Letter – John Erasmus Blackett to Thomas Richard Beaumont – 17 Apr 1793

Newcastle 17th April 1793

Dear Sir

      I am this day favoured with your letter of the 15th inst. & observe the Contents. I communicated a part of your letter to the Committee, as well as to the Bankers, who think themselves highly obliged to you for the kind & handsome manner in which you express yourself for the restoring the Credit & Confidence in the Country: I perfectly agree with you that postponing the Lead Pay for a Month will be very unpleasant, but I fear that it can not be avoided at this time, Circumstanced as the several banks are at present; I had some conversation with Mr Burdon on the subject who was of that opinion, & this day I mentioned the Business to Messrs. Aub. & J Surtees who are of the same sentiments & declare to me that it will not be in their power to issue any quantity of their Notes at the time that the Pay was intended to be made, & strongly recommend that it may be postponed for a month, against which time they have no doubt that credit & Confidence may be restored in the Country, & the minds of People made easy; they are of opinion that the Pay can not be made early next month but in Cash that is in Bank of England Notes would not at this time answer the purpose & as I apprehend there would be great difficulty if not an impossibility in procuring Cash for the amount of the Pay I do fear that you will be under the very disagreeable necessity of having the Pay postponed for a month, & that the Subsistence for the Workmen which with some payments for wood amounting in the whole to about £3000 .. _ (w ch. was to be paid the 6th May) be sent to Hexham against that time, to meet the Lead Stewards; tho’ I am satisfied that this Measure will be very unpleasant to you, & give you uneasiness, I really do not see how it can be avoided; your Lead Agents came down this day & Mr Bell is [to] be with me tomorrow when I was in hopes of acquainting them that the Pay would be made at the time fixed; but after the answer that I had from Messrs Surtees’s & there being no positive assurance that the four Banks will be open to do business for a few days, I must postpone giving the Agents any positive answer until I hear from <you;> I have wrote to Sir John Trevelyan [short word missing] pay the £3000..-..- to your Bankers, [short word missing] that matter shall be explained to you when we meet.

      The Committee have great hopes that the four Banks will be enabled to open on Saturday to do Business, but altho their notes are at present taken in payment for <Rent> it will require some little time before they pass currently & confidence is restored. I have no doubt that you have seen Mr Burdon since his return to Town, my present Indisposition my attendance on the Committee on this very unpleasant Business gets the better of me & I am really very indifferent.   I am with respect

      Dear Sir Your Most Obedient Humble Servant

      John E. Blackett