The Paston Letters Volume Iii Part 30

_To my Maister Paston._

[Sidenote: 1458]

Sir, as I went to my horsward by Lincoln c.o.ke ys place, hyt fortuned that Wymondham and H. Fenne talked to gedre, and called me by my name, and both asked how my maister[133.4] fard, &c. Then Fen desyred me abyde to see astate taked yn Lyncoln place by hym boght of Markham. In the meene tyme the seyd Wymondham sent hys man to speke with hym, and yede yn talkyng of Sir Thomas[133.5] how he wille help labour to an ende, and had spoke with Heydon yersten efe for the seyd cause. I seyd the cruell amerciementes by their labour, and the [_they ?_] not beneficed, shewed to grete a malice to undo a preest innocent yn such a cause, &c. After my takyng leefe, he called me ageyn, and seyd that he desyred Sir Thomas to be G.o.de meene to my maister to hafe affeccion to the chylde, &c.

I aunsuerd, yff my maister had before the maryage be laboured [_i.e._ if my master had been applied to before the marriage], hyt had [been] moche esyer to bryng aboute then now. And because hys fadre was so maryed ayenst my maister wille, he nevere wold hafe affeccion to hym all hys lyfe dayes. He seyd that Thomas[134.1] was with hys modre ther she duellyth, and yff it please my maister to sende for hym by Sir Thomas meene, &c.

I ensure yow by my soule I brake no mater to hym but of Sir Thomas undoyng, and hys adversaries nevere the better, whych to my power wold help make it knowen to Lordes and all othyrs of the cruell amerciementes, the cruell juge to be knowen as he ys, for I am of hys contrey, and know hys rysyng and maryages as well as hym sylfe. At ix.

at clok to hors bake. I pray yow breke my bille (?).

Your,

H. R.

[Footnote 133.3: [From MS. Phillipps, 9735, No. 249.] This letter clearly relates to the subject of the preceding No.]

[Footnote 133.4: Sir John Fastolf.]

[Footnote 133.5: Howes.]

[Footnote 134.1: Apparently Thomas Fastolf.]

373

ABSTRACT[134.2]

ROLL OF THE PERSONAL AND OTHER EXPENSES OF JOHN PASTON IN THE 36TH AND 37TH YEARS OF HENRY VI.

For dress and cloth, various.

'Liberat' hospitio,' 57, 17_s._ 7_d._ 'Item, uxori et pueris domi,' 8, 19_s._ 1_d._ 'Item, pueris Cantabrig' c.u.m v. marke (?) per Wekeys,'

101_s._ 'Item, eisdem et sosiis (_sic_) suis in regard',' 4_s._ 2_d._ 'Item, eisdem apud London,' etc.

'Item, Henr' Bolte, capellano pro stipendio usque Pascha, x.x.xv^{to.}'

13_s._ 4_d._ 'Et 17 die Julii pro ij. quart',' 26_s._ 8_d._

'Expencae forinsecae.' --'Pro fine Domino Regi facto quod Johannes Paston non sit miles.' Expenses with Munford at Thetford, 2_s._ 1_d._ 'Item, in exemplificatione Ecclesiae de Gresham, Magistro Bulman,' 3_s._ 8_d._ 'Item, expenc' equorum Fastolf Norwici ij. vic. et Alexand' apud Forncet,' 3_s._ 1_d._ 'Item, praesentatio angnellorum data Radclyff,'

18_d._ To Alexander coming from Cambridge. 'Item, in coltellis apud Dancaster datis servientibus Fastolf et meis,' 3_s._ 4_d._ Glazing Chapel at Mauteby, 10_s._ 'Pro arrestatione Carroli Nowell apud Bury septimana Matthiae,' 3_s._ 8_d._ Expenses of Ball's horse at Berkwey for six weeks, 10_s._ 'Item, expenc' meae versus Snaylwell et redeundo de Bury,' 5_s._ 4_d._ 'Item, expenc' Norwici ad cess' hospic' existent'

apud Heylysdon,' 18_d._ 'Item, expenc' meae apud Sweynsthorp,' 8_d._

In Easter and Trinity terms.--Paid to William Wyrcester 'equitanti super negotia maritagii sororis,' 10_s._ For wine and spice with Fortescu and Wentworth, 23_d._

Hilary term.--Lent to James Arblaster at London, 40_s._ 'Item, exequiae Edmundi Paston,' 2_s._ 4_d._ To divers poor people of Norwich for relief of their charge 'circa reparationem murorum civitatis,' 7_s._

[Footnote 134.2: [From Add. Charter 17,246, B.M.]]

