This letter is listed in the “Non Banking” items although it does have one or two links with banking.

To:                 Mr. Charles Stewart W. S, George Street, Edinburgh.

From:             Sir Robert Anstruther, Balcaskie

Dated:            7^th November 1815.

Sir,

          Though without the smallest hope of ever recovering either memory or judgement, to enable me to interfere in anything of serious business, which I leave entirely to the directions of my grandson Stonefield as sole trustee for my heirs, I cannot help having some curiosity to know a little how pecuniary matters are going on.  In particular I wish to know, as far as you can tell me, the reason why so many shares of the old Bank of Scotland are of late advertised in the newspapers for sale, & whether you would advise me, your old client, to sell out so many of the 74 shares I now possess, in order to invest the money in heritable security at 5 per cent, payable half yearly, as offered in the Advertiser, or if you would rather advise me to employ the small savings I may continue to make from my income in purchasing more of the same stocks, which from the number of shares advertised for sale, I presume may be got cheaper than usual. – This is in me, merely matter of curiosity; for in all respects my affairs go on as usual and my factor, Chivas, expects to be able to remit you at the end of this month a smaller sum than usual from the unusual scarcity of money among our Fife tenantry, one only of whom I have been obliged to roup out, with the loss of at least £1,200 or more, & have re let the farm at a great diminution of yearly rent on a new nineteen year lease***** (1), as you foretold me some months ago would be the case ere long.    Caithness however makes no complaints, & I hope will rather rise than fall in next factor’s rental.  - Be there any chance of you again being in this county this season about your other clients affairs, so as I may have a chance of once more shaking hands with you, for my health is now so much better that, though hardly able to walk through the house, it seems not impossible I may continue to breathe for some weeks longer - & I shall hardly attempt again to dictate any thing further to you – but that I remain your sincere friend and wellwisher.

                                                                             R A

           The sender of the letter is Sir Robert Anstruther of Balkcaskie, 3^rd Bt.  who was born in 1733.  With this letter having been written in 1815 he will have been 83 years of age and this may explain such references as “without the smallest hope of ever recovering either memory or judgement” although whether or not the line “it seems not impossible I may continue to breathe for some weeks longer” is said in serious tone or in humour is difficult to tell.  Sir Robert Anstruther of Balkcaskie did live for a further 3 years and died in August 1818.

          Balcaskie is located in near Carnbee in Fife, Scotland and was originally the site of a tower house, and was remodelled by Sir William Bruce, Surveyor-General of the Royal Works in Scotland, who owned the property from 1665 to 1684. In 1698 Balcaskie came into the hands of the Anstruther family.  The property appears to be very impressive.

          The letter is addressed to Charles Stewart, W. S. of George Street, Edinburgh and other than to advise that Stewart must have been in the Scottish legal professional, and to have been located in a very well established Edinburgh street, I regret I cannot add anything on the addressee.

          Sir Robert Anstruther married Lady Janet Erskine in 1763 and together they had six children, including Elizabeth who married Colin Campbell of Stonefield.  In 1788 they had a son (John Campbell) and he is the only male heir I can find.  This must be the grandson referred to as “Stonefield” (more correctly as John Campbell of Stonefield) who is looking after the affairs of Sir Robert Anstruther.  John Campbell of Stonefield was probably engaged in this task as two of Sir Robert Anstruther’s sons were already dead and the third was likely to have been in India as he held the office of Recorder of Bombay in March 1812.

         It would appear that Sir Robert Anstruther of Balkcaskie has seen a number of  Bank of Scotland  shares being offered for sale and is curious as to whether or not he should sell the 74 shares he holds as buy more.  Banking income at that time was depressed – primarily as a consequence of the recently achieved Peace with France meaning fewer business opportunities as military orders slowed – and Bank of Scotland was seeing perhaps fewer opportunities as a consequence of the increased competition from the like of the Commercial Bank of Scotland which was established in 1810.  Lending opportunities were fewer and whilst previously deposits had equated to approximately half of he money lent by the Bank in 1804, by 1815 the amount on deposit was roughly equal to the sums lent.    A greater amount of the Bank’s profit was derived from Investment Dividends and between 1814 and 1819 the percentage of the Bank’s profit received from Dividends had increased from 33% to 55%.  As a consequence of the aforesaid it is likely that several holders of Bank of Scotland shares would look to trade them and invest in more profitable markets.

         In Saville’s “Bank of Scotland, A History – 1695 – 1995” (sometimes referred to as the “grown up version” as it comprises over 1,000 pages) there is a graph which suggests that the selling price of each Bank of Scotland share in 1814 was just under £170.  Sir Robert Anstruther’s 74 shares with then have held a selling value of £12,580.  It is quite difficult to compare the current spending power with that of earlier years ~ particularly over a period of some 193 years! – although using the Retail Price Index £12,580 from 1815 would now be the equivalent of £782,941.  This comparison provides an indication of the wealth of Sir Robert Anstruther and certainly explains his "curiosity"

        I am often curious to what advice he was given or advice he took and I suppose I could search the Scottish records for his will to see if any reference is then made to Bank of Scotland shares.  Had he sold then in 1816 he would probably have lost about £10 per shares (£740, c. £46,000).  If however he held them and they were in his estate in 1819 then they would have each been worth c. £260 giving him an increase in the value of his investment to the level of £19,240.  This is the equivalent of £1,197, 424.  A big decision.

       Whilst Sir Robert Anstruther clearly had considerable wealth he was interested in ensuring that his assets worked for him.  He complains of an “unusual scarcity of money among our Fife tenantry”.  It is likely that his Fife tenants would be agricultural tenants and with the cessation of War with France this part of Fife would experience a similar fate to that of the East Lothians whereby it would no doubt see a reduction in the Military establishments stationed in the East Coast with there being a significant reduction in the demand for such commodities as grain or leather.  Sir Robert Anstruther continues to advise that he has had to “roup out” and tenant and with a roup being an auction it is likely that he has forced the sale of his tenant’s possessions to obtain his rents.

      The reference to Caithness is likely to relate to the estate of Watten and Bridgend which was purchased by Sir Robert Anstruther in about 1780,  from Sinclair Manson (of Bridgend, Watten), who was obliged to sell owing to his connection with Douglas Heron & Co (“the Ayr Bank”) which failed disastrously in 1773, having only opened in 1769.

     There is only one word (1) which I cannot decipher in this letter and I suspect that it is a legal term which relates to the duration of a lease.  If you believe otherwise please let me know.

(1)