Manuscript, in a single hand, of Aston's diary, which records such routine events as Aston's dinner companions, various small purchases made in town, and the weather, as well as notes about his lands and tenants; one entry records the "surrender" of land by his mother and grandmother in the morning, and a game of bowls with his brother in the afternoon. The diary is followed, in a different hand, by estate accounts kept for him by Francis Gastrell, including "Copy of Acct. of Cash received by Mr. Francis Gastrell for the use of the Executrixes of Dame Catherine Aston deceas'd," and "Copy of Disbursements." The accounts continue dos-a-dos, in Gastrell's hand, with "Account of All interest money, Principel Mortgages or Bonds & Rents of Estates in possession received of Mr. Ashley & others for the executrixes of late Lady Aston." A letter, in a third hand, from Sir John Crewe to Aston, dated 1704, is tipped inside the back cover, expressing the writer's regret at not having been able to present Aston with a horse suitable for his size.
