Friday, March 31, 1837

1837

March

Friday 31

8

1 1/2

No kiss.

Very fine morning.  Sun out, Fahrenheit 51° at 9 – The ground just peeping out here and there from the snow –

Breakfast at 9 1/4 with Ann.  Poorly this morning and the last 2 or 3 days – Caught cold at Bolton bridge?

David Booth and Joseph Mann came at 9 1/2 about the meer-drift head clow and staid till 11 10/.. – Long talk about the clows and the meer generally – Settled the meer-drift head clow place to work in is to be square, according to David Booth’s proposal instead of round – and instead of a continuation of the walled and arched culvert from the clow to the meer, there is to be a stone-pen-trough 3 feet 1 inch wide and 18 inches high – Booth sure he can make it answer – Will cost (including labour carting and stone) 30/. per running yard.  

Mentioned what John Oates said to me yesterday evening, that the banks had sunk 3feet – that the meer-end by-wash was too low – The banks would have to be raised 2 feet – Samuel Washington’s paint-marks shewing the level of the water were ordered to be altered when John Oates and Mr. Husband found that there were 2 feet more of fall – The water ought to be 2 feet above Samuel Washington’s paint marks – I said I did not know that these marks had been altered – I understood they still indicated the top level of the water – But if they ought to have been 2 feet higher, how did Mr. Husband let Mawson get to his height in so large a length of the bank, 2 feet lower than he ought to have done even according to Samuel Washington’s paint-marks?

John Oates said we ought to have a shuttle and drain that would enable us to draw upon the Spiggs water when the meer was low – Joseph Mann laughed at this last observation.  I said John Oates had talked me into it; but I saw what Joseph Mann meant – We could have no water than there was – We could not increase the quantity – and if we drew it off at one time we could not have it at another – It was like the country man who killed his goose that laid a golden egg every day, for the sake of having all the Eggs in her at once – Said I would have water in the meer as soon as possible – Finished.

Had breakfast from 11 10/.. to 11 40/.. – then some time with Ann, who had Mrs. Ann Lee making oil-case table covers, etc.

With Ingham +3 at the farm yard hay-place and Edward and another mason walling up front of carriage court necessary – Ingham got the 3 loop-hole windows (taken from the East end of the barn set up this afternoon –

3 or 4 masons at the meer-drift head clow ashler stone hewing –

Off to Halifax about 2 or before – down the old bank.  At Mr. Parker’s office 1/2 hour or more – Went to say I had given up the idea of driving the water drift in Godley gulph – Mr. Parker explained that he and Mr. Adam had not been able to [get] another order entered such as I wished the book at the last meeting because only 3 commissioners attended – too few to make a new order – I said this altered the case –

Asked if he knew a Mr. Pitchforth of Brighouse – The whole matter came out, of the man’s having applied to Mr. Parker (and paid him 2/6 for the letter) to write to Captain Sutherland (which he did on Good Friday) – 500 to 1000 yards of the Greecefield – at the south end (next the canal – for 99 years, bound to lay out £500 and pay a ground rent of 9 pence per yard per annum – Parker had expressed no opinion in his letter – Never would give one unless asked – but it seemed by extraction that he (Parker) agreed with me, that the man wanted the cream off the bowl and that he (Parker) would not sell  on these terms and did not expect Captain Sutherland would – I said I thought the ground should be properly set out, to which Parker quite agreed – I told him if he had ever written to me for ground or for anything I should be obliged to him to give his opinion before asked for.  If he waited to be asked when I was in Italy, for instance, 6 weeks of time might be lost at least – I saw Parker was touchy upon this matter of opinion giving – He said Captain Sutherland would not be guided by his opinion – He would have other information – Parker said he thought times were worse instead of better – He is a great-croker? –

Then to the bank – Shut – then to Nicholson’s 2 little commissions for Ann, then ordered 1/2 dozen pair white worsted socks at Mounsey’s –

Then to Mr. McKean’s house – got £50 in note and cash, and told him of sending checks tomorrow to the amount of £403 +.  No objection made – very civil – Said I hoped to pass a large sum through their hands next month –

Mentioned the hotel – Should be glad if Mr. McKean could help me to a good tenant – Mr. McKean asked if it was true that Mr. Carr was to have it – No! He had never applied for it – Never said a word on the subject to me – Mr. McKean said he had not capital – It would require £10,000 to furnish it – £5000, said I, would be quite enough – a pity the capital required should be so exaggerated – I said those calling themselves the higher orders of the town were for Mr. Carr – but a great many of the next order and the richer were against Mr. Carr – I was given to understand more were against than for – My object was to please the town – I should not overrent the place at 1st – Would do all I could to help the prosperity of the undertaking –

McKean advised advertising in the North Britain Advertiser, published in Edinburgh.  No politics – merely for advertisements – read all over Scotland –                I mentioned the London

Manchester Guardian (politics blue) Liverpool Mercury, yellow – Leeds Mercury, ditto – Morning Herald and Times should be added –

From the bank to Whitley’s – 2 Petitions on the table to the houses of Lords and commons against the abolition of church rates, signed by the blue heads of the town.  Signatures 59 –Mr. Parker came in – asked if he had come to sign it – He said he had been asked at the bank(his bank, Rawson’s) but answered he would leave it to the wisdom of parliament to decide – He would not, however, refuse my asking, and signed it! – Are his political sentiments so wavering or so weakly conservative?

Called to inquire after poor Greenwood – No better – Attended now by Mr. Garlick, who gives him up, and Mr. Parker is making his will – Did not go upstairs to see him – had not time –

Brought back from Whitley’s Lardner on the Steam Engine and Higgins on the Earth – Returned up the old bank – Overtook Mark Hepworth bringing stuff from Northgate to the front of Shibden hall – Asked him to sign the petition – and to ask Hardcastle, and any of the tenants he might or could conveniently see before tomorrow night when the petition is to be sent off –

Home at 4 40/.. – Sat reading a few of the first pages of Higgins on the Earth –

Out at 5 40/.. – with Ingham at the meer-drift head clow – 2 of Joseph Mann’s men clearing Earth away and 3 or 4 masons hewing and preparing the stone –

Then with Robert +3 just 6 and leaving work – 1/2 hour talking to Robert.  Told him to consider about the Spiggs water – Jack Green had been cutting a drain in the Sour Ing today –

Came in just after Ann returned from Cliff hill (George inquired at Haugh end this afternoon after Mr. Henry Priestley – Better – Mrs. Henry Priestley and the little boy well) –

Dressed – Dinner at 7 – Coffee –Came upstairs to my study at 9 1/2 – Reading Higgins 1/2 hour – Then till 10 55/.. wrote the above of today –

Fine day; Fahrenheit 33° now at 11 p.m.

Then went down to Ann in the north parlour and sat hearing what she had written to her sister and writing a completely new rough copy about the ground in the Greecefield and Landimere stone and little Mary and Hannah coming here said we would take care of them from Liverpool here.  Avoided promising to go for them ourselves. Begged to say nothing, to make no comment, on what she had written about the Lodge, as she knew I was against it –

 

WYAS Finding Number SH:7/ML/E/20/0041