TO JOHN PASTON I 1465,  10, 
03  
To my ryth reuerend and worchepfull fadyr John Paston be thys 
delyueryd. 
Aftyr all humbyll and most dwe recomendacion, as lowly as i can i 
beseche yow of youyr blyssyng. Plesyt yow to haue knowlege þat, 
as on Sonday next be-for Myhelmas Day, as my modyr came fro London 
ward sche cam homward by Cotton; and sche sent for me to Heylysdon 
to come to hyr thedyr, and so i haue ben in the plase euer sethyn. And 
as sone as Myhelmas Day was past i be-gane to dystreyne the tenauntys 
and gadryd some sylluyr, as myche i trowe as wyll pay for ouyr costys, 
and yet i cepe here ryth a good felawschep, and mor wer promysyd me 
whyche þat came not to me, wherby i was ner deseyuyd; for when 
Debnam herd sey how þat i began to gadyr syluyr he reysyd many 
men wyth-in j daye and an halfe, to þe nombyr of iijc men, as i 
was credebly assartaynyd by a yeman of þe chambyr of my lordys 
that connythe me good wyll, whech yeman, as  
sone as he had sene ther felauschep, rod streyth to my lord and jnformyd 
hym of it; and also he informyd my lord how þat i had gadryd 
a-nothyr gret felawschep, whyche felawschep he namyd more then we 
wer by jc and an halfe and yett more. And he seyd on-to my lord and 
my lady and to ther consell þat wyth-owt that my lord took a 
dyreccyon in the mater that ther wer leek to be do gret harme on bothe 
ouyr pertyes, wheche wer a gret dysworchep to my lord, consederyng 
how þat he takyth vs bothe for hys men and so we be knowyn 
well j-now; vpon whyche jnformacion and dysworchep to my lord 
þat tweyn of hys men schold debat so ner hym, contrary to 
þe Kyngys pese, consedryd of my lord and lady and ther 
cownsell, my lord sent for me and Syr Gylberd Debnam to come to hym 
to Framlyngham bothe. And as it fortunyd well, my modyr come to me 
to Cotton not half an owyr be-for þat the mesenger cam to me fro 
my lord, wheche was late vpon Twysday last past at nyth, and the next 
day on the mornyng i rod to my lord to Framlyngham, and so ded Syr 
Gylberd also. And as sone as we wer come we wer sent for to come to 
my lord, and when we came to my lord he desiyryd of vs bothe 
þat we schold neythyr gadyr no felawschep, but syche men as we 
had gadryd þat we schold send hem home a-yen and þat the 
coort schold be contenuyd in-to the tyme þat my lord, or syche as 
he wold asyngne, had spok bothe wyth yow and Yeluerton and Jenney, 
and þat on jndeferent man chosyn by us bothe schold be assynyd 
to kep the plase in-to þe tyme þat ye and they wer spook 
wyth. And then i answ[er]ed my lord and seyd how þat at that 
tyme i had my mastyr wyth-in þe maner of Cotton, whyche was 
my modyr, and in-to the tyme þat i had spook wyth hyr i cowd 
geue none answer; and so my lord sent Rychard Fulmerston, berer 
her-of, to my modyr thys day for an answer, whyche answer he schold 
bryng to my lord to London, for my lord rod to Londonward as 
yesterday, and þe soner be-cause he trustyd to haue a good end of 
þis mater and alle othyr be-twyx yow, whyche he takyth for a gret 
worchep to hym ward and a gret auantage bothe and he cowd bryng 
þis mater abowt; for then he wold trust to haue youyr seruyse 
alle, whyche wer to hym gret tresour and auantage. And þis was 
the answer þat my modyr and i gaue hym, þat at þe 
instans of my lord and my ladye we wold do þus myche as for to 
put þe coort in contenuans and no more to receyue of þe 
profytys of þe maner than we had, and had dystresid for, tyll in-to 
þe tym that sche and i had word ayen fro my lord and yow if so 
wer þat þey wold neythyr mak entreys nor dystreyn the 
tenauntys nor cepe no coort more then we wold do; and we told Rychard 
Fulmerston that thys my modyr and i ded at þe jnstans and gret 
request of my lord because  
my lord intendyd pes, whyche resonably we wold not be ayenst, and yet 
we seyd we knew well þat we schold haue no thank of yow when 
ye knew of it wyth-owt it wer be-cause we ded it at my lordys jnstans. 
But be-for thys answer we had receyvyd as myche syluyr full nye as 
Rychard Calle sent vs bokys of for to gadyr yt bye, and as for þe 
possessyon of þe plase, we told hym þat we wold kepe it, 
and Syr Gylberd agreyd so that Yeluerton and Jeney wold do þe 
same, for it was tyme for hym to sey so for my lord told hym þat 
he wold set hym fast by the feet ellys to be suyr of hym þat he 
schold make non jnsurreccions in-to þe tyme þat my lord 
came ayen fro London. I wene, and so dothe my modyr bothe, þat 
thys appoyntment was mad in good tyme, for i was deseyuyd of bettyr 
than an c men and an halfe þat i had promyse of to haue come to 
me when i sent for hem. Thys promes had i be-for i sent to yow the last 
lettyr the daye aftyr Seynt Myhell. Jenney herd sey ow þat i cepyd 
Cotton, and he rod to Nacton and ther held a cort and receyuyd þe 
profytys of the maner. I beseche yow þat i may haue knowlage in 
hast fro yow how ye wyll þat i be demenyd in thys mater and in 
all othyr, and i schall aplye me to fulfyll youyr intent in them to my 
power, by the grace of God, whom i beseche haue yow in guydyng and 
sende yow yowyr hertys desyir. Wretyn at Hemnalle Halle in Cotton the 
Thursday next be-for Seynt Feythe. My modyr recomandyth hyr to yow, 
amd preyith yow to hold hyr excusyd that sche wrytyth not to yow at 
thys tyme for sche may haue no leyser. The berer her-of schall informe 
yow whedyr Jeney wyll agré to thys appoy[n]tment or not. I 
thynk he dar do non othyr wyse. Yowyr sone and lowly seruaunt John 
Paston