BISHOP WAYNFLETE'S ADVICE[194.1]

Be it remembred that forasmoch as Sir John Fastolf late decesed, of grete affeccion, hath put me yn trust to be one of hys executors, and seth hyt ys desyryd me to know my disposicion hereynne, myne advyse is this, that fyrst an inventorie be made holye of hys G.o.des and catell yn all places, and thayt they be leyd yn sure waard by your discrecions, tille the executors, or the moste part of tho that he put hys grete trust uppon, speke wyth me and make declaracion to me of hys laste wille, to the accomplyshment whereoff I wolle be speciall G.o.de Lord.

Ferthymore, as touchyng hys buryeng and month ys mynde[194.2] kepyng, that it be don worshyplye, accordyng to hys degree and for the helth of hys soule, and that almesse be yeven yn ma.s.s seyng, and to pore peple to the some of a hundred mrcks tille that othyrwyse we speke to geder; and I can agree ryzt well that hys servaunts haf theyr rewardes be tymes accordyng to hys wylle, to th'entent that they may be better disposed and to pray for the wellfare of hys soule, takyng avyse of a lerned man yn spirituell lawe, for no charge of administracion till the executors com to ghedr, or the moste part that hys trust was most uppon, to tak the administracion.

W. WINTON.

[Footnote 194.1: [From Fenn, iii. 358.]]

[Footnote 194.2: A monthly celebration in memory of a deceased person, when prayers were said and alms offered for the good of his soul.]

394

ABSTRACT[194.3]

ROBERT SPANY OF POSSEWYKE TO THE WIFE OF JOHN PASTON, ESQUIRE

[Sidenote: Between 1459 and 1466]

Begs her influence with her husband and Sir T. Howes, executors of Sir J. Fastolf, for reparation of a wrong done by Sir John, who refused to ratify a purchase made by the writer from his surveyor, Sir John Kyrteling, of a place and lands in Tunstale, sometime called Wrightes of Smalbergh, without receiving 10 marks over what was bargained.

[This letter must have been written between the death of Fastolf in 1459 and that of Paston in 1466.]

[Footnote 194.3: [From Paston MSS., B.M.]]

395

FRIAR BRACKLEY TO JOHN PASTON[195.1]

_Carissimo suo magistro, Johanni Paston, armigero._

_Jesus, Maria, &c._

[Sidenote: 1459]

Ryte reverent mayster and most trusty frend in erthe, as lowly as I kan or may, I recomaunde me, &c. Syr, in feyth I was sore aferd that ze had a gret lettyng that ze come not on Wednysday to met, &c. Be myn feythe, and ze had be here, ze schuld haf had ryte good chere, &c., and hafe faryd ryte wele after zour pleser, &c., with more, &c.

Sir John Tatirshall is at one with Heydon, &c., and Lord Skalys hathe made a lofeday[195.2] with the prior and Heydon in alle materys except the matere of Snoryng, &c. And the seyd pryor spake maysterly to the jurrorys, &c., and told hem and [_i.e._ if] they had dred G.o.d and hurt of here sowlys, they wold haf some instruccyon of the one party as wele as of the other. But they were so bold they were not aferd, for they fownde no bonys to sey in her verdyte, as T. T.[196.1] and J. H.[196.2]

wold, &c.

A lewde [_i.e._ illiterate] doctor of Ludgate prechid on Soneday fowrtenyte at Powlys, chargyng the peple that no man schuld preyen for these Lords traytorys,[196.3] &c.; and he had lytyl thank, as he was worthy, &c. And for hyse lewd demenyng his brethir arn had in the lesse favour at London, &c. Doctor Pynchebek and Doctor Westhawe, grete prechowrys and parsonys at London, bene now late made monkys of Charterows at Schene, one at the on place and an other at the other place, &c.

The Chaunceler[196.4] is not good to these Lords, &c., for he feryth the Erle of Marche wyl cleyme by inheritans the Erldam of Ha ... . .[196.5] &c., of which mater I herd gret speche in Somercede schyre, &c. Wyndham, Heydon, Todynham, Blake, W. Chambirleyn, Wentworth, have late commyssyonys to take for tretorys and send to the next gayl all personys fawtorys and weelwyllerys to the seyd Lords, &c. Mayster Radclyff and ze haf none of commyssyonys directid to zow, &c., for ze bene holdyn favorabil, &c. Wyndham and Heydon bene namyd here causerys of the commyssyonys, &c.

On Moneday last at Crowmere was the ore and the bokys of regystre of the amrelte takyn a wey from my Lord Scalys men be a gret mult.i.tude of my Lord Rossys, &c. The Lord Skalys is to my Lord Prince,[196.6] &c., to wayte on hym, &c. He seyth, per Deum Sanctum, as we sey here, he schal be amrel or he schal ly there by, &c. Be my feyth, here is a coysy werd [_unsettled world_]. Walsham of Chauncery, that never made lesyng, told me that Bokkyng was with my Lord Chaunceler this terme, but I askyd not how many tymys, &c.

