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To the L. Chancellor: L. Thresurer and to the L. Buckhurst May it please your good LL: By our last of the xxijth of this presente we signifyed how farre we had proceaded with the States generall upon the poyntes of Instruccions propounded unto them, Imediately after the dispatch of which Lettres wee pressed agayne some better resolucion to our first proposicions./ wherunto they answered, that unles we woulde declare in wrytinge the reasons of our mislyke of their answeres, and our objections, to their Apostylles they mighte not well proceade to any further consultacion, havinge allredy delivered as much as might be yelded unto, consideringe the presente State of their Cuntry and affayres. Hereupon to avoide losse of tyme we presentely framed some fewe objections in wrytinge to the most materiall poyntes of their apostylles which we delivered in their assembly, enlarginge the same by speeches as wee thowghte convenient for their better inducement to allowe of our demaundes; and withall did exhibite the rest of the matters we had to propound all at once to the ende we mighte receave some speedy answere to the whole

The xxiijth we receaved from them an acte sent unto us by Arsens their Secretary signyfyinge their Intention to sende or reporte to their Provinces aswell our objections, as our seconde proposicions, and therfore desyred of us, if we had any other thinge in chardge that mighte requyre their Answere, we woulde vowchsafe to deliver it alltogether to be Imparted to /with/ the rest to their Superiors, whose myndes and resolucions they purposed to have upon the whole matters of our negotiacion./

Wee mervaylinge greatly at this determinacion of the States to send againe to their provinces and therby to detracte the tyme, havinge by their acte declared a sufficiency of aucthoritye in themselves to treate and conclude with us upon the matters of our chardge, we resorted unto them, and delivered our opinions how needeles it was for them to take that course, in respecte that by the xixth article of the Treatye, there was allredy graunted to her Majestye, and to the Counsell of Estate, full power and aucthoritye for th'establishing of all thinges that did concerne the good of the comon weale, or matters of their martiall discipline, and that our second proposicions tended in effecte but to an explanacion of that article./ This article we did purposely from the begynnynge forbeare to urge supposinge that they of themselves in their answeres unto us would allwayes have had consideracion thereof: But such was ether their oversighte in not consideringe the Substance of the Article, or their skyll and cunnynge, advisedlye to omitte the same as when they perceyved us resolutely to presse the Substance of that article, they ryse from the Table in a sort amazed, and retyred them selves into another roome, to advyse upon their answere, where after they had conferred more then a quarter of an hower, they returned and by their president John Vanderwarke one of the deputed for Zealand, they delivered, that for so much as her Majestie had refused the Soverainty of their Provynces beinge offred unto her, they supposed shee would not now seeke/ fol.205v
now seeke it by vertue of the Contracte: That to have more heades or Soveraignes in their State then anie one was to make the same a monster: that the aucthority graunted to her Majesty by this article was to be exercysed but for one tyme only, which was allredy executed by the commynge of the Earle of Leycestre, as her Majestyes generall in /to/ these Cuntryes, and that there- fore the effecte of that article was allredy parformed, and the article vanished. Wee disprooved their conceipt of any purpose of demand of soverainty in her Majestie, by requyringe the auctority yelded by that Article, and declared that the same was not graunted to her Majesty alone but to her & the counsell of Estate Jointly who were all their compatriotes & of their owne body syllected and chosen by the severall Provinces, as parsons to whom the exercyse of their soverainty was commytted, and such as in former tymes with the governors of their Provinces ever injoyed the lyke auctority under their Princes./ We lykewise disproved their construccion made of the article by comparinge the sence therof with the whole body of the treaty, and made it appeare unto them that the same was no more extincte then the rest that continued in beinge, and so prosecuted the confirmacion therof by as many argumenteses as we coulde. In the ende after longe debatinge, and no alteracion of their conceipt and opinion towchinge th'explicacion of the Article appearinge, we were forced to use (thoughe in temperate manner) some round speeches unto them signifyinge how sory we were to discover their backward affections to her Majestie so clerely manifested by this conference./ They protested nevertheles their great devocion to her Majestie, and fynally prayed that what they had sayde to the purpose of the Article might not be taken as an answere, but that they would Impart our allegacions to their provinces and receave their sensure and resolucon to the saide Article: wee suspectinge what what the Provinces mighte resolve, upon their construccion to be made of the sence of the said Article, answered that if they meante to put the matter in deliberacion amonge their Provinces, we woulde in lykesorte recommende the same to the Interpretacion of your LL: and the rest that were in Commyssion from her Majestie in concludinge the Treatye, wherof it may please your LL: to have good consideracion and (if it may so seeme good unto you) that the opinions of some of the best learned in the Civyll Lawe in England may be taken upon the Substance of the Article, and signifyed hither with your LLes construccion of the same, that they may not evade from us in this poynte the rather for that we parceyve we shall hardly establishe any sufficient aucthoritye in the Governor and Counsell of Estate here, if we yeld to the Anullinge of that Article bes being certenly informed that some of this assembly have allredy before hande given Caveats to their Provinces to beware how they accorde to the governor and Counsell of Estate the power given by the contracte, bycawse they shall therin yeld them regall auctority, which by the States generall is challenged by tradition from the people to remayne in them, and can by no meanes Indure that a governor from her Majestie with the Counsell should be Invested with that aucthoritye /from/ But fol.206r
But their Reces (as they terme it) to their Provinces there, wylbe much dayly used, and is in our Conceiptes done of purpose to win tyme that they may see what Successe may happen in Fraunce, if the K. become possessed of Paris, accordinge wherunto they will streighten or enlardge themselves, in allowinge the demandes made by her Majestie, not that they will hastly become Frenche, but that they shall therby discern how the enemye may be Imployed and hindred from any notable attempte against them and so measure their owne necessity to be releeved by her Majestie./

