Diary of Rev Edward Stevens

My cough was very troublesome last night after I got to bed, but it subsided at last. A very wet day. In the afternoon the rain came down in torrents.

Received 2 quarters of oats (black) from Mr Phillips of Oakham? Farm, Little Compton at 15/- per quarter through Dr Routh who asked me to pay him for them. The man shot one bag into the bin and took the other three up into the little loft, but did not shoot them. He said it would be all night if I sent the empty bags to Dr Routh. The ladder slipped whilst the man was on it with the last bag of oats, but I caught hold of the foot of it and an accident was happily avoided.

Very fine, but cold wind. Had to reprove boy Hyde severely for neglect of duty and stupidity in leaving Ruby standing out in the cold wind by the stable door while he went to his dinner. I told him to groom her there. He merely tied her up there and left her. She broke loose and went into the sunshine in the yard.

I drove Rosa to Shenington to visit Mrs John and Miss E Shellswell. We staid to tea. Arthur Shellswell was not at home, but I put Ruby in his stable. We left at 7.30 pm.

John Lively called this morning and spoke of Hyde’s bad usage of the mare. He and his elder brother who seems to have no work ran the mare round the pound against her will and she broke loose from them. I have had frequent complaints about the conduct of my boy, and would discharge him, but there is not another to be got, and he can do very well if he will. I reproved him severely.

There was a very high wind and heavy rain all night.

Fine. Received a letter from Cousin W Green and sent him by parcels’ post my rough notes of the Culpeper Family and “The Story of Hollingbourne”. I called at Inns’ this afternoon to see him about the rain coming into the schoolroom, but he was not at home. Bell and I called at Miss Eliza Lamb’s, but the place was locked up. She called on Mr and Mrs Ainge. He is better. They told her that his last son, David, who has been in the Littlemore County Lunatic Asylum several years died there on the 3rd inst and was buried there on the 9th.

I wrote to Rev Edward J Corbould of Teynham, Sittingbourne, asking whether he could tell me anything about the Mr Stephens, of Teynham, who married Martha, daughter of John Spencer Colepeper, born 1769.