Biography of Captain John Shales

Pepy's Diary. 04 Nov 1663. Up and to my office, shewing myself to Sir W. Batten (age 62), and Sir J. Minnes (age 64), and no great matter made of my periwigg, as I was afeard there would be. Among other things there came to me Shales of Portsmouth, by my order, and I began to discourse with him about the arrears of stores belonging to the Victualling Office there, and by his discourse I am in some hopes that if I can get a grant from the King (age 33) of such a part of all I discover I may chance to find a way to get something by the by, which do greatly please me the very thoughts of.

Pepy's Diary. 05 Nov 1663. Lay long in bed, then up, called by Captain Cocke (age 46) about business of a contract of his for some Tarre, and so to the office, and then to Sir W. Pen (age 42) and there talked, and he being gone came Sir W. Warren and discoursed about our business with Field, and at noon by agreement to the Miter [Map] to dinner upon T. Trice's 40s., to be spent upon our late agreement. Here was a very poor dinner and great company. All our lawyers on both sides, and several friends of his and some of mine brought by him, viz., Mr. Moore, uncle Wight, Dr. Williams, and my cozen Angier, that lives here in town, who the Captain John Shales after dinner carried me aside and showed me a letter from his poor brother at Cambridge to me of the same contents with that yesterday to me desiring help from me. Here I was among a sorry company without any content or pleasure, and at the last the reckoning coming to above 40s. by 15s., he would have me pay the 10s. and he would pay the 5s., which was so poor that I was ashamed of it, and did it only to save contending with him. There, after agreeing a day for him and I to meet and seal our agreement, I parted and home, and at the office by agreement came Mr. Shales, and there he and I discourse till late the business of his helping me in the discovery of some arrears of provisions and stores due to the stores at Portsmouth, Hampshire [Map], out of which I may chance to get some money, and save the King (age 33) some too, and therefore I shall endeavour to do the fellow some right in other things here to his advantage between Mr. Gauden and him. He gone my wife and I to her arithmetique, in which she pleases me well, and so to the office, there set down my Journall, and so home to supper and to bed. A little troubled to see how my family is out of order by Will's being there, and also to hear that Jane do not please my wife as I expected and would have wished.

Treaty of Newport

Pepy's Diary. 09 Nov 1663. Thence I took leave of them, and so having taken up something at my wife's tailor's, I home by coach and there to my office, whither Shales came and I had much discourse with him about the business of the victualling, and thence in the evening to the Coffee-house, and there sat till by and by, by appointment Will brought me word that his uncle Blackburne was ready to speak with me. So I went down to him, and he and I to a taverne hard by, and there I begun to speak to Will friendlily, advising him how to carry himself now he is going from under my roof, without any reflections upon the occasion from whence his removal arose. This his uncle seconded, and after laying down to him his duty to me, and what I expect of him, in a discourse of about a quarter of an houre or more, we agreed upon his going this week, towards the latter (end) of the week, and so dismissed him, and Mr. Blackburne and I fell to talk of many things, wherein I did speak so freely to him in many things agreeing with his sense that he was very open to me: first, in that of religion, he makes it great matter of prudence for the King (age 33) and Council to suffer liberty of conscience; and imputes the losse of Hungary to the Turke from the Emperor's denying them this liberty of their religion. He says that many pious ministers of the word of God, some thousands of them, do now beg their bread: and told me how highly the present clergy carry themselves every where, so as that they are hated and laughed at by everybody; among other things, for their excommunications, which they send upon the least occasions almost that can be. And I am convinced in my judgement, not only from his discourse, but my thoughts in general, that the present clergy will never heartily go down with the generality of the commons of England; they have been so used to liberty and freedom, and they are so acquainted with the pride and debauchery of the present clergy. He did give me many stories of the affronts which the clergy receive in all places of England from the gentry and ordinary persons of the parish. He do tell me what the City thinks of General Monk (age 54), as of a most perfidious man that hath betrayed every body, and the King (age 33) also; who, as he thinks, and his party, and so I have heard other good friends of the King (age 33) say, it might have been better for the King (age 33) to have had his hands a little bound for the present, than be forced to bring such a crew of poor people about him, and be liable to satisfy the demands of every one of them. He told me that to his knowledge (being present at every meeting at the Treaty at the Isle of Wight), that the old King did confess himself overruled and convinced in his judgement against the Bishopps, and would have suffered and did agree to exclude the service out of the churches, nay his own chappell; and that he did always say, that this he did not by force, for that he would never abate one inch by any vyolence; but what he did was out of his reason and judgement.

