Person Page - 34

Bundle 29. No. 35.
To Sir Nicholas Bacon, knight, Lord Keeper of The Great Seal. 1570.
Showeth unto your lordship your daily orator John Barbour of Flossebrook, in co. Stafford, that whereas one Robert Barbour, esquire, late father unto your said orator, deceased, was in his life time lawfully seised of the manor of Weston. Jones in co. Stafford in his demesne as of fee, and quietly received the issues and profits thereof for the space of 30 years, and afterwards, that is to wit, about 36 years last past the said Robert Barbour died so seised, after whose death the premises descended to your said orator who entered into the same and quietly took the issues and profits thereof. But so it is that about four years past the ancient deeds and evidences concerning the premises have come to the hands of William Asteley, who has entered into one mease, 30 acres of arable land, 20 acres of meadow and 30 acres of pasture, parcel of the said manor, and expulsed your orator, and has also conveyed to himself, and divers other persons sundry secret estates to the utter disinheritance of your said orator. And forasmuch as your orator knoweth not the certainty of the said deeds and evidences nor wherein they be contained, he is without all remedy for the recovery of the same. May it therefore please your lordship to grant the Queen's writ of subpoena to be directed to the said William Asteley, commanding him to appear in the Court of Chancery to answer to the premises.

The answer of William Asteley.
The said defendant saith that the Bill of Complaint is untrue and insufficient, but for answer he saith that the said Robert Barbour being seised of the premises mentioned in the Bill, about the 10th day of October in the 10th year of the reign of Henry VIII did demise and let to farm to one Richard Asteley of Wodeyton in co. Stafford, father to this defendant, the mease and other the lands mentioned in the Bill by the name of a messuage lying in Weston Jones late in the holding of' John Hochkins, to have and to hold to the said Richard for term of his life, and after his death to this defendant for term of his life, paying for his entry unto the said Robert and his heirs 20s. and also paying the yearly rent of 25s. to the said Robert. By force whereof the said Richard entered into the premises and died about 30 years ago, after whose decease this defendant entered into the premises, and paid the said 20s. for his entry and also an ox price £3 in the name of a heriot for the premises, and also paid to the complainant after the death of Katherine his mother another ox, price £3, in the name of a heriot, and that the complainant has accepted another ox price £3 in the name of a heriot due to this defendant for his estate for life in the premises, and that he hath yearly paid the rent of 25s. to the complainant for the space of 30 years; until now of late that the complainant has tried to expulse the said defendant from possession of the same and hath spoiled his goods and chattels, and hath utterly impoverished this defendant contrary to all right and equity.³

Bundle 10. No. 86.
To Sir Nicholas Bacon, knight, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal.
Showeth unto your honourable lordship your daily orator John Barbour of Flossebroke co. Stafford, esquire, that whereas your orator about the Feast of Easter in the 6th year of the reign of our sovereign lady the Queen, built to his great cost, a mansion or dwelling house, half timber, in the town of Flossebroke co. Stafford. And one Walter Eyton alias Mason, bricklayer, upon an agreement betwixt him and your orator, that he the same Walter should after with expediency build one large chimney in the kitchen of the same house of a certain measure of largeness, the said chimney to have three tops or condites to serve the chambers over the kitchen, to be builded well and sufficiently to a certain height, also agreed upon betwixt them, receiving of your said orator the sum of 46s. 8d. for his workmanship, your orator finding the meat and drink, and all the stuff whereof the said chimney should be made. And further it was agreed that the same Walter Mason for all the residue of the said chimneys which should be raised in and about the same house should make them by day-wages of a certain rate of day-wages; and that the said Walter should not enter into any other manner of service until your orator's work should be finished. And shortly afterwards the said Walter Mason entered into the work, and before he had raised the said kitchen chimney to a competent height and having also begun all the other chimneys, he finished and topped the said kitchen chimney, it being 3 yards too short, and the rest of the chimneys only half the height agreed to. The said Walter also got into his hands the said agreement, and refused to come again to your orator's said works until winter time, when he returned and worked a great part of the same in the frost, and was by the severeness of the frost, enforced to leave 5 tops or condites of the said other chimneys not raised to their full height, by 5 yards a piece, then he departed and promised faithfully to come and raise all the chimneys to a competent height when your orator should send for him. And in March last your orator send word to him to come, but he came not; and your said orator sustained great loss in the timber works of his said house and a great part of the work that the said Walter had done, decayed by mouldering away and falling down of the morter thereof; and your orator was enforced to have other workmen, and required the said Walter Mason to make him reasonable awards, yet the said Walter has refused. May it therefore please your lordship to grant the Queen's writ of subpmna to the said. Walter Mason, commanding him to appear at the Court of Chancery to make answer to the premises.⁴

To the Bishop of Rochester, Keeper of the King's Great Seal.
Robert Barbour, son of John Barbour, of Stafford, Gentleman, petitions that whereas the said John before he died was seised in demesne as of fee amongst other manors, lands and tenements, of the manor of Haseley beside Berkswyche, and had enfeoffed John Eyton Esq., now dead, Thomas Hexstall and William Albyn, clerk, of the said manor with the appurtenances to them and to their heirs for ever, and by his last will, after the feoffment so made, willed that Joan Barbour wife to the said John Barbour and mother of the petitioner should have the said manor for the term of her life, and after her death it should remain to the petitioner and his heirs . . . . died, after whose death Humfrey Barbour the eldest son of the said John and brother to the petitioner, by cunning and assent of the said Thomas Hexstall, has entered into the said manor and the said Thomas Hexstall, knowing the will of the said John Barbour, has enfeoffed him and his heirs in all the estate he had in the said manor of Haseley against all right and good conscience, and the said William Albyn has been required by the petitioner to make him and his heirs an estate according to the said will and has refused to do so, he prays that writs of sub pena may be sent to the said Thomas, William and Humfrey commanding them to appear before the King in his Chancery, so that they may be compelled to make an estate unto the said Joan for the term of her life in the said manor of Haseley and the remainder thereof to the petitioner, according to the last will of the said John Barbour
(John Alcock, Bishop of Rochester, was Keeper in June, 1473, and April, 1475, and from August, 1485, to March, 1486.)¹