.MjA4.MjY3
[1]
11 Welfield Place - Monday
night 28 Oct. 1861--
Dear Ann
The Niagara 16 Oct from Boston
did not arrive here until 3 1/4 p.m. today;
wherefore I stayed down town, instead of
returning to dinner, & thus I got my letters
soon after 5, instead of waiting until
tomorrow morng: for I wished to satisfy my-
=self whether there was anything in them
to prevent my projected journey with Laura
-- now fixed for 10 1/2 a.m. on Wednesday [underscored]
next, the 30th inst. And I am glad to find
there is nothing in them to change my plans.
We shall reach Bristol at 5 1/2 p:m: in the
same carriage ["same carriage" underscored] we start in from Lime St &
then, changing into the G. W. line shall be
due at Exeter by 8.10, when then we'll be
in rest (for want of connection) of 2 hours,
before Laura goes into Dawlish. -- I intend
staying the night at Exeter, after seeing Laura
off in the 10.10 train from there, inasmuch
her friends will be in waiting at the Dawlish
station to give her the meeting & convey her to
Mr. & Mrs. Ferreira's. -- I may perhaps spend
a day or two with them on my return from
London to fetch Laura home. As it is I
expect to see some little of Exeter on Thurs=
=day forenoon & then to reach London that
day at 6 p:m:
It has appeared to all of us -- Elizabeth
[2]
Mary & myself, that ever since Saturday
morng, when I announced my plan to
Laura, she has been, as Mary expresses it,
like a person "treading on air". She has
already heard, this evening, from Mrs. Fer-
=reira, in answer to her letter of Saturday,
& finds that she will be most welcome ["most welcome" underscored].
We leave a day sooner than I at first
intended, because it suits me just as well,
& because it will suit the family here all the
better: for there is to be a grand ball given
by the Mayor at the Town-hall on Wednes
=day night : & by our observer Miss Maggie
Addison and her two fellow brides' maids, the
Miss Gibbs' (still guests of the Addison's)
who are to attend this ball, can be accom-
=modated with beds in this house, & indeed
Mr. Addison too. --
I was for devoting 2 days to the journey to
Devonshire, but Laura preferred accomplish
=ing it in one day. --
My letters fr Niagara consist of one from
you, and ^the others from Matthew, Walker &
Rutson. --
As you remind me of the Port-wine, I
am sorry I have never ha[?]t the name of
the party in London from whom Rutson obtain=
=ed our last supply. -- In this quandary I
may perhaps not succeed in finding then
the quality we like so well; but I intend ma
=king the needful enquiry, & as to Sherry too.
[3]
Now that I have already realised so
handsome a profit upon 1/3rd of our stock
of Amn Cotton, I see no objecton whatever
to your providing yourself with new carpets
for the 2 parlours: & I would suggest that
that you get some curtains [underscored] also.
Tho' you say that poor little Maggie is
still mending & now going out at last, it
strikes me that Harriet's report of the child
is but a melancholy one; but I hope that
the open air may brace her up & give her
her former elasticity of spirits.
I have this evening made an extract of
your report of Dr. Neville & enclosed it in
a letter to his cousin, Geo. Ruddle. --
I saw Mr. W Brown today, for the first
time, whilst he was walking along Castle
St. towards the Town Hall. After a little
hesitation, I joined him, & he received
my advances courteously & kindly; & we
had several minutes' talk. He looks very
well, tho' now so advanced in life. He told
me in answer to my enquiry about your
friend, his daughter in law, that she is
very well. -- In speaking of Amn affairs he
said that he was sure that this Government
was determined not to interfere between the
No. & So., & that he had seen a letter to that
effect from Lord Russell, written in Sept.
besides his speech recently at Newcastle.
[4]
Mr. Brown said that this Govt had no
idea of making England the catspaw
for the South. --
I went to Heywoods' Bank to-day, & paid there
--as one of the appointed places -- my £10
donation to the No. & So. Hospitals of this town.
I hope that you & Matthew may not think
me too lavish therein. --
Rutson gives me the particulars of his
48 hours' incarceration in the Suffolk Co.
jail! It was certainly a most outrageous
proceeding on the part of these Wilders.
