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<DATE>2010-12-18</DATE>
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<NAME>Kayla Ondracek</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P><HI>The great and grievous Oppre&s;sion of the</HI> SUBJECT; Exhibited in a <HI>REMONSTRANCE</HI> to the PARLIAMENT: <HI>Wherein is more particularly &s;et forth,</HI> The unju&s;t Dealings of the Two CORPORATIONS OF HULL AND HEADON In the County of <HI>YORK.</HI></P>
<P><HI>By</HI> ROBERT RAIKES <HI>Gent.</HI></P>
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for the Author. 1659.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="petition">
<PB REF="2">
<PB N="1" REF="2">
<HEAD><HI>For the Right Honorable</HI> The Supreme Authority of the Nation, the Commons a&s;&s;embled in Parliament,</HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">The humble Petition of <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> of <HI>Headon,</HI> Gent.</HEAD>
<OPENER>Humbly &s;heweth unto your Honors,</OPENER>
<P>THat your Petitioner having been at all times, and in all changes a con&s;tant adherer to this pre&s;ent Parliament and Common|wealth, and by rea&s;on thereof hath &s;uffered and &s;u&s;tained great lo&s;s and damage in his E&s;tate, partly by rea&s;on of his goods the Soldiers under the Lord <HI>Fairfax</HI> took, u&s;ed and burned of your petitioners, both at <HI>Selby</HI> and <HI>Hull;</HI> but more e&s;pecially by the violent and inju&s;t dealing of divers Malignants and Presbyterians in the town of <HI>Hull,</HI> and the ba&s;e carriage and continual inju&s;t and illegal vexations of the Cavaliers and the drunken Aldermen of the town of <HI>Headon,</HI> the&s;e of <HI>Headon</HI> having from time to time &s;ought and laid wait for the life of your petitioner, and many times not only driven his goods, but lamed and &s;poiled his goods &s;o driven, and in the night-time broken his fences, &s;tollen his goods both cows and mare off his ground, and being &s;o &s;tollen have laid actions on them, and forced extraordinary and extrajudicial compo&s;itions. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1+ letters">anting any Replevin for the goods &s;o &s;urreptiou&s;ly &s;tollen and take <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="2+ letters">y, threatning tho&s;e that came to meat the goods, &s;ei&s;ing and impri&s;oning of their per&s;ons, and milking the cows and &s;poil|ing them, and countenancing the per&s;ons that &s;o did: Being a Town guilty of &s;uppo&s;ed murder, and of much blood&s;hed, rapine, &s;poil, and per|verting of Ju&s;tice; the Magi&s;trates drunken, idle and vicious per&s;ons, and all the Corporation for the mo&s;t part little better, being a ne&s;t of Cava|liers, Tinkers, drunken and malignant men, as your Petitioner doubteth not to make apparent to all the world, they having been along-cu&s;tomed to much mi&s;chief, and likely they are to commit more, threatning your Petitioner they will make the town of <HI>Headon</HI> too hot for him; having be&s;ides lying in wait to kill him, a&s;&s;aulted him in his own hou&s;e, wound|ed and beat him down in his own court-yard with halberts, dragged him out of his own hou&s;e-porch and all along to pri&s;on, refu&s;ing Bail proffered by better men then any the drunken Aldermen his pro&s;ecutors, to the great hazard of his life, as may more plainly and &s;ully appear in a Di&s;|cour&s;e called <HI>The tran&s;cendent vilany of Headon;</HI> as al&s;o by the malicious Malignants and Presbyterians of <HI>Hull,</HI> who have by their clande&s;tine dealing, and after by open force and combination, without and again&s;t all law and equity and good con&s;cience, put your Petitioner out of a
<PB N="2" REF="3">certain Hou&s;e-lea&s;e granted unto him formerly under the Ho&s;pital com|mon &s;eal and the Ma&s;ters hand, witne&s;&s;ed by the Mayor and &s;ix Aldermen, to his damage in his trade and calling to the value of Three thou&s;and pounds, even to his utter undoing.</P>
