Agreeableizing

  1835 January Wednesday 28 No kiss. Fine morning, tho’ rather hazy and dull – F 43 1/2° at 9 1/2 a.m. – Looked over from page 25 to 69, end of De la Beche’s Geological notes – Breakfast at 9 3/4 – to 10 3/4 – Then out with Charles Howarth doing top cornice for North passage – then with Pickles at the dry bridge – Holt at the drift – Came in with him at 11 50/.. and he staid till 1 3/4 – The deed made by Stansfield and Thompson ready for signing Mrs. Machin’s coal, 14 DW, to Mr. Rawson for £200 – But 7 people concerned, mother and children and ....... the saddler  at Northbridge, having married the oldest daughter and not being consulted, would not let his wife sign and promised to bring all the rest over to sell to Holt – V alued at £40 per DW. but Holt thinks  he can get them to agree for £300 down – Said I should be glad if he could – but he must give £350 rather than miss the bargain – In short, he must buy the coal – Then, speaking of Spiggs, he had...

  1835 January Tuesday 27 9 10/.. 11 1/2 No kiss. Up at 4 1/2 for 1/2 hour and went to bed again – so much cousin, got up and washed and came to my study and got worsted stocking prepared and put on – Very fine morning. F 46° at 10 25/.., at which hour Mr. Bradley – Out with him and Pickles, setting-out the alterations at the dry bridge till 1 1/4, then Mr. Bradley dined, and sat with him talking of different alterations till he went away at 2 20/.. – He would be glad to have what was Mr. Scatcherd’s office if I could let him have – Told him the place, house and land, was promised, but I would see what I could do – Did not mention to whom it was promised – Ann to Cliff Hill at 1 25/.. – Washed and put on my other worsted cousin stocking to walk in.   Off to Cliff Hill for Ann at 3 –  10 minutes with Charles Howarth – He and James sawing up pine 12 foot planks into 1/2 inch boards for venting the drift –  At Cliff Hill at 3 40/.. – 35 minutes there...

1835 January Monday 26 8 11 1/2 Cousin came gently.   No kiss. Fine morning – Mild – Out a few minutes – Then with my father and Marian – F 48° at 10 3/4 – Breakfast at 9 20/.. Marian came to us – Staid talking – till 10 3/4, at which time Ann and I came upstairs – Then went down to Marian for a minute or 2 and Mr. Jubb came before 11 – Explained that my aunt could not take opiates etc., then shewed him in to my aunt – Had 1st visit – Gentle, and conducted himself well enough – Recommends putting a tablespoonful of chloride of lime into the warm water, or bran water, or gruel that my aunt put her feet and legs into at night – It would cleanse the wound and take care of the smell – Well my aunt did not hear the latter part of the sentence – Liked him very well – Saw him again for a minute or 2 in the drawing room – He says, the wound has got a tendency to spread, but it is astonishing how long people may live under these circumstances – Had Hinscliffe from 11 ...

1835 January Sunday 25 8 1/4 11 1/4 No kiss.   Ready in an hour – Fine soft morning – Not a trace of snow left – F 44 1/2° at 9 3/4 – At 10 3/4 to 12 20/.., at my desk – Ann and I read prayers at 12 20/.. to my aunt and Oddy and Eugénie and George as usual, till after one – Then wrote the following to ‘ Mr. Samuel Washington, Crow Nest, to be delivered tonight – ‘ Shibden hall ‘Sunday 25 January 1835. Sir – I can manage very well about the levelling so that you do not need have any trouble about it; nor need you look over and value the surface till the end of the week – you will be so good as take possession of the Mytholm, and Stump-Cross Inn land on the day – ‘I am, sir, etc. etc. etc. A Lister’ ‘Be so good as let me have the measurement of the stone got in the Yew Trees wood quarry, as soon as you can’ – Then wrote as follows to ‘Mr. Bradley, Architect, Elland’   ‘Miss Lister will be particularly obliged to Mr. Bradley to come to Shibden ‘hal...

1835 January Saturday 24 8 11 1/4 No kiss. Ann’s cousin came on her getting up – Fine morning; F 42° at 9 5/.. – Breakfast – Washington at 10 – Joseph Mann at 10 1/4 – Brought his brother James – Settled the fortnight’s account and when they had had their beer, went out with them about 11 into the Upper for about 1 1/2 hour – It was James Mann that was working in Hinscliffe’s pit on the waste at the time of the nighttime filling up – Samuel Holdsworth was a go-between for Rawson in agreeing with Hins cliffe – Samuel Holdsworth or Rawson or some of them promised James Mann £10 if he would not tell – But he never got a farthing, and lost £3 on account of wages he could not make out of the coal he had got – He pointed out the Spiggs land and gave me the most intelligible information I have had – Shewed me where they were now   getting coal, and how they were driving the drift (in what direction, towards the top end corner of Spiggs wood to loose the coal under wat...

