| Description | [Diary Transcription]
306
1836
December Sunday 11
9
12 10/..
L
No kiss fine frosty morning breakfast at 10 — A- [Ann] did her French — sun out and Fahrenheit 48° at 12 1/2 till which hour siding in my
study — there musing over my banking account and what to write to Messrs Gray — A- [Ann] and I alighted at the school
at 2 (20 minutes in going) 20 minutes there hearing the girls say their psalms for the Wharton bibles — said
them imperfectly — not 1/2 so well as the boys — Mr. Wilkinson did all the duty — preached 20
minutes from Matthew xi 3 and 4 — 20 minutes at the boys’ school — the psalms very well repeated — all the
boys very still and well behaved — 1/2 hour at Cliff hill — Mrs. Ann Walker in very good humour and spirits —
home in 20 minutes at 5 25/.. — wrote to ‘Messrs Gray solicitors York post paid’. the £7000 will be
quite enough — but it would be a very great convenience to me to have 1/2 or £3000 of it soon — ask
an immediate answer whether I can have either of these last named sums before the 1st of next month —
satisfied it if it be agreed that the title deeds shall remain in the hands of Messrs Gray — during the whole
time of the continuance of
the mortgage the interest shall be regularly paid the day it is due — Respecting the
security Mr. Watson had best come over — Messrs Gray shall be satisfied that their client will
be safe — dinner at 6 35/.. — A- [Ann] read French — coffee upstairs — I then till 9 read over last night’s and
tonight’s London papers — then wrote the last 6 1/2 lines — very fine frosty day — Fahrenheit 30° now at
9 5/.. p.m. then went downstairs — some time poking about in the cellar-passage etc. till near 10 then sat with A- [Ann] copied out
from my Journal of Tuesday 19 January last what passed at the Yorkshire District Bank respecting advancing me
money — a promise of £5000 or £6000 at least — no! what ever I wanted till my extraordinary expenses
were over that I knew how much I wanted to settle my account — then sat talking it over with A- [Ann] — till near 11
Monday 12
7 40/..
1 25/..
V
N
V
No kiss the ground covered with snow and small snow falling and Fahrenheit 31° now at 8 40/.. a.m. breakfast — 25 minutes
filing off the padlock off one of A-’s [Ann] deed-boxes — then talking to John Booth about getting his son-
in-law (Martha’s husband) to the Dispensary — the man cannot walk — laid up in the rheumatism —
at my desk at 10 1/2 — snowy (small snow) wintry day — from about 1 to 2 (an hour) had Messrs
Hainsworth and Dobson — evidently very anxious to have the stone but I would say nothing either one way
or other — Hainsworth thought of bidding 3/. per yard for the stone and £30 per annum for the farm — I made
no remark on this but that I thought £30 very fair for the farm — I wished the farm to go with the
stone — should be guided rather by the bid for the stone than for the farm but not bound to take the highest bid —
at last I said there were several I knew would bid of whom I had an equally good opinion — and
among whom it would be difficult to choose without some principle laid down — I should
therefore among those take the highest bid — was only anxious to do what I thought fair
and right — on coming upstairs wrote note to Mr. Parker giving the conditions to be produced
at the letting this evening at 6 p.m. at the Stump X [Cross] Inn — Sent off my note by John
Booth at 3 1/2 to ‘Messrs Parker and Adam Solicitors Halifax’ — dinner at 6 3/4 coffee upstairs — A- [Ann] read
French — from 8 1/2 to 10 3/4 as all the morning from 10 1/2 to 1 and from after writing my note that is from
about 3 to 6 3/4 siding in my study and library — Had Joseph Mann from 10 3/4 to 11 1/2 — he brought the
tickets (biddings) in a packet from Mr. Parker — said Dodgson was the highest bidder the 1st
307
1836
December
round — Dodgson! said I — I never thought of him; — but I might have thought of him, for I know
he intended to bid — then talked about the colliery — It will be March before they are up to the
Engine-pit, but will answer for having Listerwick pit bottomed in August — came upstairs
at 11 1/2 — looked at the biddings — It is between Dodgson and Womersley — each 7/6 per yard
for the stone but Womersley £40 per annum for the farm and Dodgson only £30 — hard bidding for Dodgson
but Womersley must have it — and I do not think of letting him pay more than £35 for the farm —
wrote all but the first 4 1/2 lines of the day till 12 10/.. at which hour Fahrenheit . . cannot get at it — has blown
up and fastened itself and the wind in some sort that I cannot open the window — snowy, rainy, sleaty, haily
wintry day —
Thurs 13
7 3/4
12 1/4
No kiss ready in an hour raining at 7 3/4 and afterwards but fair at 8 3/4 at which hour breakfast till 9 3/4 — the snow
gone — none in sight from my study window — A- [Ann] did her French — at my accounts till 10 25/.. then off to the
Bank (Yorkshire District Bank) — no! looking about — in the cellar passage — a little while with
Thomas raising the new court coal-place roof — prized it up at the back — the roof, as ordered by Mr.
Husband much too flat — a little while with the gardener at cutting through the mound (as on Saturday)
near the approach gates for a cart-road down towards the rock-work — off to H-x [Halifax] at 11 1/4 down the old bank
at the bank in 20 minutes at 11 35/.. — 20 minutes there — McKean not in — would be back in a
couple of hours — I could not wait — asked to speak to the young man (Mr. Davidson) who had lately
generally attended to me — said I was sorry Mr. McKean was not in — I had called to answer his letter that I received
on Saturday — should have called yesterday had not the weather been so bad — I shewed Mr. Davidson the letter, and, in
answer to ‘the Bank invariably discountenances dead loans’, read the ‘extract I had made
from my Day book of 19 January last’ (vide Journal of what passed at the bank on that day) —
I shewed Davidson the entry made by Mr. McKean — in my banking book on that day stating that the bank
would advance me what I wanted at 4 1/2 per cent — I neither expected, nor wished the bank to do
any thing for me contrary to its custom; but if any thing contrary to the custom or anything
that they invariably discountenances had been done for me, I was very sorry, but could only say
that it rested with the bank rather than with me; for I had only acted upon the under standing of
the 19th of January, to which I referred — however, I then said that I would settle my account anytime on receiving
a little notice and I would take Mr. McKean’s letter as a notice, and would settle the account as soon
as I could — glad Mr. McKean had written otherwise I should have drawn to the amount mentioned,
‘£5000 or £6000 at least’ — I had made my arrangements for settling my account in
April — I meant to say for my receiving the money the 30th April next and paying it into the bank as immediately
afterwards as possible — perhaps the 1st of May — however, I had already written to see if I could have
£3000 of the money by the 1st of January — not at all certain about it — but if I did get it, it should
be paid into the bank — best I had £1600 to pay on the 19th instant (nineteenth instant) —
Mr. Davidson very civil — said Mr. McKean — had written to me as he had written to the rest of their customers
and was sure he (Mr. McKean) had not thought of the particular arrangement that had been made — the pressure
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