Messrs Plumb & Browne Foster Lane London Newcas 30th Decr 1774
Gentn
I have this day sent you by Robt Cave the London Carrier a pc of fine Silver containing Five hundred & ninety three Ounces & an half which I desire you will place to accot with Sir Walter Blackett as usual at the market price & advise me on your Receipt of it I am etc HR
Mr Wm Alvey Darwin No 47 Newcas. 2nd Janry 1775
Hatton Street London
Sir Inclosed you will receive three Bills of this Date drawn by Messrs. Bell Cookson & Co. on Messrs. Hallifax & Co. one at 30 Days date for Two hundred & Twenty Pounds to make good your quarterly & other Payments on Sir Walter Blacketts Account from the 31 Decemr to 31st March next _ A Bill at Twenty Days date for one hundred & fifty seven
Dukesfd: 6th. Jan:y 1775
Mr. Crawhall Allanheads Mill
Sir
I desire that you’ll on the rect. of this Write to Jno. Forster of Lilswood that he may come to your Mill to Smelt. You may set him to one of your Old Smelters for He’s a Stranger to the Business as a Servt (i.e. to have Servts. Wages) for the first Qr. wch you’ll please to acquaint him with before he starts for I do not know that He will Submit to it at His time of Life we cannot imploy him otherwise
To Mr Holmes. Farnacres 6th Janry 1775
Dear Sir
I reced your favor of the 27th Ult in due course and since the Lamb which was exceeding good and for which you have our hearty thanks. The Watch and Compasses arrived here this day all safe I dare say for as the Watch is so and the Compasses don't appear by their outward appearance to have had the least derangement, I take it for granted all is right. The charge for the Watch is 8s/6d wh
Mr Mulcaster. Farnacres 6 January 1775
I have reced your Letter of the 21st January [underlined: ‘1774’] and I am glad you got well home and found that Wilkinson was in a fair way of recovery and I think it will certainly be right to keep him from work as long as we can do it without real inconvenience & after he does come he ought to be cautioned to be careful.
It happened that I was, I find, rather Prophetical in what I said res
A Copy of a Letter sent Mr. Lavie Alston 8th Jany 75
Sir,
On the 23rd November last I wrot you under cover to Lord Carlisle Respecting Sundry Matters but Particularly to know what I was to do about the sale of Bullion & to have directions to draw on you for the Amount part of Bullion as was to go to London as I never heard from you I desired my Son to write to you again the 16th December on the same Business I have never yet recd any Answer to either those Letters which gives me v
A Copy of a Letter sent Mr. Lavie Alston 8th Jany 1775
Sir,
Inclosed you have an Account shewing what Money will be wanted to make the several Pays as also Lead sold Quantity of Lead we now have in Hand & the Quantity we hope out to make of the Flaggs [ie slags] &ca likewise the Account of Silver Bullion made & supposed to be made at Stanhope I hope we shall get all Smelted & Refined & every Accot settled at or about May Day when will send you a Particular Account
Sir Walter Blackett Bt Half moon Newcas 11 Janry 1775
Street Piccadilly London
Honrd Sir
Mr Fawcett says the £1000 is to be lent in his Name & that it is ready so I wrote to Mr Darwin to have a Bond prepared against your return to London which if you please to Execute & send to Mr Blackett He will receive the Money. But I doubt the £1000 paid Mr Trevelyan the Expence of the Election with the Pays etc which last A
Messrs Plumb & Browne Goldsmiths Newcas 14th Janry 1775
Foster Lane London
Gentn
I have this day sent you by Frans Ridley the London Carrier a piece of fine Silver containing Seven hundred and ninety nine Ounces; which I desire you will place to Accot with Sir Walter Blackett as usual at the Market price and advise me on your receipt of it - I heartily wish you many happy Years & am etc HR
799 Ounces a
Mr Darwin No 47 Hatton Street London Newcas 14th Janry 1775
Sir
To what I said in my last about three sets of Gold Weights I have to add that I desire you will also send three sets of Silver Weights from a Crown piece downwards to Sixpence & also one Set of all the Subdivisions of the Gold Weights from five penny Weight down to one grain; which I see by the Gazette are to be had of John Whitehurst & I wish you could get
Sir Walter Blackett Bt M.P Half moon Street Newcas 17th Janry 1775
Piccadilly London
Honrd Sir
The Opinion which Mr Thurloe sent you about Leadmines paying poor Cess I think was not left with me nor do I know whether he looked upon himself or you as most interested in the Answer to the Case which I suppose had been Stated by the parish of Stanhope: but I see by the Rules of the Court of Kings Bench that the Judges were so clear that Leadmin
John Fenwick Esqr. Roberts’s Place Newcastle 22nd Janry 1775
York
Sir Your letter to Mr Richmond of the 19th instant came safe to hand. he is not at present able to transact their Business therefore I must desire for the future that the Receipt may be by John Erasmus Blackett instead of Henry Richmond Inclosed you have Bell Cookson & Cos. Bill on Castell & Co. at Twenty days date for Forty seven Pounds & Ten Shilli
A Copy of a Letter sent Mr. Lavie Alston 22nd Jany 1775
Sir,
As I have not recd any Answer to mine of the 8th Instant which I understand by Mr Yeats whose Letter I recd on the 8th was left at your House on the 14th Instant I again send this to beg the Favour of a Line from you & also to acquaint you that I intend to go to NewCastle on the 29th Inst. & will be there till the Morning of the 7th February I mean to get all the Cash arising from the Lead & Silver sold & pay
Mr Mulcaster. Farnacres 23rd January 1775
On my arrival at Newcastle yesterday from Cumberland I received your Letter of the 13th instant inclosing the Account of Stock at Langley Lead Mill of Materials etc of various kinds. You desire to have some Iron and I shall certainly send you some of the sorts you mention for the use of the Mill as soon as possible but as to that which will be wanted for the Barrelling there is no hurry. I am sorry to hear of
Mr Mulcaster. Farnacres 24 Janry 1775
On enquiry at Newcastle I find flatt Sweedish Iron can be had of Three Inches broad and from Three Quarters of an Inch to a whole Inch thick if the last size will do we need not look further; but if any other size would suit better I desire you will let me know as I can have Iron best at Mr Crowley & Cos. at Swalwell either Square or flatt of any dimensions and lengths. I shall not order any Iron
Mr Holmes. Farnacres 25th January 1775
Dear Sir
Yesterdays Post brought me the favour of your Letter of the 21st inst. and this day I shall draw upon you for £199.1.6 being the amount of 708 Ounces of Bullion at 5s/9d P Ounce, after deducting Four Pounds one Shilling, paid by you on Mr Smeaton's Account for Miners Compasses, and £-8.6 due to you from my Father for Repairs and cleaning of his Watch.
