faite all their landes and tenementes, whiche they haue in fee simple in maner and forme as foloweth: That is to say that the kyng shal haue all the landes & tenementes, which the sayd conuictes haue in fee simple & which be immediatly holden of hym, as forfaited: And that the other Lordes of whom the landes & tenements of such conuictes be holden immediatly, after that the kyng is therof seised and aūswered of the Marginalia(H)(H) yeare, day, & wast: shall haue lyuery therof out of the handes of the kyng of the landes & tenementes aforesayd so of them holden, as hath bene vsed in case of attaynder of felonies, except the landes and tenemētes, which be holden of the ordinaries or their cōmissaries, before whō any such empeached of heresie be conuict. Marginalia(I)(I) which landes and tenementes shall wholy remaine to the kyng as forfaite: And moreouer, that all the goodes and cattalles of such cōuicted, be forfaict to our right soueraigne Lord the kyng, so that no person conuict of heresie & left vnto the secular power (accordyng to the lawes of holy Church) do forfaict his landes before that he be dead. And if any such person so cōuicted be enfeoffed, whether it be by fine, or by deed, or without deede, in landes and tenementes, rentes, or seruices, in fee or other wise in whatsoeuer maner, or haue any other possessions or cattels by gift or graunt of any person or persons, to the vse of any other then onely to the vse of such cōuictes: That the same landes, tenementes, rentes, nor seruices, nor other such possessions nor cattels shall not be forfait vnto our soueraigne Lord the kyng in no maner wise.

And moreouer, that the Iustices of the kynges bench, the Iustices of peace, & Iustices of Assise, haue full power to inquire of all such, which hold any errours or heresies, as Lolardes and who be their maintainours, receuours, fautours, and sustainers, common writers of such bookes, as well of their Sermons as scholes, conuenticles, congregations, and confederacies, & that this clause be put in the cōmissions of the Iustices of peace. And if any persons be indited of any of the pointes aboue sayd, that the sayd Iustices haue power to award agaynst them a Capias, and that the Shiriffe be bound to arest þ^e person or persons so endited as soone as he can finde them, either by himselfe or by his officers. And for somuch as the cognisaunce of heresies, errours, or Lolardies, appertaine to the Iudges of holy church, and not vnto the secular Iudges: that such persons indited Marginalia(K)(K) be deliuered vnto the Ordinaries of the places, or to their Commissaries by Indentures betwene them to be made, within. x. dayes after their arest, or sooner if it may be done, to be thereof acquited or conuict by the lawes of holy church, in case such persōs be not indited of any other thyng, the cognisaunce whereof appertaineth to the Iudges and seculare officers, in which case after they shalbe aquited or deliuered before þ^e secular Iudges of such thyngs as appertaineth to þ^e secular Iudges, they shal be sent in safe custody vnto þ^e sayd Ordinaries or their Commissaries, and to them to be deliuered by Indentures as is aforesayd, to be acquited or cōuicted of the same heresies, errours, and Lolardies, as is aforesayd, accordyng to the lawes of holy Churche, and that within the terme abouesayd. Prouided, that þ^e sayd indightmentes be not taken in euidence Marginalia(L)(L) but onely for information before the Iudges spirituall, agaynst such persons indighted: but that the Ordinaries begin their proces agaynst such persons indited, in the same maner, as though no such iudgement were, hauyng no regarde to such inditementes. And if any be indited of heresie, errour, or Lolardy, and takē by the Shiriffe or any other officer of the kyng, he may be let to maynprise within the sayd ten dayes, by good surety, for whom the sayd Shiriffes or other officers will aunswere, so that the sayd person so indighted be ready to be deliuered vnto the sayd Ordinaries, or to their Commissaries, before the end of þ^e tēth day aboue recited, if he may by any meanes for sickenes. And that euery Ordinary haue sufficiēt Commissaries or Commissary, abidyng in euery Coūtie in place notable, so that if any such person indited be taken, that the sayd Comissaries or Commissary may be warned in the notable place of his abidyng, by the Shiriffe or any of his officers to come vnto the Kynges Gayle within the sayd County, there to receaue the same person so indighted by Indenture as is aforesayde: And that in the Inquestes in this case takē, the Shiriffes and other officers vnto whom it appertaineth, do impanell good and sufficient persons not suspected nor procured, that is to say, such as haue at the least euery one of them that shall be so enpanelled in such inquestes, within the Realme, a hundred shillynges by the yeare of landes, tenements, or of rent, vpon payne to leese to the kyngs vse xx. pound. And that those which shalbe enpānelled vpon such enquests at Sessions and gayles, haue euery one of them to the value of xl. shillynges by the yeare. And if any such person be arested, whether it be by the Ordinaries or the officers of the kyng, Marginalia(M)(M) eyther escape or breake prison before he be therof acquit before the Ordinary: that then all hys goods and cattels, which he had at the day of such arest,shall be forfeit to the kyng: And his landes and tenementes which he had the same day, be seized also into the kynges handes, and that the kyng haue the profites thereof from the same day, vntill he render himselfe to the sayd prison, from whence he escaped. And that the aforesayd Iustices haue full power to inquire of all such escapes and breaking of prisons, and also of the landes, tenementes, goods and cattels of such persons indighted. Prouided, that if any such person indighted, do not returne vnto the sayde prison, and dyeth (not beyng conuict) that then it shall be lawfull for hys heyres, to enter into the landes and tenementes of hys or their aūcester without any other sute made vnto the kyng for thys cause. And that all those which haue liberties or fraunchesies royall in England, as the countie of Chester, the countie and libertie of Durhā; and other lyke: And also all the Lordes which haue iurisdictions and franchises royall in Wales where the kyngs writs do not run, haue lyke power to execute and put in execution in all poyntes, these articles by them or by their officers in lyke maner, as doe the Iustices and other the kynges officers aboue declared.

