Green marbled hard cover, containing maths exercises by Francis Hood, Derby, 1843

Hardback book with marbled cover in green with touches of pink. Dark blue leather spine, darkened to almost black. The initials F.H. are inscribed on the front in ink.
The inside front cover features a pencil drawing of a scroll, containing the words 'F. Hood 1843 Ashbourne'. The facing page re-iterates, Francis Hood 1843, inside a spirited pen drawing of a swan.

The work in the book is divided into sections. Each is opened with a decorated title, often in purple ink, and introductory passage establishing the rules, before moving to worked examples. Calculations are written throughout in black ink, with underlining in red or blue. There are no corrections or blotting, suggesting that this book was used to copy out rough workings done elsewhere.

[first section] Direct Proportion
The questions are written on faint ruled pencil lines, and the calculations are written within a grid of rules squares.

Commodities that are mentioned include: tobacco, iron, coffee, Cheshire cheese, lead, gold, sugar, raisins, silver, wool, stockings, candles, muslin, broard cloth, shalloon, Holland and plush.
Other transactions include daily budgeting, currency conversions, interest, work rates and travel times.

[second section] Practice
Involves the use of aliquot parts (divisors), and eight further Rules. The exercises are shorter in this section, and condensed up to ten on a page, in columns.

[third section] Tare and Tret
Calculations to determine how the trading conventions of tare, tret and cloff impact on gross weight, neat weight, and prices. Worked examples are interspersed with Rules.

[fourth section] Commission
Involves calculating percentages for agents, or business transactions. Generally using figures from 2 1/2 to 4 per cent.

[fifth section] Brokerage
Calculations of an allowance for a Broker, who negotiates prices and terms of transactions. Calculations based on figures from 1/8 to 2 per cent.

[sixth section] Stocks
"The stocks, or public finds, are dets of government". Calculations on valuation of stocks and costs of brokerage. Stocks used as examples include Bank Stock, India Stock, Navy, and Consols.

[seventh section] Simple Interest
Calculating the annual cost of borrowing money, typically 4 or 5 per cent, over terms in both years and days.

Given by Barbara Jones

This collection of books belonged to Derby tailor Francis Hood and his children.

Francis was born in Ashbourne, Derby, in 1800. In 1823 he married Susanna Wilson, and they had five children. All their names, apart from the youngest, Susanna, appear on the exercise and copy books. Francis was a successful tailor, and the enterprise grew to be a flourishing family business.

George (born 1827) was a tailor with his father by the age of 14. He died aged only 24.

Elizabeth (born 1830) became a milliner and dressmaker. She married Scottish draper John Train, but was soon widowed, and thereafter is listed is woollen goods trader as well as dressmaker.

Francis (born 1832) moved to Australia, possibly before his twentieth birthday, where he stayed the rest of his life.

Henry (born 1836) was an apprentice in 1851. Ten years later, at the age of 25, he inherited the family business, and by 1881 was employing 6 men and 2 boys. He was married to Elizabeth from Somerset, and they had six children. He was able to retire in his mid-sixties and move to a country house on the proceeds of the business. Soon after, Elizabeth died, but Henry remarried at the age of 72 to a woman 31 years his junior. His second son George (born 1868) continued the Hood dynasty from the 1890s, though the shop in St John Street, Ashbourne, remained ‘Henry Hood & Son’ in 1900.

Susanna (born 1838) never married, and lived with Elizabeth. She was also a dressmaker.

The books were passed down through Henry’s children to the donor’s husband.

The Hoods were a family of tailors based in Ashbourne and Derby, whose sons were taught accounting, measuring, letter-writing and numeration in preparation for the trade.

Like their father Francis (b.1799), the three sons George, Francis and Henry were prepared for the trade with a rigorous education in mercantile arithmetic. This book belonged to Francis (b. 1832), and demonstrates the rules and practice of calculating interest, wastage, brokerage and commission on a wide range of nineteenth century commodities.

The work in the book is conscientiously inscribed; titles are decorated with a flourish and there are no crossings out or corrections. This suggests this was a neat work book, with the process of working out done elsewhere, perhaps on a slate.

B.279-2012