Upon the 5th of February last we gav
Mr Mulcaster. Farnacres 27th January 1775
Sir
We duly reced your favor of the 25th by your Brother this morning and approve of what you have done with respect to the taking Joseph Rodham as from what your Brother and you have said of him he appears likely to answer for us.
It gives us pleasure to hear J Wilkinson gains strength and Spirits and we are glad Robinson is got together again.
In your first Letter pray let us know what length
A Copy of a Letter sent Mr. Lavie Alston 5th Feby 75
Sir,
I wrote you Sundry Times since I had the Pleasure of seeing you hear but have never had an Answer to any of my Letters indeed had ima[g]ined they had miscarried till I wrote you the 8th of Last Month inclosed to Mr Yeats which Letter as I told you in my last was delivered at your own House on the 14th & after receiving as Letter from Mr Yeats of his Delivering my Letter as above I wrote you of mine & my Sons Intention o
Dukesfd. 6th. Feby. 1775
Mr Isa Walton Rookhope Mill
Sir
I have examined the agreement & find that Currey & Collingwood are to have 16d p[er] Ton (16ps. to the Ton of the 11 Sto. & 22 ps. of the 8 Sto to the Ton) for the Peats &c. pray mind your Smelters when they are making 8 sto. Pieces, that they make Weight; for there’s I understand a large quantity of that Lead gon to Blaydon the latter end of last Season short of Weight. Acquaint all your Smelters
Mr Mulcaster. Farnacres 10th Febry 1775
Your Letters of the 2nd and 8th inst came here in due course and the Contents are observed we must leave it entirely to you to do the best you can with respect to the supplying the number of our Smelters deficient by those we have employed leaving us. With regard to Henderson we can only say that where it is perfectly clear the person who offers is likely and happens to be Son of a Tenant of Greenwich Hospital that his
NB The above Bill was sent Sr Wr Blackett in London on Sunday the 12th Febry 1775
£600 - . - . Newcastle Bank 11th Febry 1775
Twenty days after date Pay to the Order of John Erasmus
Blackett Esqr. Six hundred Pounds Value received
For Bell Cookson Carr Self & Saint
To Messrs. Hallifax Mills Glyn and Jno. Widdrington
Mitton _ London
To Mr Holmes. Farnacres 13th Febry 1775
Dear Sir
This day I was in Newcastle and I find by Lloyds List that Silver in Barrs is 5.4 1/4 which is 1/4d more P Ounce than when I last wrote you, which makes one imagine that fine Silver may have got a rise since I wrote you; I shall therefore be obliged to you, if you will acquaint me by the first convenient opportunity, what price fine Silver bears, when this arrives; and the price it bore at your Markett at the
Mr Mulcaster. Farnacres 14th February 1775
I have received your Letter of the 11th inst & the Bullion also, which weights 970 Ounces which is within 12Oz 13Dw 21 6/10Gr of getting the whole of what we reckon it should have been by Assay and this is very good work compared with the Assay; but notwithstanding there appears by the Assays of Refined Lead to be 14Dw 16 8/10Gr of Silver P Fodder yet left in the Refined Lead which is too much. The Assays from the
To Mr John Holmes Farnacres 15 February 1775
Dear Sir
Last night I reced the favor of your Letter of the 11th inst and on behalf of Mr Smeaton and Self I do agree to deliver you the Bullion produced at the Lead Mill of the Greenwich Hospital at the price of Five Pence P Ounce more than Standard price for each Cake. The Standard Price to be regulated by Castaignes Paper of the Friday preceding the arrival of the respective Cakes of Bullion. The above Agreement to continue til
to Mr Robt Allgood at Hexham Nunwick Febry 15th 1775
Sir
I received yours last night of the 13th and upon looking into The Deed of Trust, I find it appears to be dated 27th Febry 1762, and is therein mentioned that William Pantoune deceased left James Pantoune an Infant then of age of Seven Years or thereabouts, to whom One Hundred Pounds, & the Interest at 4 ½ percent to be for his maintenance during Infancy, and when of the Age of Twenty One Years, the principal & what