Item 8 - Letter from Joseph Phillips to Alfred Lawrence

1 folded sheet

Eight Bells Inn, Bletchley, Bucks.—Asks the usual prices of concrete and labour, since he has found that, contrary to Mr Henderson’s instructions, it will be necessary to lay foundations for the columns.

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Transcript

Eight Bells Inn.— | Bletchley | Bucks.
14th Feby 1851

Dear Lawrence,

I shld feel obliged if you would let me know per return how much per Yd (? Cake) {1} I ought to pay for Concrete, supposing you assume a price for Gravel Say 3/6 pr. Yd, which I beleive I shld have to pay for it here also how [much] {2} pr Yd. digging holes Say 6 ft deep by 3 ft—in heavy Clay Soil.—I have a lot to do & must do it as cheap as possible.—You see Mr Henderson’s {3} instructions were to put no foundations at all if I could help it.—The Soil I find wet Clay,—& people here tell me it is absolutely necessary to have a good Foundation & that they have had gt trouble themselves from Turntables &c Sinking, & of Course shld anything of the Sort happen to my Wk I shld be in a fix,—so I think of putting a bed of Concrete 3.0 x 1.6 under ea column 24 ft apart, & abt 1.6 x 1. 6 under the wooden ones 8 ft apart, & trusting the rest to providence.—Do you think this enough, or too much?—or wld you advise 2 Courses of Bk’s in Cement at top.—The base of Columns is abt 12’ dim—Mind you this is strictly private I ask you because you have more Knowledge of that sort of work than I can pretend to.—Offer what suggestions you like.—I have lots to tell you, but must defer it until a day or two

In haste

Yrs Sincerely
Joseph Phillips

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{1} ‘? Cake’ interlined. Brackets supplied.

{2} Omitted by mistake.

{3} John Henderson, a partner in the firm of Fox, Henderson, & Co.

This description was created by A. C. Green in 2020.