Journal entry – John Grey – 19 Oct 1833

Saturday 19th October



Continued the examination of Scremerston.  The Colliery lands are in a productive state, having a large supply of dung & small lime from the Kilns.  I observed a deviation from the Covenants, by growing tares upon a field in lieu of grass, for feeding the underground Horses, but being cut as a green Crop & the land well wrought and manured after it, I do not consider it any injury.  The clearing out of the old sea Level is likely to be very troublesome.  Two Men had been induced to make their way among mud & water to try to discover the obstructions, but they had no light & such bad air that their Candles would not burn. There seems no alternative but to open the old Shaft in Pringles field, now that his Corn is off, which is partially closed, & which by ventilating the Drift will at least enable the men to proceed with some degree of safety.  The Sea has made some encroachment upon a piece of Grassland, owing to the rock in front having been blasted & carried away for metal to the turnpike Roads.  Mr Johnson tried to prevent this & has got them driven off, though the Act authorises the removal of Stones within high tide mark.   A few large Stones placed in a sloping direction against the bank, will likely secure it from further injury, which I have directed to have done.  Johnson supplying Carts gratis - near this is a piece of land which would be much improved by being well limed & laid to pasture.  This Johnson undertakes to do on condition of the Hospital making a fence on the side towards to Sea, where at present there is none.  A Wall is the only fence that would stand in such a situation, & thinking it advisable, I have requested Johnson to give me the length & the probable cost, on Tuesday.   He has been making the place very neat, by railing & gravel walks in front of the house, & erecting a Garden Wall at his own expense, but complained much of the house, which I examined in every part, & found to be indeed very uncomfortable & inadequate.  A new house, he says, was offered to him some years since, but being then a single Man, he declined it.  The roof is of Pantiles, but so bad that though he has had them twice painted over and pointed, the rain is streaming down the Walls and every Closet so damp that little use can be had of them.  No wonder that a person of Mrs Johnson’s delicate health should suffer from it.   The original house consists of only a Kitchen & Parlour down stairs and two bed rooms above, a toofall behind being built by Johnson, contains a Milkhouse, small Pantry and servants room.  The easiest mode of obtaining accommodation would be to raise the Toofall to the height of the other walls & cover the whole with a Slate Roof as the Pantiles are quite last repairing.  It would still be but a small house, but it might be dry & comfortable, & since the shipping of Coals causes Johnson to reside constantly there now, some additional to the house seems indispensable, either by himself or the Hospital.  I shall not however undertake any change or make any proposal on the subject to him without the Boards directions. [marginal note: ‘Mr Gray seems to believe it equitable <but> does not recommend it?’] Returned to Milfield Hill in the evening where I remained with my family Sunday and Monday 21st October.



Heard from the Langley Mill Company that they had appointed Mr Joseph Crawhall to fix the price of Lead in the stead of the late Mr Thos Crawhall, & I wrote to inform Mr Parker accordingly, requesting him to obtain a meeting & to report the result.