These days cattle are moved from one place to another in the back of cattle transporters. It doesn't take long once you have your sheep, cows, or other farming animals on board. I don't want to get into the ethics of cattle transportation either; that is not what this blog post is about.
Whilst going through some letters at Gloucestershire Archives
this week I was not after farming references but mining references in a batch of letters sent by William Lewis! I
came across this letter which briefly tells the recipient, a John
Blagdon Hale Esq. of Alderley, Gloucestershire, how much the sender -
William Lewis, was going to pay the cattle drover to bring the sheep,
recently bought, over from Pentyrch on the outskirts of Cardiff.
The rates of pay would seem meagre to us
half a guinea [1 guinea = 21s] for expenses,
3s per day [1s = 5p]
4d per day [1d = 12d were 1s] for ale.
Lewis would pay the half guinea and Hale the remainder when the drover arrived. We are told when he was leaving, but no date on the letter other than it was 1785, and when he could be expected. We are also told that the drover will not be paid for his return journey.
Documents reproduced with permission from Gloucestershire Archives D1086/F116
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