On the 1st of January, 1756, a draft of an agreement was drawn up “between John Heath, of Derby, in the County of Derby, gentleman; Andrew Planche, of ye same place, china maker; and Wm. Duesberry, of Longton, in ye County of Stafford, enameller,” by which they became “co-partners together as well in ye art of making English china as also in buying and selling of all sorts of wares belonging to ye art of making china” for ten years, with power on Heath’s part to extend for another ten years. In this agreement, the original MS. of which is in my own possession, Heath (who, it will be seen, is described as a “gentleman,” while the others are respectively described by their trades of “china maker” and “enameller”) agrees to pay in £1,000 to the concern, as his share “as stock,” “to be used and employ’d in common between them for ye carrying on ye said art of making china wares,”[7] for which he was to receive one-third of the profits till the principal sum of £1,000 be paid back. One of the clauses in this agreement is as follows:--“Also it is agreed between ye sd parties to these Presents that ye sd Copartners _shall not at any time hereafter use or follow ye Trade aforesaid or any other Trade whatsoever_ during ye sd Term to their private Benefit and advantage.” From this it would seem that John Heath could not at that time be carrying on the Cock-pit Hill Works. There is nothing to show that this deed was ever legally executed, and two years later--in 1758--I find him named as one of the proprietors of the Cock-pit Hill Works, along with two partners, “William Butts, gentleman,” and “Thomas Rivett, Esquire”--Butts, I presume, being the practical man of the concern. The document in which this appears is in my own possession, and is a commitment of a man named John Lovegrove, one of the workmen “at their pottery in the said Borough of Derby,” for running away from his said service. The commitment is as follows:-- “BOROUGH OF DERBY. “To the constables of the said borough of Derby and to each and every of them and also to the Keeper of the House of Correction for the said borough.