402 LETTERS FROM BIRCH. 



before your lordship in the Chancery,&quot; at your first sitting 

 in the next term, between her and one Archer, and others, 

 upon an ancient statute, due long since unto her husband ; 

 which cause, I am informed, hath received three verdicts 

 for her in the common law, a decree in the Exchequer- 

 chamber, and a dismission before your lordship : which I 

 was the more willing to do, because I have seen a letter of 

 his majesty to the said Sir Richard Martin, acknowledging 

 the good service that he did him in this kingdom, at the 

 time of his majesty s being in Scotland. And therefore I 

 desire your lordship, that you would give her a full and 

 fair hearing of her cause, and a speedy dispatch thereof, 

 her poverty being such, that having nothing to live on but 

 her husband s debts, if her suit long depend, she shall be 

 inforced to lose her cause for want of means to follow it : 

 wherein I will acknowledge your lordship s favour, and rest 



Your Lordship s faithful 

 Whitehall, Friend and Servant, 



the 13th of January, 1620. G. BUCKINGHAM. 



To the Lord Chancellor.* 

 My honourable Lord, 



His majesty hath commanded me to signify his pleasure 

 unto you, that you give present order to the Clerk of the 

 Crown to draw a bill to be signed by his majesty for Robert 

 Heath, late recorder of London, to be his majesty s solicitor- 

 general. So I rest your Lordship s 



Theobalds, Friend a * d Servant, 



20th of January, 1620. G. BUCKINGHAM. 



To the King.t 

 May it please your Majesty, 



I thank God I number days, both in thankfulness to 

 him, and in warning to myself. I should likewise number 

 your majesty s benefits, which, as to take them in all kinds, 

 they are without number ; so even in this kind of steps and 

 degrees of advancement, they are in greater number than 

 scarcely any other of your subjects can say. For this is 

 now the eighth time that your majesty hath raised me. 



You formed me of the learned council extraordinary, 

 without patent or fee, a kind of indimduum vagum. You 



* Harl. MSS. Vol. 7000. 



t This seems to have been written by Lord St. Albans, just after he was. 

 created a viscount by that title, January 27, 1620. 