As I haf wrytyn to zow oftyn byfor this, _Facite vobis amicos de mammona iniquitatis_, quia de facto. T. T., J. H., et J. W. [_J. Wyndham_] c.u.m ceteris Magistri Fastolf fallacibus famulis magnam gerunt ad vos invidiam, quod excelleritis eos in bonis, &c., Judas non dormit, &c.

_Noli zelare facientes iniquitatem, quoniam tanquam fenum velociter arescent et quemadmodum olera herbarum cito per Dei gratiam decident._ Ideo sic in Psalmo: _Spera in Domino et fac bonitatem et pasceris in divitiis ejus et delectare in Domino, et dabit tibi pet.i.tiones cordis tui_.[197.1] Et aliter: _Jacta cogitatum tuum in Domino et ipse te enutriet_.[197.2] _Utinam_, inquit Apostolus, _abscindantur qui vos conturbant_,[197.3] &c. Et alibi: _Cavete vos a malis et importunis hominibus_.[197.4] Precor ergo Deum qui vos et me creavit et suo pretioso sanguine nos redemit, vos vestros et vestra gratiose conservet in prosperis et gratiosius dirigat in agendis.

Scriptum Walsham, feria quarta[197.5] in nocte c.u.m magna festinatione, &c. Utinam iste mundus malignus transiret et concupiscentia ejus.

Vester ad vota promptissimus,

Frater J. BRACKLEY,

_Minorum minimus_.

[Footnote 195.1: [From Fenn, iii. 346.] This letter belongs to the latter part of the year 1459. After the dispersion of the Duke of York's army near Ludlow in October of that year, commissions were granted to various persons to arrest and punish his adherents. Even as early as the 14th of October, Lord Rivers and others were commissioned to seize their lands and goods in different counties (see _Patent Roll_, 38 Hen. VI., p. 1, m. 12, _in dorso_). But this letter, we are inclined to think, was written about six or seven weeks later, for it will be seen by the next that Bocking, who is here stated to have been with my Lord Chancellor 'this term,' must have been in attendance on him before the 7th December, and therefore, we may presume, during Michaelmas term, which ended on the 28th November. It is, however, difficult to judge, from the very slender allusion to Sir John Fastolf, whether this letter was written before or after the old knight's death. Brackley here speaks of having been quite recently in Somersetshire, which is not unlikely to have been in the middle of October, when the Earls of March, Warwick, and Salisbury withdrew into the West. Brackley, as will be seen, was a great partisan of these Lords, and may very well have accompanied them; but not long before Fastolf's death he appears to have been at Norwich.]

[Footnote 195.2: Love days were days appointed for the settlement of disputes by arbitration.]

[Footnote 196.1: Sir Thomas Tuddenham.]

[Footnote 196.2: John Heydon.]

[Footnote 196.3: Meaning the Earls of March, Warwick, and Salisbury.]

[Footnote 196.4: William Waynflete, Bishop of Winchester.]

[Footnote 196.5: The original letter is here defective.--F.]

[Footnote 196.6: Edward, Prince of Wales.]

[Footnote 197.1: Psalm x.x.xvi. (or x.x.xvii.) 1-4.]

[Footnote 197.2: Psalm liv. (or lv.) 22.]

[Footnote 197.3: Gal. v. 12.]

[Footnote 197.4: 2 Thess. iii. 2.]

[Footnote 197.5: 'Feria quarta' means Wednesday.]

396

JOHN BOCKING TO YELVERTON, PASTON, AND FILONGLEY[197.6]

_To my right worshipful maistris, William Yelverton, Justice, John Paston, and Herre Filongley, and to eche of them._

[Sidenote: 1459 / DEC. 7]

Right worshepful Sers, I recomaunde me to yow. And like it yow to wete, that my Lord Chaunceller[197.7] is right good and tendre Lord in all your materes, and soo wil contynue, and my Lord Tresorier[197.8] in like wise; which bothen have answerid Wyndham, not aldermoste to hise plesir, becaus of his noiseful langage, seyng [_saying_] how he myght have noo lawe, and that my Lord Chaunceller was not made executor but for meigntenaunce,[197.9] with many othir woordis noo thing profitable ner furtheryng his entents. As for ony particular materes, the parlament as yet abideth upon the grete materes of atteyndre and forfetur;[198.1] and soo there be many and diverse particuler billes put inne, but noon redde, ner touchyng us, as nygh as we can herken; to whiche Playter and I attenden daily, trustyng on my Lords aboveseid, my Lord Privy Seall,[198.2] and other good Lords, and many also of your acquayntance and owres, that and ony thing be, we shall sone have knowlege.

The Chief Justice[198.3] is right herty, and seith ful wel and kyndely of my maistr, whom Jesu for his mercy pardonne, and have yow in His blessid governaunce.

Writen at Coventre the morwne after Seint Nicholas.[198.4]