<P><HI>May it therefore plea&s;e your Honors to refer your Petitioner to &s;ome Committee, who may order the Ju&s;tices and others whom they think fit in the Country; to take the Grievances afore&s;aid into examination, that upon enquiry the honorable Hou&s;e may be certi|fied in the truth of the premi&s;&s;es, and thereupon order relief to your Petitioner as they &s;hall &s;ee cau&s;e; and your Petitioner doubteth not but to make apparent his wrongs afore&s;aid, and that the Commonwealth will receive profit by examining the Charters of the town of</HI> Hull, <HI>upon which your Petitioners Lea&s;e is grounded, and &s;o much land concealed given for the maintenance of their Block-hou&s;es, now a daily and great charge to the Commonwealth: But al&s;o a great deal of honor to your &s;elves, and &s;ecurity to the Country, in binding to the Peace and Good-behaviour &s;uch idle and evil di&s;po&s;ed per&s;ons who &s;hall appear guilty of &s;uch crimes, and al&s;o in re&s;toring the oppre&s;&s;ed Inhabitants into the freedom of the re&s;t of the Country, to be governed by the Ju&s;tices, and free from the vilanous extortions and oppre&s;sions of tho&s;e vitious and idle drunken lewd people, the Major and Aldermen of</HI> Headon, <HI>who neither know how to do right, or able to &s;atisfie for the wrongs and in|ju&s;tice they daily commit. And your Petitioner, as formerly, &s;hall be ever ready to &s;erve you and the Commonwealth with his life and e&s;tate, and &s;hall ever pray for the continuance of your health, and your in|crea&s;e of honor, &amp;c.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="part">
<HEAD><HI>A Li&s;t of the Aldermen of HEADON,</HI> As well the Drunken Aldermen, as the other, from the fir&s;t to the la&s;t of their Officers.</HEAD>
<P><HI>IMprimis,</HI> Mr. <HI>Li&s;ter</HI> elde&s;t Alderman, an old illiterate fellow, a Cooper, lives by mending old Tubs and Butter-firkins; in his youth a kind of Profe&s;&s;or, but in his age in his la&s;t Majoralty led by the drunken &s;ort, and did for &s;ix-pence in Ale put a Soldiers wife by violence out of her Jointure-hou&s;e, again&s;t all law, equity and good con&s;cience; for which they gave him and his Officers two quarts of Ale more, in all ten penny|worth of Ale. A poor &s;imple old man, his land and dwelling-hou&s;e worth 4 <ABBR><HI>l.</HI></ABBR> or 5 <HI><ABBR>l.</ABBR> per annum:</HI> In who&s;e time of Majoralty many oppre&s;&s;i|ons and fal&s;e impri&s;onmentss hapned.</P>
<P N="2">2. <HI>Item,</HI> Mr. <HI>Bur&s;tal,</HI> one of the drunken &s;ort, and a pitiful old illite|rate fellow, &s;aving that he is qualified for one of their Aldermen, being
<PB N="3" REF="3">vicious and given to drink; hath Ba&s;tards going in town that he owns, and is more careful of then of &s;ome of his be&s;t children; committed many ab&s;urdities in his Majoralty by rai&s;ing and mi&s;pending of A&s;&s;e&s;sments, fal&s;e impri&s;onment of good people, and all other the &s;curvy tricks of the Town, to the great oppre&s;&s;ion of the people, &s;candal of religion, and rai&s;ing of &s;uits and troubles: A man at fir&s;t worth 16 <HI><ABBR>l.</ABBR> per annum,</HI> but gave away to his &s;ons; now worth 5 <HI><ABBR>l.</ABBR> per ann.</HI> or thereabouts.</P>
<P N="3">3. <HI>Item, Richard Southwick,</HI> formerly a Spademan laborer, now a Chandler, one of the drunken Aldermen, a man given to much lewdne&s;s and ba&s;ene&s;s, a common drunkard and a &s;otti&s;h fellow, will be drunk twice or oftner in a day, and ta&s;te it roundly in a corner: One who com|mitted many ab&s;urdities in his Majoraly, by rai&s;ing and mi&s;pending of taxes, and fal&s;e impri&s;onment of men. Worth at fir&s;t 10 <HI><ABBR>l.</ABBR> per ann.</HI> now worth 6 <HI><ABBR>l.</ABBR> per ann.</HI> or under. A pitiful, vicious, and illiterate fellow to make an Alderman of.</P>
