A Brief Apology Against Sutcliffes Slanderous Accusations, Answer 8 – Answer 9
Thomas Cartwrightes anſwere.
Here is a charge of a purchaſe of three or foure good Mannors, and two good leaſes, & both gott (for the moſt part) by the ſpoile of t'Hoſpitall, except the price of ſome ſmall Cottage, &c. For the purchaſe of three or foure Mannours, I neuer purchaſed any Mannour in my life but the Mannour of Saxmundehā in Suffolke, wherof I hauehave yet but he moitie, nether ſhal hauehave theſe fourtene or fiftene yeres, if one Mr Iohnſons leaſe be availeable, as hitherto he hath enioyed it by me: who hauehave not diſturbed his poſſeſſion. The rent that he yeeldeth for th'one half of the Demaines is but xxx. ſhillings by yeare. The rent of the demeines that I receiue (although enhanced as farre as the Tennant may liue thereof) is yet but xxvi. pound by yeare. Th'other rentes for Copieholdes come yearely to a iij. pound or thereabouts, as I remember. So that the whole of that I receiue cometh to litle aboue xxx. pound by the yeare. To purchaſe this I ſolde of the inheritance my Father & grandfather left, as faire a houſe for a farme, not only as is in that towne where it ſtandeth, but in diuers townes about, which had betweene eight or nine ſkoare Acres of arrable land belonging vntounto it, with commons, medow & paſture agreable to the Farmes in that countrey, by yeere more then three times worth the valew that either my father or I receiued for it, & yet we receiued betwene eight and nine pounds yearely of cleare rent diſcharged of all quitte rentes. That Mr Sutcliffe may the better enquire into it, the Farme is ſcituate in Waddon in the county of Cambridge, ſeauen miles from Cambridge, where I had alſo a coate with a cloſe adioyning vntounto it, which I ſolde when I did ſell th'other. Now where hee ſaieth I purchaſed my landes with my Hoſpitall, I know not why he ſhould ſo often terme it my Hoſpitall, rather then (as it is truly called) the Hoſpitall of the Right honorable the Earle of Leiceſter: But this I know and profeſſe conſtantly, that neither I nor anie for me purchaſed one foote of lande ſince I came to the Hoſpitall: I ſoulde an annuitie in fee-ſimple of xii. pound x. ſhillings by yeare ſince I came thither, as my L. chief Iuſtice of her Maieſties comō pleas doth wel know, before whom I acknowledge a fine: Leaſes of the Hoſpitall I neuer made but one onelyonly, for which the houſe & not I receiued thirtie poundes. And becauſe he draweth me to theſe accoumptes of th'Hoſpital, I will offer, and in the hearing of any equall and indifferent Auditour will make it cleare, that beſides my continuall trauell for the ſetling and ſuites of the Hoſpitall, which I (neuer brought vp therevnto) would not hauehave vndertaken for anie money, but onelyonly for conſcience and duetie to the poore Hoſpitall my L. truſted me with: I hauehave laied out of mine owne purſe fourty markes ouer and aboue that which I hauehave receiued or am like to receiue, vnleſſe the ſtocke which is holden from the houſe be recouered. This partlie may appeare by an Accoumpt I gaue vp vntounto her Maieſties Comiſſioners who had charge (amongeſt others) to enquire and certifie the whole eſtate of the poore Hoſpitall. Now for the two Leaſes in Welborne, They were bought by a friend of mine, who beeing the principall dealer is left out, whether to draw more envie to me, let it be iudged, eſpecially of that which heereafter ſhall appeare: I confeſſe I ſhould hauehave had a part therin, but they were neuer enioied either of him or me, but were releaſed to Mr Morgan, for that he was not able without his vtter vndooing, to performe them. And where hee ſaieth they were worth to me twoo hundred Markes by the yeare, They neuer hauehave bene nor will be woorth to vsus both two hundred farthings in all: More then that (albeit my L. chief Iuſtice of England dealeth very honorably with vsus) yet I referre it vntounto his iudgement (if his Lordſhippe will be pleaſed to ſpeake in ſo priuate a matter) that we are great looſers by Mr Morgan. And Mr Morgan (if he hauehave but a ſparke of good nature) ſhall be conſtrained to cōfeſſe our kinde & chriſtian dealing with him, both in releaſing his bargaine for a ſumme farre vnderneath the valew it was woorth, and forbearing him many yeares with much patience, after the forfaiture of his Recognoiſance and manie promiſes broken with vsus. Now where hee excuſeth theſe two laſt charges of being Executor to my Brother Stubbes, and of purchaſe of Lordſhips (as he doth excuſe many other things) in