1875. Brought forward necessary to have a copy of plan on deed of 1st May, 1857, and an abstract Writing Messrs. Webster accordingly Perusing abstract of title, nine sheets Perusing the Rivelin View Company's Deed of Covenants, four sheets. Writing vendor's solicitors with contract approved and thereon, and for plan which they had omitted to send Oct. 13. Writing Messrs. Webster, acknowledging letter approving of our alterations in contract, and asking for plan which they had omitted to send, although in their letter they stated it was enclosed Engrossing one part of the contract for signature of Mr. Ruskin, and paid stamp thereon Drawing plan thereon Writing Mr. Ruskin, with contract for his signature, and fully thereon, and as to the contents of the Rivelin View Society's Deed of Covenants, and as to Trustees of the Company to whom the property might be conveyed, and for cheque for £60 for deposit Oct. 18. On receipt of letter from Mr. Ruskin with contract signed and cheque for deposit, writing him acknowledging receipt £ s. d. 086 0 13 4 050 050 100 0 10 0 068 050 050 0 10 6 076 050 Oct. 19. Writing with appointment to exchange contracts and pay deposit Oct. 20. Writing our agents at Sheffield (Messrs. Broomhead and Co.) with abstract of title to examine, with deeds, and instructing them 050 Oct. 21. Writing vendor's solicitors that contract exchanged and deposit paid to their 050 Oct. 23. On receipt of abstract from Messrs. Broomhead and Co., with remarks on title, writing them to examine probate of H. Norton's will in hands of Messrs. Tattershall, and on subject of duties, etc., under that will, and returning abstract to them 036 Attending perusing conditions of sale under which Mr. Bagshawe bought the property before drawing requisitions on title Drawing same, fo. 16 Fair copy for perusal Writing Messrs. Webster therewith and fully thereon Nov. 10. Engrossing conveyance Paid parchment. Writing Mr. Ruskin on subject of completion, and for cheque for £540 balance of purchase money, and with consent to be signed by him to conveyance being taken to the Right Hon. W. C. Temple and Sir T. Ď. Acland as Trustees for the Company, Mr. Ruskin having entered into the contract Writing vendor's solicitors, with engrossment for examination, and fully thereon Writing Messrs. Broomhead, our agents, instructing them to make proper searches in the Land Registry at Wakefield, and as to completion of purchase. Nov. 12. Writing our agents at Sheffield, with cheque for £540 purchase money, and very fully as to registering deed of conveyance, searches, and settling. Writing Mr. Ruskin acknowledging receipt of his two letters, with two cheques for, together, £540 Carry forward 1875 Brought forward £ s. d. Nov. 15. Attending examining certificates of searches, with abstract, when we found same satisfactory. Nov. 16. 0 6 8 068 300 Writing our agents, with stamped deed conveyance for registration, and fully thereon 036 On receipt of conveyance executed by the vendor and his mortgagee, attending Nov. 22. Making schedule of documents received from agents (Messrs. Broomhead), and writing them acknowledging receipt of deeds, and for account of their charges On receipt of account of agents' charges, amounting to £10, 14s. 11d., writing them with cheque. Writing Mr. Ruskin on subject of insurance. Incidentals. THE ST. GEORGE'S COMPANY To Wм. B. TARRANT 1875. Feb. 13. General Bill of Costs to 10th December, 1875 On receipt of letter from Mr. Ruskin, attending him at Herne Hill, and conferring on course to be taken on subject of letter from Messrs. Griffith and Son, of Dolgelly, as to conveyance of cottage property at Barmouth, and on the necessity of trust deed for the purpose of such conveyance, so as to carry out the wishes of Mr. Ruskin and others for improving the condition of agriculturists, and paid rail. Feb. 15. Feb. 22. Instructions to counsel to advise in conference on course to be adopted to carry out the scheme Making copy of Mr. Ruskin's letter to accompany instructions Attending counsel therewith, when it was arranged that conference should be postponed until Mr. Ruskin could attend. On receipt of letter from Messrs. Griffith and Son, writing them fully in reply March 10. Attending counsel, Mr. Barber appointing conference for 3.30 on Monday Writing Mr. Ruskin to let me know on what day he could attend conference Feb. 23. Attending conference with Mr. Ruskin at Mr. Barber's, when it was decided that he should draw a deed for the purpose of carrying out Mr. Ruskin's wishes, and paid cab Paid counsel's fee and clerk Drawing proposed circular. Carry forward £6 13 2 On receipt of letter from Mr. Ruskin on draft circular, making copy of Mr. 0.10 0 Perusing and considering same. 0 10 0 Drawing memoranda of constitution of the Company to take place of the circular 110 0 June 10. Instructions to counsel to settle same, and with Mr. Ruskin's suggestions, etc.. 068 068 246 June 11. Long letter to Mr. Ruskin in reply to his of the 27th and 28th ult., and 8th inst. June 15. 