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1432 [1432]

K. Hen. 8. Persecution in VVindsore. Testwood, Filmer, Person, Marbecke, Bennet.

the Sea and beyond, and yet will he vtter none of thē. Alas my lord, quoth she, my husband was neuer beyōd the Seas, nor no great trauailer in the Realme to bee so acquaynted, therefore good my Lord let me go see him. MarginaliaMarbeckes wife denyed a great while to go to her husband.But all her earnest sute frō day to day would not helpe, but still he put her of, harpyng alwayes vpō this stryng: thy husband will vtter nothyng. At the last, she findyng him in the Courte at S. Iames goyng toward his chamber, was so bold to take hym by the ratchet and say: O my Lord, these 18. dayes I haue troubled your Lordship: Now for the loue of God, and as euer ye came of a woman, put me of no longer, but let me go to my husband. And as she was standyng with þe Byshop and his mē in a blynd corner goyng to his chāber, one of the kinges seruantes called Harry Carrike, and her next neighbour, chaunced to be by: and hearing the talke betwene the bishop and her, desired hys lordship to be good Lord vnto the poore woman, which had her own mother lying bedred vpon her hands, beside. v. or. vj. children. I promise you, quoth the bishop, MarginaliaWinchesters argument.
He hath read much scripture:
Ergo, he is an hereticke.
her husband is a great hereticke, and hath read more scripture then any man in þe realme hath done. MarginaliaHenry Carricke playeth the part of a good neighbour.I cā not tell my Lord, quoth Carrick, what he is inwardly, but outwardlye he is as honest a quiet neighbour as euer I dwelt by. He will tell nothing, quoth the bishop. He knoweth a great sorte of false harlots, and wyll not vtter them. Yes my Lord, quoth Carrick, he wyll tell, I dare say, for he is an honest man. Well, quoth the Bishop (speaking to the wife) thou seemest to be an honest woman, and if thou loue thy husband well, go to hym, and geue him good counsaile, to vtter such naughty felowes as he knoweth, and I promise thee he shall haue what I can doe for him: for I doo fansie hym well for his arte, wherein he hath pleased me as well as anye man: and so stepping into his chamber, said she should haue his letter to the keeper. MarginaliaMarbeckes wife permitted at last to go to her husband.But hys minde beyng chaunged, he sent out hys ring by a gentleman, which gentleman deliuered the ring to hys man, chargyng hym with the Bishops message. And so his man went with the woman to the water side, and tooke boate, who neuer rested rayling on her husband all the way, till they came to the prison: which was no small crosse vnto the poore woman.

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And when they were come to the Marshalsey, the messenger shewed the Bishops ring to the Porter saying: Maister Stokes, my Lord willeth you by this token, that ye suffer this woman to haue recourse to her husband: but he straightly chargeth you, that ye search her both comming and going, lest she bring or cary any letters to or fro, and that she bryng no bodye vnto him, nor no woord from no man. Goddes bloud, quoth the Porter MarginaliaLike maister lyke man. (who was a foule swearer) what wyll my Lord haue me to do? Can I let her to bring woord frō any man? Either let her go to her husband, or let her not go, for I see nothing by him, but an honest man. The poore woman fearing to be repulsed, spake the Porter fayre, saying: Good Maister be content, for I haue found my Lord very good Lord vnto me. Thys yong mā is but the gentlemās seruant, which brought the ring from my Lord, and I thinke doth his message a great deale more straiter then my Lorde commaunded the gentleman, or that the gentleman his mayster commaunded hym. MarginaliaThe part of a good wife & an honest matrone.But neuerthelesse good Mayster, quoth she, I shall be content to strip my self before you, both cōming & going, so farre as any honest womā may doo with honesty. For I entend no such thing, but onely to comfort and helpe my husband. Then the messenger sayd no more, but went his waye, leauing the woman there, who from that time foorth, was suffered to come and go at her pleasure.

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¶ The fourth examination of Marbecke before the Commissioners in the B. of Londons house.

