Journal entry – John Grey – 24 Jul 1833

Wednesday 24th July 1833



Haydon Bridge



       I found that the conduit from the Cellar could not be cleansed in its present situation, being so small and choked completely up - but that a much shorter conveyance  might be had by carrying it into the passage leading by the Brewhouse to the River, & avoiding the Garden Walls altogether.  I propose laying a piece of metal pipe, into the Cellar with a Plug to stop the Influx of the river in high floods & from the end of the pipe, to continue the conduit across the yard, so wide as that a boy may creep up.  There are stones suitable for the purpose close by at Esphill.  It will not cost much & will not be likely to cost much in future.  I had then a long examination, in which I was much assisted by the kindness of Mr Birkett, of the different modes by which the Inn may be supplied with water.  That for which the Plumber had given me an estimate is liable to two objections - One, that it must be laid all the way under the road and street - at once expensive and inconvenient at the time - the other, that the water where he proposes to have the reservoir in the low corner of Landends Field, can hardly be preserved in rainy weather, from the washing of the Roads, & would be unfit for many purposes.  

       After much measuring and calculating, I came to the conclusion that if leave can be obtained from the Trustees of the Charity, to lay a pipe for a short way through a part of their Grounds, which would be attended with no damage to them, the way to secure an ample supply of clean Water at the cheapest rate, is to carry it from the source of the spring in the road leading to Esphill, by a tiled Conduit across the fields south of Mr Birketts House, till it comes in a line with the Inn yard, then to lay a pipe across the Alms House Garden - through their arch way, into the Garden of the Inn, & so to join the pipe at present intended to convey the water from the useless Machinery in the yard, into the house, by which too,  the latter pipe, if in good order,  would not be disturbed.

       Before taking any other steps, I have written to Mr Bell, the Secretary to the Trustees, to know if leave will be granted, referring him to Mr Birkett for explanation.

       After looking through the different premises at Haydon Bridge rode to Lipwood to see the progress of the Building going on there, by Mr Howdon.  Thence to Whitechapel, where the farm offices are so old & inadequate, that a good deal wd be requisite to make them suitable for the farm.  The Tenant, Woodman, who has been there 42 years, is by no means anxious for much outlay & bad as the condition of the house is, would put up with it, if it can be made to turn off the rain, provided he could have a straw house at the end of the barn, a two stalled stable & shed for young Cattle; all of which he certainly requires & would just fill up an interval between the Barn &a granary & hovel, at a little distance.  I am not of opinion that the roof of the farm house will last long, being of grey slate, & very bad indeed - a new house was offered to him 21 years ago, but he declined having it, when he saw the great size intended - at present however it may be made to pass- Mr Hooper having spoken to Mr Benson about this place, I desired the Tenant to obtain for me from him a calculation of the probable expence of the Buildings I have enumerated.   



Tofts [added in pencil: ‘See Journal June 8th’]



I then came to Tofts, where the Tenant is desirous of having a cart shed built,  which he understands or says that Mr Hooper promised him, as well as some repairs in the house.  I told him there was so much to do in the estate at present, that he must really rub on without for another year at least.   Thence to Haydon Town farm to look at the building going on there.  



Brokenheugh



Thence by Brockenheugh Colliery  to Mr Greens at Westbrokenheugh - there to be provoked by the sight of a field now preparing for wheat, which had been filled with drains some years ago, but so near the surface, that they are all ploughed up the land becoming a bog a second time.  I advised Mr Green to make a deep drain in a line which we marked out, which I hope will have the effect of cutting off the Springs at the source, & preventing the necessity of renewing many of those below, which are totally useless.  I shall see this field again shortly, as I am most anxious to have the draining understood by the Tenants, & effectually done.   There is no improvement so beneficial, when properly executed, especially on the sides of hills, where a spring allowed to take its own way, flows over & injuries the soil for a great distance.  Green is an active and spirited manager, & is making a sensible improvement of his farm.  His farm buildings, though good as far as they go, are rather scanty.  he has one fold yard with a Cattle Shed & another without any, which is a great injury to the Cattle in bad weather.  This deficiency could be supplied at very little cost, by converting the present Cow house into a Shed, by merely substituting a wider archway for the present door - but then he must have a new Cow house outside the Fold.  This I think he ought to have, though the Cart Shed he begs for, should be refused.  I then went to East Brokenheugh, where the new Tenant is getting his house floors mended &a stock yard wall built.  At both these Farms the Granary windows are entirely rotten.  



West Allerwash



I next went to West Allerwash to see what could be done with old Watson, a Tenant of 52 years, about the water, which they keep sending to me about.  When the small spring they have fails in dry seasons, they have water to carry from a deep glen in the Capons Cleugh Wood.  I asked him how he had done for so many years - he says the Women are not so willing to carry now as formerly.  I told him that I believed the Commissioners would be inclined to give all reasonable attention to the claims of one who had stood by them for so long a time & through at least one very hard lease & that I should endeavour to ascertain the relative costs of laying a pipe from a spring in the field and the sinking for a pump, & try to gain him the accommodation of Water, near at hand.  Returning by Allerwash Mill & Fourstones reached Corbridge at nine o’ clock.