<P N="4">4. <HI>Item, Thomas Burton,</HI> another of the drunken &s;ort, an illiterate fel|low; when his brother died, left &s;hoo-making, and malted; had 12, or 14 <HI><ABBR>l.</ABBR> per ann.</HI> but by his unju&s;t and ab&s;urd dealing in his Majoralty, and his vicious and lewd living, &s;old &s;ome land, weakned his &s;tock, and now not able to live but by his &s;candalous keeping of Mr. <HI>S.</HI> a Boarder. One who will not work at his trade, but idly given; committed many bu&s;ine&s;&s;es in his Majoralty, for which he &s;tood before the Judge at <HI>York</HI>-A&s;&s;izes: It's almo&s;t impo&s;&s;ible to mention all his ab&s;urdities and vilanies.</P>
<P N="5">5. <HI>Item, Robert Ambler,</HI> another of the drunken &s;ort of Aldermen; fir&s;t a Spademan, but after the death of his Uncle, an Alderman and Tanner, worth 14 <HI><ABBR>l.</ABBR> per ann.</HI> or thereabouts; but by his evil and inju&s;t dealing in his Majoralties weakned his e&s;tate, &s;old &s;ome land, ran into debt by his evil husbandry in drinking and other vicious cour&s;es: In his fir&s;t Majoralty committed many vilanies, had like to have murdered one <HI>Thomas Smeadley</HI> in his bed, and had made an end of him, had not the Troopers re&s;cued him from death: In his &s;econd Majoralty com|mitted many ab&s;urdities by fal&s;e impri&s;onment, and rai&s;ing of taxes and mi&s;pending of them with much lewdne&s;s; A common drunkard, and one that is viciou&s;ly given; had a conte&s;t with a Dutch D<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">ctor about the curing the heat of his codpiece, to the great &s;candal of Religion, and the Corporations di&s;credit.</P>
<P N="6">6. <HI>Item,</HI> one <HI>Robert Blan&s;herd</HI> another of the drunken Aldermen, a Joiner, a common drunkard, and an illiterate fellow, and a Cavalier again&s;t <HI>Hull,</HI> made (though unskilfully) tho&s;e wooden Fire-works did occa&s;ion &s;o much death at <HI>Cortingham</HI> when <HI>Hull</HI> was be&s;ieged, both of Kings party and other good people: One who had drunk him&s;elf deep in debt, but by begging for the fire hath gotten into &s;ome &s;tock, and is 100 <ABBR><HI>l.</HI></ABBR> better then he was; which in regard of his lewd and vicious living will not la&s;t long. One that had a hand in the death of Mr <HI>Ethring|ton,</HI> and many other cheats and fal&s;e dealing, being not able to &s;atisfie for the wrongs by him done: His e&s;tate worth 12 <HI><ABBR>s.</ABBR> per ann.</HI> be&s;ides his hou&s;e.</P>
<PB N="4" REF="4">
<P N="7">7. <HI>Item, Richard Barns</HI> once a Black&s;mith, but by getting two widows turn'd a Baker; the riche&s;t man among them, but &s;imple and illiterate, as all the re&s;t are, and led by tho&s;e of the drunken &s;ort by rea&s;on of his &s;implicity, in the time of his Majoralty, into much lewdne&s;s, oppre&s;&s;ion and vilany, about the driving of cattel, fal&s;e impri&s;onment of men, and receiving of a &s;tollen Mare, &s;tollen by <HI>Thomas New&s;on</HI> and &s;ome others by the coun&s;el of <HI>Samuel Bains</HI> the Town-Clerk, and the &s;aid <HI>Barns</HI> with the advice of the drunken Aldermen, with many other ab&s;urdities too long to recite.</P>
<P N="8">8. <HI>Item, Nathaniel Norris</HI> now Major, a great Pro&s;e&s;&s;or, but very Hypocrite; for he joineth with all the re&s;t in their vilanies and drunken cour&s;es, and cau&s;ed a fal&s;e action to be laid on a &s;tollen Mare, and fal&s;ly impri&s;oned and cau&s;ed to be apprehdended a &s;ervant for meating her ma&s;ters cattel which he had cau&s;ed unju&s;tly to be driven and im|pounded, and after laid fal&s;e actions of the &s;aid cattel on purpo&s;e to get extrajudicial &amp; extraordinary compo&s;itions for fees for the Town-clerk, and to &s;pend among the drunken Aldermen, refu&s;ing Bail for the goods impounded. One that hath not a foot of land in all the town, and did give up &s;hop at <HI>Hull,</HI> &s;old his corn and &s;tock off the ground to make him&s;elf Major of <HI>Headon;</HI> A drunken con&s;ort as can be proved, is much in debt, and but little to pay with of his own goods.</P>
