Draft of letter from Swire the Bishop of Hereford. He has heard from Seddon that...

Draft of letter from Swire the Bishop of Hereford.

He has heard from Seddon that the Bishop thinks it would be fair if they took Cruckton with Longden instead of Asterley, to which he (Seddon) has agreed and has gone further and undertaken the whole of the third portionist's duty excepting Longden and the whole of the second portion excepting Cruckton, and that this offer has been refused.

1. He has not offered to take the Radlith and Oaks part of the third portion, which is about ¼ of the whole.

2. The whole of the second portion except Cruckton is little more than ½ the whole second portion.

3. He wants them to take Cruckton church which is the parish church of the second portion, and which needs two services a Sunday, while he retains Asterley church which serves a very small population and needs only one service on a Sunday. The Longden parish with £500 a year no vicarage would have two parish churches and Mr. Seddon's portion £600 and a vicarage would have Asterley Church" I omit Lea Cross Church altogether", I one service a Sunday. "No wonder he agrees. A rector having two parish churches wide apart would never get on as there would be sure to be discussions as to his taking a more active part in one parish than the other".

If in the future Miss Hawkes refuses to endow Lea Cross Church any future Rector of the second portion might object to take services there and the second portion church would be Asterley at the extreme end of the parish and close by Pontesbury" (This last sentence has been crossed out in pencil.)

Such being the case, he has consulted Mr. Tatham-Warter and Mr. Furley who agree that the last thing to do would be to put the third portionist duties with regard to the first portion against the first portionist visiting the third portion for six months in the year and to form a Longden parish consisting of Longden and Asterley, for it is entirely cut off from Pontesbury parish "It is a very bad arrangement but much fairer than Mr. Seddon's new idea".