Samuel Pepys [ Art and Literature / Politics ]
… he observed to a friend that ‘chance without merit brought me in, and that diligence only keeps me so’. 1 He set himself to master the business of the Navy Board, which was responsible for maintaining and supplying the navy. He did so … offering a drink in tacit return for an acquaintance’s views. Always curious about the latest ideas, Pepys also put himself among the ‘ great confluence of gentlemen’ who joined J ames Harrington’s Rota Club at the Turk’s Head coffeehouse ( … disruptive home-improvements grew. To master his new job and bolster his social position, Pepys set about making himself ‘known’ in London’s principal forums. He was already a very familiar face in Westminster Hall . Part of the Pal ace …
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