Diary of Rev Edward Stevens

Dull and cold. John Lively here cutting the privet hedge which was overgrown. He drove Rosa (with Ruby) to Banbury to meet Bell arriving from “White House” Mr Morgan’s, Honour Oak Road by 2.48 train. They reached home about 5 o’clock. Bell had been away ever since the 23rd January visiting Mrs Lindsay Page at Chislehurst, Mrs Mountain at Hawtree, West Dulwich, Mrs Morgan and Katie Witenhall at Croxton Road, West Dulwich. She and Lottie went to see Aunt Emma at Essex Road.

Bessie poorly and in bed all day. I was very busy with Town Estate, Loggin and School accounts.

Ash Wednesday. Bright, sunny, frosty. Service in Church, Litany and Ante Communion. Churched Mrs F Ward of Burdrop and Mrs James Dyer of Sibford Ferris.

The Drawing grant arrived on Monday. £3.4. I visited school on Monday, took Club money etc and gave Langley cheque for £1.12, half Drawing grant, and paid him 5/3½ for bread and milk supplied to little school-children who seemed to need it at 11 am each day during the severe weather.

Walked round “Pig & Whistle” and Pound Lane with Bell this afternoon. Sunny but very muddy.

Fine. Sunny, some frost. Visited Mrs Woolgrove; Joshua Lines (out); C Leaver, ill with pleurisy, did not see him; Job Harris and wife; Widow Reason; John Dyer; Anne Robinson, saw her daughter Emma who is at home ill.

Sunny. Mr Riddle came and audited charity accounts from 3 to 5. James Dyer called this evening for me to witness his signature to Army pension paper. I called on Mr Langley to give him his cheque for February’s salary. Miss Wells called this morning and said that as the Cassells were ill, and the man had had very little work lately, she was making a collection for them. Her parents had given 10/-. It was the first I had heard of their illness. I gave her 3/6 and said I would call and see them. Ezra Green sent his young boy Tom to ask for the money which the trustees had put into the Penny Bank for him when he should leave school. I replied that I could not pay it out yet as it was against the rule, but that if his father would call on me I would see him.

I met Inns who said he would put the school ventilators in tomorrow if possible, tomorrow. I wrote to Ecclesiastical Buildings Fire Insurance (Secretary J Duncan) replying to his note in which he had said his directors paid the claim of £2.5 not as of right but as a favour because the damage was done elsewhere than in my house. I said, whilst thanking him for the cheque, that I should not have made the claim had I not been informed that Insurance Companies usually recognised damage to clothing in wear as covered by a domestic policy of Insurance.