[[10s. For wine _printed in roman (non-Italic) type_]]

374

ELIZABETH POYNINGS TO AGNES PASTON[135.1]

_To my right worshypfull moder, Agnes Paston._

[Sidenote: 1459 / JAN. 3]

Right wors.h.i.+pfull and my most entierly belovde moder, in the most louly maner I recomaund me unto youre G.o.de moderhode, besekeyng you dayly and nyghtly of your moderly blissing, evermore desiryng to her of your welfare and prosperite, the which I pray G.o.d to contynw and encresce to your herts desyre. And yf it lyked your G.o.de moderhode to here of me and how I do, at the makyng of this lettre I was in G.o.de hele of body tanked be Jesu. And as for my mayster, my best beloved that ye call, and I must nedes call hym so now, for I fynde noon other cause, and as I trust to Jesu non shall; for he is full kynde unto me, and is as besy as he can to make me sur of my joyntor, wherto he is ibounde in a bonde of m^{l}_li._ to you mother, and to my brother John, and to my brother William, and to Edmund Clere,[136.1] the which neded no such bond.

Wherfore I beseke you, G.o.de moder, as our most synguler trost is yn your G.o.de moderhode, that my maistr, my best beloved, fayle not of the C.

marc at the begynnyng of this terme, the which ye promysed hym to his mariage, with the remanent of the money of faders wille; for I have promytted faithfully to a gentilman, called Bain, that was oon of my best beloved suertees, and was bounde for hym in CC_li._, of which he reherseth for to ryseyve at the begynnyng of thys terme Cxx_li._, and yf he fayle therof at this tyme, he wille clayme the hool of us, the which were to us to grete an hurt; and he con not make an ende with noon of hys other suertees withoute this seyd sylver, and that con my brother John telle yow wel i nough, and it l.u.s.teth hym to do soo, and in all other thyngs. As to my Lady Pool,[136.2] with whom I sojerned, that ye wul be my tendr and G.o.de moder that she may be payde for all the costes doon to me before my maryage, and to Christofre Houson, as ye wrote unto my brother John that I shuld have ben so; and that it plese your G.o.de moderhode to yeve credence to William Worcestr. And Jesu for his grete mercy save yow.

Written at London, the Wendysday the iij. day of Janyver.

By your humble doughter,

ELYZABETH PONYNGGS.

[Footnote 135.1: [From Fenn, iii. 328.] The writer of this letter is Agnes Paston's daughter Elizabeth, for whose marriage, as we have seen, there had been a good deal of negotiating in past years (_see_ Nos. 93, 94, 236, 250, 252), and who has now become the wife of Robert Poynings. As the 3rd of January, the day on which this letter is dated, was a Wednesday, the year must be 1459. The 3rd of January did not fall on a Wednesday again till 1470, by which time Elizabeth Paston was no longer the wife of Robert Poynings, but his widow, for he was killed at the second battle of St. Albans on the 17th Feb. 1461.]

[Footnote 136.1: Edmund Clere was the second son of John Clere, Esq. of Ormesby, and died in 1463.]

[Footnote 136.2: _See_ p. 123.]

[[Footnote 135.1: Text beginning "Elizabeth Paston" corrected by author in Errata. Original text: ... by which time Elizabeth Paston and Robert Poynings must have been married several years, as will be seen by No. 126 preceding (vol. ii. p. 154, Note 3).]]

375

JOHN PASTON, THE ELDER SON, TO HIS FATHER[137.1]

_To my ryght wyrschypful fadre, John Paston, Esquyer, be thys letter delyveryd in hasty wyse._

[Sidenote: 1459 / MARCH 5]

Ryght worschypful Syr, in the most lowly wyse, I comaund me to yowr good faderhod, besechyng yow of yowre blyssyng. Mut it plese yowr faderhod to remembre and concydre the peyn and hevynesse that it hath ben to me syn yowr departyng owt of thys contre, here abydyng tyl the tyme it please yow to schewe me grace, and tyl the tyme that by reporte my demenyng be to yowr plesyng; besechyng yow to concydre that I may not, ner have noo mene to seke to yow as I awght to do, and savyng under thys forme, whych I besech yow be not take to no dysplesur, ner am not of power to do any thynge in thys contre for worschyp or profyht of yow, ner ease of yowr tenantys whych myght and scholde be to yowr pleasyng. Wherfor I besech yow of yowr faderly pyte to tendre the more thys symple wryghtyng, as I schal owt of dowght her after doo that schal please yow to the uttermest of my power and labor; and if ther be any servyce that I may do if it please yow to comaund me, or if y maye understonde it, I wyl be as glad to do it as any thyng erthely, if it wer any thyng that myght be to yowr pleasyng. And no mor, but Allmyghty G.o.d have yow in kepyng.

Wretyn the v. day of Marche.

By your older sone,

JOHN PASTON.

[Footnote 137.1: [From Fenn, iii. 336.] By Letter 377 following, it will be seen that the writer of this letter had given displeasure to his father in the early part of the year 1459.

There can be no doubt that this letter refers to the same occasion.]

376

ABSTRACT[138.1]