It may please your Honorable Lordship. At my departinge from you (God is my Judge) myne intention and full purpose was, and is styll, (yf your vaine wicked foolishe Capteins do suffer me) to quytt myself of the Connagh Buonies, and of all these wicked roagues, and rebells, with so much speede as I may for my lyf; I mean those that I entertayne, who as sone as I have dischardged myself of them, yf I do not by service utterly overthrowe them, or dryve them out of all Munster, let me lose all my frends, and credyte with Her Majesty, and with all honest men! in the meane tyme I will not fayle to praye and spoyle the reste of them, and to kyll as many of them, especially of the O'Mayllies, (who with three foystes68 are now in my country,) as I can; therefore seeinge they ar ther, hasten Sir Fynen O'Driscoll's Sonne to me; and wryte unto me by Capten Harvey; for I will not trust him, nor nobodye in this adge and country, but such as I will trust upon your Lordship's word, and fayth; whether he be subiect or rebell; and without trustinge him I can hardly succour him, nor do the Queen's sacred Majesty any service by his helpe or meanes!
It may be some of my mallitious adversaries may alledge many matters against me, which may happly be furthered by some odd councillor or other, as was done before your Lordship came, by such as doeth not know, nor understand my intention, or what may best avayle her Majestie, and further Her Highnes' service. My humble sute therfore unto your Lordship, (unto whome I have made knowne all my mynde and intention,) is that my temporisinge with the rebells, untyll I maye effecte my purpose, may not be mysconstrued; which course I assure your Lordship I do take, onely because the assuringe and maintayninge of myself in the possession of Desmond, is the only waye that is to overthrow all the rebells of Munster, and dryve awaye quickely, or utterly overthrowe, all the Bonies there; for the compassinge of which my humble sute unto Her Sacred Majesty is that it will please her Highenes to graunt me my country of Desmond on the same manner that my father in laue and grandfather held it; and as Her Highenes graunted it (would have granted it?) to any other of the byrth of England that should marry my wyf; (which graunt I have ready to be seene under the clerke of the signet, Mr. Wyndebankes hand,) tolleratinge with me to beare the nam of Mc Carty More, which both the O'Sullevans, and the rest of the Gentlemen freeholders and followers of the country layde upon me, and constrayned me to accepte, thereby to procure the countrie to yelde unto me, and to come in, and forsake that bastard Donell Mac Carthy, and the reste of the rebells; for before I tooke the name upon me, I protest I could not gett 20 of the country men of warr, or common people, to come at me, as was knowne to Sir Warham St. Leger, and Sir Henry Power, who wrate to Mr. Secretary then to that effecte; assuringe your Lordship that I would never, by any meanes, accepte it, yf the recoveringe of that countrie (which of all other here is most avayleable for Her Majesty's service) stood not upon it; which notwithstandinge, yf it please her Majesty to abolishe, I humbly beseche that it may be abolyshed in me, by that meanes of creation that it was abolyshed in my father in lawe!
I beseche your Lordship also to consyder how remote my country stands from all succour, havinge all the rebells of Mounster, and ther countries, betwene it, and not any towne of garryson, or any place or country that ar her Majesty's subiects; which ar as well knowne to your Lordship as to myself; wherby it is moste certayne that the rebells and bonies will waste, and destroye my country, whensoever I goe to worke for Her Majesty's paye: whereupon I humbly beseche that I may have a sufficient chardge to serve her Majesty withal; nether will a capten's chardge serve for him that must keepe many companies; nor I do not meane to charge Her Majesty with half so many as I will bringe to her service; all which I humbly refer to her Majesty's divine consideracon; besechinge your Lordship to be an humble sute in my behalf; the rather that what, whatsoever it shall please her Majesty to deale with me, my full purpose and intention was, and shalbe allwayes, to rest her Hignes faythfull, true servant, to performe with my lyf any service that may benefyte her moste Sacred Majesty; assuring your Lordship in proof thereof, that I will not fayle, from tyme to tyme, to advertyse and advyse your Lordship by my lettres, the beste I maye, to further her Majesty's service; and so, hopinge that your Lordship will not omyt to further my sute, I humbly take leave.
Iniskaynethis 14th of May 1600.Your moste humble and assured,
ffLOR MCCARTHY.The younge man of my wyf's country that I tolde yor Lordship of, that came now out of Spayne, is called Teage O'Faylue, a foster brother of my wyfe; he hath bene these 9 years in Spayne a student, and hath tins kiste yere remayned with the Byshop of Kyerie, one Michaell Walter, borne at Limericke, who beinge deade about half a yere paste, he hath synce remayned with Friar Peter-de-los-Angelos, provinciall of the Franciskans of Andelozia, and guardian of Sivilla, who alTyrmed and assured some of his frends there that Fryer Mathias de Oviedo, who was commissarye generail of the Fryers of North Spayne, and now is Byshop of Dublyn, is come over with a greate deale of treasure, weapon, and munition; and that a greate nomber of men ar ready to be sent to the Irishmen hyther, if they will have them. Synce the wrytinge of this lettre ther ar some of my men come from the countre of Lymericke and Kyrrie, who brought me dyvers newes that concernes you; wherby I must wryte you now another lettre, and so requestinge your Lordship in any wyse to sende me Morryce Moore, I humbly take leave.
Your Lordship's to command,
fflo MCCARTHY.