MGM.Lion: So the £10 would appear as a smallish sum, appropriate to be given as a gift ["Sir Thomas said it would be enough"]. But nowadays £1300, even if given as a cheque, would surely be more than enough as a token farewell prezzie! It is true, as you say, that he was not a regular visitor, in the sense of dropping by every week or so; but I don't see that effects my main point about the current value of the sum quoted.

But we're back to the sheer wealth of this family. Think of the type of people who these days spend £4500 on a bottle of wine, give £500 tips to doormen etc....the Bertrams would have been in that league, and a trivial £10 to them would have kept a labourer for half a year.

BTW: I doubt very much that she would have given him a £10 note. The only "standard" issue baknotes in circulation at the time were for £1 and £2. Other values tended to be drawn up for specific named depositors by their banks. Paper notes were usually used in a similar way to cheques. Most people would never see a note, metal coins being preferred. A person would have problems having even a £1 note changed "on the street" when making casual purchases and would be much more likely to take the £1 note to a bank and exchange it for maybe a half guinea plus a collection of silver, which would be much more negotiable for casual expenditure.