a.d. THE ENGLISH VOYAGES 



1407. 



said goods be customed. By meanes of the which sealing, 

 the foresaide parties doe compell the marchants above- 

 named, (upon an use and custome whereof themselves 

 have bene the authors) to paye a certaine summe of 

 money, to the great hinderance of the sayde marchants, 

 and contrarie to justice and to their charter. Moreover, 

 the saide customers have ordained betweene themselves, 

 that the saide marchants shall put or make up no cloth 

 into fardels, to transport out of the realme, unlesse 

 certaine men appointed by them for the same purpose 

 bee there present, to see what maner of clothes they bee, 

 under paine of the forfeiture of the saide goods. Also of 

 late, when the sayde marchants would have made up 

 such fardels, the foresayde parties assigned to be overseers 

 refused to come, unlesse they might have for their 

 comming some certaine summe of money, delaying and 

 procrastinating from day to day, so long as themselves 

 listed, to the great losse and undoing of the foresaide 

 marchants, and contrarie to their liberties : because the 

 foresaide customers are bound by their office to doe this, 

 without any contribution therefore to bee paide unto 

 them by the saide marchants : for that they doe enjoy 

 from our soveraigne Lorde the King their fees and 

 commodities, to the ende that they may serve him and 

 every marchant justly and faithfully, without any con- 

 tribution by them to be imposed anewe upon the 

 sayde marchants, of custome. 



Item, the said marchants doe alleage, that the customers 

 & bailifs of the town of Southhampton do compel them 

 to pay for every last of herrings, pitch, & sope ashes 

 brought thither by them 2.s. more then the kings 

 custome : and for ech hundreth of bowstaves & boords 

 called Waghenscot, 2.d. for every hundreth of boords 

 called Richolt, 4-d. & for al other marchandize brought 

 by the foresaid marchants unto the same towne : which 

 contributions they never paid at any time heeretofore, 

 being greatly to their hinderance, and contrary to the 

 tenour of their Charter. 



78 