<P N="9">9. <HI>Item, Henry Stringer</HI> another of the Aldermen, a Shoomaker, a very pitiful &s;imple fellow and illiterate, and very poor, and led alto|gether by the drunken &s;ort to all mi&s;chief and vilany, worth 40 <HI><ABBR>s</ABBR> per ann.</HI> and his hou&s;e.</P>
<P><HI>Item, Samuel Bayns</HI> Town-Clerk, a lewd and vitious per&s;on, formerly tryed for his life at <HI>Oxford</HI> for murder (as is reported) a common quar|reller and common drunkard, a keeper of an unlawful Tipling-hou&s;e unlicen&s;ed and irregular, and therein many quarrels, blood&s;hed and &s;uits are rai&s;ed by him to the great di&s;turbance of Town and Country; for he holdeth there the meeting of Cavaliers and Papi&s;ts, to hatch their continual plots again&s;t the Commonwealth and the good people there|of; as al&s;o there in his Tipling-hou&s;e afore&s;aid is hatched and contrived all the vilany of the drunken malignant Aldermen his confederates and a&s;&s;ociates in mi&s;chief; there al&s;o he contriveth all his fal&s;e practi&s;es to pervert the Law, and lying in wait for blood and murder, fal&s;ifying and forging of Records, to the great vexation of Town and Country; being al&s;o a common cheater and a cozener, and a great defrauder of mens e&s;tates that have to deal with him, having broken and compounded twice.</P>
<P><HI>Item, Thomas Robin&s;on</HI> Butcher, for his knavery made Sergeant at Mace, and one of the Attornies of the Court; a common drunkard, one that keeps a common and unlicen&s;ed Tipling hou&s;e where much vilany is hatched and contrived; a common Barrettor and betrayer of mens cau&s;es, taking upon him as an Attorney, being but an illiterate fellow; A common cheater, and one that often hath laid wait for blood, both again&s;t Mr. <HI>George Etherington</HI> and Mr. <HI>Raikes;</HI> and one that hath his Agents abroad to &s;teal mens goods off their grounds, and drive their
<PB N="5" REF="4">cattel; and then with the advice of the drunken Aldermen and the lewd Town-Clerk, extort great compo&s;itions, and will &s;uffer none of the relations of tho&s;e that come to meat and relieve the cattel, &s;o to do, but viol ntly a&s;&s;aulteth and beateth them, and carrieth them pri&s;oners to the Major, who alloweth all their evil dealing and countenanceth them therein, to the great &s;poil of mens goods and cattel, &s;o that no man can &s;ay his goods are his own, if they may &s;o be &s;uffered to take them: And in that Town and Country there is no remedy; for the Country-Ju&s;tices do not meddle therewith, or are &s;uffered &s;o to do, by rea&s;on of the Charter the &s;aid Town doth plead, and thereby thinketh they may pervert ju&s;tice as they them&s;elves li&s;t.</P>
<P><HI>Item, Richard Newton</HI> another of the Serjeants at Mace, a Tanner, and an illiterate fellow, a Dingthri&s;t and a common drunkard, a cheater and cozener at his Alehou&s;e-bargains and gaming at cards; made only an Officer for his knavery, fal&s;e-&s;wearing, and perverting of ju&s;tice; being an Attorney al&s;o of the Court, but &s;o illiterate both he and the other <HI>Robin&s;on,</HI> that neither of them can write their own name, at lea&s;t|wi&s;e neither of the &s;aid Attornies <HI>Robin&s;on</HI> and <HI>Newton</HI> can write a De|claration, or indite any Plea of them&s;elves, being more ver&s;ed in knavi&s;h dealing and pilfering and driving mens goods off their grounds, and re|ceiving &s;uch goods &s;o pilfered off other mens grounds, Fence-breakers and Night-walkers to prey and feed their hor&s;es of other mens grounds, then in any hone&s;t wi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">e to di&s;charge the place and office of Attorney as they ought to do; by rea&s;on whereof all Suits in that Court depending are carried as the knavi&s;h Town-Clerk will, and he will accept of no Declarations or