LETTER XLIII.
To Robert Lovelace, Esq; His Honner.
Sat. April 15.
·May it please your Honner,
This is to let your Honner kno', as how I have been emploied in a bisness I would have been excused from, if so be I could. For it is to gitt evidense from a young man, who is of late com'd out to be my Cuzzen by my Grandmother's side; and but lately come to live in these partes, about a very vile thing, as younge master calls it, relating to your Honner. God forbid I should call it so without your leave. It is not for so plane a man as I be, to tacks my betters. It is consarning one Miss Batirton, of Notingam; a very pritty crature, belike.
·Your Honner got her away, it seems, by a false Letter to her, macking believe as howe her She-cuzzen that she derely loved, was coming to see her; and was tacken ill upon the rode: And so Miss Batirton set out in a Shase, and one sarvant, to set her Cuzzen from the Inne where she laid sick, as she thote: And the sarvant was tricked, and braute back the Shase; but Miss Batirton was not harde of for a month, or so. And when it came to passe, that her frends found her oute, and would have prossekutid your Honner, your Honner was gone abroad: And so she was broute to bed, as one may say, before your Honner's return: And she got colde in her lyin-inn, and lanquitched, and soon died: And her
[Page 224]
child is living; but your Honner never troubles your Honner's hedd about it in the least. And this and some such other matters of verry bad reporte, Squier Solmes was to tell my young Lady of, if so be she would have harde him speke, before we lost her sweet company, as I may say, from heere (a) [Footnote a: 1Kb].
·I hope your Honner will excuse me: But I was forsed to tell all I harde, because they had my Cuzzen in to them, and he would have said he had tolde me: So could not be melely-mouthed, for fere to be blone up, and plese your Honner.
·Your Honner helped me to a many ugly stories to tell against your Honner to my younge Master, and younge Mistriss; butt did not tell me about this.
·I most humbelly beseche your Honner to be good and kinde and fethful to my dearest younge Lady, now you have her; or I shall brake my harte for having done some dedes that have helped to bring things to this passe. Pray youre dere good Honner, be just! Prayey do!---As God shall love ye! prayey do!---I cannot write no more for this pressent, for verry fear and grief---
·But now I am cumm'd to my writing agen, will youre Honner be pleased to tell me, if as how there be any danger to your Honner's life from this bisness; for my Cuzzen is actlie hier'd to go down to Miss Batirton's frendes to see if they will stur in it: For you must kno' your Honner, as how he lived in the Batirton family at the time, and could be a good evidence, and all that.
·I hope it was not so verry bad, as Titus says it was; for hee ses as how there was a Rape in the case betwixt you at furste, and plese your Honner; and my Cuzzen Titus is a very honift younge man as ever brocke bred. This is his carackter; and this made me willinger to owne him for my Relation, when we came to talck.·
[Page 225]
If there should be danger of your Honner's life, I hope your Honner will not be hanged like as one of us common men: Only have your hedd cut off, or so: And yet it is pitty such a hedd should be lossed: But if as how it shoulde be prossekutid to that furr, which God forbid, he plesed natheless to thinck of youre fethful Joseph Leman, before your hedd be condemned; for after condemnation, as I have been told, all will be the King's, or the Shreeve's.
·I thote as how it was best to acquent your Honner of this; and for you to let me kno' if I could do anything to sarve your Honner, and prevent mischef with my Cuzzen Titus, on his coming back from Nottingam, before he mackes his reporte.
·I have gin him a hinte already: For what, as I sed to him, Cuzzin Titus, signifies stirring up the coles, and macking of strief, to make rich gentil-folkes live at varience, and to be cutting of throtes, and such-like?
