_To John Paston, Esquier._
[Sidenote: 1473 / NOV. 25]
Ryght wyrshypfull and well belovyd brother, I recomaund me to yow,
letyng yow weet that I sende yow her with j. sitacion, where in ben my
moodre and yee, wheroff I praye yow that I maye have hasty answeer. The
effecte theroff is no moor, but ye bothe most sende answer, and make yow
a proctor heer, and that most come hyddre ondre a notaryes syngne,
affermyng that ye make suche a man, Master John Halsnothe, or ellis, yf
ye will do the cost, to sende some other hyddre; yowr proctor to take
admynystracion or to reffuse, and what so he dothe, ye to holde it for
ferme and stable. Than most my moodre and ye wryght a lettre, undre my
moodre seall and yowr syngne manuell, to me and Master John Halsnothe in
thys forme:--‘We gret yow well, letyng yow weet that we have made yow,
Master John Halsnothe, our proctor in the testament of John Paston,
husband and fadre to yow, wherin we wyll that on owr behalff ye refuse
the admynestracion of the seyde testament. And thys wryghtyng is to yow
warantt and dyscharge, and also the verry wyll of usse.’ Thys most we
have for owr dyscharge.
Item, I pray yow take good hedde to my soster Anne, lesse the old love
atwyen hyr and Pampyng renewe.
Item, I pray yow sende me worde howe my moodre is dysposyd to hyr
wardes, and iffe so weer that a good mariage myght be had, what she
wolde depart with.
Item, I praye yow that ye remembre hyr for the tombe off my fadr at
Bromholme, and also the chapell at Mauteby, and sende me worde how she
is dysposyd her in.
Item, iff I have Caster ageyn, whethyr she wolle dwelle ther or nott,
and I wyll fynde hyr a prest towardes at my charge, and geve hyr the
dovehowse and other comodytes ther; and if any horsekeper on myn lye
ther, I wolle paye for hys borde also, as weell as for the prestes.
Item, iff my modre sholde have a new prest, I thynk that my brother Syr
J. Goos weer a metly man to be ther. He wolde also doo, as ye wolde have
hym nowe, ber the cuppe evyn, as What-calle-ye-hym seyde to Aslake.
Be war of Myneres fro hense forthe, and sende me worde how ye trist
Doctor Pykenham. I wolde, if he wolde doo owght for my moodre, that he
hastyd the soner to paye me the C_li._, so that I myght pledge owt
Sporle.
Item, as for other tydynges, the Erle of Oxenforthe is stille besegyd.
Neverthelesse, onys he issued owt, and toke a jentylman, and hant
[_dragged_] hym within; but now off late he was besye, and one espyed
hym, and shott at hym and strake in the verry fase with an arowe. I sye
thys daye the same man, and theere I leef hym.
Iff Arblaster come to yow, ye maye see hys letter sente to hym by me,
wherin I have wretyn that he scholde take yowr advyce; but I praye you,
above all thynges, that me make hast so that I heer from yow ageyn by
thys day vij. nyght.
At London, the xxv. daye of Novembre.