1563 Edition | Book 5 | Page 1686 
missed from you, the detestable sorte of Schismatickes were neuer so bold (since the King & quenes maiesties reignes) as they are now at this present. In much Bentley where your Lordship is Patrone of the church, since William Mount, and Alice his wife, with Rose Allen her daughter came home, they do not only absent them selues from the church, and seruice of God: but do dayly allure many other away from the same, which before did outewardlye shewe signes and tokens of obedience. They assemble together vppon the Saboth day, in the time of diuine seruice, some times in one house, somtime in an other, and there kepe their priuie conuenticles and scholes of heresy. The Iurates saith, the Lordes commission is out and they are discharged of their othe. The questmen in youre Archdeacons visitation allegeth that for asmuch as they were once presented and now sent home, they haue no more to do with them nor none other. Your officers saith, namely maister Boswell, that the counsell sent them not home without a great consideration. I pray God some of youre officers proue not fauourers of heretickes. The rebels are stoute in the Town of Colchester. The ministers of the churche are hemde at in the open streates, & called knaues. The blessed sacrament of the altar is blasphemed and railed vppon in euery Ale house and Tauerne. Prayer and fasting is not regarded. Sedicious talkes and newes are rife, both in towne and cuntrey, in as ample and large maner, as though there had no honorable Lordes & Commissioners ben sent for reformatiō therof. The occasion riseth partly by reason of one Ihon Lone of Colchester hieth (a peruerse place) whiche Ihon Lone was twise indicted of heresye, and there vppon fled with his wife & houshould, and his goods seased within the towne of Colchester, to the king and Quenes maiesties vse. Neuertheesse the said Ihon is come home agayne, & nothing said or done vnto him. Wher vppon the heretickes are wonderfully encouraged, to the no litle discomfort of good & Catholicke people, which daylye prayeth to God for the profite, vnitye, and restauration of hys church agayn, which thyng shal come the soner to passe, through the trauel and paynes of such honorable Lords, & reuerend fathers, as your good Lordshippe is, vnto whom I wish longe life and continuaunce, with encrease of muche honor. From Colchester the xviii. of Decēber.
[Back to Top]your humble bedes man
Thomas Tye, Priest.
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This letter was dropped from the 1570 edition, undoubtedly because it was not terribly relevant and because paper was in short supply.
THe second sonday after the feast of the blessed Trinity, I heard maister Feckenham preache at Paules crosse.
The next day after I departed oute of the City of London towardes muche Wakering.
The third sonday after Trinitye, I preached at much Wakering.
The fourthe sondaye I preached at Harwich, and reconciled there. xii. persons to the vnity of the church.
The fyft sonday I preached at Wakering magna.
The sixt sonday at Wakering magna.
The seuenth sonday at Langenho.
The eight sonday at Peldone.
The ninth sonday at Wakering magna.
The tenth sonday the aris tooke me.
The. xi. sōday I preached at much Bentley.
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This letter, full of fascinating information on the Marian protestants, was deleted in the 1570 edition. The reason was that it described the activities of dissident protestant leaders - Henry Hart, John Kemp, John Laurence and John Barry - whom Foxe wished forgotten. It even identified some of them as opponents of predestination, indicating the existence of a schism which Foxe also wished forgotten. (On these leaders, and on Foxe's censorship of the disputes over predestination among Marian protestants, see Thomas S. Freeman, 'Dissenters from a Dissenting Church: the Challenge of the Freewillers, 1550-1558' in The Beginnings of English Protestantism, eds. Peter Marshall and Alec Ryrie [Cambridge, 2002], pp. 129-56.
[Back to Top]MarginaliaA mischeuous information of a wicked priest to Boner against good men.THe fyrst, maister Laurence of Barnehall. Iohn Barry hys seruaunt. Iohn Ieffrey, brother in law to master Laurence. These. iii. do lye & abyde when they be in London, at an Alehouse in Cornewall, ouer agaynste the cōduit. The man his name is Ihon Dudmā. these thre are the greatest, and do most harme in perswading the people.
[Back to Top]Robert Coles and hys wyfe.
Ihon Ledley and his wyfe.
VVilliam punt a bacheler.
These three doe lye at the signe of the bel in Gracious streete in a common inne. And two of those, namelye Iohn Ledley and Robert Coles are great counsellers, and doo resorte much vnto the Kinges benche vnto the prisoners, about matters of religion. The other namely William Punt, is and hath ben a great writer of diuelishe & erronious bokes of certain mens doinges, & doth conuey them ouer, and causeth them there to be imprinted and brought ouer, to the great hurt of the ignorant people, as it is to be proued. For vpon Palme sonday last, he had in his bosome a certayne booke against the sect of the Anabaptistes. MarginaliaA sound lesson reasō I should say to proue heresy,And as he was arriuing vpō þe Thamis towardes Grayes, there hee did reade it, and had shipped at that present by reporte, and as due proofe is to be had by these two men, Robert Coles and Iohn Ledley. for they were of his counsell in conueying of them ouer, to the valew of a barrell full of bookes. This I doo know. For I partly knew al their doinges in that viage. And the sayde Robert and Iohn went ouer at the same tyme about questions of religion to the learned that were ouer, to know their counsell in those matters, and so to turne backe agayne vpon the same. Thus much I know to be their doinges.
[Back to Top]Iohn Kempe.
Henry Hart.
These two do lye at the bridge foote, at a cutlers house, whose name is Curle.
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A letter from John Careless mentions Curle as a freewiller (ECL MS 260, fo. 132r).