PROBTJS CHURCH AND TOWEK. 487 



— without, as they allege, any ground or cause, and contrary to 

 the will of the other owners, but only urged by his froward and 

 cruel mind, and from the pure malice he bears the parishioners, 

 has forbidden them to dig stone in the quarry to repair the 

 church, to their great heaviness, trouble, hindrance, and loss, 

 which they estimated at £100. 



Further, the churchwardens complain that Carrainowe had 

 brought an action for trespass against 22 honest men of the 

 parish, which was decided against him. Immediately, on which, 

 he caused writs to be issued against them for riot, of which they 

 plead they are not guilty ; and some, though honest, are so poor 

 that they are not able to pay for the cost of coming to London 

 to answer the same, unless they should beg by the way. 



Still, further, in order to hinder the building of the tower, 

 he has had trenches dug in the highway leading to another 

 quarry at Freston, four miles distant, in which he has no interest. 



Also he and his wife boast that they will make the Probus 

 men beg their bread before they shall build their tower , and 

 are determined to destroy the church ; and to drive the inhabit- 

 ants of the parish to extreme poverty and desolation ; contrary 

 — as the churchwardens sadly remark — to their profession as 

 christian man and christian woman, and, therefore, bound to 

 maintain the church, instead of by their malicious and crafty 

 acts driving many of the inhabitants from the parish, to its 

 great loss and decay. 



But worse still follows. Not content with forbidding stone 

 to be dug for the Church, they set their servants, armed in 

 manner of war, with swords, bucklers, bills, and short dags, to 

 waylay, beat, and slay the parishioners, so that they are afraid 

 to bring stones in turn as agreed, until the masons have to stop 

 building for lack of materials, to the great hindrance of the work. 



Further outrages to the same effect are detailed, and rank 

 malicious words, such as John Etye used when he threatened 

 that some of them shoiJd be slain before they finished the work. 



For this cause, at last, the parishioners appeal to the Court 

 of Star Chamber both for protection in their lawful building, and 

 for the punishment of their oppressors. 