that he dooth propounde it onelyonly in a queſtion, it is vnworthie of anie anſwere, not onelyonly becauſe a queſtion doth more ſtrongly ſometimes avowe, then a bare affirmation, but becauſe he is ſo violentlie & bitterly caried againſt the petitioner for the thinges hee hath ſet down by way of queſtion. And for his excuſe of being miſtakē by the report of others, I referre it once againe to iudgement, how it fitteth with the credite of a Miniſter of the Goſpell, to publiſhe (and that in print) what ſoeuer he receiueth by report, to the diſcredite of a Miniſter of the Goſpel, and vnleſſe Mr Sutcliffe will bring foorth his reporter, ſome will happily conceiue that it is the invention of his owne head. And if he did receiue it by report, yet ſeeing he would blow it abroad by ſo ſtrōg a blaſt, as is the print, at the leaſt he ſhould not hauehave ſimply affirmed it, but ſet it downe as a report. Laſtly, where he ſaieth that he deſireth not to be acquainted with my eſtate, He forgetteth him ſelfe. For in his former booke (as I remember, for I hauehave not the booke at this preſent) he promiſeth to be a diligent Surveiour or Auditour of mine & others mens Landes. And in deed he is ouer diligent that can finde Landes of mine in Warwikeſhire and Norfolke, wherof I my ſelf nor anie of my friendes know not one foote, yet Mr D. Sutcliffe admoniſhed in this behalf of his vntrueth ſet foorth in his former booke, and occaſioned thereby to correct him ſelfe, feareth not in this later to affirme boldely that if he hauehave done amiſſe, it is becauſe he hath ſet downe to litle, to much, (ſayeth he) I hauehave not ſet downe, fol. 69. pa. 2. fol. 70. p. 1.
Mr D. Sutcliffes accuſation.
Hauing good ſtore of money he hath good ſkill to make good vſe of it, Mr Francis Michell ſhould hauehave payed him three hundred pound. And for the forbearing of it he receiued double vſance.
Thomas Cartwrightes anſwere.
What ſtoare of money I hauehave, I am not bound to giuegive Mr Sutcliffe accoumpt, what ſkill I hauehave to make vſe of it may partly appeare by the leaſes of Mr Morgan. And now it will further appeare by my dealing with Mr Francis Michell, where firſt, as before he would make mee alone the owner of the two Leaſes, ſhutting out the principall dealer, ſo heare for th'end before rehearſed, he maketh mee Mr Michells Creditor for three hundred pound, whereas the Recognoiſance he forfeited was to my friend & not to me, and his principall debt was onelyonly twoo hundred pound, and not three hundred poūd. Now when the day of paiement approched, he came to me in the Fleete, and offered me intereſt to forbeare, which I vtterly refuſing, did notwithſtanding at his earneſt ſuite and complaint of his diſtreſſe yeeld to forbeare the debte. And gaue him a writing of my hand to this effecte, that I was for mine owne part content to forbeare him, with theſe conditions, firſt that my graunt ſhould not bee hurtfull to my friend, not then in towne: and ſecondly, that it ſhould not be preiudiciall to the principall ſumme of two hundred pound. And where as he ſaieth in the Margen, that he will prooue this Intereſt by ſhewing the note of mine owne hand, let him ſhew the(a)Heere Mr. Sutc. is put to the iumpe of a piece of his credite. note and ſhame either me or him ſelfe; And if that be not ſufficient to cleare my righteouſnes in this cauſe, I appeale to his owne father Mr Mickiell, who was priuie to the whole courſe of our dealing with his ſonne. And we are ſo farre of from taking Intereſt of him, that to this day beeing about fiue yeares at the leaſt ſince the money was due, we hauehave not receyued ſo much as the principall which wee onelyonly demanded of him, although we had ſued out the forfeiture of his Recognoizance. And touching the matter of Intereſt, albeit I hauehave alwaies bene of iudgement for the lawfulnes of it, ſo it be with ſuch caution as Charitie (the rule of dealing with our neighbour) be not broken: yet in the time of my greateſt neceſſitie, when I was beyond the ſea, I receiuing aſſurance only for the bare money I left in the handes of my friends, did neuer couenant with them for the valew of one penie: But was content with what ſoeuer they them ſelues of their owne accord did alow, whether anie thing or nothing. Which dealing alowed of thoſe which are the moſt bitter aduerſaries of Intereſt, Mr Sutcliffe may thinke with him ſelf how vntruly he dealeth with me in his accuſation of Double Vſance.
FINIS.
End of the text · Thomas Cartwright, A Brief Apology Against Sutcliffes Slanderous Accusations (1596)