HISTORY OF KING HENRY VII. 247 



&quot; ings between your sovereign and ours, concerning 

 &quot; some late actions ; which if they be not cleared, 

 &quot; may perhaps hinder this peace. To the end that 

 &quot; for matters past neither king may conceive unkind- 

 &quot; ness of other, nor think the other conceiveth un- 

 &quot; kindness of him. The late actions are two ; that 

 &quot; of Britain, and that of Flanders. In both which 

 &quot; it is true that the subjects swords of both kings 

 &quot; have encountered and stricken, and the ways and 

 &quot; inclinations also of the two kings, in respect of their 

 &quot; confederates and allies, have severed. 



For that of Britain, the king your sovereign 

 &quot; knoweth best what hath passed. It was a war of 

 (l necessity on our master s part. And though the 

 &quot; motives of it were sharp and piquant as could be, 

 &quot; yet did he make that war rather with an olive- 

 &quot; branch, than a laurel-branch in his hand, more 

 &quot; desiring peace than victory. Besides, from time 

 &quot; to time he sent, as it were, blank papers to your 

 &quot; king to write the conditions of peace. For though 

 &quot; both his honour and safety went upon it, yet he 

 &quot; thought neither of them too precious to put 

 &quot; into the King of England s hands. Neither doth 

 &quot; our king on the other side make any unfriendly 

 te interpretation of your king s sending of succours 

 &quot; to the duke of Britain ; for the king knoweth well 

 &quot; that many things must be done of kings for satis- 

 &quot; faction of their people ; and it is not hard to dis- 

 &quot;cern what is a king s own. But this matter 

 &quot; of Britain is now, by the act of God, ended and 

 &quot; passed; and, as the king hopeth, like the way of a 



