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[fol. 19r] My good master Chester, I thanck yow with all mi hart, for your long & fryndly lre, which I receved att your wives hands, uppon master wynters comyng home. And consydryng the wightynes of the cawse, & the grett diligens & care that ye used in the same, I cowd nott butt mani wayes comend your sufficiency, & the zelows loyallty that you bere to your soveraigne here, & to the Contrey and your frynds there: whiche I have nott fayled to sett furth in suche sort, as I hope, that I have to mi power, discharged the part of a trew loving frynd. /

First I dellt with master wynter & master Beall, declaring [ deleted: unto theme] how muche you thowght your self beholding to theme, for their favors shewed unto you on that syde, & how redy bothe yow, I, & all your frinds here, were to deserve it, desireng theme to contynew their sayd good will to you & your cawses, & now that the occasion was presented, to lett her majestie & her Cowncell understand, the carefulnes of mynde that ye had to do her service, & to deserve well of her majestie your Contrey, & of her sayd Cowncell, which they nott only promised to do verey faythfully, butt had, they sayd, begon allredy the matter, giveng you Comendatyon to me, that yow were an honest & trew gentillman, & that yow had worthynes & sufficyency in yow: which as I was glad to here, so dyd I encrese it with the best skill I had./

Next for that your lre & advertisments to me, imported grett secresye & discretyon, how to procede that som good might succede to the cawse, & that yow sholld nott lese the merite that yow deserved. I shewed your lre to mi L. Thresuror, sayeng that yow desired me so to do, who used it with that regarde that non lyveng sawe it butt hym self, retorned it me back under ij seales, with suche thanckfulnes for the trust that yow reposed in hym, as surely it dyd bothe expresse an honorable oppinion that he hath of yow, & a grett likeng of the Cowrse that ye had taken, whom I leffte not till he had wrytten yow an answer att large from Havering, to all things with his own hand, [ deleted: for he] which conteynes suche matter (as I gesse) that ye may do the Prynce grett service & the whole Contrey, if they follow the advice that ye ar to gyve therby: which if they do contempne, the remedy of ani good is paste, & their generall ruyne is att hand./

[fol. 19v] for her majestie is so moved with these insolent delings of the Prynce & his Zellanders, as non dare move her to ani consideratyon towards theme. butt all is sett uppon revenge of their lewd acts & worse speche, & to extermyne theme owtt of the world, rather then to endure it any longer./ And where the Prynce pretends ayd owtt of Frawnce, he Pawnceth in a nett, if he se nott that her majestie knowes the contrary, & that herin he is grettly abused, or seketh to abuse others, with small credit to hym self, & lesse assurans to his estate, when this maske is taken away./ And lett hym be assured master Chester, uppon hasard of mi life, (which I wryte unto yow & to Monsieur Powll Buys franckly, to that end that ye shall do hym good service to advertis hym from me) that the Frenche K. & the spaynish K. ar rather bothe secrettly lincked to sett uppon hym, & to overthrowe bothe hym & his, with all the menes & powers that they can make, if they were ones a lyttell settled in frawnce, which her majestie is well instructed of./ And yett if the frenche K. sholld in shewe, inclyne hm self to ayde the Prynce, it were rather to intrappe hym, & to betraye the cawse, then for any trew help, that he wold give therunto; wherof yf the Prynce be ignorant, then hath he nott that sufficiencye & perfectyon that he makes showe of./

Now to remedy all this, there is butt on waye master Chester; that is if the Prynce will excuse these former actes & spoyles, that have byn comitted by the Zellanders, & ar dayly [ deleted: [contempned] ] contynewed, praieng her majestie to attribute theme to necessity, & nott to ani malyce or will to offend & provoke her majestie & that from hencefurth, the matter shalbe redressed in suche sort, as the like shall nott be comitted agayn. Which cowrse ones taken, the Prynces frynds here that favor the cawse, will joyne together to qwallefye her majesties juste displesure, & no dowtt somwhatt may be don by this mene, to reconsile the Prynce agayn, & to hellp hym under hand, with som ayde to settell & confirme the strengthes of Holland & Zelland together. But to saye that her majestie who is a Soveraigne, Prynce & grett Monarche of her sellf, wilbe constrayned to do ani thing mawgre her will, were grett absurdity once to Imagine it, though the grettest Prynce in Ewrope were a party therin: muche lesse by those, whom she forberes to be revenged of, more for compassion that she wolld nott hurt them, [fol. 20r] then for want of sondry menes that she hath in store by her power, to correct their malice, to hevye for theme to abyde: & yett if they still provoke her with their robryes (which God & the world is grettly offended with) itt will light to some uppon theme, & then to late to be consydred of, or to be withdrawen./

