Series 5 > British Linen Company, 1745-1775

CRISIS AND RECOVERY, 1753-1763
163
have the boiler ready by nine and one o’clock for the whole servants, after
which the fire is to be extinguished or taken off.1
To Colfonel] Patrick McDual, of the 3rd Regiment of Guards, with the Allied
Army in Germany
2 August 1762
You will have the trouble of this to have yet some further plague with your
friend’s affairs. There is belonging to your army one J[ohn] Mudie, who I
befieve acts as a commissary and who was lately a merchant in Riga. This same
Mr Mudie owes the Company I act for £1545 by four bills.2 He never declared
any losses but declared himself unable to pay his debts and indeed it would be
difficult for any factor as he was at Riga to show losses. There being no trust
granted in their way of trade but the whole was knavery, dissipation and
extravagance. He came over to London lately of which I got notice and caused
him to be arrested. He then found Mr Steward, the West India merchant and
his son in law, Mr Marjoribanks to be his bail. He then made an offer of four
shillings in the pound in cash and his promise for six shillings in the pound
more in two years, and that in full. The latter is not worth a sixpence and the
other is hardly the interest incurred on the principal and therefore the Com¬
pany rejected it. He the next day makes off for Germany, having obtained, I
am told, an office worth in salary no less than three guineas per diem besides
valuable perquisites against winter. He must appear in the court of King’s
bench or his bail must pay the debt. I am quite satisfied that Mr Steward would
never have given bail for him without some good cause of interest or absolute
security moving him thereto what ever his pretence may be to here or his other
creditors and therefore it is my dear sir what I would after stating my case beg
your help in this affair. His public office, which I believe is one of commissary
of your army will easily bring him to your knowledge. It will then be
practicable for you to find out what his profits are and with whom he is
connected and in short what prospect there is of us recovering the money. He
is a gay, easy, well bred, facetious fellow, speaks most languages and I fancy
from these qualifications has been taken in a share with Sir James Cockbum
and others in their forage or bread contracts with the government but at this
I only guess at from Mr Stewart’s being of his bail who is a near relation of Sir
James’s; his history you will please keep to yourself as I imagine the not
1 For a full account of the operation of this bleachfield see A.J. Durie, ‘Saltoun Bleachfield, 1746-1773’,
Transactions of the East Lothian Antiquarian and Field Naturalists’ Society, xv (1976), 49-74.
2 The Company were also punuing Mudie’s clerk, William Weir, in the Scottish Courts: Signet Library,
Edinburgh, Court of Session Cases, 85:9 (1762).