cosa in la eglisa meme.

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Up, and at my chamber all the morning and the office doing business, and also reading a little of “L’escholle des filles,” which is a mighty lewd book, but yet not amiss for a sober man once to read over to inform himself in the villainy of the world. [...] and I to my chamber, where I did read through "L’escholle des filles"; a lewd book, but what doth me no wrong to read for information sake (but it did hazer my prick para stand all the while, and una vez to decharger); and after I had done it, I burned it, that it might not be among my books to my shame; and so at night to supper and to bed.

It only remains to convey heartfelt thanks to Phil Gyford for creating and maintaining the Pepysdiary site for so many years. Thank you, Phil, for letting so many people lay their manos upon tu cosa, which you did suffer with tant de freedom. Gracias!

Comments

[larissa-00.livejournal.com]

I only discovered the Pepys feed here a few years ago, so I've not read the diaries from the start. I should go back and read the 'early years'. I imagine there's even more of his infidelities and furtive porn purchases . . .