They are clearly of the same stock as
Samson V. S. Wilder of old. I now remem-
=ber that it struck me unpleasantly when
Rutson's partner told me that that character
was a cousin of his father. But after all
it seems to me that this incarceration has
not worked disadvantageously to Rutson
as it will be in the means of M & W's books [underscored]
very forthcoming. -- I certainly disapprove
entirely of Rutson's plan for meeting his
expenses of the journey back to the South
by carrying letters to N.O. & I hope that in-
=stead of that , Matthew will advance him
the needful amount. -- Besides the £150
that Dropper Hodgson & Co. collected for Rutson
from Boult English & Brandon, there was
some little money previously at his [br.?] with
with C.H. & Co. , before his dpt of 13 Augt. as C
H. & Co. for £50 approved; & there is now a fur-
=ther dpt of £100 as there to appear which
he drew in N.O. in Sept. Brit C.H. & Co. ,
5
having his authority, bot. & resold lately for
his account 100 bales of Cotton, & then they
bot. another 100 bales ^for him He[?]er I would think
that even after [making?] his second dpt they
will have £100, or more, at his credit. But
any how I would rather pay ^out of my own pocket the needful
sum for his journeys to & fro, now in
prospect, than he should hazard his liber
=ty by his scheme of carrying letters. --
If he is still in N. York, or whenever he
re-appears, I wish you would give him back
that order he gave me, in case of his
death, upon Robbins in N.Y. for his
1/8th share in the stock of the sunken
ship, supposed to have been laden with
treasure. For my part, I never looked on
that stock as worth a pistareen. -- He has
certainly been unlucky in his partnerships.
And I am much disappointed in his
present position of uncertainty, as I had
made sure that ^he had now the clear title
to several thousand $, from M & W's joint
interests in Cotton with Mr. Barnard.
What he tells me about James & William
is very unsatisfactory: -- I mean their
feelings towards one another, & by his ac=
=count, Mr. Hogg is a bird of the same
feather with Mr. G. H. Wilder. --
I am pleased to see from Matthew's
[written up the left side of the page]
You will find it inside the little Iron Safe in my room.
[6]
letter of 15th inst. that, in selling the Cotton,
I did last week, I have done just as he
wished. --
Mr. Menlow told me two days ago,
that the 280 bales of Cotton, which he was
holding for 10d when we were at Buxton,
are still unsold & worth as he said a
shilling p[w?]: He said his is now playing
for 14d or 15d! --
From the son of his friend here, Mr.
E. Tennant, I today got hold of Mr.
[ManifaldiMenlove's?] address, & therefore that
of Mrs. M-- It is 22 Upper Baker St. in
London; & I have the intention of calling
to see them, in order to sound the state
of her [underscored] feelings towards her husband. I told
[Menlove?], whom I afterwards saw today , of
my intended visit to London, but did
not [underscored] tell I intended seeing his Wife [underscored] then.
Whilst I was setting with [Menlove?] in
the billiard & smoking room of the Adelphi
on Saturday night, I fell in with young
Mr. Gandy, whom Matthew knows so
well, as having been once a partner of W.
P. Wright. He is now in partnership with
Giraud, the King of the Sugar buyers at
N. Orleans, & has been settled there for 6
years. He told me that he & his partner
are the owners of 8000 bales of Cotton here.
-- 5.000 Amn., which they shipped hither & 3.000
[7]
Surats which he bot. here. He ha [struck-through] arrived
here via N. York, shortly before or shortly
after me, & has not sold a bale since. But
[Menlove?] tells me that these 3.000 Surats were
but recently ["but recently" underscored] bot. Gandy says he feels sure
of 18d for his Amn. cotton on or before the
1st Jany; & considers 2/- c 2/6 "in the cards"
at a later date! He told me that
including Isaac Law & Co., he knew of 4
other parties here whose stocks of Cotton
equaled or exceeded his own. He did not
divulge the names of two of these parties,
but said that Brewer was one of them
(Brewer & Caldwell) & held some 16.000
for self & friends of which 6000 -- I think he
said -- were owned by B & C.--
I was talking today with a broker here, one
Sam Smith, whom Matthew knows, & who
told me that he knew of a party here, not
Isaac Law & Co. who are holding #30,000
but, he did right, gave me the name.
bales! -- My object in calling on him was
to ask him to send me to Bath's hotel a
copy of his 1st Nov. monthly circular. And
I made the same request of of Rathborn Bros.
when I called on Mr. Gais today. He told me
that Rathborns do not now hold a single
bale of Cotton, either Amn. or Surats; & that
he intends going to London on Monday next
with Mr. & Mrs. T. Settar [struck-through] Sellar (Mrs. S was
you know, one of the Miss Byrnes at N.O.)
