ember
7th, when he was "Up by five o'clock, and blessed be God! find all
well, and by water to Paul's Wharf. Walked thence and saw all the town
burned, and a miserable sight of Paul's Church, with all the roof
fallen, and the body of the choir fallen into St. Faith's; Paul's
School also, Ludgate, and Fleet Street."

Evelyn's note of the disaster is written in a higher key. "September
3rd ... I went and saw the whole south part of the City burning from
Cheapeside to the Thames, and all along Cornehill (for it likewise
kindl'd back against the wind as well as forward), Tower Streete,
Fen-church Streete, Gracious Streete, and so along to Bainard's
Castle, and was now taking hold of St. Paule's Church, to which the
scaffolds contributed exceedingly. The conflagration was so universal,
and the people so astonish'd, that from the beginning, I know not by
what despondency or fate, they hardly stirr'd to quench it, so that
there was nothing heard or seene but crying out and lamentation,
running about like distracted creatures, without at all attempting to
save even their goods--such a strange consternation there was upon
them, so as it burned both in breadth and length, the churches, public
halls, Exchange, hospitals, monuments, and ornaments, leaping after
a prodigious manner from house to house and streete to streete, at
greate distances one from the other; for the heate, with a long set of
faire and warme weather, had even ignited the aire and prepar'd the
materials to conceive the fire, which devoured after an incredible
manner, houses, furniture, and everything. Here we saw the Thames
cover'd with goods floating, all the barges and boates laden with what
some had time and courage to save, as, on the other, the carts, &c.,
carrying out to the fields, which for many miles were strew'd with
moveables of all sorts, and tents erecting to shelter both people
and what goods they could get away. Oh, the miserable and calamitous
spectacle, such as haply the world had not seene the like since the
foundation of it, nor be outdone till the universal conflagration of
it. All the skie was of a fiery aspect, like the top of a burning
oven, and the light seene above forty miles round about for many
nights. God grant mine eyes may never behold the like, who now saw
above 10,000 houses all in one flame; the noise and crackling and
thunder of the impetuous flames, the shreiking (sic) of women and
children, the hurry of people, the fall of T