TO JOHN PASTON II 1476, 02, 03
To Syr John Paston, knyght, at the George by Powlys Wharff in London.
Aftyr all dwtés of recomendacyon, lyeketh yow to wette that wyth-in thys owyr past I receyuy [deleted in MS]d your letter wretyn the xxvij day of Januar, by whyche I vndyrstand that Scarlet wold haue an end wyth me; but lesse then xl s. is to lytyll, for if I wold do the vttermost to hym I shold recouer by the statwte, I trow, xl li. or more, but lesse then xxxiij s. iiij d. I wyll in no wyse. And ye may sey that ye of your owne hed wyll geue hym the ode nobyll of xl s., and if ye haue the v noblys I prey yow let Parker of Flettstret haue ther-of xxx s., and lete Pytte and Rychard and Edward drynk the xl d. As for your gownys, they shalbe sent yow in as hasty wyse as is possybyll. Thys must be consayll: it is promysyd my lady by my lord Chamberleyn that the diem clausit extremum for my lord shall not be delyuerd tyll she be of power to labore hyr-sylff her most auauntage in that mater, wherfor ye ned not to dele ouer largely wyth th'exchetour. Also consayll: Page 599Robard Brandon and John Colevyle haue by meanys enformyd my lady that ye wold haue gotyn Caster fro hyr by stronge hand now thys frost, whyll the mote is frosyn, in so myche that she was purposed to haue sent thedyr R. Brandon and other to haue kept the place tyll syche tyme as she made axe me the questyon whedyr ye entendet that wey or not. And I auysed hyr that she shold rather sofyr R. Brandon and hys retenew to lye in Norwyche of hys owne cost then to lye at the taverne at Yermouthe on hyr cost; for I lete hyr haue knowlage that ye neuer entend non entré in-to that place but by hyr assent and knowlage, I wost well. Syr, for Godys sake, in as hasty wyse as is possybyll send me woord how ye feele my lord Chamberleyn and Bowen dysposed to me wardys, for I shall neuer be in hertys ease tyll I vndyrstand ther twoys dysposysyon. Also I prey yow let Symond Dame haue knowlage, as soone as ye haue red thys lettyr, that I wold in eny wyse that he swe forthe the axions a-yenst Darby and other for Byskley, notwythstandyng the bylle that I sent hym to the contrary by Edmun [deleted in MS]d Jeney, for Darby and I ar brokyn of of our entreté whyche was apoyntyd at Thettford. God sped yow in thes maters, and in all other. Ye send me woord of a good maryage for my syster Anne. I prey yow aspye some old thryffty draffwyff in London for me. Thomas Brampton at the Blak Fryers in London, wyth syche other as he and I apoyntyd, wyll helpe yow to aspye on for me on ther part. I prey yow þat I may be recomandyd to hym, and prey hym that he wyll in as hasty wyse as he can comforte me wyth on letter fro hym and fro the other persone that he and I comond of; and I prey yow, as ye se hym at the Paruyse and ellys where, calle on hym for the same letter, and telle hym that ye must nedys haue on to me, and when ye haue it breke it, and ye lyst, or ye send it me.