And where they object, that it is a generall cawse, & comune with her majestie that they mayntayne: bothe for Religion & surety of her estate with theirs (whyles they violate bothe Religion, Justice, & all suretye) & therfore she must assiste theme of verey necessity, & conseqwently endure all other things att their hands. Alack they be to far deceved herin, though it were as true, as they Imagine it untruly: for her majestie hath no nede to enter into unnecessary warres for theme or ani others unprovoked: neither is this grett argument of that necessity or wisdom to move her Conscyens, or her Estate, to be so over ruled & concluded thus rowndly by theme, as they wold perswade her, & yett her puissance sufficient, with the justice of her cawse, to reppulse seasonably inowgh ani wrong or force, when it is ones offred./

Butt admitt it were otherwise, yett no Prynce of her qwality and grettnes, is to be compelled or to be dellt with by these arguments of necessity: for suche as she is, will hasard all rather, them to be prescribed or forced by her inferiors or eqwalles, or by ani other: & the benefite withall is thanckles that comes thus constrayned wrested, which argues theme then of small pollicy, & lesse discretyon, that take suche a Cowrse with ani soveraigne personaige, which I ones tolld the Prynce hym sellf & the states of, att large, in Holland when I was there: who therby refformed the instructyons that they had given to their Comissioners that dellt here ^then^ for these cawses. Therfore master Chester, I do staye the longer uppon this poynt of discowrse, that ye may se the grownds of these presumptyons, & that ye will conferre throughly with monsieur Pawll Buis of theme, that if by bothe your menes yow may indure the Prynce, to open the eyes of his reson, & to behold things as they are indede (for he canott hallte with those that have the power to understand more than he dothe) he wilbe inclyned then to acknowlege his errors, & the [ deleted: fowll] fowll ingratitude that is used to [fol. 20v] her majestie & her subiects: who being so grettly & somani wayes his frynds how wolld he dele with his enmyes: that deles so turkishly with theme, that deserves so well & christianly of hym. Butt his wise & tymely repressing of these extremityes, & his modest excuse to her majestie may mittigate her gracyows & noble mynde, who is enclyned to do good to all sorts: & hereuppon his frynds here, will take occasion to accomodate things to his likeng agayn. wherin I dare presume master Chester, to perswade yow & monsieur Powll Buis this farre, that if this cowrse be taken, som whatt (ye som rownd porcion) wilbe voluntarily given to the assistens of the cawse, & to ayde bothe Zeland & Holland, but specially Holland, to whom her majestie & all her Cowncell ar grettly enclyned, & so ar they to the good Magistrates of the same, as to Monsieur Pawll Buis, to the Cownt of Collingburgh, & the rest. But for Monsieur Buis, his credite is suche with the Q. majestie mi L. Thresuror & mi L. of Lecester & the rest, as he may assure hym sellf to enjoye as good an oppinion here, as ani man doth, that wolld prevayll as he doth, of a sownd gravity & sincerenes, & may be privately assured of ani good turne that he will desire here, either for hym self or for his frynds: wherof I have a speciall charge to say this muche to hym, & to the Count of Cullingbergh, from the Q. majesties own mowthe, besyde the like charge from other of mi good Lords:

Now if he can do any good in this, it wilbe the best service that yow & Monsieur Buis cowd do for that Contrey: for your discretyons & indevors sholld wyn that, which wellny is desperate, & restore that which is att a present ruyne, without good dexterity be used. And herin have a regarde allso to unite Zelland & Holland: & that the Princs awthority may rate them bothe, to the good of the comune cawse & of either Contrey./ for otherwise their separatyon is an apparent overthrowe of bothe, a distrust to others, & being thus devyded, nott having the Prynce of Orengs cowntenance to direct things amongest theme (as it hath don hytherunto) the oppynion of the whole is halfe overthrowen therby./ And though her majestie doth like verey well of Holland & of the Hollanders, & might be enclyned to have som compassion of theme, for the playn & honest proceding they use; yett when the matter sholld be debated in Cowncell, they wolld loke with [fol. 21r] whatt grett personaiges they sholld dele, & then seing non butt Townsemen ( for the Erlle of Cullenbergh is not of Holland, & he is butt on) ytt wolld hynder the good entent, even for lack of Cowntenance, which many tymes is grownded more uppon oppinion, then reson./

