23rd December 1941

Went out with Joanna this afternoon to do the survey of Brick Kiln Farm, by the “Lion and the Lamb”. Part of the land is in Langham and part in the Borough, owing to the very peculiar formation of the boundary at that point. Hadley has a nice little farm, with 6 cows and a few pigs. He was complaining that old Mitchell will not take his horses (or rather horse and pony) off the low meadow, where he has no right to put them. I told H. to impound them, but all these men feel that the law protects the wrong-doer, not the complainant, and I know he will take no action. The horse is very old, and Hadley said “If he live on that medder much longer, he’ll die.”

We went on to Dedham, to see Poyzen about a new water supply, and then, being so near, called at Sherbourne Mill, where Mrs. Parrington, who looked very charming in brown “slacks”, gave us a cup of tea. After that I got Joanna to drive me back by way of Dedham Street, so that I could go to the Sissons. Joanna is very pleased that she is staying on with us for the revision of the 1942 cropping, and so am I. She is a lovely girl, completely unaffected.

At the Sissons met Joan Richards. Mrs. S. had been playing the cello, which was leaning against her spinet when I went in, and some of her puppets, including the new one Poulter made for her, were scattered about the room.

Miss Richards was talking about fire-watching. She said that at Gloucester Cathedral there was only one night-watchman and an ancient verger, yet at her school, outside the town, the staff had been compelled to forego their holidays in order to maintain continual watch throughout the whole day. Sisson came in from Frinton, where he had been on bomb damage business, and brought his wife some flowers for Christmas.

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