[628]
FRIAR JOHN MOWTH TO JOHN PASTON[219.1]
To my worchepful mayster, John Paston the holdest, be this letter delyveryd in hast.
1466
MAY 12
Ryth reverent and worchepful sire, I hartyly recomende me on to your reverens, thankyng yow for the gret cher and comfortabyll words that ye yovyn on to me wat tyme that I was last yn yowr presens; desyryng ful specyaly of Almity God, owt of al your wordly tribulacyonys and adversyte, gracyowus delyverans, and yn al vertuows prosperite, good encres and contynuans. If yt like your maysterchep to know the cause of this wrytyng, it ys thys; it is nowth unknow[219.2] on to yow that Mayster Brakle (Cryst rest hys sowle!), delyveryd to Wyllam Paston, your broder, certayn oblygacyonys, of the weche the dute xuld grow to my convent yn Norwyche. I have spoke on to Wyllam Paston her of, and he excuseth hym and seyth on this wyse; that be the wyl of Mayster Brakle, wat tyme that Sire Tomas Todenham,[219.3] Knyth, xuld be put on to hys deth, he delyveryd hem on to hys confessor; the weche, as he seth, xuld a be Grey fryer, hows name he knowyth nowt; also he seyth that after the deth of the forseyd Knyt, he spake with the Fryer, confessor on to the Knyth, and hasked hym aftyr the forseyd oblygacyonys, and as he seyth, the Fryer seyd on to hym that he had delyveryd hem on to [the] Knyth Marchall. Werfor I beseche you, as specyaly as I may, that, now wyl your broder is at London, that ye of your grace wyl know the trowthe in this mater, for the comfort of the dede, and profyth of my convent. Nomor at this tyme, but that I be seche Almyty God in Trinyte conserve your, and kepe yow in all vertuows prosperite. Amen.
Wretyn at Heylysdon in gret hast, the xij. day of May, in your maner aftyr mete. The cause wy the mayster delyveryd hem to hym mor than to yow, was, as he seyd on to me, for as meche as ye had so many maters yn hand for yowr self, and also for the dede, that he durst not attempt yow with all; and al so be cause he had lesse for to do hys hope was that he xuld asped yt mor redyly.
Fr[e]re Willam Thorp dwellyng at Salisbury. By yowr pore orator and bedman, Frier Jan Mowth.
[219.1] [From Fenn, i. 256.] Friar Brackley, who is here mentioned as dead, is spoken of in John Paston’s deposition of December 1465, without any indication that he was at that time deceased (see [No. 606]). We may presume, therefore, that he died between that time and May 1466, in which month and year died John Paston, to whom this letter is addressed.
[219.2] Nowth unknow. I believe this to be the true reading of the original MS. Fenn prints it ‘nowthn know.’
[219.3] He was beheaded on Tower Hill in February 1462.