Thursday 7th August 1834

Up at 5 o’clock return of bowel complaint lay down again, & being cold afterwards went to dearest, finally got up at 9.15 had excellent breakfast of, tea made in Jones’ hot water boiler, nice bread, & fresh strawberries, enjoyed breakfast more than I have done since I left England – after breakfast read several pages in Histoire de Grenoble, then dearest sent for Maitre to arrange about a carriage for a little drive on new road to Les Echelles, & agreed to take a print of Napoleon, beautifully done with a pen by Edward Hazard 1833 – price 50 francs – frame cost 20, & the carte 30 – at 3 oclock off in a little carriage on the new route to Les Echelles, as far as Pont St. Laurent, road ascends from Voiron about half a mile then nearly level for another mile when we began to descend – before descending saw on the opposite hill side the Chartreusine, bought about 10 years ago, by Ladies, who shut themselves up here from all the world, & in fact imitate, the monks of the Grand Chartreuse in their customs as nearly as they can – -new route to Les Echelles has already cost 40,000 francs, & will cost about 30 more to finish it completely – it is partly formed upon an old route, which was formerly used as a pass road from one village to another & paid for by the department – passed Lake de Dauphin, so called from winding in shape like a Dolphin – thro the villages of Tolvon, St. Etienne, Madeleine – valley of Gresivaudan beautiful – very little water in the Isere as there was no snow last winter: at Pont St. Laurent sat in carriage whilst horse eat its oats & I eat poulet, & had brandy & water, & an orange. Land lets here for about 12 £4 English [word crossed out] for 12.00 square yards. 3136 yards is a day’s work about Halifax – back at Hotel des Cours at 7.20 had a good dinner, plenty of fruit & a bottle of Blanquette – the Maitre began the world without a penny, has lived at Voiron 28 years & only been [small ink smudge] 3 times to Grenoble – & had not been to Pont St. Laurent for 3 years he said he never goes from home, as Hotels are often ruined for want of good attendance, he has 5 sons & 1 daughter 1 son is cook, another oastler [ostler], wrote journal & at 9.05 began to prepare for bed – saw Hemp 10 feet high –

Courtesy of West Yorkshire Archive Service, Calderdale WYC:1525/7/1/5/1/23 & WYC:1525/7/1/5/1/24

[up at] 9 35/..

[to bed at] 12 5/..

she came to me about eight to warm her stomach    still bowel complaint    and it ended in a long good kiss to her  and our lying till tolerably cool – on having my motion fancied cousin coming and so he did gently after breakfast   but have not put anything on all today –  fine morning Fahrenheit 68° at 10 1/2 a.m. breakfast at 11 – made tea for Adney (1st time) in our Jones’s boiler – put the tea into boiling water and let it have 2 or 3 bubblings afterwards and it answered marvellously – Adney enjoyed it, and ate a large plat of strawberries and has seemed better ever since – wrote out the 1st 50 lines of yesterday till 2 1/2 – then off in light calêche and 1 horse at 3, our host driving us, to Pont St. Laurent to see the new road from there here – At the tolerably good village of St. Etienne in 50 minutes at 3 50/.. – all the women sitting their doors spinning there as here – in 8 or 10 minutes get to the narrow defile thro’ the calcareous rock – about 20 minutes passing thro’ it – workmen there – good road – at 4 35/.. at the little village of Enrivière not marked on Chaix’s map and at St. Laurent du Pont at 5 – sat in the carriage 25 minutes while Adney ate her cold poulet and drank her brandy and water  I got out and walked over the good wooden bridge, oak below and poplar above not to be so slippery – off back again at 5 1/2 – walked up the hill from 6 10/.. to 6 1/2 the last 1/4 hour thro’ the fine defile – met the engineer there – 40,000 francs already spent and would take 30000 francs more to finish the road – could not be till 1836, as the supply refused for bridge next year but promised to be given that following – a road departamental now – would by and by be a route royale – when made good, government would then take it – at home at 7 1/2 – very fine view from the hill above Voiron – right (going) large white good building, now the Chartreusine (female Chartreux) bought ten years ago for this purpose – a chateau just new bought near the town by a fraternity of monks – the priests and monks now as well off under Louis Philippe as under Charles X – some nice grass and farming landing at the top of the hill worth 1000/. per journal of 600 toises carrés, and lets for 100/. per journal – this the 2nd quality of land – the 1st (about the town) worth 3,000/. per journal and lets for 300/. per ditto – and yet he said, in buying land, one had only 3 percent here – 2 large manufactories built here lately by Lyons merchants in consequence of the union work at Lyons – Voiron had considerable commerce in linen cloth – the distance from Lyons to Echelles by Pont the Beauvoisin or Voiron not 1/2 hour longer by the latter – dinner at 7 3/4 to 9 – Adney much better – wrote out all but the 1st 50 lines of yesterday and the whole of today till 10 55/.. – very fine day – Fahrenheit 68° at 11 1/2 p.m. – Being master of the poste here (Voiron) worth 1500 francs a year –  

Courtesy of West Yorkshire Archive Service, Calderdale SH:7/ML/E/17/0070