Margaret Paston to John Paston

787

MARGARET PASTON TO JOHN PASTON¹

I GRETE you wele, and send you Goddes blyssyng and
     myn, letyng you wete that myn Cosyn Clere hathe sent
     to me for the C. marc that I borwed of her for your
brother. It fortuned so that a frend of her of late hath loste
better than CCC. marc, and he sent to her for money, and she
had non that she myght comyn by, and ther for she sent to
me for the seyd C. marc; and I know not how to do therfor,
for by my trowth I have it not, nor I can not make shyft ther-
for, and I shuld go to preson; therfor comune with your
brother her of, and send me word how that he wull make
shyft ther for in hast. I must elles nedes sell all my woods,
and that shall dysse avayll him better than a CC. marc, and I
dey; and if I shuld selle them now, ther wull noman gewe so
myche for them be ner an C. marc as they be worth, be cause
ther be so many wood sales in Norfolke at thys tyme. Ther-
for lete hym make purvyaunce therfor in hast, as he wull have
my good wyll, and wull that I save hym the seyd woods to the
better a wayll, and send me word here of in hast if ye wull
my welfare, for I shall never be in quiete tille I k[n]owe an
ende in thys, for she hath therfor an obligacion of an Cli.
And it is not kepte cloos, ther be many persones now k[n]owyn
it, which me semyth a greet rebuke to me that I departyd so
largely with yowr brother that I reservyd not to pay that I
was endaungered for hym, and so have dyverse seyd to me
which of late have k[n]owyn it; and whan I remembre it, it
is to myn hart a very spere, consideryng that he never gave
comforte therein, ner of all the money that hath be reseyvyd
wull never make shyft therfor. And he had yet be for thys
tyme have sent me l. marc thereof, yet I wuld have thought
that he had had summe consideracion of myn daungers that I
have put me in for hym. Remembre hym how that I have
excusyd hym of xxli. that the Prior of Bromholm had, which
shuld elles have be in that daunger that it shuld have be to us
a grete rebwke, with hought that he myght a ben holpyn wyth
shuch money as he shuld have had of your fadyrs bequest;
and I payd to the shereffe for hym also money. All thes
shuld have holpe me wele therto, be syde other thynges that I
have bor thys yeres that I speke not of; there fore lete hym
helpe me now, or elles it shall dysawayll hym better than the
trebyll the money, wheder that I leve or dey, with ought he
hath better consideracion to the daungers that I stond in. Also
I wulde ye shuld meve hym to take John Pampyng to hym,
or elles to gete hym a servyce in the Chauncery, or in sume
other place where as he myth be preferryd, for it ys pety that
he lesyth hys tyme so her, and it is non a wayll to non of ws,
and for diverse othyr thyngs whesch ye shall knowe her after, I
wolde that I war hens in haste, for all maner of happys, constrw
ye, &c. I can yw thanke for ywyr lettyr that ye sente me, and
that ye have inquiryd of shwch thynges as ye thynk that shwld
plese me. I send yow the boxe and the dedes that ye sente to
me for, but as for the key of the cofyr in the wtter chambyr I
can not fynd yt; yf the boxe had be ther in, ye cwdnat not
have hadd yth but yf [unless] I had broke wp the cofyr; ther
for remembre yw wer ye have do the key; I kep styll the
key that ye sente me tyll that ye cwm home.

     As for the tydynges here, ywr cosyn Barney of Wych-
shynggham ys passyd to Gode, hwm Gode asoyle. Veylys
wife, and Lodonys wife, and Pycard the bacar of Twmlond,
ben gone also; all thys hwlsold and thys parych ys as ye
leftyd, blyssyd be Gode; we lewyn in fer, but we wut not
qweder to fle, for to be better than we ben here. I send yw
demi a riale for to by wyth swger¹ and dates for me. I pray
yw do as wel as ye can, and sende it me as hastely as ye
may, and sende me word qwat price a li. of peppyr, clowys,
masis, gingyr, and sinamun, almannys, ryse, ganyngal,
safrwn, reysonys of Corons, grenys,¹ of ych of these sende
me the pryce of ych of these,² and yf that it be bettir shepe
at London than it is here, I shal sende yw mony to bye wyth
soch stwfe as I wull have. Remember that I spake to yw to
spek to ywyr brother for the seyd C. marc wan ye departed
hens. I trow ye had forgettyt, that ye sent me non answer ther
of in ony wys. Lete me have an answer ther of in hast, and
sende me woord how ywyr brother and ye spede in ywyr
maters; and Goddes blissyng and myn mut ye have both, and
send yw good sped in all ywyr maters.

     Wretyn in hast on Sent Levnards Eve.³

                                                                           By ywyr Moder.

     ¹ [From Paston MSS., B.M.] This letter is not addressed, and the MS. is in
fact only a corrected draft, of which a fair copy has since been found. The fair copy
is not addressed either. The letter was evidently written to John Paston in answer
to No. 784. The date is ascertained by the fact that John Berney of Witchingham
died in the year 1471.

¹ In Fenn’s edition this is printed ‘swgar, feg, and dats.’ The word ‘feg’ is not
in the MS. It seems to be a misreading of ‘swg’’ (sugar), which the transcriber
forgot to cancel.

¹ F. adds ‘and comfyts,’ but the words are not in the MS.

     ² F. reads ‘the price of a li.,’ but this is not in the MS.

     ³ The following sentence is added in the fair copy: ‘I warn yw kepe this letter
clos and lese yt not; rather brenyt.? 

1471(?)
NOV. 5

1471(?)
NOV. 5

1471(?)
NOV. 5