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[fol. 153r] by your lre of the xj ^th^ I perceave that yow heare the vile falss and devillish exclamations and execrations [me] by such as I know not and therfor I can less judg what to thynk of them in ther degrees of ther mallice, and the causes therof. but as it semeth to me I may sense truly. Acuerunt linguas suas sicut serpentes venena aspidum sub labijs eorum./ and as it followeth in the same psalm. cognovi quia facet Dominus Judicium inopis. suerly, if my conscience did not acertayn ^me^ of Gods favor and protection ageynst these satanicall, or fanaticall spyritts, I shuld thynk my self in a most wretched state. but I know and have proved Gods goodnes so many yeres to defend my Innocency. that I may boldly saye with David factus est mihi Ds. in refugium et Deus meus in adjutorium spei meae Et reddet illis iniquitatem ipsorum et in malitia eorum disperdet eus. I am therfor determyned to adhere to God my only patron, and shall be redy to answer all spyritts, whersoever I may fynd them blastyng, and dout not but if they wold to my self, but breath any of these speches in presence of any honest Company, I wold with apparant treuth confound ther blasphemys [fol. 153v] And therfor as yow shew your self frendly, in reportyng those villanyes to me, so yow might shew me frendshipp in effect to my good, if yow wold advise them to charg me herwith, and if they do thynk me gilty hereof, they will have to accuse me, for I am not worthy to contynew in this place, but I will yeld my self, worthy not only to be removed but to be punished for an example to others that shuld not abuse hir Majesty and the office I hold. If they can not prove all the lyes they utter, lett them mak of any on poynt wherwith to prove me guilte of falshood, of Injustyce of bribery, of dissimulation of dooble dealyng in advise in Counsell ether with hir Majesty or with the Counsellors. lett them chardg me, in any poynt that I have not delt as ernestly, for the Q. Majesty to ayde the afflicted in the low Contrye, to withstand the Incresyng power of the K. of spayne, the assurance of the K. of scotts to be tyed to hir Majesty with reward yea with the gretest pension that any other hath, if in any of these I may be proved to have [fol. 154r] bene behynd or slower than any, in a discret maner as becometh a servant and a Counsellor. I will my self worthy of perpetuall reprooch as though I war gilty of all that they use to bluster ageynst me.

They that saye that in a rash and maliciouss mockery that England is becom Regnum Cecilianum, may please ther own cankred humor with such a devise, but if my actions be considered, if ther be any cause gyven by me of such a nycknam, ther may be found owt in many others juster causes to attribut other names than myn./

If my buyldyngs mislyk them, I confess my folly in the expences, because some of my howses are to come if God so please to them that shall not have land to maynteane them. I meane by my house at Theobalds which was begon by me with a meane mesur, but Increased by occasions of hir Majestys often coming, whom to please I ever wold omytt to strayne my self to more chargs than buyldyng is. and yet not without some speciall direction of hir Majesty, uppon fault found with the small mesur found of hir charite, which was in good mesur for me, I was forced to enlarg a roome for a larger chamber. which were not be envyed for any ryches in it, more than the shear of old oks and such trees with paynted leaves and fruots can gyve cause./

I thank god I ow nothyng to these backbytors. though in dede [much] to many honest persons, who I mynd to pay without bribery or villany

[fol. 154v] For my houss in [ deleted: lon] westminster, I thynk it so old, as it shuld not styrr envy, many havyng of later tyme buylt larger both in Cite and Contry. and yet the buyldyng therof cost me the sute of lands worth ijli by yer in staffordshyre that I had of good K. Edward my howss of Burghley is of my mothars Inheritance, who lyveth and is the owner of it and I but a firmer. and for the buyldyng theron, I have sett my walls but uppon the old fundations. In dede I have made the rough [stud] walls to be of square. and yet on syde remayneth as my father left it me.

