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woll be lowthe to serve the Kinges graces writes, specially
when they be layde and watched for to the peryll of theyr
lives, as the said William was, (as I am enformyd,) watched for
twisse or thrisse. My Lady of Norffolke is very good, and I
have bene likewise to Mr, but she excusith hir servatmtes holy
by hir lettres, and regardith litle the matier.
Also I advertise you, that one Sher Thursday last, I was
secretly informyd, that a gret numbre of yomen of the countrey
woll shortely com to me, to desier me to be a meane for
thaym to the Kinges grace, to have thair loone money agayne.
Wheruppon I sent the discretest of my house to stopp all
such as I thought wold be advised by me, that they shuld in
nowise appere in suche assembles, wherby I suppose a good
numbre of the substanciall yomen of this countrey w'drew
thaymselfes and apperyd not. Nevertheles, on tuesday in the
Esterweke laste, came to my maner at Knoll1 a multitude of
yomen of the countrey, to the numbre of one hundreth as it
was supposed by thaym that sawe thaym, and they so assemblyd
toguyther, I sent downe unto them to know the cause of
thayr assembly; wherunto they aunswered it was to speke wt
me. I than sent word unto thaym, that I wold be contented
to hyre theyr matier by relation of v or vj of the discretest of
theym, for to speke wt the hole multytude I thought it shuld
do rather harme than good. When the said vj persones wer
commen byfore me, I demaundyd of theym what was the cause
of thair commyng in suche multitude, and what they entendyd.
They made aunswer that they and theyr neighbors at home
being poore and nedy desyeryd me to be a meane to the
Kinges grace to have thair loone money, affirmyng that they
caused the grete numbre of thair neyghbors which had lyke
cause to com, to tary at home, and cam but ij or iij of a paroche,
bycause they wold make no gret multitude to the discontentation
of the Kinges moost noble grace. And than I said to
thayme that they had not chosen the best tyme to speke in this mater, consyderyng the gret charges that the Kinges grace
hath hadd lately, and ferther was lyke to susteyne, if it shuld
1 Knole, in Sevenoaks, was purchased by Bourehier of Lord Say and
Sele, 34 Hen. VI. It continued to be a residence of the
Archbishops till
Cranmer resigned it, with other palaces, to the Crown, 29 Hen.
VIII.
The King frequently visited Wai-ham at Knole. It is now the seat
of the
Dowager Countess of Amherst.
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