050 Fair copy memoranda of constitution of the Company, as settled by counsel, fo. 30 : 0 10 0 050 Writing Mr. Ruskin therewith and thereon: June 23. Attending Mr. Ruskin on his calling and handing us print of the proposed memoranda in a number of his Fors Clavigera, and with Mr. Ruskin's suggestions for some alterations; and we were to submit same to counsel, and obtain a conference with him in about a month's time, which Mr. Ruskin would attend Oct. 7. Oct. 15. Writing Mr. Ruskin very fully on subject of revision of memoranda and statutes, and for further information as to marshals, etc. Oct. 24. On receipt of letter from Mr. Ruskin withdrawing all reference to marshals from the proposed memoranda, making fresh copy of the memoranda as drawn, and adding in the margin thereof all suggestions and comments thereon contained in the Fors, and the several letters we had received in connection with the matter Writing Mr. Ruskin, with draft memoranda and counsel's amendments, and with counsel's opinion at foot thereof, and also as to insurance of the Sheffield premises Petty disbursements and incidentals (a) Travelling and personal expenses since January 1st, of which I have no space for the details in this Fors; it will be given in its place.1 Klein2 has ten pounds a month himself, besides his expenses in Oxford when I've no rooms for him. (b) A youth, whom I am maintaining in art-study at Venice. He has £7, 10s. monthly. This payment is to end of April. (c) Water-colour drawing of a cottage at Coniston, likely to be soon destroyed by "improvements." (d) £10 pocket-money, £25 to St. George, money of his in my hands included in my banker's January balance, acknowledged in St. George accounts, March 7th. (e) £21 of this, my own upholsterer's and other bills at Oxford; the rest, Crawley will account for.4 (f) Drawings made for me at Siena.5 (g) Fifty drawings made for me by Signor Caldara of Venice, being part of a complete Venetian Herbal in process of execution. I count none of my money better spent than this. 1 [This, however, was not done.] Ruskin's valet and courier: see above, p. 559.] 3 [For studies by him placed in St. George's Museum, see Vol. XXX.; and see below, pp. 633, 729, 769; also Vol. XXIX. p. 50.] + [No account, however, was published.] 5 Not at Sheffield.] p. 231. [Many of these drawings are now in the Oxford Collection: see Vol. XXI. For other references to Signor Caldara's work, see Letters 71, § 17 (p. 749), and 74, § 2 n. (Vol. XXIX. p. 31). In his set of Fors, in the Library of St. Mark at Venice, Rawdon Brown has inserted two letters from Ruskin, thus: "I. BRANTWOOD, 17 Oct., '73. “I should be very much obliged to him, when he has finished the Herbal work, to begin drawing the plants from nature, a flower and leaf separately on white paper-so as to be unplagued by light and shade. (h) Annual gift to monastery of Assisi, for 1875; not sent last year because I meant to go there. Due always on the Corpus Domini. 24. (III.) "6, MOIRA PLACE, SOUTHAMPTON, 15th Feb., 1876. "DEAR SIR,-On referring to Helix ericetorum (the species I take your outline' to be enlarged from) in Dr. Turton's British Land and Fresh-water Shells, with additions by Dr. Gray, I find it stated, on the authority of M. Bouchard, that the eggs of H. ericetorum are laid from July to November, and are from forty to sixty in number, the time of hatching being twenty days after laying, and the length of the snail's life is eighteen months. It is not, however, stated whether these particulars refer to H. ericetorum in England or France. "The only extra information I can get from my other book is that heavy rains kill great numbers of them. "Your drawing refers to the shell of a full-grown snail, shown by its having six whorls, and by the slight reflex curve at the outer end of the spiral.* * "With regard to the formation of the shell, I can state that it was formed by successive additions during the life of the snail, the small dark transparent portion in the centre of the spiral being the nucleus, and the lines and ridges crossing the spiral indicate the different rings or layers of shell added to suit the convenience of the snail. "I enclose specimens of H. ericetorum from Deal,† to enable you to compare them with those from Arundel, to make sure that they are the same species.3 "I am, dear Sir, your obedient servant, "R. L."4 25. (IV.) "A Swedish newspaper contains a lengthy account of the gallant rescue of a Swedish steamer by the people of the village of Cresswell, Northumberland. Thirteen out of the fifteen male inhabitants manned the boat, to launch which the women waded to their waists. A fisher-girl named Bella Brown ran ten miles to the next lifeboat station for assistance, and had to wade through several bays on an icy January * Exaggerated a little, I'm afraid.—J. R. The shells sent, for which I heartily thank my correspondent, are, I think, the same as mine, only not so white. [J. R.] I have only thought of this to-day, and am packing for Oxford, so cannot say more; but with next parcel Mr. Caldara might do any Lombardic species, that grows or lives in winter, for specimen." "II. PALERMO, 29 Ap., '74. "I cannot make a better pattern drawing for Caldara than the Venetian ones. I want him to paint the natural flower, in exactly the same method as the Venetian, only noticing any differences in form and distribution of colours. You will at once feel that my object-the ascertaining if any difference in the plant itself has taken place in four centuries-will be better accomplished by retaining the style of the Venetian representation than by adopting a more modern one."] 1 [For Ruskin's friendship with the monks at Assisi, see Vol. XXIII. p. xxxix.] 2 See above, p. 525.] 3 [See Letters 62, §§ 14-16, and 63, §§ 17-21 (pp. 524-527, 551–555).] [Robert Leslie; for whom, see Vol. XXV. p. 179.] |