Transcript

I Receved a lre from master Vincent Skyner your L. secretory, which was written by your honorable comandement, mary I perceve that your L. is wrong ynfformed by Skyner the mercer, & wolld cover the trecherows delyng that he used towards me, with tales & lyes to abuse your L. withall, as thowgh he ment me grett good, where there comes scarse a trew word owtt of his mowth./

First yn contempt of the Cowncelles warrant, he entred his actyon agaynst me, perswading the secondary, that he had Leve from som of the Cowncell to do the same, which the secondarye used for for an excuse to som of mi frynds, butt now the sayd skyner denyes the same, as thowgh he had never spoke ytt./

As he doth allso, that he payd nott xli for obteyneng the mene to Arrest me, which he conffessed with his own ^mowth^ to my brother Johnson./ This dett hath byn derelye erned, for I toke more payn for hym, with the .p. of Orenge & the States of holland in wryteng lres, ynstructyons, travaylleng mi frynds, & obteyneng in speche of the States of holland (thowgh the yssue were nott answerable to their promis) than I wolld do for a C li nether do I know, whye I sholld were my frynds & travayll so grettlye, without large recompense, & wellnye he forced the wares I had of hym, uppon me, yn part of the Recompense that I sholld have had, assuryng your L. that I wrytt above 30. sheetes of paper yn englyssh, frenche, Italyen & Latten, with myne own hand for his busynes./ In the end the cawse nott succedyng as he wolld, & knowyng me to be behynd hand, perswaded that yf I made hym an oblygatyon, he wolld delyver me more stuff, which to avoyd his ymportunitye & to serve my torne further, I was content to do./ The tyme of the payment was nott so sone com, butt that he secrettlye comenced sute against me in the [commepters] , & browght it to a judgement, before I knew that he had ones begon, And lastly unwares owtt [fol. 134v] lawed me./ Yett he promsed me beffore the Terme, yn presence of master R. Chrystmas, that he wolld bere with me tyll Ester Terme, the lyke he conffirmed to me xij dayes synce yn mi L. of Lecesters chamber, yett on monday night last, he laye in waytt to Arrest me, & mistoke on of mi men for me, as they were comyng to the place where I supped, wherby I was advertised of his Trayne, & was resolved to have taryed that night with master Harry Townssend, to have avoyded the same, butt he desyreng speche with me, & understanding by waye of bemonyng mi state to hym, that I owght to maye, to hollnes, & to other of mi Credytors a ix C li, which were to lye uppon me all, yf I were stayed for ^any^ on cawse, besyde the overthrow of my sute, which I had [ deleted: as] browght to som perffectyon by your L. good favor, & dyd reserve ytt entyerlye for the answeryng of mi credytors, wherunto he semyng to yelld ( ^otherwise^ noman wolld have judged me so rasshe thowgh I cowd nott have byn arrested yett for the avoydeng of discredite att that tyme of night, ^butt that itt^ had byn convenyent ^for me^ to have kept me saffe within doores with mi frynds) butt he assuryng me to gard me home, & to kepe me saffe from ani Arrest that night, I went with hym till I cam to the watche att Crippel gate, where most lyke a Judas, beyng assured to have assistens there, he poynted to the sergeants that I was the partye (who ones more had mistaken mi man for me) & then suffred theme to use suche vyllaynows & Rude behavyor in caryeng me awaye, that it wolld have sturred passyon & extremitye in a very [sock] , & to have byn presentlye revenged of his Trechery, he havyng hired his sergeants to bryng me dyrectlye to prison & to leve me there, or otherwise to have no reward for their Labor, which is far from that smoothe suggestyon, that yf I had nott entred ynto that choller ^I dyd^ , he wolld have browght me to on of the sergeants howses, & nott to the publyck pryson./

This your L. seeth the honesty & truthe of the man, who knowyng the Cowncelles warrant uppon me, havyng promised by 3. severall tymes to forbere me, beyng made pryvy to my estate, hath nottwithstandyng attempted this owttrayge, to the overthrow of mi sute so long deppendyng in the exchequer, deffrawdyng mi credites therby of all hope to recover any thing att mi hands, And conseqwentlye undoyng me, & iiij poore lyttel ynffants of my sister decessed, that ar left to mi charge, which I recomend to God & his justyce, to disscerne of suche as cuttthrote & coggyng usurer./ Ytt wolld be examined which of the Cowncell gave him level to Arrest me, for by presumyng of theme, they most be of the grettest & yett in truthe, it is butt to bollster owtt his malyce, with a gretter malyce, & to sclander those that be yn Awthorytye, to serve his torne with lyes in matter of lawe, as he dothe yn his shoppe in begyleng suche as bye of hym./ Butt he sayd playnlye, that he wolld Arrest the prowdest of those, that do owe hym money in Cowrtt, yf ether he durst or myghte, wherby the presumptyon of the man, & the upbraydeng of those that by their liberalitye have made hym, may be disscerned, Telling me yesterdaye, that he had reffered the ordryng of this som that I owe hym to your L. to do therwith without condicion whatt ye wolld, shewyng an ynwarde sorow as ytt were, for that he had don allredy./ Butt yn the after noone metyng a gentillman in Chawncery Lane, he sware that whattsoever he had sayd or promised to the contrary, I sholld never be relesed till I had payd hym in redy money all that he demanded./

