beloved, we greet you oftentimes well; doing (p. 215)
[giving] you to understand for your comfort, that, by the grace
of God, we be safely arrived into our land of Normandy, with all
our subjects ordained to go with us for the first passage. And
this day, the even of St. Lawrence, about mid-day, was yolden
[yielded] unto us the castle of Touque, about the which our
well-beloved cousin, the Earl of Huntingdon, lay; and the keys
of the said castle delivered unto us without the shedding of
Christian blood, or defence made by our enemies:--the which castle
is an honour, and all the viscounty and lordships of Ange hold
thereof, as we have been informed of such men as were therein.
Whereof we thank God lowly, that hym lust [he is pleased] of high
grace to show unto us so fair beginning in our present voyage;
desiring also that ye thank God thereof in the most best wise that
ye can, and that ye send us from time to time such tidings be
komerys be thwene [by comers between], as ye have in that side the
sea. Given under our signet, at our said Castle of Touque, the 9th
day of August.
"To the Mayor, Sheriffs, Aldermen,
and good people of our City of
London."--Endorsed in French.

But though Henry speaks thus encouragingly of his present campaign, he
had soon much to make him anxious, and to rouse all the energies of
his mind. Among other sources of solicitude was the growing evil of
desertion. Many of his soldiers grew tired of the war, and,
dishonourably leaving his camp, stole back to their native country. Of
the prevalence of this mischief we have too clear proof in the
following writ, a copy of which was despatched to all the sheriffs of
England. It is found among the Norman Rolls, and is one of the (p. 216)
few specimens with which Mr. Hardy has enriched the interesting
introduction to his edition of those valuable documents.[164]

[Footnote 164: Norman Rolls, preserved in the
Tower, edited by T.D. Hardy, Esq.]

"The King to the Sheriffs of London and Middlesex, greeting.
Whereas we have received certain information and undoubted
evidence that divers of our lieges who lately came with us to our
kingdom of France, there as we hoped stoutly to oppose and resist
the pride and malice of our enemies, have deserted us in the
midst of these our enemi