Pleas but what he makes, nor will make none according to the In&s;tructions given, though never &s;o legal, but on purpo&s;e to pervert ju&s;tice and overthrow the right of tho&s;e he hates, or help tho&s;e that will give him mo&s;t for hire; taketh double or treble fees, a Suit formerly being tried for &s;ix or &s;even &s;hillings, he hath now brought up to twenty four &s;hillings, be&s;ides bribes or gratuities he takes, &s;o well known to the Country, none will &s;o much as expect any ju&s;tice from &s;uch vile per&s;ons. The &s;aid <HI>Newton</HI> and <HI>Robin&s;on</HI> being al&s;o Night-walkers, and putting their own and the drunken Aldermens hor&s;es, (the greate&s;t oppre&s;&s;ion that can be, and indeed intolerable and in&s;ufferable, that &s;o many ba&s;e, idle, drunken fellows, &s;o idly and ba&s;ely given, &s;hould be &s;uffered to oppre&s;s the Inhabitants by eating up their grounds every year as they do) they putting forty or fifty hor&s;es on their lanes (they call banks) which are in&s;ufficient for ten hor&s;e; and when the banks are bare, nay even at every Fare, they being &s;o accu&s;tomed have every year, and do this year al&s;o enter the neighboring grounds to the &s;aid banks, all their Town|&s;hip con&s;i&s;ting but of nine&s;core acres, and half of them being and belong|ing to Foreiners, for &s;o they call all them not within their ba&s;e juri&s;|diction, and that will not allow of their ba&s;e dealings as above-written, they continually eat and oppre&s;s the &s;trangers grounds, and no remedy therefore, being a general practice and done in the night by ba&s;e beggerly Night-walkers &s;et on by the per&s;ons above, who never yet gave any re|medy for &s;o general and great a grievance, the Ju&s;tices in the Country
<PB N="6" REF="5">having no power to right &s;uch Grievances in their Corporation.</P>
<P><HI>Item,</HI> their other Officers, two Con&s;tables cho&s;en for their knavery, well ver&s;ed, and if not, mu&s;t learn all the vilany afore&s;aid, if they mean to be Churchwardens, and &s;o Bailiffs, and at la&s;t drunken Alder|men, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Item,</HI> The Pinder one <HI>Fo&s;ter,</HI> a notorious Pilferer, Nightwalker, and one reported to be a notorious Thief and in&s;ufferable Vilain; keeps both Hor&s;e and Cow, buyes little or no Hay; and if any, at years end &s;ells more then he buyes, and &s;teals other mens Hay in the night. All the other Officers being but &s;laves and bloodhounds to &s;erve the ba&s;e lu&s;t and commands of their Major and drunken Aldermen; nay it is report|ed, all the Burge&s;&s;es do &s;wear at their making free to do what&s;oever the Major &s;hall command them; by which much vilany is executed as above, and more, which I leave to your Honors to &s;ee remedied.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>The &s;everal Mi&s;demeanors which the Drunken Aldermen practi&s;e in the Corporation of <HI>Headon,</HI> both by Commi&s;sion, and toleration and connivence.</HEAD>
<P><HI>IMprimis,</HI> They tolerate the Town clerk, who is a wicked lewd fellow in all his wickedne&s;s, being a man formerly tried for murder at <HI>Ox|ford;</HI> A common drunkard and common quarreller, and a rai&s;er of &s;editions and fomenter of quarrels and &s;uits, a lier in wait for blood, a felonious &s;tealer of mens goods off their ground, and a receiver, coun|&s;eller, and abetter of tho&s;e that &s;o &s;teal mens goods off their grounds, a Night-walker, and perverter of ju&s;tice; and borne out in all the&s;e by the lewdne&s;&s;es of the drunken Aldermen afore&s;aid, to the great di&s;turb|ance of the publike peace.</P>
<P><HI>Item,</HI> A keeper of unlicen&s;ed Tipling-hou&s;es, &s;elling Ale contrary to the Statute, and a common Cheater. In all which he is upholden by the drunken Aldermen afore&s;aid.</P>