This is the dooblenes of hym that pretends so fayre./

Now sir to the warrant, wherunto your L. & fowr more of the Cowncell have subscribed, ye have constituted me by the same a prisoner in the marshallsea without lymitatcyon of tyme, butt as ytt is yntended till the sayd warrant be revoked, permitteng me [fol. 135v] yn the mene season libertye to travayll abowtt mi busynes in Lawe namelye in the Exchequer, till the full end of the Terme is expyred yn the sayd Chequer, which is hollden allwayes nott to expyre beffore the Selyng daye, As allso I do refferre ytt to your L. conscyens & knowlege, when yow willed me by master Athyes mowth, to putt yn that clawse that your honors were pryvy that I had sutes suspendyng yn the Excheqwer, & therfore that yntendes that while the Excheqwer is open, I might have my lyberty to follow mi sayd sutes, which were butt yesterday agreed uppon. ^yn the sayd cowrt, butt nott dispatched^ & therfore can carye no other constructyon than the same, till the Excheqwer be shutt up./ Butt yf ytt were nott so ment, yett am I I a prisoner still yn the marshallsea, by your L. comandements, till ye revoke the warrante, & yf I do go abrode with mi keper after the first lymitacion of tyme assigned me, the fawt is made by me & the marshall to your LL only, without advantaige of ani other Arrest to take holld uppon me, for whye, to bryng me to answer mi person [ deleted: from the] to [ deleted: answer] actions yn an ynfferor place, lyeng uppon the comandement of the supremest magistrates of the Reallm, for state cawses, or for ani other matter that shall plese theme to charge me with, is to answer coram non judice, & deserves ponysshment yn the secondary, the sergeants, & playntiffe, that this will [encownte] with the prerogative of the Cowncell Boord./ I therfore do humblye desire to be restored to mi prison of the marshallsea accordyng to your warrante, where yf your honors be disposed to discharge me of your sayd comandement, In gods name, lett mi Credytors, when they fynde me yn place, serve without contradyction assmany processes as they can uppon me, mi discharge of whose Actyons, this unlawfully presented, is nether prejudice to theme nor to Lawe, butt rather a deffence of ether./ for me, I will never suppose, that the Cowncelles [fol. 136r] warrant (which hitherto hath byn ynvyolablye observed to all [sorts] shall be made a trappe nowe, to undo me, & to bryng yn as dangerows a presydent to the obedyens that belonges to the state of the Cowncell table, as ever might [cese] yn, to dissorder their decrees & comandements, which I humblye in eqwitye & justyce, do recomend to mi L. of Lecesters & your L. favorable dispatche on waye or another, beyng entred by these trobles into suche a melonchalicall fever, as yf ye differ me longer I shall ese mi credytors & your honors, of ani further care that might be taken of me, And ytt greves me most, that I have servyce of ymportance to do for her majestie & for the affaires of this present tyme, which she sent me word of a 3. dayes ago in most ernest sort, by on of the her prvyy chamber, which by this detaynment is differed, & may bryng ynconveyens with it, butt surely I will complayn to her majestie of Skyner (for yett she is is not ynfformed of mi ymprisonment) & yf it be trew that I do here, then is ytt repported that ^the^ sayd Skyner doth urge ^mi other credytors^ by yndyrect menes to enter theyr actyons agaynst me, whiles he makes your L. beleve, that he is contented to relent to ani condycion./

Lastly I do present mi humble dutye unto your L. with mi prayer for yow to God, to acknowlege the favors that I have Receved of your L. wherwith I do humbly comend unto your Remembrance the norysshment of a trew Amitye & yntellygence bettwen that honorable noble man the Erlle of Lecester & your L. who desyres & will from his harte respect your L. accordyng to your worthynes, which I pray to God to conffirme for his glorye, her majesties servyce, & the mutuall comffort & unyteng of your fryends./ Wherwith most humbly in haste & syck I fynysshe./ xix of february. the woffull Cownter. 1579. your L. in all dutye & prayer. W. Herlleli.