The Paston Letters Volume V Part 35

821

JOHN PASTON TO SIR JOHN PASTON[169-1]

_To Sir John Paston, Knyght._

[Sidenote: 1472 / NOV. or DEC.]

Syme recomandyth hym to your good mastyrshep, and preyeth yow that ye wyll not forget, though he be a boye, to let hym were the same lyvere that your men do; and if it pleased yow to lete hys gowne clothe be sent hym home, that it myght be mad ayenst your comeing in to thys contre, he wold be as prowd as eny man ye have. Sir, as hertly as I can, I thank yow for the hatt, whyche is comyng, as I undyrstand by your wrytyng, sent by John, the Abottys man of Seynt Benet.

My modyr sendys you G.o.des blyssyng and hyrs, and preyes yow to get a new lycence of my Lord of Norwyche that she may have the sacrement in hyr chapell. I gat a lycence of hym for a yere, and it is nyghe woryn ought.

Ye may get it for the Byshoppys lyve, and ye wylle.

As for the lettyrs that Slyfeld shold get newe of the Kyng, whyche ye shold bryng to my Lord of Norffolk, it is myn avyse that ye shall come home your sylff as hasty ly as ye maye, so that ye may be at the crystenyng of the chyld that my Lady is with; it shall cause yow gret thank, and a gret fordell [_advantage_] in your mater. And as for the lettres, leve a man of yowr to awayte on Slyfeld to bryng theym after yow; of whyche lettres I avyse yow to have one dyrect fro the Kyng to yow, comandyng yow to be the messenger and brynger of the other lettres to my Lord, my Lady, and ther consayll, for your owne mater; and thys me thynkyth shall do well, for then shall the man shewe to my Lordes consayll the lettre dyrect to yow that ye have awtoryte to be your owne solycytour, and also it shall be thought that the Kyng tendryth yow and your mater, when he wryghtyth to your sylf for it.

My Lady wayteth hyr tyme with in viij. dayes at the ferthest.

[Footnote 169-1: [From Paston MSS., B.M.] The date of this letter is shown by the reference to the situation of the d.u.c.h.ess of Norfolk. Compare Letter 817. There is an old, and nearly contemporary, endors.e.m.e.nt, 'Anno xv^o, mens. Novemb.,' but this is clearly erroneous.]

822

ABSTRACT[170-1]

[Sidenote: 1472 / DEC. 7]

1472, 7 Dec.--'Vigill of Concepcion of oure Lady,' 12 Edw. IV. Indenture of agreement (in English) between Bp. Waynflete and William Worceter, by which the latter undertakes to deliver to the Bishop all deeds, charters, rolls of courts, and accounts, and all other muniments which are in his hands relating to the manors and lands of the late Sir John Fastolf, excepting lands, etc. in Norfolk, called Fairchilds, and two tenements and two gardens called Walles, in Suthwerk, of which he himself is seised; and also, as executor of the will of Sir Thomas Howes, to deliver up all money and goods of Fastolf, and obligations for property, etc., sold by the said Thomas, which he can recover, over the sum of 40 due to him, the said William Worceter, for his marriage, and also to a.s.sist the said Bishop and his College at Oxford in all matters relating to Fastolf's lands; in return for which the Bishop covenants to pay him 100, and also an allowance upon all sums of money recovered by him.

[Footnote 170-1: This abstract is taken from Mr. Macray's account of the MSS. in Magdalen College, Oxford, printed in the Fourth Report of the Historical MSS. Commission.]

823

JOHN PASTON TO SIR JOHN PASTON[171-1]

_To my Mastyr, Sir John Paston, Knyght, be thys delyveryd._

[Sidenote: 1472 / DEC. 18]

Ryght worchepfull Syr, I recomand me to yow, thankyng yow most hertly of your gret cost, whyche ye dyd on me at my last being with yow at London; whyche to my power I wyll recompence yow with the best servyse that lythe in me to do for your plesure, whyll my wytts be my owne.

Syr, as for the mater of Caster, it hathe be mevyd to my Ladys good grace by the Byshope of Wynchester, as well as he kowd imagyn to sey it, consederyng the lytyll leyser that he had with hyr; and he told me that he had ryght an agreabyll answer of hyr, but what hys answer was, he wold not tell me. Then I axyd hym what answer I should send yow, in as myche as ye mad me a solysyter to hys Lords.h.i.+p for that mater; then he bad me that undyr consayll I shold send you woord that hyr answer was more to your plesure than to the contrary, whych ye shall have more pleyn knowlage of thys next terme, att whyche tyme bothe my Lord and she shall be at London.

