Letter – Nicholas Walton to Peter Mulcaster – 27 Feb 1785

Document Type: Letter
Date: 27 Feb 1785
Correspondent: Nicholas Walton
Recipient: Peter Mulcaster
Archive Source: TNA ADM 66 98
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Messrs. Mulcaster						Farnacres 27 Feb. 1785



      We have recd. your Letters of the 23rd. & 26th. inst. As to Ann Brown’s Behaviour, we are not at all surprised at it. We are perfectly satisfied, and know clearly that the whole Family wd. have been upon the Parish, or on the Border, if Langley Mill had not been established. Mrs. Brown is certainly very much mistaken in her Ideas concerning this Business, relative to a new Mill, but we have no wish at all to compel her, and desire she may take her own Way. What we have offered to her is for her own good, and if she has not sense enough to see it, she must take the Consequences to herself. Her Term is not long, the Advantage she has had has been great, and the Family have been kept, we may truly say, by Langley Lead Mill. Those Considerations are we find nothing with her, and therefore we must look elsewhere, and most undoubtedly we shall not employ her in any respect whatever for Langley Lead Mill if we can possibly be supplied otherwise. These Sentiments we desire you will read to her verbatim, exactly as you now receive them, and acquaint her further that we certainly look upon it that in every matter where Greenwich Hospital is concerned the Tenants shall be expected to conform to the accommodation of Greenwich Hospital. If Mrs. Brown thinks differently, she certainly has a right to do so, and we must insist upon it that she shall declare at once whether she will let the Commiss[ion]ers & Gov[erno]r of Greenwich Hospital have the Grounds which have been specified viz. The Mains, The Cow Pasture, <Lintle> Hill, and the East Shield Field including the Quarry Ground at £25 per Ann[um]. If she refuses that, we desire to know from you immediately, as in case of a Refusal, we certainly shall by no means think it proper to employ her, either as to carrying of Ore or otherwise. These Sentiments are expressed seemingly in Warmth, and probably might be looked upon by indifferent persons as oppressive; we consider them merely as applicable to the present Business, and to make Mrs. Brown sensible of her own Errors. We doubt not of your Care & Attention in this Business to make her sensible of her improper Behaviour, and all we wish as to that is that she shd. be met wth. Propriety upon the Occasion. You are particularly desired to acquaint Mrs. Brown that we by no means ask any thing as a Favour from her, but that we are certain that her Accepting of the Rent will be to her Benefit. We do not insist upon that, except as our Opinion, and leave it to her to determine. Upon the whole of this Business we are perfectly satisfied that it ought to be clearly understood whether Mrs. Brown will or will not accept of £25 per Ann[um] for the Grounds above mentioned, for tho’ at the end of Mrs. Brown’s Farm, she herself may have been satisfied with the enjoyment of those Lands as a part of her Farm without payment of the £25 per Ann. from the Blagill Company, yet we can by no means say whether any person will take Langley Castle Farm unless those Lands shd. be excepted without there is a Statement made for these equal to £25 per Ann; we therefore not only consider the Blagill Company in this matter but in preference to them the Commissioners and Gov[erno]r pf Greenwich Hospital, and consequently this matter ought to be clearly understood, for without that if we are to insist upon the Blagill or any other Company to take those Lands within the Farm of Twenty One Years from May day next, we shall be in a Difficulty.

      On Making an accurate Drawing of the last proposed New Mode of accommodating the Blagill Company we find that the Southernmost Bellows according to the last new proposed Mode will interfere wth. the having of a Refinery Bellows in the Situation in which it now is, but we are perfectly clear that this matter may be accommodated, and we have no Difficulty in any respect whatsoever from the last Scheme in fully supplying the Blagill Company wth. what we have proposed, and even furnishing them with our other pair of Smelting Bellows if they shd. want it, by the same Wheel which now works the Refinery Furnace; notwithstanding we speak so by, all we promise is to furnish them wth. one Reducing Furnace, the Refinery Furnace, Three Hearths wth. Bellows without Cast Iron, a Bone Ash & Test House & Office Smelters Lodging Room and the Coal Houses and Lead Warehouse.

      We think there will be some little Difficulty if the smelting Bellows for the Southernmost Hearth of the new Mill according to the last Scheme is not made shorter than those we now have for smelting with, because we are satisfied that the length of them will extend a little further Westward than the Middle of the Refining Bellows as they are now fixed, unless the Drawing we have is wrong made, and therefore we shall be very glad to have your Sentiments as to this wth. Mr. James Mulcaster’s Drawing, whose Attention, and that of Messrs. James Peter and John Mulcaster has been very agreeable to us on this Occasion. We are

      Your Hble Servts.

      Walton & Turner



PS.  We think it necessary to burn at least 60,000 Bricks and shall take an Opportunity of writing to a Person whom we hope we can depend upon. We may truly say this is a bold Expectation, for in general of that Craft they are very slippery.

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The Dukesfield Smelters and Carriers Project aimed to celebrate and discover the heritage of the Dukesfield Arches & lead carriers' routes between Blaydon and the lead mines of Allendale and Weardale. A two year community project, it was led by the Friends of the North Pennines in partnership with Hexhamshire and Slaley Parish Councils and the active support of Allendale Estates. It was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and the generous support of other sponsors. Friends of the North Pennines: Charity No:1137467