Friday 12th December 1834

No entry today.

[up at] 7 50/..

[to bed at] 11 50/..

pretty good kiss last night breakfast at 9 Sir Robert Peel arrived – off with Adney at 10 10/.. to Cliff hill – about an hour with Richard Woodhead – he will do double railing for me (I finding everything, rails ready for railing) at 1/. per rood – had done wood posts for the road (finding everything) at 8/. a roods – if I find stoops that would make 2/. a rood difference – then sat about an hour at Cliff hill – Mrs. Ann Walker all wrong again – in a passion at me for Adney’s walling along the private road (between Cliff hill and Crownest) to Huddersfield – a foot person would not have room to pass a carriage the road would be so narrow – I explained – that Adney had measured it the other day, and that it would be left 5 yards broad – Mrs. Ann Walker seemed staggered and got into better humour – to last probably till she sees again Mrs. William Priestley! Adney gave Mrs. Rogers a returned letter from her to her niece – Mrs. Rogers agitated and vexed – wrote a note to Mrs. Bagnold of which Adney took charge as well of the letter to be reforwarded – home at 1 3/4 – sat with Adney during her luncheon – and read aloud to her Mr. Wortley’s speech printed separately – longish and good – delivered on Wednesday evening in the Old Assembly room – out from 3 1/4 to near 5 – in the upper land with Pickels and then with him at Whiskum cottage – the gable end ill built – the rain beats thro’ the wall – the stones instead of being from 4 to 5 or 6 inches in the bed should have been 1 foot and well jointed – ordered the well sunk for water (none found nor to be found there) just under Whiskum cottage to be filled up forthwith, and said he might make a drain and reservoir for top-water in John Bottomley’s field adjoining – some time with Charles Howarth hanging oak door into new china closet – wrote the above of today till 6 10/.. – dinner at 7 – coffee and then came and sat upstairs about 8 1/2 – Note this morning from Mr. John Edwards with the compliments of Mr. Wortley’s committee begging me to ‘convert’ Shaw the plasterer’s vote for Wortley from a single to a plumper – dinner so late for Mrs. Greaves and Mr. Beattie her lodger (Mr. Hudson’s usher) came to Adney for 3/4 hour or 50 minutes to beg off the bailiffs sent into the house this morning to make distress for rent; but Adney would not give way – 1/4 with my father and Marian between dinner and coffee – read this evening (and now and then talked to Adney) from page 483 to 509 Bakewell’s Geology – 1/2 hour with my aunt till 10 20/.. – very fine day – Fahrenheit 45 1/2° now at 10 25/.. p.m.

[In margin:]

Joseph Mann brought specimens of numbers 

6. Scale 16 yards thick

7. 48 yards coalband 8 inches thick

Courtesy of West Yorkshire Archive Service, Calderdale SH:7/ML/E/17/0123