The Byshop cam to Framlyngham on Wednysday at nyght, and on Thursday by x. of the clok befor noon, my yong Lady was krystend, and namyd Anne.

The Byshop crystend it and was G.o.dfader bothe, and with in ij. owyrs and lesse aftyr the crystenyng was do, my Lord of Wynchester departyd towards Waltham.[171-2] ... ... ... ... ... ... . And I let you pleynly weet, I am not the man I was, ffor I was never so roughe in my mastyrs conseyt as I am now, and that he told me hymselff before Rychard Sothewell, Tymperley, Sir W. Brandon, and twenty more, so that they that lowryd, nowgh[172-1] laughe upon me; no moor, but G.o.d look.

Wretyn at Framlyngham, the Fryday next aftyr that I depertyd fro yow.

Thys day my Lord is towardys Walsyngham, and comandyd me to overtake hym to morow at the ferthest.

J. P.

[Footnote 171-1: [From Fenn, ii. 42.] Fenn informs us that this letter is dated on the back in a contemporaneous handwriting, 'Anno x^o.,' which seems to mean 10 Edw. IV. This date however, is certainly erroneous; for in the inquisitions taken on the death of the Duke of Norfolk, Anne, Lady Mowbray, his daughter and heir, was found to have been four years old on the 10th December 1476.

She was born, therefore, on the 10th December 1472.]

[Footnote 171-2: Then follows the substance of a conversation between the Lady of Norfolk and Thomas Davers, wherein she promises to be a friend to Sir John Paston concerning Caister; but J. Davers swore J. Paston not to mention her goodwill to any person, except to Sir John.--F.]

[Footnote 172-1: In the modern version Fenn reads, 'so that they that _loved not_, laugh upon me.']

824

JOHN PASTON TO THE DUKE OF NORFOLK[172-2]

_To the right hyghe and myghty Prince, and my right good and gracious Lord, my Lord the Dwke of Norffolk._

[Sidenote: 1472]

Mekly besechyth your hyghness, your poore and trew contynuall servaunt and oratour, John Paston, the yonger, that it myght please your good grace to call on to your most discret and notabyll remembrance that lateward, at the cost and charge of my brodyr, John Paston, Knyght, whyche most entendith to do that myght please your hyghness, the ryght n.o.byll Lord, the Bysshop of Wynchester entretyd so, and compouned with your Lordshepp, that it liekyd the same to be so good and gracious Lord to my seyd brodyr, that by forsse of serteyn dedys, relessis, and lettrys of attorney selyd with the sealys of your good grace, and of other serteyn personys infeoffyd to your use in the maner of Caster, late John Fastolffes, Knyght, in the conte of Norffolk, my seyd brodyr and I, with other enfeoffyd to my seyd brodyrs use in the seyd maner, wer peasably possessyd of and in the same tyll syche tyme as serteyn personys, servaunts on to your good grace, entred in to the seyd maner, and therof have takyn the issuses and profitys in the name of your seyd hyghnesse by the s.p.a.ce of thre yer and more, to the gret hurt of my seyd brodyr and me your seyd servuantes and oratour: wherfor, as I have oft tymys befor thys, I beseche your good grace, at the reverence of G.o.d, and in the wey of charyte, that my seyd brodyr may by your hyghness be ayen restoryd in to the possessyon of the sey[d] maner, acordyng to the lawe and good conscyence; and wee shall prey to G.o.d for the preservacyon of your most n.o.byll estate.

[Footnote 172-2: [From Paston MSS., B.M.] This pet.i.tion is shown by internal evidence to have been drawn up towards the end of the year 1472, as it sets forth that the Duke had been more than three years in possession of Caister, which was surrendered to him in September 1469. There can be no doubt therefore that it was presented or prepared for presentation at the time of John Paston's visit to Framlingham.]

