John Paston to Margaret Paston

595

JOHN PASTON TO MARGARET PASTON¹

To my cosyn, Margaret Paston.

      I RECUMMAND me to yow, I thank of yow of yowr
           labour and besynes with the unruly felechep that cam
           befor yow on Monday last past, wherof I herd report
be John Hobbis. And in god feyth ye aquyt yow rygth wel
and discretly and hertyly to yowr wurchep and myn, and to
the shame of your adversarijs, and I am wel content that ye
avowid that ye kept possession at Drayton and so wold doo.
Wherfor I pray yow, make yowr word god if ye may, and at
the lest, let myn adversarijs not have it in pees if ye may.
Jon Hobbys tellith me that ye be seekly, whech me lekith not
to here; praying yow hartyly that ye take what may do yowr
eese and spar not, and in any wyse take no thowth no to
moch labor for thes maters, ne set it not so to yowr hert that
ye fare the wers for it. And as for the mater, so they over-
come yow not with fors ne bosting, I shall have the maner
sewrlyer to me and myn, than the Dewk shall have Cossey,
dowt ye not. And in cas I come not home within thre wekis,
I pray you com to me, and Wykes hath promisid to kepe the
plase in yowr absens. Nevertheles whan ye come set it in
seche rewle as ye seme best and most suer, bothe for Castre
and Heylisdon if the werr hold. In cas ye have pees send me
word.

     As for that it is desyrid I shuld show my tytill and evydens
to the Dewk, me thynkyth he had evyll cowncell to entre in
opon me, trusting I shuld shew hym evydens. And [if] ye
seme it may do yow god or eese, lete my Lord of Norwich
wet that the maner of Drayton was a marchants of London
callid Jon Heylisdon longe er any of the Polis that the seyd
Dewk comyth of wer borne to any lond in Norfolk or Suffolk;
and if they wer at that tyme born to no lond, how may the
seyd Dewk klaym Drayton be that pedegre? As for the
seyd John Heylisdon, he was a por man born, and from hym
the seyd maner dessended to Alice his dowtyr, hos estat I have,
and I soppose the seyd Dewk comyth not of hem.

     Item, as for the pedegre of the seyd Dewk, he is sone to
William Pool, Dewk of Suffolk, sone to Mychell Pool, Erl of
Suffolk, sone to Mychel Pool, the furst Erl of Suffolk of the
Polis, mad be King Richard seth my fader was born; and the
seyd furst Mychell was sone to on William Pool of Hull,
whech was a wurchepfull man grow be fortwne of the werld.
And he was furst a marchant, and after a knygth, and after
he was mad baneret; and if any of thees hadde the maner of
Drayton I will los Cli. so that any persone for the Dewk will
be bond in as moch to prove the contrary; and I wot weel
the seyd Dewkis Cowncell wil not claym the seyd maner be
the tytill of the fader of the seyd William Pool. And what
the fader of the seyd William was, as be the pedegre mad in
the seyd last Dewkis fadirs daijs I know rygt weell; wherof
I informyd Herry Boteler to tell my old Lady of Suffolk,
becawse he is of her cowncell; and more will I not tell in thes
mater, but if [unless] I be desyrid or compellid.

     Item, let my Lord of Norwich wete that it is not profitabe
ner the comen well of gentilmen that any jentilman shuld be
compellid be an entre of a lord to shew his evidens or tytill
to his lond, ner I wil not begine that example ne thralldam of
gentilmen ner of other; it is god a lord take sad cowncell, or
he begyne any sech mater.

     And as for the Pools that owth Drayton, if ther wer C. of
hem levyng, as ther is non, yet have they no tytill to the seyd
maner. God kepe yow. Wret the Satirday, &c.

                                                                  Yowr JON PASTON.

     I pray yow be as mery with yowr felachep as ye kan.

     Item, I send hom writt and prasens for yowr servaunts and
myn.

     Item, I may sell you woll for xld. the ston, redi mony, as
Arblaster can tell yow, and malt for iiijs. the quarter at days
xxj. for xx. delivered of Yermouth mesur. If ye fayle mony
ye most make it of yowr wole or malt.

     I send you hom writts of replevin for the shep and the
horses that wer take, and avise yow lete the writtis be delivered
be fore my Lord of Norwich, and god rekord; and if ye may
make men with fors to take the catell agey[n] be waran of
replevyn, spar not rather than fayle.

     On the back of the letter is the following memorandum in a different
hand:—

     Md. there lefte behynde of Heylesdon folde of my mastre schepe xlj. modreschep.
Item of lambes xxxiiij. Item of my mastres xij. modreschep. Item of her lambes xij.

 ¹ [From Paston MSS., B.M.] As this letter is dated on a Saturday, and refers to
the Duke of Suffolk’s attempt on Hellesden as having been made on the Monday
preceding, there can be no difficulty in fixing the precise date, both of day and year.

1465
JULY 13

1465
JULY 13

1465
JULY 13