ANTIQUITIES OF SELBORNE. 
379 
Berne, Thomas London, William Wyndesor, and William Pay- 
nell, alias Stretford, canons regular of the priory, " capitulum, et 
conventum ejusdem ecclesie facientes ; ac jus et voces in electione 
futura prioris dicti prioratus solum et in solidum, ut asseruerunt, 
habentes and after the bishop had notified to them the vacancy 
of a prior, with his free license to elect, deliberated awhile, and 
then, by way of compromise, as they affirmed, unanimously 
transferred their right of election to the bishop before witnesses. 
In consequence of this the bishop, after full deliberation, pro- 
ceeded, April 7th, " in capella manerii sui de Waltham,'' to the 
election of a prior ; " et fratrem Johannem Morton, priorem 
ecclesie conventualis de Reygate dicti ordinis S*^ Augustini 
Wynton. dioc. in priorem vice et nomine omnium et singulorum 
canonicorum predictorum elegit, in ordine sacerdotali, et etate 
licita constitutum, &c/^ And on the same day, in the same place, 
and before the same witnesses, John Morton resigned to the 
bishop the priorship of Reygate viva voce. The bishop then re- 
quired his consent to his own election ; " qui licet in parte 
renitens tanti reverendi paths se confirmans,'^ obeyed, and signi- 
fied his consent oraculo vive vocis. Then was there a mandate 
citing any one who would gainsay the said election to appear 
before the bishop or his commissary in his chapel at Farnham on 
the second day of May next. The dean of the deanery of Aulton 
then appeared before the chancellor, his commissary, and re- 
turned the citation or mandate dated April 22d, 1468, with signi- 
fication, in writing, of his having published it as required, dated 
Newton Valence, May 1st, 1468. This certificate being read, the 
four canons of Selborne appeared and required the election to be 
confirmed ; et ex super abundanti appointed William Long their 
proctor to solicit in their name that he might be canonically con- 
firmed. John Morton also appeared, and proclamation was made ; 
and no one appearing against him, the commissary pronounced 
all absentees contumacious, and precluded them from objecting 
at any other time ; and, at the instance of John Morton and the 
proctor, confirmed the election by his decree, and directed his 
mandate to the rector of Hedley and the vicar of Newton Valence 
to install him in the usual form. 
Thus, for the first time, was a person, a stranger to the con- 
vent of Selborne, and never canon of that monastery, elected 
prior ; though the style of the petitions in former elections used 
to run thus, — Vos - - - - rogamus quatinus eligendum ex 
