Heytesbury House

Nov. Dec. 2 1825

 

My dear William,

I have scarcely had time to consider your new plan for the proposed alterations here – but I do not see how you can distribute your rooms as you now suggest.  The extreme distance between the moulding of the fire place in the present dining room & the spring of the bay, is a bare 7 feet 2 I – and a door with its architecture requires 4.6. so that if you even placed your door quite close to the spring of the bay so the  you would only have 2.8. between the door & fireplace.  The distance on the other side of the fireplace to the wall is precisely the same; & on this side the chimney flue would be all against you.Talking of this flue, I consider it is extremely dangerous: - it runs thus: after reaching the top of the dining room, it runs, I am told by the sweeps directly under the beams of the dressing room marked, then takes a round turn under the door of the north room & this runs up I know the wall opposite the kitchen chimney.  I feel satisfied that it is not safe; because whenever a wood fire is burnt in the grate, the strongest smell of wood soot (which is much more volatile than coal smoke) finds its way into the dressing room, hall & above all the north room, which is really at such times not habitable.  When the chimney was on fire three years ago, the wainscot of the dressing room was so hot that you could not bear your hands upon it.  Were the house mine, my first alteration would be to brick up the flue altogether & break an entrance into the straight flue in Col. Bradford’s room; - which room I would heat by warm air or else place the chimney on the West side, where there already exists two spare flue. – I now seldom occupy the room in Winter, unless we have company with us.

     Again, in your plan you place a long passage thro’ the present housekeepers’ room to the new dining room, without a window as far as I can see; & you allow no antiroom to the dining room, for laying out dishes, which is indispensable; & the housekeeper’s room is much too far from the kitchen & family. – The plate room marked C in your plan seems totally detached & unprotected.  There must be a sleeping room near it.     Your proposed water closets would I imagine exactly fit the main drain; but of this I will forthwith assure myself by sending for old Magg before he dies:- as a lad he helped to build the drain & must know its ............ .

   You have, I perceive, the present wretched back stairs, which lets up every vile smell all over the house.   The dormitory over the offices is highly desirable, but must have some other entrance than the one you propose.  If the stairs spring in the powdering closet only, depend upon it every housemaid will be with child within the twelvemonth.  I have some experience this way, having been obliged to dismiss two excellent servants, owing to their being in contact with the men servants.  However, whatever you do to your house, your present brew house, wash house & in fact all the offices round the quadrangle must come down.  The wall will barely support even the present roof & are bulged & cracked in every …………   more so, I think of late.  I had them examined last year, but if they are timbered, they must come down entirely.  The scullery & dairy walls are alone sound, but even these would not bear any additional weight.

     The Colonade is purely a matter of taste: - but do you think that a straight line will break the length of the building?  Would not something of this kind be cheaper & answer the purpose better?  The columns to stand forward as at Dinton for instance?

   They need not run up the height of the house but or they might have a …………..………… …………….. , as I believe at Broadlands.  Fours columns also would answer as well as six.

     My paper will not hold more remarks; - perhaps I have made too many already – I will only add that the general outline with ……..  amendments of your original plan (not including the huge library) appears to me the better & much the cheaper plan, let Edward say what he pleases to the contrary.