good as my word, I bade Will get me
a rod, and he and I called the boy up to one of the upper rooms of the
Comptroller's house towards the garden, and there I reckoned all his
faults, and whipped him soundly, but the rods were so small that I fear
they did not much hurt to him, but only to my arm, which I am already,
within a quarter of an hour, not able to stir almost. After supper to
bed.

MARCH 1661-1662

March 1st. This morning I paid Sir W. Batten L40, which I have owed him
this half year, having borrowed it of him. Then to the office all the
morning, so dined at home, and after dinner comes my uncle Thomas, with
whom I had some high words of difference, but ended quietly, though I
fear I shall do no good by fair means upon him. Thence my wife and I by
coach, first to see my little picture that is a drawing, and thence to
the Opera, and there saw "Romeo and Juliet," the first time it was ever
acted; but it is a play of itself the worst that ever I heard in my
life, and the worst acted that ever I saw these people do, and I am
resolved to go no more to see the first time of acting, for they were
all of them out more or less. Thence home, and after supper and wrote by
the post, I settled to what I had long intended, to cast up my accounts
with myself, and after much pains to do it and great fear, I do find
that I am 1500 in money beforehand in the world, which I was afraid I
was not, but I find that I had spent above L250 this last half year,
which troubles me much, but by God's blessing I am resolved to take up,
having furnished myself with all things for a great while, and to-morrow
to think upon some rules and obligations upon myself to walk by. So with
my mind eased of a great deal of trouble, though with no great content
to find myself above L100 worse now than I was half a year ago, I went
to bed.

2nd (Lord's day). With my mind much eased talking long in bed with my
wife about our frugall life for the time to come, proposing to her what
I could and would do if I were worth L2,000, that is, be a knight, and
keep my coach, which pleased her,

[Lord Braybrooke wrote, "This reminds me of a story of my father's,
when he was of Merton College, and heard Bowen the porter wish that
he had L100 a-year, to enable him to keep a couple of hunters and a
pack of foxhounds."]

and so I do hope we shall hereafter live to save something, for I
am resolved to keep myself by rules from expenses. T