Journal entry – John Grey – 1 Jul 1833

Monday 1st July 1833

	Sent Mr Hunt off this morning to endeavour to ascertain from old Watson, of Allerwash, who has lived long at the place, the portions of boundary fence belonging to the different farms which have allotments on Grindon Common, about which the ne Tenants are not agreed, & if he can get that point fixed to make an agreement with one of the parties from whom I have had proposals for repairing the walls – He will be engaged for a day or two in examining the draining in that quarter, the repairs going on at Woodhall etc, and in obtaining proposals for making 50 new gates for the Langley Barony at Elrington, and 50 more at Dilston by way of experiment.

	This being ‘quarter day’, sent Cheques to Messrs Wailes, Brandling Newcastle & Martin for their retired allowances, and also settled the existing Salaries, together with Mr Hunt’s & my own up to this time, which will in future be paid quarterly – In looking over the Arrears of Rent, with a view of trying to get some of them at the approaching Fair of Stagshaw Bank, I felt some alarm on finding £201 standing against	Joseph Teasdale of Dilston Hall Farm, a place which in the view I had taken of it, gave little hope of paying its way & reducing such Arrear.

	Having intended to go & inspect the work at Dilston & take a closer survey of the land than I had done, I took the opportunity of leaving my Horse & walking through all Teasdales Corn fields to inform myself of his prospects – a great proportion of the land of this Farm, extending to the hill on the road to Slaley, is of the poorest description & hardly worth cultivating – several of the Fields have been allowed to go to their native Whins & rushes - & the small portion of tolerably good land adjoining the Farm Offices is in a miserably impoverished condition – I never saw a worse prospect for a Crop either this year or the next – the growing Corn is overrun with Grass & weeds, the fallows yet unwrought – his horses are quite incapable of ploughing such stiff land – I am sure they would not bring £5 a piece in any market – the fences are in most ragged condition, & he & his family living in the house with hardly a pane of Glass in the Windows, which were much broken by a storm of hail several weeks ago – The poor old man is said to have lost a good deal of money upon the farm, but I fear he is as wanting in judgement and energy to manage it to advantage, as he certainly is now of pecuniary means for doing so.