The aforesaid Laurence Shiriffe grocer, being then seruant vnto the said ladie Elisabeth,The part of a good trustie seruant. & sworne vnto hir grace, could no longer forbeare his old ac|quaintance and neighbor Farrer in speaking so vn|reuerentlie of his mistresse, but said to him: Far|rer, I haue loued thée as a neighbour, and haue had a good opinion of thée, but hearing of thée that I now heare, I defie thée: and I tell thée I am hir graces sworne seruant, and she is a princesse, and the daugh|ter of a noble king, and it euill becommeth thée to call hir a gill, and for thy so saieng, I saie thou art a knaue, & I will complaine vpon thée. Doo thy woorst said Farrer, for that I said, I will saie againe: and so Shiriffe came from his companie. Shortlie after,Robert Far|rer complai|ned of to the commissio|ners, but no redresse was had. the said Shiriffe taking an honest neighbour with him, went before the commissioners to complaine: the which commissioners sat then at Boner the bi|shop of Londons house beside Pauls, and there were present Boner then being the chiefe commissioner, the lord Mordant, sir Iohn Baker, doctor Derbishire chancellor to the bishop, doctor A knaue. Storie, doctor Harps|field, and others. The aforesaid Shiriffe comming before them, declared the maner of the said Robert Farrers talke against the ladie Elisabeth. Boner answered, Peraduenture you tooke him woorse than he meant. Yea my lord (said doctor Storie) if you knew the man as I doo, you would saie that there is not a better catholike, nor an honester man in the ci|tie of London.

Well, said Shiriffe, my lord, she is my gratious ladie and mistresse, and it is not to be suffered that such a varlet as he is, should call so honorable a prin|cesse by the name of a gill: and I saw yesterdaie in the court that my lord cardinall Poole méeting hir in EEBO page image 1160 the chamber of presence, knéeled downe on his knées and kissed hir hand: and I saw also that king Philip méeting hir, made hir such obeisance that his knée touched the ground: and then (me thinketh) it were too much to suffer such a varlet as this is, to call hir gill, and to wish them to hop headlesse that shall wish hir grace to inioie the possession of the crowne when God shall send it vnto hir as in the right of hir inheritance. Yea! Staie there (quoth Boner.) When God sendeth it vnto hir,How bishop Boner and [...]tor Storie bear with him that railed a|gainst ladie Elisabeth. let hir inioie it. But trulie (said he) the man that spake the words that you haue reported, meant nothing against the ladie Elisabeth your mistresse, and no more doo we: but he like an honest and zealous man feared the alteration of reli|gion, which euerie good man ought to feare: and ther|fore (said Boner) good man go your waies home and report well of vs towards your mistresse, and we will send for Farrer and rebuke him for his rash and vndiscréet words, and we trust he will not doo the like againe. And thus Shiriffe came awaie, and Farrer had a flap with a fox taile. Now that ye maie be ful|lie informed of the aforesaid Farrer,Note the vn|godlie life of these catho| [...]kes. whome doctor Storie praised for so good a man, ye shall vnderstand that the same Farrer, hauing two daughters, being handsome maidens, the elder of them for a summe of monie he himselfe deliuered vnto sir Richard Cholmleie to be at his commandement; the other he sold to a knight called sir William Gooddolphin to be at his commandement: whome he made his lackie and so carried hir with him, being apparelled in mans apparell to Bullongne, and the said Farrer followed the campe. He also was a great and a hor|rible blaphemer of God, and a common accuser of honest and quiet men, also a common drunkard. And now I referre the life of these catholiks to your iudgement, to thinke of them as you please.

But of this matter enough and too much. Now let vs returne where we left before, which was at the death of queene Marie. After whose deceasse suc|céeded hir foresaid sister ladie Elisabeth into the right of the crowne of England: who after so long restreinement,Ladie Elisa|beth procla|med quéene the same daie that quéene Marie died. so great dangers escaped, such blu|sterous stormes ouerblowne, so manie iniuries di|gested and wrongs susteined by the mightie protecti|on of our mercifull God, to our no small comfort and commoditie, hath béene exalted and erected out of thrall to libertie, out of danger to peace and quiet|nesse, from dread to dignitie, from miserie to maie|stie, from mourning to ruling; brieflie, of a prison|ner made a princesse, and placed in hir throne roiall, proclamed now quéene, with as manie glad hearts of hir subiects, as euer was anie king or queene in this realme before hir,The Lord make Eng|land thanke|full to him for his great be|nefits. or euer shall be (I dare saie) hereafter. Touching whose florishing state, hir prince|lie reigne and peaceable gouernement, with other things diuerse and sundrie incident to the same, and especiallie touching the great stirres and alterations which haue happened in other forren nations, and al|so partlie among our selues here at home, forsomuch as the tractation hereof requireth an huge volume by it selfe, I shall therefore deferre the reader to the next booke or section insuing:He meaneth his owne worke; not this volume or anie part thereof. wherein (if the Lord so please to susteine me with leaue and life) I maie haue to discourse of all and singular such matters doone and atchiued in these our latter daies and memorie, more at large.