& thence with to Paris, to be absent 2 or 3 weeks.
[8]
Sam: Smith considers that during the
first 6 mos. of this year G: Britain was
spinning up of all kinds. 50 c 51.000 bales
p week, & is now spinning 35 c. 36.000, of
which 10.000 are Surats. --
I called at Heath & Co's affair today & left
with them the bundle containing Tobin's
clothes to be ready for Mr. Clunas to take.
He spoke of 16th Nov. for embarking,
perhaps sooner. -- And Mary Bold is
intending to send by him a stereoscope
for you, which she was commissioned by
Mary Wakefield to buy as a present for
you, to accompany a site of North of
England, a Westmoreland views, which
M. W. had already bot. & gave us for you.
On Saturday afternoon I went out to
Crosby & Waterloo, calling first on Mr. & Mrs.
John Myers, & secondly a Mr. & Mrs. Edwd
Heath. I remained with the latter until
7 1/4 p.m. & then returned to town. -- I found
Mr. Heath better in every way than I had
expected. He knew me at once & seemed
pleased with my visit. His eldest daughter
now grown up, & a remarkably sweet & pretty
girl, acted as interpreter between me & her
father, to whom she bears a very strong
resemblence. I was charmed with her art-
=lessness, & her affectionate manner towards
her father. -- I should say that he is still
incompetent to make a Will. He had his
infirmary until the summer months set in,
when the warmth of it had a most unfavora-
9
effect upon him, so that he was confined
to his bed, & the Drs. then (in June) con=
=sidered his end very near at hand.
My chief talk was with his Wife. She hoped
I held plenty of Cotton, & that I was satis=
=fied with the management & business quali-
=ties of their clerk, Mr. Burton. I told her
I thought him an excellent man of
business -- I am very glad that I have
been to see them, because they were evi-
=dently pleased with the attention, & it
was nothing more than fully due as my
part. It was merely on his account that
I had forborne going until notified by Mr.
Burton that I should be welcome. -- They
are to return to town on Friday next.
Mr. Leich did say something, I think, as
to the causes that prevented his calling on
you; but I have forgotten what they were.
Yesterday I walked with Mr. & Mrs. Hawson
from Dr. McN--'s church as far as the head
of the D[ingle?] Lane. -- Today John Cropper
whom I saw for a moment, told me that
all at the Dingle were well, & that they con-
=tinued to have good accounts from Sedgwick.
After an early dinner hour yesterday, I
crossed the river & sat some time with
Tom Bold, & then I went to the Addisons,
travelling in a cab from Seacombe to New
Brighton. It was a bright night when I em
=barked at 7 1/4 p.m. on my return: & I was
10
much struck with the extraordinary & long
range of gas lights from Waterloo to the
extreme South end of Lpool. It has a
very grand effect. --
Instead of coming home straight, I
walked up to 37 Huskisson St., when I
found the Spencers all at home. It was
my first vist to them then. Miss
Spencer who had just returned with
David from eveng. service at St. Bride's, only
came back from Manchester last week, after
spending 10 days there. -- I stayed supper
with them, & tho' I rode home in a cab, it
was much later than I liked when I got here,
-- viz 11["11" underscored] -- whereby no time was left for my
reading as usual the short evening sermon.
In the St. today, I stumbled upon Chas.
Steets. His surprise was great, & he broke
out characteristically with - "Why, God
bless my soul, it cannot be Rutson Maury."
He told me Mrs. S was well; & I promised
to go & see her on my return from London.
He had a far deeper wrinkled face than when
I saw him last. He rejoiced that we owned
Cotton. He asked kindly after you & the rest.
& was most pointed in his enquiries about
Sarah.
Matthew, in his letter today, tries to
spur me up to seeking after a variety of busi-
=ness for him to employ himself upon. But I
have found quite as much as I could manage
in looking after our interest in Cotton, & I do
not think I can be fairly accused of throwing
away my time. Yours affectionately, R Maury