<P><HI>Item,</HI> That after he had come from his Trial at <HI>Oxford,</HI> and from pra|cti&s;ing his bloody tricks as a cut-throat Cavalier, keeping at <HI>Headon</HI> a common Tipling-hou&s;e unlicen&s;ed, and as a Cheater had compounded twice to cozen men and make them take le&s;s then their due for their own, yet could not he forbear, but mu&s;t needs continue his cozening and quarrelling, cheating and &s;editious practi&s;es in his lewd Tipling-hou&s;e, cozening <HI>Robert Swack</HI> and others by rai&s;ing and &s;tirring up Suits when by him inticed to drink, rai&s;ing divers quarrels, and among the re&s;t, among the Tinkers of the Country, he &s;et together by the ears and made parties among them being drinking with him, and &s;o ordered
<PB N="7" REF="5">their quarrels, that tho&s;e of the Cavalier-party &s;hould get the better and e&s;cape, and tho&s;e of the Parliaments party that had been their Soldiers, being lamed and beaten by his wicked contriving, to be fal&s;ly impri&s;on|ed, and after long Impri&s;onment to be let go without any charge again&s;t them, be&s;ides many other quarrels he hath rai&s;ed, and much blood&s;hed cau&s;ed by lying in wait for the life of Mr. <HI>George Etherington,</HI> by breaking his &s;table-door and &s;ei&s;ing his hor&s;e, pro&s;ecuting the &s;aid Mr. <HI>Ethrington</HI> even to death when his goods were gone: And as greatly &s;u&s;pected to have occa&s;ioned the death of the &s;aid Mr. <HI>Etherington</HI> by laying violent hands on him at <HI>Paul, Newton</HI>'s garth, and <HI>Headon,</HI> who&s;e death and mur|der would be inquired into.</P>
<P>Nor did his murderous intentions re&s;t there, but at the &s;ame time he al&s;o laid wait for the life of Mr. <HI>Robert Raikes;</HI> and for many days to|gether on purpo&s;e to take the life of the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes,</HI> encouraged his Cut-throats he had hired, and that by the drunken Aldermens aid, advice and connivence; by who&s;e wicked practices after much lying in wait, the &s;aid Cut-throats a&s;&s;aulted the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> in his own hou&s;e, knockt him down with Black bills and other unlawful weapons, beat and wounded him, and having &s;o beat and wounded him in his own hou&s;e, dragged him therefrom by the heels all along the &s;treets to pri&s;on, the &s;ame day Mr. <HI>Etherington</HI> was buried; the neighbors crying out of their murder and vilanous cruelty, bidding them take heed of committing one murder after another, and bade them fir&s;t clear them|&s;elves of one murder before they committed another upon the body of the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes;</HI> the death of Mr. <HI>Etherington</HI> being fre&s;h in every ones memory, and &s;uppo&s;ed by their cruelty to be made away, which cau&s;ed &s;uits and many troubles.</P>
<P>Yet did not their cruelty &s;o re&s;t, but the drunken Aldermen being all combined to countenance &s;uch vilany, after long and fal&s;e impri&s;onment, when they could prove nothing ju&s;t and legal again&s;t the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> at the Se&s;&s;ions, yet out of meer malice they tyed him to his good abearing without &s;hewing any cau&s;e why, and yet would not &s;uffer him to live in quiet, but hired lewd and vitious per&s;ons to intercept him, and without cau&s;e carried him to pri&s;on, and &s;candalizing him with lyes and untruths, but never proved any thing again&s;t him to this day, but on purpo&s;e to lame, beat and take the life away of the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes,</HI> and to pervert the cour&s;e of Law and Ju&s;tice, and that by the whole Court of Aldermen in their drunken Se&s;&s;ions. Nor did their malice &s;o cea&s;e, but the drunken Aldermen and Towns-Clerk cau&s;ed the Fences of the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> to be broken down; and their lewd Under|lings whom they keep to &s;wear for them in all their vilany, eat up the ground of the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> to his great damage; and the Fences which the Town and their Tenants, being Town-Officers, &s;hould make up and repair, neither the drunken Aldermen nor their lewd Officers would or could be per&s;waded to repair, but on the con|trary made a great deep ditch or pit ju&s;t at the lane where he &s;hould have carried his goods out and in, on purpo&s;e to de&s;troy and lame and kill tho&s;e bea&s;ts of Mr. <HI>Raikes</HI> which they had de&s;igned to de&s;troy in the
