To my Maister Paston.
1455
JULY 7
Please your gode maistership to wete, that as yerstenday came lettres from London that the Parson[41.2] most nedys up to London to safe the next amerciement; and so ys forth to appiere, yff he nedys most, xv. Johannis,[41.3] as ye shall see by Barkers lettre, and shall be to morne at London, and with Goddes grace he shall be releved by the meene of the Parlement; by Sonday yee shall hafe weetyng.
As for my maister,[41.4] he departyth not to London tille the next weke after thys, and [i.e. if] he ryde.
As for tydyngs be none couthe [i.e. publicly known], but Ponyngs[41.5] ys qwyt and delyvered of all tresons; and Sir William Oldhale ys process yn the Kyngs Bynche reversed; and the Priest that accused Lordz Cromewell,[41.6] Grey,[41.7] and my maister wolle confesse who caused hym to do it, so that he may have hys lyve, &c.
Assone as ye goodly may to see my maister, it shall be to hym a singuler pleasir. Sir, a baylly of my maister ys yn Drayton. John Eimond brought a lettre to yow, and he sent me wetyng he was shent [abashed] uppon som mater, as he supposyth, conteyned yn the lettre. Y pray you yn ryght be hys gode maister, and that y may wete the cause, for y doubt he shall and most obbey, yff he hath offended.
At Castr, the noneday,[42.1] vij. day Jullet. Your, W. Worcestre.
On the top of this letter, in a different hand, is written:—
Prove ontrouthe in the Undir-Sherif, or that he dede othir wise thanne your counsell avysid hym, and Paston shall demene hym accordyng.
[41.1] [From Fenn, iii. 128.] At the date of this letter, William Worcester and his master, Sir John Fastolf, were both at Caister, though the latter was thinking of going up to London. This, being in July, cannot have been before 1455. Fenn supposes the pardon to Poynings to have been on account of his participation in Cade’s rebellion, and accordingly dates this letter ‘about 1451.’ But Poynings was accused of raising disturbances in 1453 and 1454. The reversal of Sir William Oldhall’s outlawry was in 1455; for we have seen in [No. 287] that he was obliged to remain in sanctuary for some little time after the battle of St. Albans. It appears by an inspeximus on Patent Roll, 34 Hen. VI., m. 16, that he presented a petition to the King in Parliament on the 9th July, 33 Hen. VI. (1455), setting forth how he had served the King in France, and yet had been pronounced a traitor by the Parliament of Reading in 31 Hen. VI., but that his outlawry had been reversed in the King’s Bench.