What presumptions I haue, and those verie large, by such kinde of dealing, whereby I may iustly burthen him, you may heereby coniecture, as first his disposition, giuen (as sithence hath verie crediblie bin reported vnto me) to be verie prodigall, & of most excessiue expence, then the occasion offered by such immoderate confidence in him reposed: next, the vncontrolled rule hee bare throughout all my dealings: lastlie the time and secrecie of his departure, beeing thus hasted in mine absence, and here withall some such things which are missing, as whereof none were priuie but himselfe, and whereunto no accesse could bee without himselfe. Insomuch as the losse which I reckon of, and wherefro I can yet finde no release, by reason of this his vnknowne departure, cannot (for ought I hitherto perceiue) amount to so little as CC.li.
By some fewe that since his going away haue encountred with him, it appeareth, that not onelie he is well monied, but also of his iourneying Westward, whereby I am led to thinke his resort to be no way so likelie, as to you which are his father, or to some other his friends there about you. For which cause I haue directed these togither with my man, as well to referre vnto your consideration what hath passed, as also to pray that by your due search and examination of the action, both his person may be answered, and my suspition of him the better and more manifestly be cleared: and euen so recommending my selfe and cause to the furtherance of your good direction, I take my leaue. This of, &c.
=This letter hauing direction from the maister to the father, in seeming a Gentleman of some good account, we will according thereunto frame you an answer, which in this place according to the nature thereof may be tearmed |Excusatorie|. The conueiance of which, either lesseneth by vehement likelihoods the qualitie of the offence, or otherwise (though not clearlie auoydeth) yet by the naked truth or simplicitie of the action it selfe, maketh it seeme of farre more slender moment or importance, then before it might haue béene coniectured. And forasmuch as the father was a by partie to the wrong suggested, and onely in that it was his son, and the reformation of the thing opposed, might by him in some sort bee redressed or recompenced, wee will suppose herein the Letter in forme following by him to be answered, and the residue vnspoken of to be left to the purgation or defence of the other on whome the fault is charged, and to whome in particular, it belongeth to sée the same answered.=