<PB N="8" REF="6">&s;aid pit, and &s;hould come upon his ground, and carried their own goods hrough Mr. <HI>Raikes</HI> and other mens ground, by rea&s;on the pit they had made to de&s;troy mens goods at the entry of their own, having &s;o &s;poiled his goods about &s;eventeen head of bea&s;ts one time and other. They laid and contrived three fal&s;e Actions, and arre&s;ted the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes;</HI> which was contrived by the Town-Clerk and <HI>Paget,</HI> two Cavalier-knaves: <HI>Paget</HI> declared for Twenty four &s;hillings for fees, and the Town-Clerk &s;wore fal&s;ly the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> owed &s;o much within a little for fees, and promi&s;ed to pay him, &amp;c. being altogether fal&s;e: For the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> never imployed <HI>Paget,</HI> or ever was owing him any thing for fees, but imployed one <HI>Smailes</HI> to rever&s;e an Out|lawry, and gave him money to di&s;charge it and over: But who did it is not known; for <HI>Smailes</HI> is upon the Record, and had the money, though he did it knavi&s;hly, fal&s;ly, and contrary to his Attornies oath, as by <HI>Smailes</HI> Note of charges may appear: For, for <HI>Paget,</HI> he never was im|ployed nor tru&s;ted &s;o much then, or allowed to practi&s;e, nor never did or could prove any &s;uch fees due he &s;ued for.</P>
<P>The other two Actions were for &s;landering the Town Clerk for &s;wearing &s;o fal&s;ly: But that he &s;wore fal&s;ly, is apparent by Record, no Fees proved or due. And the la&s;t was a fal&s;e Action for a &s;uppo&s;ed Debt the Town-Clerk challenged fal&s;ly, it being paid before, and never was a quarter &s;o much, as by his hand may appear; but he did it on purpo&s;e to cheat the &s;aid Mr. <HI>Raikes</HI> of a parcel of Cu&s;hions he bought of him, and never paid for. Neither did they keep their Courts order, by rea&s;on they were all imployed about begging for the Fire, and abu&s;ing the Ju&s;tices to make them a Certificate according to the fal&s;e oaths and in|formations by them exhibited; by means whereof they got a large Patent, and by it and their begging got two times more then all their lo&s;&s;es were by fire, but &s;pent a great part of it as their drunken meet|ings, as they do of all their E&s;treats and Forfeitures at the Se&s;&s;ions, and all other the Towns &s;tock, that was not long &s;ince worth above Fifteen hundred pounds; be&s;ides their daily Re<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="2 letters">s and Forfeitures, whereof few are brought to account, but almo&s;t all idly &s;pent as can be ea&s;ily proved. And as that was, which by a vile and illegal way they extorted from <HI>Robert Raikes,</HI> &s;ending for him by a Serjeant, who is al&s;o Attorney of the Court, and under pretence of friend&s;hip by the new Major, who promi&s;ed he might &s;afely come and gow&punc; The &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> went along to know their plea&s;ure, which the new Major told him, the Court had fined him Twenty &s;hillings for contempts for not appearing to the Actions. He replied, He had de&s;ired to &s;ee their Declarations, but there were none in Court; and if any were then, he de&s;ired to &s;ee them; but none appeared till fourteen days after. Then they &s;aid, He &s;hould have fee'd his Attorney and an&s;wered Court-days: He replied, They were &s;o bu&s;ie about their Certificate, there was no legal Court kept: They &s;aid there was; But it was proved that their Court was neither legally kept, the doors being lock'd, none could come in, nor any At|torney to fee there. But they &s;aid, If the Attorney was not there, his Wife was, and would have received Fee, having let the Major and Clerk