MarginaliaNotes vpon the statute aforesayd.Thus hauing recited the wordes of the statute, now let vs consider the reasons and obiections of this aduersary, who grounding peraduenture vpon the preface or preamble of thys foresayd statute: will proue therby, the L. Cobham, and Sir Roger Acton, wyth the rest of their abettours, to haue been traytors to their king and their countrey. Wherunto I aunswere, first in generall, that although the face or preface prefixed before the statute, may shew and declare the cause and occasion originall why the statute was made: yet the making of the statute importeth no necessary probation of the preface alwayes to be true that goeth before, which beyng but a colour to induce the making therof: geueth no force materiall therunto, nor is any necessary part of the body of the sayd statute. But onely adhereth as a declaration of the circumstaunce therof, and somtime is cleane omitted and differeth much from the substaunce of the same. For as statutes in ciuile policie most commonly doe tende to a publike end and are generall: MarginaliaPrefaces before statutes not to be regarded in triall of truth.so prefaces before statutes, which most commonly declarethe cause or beginnyng therof, are priuate: and do stand onely but vpō particular factes, which eyther of ill will and displeasure may be suggested, or by colour may be exaggerated, or for feare may be beleued, at least suspected, as many suspicions doe oftymes rise in princes heades, through false surmises, and malicious complaintes of certayne euill disposed about them, whereby many cruel lawes rising vpon a false ground, are promulgate to the ruine of much innocent bloud. MarginaliaStatut. an. 2. Hen. 4. cap. 15.Example whereof we haue not onely in thys present statute, an. 2 Reg. Henr. 5. but also in þ^e like statute, commonly called the statute Ex officio vel de comburendo, made by thys kynges father and predicessour, an. 2. Henr. 4. cap. 15. MarginaliaThe preface before the statute, De comburendo.In the preface of whiche bloudy statute, is conteyned an other like complaynt of the Prelates & clergie, not so haynous, as also most shamefully false & vntrue agaynst the poore Lollardes, as by the wordes of the complaynt may appeare begynnyng. Excellentissimo & Gratiosis. principi. &c. Wherin, most falsely they slaunder and misreporte the true seruauntes of Christ, to be Lollardes, hereticques, subuerters of the common wealth, destroyers of the Christian fayth, enemies to all good lawes, and to the Church of Christ. The words of which statute proceeding much after the like course as doth thys present statute, may easely bewray the vntruth and false surmise thereof, if thou please (gentle reader) to marke and conferre the words according as they are there to be read and seen, as followeth: MarginaliaEx vetustis instrumentis.Conuenticulas & confederationes faciunt, scholas tenent & exercent, libros conficiunt atq; scribunt, populum nequiter instruunt & informant, & ad seditionem seu insurrectionem excitant, quantum possunt, & magnas dissentiones in populo faciunt, & alia diuersa enormia auditui horrenda in dies perpetrant, in fidei cathol. & ecclesiæ subuersionem, diuiniq; cultus diminutionem, ac etiam destructionem status, iurium, & libertatum dictæ ecclesiæ Anglic. And after a few wordes: Ad omnem iuris, & rationis ordinem atq; regimē, penitus destruendum &c He that is or shalbe aquainted wyth olde histories, and wyth the vsuall practises of Sathan the old enemy of Christ, from the first beginyng of the primitiue Church vnto this present tyme, MarginaliaFalse accusation no newes in Christes churchshal see thys to be no newes, but a common and (as ye would say) a quotidian feuer among Christes children, to be vexed wyth false accu-