Letter – Nicholas Walton to Hugh Boag – 19 Dec 1736

To Mr Boag

                                                                                       Ravensworth Castle  Decer 19th  1736

	As I hope you communicate to the Colll every thing that is necessary wch I write to you abt the Hospital, & as all my time is taken up with Sr Harrys & the Colls & the Hospitals business, I Desire you will excuse me to the Colll for tho’ I have Intended him a State of Heaton Collry these Sevel posts I have not been able to do it for want of a New map of the Ground, but If the Weather wll allow me tomorrow I Intend doing it & the next post to give my Sentiments.

	I hope after the general Court you wll have leave to make the best of your way into the North but before you come away I hope the Accot for the year wll be Settled & any other thing wch is Necessary to have directions in pray lay before the Board & gett a Minute upon it, such things as now occur to me I shall put you in mind of

	John Atkinson of Haydon bridge is posessed of 9 Tennamts or Farmholds of land called Broom hill, Peelwell & Whitfield Tennant the Leases whereof some years agoe appear to be Lost, but there appears an Instrumt under the hand of F Radcliffe & the late Earl acknowledging such Leases to have Subsisted & that those lands were on lease for the Same Term of the Other Leases in the Barrony of Langley.  In our Rentall you Observe we reckon those Leases to be out in 1752 & Mr Atkinson reckons ‘em to have yet to expire Viz Whitfields Temmamt 34 Years & Brom hill & Peelwell 44 Years.  the Later of wch being the Same of Rattenrow old Leases.  Some people say Mr Atkinson ought not to Enjoy these Lands at all on Lease wch you may acqut the Board wth & Shew them a Coppy of the Instrumt under the hand of the Late Earl etc wch you have enclosed.  He Says he maid his Claim upon this Instrumt at the rebellion wch was allowed of

	Gerrard Redhead makes heavy Complaints of poverty he has been wth me Several times desireg Some Subsistance wch as I had no directions in I wou’d not Consent to;  he has begged hard to have an Allowance in Corn out of the way going Crop to the Value of abt 40s wch If the Directors wd alow it wou’d be a great Act of Charity he has a Cow wch belongs to the Hospital Qty whether they Intend he Shou’d keep her or that she shou’d be disposed of

	There is a years Crown rent due to John Fenwick Esqr of Bywl at Michs 1734 out of Newlands & Fairle pray Enquire If the late recets have been allowed it.  it is £9.14.4 wn Taxes is deducted & a pound of peper.

	Mr King of Keswick was 9 days Absent from that place comeg & going & Stay at Newcastle wth Mr Gray wch it is reasonable he shou’d be paid for he Charges 5s per day Expences  Horse hire £-.15. & for his own loss of Time wt the Hospital pleases he named 10s a day to me for loss of Time but I advised him to leave it to you to Settle wth the Directors so that you may put it on that footing 

	Slater & Laidlak of Whittles you wll remember Claim’d for leedg Materials for repareg their housing wch we representd to the Hospital & they ordered us to advise ‘em wt allowance to make wch we never did as we thougt after we had representd the case that the Directors ‘em selves were the proper Judges but as they have never done any thing in it, I send you the Notes of their Charges Inclosed, wch it wll be proper you shoud lay before the Directors, Slaters Charges £2.12.6 and Ladlaks £7.6.-

	Mr Hall of Newcastle was wth me last Thursday to know If anything was done about the Lead Mines in Tarset Burne & he desir’d me to mention it to you but as it is a new discovery it I apprehend Cannot be let till a new Act of parliamt is obtained, May I tell Mr Hall so.

	The Weeding the Sevll Woods in the Estate where it is Necessary shou’d this Spring be set about & I think we ought to have Directions in it  Newlands must be again Thind, & the Westwood at Hexham & other places you know the Necessity of.

	John Skinn is at work wth Eight men in Dilston Park digging Clay for Bricks & Pann Tyles the bed of Clay is above 2 Yards Thick & Exceeding good for Pann Tyles.  John Tels me the man who was making Tyles on Hexham Fell is gone off.

	What Quantity of Bricks & Tyles shou’d we cast Clay for this Winter I think abot 2 CM. Bricks & 1 CM. Tyles as the Mill, kill, & Shades will take a considerable Quantity of Both.  Shou’d we not make Bricks at Newlands & in Langley Barony for Chimneys etc

	A Servant of Mr Fenwicks of Bywell has lately hunted Some of the Deer in Dilston Park & was discharged by Mr Bunting to when whom the Servt gave verry great Abuse, & threatened to knock him down repeatedly, wch is most Scandalous usage & Indeed If the Directors allow of it, it is to of no purpose discharging anybody

	The Rental & Arears wch I sent you last wou’d I doubt not make everything Easy & Intelligable to Mr Maule.  You have as follows the paragraph in our Letter about Keswick Rents the 27th Janury last

     

one thing in regard to Keswick Rents we Omitted in our last wch is that the Years Rent is payable at Penticost & Marts That is Supposing a Tennant to take a Farme & Enters upon the farme at Mayday he pays his first ½ Years Rent at Penticost following & the other at Marts we have recd all the Latter half years & that wch Mr Hutchison will pay us wll Compleat a Years rent from Mayday 1735 to Mayday 1736 we mean the Demesne lands.  This you will find differs from the other parts of the Estate for from Marts 1734 when we Commenced to mayday next it wll be 11/2 Year whereas at Keswick we received only one Year.

	

      Pray acquaint the Colll that the Fire Engine at Heaton lately Erected goes well, but has many Ill wishers. I am Your Hble Servt

      Nichos Walton



PS I am Concerned to find in your last that you recd only 2 Bundles of recets the Last post I sent any  There shou’d have been 4 bundles directed as before in all 12 Bundles.