The resolucions that shall now be drawen from the Provinces to the matters wee have propounded wyll yeld by the answeres therunto of the States so absolute, as our further replyes or objections will nothinge alter the same, or prevayle to amend or reforme any Jote of their determinacion havinge allredy at great lengthe in many meetinges delivered as much and as many reasons on her Majesties parte as (in our poore opinions in the knowledge wee have of the presente state of these Cuntryes and humors of the men) may be saide to the severall matters we have delivered: and therfore now after we shall have conferred with the Counsell of Estate (to whom we meane to repayre to Arnhem) I Thomas Wylkes shall have nothinge to do here, but to attend the answere from the Provinces and States which I looke to receave abowte the ende of September nexte and not before. In the meane tyme foreseeynge the Event hereof I motioned unto the States (as as of my self that they would lyke of my Repayre into England, pretendinge some perticular cawse of myne owne, and to returne hither at suche tyme as I mighte understand from them of their resolucions taken in the poyntes of my negotiation, wherunto they would in no sort condiscend, but entreated me to staye, for that they desyred to growe to some conclusion upon the condicions I had delivered concerning the trade to Spayne.

Our purpose of conference with the Counsell is to move them to Joyne with us in clayminge the auctoritye graunted by the Contracte, and becawse I Thomas Bodley by the knowledge I have of their disposicions do thincke they wylbe hardly Induced to concurre with us publickly in that behalf, by reason they are for the most parte unwyllinge to offend the States as fearinge to be removed from their places or otherwise disgraced, we entend to urge them upon their othe taken for the observance of the contracte: and therin nevertheles to be advised, and to use such course and discrecion as may best further the cawse and least offend the one or the other, untyll it may be seene what shalbe resolved and answered to our proposicions. Thus farre for the matter of our Instruccions, wherin we do protest unto your LL upon our alleageance to the Q. Majestie we have travailled and endevored all that wee may, not only with /in/ our publicke coferences with the States in generall but with the cheefest of them in particuler, and can not for our lyves fore Judge what successe will followe of our accions herein, such and so strange hath bin the manner of their proceadinge with us, using both fol.206v
Both roughe and mylde communication with them thoughe withowt offence./

We receaved from the Lieutenante Governor of the Bryll a Lettre dated the xxvth of this presente advertisinge that the victuallor havinge browght corne to the Towne for the provision of the Garrison where the Orders are now to be put in execucion the Bourghmasters of the Towne have Inhibited that nether the myllers shall grynde the corne, nor the Bakers bake the same, wherby there appeareth a resolucion in the people to oppose themselves against that parte of the orders for victuellinge of the Soldiors: and becawse for some reasons alleaged in our former Lettres, we thincke it not fytt at this tyme to make any garboyle betwixt the Towne and the Garrison we have thought good to advertise the Lieutenante governor to forbeare the execucion of the orders in that poynt untyll your LLes mighte be advertised of this opposition (which we conceyve to growe underhand from the States) that we might receave your plesure and direction therein. And truly my LLes we fynd both by the States and by the Townes (who sythence we began to treate here have sent unto us their Boroughmasters and principall officers to pray that the victuallinge might be forborn) that it is so offensyve to the Inhibitantes of the Townes as it wyll breed a great alienacion of the people from her Majestie. For the apparrell of the Soldiers the States & Townes do not much myslyke, and to the Soldier himself there is nothinge more offensyve then the victuall which (as they complayne in all the garrisons) is not only very corrupt but sould unto them at higher rates then is afforded by the Townes: and what further Inconveniences doe growe therof wyll best appeare unto your LLes by the Articles lately sent unto you from the governor and Captens of Bergen wherwith we have bin made acquaynted and fynde them all worthy of consideracion which wee most humbly Referre to your good Lo: And so take our Leave from the Haghe the xxixth of July. 1590.