34 A PICTURE OF THE IRON TRADE. 



7s. 6d. per dozen. Pitt coals are once mentioned, and, 

 indeed, I am at a loss to explain the presence of three loads of 

 pitt coles at Renishaw slitting mill in 1662 ; but I believe that 

 wood charcoal was always the fuel used at furnaces, as well as at 

 forges. A bargain for standing timber was made, and it was 

 felled, wheeled together, and turned into charcoal on the spot ; 

 and thence carried by hand, probably in baskets, to its destination. 

 Coles that were coled and left in the forest are mentioned in 

 1663, and the payment of ^13 for the coleing of 130 loads of 

 coles. On January the 19th, 1662, John Barlow, the elder and 

 younger, were hired to carry charcoal to be made that summer, in 

 Bushy Parke, to Winfield Furnace, at iod. per load, and 10s. 

 over, and to the same place from a wood, called Broome Ridding, 

 at is. per load ; all to be paid in iron at Plesley Forge. In June, 

 1662, George and Sam Row engage to sell charcoal at 18s. per 

 load, to be paid in sow iron at ^5 per ton. In one case a 

 charcoal carrier dishonestly sold some of his burden, and was not 

 detected till long afterwards. 



Since writing the above, I have found a note in an earlier 

 account, which I append in full. " 1649. Paid for sawing wood 

 for 5 char-cole waines, 8s. Paid for makeing 5 char-cole waines, 

 j£i 1 os od. I had two charcole waines wch I made before, 

 besides those wch formerly belonged to Staly." The cost of 

 carriage was the greatest item, for in the same year, 1649, I find 

 ^25 paid for coleing 240 loads of coles, and ^60 paid for 

 carrying them from the Reidfield to Staveley. 



Work at the furnaces was, of course, only done in the winter. 

 In February, 1662, our iron master had made 300 tons at the 

 furnace he was then working at, but would continue to blow a good 

 while. On the 13th of October, 1662, he began to blow at 

 Foxbrooke Furnace, and blew out the 6th of April, 1663, and 

 made at this blast 358 tons and 5 stone. There are several 

 complete lists of tools at the furnaces, comprising all the parts of 

 the bellows and weighing machine, besides barrows, for myne, 

 sinders, and cole ; many baskets in which I suppose charcoal or 

 ironstone had been carried : moulds, limestone hammers, lime- 



