[245.3] Omitted in MS.
[245.4] Elizabeth Paston?
[196]
AGNES PASTON TO JOHN PASTON[246.1]
John Paston, dwellyng in the Tempyll at London, be thys letter delyverd in hast.
1451
or later
I grete yow wele, and lete yow wete that on the Sonday befor Sent Edmond, after evyn songe, Augnes Ball com to me to my closett and bad me good evyn, and Clement Spycer with hyr. And I acsyd hym what he wold? And he askyd me why I had stoppyd in the Kyngs wey? And I seyd to hym I stoppyd no wey butt myn owyn, and askyd hym why he had sold my lond to John Ball? And he sor [swore] he was nevyr a cordyd with your fadyr; and I told hym if hys fadyr had do as he dede, he wold a be a chamyd to a seyd as he seyd. And all that tyme Waryn Herman lenyd ovyr the parklos[246.2] and lystynd what we seyd, and seyd that the chaunge was a rewly chaunge, for the towne was un do therby, and is the werse by an Cli. And I told hym it was no curtese to medyll hym in a mater butt if he wer callyd to councell; and prowdly goyn forthe with me in the cherche, he seyd the stoppyng of the wey xuld coste me xx. nobylls, and zet it shuld downe ageyn. And I lete hym wete he that putte it downe chull pay therfor. Also he seyd that it was well don that I sett men to werke to owle[246.3] meney whyll I was her, butt in the ende I chale lese my coste. Than he askyd me why I had a wey hys hey at Walsham, seyng to me he wold he had wyst it whan it was karryd, and he chuld a lettyd it; and I told hym it was myn owyn grownde, and for myn owyn I wold holde it; and he bad me take iiij. acre and go no ferther. And thus churtly he departyd from me in the cherche zerde. And syt [since] I spacke with a serteyn man, and acsyd hym if he herd owt sey why the dyner was mad att Norfolkys howse, and he told me [he] herd sey that serteyn men had sentt to London to gete a commyssyon owt of the chaunstre to putt downe ageyn the wall and the dyk.
I receyvyd yor letter by Robert Reppys thys day after thys letter wretyn thus far. I have red it, butt I conn yeve yow non aunswer mor than I have wretyn, save the wyfe of Harman hathe the name of owr Lady, whos blyssyn ye have and myn. Wretyn at Paston, on the day after Sent Edmond,[247.1] Be yowyr modyr, Augnes Paston.
[246.1] [From Fenn, iii. 44.] This letter of Agnes Paston’s refers to the same subject of dispute as the two preceding, and was probably written after them; but the exact year is not certain.
[246.2] The half door of her ‘closet’ or pew in church.
[246.3] ‘To owl,’ says Fenn, ‘may signify to deceive, as an owler is a person who carries contraband goods in the night; though I rather think it means in this place to oil, that is, to smooth to her purpose; but q.?’ The explanation certainly is not very satisfactory. From the definition of ‘owler’ we might perhaps conjecture with more probability that ‘to owl’ was to work in the night time. Did Agnes Paston, to avoid interruption, set men to build the wall by night?