The Paston Letters Volume V Part 59

Take hit awaye therefore, y praye yow fayre, For hardyly my hert beryth hevy y nowh, For there is Sorow at rest as in hys chayre, Fixid so fast with hys prikks rowh, That in G.o.de feith I wote not whan I lowh,[281-3]

For, Master Paston, the thyng whereon my blisse Was holly sette, is all fordoone, I wysse.

By your JOHN PYMPE, thes beyng the vj. letter that I have send yow.

Alway prayyng yow to remembre the hors that I have in every letter wryten for; as thus, that hit wuld plese yow to undrestond who hath the gentyllest hors in trottyng and steryng that is in Calis, and if he be to sell, to send me word of hys pris, largenesse, and colour. Hytt is told me, that the Master Porter hath a coragiouse ronyd hors, and that he wuld putt hym away by cause he is daungerous in companye; and of that I force [_care_] not, so that he be not chorlissh at a spore, as plungyng; and also I sett not by hym, but if he trotte hye and gentilly.

No more, but G.o.d kepe yow.

JOHN PYMPE.

[Footnote 280-1: [From Fenn, ii. 234.] We may as well place this letter--the only remaining one of the series that has been preserved--immediately after the other two. John Pympe seems to have been a very industrious correspondent, and the art of writing, in prose or verse, came to him very easily.]

[Footnote 280-2: Destroyed.--F.]

[Footnote 281-1: A term in Falconry, signifying the adding a piece to a feather in a hawk's wing.--F.]

[Footnote 281-2: Expensive.]

[Footnote 281-3: Laughed? Fenn in his modern version reads 'when I love.']

909

SIR JOHN PASTON TO JOHN PASTON[282-1]

_To hys weell belovyd brother, John Paston, Esquyer._

[Sidenote: 1477]

I recomande me to yow, letyng yow weete that I receyvyd a letter of yowres by Edward Hensted ij. dayes aftre that Whetley was departyd from me, whyche he hadde forgetyn in hys caskett, as he seyde, wheroff I sholde have sent yow answer by Whetley, iff I had hadde it toffore he wente, notwithstandyng I am ryght lothe to wryghte in that mater offte; for for a conclusion I wrote to my moodre by Peerse Moody alle that I myght and wolde doo ther in. Ye have also nowe wretyn ageyn. Yow neede nott to praye me to doo that myght be to yowr profyght and worship, that I myght doo ofter than ones, or to late me weete theroff; for to my power I wolde do for yow, and take as moche peyne for yowr weell, and remembre itt when per case ye sholde nott thynke on it yowr selffe.

I wolde be as gladde that one gaffe yow a maner of xx_li._ by yeer, as iff he gave it to my selff by my trowthe.

Item, wher ye thynke that I may with concience recompence it ageyn on to owr stokke off other londys that I have off that valywe in fee symple, it is so that Snaylwell, by my grauntefadres will ones, and by my fadris will sceconderely, is entaylyd to the issyw of my fadres body.

Item, as for Sporle xx_li._ by yeer, I hadde ther off b.u.t.t xx. marke by yere, whyche xx. marke by yeer and the x. marke ovyr, I have endangeryd, as ye weell knowe off that bargayne, whyche, iff itt be nott redemyd, I most recompence some other maner off myne to one off my bretheryn for the seyde x. marke, ovyr xx. marke that longyth to me; wherffor I kepe the maner off Runham. Than have I fe symple londe the maner of Wynterton with Bastwyk and Billys, whyche in alle is nott xx. marke by yeer, whyche is nott to the valywe off the maner off Sparham. And as for Castre, it weer noo convenyent londe to exchange for suche a thyng, nor it weer not polesy for me to sett that maner in suche case for alle maner of happis. I nede nott to make thys excuse to yowe, but that yowr mynde is troblyd. I praye yow rejoyse nott yowr sylffe to moche in hope to opteyne thynge that alle yowr freendys may nott ease yow off; for if my moodre were dysposyd to gyve me and any woman in Ingelande the best maner that she hathe, to have it to me and my wyffe, and to the heyres off our too bodyes begotyn, I wolde nott take it off hyr, by G.o.d.

Stablysshe your selffe uppon a goode grownde, and grace shall folowe.

Yowr mater is ferre spoken off, and blowyn wyde, and iff it preve noo better, I wolde that it had never be spoken off. Also that mater noysyth me that I am so onkynde that I lett alle togedre. I thynke notte a mater happy, nor weell handelyd, nor poletykly dalte with, when it can never be fynysshyd with owte an inconvenyence; and to any suche bargayne I kepe never to be condescentyng, ner of cowncell. Iffe I weer att the begynnyng of suche a mater, I wolde have hopyd to have made a better conclusyon, if they mokke yow notte. Thys mater is drevyn thus ferforthe with owte my cowncell, I praye yow make an ende with owte my cowncell.

Iffe it be weell, I wolde be glad; iff it be oderwyse, it is pite.

I praye yow troble me no moore in thys mater... .[283-1]

[Footnote 282-1: [From Paston MSS., B.M.] This letter is clearly written in answer to an application by John Paston to his brother to aid him in making arrangements with Sir Thomas Brews in the spring of 1477. Although the signature is lost, the handwriting is that of Sir John Paston.]

[Footnote 283-1: The lower part of this letter seems to have been cut off, and how much is lost does not appear.]

[[for for a conclusion I wrote to my moodre _text unchanged: probably not an error_]]

910

JOHN PASTON AND MARGERY BREWS[284-1]

[Sidenote: 1477]

Memorandum.--To kepe secret fro my moder that the bargayn is full concludyd.