825

MARGARET PASTON TO SIR JAMES GLOYS(?)[173-1]

[Sidenote: 1473 / JAN. 18]

I recomaund me to you, and thanke you hertyly of your letteris, and delygente labour that ye have had in thoes materis that ye have wretyn to me of, and in all other, to my profette and worschep, and in esspeciall atte this sesons towchyng the mater that I sent you the indenture of. Ye have lyghtyd myne hert therin by a pound, for I was in fere that it wold not have bene doo so hastyly with oute danger. And as for the letters that Thom Holler son schuld have brought me, I see nother hym ne the letters that he schuld have brought; wherefor, I pray you hertely, yeve it be no dysese to you, that ye will take the labour to bryng Walter theyr he schuld be, and to purvaye for hym that he may be sette in good and sad rewle. For I were loth to lese hym, for I trust to have more joye of hym than I have of them that bene owlder; though it be more coste to me to send you forth with hym, I hold me plesed, for I wote wele ye schall best purvaye for hym, and for suche thynges as is necessar to hym, than another shuld doo, after myne intent. And as for ane hors to lede hys gere, me thynke it were best porvaye one atte Camberage, lesse than [_unless_] ye canne gytte onye carreours from thens to Oxynforth more hastyly; and I mervell that the letters come not to me, and whether I may laye the defaute to the fauder or to the son therof. And I wold Water schuld be copilet with a better than Holler son is, there as he schalbe; howe be it I wold not that he schuld make never the lesse of hym, by cause he is his contre man and neghbour. And also I pray you wryte a letter in my name to Watere, after that ye have knowne myne entent by fore this to hym ward; so that he doo welle, lerne well, and be of good rewle and disposycion, ther shall nothyng faylle hym that I may helpe with, so that it be nessessare to hym; and bydde hym that he be not to hasty of takyng of orderes that schuld bynd hym, till that he be of xxiiij. yeere of agee or more, thoff he be consaled the contrare, for oftyn rape [_haste_] rewith. I will love hym better to be a good secular man than to be a lewit prest.

And I am sore that my cosyn Bernay is seke, and I pray you yeff me white wine, or ony of my wateris, or ony other thyng that I have that is in your awarde, may doo hym ony comforth. I lette hym have it; for I wold be right sory yf ony thyng schuld come to hym botte good. And for G.o.dsake advise hym to doo make hys will, yeve it be not doo, and to doo well to my cosyn, his wiff, and els it were pete; and I pray you to recomaunde me to hyr, and to my nawnte, and to all the gentill men and gentil women there. And as for John Daye, and he be dede I wold be sory, for I know not howe to come by my mony that he oweith me; and I porpose that Pac.o.ke schall have les to doo for me another yeres than he haith had, if I may be better porvayed with your helpe, for he is for hym self, bott not for me.

And as for ony marchandes to my corn, I can gytte none here; therfor I pray you, doo ye als wele therein as ye canne; also I send you by the bereer hereof the bill of myne resaytes. And yef ye go forth with Walter, I pray you come to me als sone as ye may after ye be commyn home; and me lyketh myne abydyng and the contre here[175-1] right well, and I trust whan sommer comith and fayre wether, I schall lyke it better, for I am cherysed here botte to wel.

And I constrew your letter in other materis well i nough, whereof I thanke you; and if it nede not to send forth Walter hastyly, I wald ye myght come to me, thowe ye schuld com opon one day and goo agayne on the next day, than schuld I comon with you in all materis; and I hold best if ye have not the letteris that Holler son schuld have brough me, that ye send Sym over for them this nyght that I may have them to morowe, and yif ye may combe your self, I wold be the better playsed.

And I remember that water of mynte or water of millefole were good for my cosyn Bernay to drynke, for to make hym to browke,[175-2] and yeve thei send to Dame Elesebeth Callethorppe ther ye shall not fayill of the tone or of both, sche haith other wateris to make folkis to browke. G.o.d kepe you.

Wrytyn on the Monday next after Sent Hiller.

I have no longer leyser atte this tyme.

[Footnote 173-1: [From Paston MSS., B.M.] The allusion by the writer to her cousin Berney's sickness makes it probable that this letter was written in 1473, when the Monday after St. Hilary would be the 18th of January. John Berney of Reedham died on the 20th January in that year (Inquis. _post mortem_, 13 Edw. IV., No. 17).

The letter has neither signature nor address, but was probably written by Margaret Paston to her priest, Sir James Gloys, who died in the course of this year.]

[Footnote 175-1: I think this must have been written at Maltby, where Margaret Paston certainly lived during her later years, and where she was doubtless staying when she desired a license of the Bishop to have the Sacrament in her private chapel. _See_ No.

821.]

[Footnote 175-2: _i.e._ to enable him to retain food in his stomach.]