I trust my son shall be hable to mayntean it, consideryng ther ar in that shyre a doosen larger of men under my degre./

Now shortly for my sons adhearyng to Northumberland. I marvell why he shuld not beare favor to hym that was his brother in law as long as he knew no fault. my son marryed his wiff whan no body saw lykehood that sir. Henry percey shuld be an erle. for his purchases, I know he hath ventred uppon no byengs than I allowed. but I wish he had not sold his wyves lands of ancient title, in westmorland, in Cornwale in Northampton shyre and worcester, of more vallew than that he hath bought. they that envy hym herin, if they be thryveng wold not Comitt such a folly, to by new racked land, for ancient, and at this daye I know he doth resent hym self./ but I will end with my paper./ wishyng yow cold procure some person, to utter these thyngs to our selve, and not Cowardly. to backbyt. 14. Aug. 1585. [Your lov. fr.] W Burghley.

[fol. 155r] after that I had ended, though my lesur doth not well serve me, yet I cold not omitt to answer, on notable absurd manifest lye, which that Counsellors ar forced to seke at my hands meanes for ther sutes./

If it war considered how and uppon whom for these late yeres all maner of offices good and bad, spyrituall and temporall have ben bestowed, to whom the persons benefitted do belong and whom they do follow, it well easely by judged how rarely I do or have delt therin./ if gret nombres be bestowed, and not on uppon any kynsman servant or followar of me than how probable is it, than that I had habillitie to do that wherwith I am thus slandered. In very truth I know my Creditt in such cases, so meane, and others I fynd so ernest and hable to obteyne eny thyng, that I do utterly forbeare to move for any, wheruppon many my good frends do justly challendg me, as unwise, that I seke to place nether man nor woman, in the chamber, nor without, to serve hir Majesty, wherby I might do my frends good, and therfor in dede I have few parciall frends and so I fynd the want therof. but yet I can not remedy it, knowyng my powre not answerable therto.

Trew and it is that hir Majesty throweth uppon me a burden to deale in all ungratfull actions, to gyve answers unplesant to sutors that miss wher others ar used, to signefy pleasyng answers affirmatyve/ My burden is also this, that in all sutes for lands losses or such thyngs, hir Majesty comandeth me to certefy the state therof from hir under officers, and so I do as it becometh [towles] . and if the party obteyn I am not thanked. if not the fault though falsly reported to me If these reasons may not cleare this slander I wold this [ ... ] reason war wayed that is trew for my self, I had not made nor obteyned any sute of hir Majesty these x yers in my whole tyme I have not for these xxvj yers bene benefited from hir Majesty, so much as I was within 4. yers of K. Edward.

[fol. 155v] I have sold as much land in vallew, as ever I had of gift of hir Majesty. I am at chardg by attendance in Court, and by kepyng of my howshold specially in term tymes by resort of sutors, at more than any Counsellor in England. my fe for the Tresorership is no more than hath bene these iij ^ti^ yeres. wheras the Chancellor and others hath bene doobly augmented with these few yeres. and this I do affirm that my fees of my Tresorershipp doth not answer to my chargs of my stable. I meane not my table and in my howshold, I do seldom fede less than [ ... ] persons and for that purpass I by in london my bread my drynk, my [acats] my fewell and in the Country, I by my grayn my beff my mutton and all [acats] and for my stable, I by my hey for the gretest part my otes my straw totally, for my servants, I kepe non to whom I pay not wags, and gyve liveryes. which I know many do not. These thyngs considered, I ought not thus to be slandered or envyed. what any payned in service ar, and how small lesor or plesures I tak, is to manifest, and in dede I condem my self therat, but I can not remedy it, otherwise than I might leave my offices, which In the presence of God I cold be content to do so as therby I might not be touched with note of dishonesty or displesur of hir Majesty.

Yow si, how I am carryed by these provocations to wryte more than I intended. and yet I wryt nothyng, but I will affirme in presence of any Company good or badd./