Item, to let hyr have fyrst knowlage that in the chapell, wher as ye wold had ben no book nye by x. myle, that whyn Mastyr Brews seyd that he wold shortly have eyther more lond in joyntour then Sweynsthorp and x.

mark ought of Sparham, or ellys that some frend of myne shold paye the vj^xx._li._, so that it shold not be payed of the maryage money, that then I sware on a book to hym that I wold never of my mocyon endanger moder nor broder ferther then I had done; for I thought that my modyr had done myche for me to geve me the maner of Sparham in syche forme as she had done. But Mastyr Breus wyll not agre, with ought that my mastress hys doughter and I be mad swer of it now in hand, and that we may take the hole profytes, what so ever fortune.

Item, to enforme my moder that if so be that we may be pute in possessyon of all the hole maner duryng oure two lyves, and the lengest of leveing, that then Mastyr Brews wyll geve me in maryage with my mastresse hys doughter CCCC. markes, payable in hand l_li._, and so yerly l_li._ tyll the some of CCCC. mark bew full payed.

Item, that wher as he had leyd up C_li._ for the maryage of a yonger doughter of hys, he wylle lend me the same C_li._ and xx_li._ more, to pledge ought my lond, and he to be payed ayen hys C_li._ and xx_li._ by x_li._ by yer.

Item, to avyse my modyr that she brek not for the yerly valew of Sparham above the x. mark dwryng hyr lyve.

[Footnote 284-1: [From Paston MSS., B.M.] This paper, which is in John Paston's hand, was evidently written about the same time as the letter immediately following, in which it is mentioned that Margaret Paston had given up the manor of Sparham to her son. The paper is endorsed in a more modern hand: 'Notes touching the mariage betwene Jo. Paston, Ar', and Margery Brews.']

911

SIR JOHN PASTON TO MARGARET PASTON[285-1]

_To my ryght worshypfull moodre, Margret Paston._

[Sidenote: 1477 / MARCH 28]

Please it yow to weete, that I have receyvyd yowr letter, wherein is remembryd the gret hurte, that by liklihod myght ffalle to my brother, iff so be that thys matter betwyn hym and Sir Thomas Brewses doghtre take nott effecte; wheroff I wolde be as sory as hym selffe reasonably; and also the welthy and convenyent marriage that scholde be iff it take effecte; wheroff I wolde be as gladde as any man; and ame better content nowe, that he sholde have hyr, than any other, that evyr he was hertoffoor abowte to have hadde, consyderyd hyr persone, her yowthe, and the stok that she is comyn offe, the love on bothe sydes, the tendre ffavor that she is in with hyr ffader and mooder, the kyndenesse off hyr ffadr and moodr to hyr in departyng with hyr, the ffavor also, and goode conceyte that they have in my brother, the worshypfull and vertuous dysposicion off hyr ffadr and moodr, whyche p.r.o.nostikyth that, of lyklihod, the mayde sholde be vertuous and goode; all which concyderyd, and the necessary relyffe that my brother most have, I mervayle the lesse, that ye have departyd, and gevyn hym the maner off Sperham, in such fforme as I have knowleche off by W. Gornay, Lomner, and Skypwyth; and I ame ryght gladde to se in yow suche kyndenesse on to my brother as ye have doon to hym; and wolde by my trowthe lever than C_li._ that it weer ffee symple londe, as it is entaylyd, whyche by liklyhood scholde prosper with hym and hys blode the better in tyme to come, and sholde also never cause debate in owr bloode in tyme to come, whyche G.o.dde dyffende, ffor that weer onnaturell.

Item, another inconvenyence is, wher as I undrestande that the maner is gevyn to my brother, and to hys wyff, and to the issywe bytwen them bygoten; iff the case weer soo, that he and she hadde yssywe togedr a dowtr or moo, and hys wyffe dyed, and he maried afftr another, and hadde issywe a sone, that sone sholde have noon londe, and he beyng hys ffadres heyr, and ffor th'enconvenyence that I have knowe let in ur[286-1] in case lyke, and yit enduryth in Kente, by tweyn a jentylman and his suster, I wolde ye toke the advyce off yowr concell in thys poynt, and that that is past yow by wrightyng or by promise, I deme verrely in yow, that ye dyd it off kyndenesse, and in eschywyng off a moor yll that myght befall.

Item, wher as it pleasyth yow that I sholde ratefye, grawnt, or conferme the seyd gyfte on to my brother, it is so, that with myn honeste I may nott, and ffor other cawses. The Pope will suffre a thyng to be usyd, but he will nott lycence nor grant it to be usyd nor don, and soo I. My brother John knowyth myn entent weel i now heer to ffoor in this mater; I will be ffownde to hym as kynde a brother as I may be.

Item, iff it be soo that Sir T. Brews and hys wyff thynke that I wolde troble my brother and hys wyff in the seid maner, I can ffynde no meene to putte them in sywerte ther off, but iff it neede, to be bownde in an obligacion with a condicion that I shalle nott trowble ner infete them therin.

Item, I thynke that she is made sywer i now in astate in the londe, and that off ryght I deme they shall make noone obstacles at my wryghtyng, ffor I hadde never none astate in the londe, ner I wolde nott that I had hadde.

No mor to yow at thys tyme, but Allmyghty G.o.d have yow in kepyng.

Wretyn at Caleys, the xxviij. daye of Marche, anno E. iiij. xvij^{o}.

By yowr sone,

J. PASTON, K.

[Footnote 285-1: [From Fenn, ii. 238.]]

[Footnote 286-1: In ure, _i.e._ in practice.]

[[J. PASTON, K.

_comma invisible_]]