Wednesday 11th February 1835

No entry today.

[up at] 8 1/2 
[to bed at] 11 1/2

no kiss fine frosty tho’ rather hazy morning Fahrenheit 37° at 9 1/4 a.m. at which hour breakfast – Marian came to us and staid a long while (till after 11) – had had Washington before breakfast was over – brought Adney back the small plans he had borrowed – some talk about Godley – told him to think about it, and try if he could not get some worsted spinner from Bradford to try and buy it for me, underhand – I would gladly pay for the deeds making out twice – Marian will get another housemaid – Elizabeth Howarth will not do – told Marian (when Adney had left the room) that she Marian ought to have gone out last night in the carriage or had Matthew to go for her – she took it all very well, and said she was much obliged – mentioned her having her friend in the drawing room – Had Pickells after 11, to say he had been at Yew Trees wood – Gill stealing hedge stakes etc. for not set to brush any part of the wood by Mr. Freeman – sent Pickells to ask Mr. Freeman himself – Adney and I off to Halifax at 11 50/.. – down the old bank – called at the vicarage – Mrs. Musgrave not at home – Adney left her card and I wrote my name on it in pencil – then to Wellhead – saw Mrs. Waterhouse her son John Mrs. Musgrave and Mr. Musgrave for a minute and a Mr. Inglish? came in and was introduced to us – we found Miss Bramley there on our arrival – Mr. John Waterhouse the only one with her – introduced her to me – my stately freezing bow forbade all advances – the Waterhouses dont care for the Protheroe-letters – seem to fear a scrutiny and another election – Mr. Wortley has lost 5 plumpers by death since the election – Mrs. Waterhouse hoped Adney would not learn to walk and be like me – one Miss Lister quite enough – could not do with 2 – one quite enough to move in such an excentric orbit – then shopping – went to Duncan’s, and promised him my tailor-custom and hoped the blues would stick together – home up the new bank at 2 – Had Pickells to say Mr. Freeman had given Gill no orders – Pickells had found a man getting sticks in Southholm wood – took him down to Mrs. Abraham Hemingway – she would not tell who he was and helped to encourage him to knock Pickells down – said I would settle about it – and sent Pickells to get a warrant for Gill, and a summons for each of the 4 hunters that went thro’ Whiskum bar without paying – Mr. Carr, the huntsman, etc. George Naylor had come to see if I would let him cart stones down Whiskum road gratis – no! certainly not; nor would I let Dodgson cart anything for Coldwell hill farm gratis – told George Naylor to go to Southholm and get to know about the the stick-stealer, his name and where to find him – sat talking to Adney till out at 3 3/4 – to Lower brea wood – Throp junior and 3 men getting up sycamores – called home to Mr. Bradley – met him in the walk – took him to look about the site of a new public house – thinks there will be no difficulty in moving the Stag’s head to just near the Stony Lane into common wood – the excavation to be turned into a garden – have 9 dayworks of land adjoining – stabling for 8 to 10 horses – all very to be very nice and well done for £800 (outside) and would make a nice tea drinking house – should led for £50 per annum independent of land – against a corn mill for Holt’s reason – too far from the canal –thought 2 good houses (for shops) might be built at Northgate (end of Broad Street) for £600, at most £700, that would let for £80 per annum – suppose would take 300 or 400 square yards of ground at a shilling per yard ground rent – that would be say £20 per annum ground + £60 per annum building-rent – that said I would pay much better than building a new Stag’s head Inn – then took Mr. Bradley to the dry bridge – he will come at 9 to 9 1/2 a.m. tomorrow to give orders to Pickells – then went to the end of Park farm wood (late Walsh land) to see another sycamore unloaded – home at 6 10/.. – dinner at 6 1/2 – coffee – 50 minutes with my father and Marian till 8 3/4 then wrote all the above of today till 9 1/4 – Letter (1/2 sheet full) from Lady Stuart de Rothesay –  she took the brown shawl – Lady Stuart one of the white ones, Vere another, and the 2 Stuart girls the other 2 – all pleased – Lord Stuart has not got any appointment and none left for him now, – that they will be forthcoming for some time – Letter also from Mariana dated lastly Bristol, postmark Bristol 10 February – her niece’s, Percy’s, lungs affected – had removed her to near Mr. Bulcock’s in Devonshire within Louisa Belcombe’s reach – and Mariana after staying a fortnight with the poor little girl left her and made a few days’ tour, and then joined Mr. Lawton at Bristol – still harps upon me   says it is difficult to forget   wishes she was made of something harder than flesh and blood –1/4 hour with my aunt till 10 1/4 – very poorly – bad night last night – great deal of pain – very fine day – tho’ rather hazy Fahrenheit 42° at 10 25/.. p.m. – then till 10 40/.. wrote as follows to ‘Mr. Freeman, Brier Lodge, Southowram’ to go by George at 8 1/2 p.m. tomorrow – ‘Miss Lister’s compliments to Mr. Freeman, and is sorry she will be engaged the whole of tomorrow, but will be glad to see him some day next week, when she hopes to have got a plan she would like to show him – Miss Lister will be obliged to Mr. Freeman to let her know what day he will come – she has desired Pickells to proceed against Gill who, it seems, did not act under Mr. Freeman’s orders. Shibden hall. Wednesday evening 11 February 1835’ –

[In margin:]

Site, expense and rent of proposed new Stag’s head

2 new houses at Northgate

Courtesy of West Yorkshire Archive Service, Calderdale SH:7/ML/E/17/0161 & SH:7/ML/E/17/0162