These persons had giuen to them great gifts, be|side yearelie pensions. For Argenton his councellor affirmed of his owne knowledge, that the lord Ho|ward had in lesse than the tearme of two yeares, for reward in monie and plate, foure and twentie thou|sand crownes; & at the time of this méeting, he gaue to the lord Hastings the kings chiefe chamberleine, (as the Frenchmen write) an hundred markes of sil|uer, made in plate, whereof euerie marke is eight ounces sterling. But the English writers affirme, that he gaue the lord Hastings foure and twentie doo|zen bolles, that is to saie, twelue doozen gilt, & twelue doozen vngilt, euerie cup weieng seuentéene nobles: which gift, either betokened in him a great liberall nature, or else a great and especiall confidence that he had reposed in the said lord chamberleine. Beside this, he gaue him yearelie two thousand crownes pension, the which summe he sent to him by Piers Cleret, one of the maisters of his house, giuing him in charge to receiue of him an acquittance for the re|ceipt of the same pension, to the intent that it should appeare in time to come, that the chancelor, chamber|leine, admerall, maisters of the horsses to the king of England, and manie other of his councell, had bin in fée and pensionaries of the French king, whose yearelie acquittances (the lord Hastings onelie ex|cepted) remaine of record to be shewed in the cham|ber of accounts in the palace of Paris.

When Piers Cleret had paied the pension to the lord Hastings, he gentlie demanded of him an ac|quittance for his discharge. Which request when he denied, he then onlie asked of him a bill of thrée lines to be directed to the king, testifieng the receipt of the pension: to the intent that the king your maister should not thinke the pension to be imbeselled. The lord Hastings, although he knew that Piers de|manded nothing but reason, answered him:

Sir this gift commeth onelie of the liberall pleasure of the king his maister, and not of my request: if it be his determinat will that I shall haue it, then put you it into my sléeue; and if not, I praie you render to him EEBO page image 701 his gift againe: for neither he nor you shall haue ei|ther letter, acquittance, or scroll signed with my hand of the receipt of anie pension, to the intent to brag another daie, that the kings chamberleine of Eng|land hath béene pensionarie with the French king, & shew his acquittance in the chamber of accounts, to his dishonor.

Compare 1577 edition: 1 When the king of England had receiued his mo|nie, [...]. Edward returneth in|to England. Edw. Hall fol. Ccxxxvj. and his nobili [...]ie their rewards, he trussed vp his tents, laded his baggage, and departed towards Calis. [But yer he came there, he remembring the craftie dissimulation, and the vntrue dealing of Lewes earle of saint Paule, high constable of France, intending to declare him to the French king in his verie true likenesse and portrature, sent vnto him two letters of credence, written by the said constable, with the true report of all such words and messages as had béene to him sent, and declared by the said constable and his ambassadours. Which let|ters the French king gladlie receiued, and thanke|fullie accepted, as the cheefe instrument to bring the constable to his death: which he escaped no long sea|son after, such is the end of dissemblers.] When king Edward was come to Calis, and had set all things in an order, he tooke ship, and sailed with a prosperous wind into England, and was roiallie receiued vpon Blackheath by the maior of London and the magi|strates, and fiue hundred commoners apparrelled in murrie, the eight and twentith daie of September, and so conueied through the citie of Westminster, where for a while (after his long labour) he reposed himselfe [euerie daie almost talking with the queene his wife of the marriage of his daughter, Edw. Hall fol. Ccxxxvj. whome he caused to be called Dolphinesse: thinking nothing surer than that marriage to take effect, according to the treatie. The hope of which marriage caused him to dissemble, and doo things which afterward chanced greatlie to the French kings profit, & smallie to his.]