14. A great charg'r of all sorts of sweetmeats, with wine and all
sorts of liquors answerable.
"The child, a girle; godfather, Mr. Green, a clergyman;
godmothers, Mis Beddingfield of Sherson, and a sister-in-law of
Mr. Constable's.
"The guests, Mr. Green, Mr. Bagg and his daughter, and the
godmothers.
"The parish'rs entertained at another house with rost and boil'd
bief, geese, and turkeys. Soon after the child dy'd, and the
funerall expenses came to 6_d._"
"1739. Dec. 28, Friday, began a frost. Satterday and Sunday with
the most severe sharp wind that ever was known. Monday and Tuesday
fell a great deal of snow, w'ch continued upon the ground, with
the most severe frost ever known, without intermission till
Friday, Feb. 1st, then thaw'd in the day. Sharp frost at night.
Thaw'd Satterday and Sunday, with rain and sleet of snow, cold air
with frost, and continued till Sunday ye 10, when it thaw'd very
fast with smal rain and wind: continued till Monday, when it
changed into severe frost and a fall of snow, w'ch held till
Sunday, then thaw'd, wind west, in the most gentle manner,
insensibly wasting, no flood: extream dry, cold weather till ye 21
of April: y't day a little rain, and on the 22 fell a great deal
of snow with a severe north and north-east wind: a little wet and
cold wind continued till the 5th of May, when there was hail and
snow a foot thick in many places. Continued cold till ye 9th.
Wheat 6_s._ 6_d._ a strike; barley 3_s._ 6_d._; mutton, in London,
5-1/2_d._ and 6_d._ p'd, beife 5_d._; 3-1/2_d._ mutton in the
country, beife 3_d._
"No rain from the 21 April till the 7th of June, but continued
cold east and north-east wind, with a frost. June 3d, bread cost
at London, ye first sort at 11_s._ 8_d._ a strick, a little while.
On the 7th of June, wind south-south-west, a charming rain fell
every where, w'ch lowered ye exesive prises: after y't, a drought
succeeding, corn kept a high price, wheat 6_s._, barley 4, till
near harvest, and exportation stoped: grass burnt up all summer:
very little hay: butter and cheese very dear: everything continued
so. Ye 7 of Nov. fell a great snow and rain w'ch made a flood: ye
10 begun a hard frost, w'ch continued with great severity, the
ground covered with snow till ye 22: the 21 fell a great deal of
snow, w'ch went away with some rain, and was a very great flood.
During this frost the Thames was frose, and great calamitys feared
from the want of hay and straw, w'ch the happy thaw prevented."