1828 Tues. 9 September (1/2)
6 11 25/60 No motion At my desk at 7 10/60 - from then to 8 wrote 2 1/2 pp. to M- [Mariana] to go with the chemise - spoke to John about getting hollies etc. - wrote the remainder of page 3 and finished my letter to M- [Mariana] - my aunt leaves me to judge for myself about Martha but ‘all parties seem to fancy they can go on as at present’ - If M- [Mariana] can have the girl at Lawton with me, shall count this advantage enough, and take her - It would be foolish to go to Harrogate as this would curtail my better time afterwards at Lawton - Do not make any arrangements for going to Scarbro’ beyond a day or 2 from the festival - ‘we must talk over matters thoroughly’ - this is all the even indirect notice of the spring plan - when and what money will be wanted for Duncan - Do not come this way - but go from M- [Mariana] to Huddersfield, Leeds, and York - I may get off to Langton about the 20th - ‘Mr. John L- [Lawton]’s conduct cannot fail to str[?] one - If poor C- [Charles]’s finger aches, one gets alarmed’ ..... ask for my prints, and had she not best send me the Retrospective review from the spring of 1826
Wrote the above of this morning till 8 35/60 - then at my estate ledger - breakfast at 10 1/2 - sent off my letter and the chemise in a small parcel, by my father, at 11 to M- [Mariana] Lawton - talking a little to Marian - said I thought my aunt rather inclined for my buying Hampstead, and if my father could get no more than £500 for it I would consider about it - in that case I should have near £370 to pay, and should like to have the refusal - Mr. and Mrs. William Priestley of Lightcliffe and her niece Miss Paley then called for about 20 minutes or 1/2 hour - afterwards came upstairs about or soon after 12 - ate 3 peaches - had Cordingley up about Martha Booth - Cordingley seems to think she may do, and be steady, and that George would tell me if he saw anything going wrong, tho’ the P- [Priestley]s appear to laugh at the idea of this
Looking over my uncles bits of manuscripts for the copyhold rents, etc Abraham Mallinson came about 2 - downstairs talking to him - the ground lowered all round the house and a good drain as low as the foundation to take off the drip from the hill above would lay the house quite dry - changed my pelisse etc. and off to H-x [Halifax] at 3 1/4 down the old bank - sat 40 minutes with the Miss Mellins - Miss Grace M- [Mellins] read me her letter from Mrs. Holme - letters to her directed aux soins de Messrs. Rogers frères and cie. Naples - gave me the letter 1st to read the inquiries after myself sorry she had not seen ‘Ann Lister’ in Paris, or Naples - should like to know if I had been in the latter place - easy to miss people without they were in our own ‘set’ - ‘Please to direct aux soins de’ etc. all this, - this manner of expressing herself enough for me - 2 families of the names of Barclay and Perkins were all the English families she associated with in Paris - went leisurely to Marseilles, thence per steam to Leghorn [Livorno] - stopped there a day - thence wind against them and fearing not to have coal enough put into a port in Elba for 1 1/2 days, and thence per steam to Naples - said I should inquire for her - so I will, but as to visiting much that is as hereafter may be - her niece Sophia, about 20, waiting to be of age to marry the ‘Brazilian minister the marquis de .... ætatis 27 whose post brings her in a good income - nothing against the match but her delicate constitution
From Miss Mellins to Wellhead and got there about 4 55/60 - sat with the 2 girls Ellen and Ann near an hour before mamma and grandmamma (Mrs. R- [Rawson]) and young John W- [Waterhouse] came in, and at 6 Mr. W- [Waterhouse] had a nice roasted partridge and good tea at 6 - one of the Miss Waterhouses had before mentioned Niebuhr’s history of Rome as something new and very good - a little conversation with Mr. J. W- [Waterhouse] about the excellence of Mudge’s county maps (an inch to a mile) particularly that of Devonshire which had examined on the spot, and on the impossibility of making any perambulator measure exactly on account of the expansion of metals - Mudge’s distances (he is employed by the admiralty) measured by the chain, and then by glass rods in trangles.
