27 March 1769 – 2 April 1769

I was summoned to the Court of Conscience by a poor creature who fed my horses three or four times while I was on board. For this service he demanded ten shillings. I gave him half a crown. When I informed the Court of this, he was sharply reproved. Let all beware of these land-sharks on our seacoasts!--My scraps of time this week, I employed in reading the account of Commodore Byron. I never before read of any who endured such hardships and survived them. Surely no novel in the world can be more affecting, or more surprising, than this history.