Pepy's Diary. 13 Nov 1663. Up and to my office, busy all the morning with Commissioner Pett (age 53); at noon I to the Exchange [Map], and meeting Shales, he and I to the Coffee-house and there talked of our victualling matters, which I fear will come to little. However I will go on and carry it as far as I can.

Pepy's Diary. 02 Mar 1664. This afternoon we had a good present of tongues and bacon from Mr. Shales, of Portsmouth.

Pepy's Diary. 18 May 1664. So home again and to Sir W. Pen (age 43), who, among other things of haste in this new order for ships, is ordered to be gone presently to Portsmouth, Hampshire [Map] to look after the work there. I staid to discourse with him, and so home to supper, where upon a fine couple of pigeons, a good supper; and here I met a pretty cabinet sent me by Mr. Shales, which I give my wife, the first of that sort of goods I ever had yet, and very conveniently it comes for her closett. I staid up late finding out the private boxes, but could not do some of them, and so to bed, afraid that I have been too bold to-day in venturing in the cold. This day I begun to drink butter-milke and whey, and I hope to find great good by it.

Pepy's Diary. 18 Oct 1668. Lord's Day. Up, and with my boy Tom all the morning altering the places of my pictures with great pleasure, and at noon to dinner, and then comes Mr. Shales to see me, and I with him to recommend him to my Lord Brouncker's (age 48) service, which I did at Madam Williams's, and my Lord receives him.

Calendars. 30 Sep 1670. [Unknown] to the Navy Commissioners. We have noticed a paper on the Treasury Office door in Broad Street, that all seamen who were discharged before Dec. 1665 are to bring in their tickets this day, and that only they, their wives, brothers, or sisters, are to attend to receive the money, otherwise the tickets will be detained and the persons punished. Such limitations have often been published to small purpose, and it is well known that, notwithstanding such provisoes, much water goes beside the mill. The paper so affixed on the doors will serve only to adopt your clerks and others to be wives, brethren, and sisters of the persons to whom such tickets belong as shall be brought in, and from 5s. to 8s. in the pound will still be paid as formerly on such tickets, as you and the authors of such restrictions know.

What is it to you, or what prejudice is it to the nation, if you pay to such as present them, provided they give security that the seamen who did the service shall never demand the money for them? You may be sure they did not part with their tickets without some consideration, and if it was only 10s. in the pound, they who pleasured them ran a great adventure as to their own interest, and showed more charity than those who cry out against them and make laws to afflict them, to which end the inquisition [Committee of Accounts] at Brooke House was erected, and the money spent by those Commissioners would have paid many a poor man's ticket. We know several that have at small rates supplied the seamen in their necessities, and some who have accommodated their friends, in whose hands they left their concerns while again at sea, without 1s. profit, and who are yet unpaid, because they will not allow 5s. or 6s. in the pound on the amount by them disbursed for little or no profit.

We have heard many seamen wish they had allowed 10s., or a noble in the pound at first, to have had ready money. You may notice that for years your clerks could not honestly have lived at the rate they do upon their salaries.

We hear that many great ships have to be provided by the spring, but where are your men? or if they were all before you, what encouragement have they to go, or to show themselves valiant, when they have but small hopes of receiving their pay on their return now, when they were so shamefully neglected at the first engagement, when above two millions were ordered for the service? And what encouragement have their friends to supply them again, who have suffered so deeply for pleasuring them before? As we see and know more than you do, we advise you to pay all the arrears, whoever brings the tickets, provided they be known persons, or give security that the owners of the tickets shall not demand it again. Noted as picked up in the Navy Office by Capt. Shales, and delivered by him to Lord B[rouncker] (age 50), then in the office, 4 Oct. [14 pages. S.P. Dom., Car. IT. 285, No. 154.]

Calendars. 26 Oct 1670. Chatham, Kent [Map]. William Rand and Ph. Pett to Sir Jer. Smith and Sam. Pepys (age 37). We send a copy of Sir William Batten's account, but that wherein Commissioner Pett and Capt. Taylor made that extravagant allowance to themselves is in Mr. Shales' hands, who also had copies of the documents enclosed, they being letters of more than ordinary importance. We hope Commissioner Cox will be at the Council, and Capt. Brooke and Mr. Mynors waiting upon him, which will make a sufficient number to appear on the chest's behalf. We cannot send the letters which passed between the Board and our supervisors, they being committed to a chest with 5 locks, whose keys are distributed amongst so many persons that they cannot be readily collected; but we conceive there will be no need of them, the case being so evident by the accounts. [S.P. Dom., Car. IT. 286, No. 64.]

Calendars. 01 Dec 1670. Navy Office. Certificate by Joseph Smith, that Capt. John Shales, purser of the Princess, has no account standing out for provisions, moneys, or stores committed to his charge. [Jbid. No. 177.]