SD64. James Scarlett to Edward Moulton-Barrett (father)
Published in The Brownings’ Correspondence, 1, 307 (in part).
Temple
Dec 26 1806
My dear Barrett
You need make no apologies for applying to me for advice, as you may be assured it will always give me pleasure to be of any service to you. The income upon which your return ought to be made at this time would be for your last crop, no part of which is at your disposal, as it was taken off before you were of age & is therefore in the hands of your trustees. If <…> any income arising from it, which I much doubt, the <return> must be made by me. You will therefore have no return whatever to make until after next April. I would recommend it to you therefore to write upon the papers left with you that you have no income or property bills to be returned under the property tax act. If the commissioners should summons you to explain yourself you may take this letter which I have no doubt will be satisfactory to them. Your money in the funds is not liable to be returned, the tax being deducted from the dividend when paid at the bank. You may if you wish to avoid all chance of being troubled on the subject inclose with the printed papers, a written statement as follows.
“The only property I possess liable to be returned under the property tax act consists of Estates in the West Indies. These I believe will produce no income for the present year. But if they do such income is intirely in the hands of trustees who must make the return, the Crops having been made before I was of age & being held by the trustees for the purposes of their trust. <No part> of the produce of the Estates has come to my hands or is at my disposal.”
I have written twice to your mother but have had no answer. Pray assure Miss Tripsack that nothing is further from our thoughts than to cheat your mother out of any thing. If your Estates had produced the value of 1000l for this year up to this time she would have been intitled to it in the first instance—but you have been borrowing that money to accommodate her & all we desire is that she would if convenient, be content with half her annuity for the present, admitting the whole of it to have been due to her in Jama on the 16h November last.
Mrs S. begs to join me in best regards to Mrs Barrett I am My dear Barrett
Yours most truly
J Scarlett
See the next page.
P.S. I will write to your mother & Miss T. if I do not hear from them in a few days. I think you ought to send Jones a draft with a civil note to excuse yourself for being so long in replying to his letter. When your cash runs low at your bankers, you must write to Boddington Philips Sharp & Co to pay in such sum as you require. Mr Moore ought to send a bill in his own favour for your acceptance to enable him to pay the small bills–
Address, on integral page: Edwd M. Barrett Esqr / Coxhoe Hall / Durham.
Docket, in the hand of EM-B (father): Decem. 26. 1806.
Publication: None traced.
Manuscript: Eton College Library.
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