In all which things, if I can do the cawse, the Prynce & mi frynds there any good in these parts, I will leve all other things asyde to do yt, & ymploye mi travayll, credite, & poore hability therin, withowtt any charge to theme att all./

Likewise where yow do write in your artycles of ij C M dollers, that they of Holland might have for vj uppon the C. so the assurans were liked: Lett Monsieur Pawll Buis send me word presently where it is to be had, & of whome, & then whatt assurans wolld like theme. & yow shall here more by mi next lres./

Now to shew yow whatt I dyd, after participatyon of your lre with mi L. Thresuror I drew owtt the Artycles in a Romayn hand, that Monsieur Pawll Buis & yow sent me, that having accesse to her majestie I might take the better occasion to dele with her, for these Holland cawses, & partyculerly to make mencyon of yow & Monsieur Pawll Buis. Butt I fownd her so alltred by the Zellanders doings, & the Pryncs suffrance of theme, & by suche other owttragious procedings, that she was justly provoked with, as I scarse durst open mi mowth to speke a good word of theme: yett surely her majestie for the person of the Prynce, & for grett pryncely qwalityes that be in hym, which she made good accompte of, (speking privately of hym) gave hym the best woords of the world: but when she cam to distingwishe of his actyons & theirs, how imperyously, or rather ympiously they delle with all men, specially with christians & those, that they were somuche bownd unto: & then how ignorantly they dellt, knowing that all their fowndacyon sholld deppend of her good cowntenance & helpe towards theme; which when it were decayed was bothe their decaye & ruyne; that I was putt to scylence./

Yett beholding her majesties good nature, in prayseng privately in the Prynce that which was prayse worthy: & publiquely condempnyng the abuse that she fownd & was [ deleted: tyed] tyed by Pryncely duty to se severely [fol. 21v] refformed: I dyd consider, that if a spedy & convenyent plaster, were applyed to this corrosive sore, it might be holpen & wholly remedyed: which I thinck mi duty master Chester, to discharge unto yow & to Monsieur Pawl Buis, as to the Lovers of the generall cawse, if therbe ani in that place./

And thus muche to the answer of your lre, saving that I toke occasion to speke of yow to her majestie who hath a very good oppinion of yow, & if now we cowd fynde menes to abbate the Papists pryde & mirthe (who hope) that they do even possesse the Q. majesties ere, to egge her on to the utter ruyne of the Protestants beyond the seas; to the end that with the same glayve, they may afterwards cutt our throats att home: Yow being Awthor of the contrarye, sholld deserve more than yow dyd in all your actyons hyther unto./ Butt till yow worke an inclynatyon there, to being humbly & submissively first with her majestie There is no delyng with her, how grett soever the party or suggestion is, that may be prepered to intertain her./

I talked with mi L. of Lecester of yow, to whom certainly yow were muche beholding, thancks yow muche for your lre, promiseng to wryte shortly unto yow, & that he will nott forgett whatt yow wrytt unto hym of, comending yow mani wayes withall./

Master Wynter was charged why he had nott written oftener to her majestie [who] sayd playnly that there was suche swiffte intelligence even of those things that her majestie dyd most secrettly, that he durst nott write before his owne comyng, & wolld nott delyver your articles to her majestie butt with his own hands, & those allso sealed, which her majestie tolld me her sellf./

Comunicate whatt yow thinck mete herin with Monsieur Powll Buis, like as I have don by lre presently unto hym, & desire hym for his own credit sake, to sollicite master Skynners busynes the [mercer] . I have wrytten allso to Monsieur St Alldegond therin, & to the secretory Brunyng./

Tell master Ortell, that he doth nott answer ether his promis, or ani parte of the remembrance that he take with hym from me./

I delyverd master Secretory Wallsingham that yow wrytt to hym, butt I hard nomore of it./

Pyers is com home, & shewith hym self a verey weke man. So desireng yow to write often, I will conclude with this, that if the Prynce do seke [ deleted: her] [fol. 22r] her majesties good will, the mutynye that is now in Brabant & flawnders, against the Spaniards, & first provoked by theme, will do hym & the whole cawse grett good: Butt if he harcken nott to so good Cowncell, Nomo leditur, misi a seipso. And when all is don, England & Englishe men, must do hym good & hellp hym, or elles he is utterly undon, & I weye not his judgement worthe a grote, if he foresee not this. write often & spedily. So in haste a thowsand tymes farewell. from London as I was rydeng towards Wales. the vij ^th^ of Awgust. 1576. Your owne as his owne./ W. Herlleli.