BISHOP AYOiER. 191 



The Bishop was a man of a bold spirit, and feared no- CHAP, 

 body. Concerning which courage he once -said, that &quot; two X1V - 

 &quot; things made him so ; the one, that he neither feared nor Bold. 

 &quot; cared for any loss of his place, [which had so much of 

 &quot; care and vexation ;] the other, a clear conscience.&quot; 



He took a great freedom to speak his mind, whosoever Free in 

 was worthy to be reproved, and whatsoever sins or evil speech 

 customs were to be checked. It was a sharp reproof he 

 gave the nobility in his time, which had been the occasions 

 of abusing that ancient good custom of the verdict of twelve 

 men for deciding criminal matters, and of meum and tuum. 

 &quot; If there be,&quot; said he, &quot; any nobleman dwelling in the 

 &quot; country, either a duke, a marquis, an earl,^ or baron ; 

 &quot; he shall lightly have in his retinue all the cobbs in the 

 &quot; country, which be the questmongers, [as he styled the 

 &quot; questmen.] And if any matters be touching him, his 

 &quot; man, or his friend, whether it be a crime capital or nisi 

 &quot; prius, sent down for lands, the case shall weigh as he 

 &quot; will. For his detainers [as he called retainers] must 

 &quot; needs have an eye to my Lord, though they should go to 

 &quot; the devil for it. And so be some innocents knit up, and 

 &quot; some offenders delivered, and some titles of inheritance 

 &quot; lost, against all justice and right. Another is, if my lord 

 &quot; will not offend the statute of retinue, then must the High 

 &quot; Sheriff be his friend, and the Under Thief (Under Sheriff 

 &quot; I should say) his man. He empanelleth the quest, either 

 &quot; such as dare not displease my lord, or for good- will w r ill 

 &quot; not. And so that way, betwixt the High Thief and the 

 &quot; Under Thief, my Lord and the curstmongers, poor men 

 &quot; are outweighed. This corruption, if it be not looked to, 

 &quot; will make this order, [of the jury of twelve,] which was 

 &quot; the best that could be, to be the wickedest that can 

 &quot; be.&quot; 



Thus he would in a blunt way freely deliver his mind ; Blunt in 

 especially when it was needful the truth should be spoken 

 for vindication of innocence or reproof of sin, let it be be 

 fore the greatest person. Hence, after he had taken the 

 liberty once to say what he thought in some certain matter 



