The letter is addressed toMr James Bovril, Care of Mr George Bovril, Kirkaldy.
He has added a note at the bottom left which appears to be
To be Shared. The letter is written on heavy cream paper which has no watermark. There are three postal markings : two circular date stamps, one for acceptance and one for delivery, both in red ink and including the word PAID, and then the red ink ‘1’ to show the penny postage had been paid. Note that it was dated Sep 1840 after introduction of Penny black stamp but at that time it was not yet compulsory to buy and use the stamp, provided the postage was paid by the sender. I also noted that he has written the town name as Kirkaldy, and in the records and on the map it is spelled as Kirkcaldy.
I have transcribed the letter with spelling and capitilisation as written.However, the next information was most useful, and I don’t know that I would have found that information without a lot more workThe names appear to be those of vessels. The letter is easy to read except for just the one word which may be the name of another vessel.
Those were the facts, and then the information next offered was supposition, and not something for which I had asked.Port Dundas 5 Sept 1840
Mr James Bovril
Dear Sir
I arrived hear yesterday with
the ‘Diligent’ and having Considered about
the Haver (?) freight I think it would
Not pay the vessel as there is no
Return freight & therefore beg to inform
you that I will Decline Engaging for the
Voyager at this time.I am Dear Sir,
your ObedientFrancis Pringle
There is another note on the outside of the letter by the receiver to show date it was received and who had written it.
“ 1840 Francis Pringle Port Dundas 5 September Recd 6”
Each of our letters leads us to research things about which we knew nothing, and the background info for this letter was no exception. I wanted information about the towns involved and Wikipedia was very helpful and supplied exactly what I wanted.Kirkcaldy is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about 11-1/2 miles (18.5 kms) north of Edinburgh and 27-1/2 miles (44.25 kms) south-southwest of Dundee. Kirkcaldy and the surrounding burghs had a dense, industrial character. Handloom weaving was dominant, and linen manufacturing. A further search using the AI source resulted in more information, also with relevant citations. First the address on the letter, Fife Street, Kirkcaldy.
Quote In 1840, Fife Street was located in Sinclairtown an industrial suburb on the northeastern side of Kirkcaldy dominated by pottery works, handloom weaving shops, and a massive influx of workers arriving for the industrial boom.(https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/g/1tfftj2y) Unquote
Quote
Your recipient, Mr James Bovril, was likely a local manufacturer, retailer, or distribution agent receiving raw materials or commercial goods sent through the canal-and-sea trade routes.Unquote
QuoteThe Nature of the Freight
Because the letter specifies shipping freight, the route between them in 1840 would have been highly strategic. Cargo from Port Dundas travelled east down the Forth and Clyde Canal to Grangemouth, entered the Firth of Forth, and was shipped across the water directly to Kirkcaldy Harbour.
Common freight moving on this exact path in 1840 included: Clay, flint, and bone transported from the west to feed Kirkcaldy’s burgeoning potteries (such as the nearby [Gallatown and Fife potteries] (https://www.transferwarecollectorsclub.org/sites/default/files/grants/the-gallatown-fife-potteries-kirkcaldy-scotland.-g-r-haggarty.pdf).
Flour and grain from Glasgow's mills shipped to Fife bakers.
Yarn and flax for Kirkcaldy's massive linen weaving industry. (https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/g/11bc5h71p3)(https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/g/1q5bmys43
With this information, available now, nearly 200 years later, it seems surprising that the writer, Mr Bovril, could not find freight of some sort for the return voyage of his vessel.