had been preserved, we should have a plentiful supply. As it is, only
two copies have survived. One is the copy which found its way to
Oxford; and the other is the original from which the copies were made,
which has been carefully preserved for six centuries and a half in the
Public Record Office in London. I here give the contents of the
original, substituting _y_ (at the beginning of a word) or _gh_
(elsewhere) for the symbol _{g}_, and _th_ for the symbol _þ_, and
_v_ for _u_ when between two vowels.

¶ Henri, thurgh Godes fultume king on Engleneloande, Lhoaverd on
Yrloande, Duk on Norm(andi), on Aquitaine, and Eorl on Aniow, send
igretinge to alle hise holde ilærde and ileawede on Huntendoneschire:
thæt witen ye wel alle, thæt we willen and unnen thæt, thæt ure
rædesmen alle, other the moare dæl of heom thæt beoth ichosen thurgh
us and thurgh thæt loandes folk on ure kuneriche, habbeth idon and
schullen don in the worthnesse of Gode and on ure treowthe, for the
freme of the loande, thurgh the besighte of than to-foren iseide
redesmen, beo stedefaest and ilestinde in alle thinge, abuten ænde.

And we hoaten alle ure treowe, in the treowthe thæt heo us ogen,
thæt heo stedefæstliche healden, and swerien to healden and to
werien, tho isetnesses thæt beon imakede and beon to makien, thurgh
than to-foren iseide rædesmen, other thurgh the moare dæl of hem,
alswo also hit is biforen iseid; And thæt æhc other helpe thæt for
to done bi than ilche othe, ayenes alle men, right for to done and
to foangen. And noan ne nime of loande ne of eghte, wherthurgh this
besighte mughe beon ilet other iwersed on onie wise.

And yif oni other onie cumen her onyenes, we willen and hoaten thæt
alle ure treowe heom healden deadliche ifoan. And for thæt we willen