<PB N="9" REF="6">in at a back-door. So becau&s;e none could get in to &s;ee the Serjeant or Jailors wife for an Attorney, they threatned the &s;aid Mr. <HI>Raikes,</HI> unle&s;s he would pay them Twenty &s;hillings for that Contempt before Decla|rations, they would drive his goods, or impri&s;on him. Which the &s;aid Mr. <HI>Raikes,</HI> knowing them to be Knaves that &s;ought his life, fearing they would u&s;e him as formerly, or as Mr. <HI>George Etherington,</HI> he became bound to pay them, and was forced &s;o to do: But that would not &s;o content them neither, but the Town-Clerk came violently upon the ground and cha&s;ed his cows and cattel; which having been often u&s;ed to be evil-intreated by tho&s;e lewd people, knew them and run from them into the far clo&s;e, &s;o many as were formerly abu&s;ed by them and knew their u&s;age; &s;o that there was but one cow left which was not acquaint|ed with their cruelty, and that the Town-clerk &s;tole off the ground, be|longing to one <HI>Thomas New&s;om,</HI> who was owing Mr. <HI>Raikes</HI> ten &s;hillings for her gra&s;s.</P>
<P>Upon what &s;trange compo&s;ition the poor man had his Cow again, is uncertain: But the Town-clerk and drunken Aldermen, and the knavi&s;h Officers coun&s;ell'd the man to &s;teal a Mare from off the ground of Mr. <HI>Raikes,</HI> that co&s;t &s;ix pounds; And having been coun&s;ellors and abettors to the man and his a&s;&s;ociates in the &s;tealing the Mare, they the &s;aid Town-clerk, drunken Aldermen and Officers were the receivers of the Mare &s;o &s;tollen, knowing her to be &s;o &s;tollen: And the better to palli|ate the Felony, they cau&s;ed an Action to be laid at the &s;uit of <HI>Thomas New&s;om,</HI> who with his a&s;&s;ociates had &s;tollen the Mare by their councel and abetting. The &s;aid <HI>Raikes</HI> being at <HI>Hull,</HI> he &s;ent word and de&s;ired to have his goods &s;o &s;tollen &s;ecured, and the Felony enquired after: But by &s;uch ba&s;e people could not get ju&s;tice; Pilfering and &s;uch dealing being publikely countenanced by the drunken Aldermen and their a&s;|&s;ociates. So that the &s;aid <HI>Robert Raikes</HI> can keep neither Cow, nor Hor&s;e, nor Swine, for their pilfering; having had One hundred pounds worth of goods &s;poiled by their illegal dealings, and ten or twelve Swine worried by the Dogs of the drunken Aldermen, who keep them contrary to Law to wreck their malice upon their neighbors, to do them hurt. And for their High-ways, they cau&s;e their Juries to &s;wear even what they li&s;t, &s;ometime one way, &s;ometime another way, as guided by the drunken Aldermen; and very few of the Burge&s;&s;es but are guilty of ra&s;h and fal&s;e &s;wearing, even concerning the High-ways, and the keeping their Fare; and are in all &s;uch contrary &s;wearing promi&s;ed to be holden harmle&s;s by the drunken Aldermen and their a&s;&s;ociates, and they led altogether by the Cavaliers to do mi&s;chief to tho&s;e of the Parliaments party: The &s;aid Town clerk having always councels, plottings and con|trivings of hurt, trea&s;on and mi&s;chief, in the Tipling-hou&s;e of the &s;aid Town-clerk, by all the Papi&s;ts and Cavaliers in the Country; which though the Aldermen know, and Mr. <HI>Barns</HI> was often complaining of, yet he never remedied, nor any other of the drunken Aldermen; by rea&s;on whereof the good peaceable people live in great fear and danger of their lives by rea&s;on of the mi&s;demeanors afore&s;aid.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
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</BODY>
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</ETS>
