SD60. James Scarlett to Edward Moulton-Barrett (father)
Published in The Brownings’ Correspondence, 1, 307 (in part).
Manchester
Octr 15th 1806
My dear Barrett
Your letter tho not in time for me at Preston overtook me last night at this place. I assure you that Mr Rham’s letter to me has given me great alarm, because I feel that the confidence I had in his discretion & influence over your brother is shaken. I have already paid this year to them both together the sum of 1400l Admitting that only 1100l of this are to be taken as the yearly allowance (because the other 300 were to pay pressing debts) it seems to me that Mr Rham ought to have had influence enough over your brother to have made so large a sum sufficient. I am aware he has had a difficult task, & as it is no interest of mine what sum Sam spends, I shall not withold the further sum he requires when I know precisely what it is & when I hear that they are in Edinburgh, where between you & me they have spent the smallest part of the year hitherto. I do assure you that the picture I have given Mr Rham of Sam’s income for this year is exactly true. At least I am sure it is not under stated. I certainly entertain hopes that the times will mend, because I ascribe the present & late depressed prices of Sugar to the negotiation with France during the existence of which all commercial relations are unsettled & no orders come from the continent for West India produce. There are so many accidents to which West India Estates are liable that I have always been of opinion that a prudent planter should in the first place resolve never to spend above a third part of his West India income until by saving two or three years income before hand he could have something certain to rely on in case of a succession of two or three bad years. I consider Sam’s Estates as fairly worth 6000l a year in good times one year with another, but upon a succession of two or three bad years they may not be worth 1500l[.] It is certain that since your grandfathers death in 1798 Sugars have sold very low—for the 7 years preceding they were very high– You can easily calculate the difference between the value of 500 hhds at 30l and at 15l a hhd[.] In the first case the value is 15000l in the last 7500l & when you deduct supplies & Island expenses from the latter sum there will not be much left to spend. My opinion is that Sam in common prudence after he comes of age ought not for two or three years to exceed 2000l a year & my fear is that he has been going beyond that sum for some years back. Of what use will my economy be to him is as soon as he comes of age the whole fruits of it go to pay off his debts?
I come now to the question you ask me as to the comparative value of your Estates. It is certainly true that the accumulation of Sam’s fortune has been greater than that of yours, tho not much greater, but this has not been owing to his income being larger but to the Estates having been managed with more economy. In fact when your grandfather died Cin Hill & Cornwall never had made together so much as 300 hhds—My brother has brought them now to make 500 in good years with a much larger proportion of |rum| & the bills drawn by him being not above 1/4 what have been drawn for your Estates there has always been something to lay by. As to the Retreat Penn which was in Plummers hands it has not except in one year cleared its expenses & according to my recollection the whole that it has cleared ever since your grandfathers death does not exceed 1000l[.] It is however improving. Your Estates on the contrary came into the hands of the trustees making 500 hds of much better Sugar than Sams, with more by 7s or 8s a hundred weight. Had they been well managed my brother is of opinion that they ought before this time to have been brought to make 800 hhds one year with costs. You know however that excepting the money you had from me for a portion of the last crop & excepting a balance of 4000l which was paid into my hand as the whole clear income of the estate in 1803, there has been nothing saved the last three years. I should be very sorry to be the means of your going to Jamaica. I fear your wife would never forgive me for it. At the same time I think it my duty to tell you my honest opinion upon the state of your affairs—not with a view to your going to Jamaica, because I am not aware that you would save anything very material by that measure but that you may see the propriety of your laying down certain plans for your expenses for two or three years to come. I own that were I in your case I should be very much disposed to see my property in Jama at some time or other, but I really think there are several reasons why your presence there immediately might be rather a prejudice to your concerns. In the first place I think it better that you should not have to make any settlement with your uncle in person. Secondly I doubt whether it would do any good to your estates that you should be present until they have been brought by proper management into a regular System which might enable you to take the direction of them yourself without risk of doing them any injury & lastly considering that we are now at war & that your life is more valuable & more necessary now than it will be when you have saved a little money for younger Children & for your wife, I would be averse to your exposing it to any risk until you had first made the experiment whether you could not make the saving in this Country. These are my real sentiments. With respect to your income this year I fear you will have a flamish account of it. The ships which contained the first part of the crop & which ought to have sailed with the first fleet I understand were obliged to put back & wait for the second. The second as you see by the papers had been dispersed & many of them have been lost in a gale of wind. Not one of your Sugars is the few yet arrived. They are however insured & in truth, considering the low prices I think the insurance will, if they are lost, be worth more than the Sugar. I fear however that my calculations in my last letter to you wherein I supposed thay would bring you 20l p. hhd is over the mark. They will not exceed 15l[.] Therefore 600 hhds will be worth 9000l deduct from this 1071l, which has been employed to replace the cattle & pay 1500l for Island contingencies & 2500l for supplies, making in the whole 5071l & there remains nearly 4000—but your mothers annuity must be taken out of this which leaves you no more than 3000l of which remember that you have already anticipated 2000l[.] I have been thinking of a plan for your insuring your life by which you may be able to give a security to the amount of 10,000l which will enable you to anticipate your income for a year in case you should find it necessary. By paying 230l p. annum you may insure the receit of 10,000l to your executors to be applied to the purposes of your will. This expedient, which is resorted to by most persons who have but life estates, will enable you to borrow five or 6000l[.] I have already written too long a letter & I shall therefore reserve the explanation of this till we meet next month. I hope to see you for a week in November that we may make a final settlement. If you can put up with a sorry bed in Guilford Street I shall be most happy to see you there; but in this you will of course consult your own convenience. All that I would beg is that you would give me a few days notice of your approach that I may get Mr Moore & Mr Gilbert & Mr Sharp in readiness to conclude our business as expeditiously as possible. Moore has been very much engaged of late, but he has promised me to be at leisure when you come to town & I rather think he has concluded his examination of my accounts long ago.
I now & then flatter myself with the hope of two or Three good years which would intirely put you up. For as your capital in the West Indies is very large & there is no unusual desires upon your income, beyond your expenses, every increase in the price of Sugar would be a clear profit to you. If for instance you |can fill| 600 hhds next year for 25l each you would have 15000l from which the same expenses only would be deducted as those of any other year.
Williams is here & desires to be remembered to you. He would have paid you a visit at Coxhoe but for his professional engagements. I think I ought to make an excuse for writing so long a letter. Perhaps the best excuse is to put an end to it by saying that I am Dear Barrett
Ever yours sincly
J Scarlett
Address, on integral page: Edward M Barrett Esqr / Coxhoe Hall / Durham.
Docket, in the hand of EM-B (father): Oct. 15. 1806.
Publication: None traced.
Manuscript: Eton College Library.
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