did come all into the
Hope yesterday noon, and held a fight with our ships from thence till
seven at night; that they had burned twelve fire-ships, and we took one of
their's, and burned five of our fire-ships. But then rising and going to
Sir W. Batten, he tells me that we have burned one of their men-of-war,
and another of theirs is blown up: but how true this is, I know not. But
these fellows are mighty bold, and have had the fortune of the wind
easterly this time to bring them up, and prevent our troubling them with
our fire-ships; and, indeed, have had the winds at their command from the
beginning, and now do take the beginning of the spring, as if they had
some great design to do. I to my office, and there hard at work all the
morning, to my great content, abstracting the contract book into my
abstract book, which I have by reason of the war omitted for above two
years, but now am endeavouring to have all my books ready and perfect
against the Parliament comes, that upon examination I may be in condition
to value myself upon my perfect doing of my own duty. At noon home to
dinner, where my wife mighty musty,--[Dull, heavy, spiritless]--but I took
no notice of it, but after dinner to the office, and there with Mr. Harper
did another good piece of work about my late collection of the accounts of
the Navy presented to the Parliament at their last session, which was left
unfinished, and now I have done it which sets my mind at my ease, and so,
having tired myself, I took a pair of oares about five o'clock, which I
made a gally at Redriffe, and so with very much pleasure down to
Gravesend, all the way with extraordinary content reading of Boyle's
Hydrostatickes, which the more I read and understand, the more I admire,
as a most excellent piece of philosophy; as we come nearer Gravesend, we
hear the Dutch fleete and ours a-firing their guns most distinctly and
loud. But before we got to Gravesend they ceased, and it grew darkish,
and so I landed only (and the flood being come) and went up to the Ship
and discoursed with the landlord of the house, who undeceives me in what I
heard this morning about the Dutch having lost two men-of-war, for it is
not so, but several of their fire-ships. He do say, that this afternoon
they did force our ships to retreat, but that now they are gone down as
far as Shield-haven: but what the event hath been of this evening's guns
they know not, but suppose not much, for they have all this