| Description | Farming diary, no. 30.
26 December 1904 - 31 March 1905
Attends prayer meeting and Deacons' Court; attends Alexander Forbes' funeral; storms in early January; goes to meeting of Session; attends Mrs Yeats' funeral; the Bell cow calves; 'an exceedingly cold piercing wind' in mid-January; the Sabbath School children's Christmas Tree is held at Church; visits Mr Emslie at Easterton of Birnie; the Daisy cow calves; hurricane at the end of January; attends funeral of John Reid, who was ninety years old; cashes cheque for cattle sold to George Lyon; snow in February; the proprietor of the Learney Arms Hotel, Torphins, buys Andrew's machine; thrashes crop with the steam mill; attends office-bearers' meeting 'about the Wee Frees claiming our Church'; attends the Royal Northern Society Show in Aberdeen; the Maritana is held in Inverurie; the Bess cow and a few days later the Topsy cow calve; Andrew attends a drill at Monymusk; Mr Forrest unwell; they sow oat seed in the wetlands.
1 April - 30 June 1905
Heavy snow in April; Mrs Bruce Wilson from Sheffield visits; the Lady cow calves; calls at Craigiedarg - 'they were exceedingly kind'; Andrew attends drill; they finish the turnips for the season; reads pamphlet on the Madras Christian College; attends the funeral of a Mrs Ross 'who stayed in the Village of Kemnay'; attends Mr Rothney's funeral with Mr Emslie and Uncle Robert; attends funeral of Mrs Forbes, the blacksmith's wife; attends prayer meeting and meeting of Session, where a letter was read from Mr Petrie resigning the precentorship; buys two Irish stirks for James Cameron; gets made judge of the sale at Backhill; attends special Deacons' Court meeting about a precentor; Andrew shooting at the rifle range; at Inverurie feeing market, engages a young lad, Alexander Robertson, to work the horses for £14; pays rent at Kemnay House; George goes to Meikle Friday; 'things are growing [and] the crops are looking well'; Mrs Annand visits from Edinburgh and Mrs James Dunbar visits from Oban; sells the Megg cow to McValentine for £13 and buys a calver quey from Mrs Cameron; Andrew goes to camp; attends James Smith's wedding in Aberdeen with Bella and Mary - '[a] very quiet affair'; extremely hot in June; Grassick gains most votes for the precentorship; a Mr and Mrs Mortimer move to Backhill.
1 July - 30 September 1905
A 'sore needed' downpour at the start of June; the Poll mare foals; sells a colt at Inverurie for £37; attends Cattle Show in Aberdeen; enjoys day out to Turriff Cattle Show - '[t]here were also games & Military sports'; presides at prayer meeting; some of the folk at Broomhill of Echt suffering from influenza; attends prayer meeting and meeting of Session; James Clark breaks a leg at the quarry; Andrew wins first prize for his filly at the Cluny Show; enjoys afternoon at Craigiedarg; sells two queys to John Lyon for £33; Frank Booth leaves for England; they commence the harvest on 23 August; visits Boat of Garten and Kingussie by train; they thrash with the steam mill; attends prayer meeting and Deacons' Court; they take clyack on 16 September, along with two others on the same day; attends Mrs Imlay's funeral; Aberdeen Amateur Opera perform The Bohemian Girl.
1 October - 31 December 1905
Attends prayer meeting and meeting of Session; they finish the harvest on 10 October; sells two year old colt for £35; attends Deacons' Court; snow in mid-October; reads the Women's Missionary paper and the Gospel Messenger on the Sabbath; writes a letter to Mr Emslie of Easterton, Birnie; sells two queys to John Lyon for £30; attends prayer meeting and meeting of Session; attend David Adam of Walkendale's funeral; Mary sits at the Lord's table for her first communion; attends Deacons' Court; heavy rain in November; they thrash with the engine; writes letter to Mr Emslie; buys new suit from James Diack, £2..12..6; engages Alec for the winter half-year at his summer wages, £14; they finish the thrashing; pays rent at Kemnay House and then pays tradesmen's accounts; visits Mr Emslie at Easterton, Birnie; Mr Mathieson is appointed treasurer of the Deacons' Court; sells four cattle to John Lyon; Andrew goes to Mrs Valentine's funeral; attends Mrs Lawie's funeral; Alec attends ploughing match at Nether Mains, Monymusk; attends tradesmen's ploughing match at Alehousewells.
1 January - 19 February 1906
Gives Alec a holiday on the first day of the New Year; attends prayer meeting and Deacons' Court; Mary attends a 'soiree' at the U.F.C. in Kintore; buys two cattle from Charles Lawie for £24..10; attends the Christmas Tree event at Church with Mary and Andrew and afterwards a Deacons' Court and meeting of Session; they thrash with the steam mill; Andrew sells his forty sheep at 33/ a head; the smith lames the gip mare when shoeing her; votes for Henderson, the Liberal candidate, in the West Aberdeenshire poll; the Daisy cow calves; attends Mrs Brown's funeral; attends Deacons' Court and meeting of Session; looks over Deacons' Court income and expenditure as treasurer; snow in February; arranges the Church money for sending to Edinburgh; the Bell cow calves; George Mitchell's sister, Mrs Ross, dies at Dalreich; attends the funeral of Mrs Ross; buys a bull at sixteen guineas. |