1835 January Friday 23 7 50/.. 11 No kiss. Thaw – Great deal of the snow gone – Fine morning – Fa 38 1/2 at 9 5/.. a.m. – Breakfast at 9 10/.. to 10 –  Ann and I off to Halifax at 10 35/.. – Down the new bank – Left Ann at Whitley’s and went for 10 minutes to Mr. Parker’s office.   Mr. P- gave me a letter of apology he had received on my account from the Editor of the Guardian – Quite enough – Said we (Ann and I) were quite satisfied – Young Mr. Sutcliffe begged me to wait his father’s answer about Northgate till tonight – Explained to Mr. P- the approach of William Oates and left at the office the agreement (I had written just before setting off to Halifax) to be signed by William Oates at Mr. Parker’s office at 11 1/2 a.m. – Messers Alexander promise to have the administration accounts and release business ready in 2 or 3 days – Went back to Whitley's for Ann.    Ordered King’s Interest tables, price a guinea, and Rennell’s Catechism of Geology...

1835 January Thursday 22 7 3/4 11 40/.. No kiss. Fine winter’s morning. F 33° at 8 40/.. . Matthew brought word that Mr. Sunderland is dead – I and the whole house are heartily sorry – I know not any man in his rank of life whose loss will be a greater public loss – Breakfast from 8 3/4 to 9 35/.., when left Ann with Mr. Washington, and came upstairs – Reading – Then down to S.W- – Greenwood came at 10 1/2 – Out with him, shewing him the intended Walker Pit road – Very well satisfied – Afraid I should think him presumptuous, or would have said before that he should like to take Northgate house, house and land – Would take boarders – Sure he could make it answer – Could let his shop for 50 guineas a year and get £30 a year for his workshops, and pays £12 per annum for his Shew-rooms = £94.10.0; and he would give me for Northgate house and land £100 a year – I said could he not give me £110 per annum – No! he would give me £100; but if I could make more of it, begg...

1835 January Wednesday 21 8 20/.. 11 1/2 No kiss.   Finish, hazyish winter’s morning – Very hard frost.   F 31° in my study at 9 5/.. a.m.   The water in my footpail frozen over 1st time and the ice so strong could not break it quite off round the edges, even with all the force I could use with my tooth brush handle – By much the coldest morning we have had this winter – Breakfast at 9 20/..   Off to Halifax with Ann at 11 – Down the new bank – To Nicholson’s – Then to Whitley’s, left   Ann there while I went to Mr. Parker’s office – Out – Left the rough draft of Ann’s lease to Brooke of Grieves’s farm – Mr. P- generally at home (in the office) from 9 to 12, then gone out – Some time longer at Whitley’s – Bought Bloxham on the Monumental Antiquities of Great Britain duodecimo, published at 12/. ,got it for 11/. and Ann bought 1 or 2 little things – In returning met Mr. William Priestley on the bridge – He said Mr. Sunderland was so ill, ...

1835 January Tuesday 20 8 35/.. 11 40/.. No kiss. Very fine winter’s morning – More snow in the night – Hard frost – F 36° now at 9 25/.. – Breakfast in about an hour – Went in to Marian to ask her to speak about the smoke last night in the kitchen – Long talk – Cordingley not to return except for Marian’s convenience till she got another servant – Had thought of inquiring for a cook housekeeper – What Ann and I pay is perhaps not quite enough to cover the additional expense – Said we would pay whatever more might be required – Offered to take the whole establishment upon myself if Marian liked – my father allowing me whatever his present expenses were – Marian herself had no objection – but my father must be consulted – Well! said I, and so must Adney; for all the indoors trouble would fall on her – Said I was glad Cordingley was really going or gone – Ann and I off to Cliff Hill at 11 – Talked over what had passed with Marian – Ann quite against our having anything...

  1835 January Monday 19 9 10/.. 11 3/4 No kiss. Ready in an hour – Fine morning.   A good deal of snow fell during the night, that we are, as it were, in   Lapland again – F 33 3/4° in my study now at 10 10/.. a.m., at which hour, breakfast in an hour – Then looking at the pedigree and setting Ann to copy the arms till 11 5/.. – Then had Miss Jenkinson’s James (James Crompton) about the Stump Cross Inn for about an hour till 12 1/4 – Told him I should not send answer to Mr. Parker till Thursday night – But that his (James Crompton’s) ticket was not among the number I was considering about – His bid was not high enough – He put £10 to it making £111 per annum – Said if he made is bid £120 per annum I would take it into consideration, but could not say more – He hoped I would not think merely of the highest bidder – No! said I, if I take the highest I shall not take £120 – There is something considerable bid more than that – Asked what side of pol...