MarginaliaThe 4. examinatiō of Marbecke.ABout a three weekes before Whitsondaye was Marbeck sent for to the bishop of Londōs house, MarginaliaCōmissioners for the vj. Articles.
D. Capon Bishop of Salisburye.
D. Skippe Byshop of Harforde.
D. Goodricke. bishop of Ely.
D. Oking.
D. May.
where sat in Commission Doctor Capon bishop of Salisbury, Doct. Skyp bishop of Harford, doctor Goodricke bishop of Ely, doctor Oking, doctor May, and the bishop of Londons Scribe, hauing before them, all Marbeckes bookes. Then sayd the bishop of Salisbury: Marbecke, we are here in Commission sent from the kinges Maiestie, to examine thee of certayn things, whereof thou must be sworne to answer vs faythfully and truly. I am content my Lord, quoth he, to tell you the truth, so farre as I can, and so tooke his othe. Then the bishop of Salis. layd foorth before him, his. 3. bookes of notes, demaunding whose hand they were. He answered, they were his own hand, and notes which he had gathered out of other mens workes. vj. yeres ago. For what cause, quoth the bishop of Salis. diddest thou gather them? For none other cause my Lorde, quoth he, but to come by knowledge. For I being vnlearned and desirous to vnderstande some part of scripture, thought by reading of learned mens woorkes, to come the sooner thereby: and where as I found any place of scripture opened and expounded by them, that I noted as ye see, wyth a letter of his name in the margent, that had set out the worke. So me thinke, quoth the bishop of Ely (who had one of the bookes of notes in his hande all the time of their sitting) thou hast read of all sortes of bookes both good and bad, as seemeth by the notes. So I haue my Lord, quoth he. And to what purpose, quoth the bishop of Salis.? By my trouth, quoth he, for no other purpose but to see euery mans minde. Then the bishop of Salis. drewe out a quire of the Concordance, and layd it before the bishop of Harford, who looking vpon it awhyle, lifted vp his eyes to doctor Oking (standing next him) and sayde: This man hath bene better occupied, then a great sort of our Priestes. To the which he made no aunswere.

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Then said the bishop of Salisbury, whose help hadst thou in setting forth this booke? Truly my Lord, quoth he, no helpe at all. How couldest thou, quoth the bishop, inuent such a booke, or know what a Cōcordance mēt, without an instructer. I wil tel your Lordship, quoth he, what instructer I had to beginne it. MarginaliaThe occasion why Marbecke beganne the Concordance in Englishe.When Thomas Mathewes Bible came first out in print  

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This was in 1537.

, I was much desirous to haue one of them: and being a poore man not able to bye one of them, determined with my selfe to borrow one among my frendes and to write it foorth. And when I had written out the. v. bookes of Moyses in faire great paper, and was entred into the booke of Iosua, my friend Maister TurnerMarginaliaM. Richard Turner  
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Richard Turner, at this time, held a perpetual chantry in St. George's Chapel. Contrary to Foxe, he did not die in exile, but returned to England in 1559. He died in his parish at Dartford c. 1565.

of Magdalen Colledge in Oxforde and after of Windsore, a godly learned man and a good preacher: who in Qeuene Maryes time fledde into Germanye, & there died.
chaunced to steale vpon me vnwares, and seing me writing out the Bible, asked me what I ment thereby. And when I had told him the cause: Tush, quoth hee, thou goest about a vayne and tedious labour. But this were a profitable worke for thee, to set out a Cōcordance in English. A Concordance sayd I? what is that? Then hee tolde me it was a booke to finde out anye woorde in the whole Bible by þe letter, and that there was such a one in latin already. Then I tolde him I had no learnyng to go about suche a thing. Enough, quoth hee, for that matter, for it requireth not so muche learning, as diligence. And seing thou art so painfull a man, and one that cannot be vnoccupied, it were a goodly exercise for thee. And this (my Lord) is al the instruction that euer I had before or after, of any man. What is that Turner, quoth þe bishop of Salis.? Mary, quoth Doct. May, an honest learned man, and a Bacheler of Diuinitye, & sometyme a fellow in Magdalen Colledge in Oxford. Howe couldest thou, quoth the bishop of Salis. wyth this instruction, bring it to this order and forme, as it is? I borrowed a Latin Concordance, quoth he, and began to practise my wyt, and at last with great labour and diligence, brought it into this order, as your Lordship doth see. A good wyt with diligence, quoth the byshop of Harford, may bring hard thinges to passe. It is great pity quoth the bishop of Ely, he had not the Latine toung. So it is, quoth doctor May. Yet can not I

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beleue
SSS.ij.