In the following year when he dispersed of his herd he sold the same cow for £2,200, while her three-month-old heifer calf realised £1,100, bought curiously enough by the same Duke of Devonshire. However, it was not all good news for a cow he had bought for £1,000 three years earlier sold for only £60. A visitor to the estate in 1876, reported that Lawson owned 100 cows and a large number of bulls, all of Durham shorthorn stock. He understood that Lawson had paid £3,000 for a cow and owned a bull weighing 1,000 kilograms which he boasted was priceless. In October 1906, following the death of the second baronet, the third baronet sold the entire herd of 68 animals, the 61 cows and heifers realised an average of £37 each and the 7 bulls £42. Notwithstanding its splendour and magnificence Brayton Hall had a very short life. On Saturday 21 September 1918 the hall was almost completely gutted by fire. What had been one of Cumberland's major showpieces; its wall enclosing priceless collections of furniture and works of art, assembled over centuries by various members of the family; became a roofless mass of broken masonry, charred wood and twisted iron. Since the death of his father, the third baronet, had preferred to live at Isel Hall; leaving Brayton unoccupied for most of that time. However the owner had promised the loan of Isel to a nephew, therefore preparations were in hand for Lawson's return. Craftsmen had busied themselves making internal alterations and all was in readiness from the carpets on the floors to the curtains at the windows. The fire started at 10.30am in the Drawing room, situated at the angle of the main building in the south wing, where the furniture, not intended for use, sat in the centre of the room, covered with dust sheets. The servants had lighted the fire that morning, the first time in many weeks. Investigators later suggested two possible causes; one that a spark had jumped from the fire to the dust sheets; the other that a jackdaw’s nest in the chimney had fallen down scattering burning embers over the room. The caretaker raised the alarm, and although Joseph Berwick, surveyor to the Aspatria Urban District Council and Captain of the volunteer Fire Brigade was immediately at hand, to combat the flames, his efforts failed to prevent the catastrophe. The furniture in the centre of the room was blazing like a bonfire and within minutes the ceiling collapsed and although the staff attached the Fire hoses and began to tackle the blaze they could not prevent it spreading.