·Verry trewe, sed little Titus. And this and plese your Honner gis me hopes of him, if so be your Honner gis me directions; sen', as God kno'es, I have a poor, a verry poor invenshon; only a willing mind to prevent mischef, that is the chief of my aim, and always was, I bless my God!---Els I could have made mutch mischef in my time; as indeed any sarvant may. Your Honner natheless praises my invenshon every now-and-then: Alas! and plese your Honner, what in venshonshould suche a plane man as I have?---But when your Honner sets me agoing by your fine invenshon, I can do well enuff. And I am sure I have a hearty good will to deserve your Honner's faver, if I mought.
·Two days, as I may say, off and on, have I been writing this long Letter. And yet I have not sed all I would say. For, be it knone unto your Honner, as how I do not like that Capten Singelton, which I told your of in my two last Letters. He is always laying
[Page 226]
his hedd and my young Master's hedd together; and I suspect much if so be some mischef is not going on between them: And still the more, as because my eldest young Lady semes to be joined to them sometimes.
·Last week my young master sed before my fase, My harte's blood boiles over, Capten Singelton, for revenge upon this---And he called your Honner by a name it is not for such a won as me to say what. Capten Singelton whispred my younge Master, being I was by. So younge Master sed, You may say anything before Joseph; for althoff he looks so seellie, he has as good a harte, and as good a hedd, as any sarvante in the worlde nede to have. My conscience touched me just then. But why shoulde it? when all I do, is to prevente mischeff; and seing your Honner has so much patience, which younge Master has not; so am not affeard of telling your Honner any-thing whatsomever.
·And furthermore, I have suche a desire to desarve your Honner's bounty to me, as mackes me let nothing pass I can tell you of, to prevent harm: And too-besides your Honner's goodness about the Blew Bore; which I have so good an accounte of!---I am sure I shall be bounden to bless your Honner the longest day I have to live.·
And then the Blew Bore is not all neither; sen', and plese your Honner, the pretty Sowe (God forgive me for gesting in so serus a matter) runs in my hedd likewise. I believe I shall love her mayhap more than your Honner would have me; for she begins to be kind and good-humered, and listens, and plese your Honner, licke as if she was among beans, when I talke about the Blew Bore, and all that.
Prayey your Honner forgive the gesting of a poor plane man. We common fokes have our joys, and plese your Honner, lick as our betters have; and if we be sometimes snubbed, we can find our underlings to
[Page 227]
snub them agen: And if not, we can get a Wife mayhap, and snub her: So are Masters some how or other oursells.
·But how I try your Honner's patience!---Sarvants will show their joiful hartes, tho'off but in partinens, when encouredg'd.
·Be plesed from the prems's to let me kno' if as how I can be put upon any sarvice to sarve your Honner, and to sarve my deerest younge Lady; which God grant! For I begin to be affearde for her, hearing what pepel talck---To be sure your Honner will not do her no harme, as a man may say. But I kno' your Honner must be good to so wonderous a younge Lady. How can you help it?---But heere my conscience smites me, that but for some of my stories, which your Honner taute me, my old Master and my old Lady, and the two old Squiers, would not have been abell to be half so hard-harted as they be, for all what my young Master and young Mistress sayes.·
And here is the sad thing; they cannot come to clere up matters with my deerest young Lady, because, as your Honner has ordered it, they have these stories as if bribed by me out of your Honner's sarvant; which must not be known for fere you should kill'n and me too, and blacken the briber!---Ah! your Honner!---I doute as that I am a very vild fellow (Lord bless my soul, I pray God) and did not intend it.
But if my deerest younge Lady should come to harm, and plese your Honner, the horsepond at the Blew Bore---But Lord preserve us all from all bad mischeff, and all bad endes, I pray the Lord!---For tho'ff your Honner is kinde to me in worldly pelff, yet what shall a man get to loos his soul, as holy Skrittuer says, and plese your Honner?
But natheless I am in hope of reppentence hereafter, being but a younge man, if I do wrong thro' ignorrens; your Honner being a grate man, and a grate wit; and I a poor crature, not worthy notice; and
[Page 228]
your Honner able to answer for all. But howsomever I am
Your Honner's fethful Sarvant in all dewtie,
Joseph Leman.
April 15. and 16.