R3/3703

Letter mainly regarding insurance, farm tenants, rentals, letting of Lewsey farm, estate business, keepers and Willington Sunday school.

16 Oct 1831

From: 1831 To: 1831

Reads- Fire still a mystery. I had spoken of insurance, but the grumblers thought it an additional rent. Query: insert clause in agreements binding tenant to insure. Fletcher has in the end behaved in a rascally manner; Sharman made a seizure for me Tuesday, but he had removed & sold the greater part of his property; neighbours all implicated. If I had done it 3 weeks ago we should have been safe; Tween said, put it off till Fletcher has got the fallows sown with wheat, as he is an "honest man"; instead of sowing the wheat, he in 10 days threshed out the whole crop & deserted the place. I collected the cottage garden rents 10th in this part; only one defaulter, a fellow who had left wife & family chargeable to parish; they appeared much satisfied with the crops they had produced & paid cheerfully. Sorry letting of Lewsey farm delayed; unjustified meddling by W. Bennett of Marston; I passed him over in most delicate way I could, as he is in financial difficulties, but he appealed to Tavistock; very awkward; term over; & a farm of that magnitude unsettled. If every man acted so the business of the estate would stand still. Chenies wood audit. Adams, keeper, is dead; does Duke wish a regular keeper, or will Beeson do? I have seen Dr. Hunt resp. Willington Sunday School; he delays till his new curate is settled & acquainted with parish; the dr. admits plan of uniting the schools of Cople and Willington has advantages; his great argument against it is the distance; but as the children go that distance the other part of the week, why not on Sunday?

item

Fletcher,
Sharman,
Tween,
Bennett, W.,
Tavistock,
Adams,
Duke of Bedford,
Beeson,
Hunt

FIRE, insurance, rentals, tenancy, buildings and land use, crops, wheat, threshing, cottages, gardens, rent collector, FAMILY, debt, parish, agricultural leases, Luton Lewsey Farm, Marston, family/personal financial affairs, farms, estate management, woodland accounts, auditors, Chenies, keeper, DEATH, doctor, WILLINGTON, Sunday Schools, curates, schools, COPLE, CHILDREN, travel