Just to say thanks again for the A2A reference. Those nice people at Bury St Edmunds Records Office sent me copies of all the documents, which date from the period 1811 - 1833
It seems Charles GUEST (1770-1855) was once an overseer for the Parish of Fornham St Martin, but ended up owing them money (it's not entirely sure for what, but is likely to be for maintenance of a bastard child he had with an Ann Bridges) and most of the correspondence is him avoiding paying his debts - it's quite entertaining watching him employing delaying tactics, trying to squirm his way out and playing the current parish officials off against each other.
Things didn't work out though (he seems to have opened a school at Ixworth and lost money on it - one letter refers to an "opposition" opening and undercutting his fees!) and on one letter from Charles Guest to Fornham St Martin parish he gives his address as 9 Fleet Market, London - i.e. the debtors prison, Fleet Prison. He seems to have come to an arrangement with his debtors to pay them 3s 4d in the pound and avoided bankruptcy - he says his total debts amounted to nearly £1200, which seems to me a huge sum for 1830. The rest of the correspondence with the parish is his excuses as to why he's not yet paid the 3s 4d in the pound (which amounted to £2 10s 0d)!
The Bankruptcy Petition of June 1830 (which he seems to have escaped from) gives Charles' full career and residence to date: "Charles Guest, formerly of Fornham St Martin and afterwards of Ixworth both near Bury St Edmunds Suffolk, Schoolmaster and Land Surveyor and Adjutant of Militia on reduced pay and Quarter Master of the late Pembroke Fencible Cavalry on half pay and late of Bentinck Street, Berwick Street, Soho, Middlesex, adjutant and quartermaster as aforesaid but carrying on no business, a Prisoner in the Fleet Prison."
Other names mentioned in the correspondence, in case anyone has an interest in these people or can shed further light, are:
Mr HOGG(Fornham St Martin parish)
Mr CASE - seems to be some sort agent (solicitor?) for Charles Guest in Ixworth
Mr William HARVEY (Fornham St Martin parish)
Mr MASKETT (Fornham St Martin parish)
Mrs BRIDGEMAN (with whom a friend left £5 4s when Mr Maskett could not be found at the Bell (??) )
Mr LEMON (taking another £5 4s a month later (Apr 29 1828) from Charles Guest in Ixworth to presumably Mr Maskett in Fornham St Martin. This one interests me, as one of Charles' grandchildren is called Charles Lemon Guest, which I'd taken to be a mistranscription of Charles Simon Guest)
Anne BRIDGES - mother of Charles Guest's bastard child in Fornham St Martin
K.I. HAGGERTON (overseer of the Parish of Fornham St Martin, 1832)
Mr ARCHER, 1 Featherstone Buildings, Holborn (who is looking after Charles' "affairs")
Robert MAZE - taking Charles Guest to court in 1824 for "insufficient allowance when disabled from work by rupture"
Mr CREAD - the same note from the magistrates as mentions the complaint of Robt Maze, also instructs Charles Guest to "bring Mr Cread's Certificate" - whatever that might mean!
Frances BARTHROP - mother of Charles Guest's bastard daughter in Clare
Barrington Bloomfield SYER and Robert Cary BARNARD - JPs who made the bastardy order in Clare regarding Frances Barthrop's daughter.
