ealme, but your Grace, in
your grave Counsall, sett to amend, alsweall the disordour
Ecclesiasticall, as the defaultes in the Temporall regiment, most
humblie prostrat our selfes befoir your featt, asking your justice,
and your gratious help, against thame that falslie traduce and
accuse us, as that we war heretickis and schismatikis, under that
culour seiking our destructioun; [SN: THE PETITIOUN.] for that we
seak the amendment of thare corrupted lyeffis, and Christes
religioun to be restored to the originall puritie. Farther, we
crave of your Grace, with opin and patent earis, to heare these our
subsequent Requestis; and to the joy and satisfactioun of our
trubled consciences, mercifullie to grant the same, onless by
Goddis plane worde any be able to prove that justlie thei awght to
be denyed.

THE FIRST PETITIOUN.

First, Humblie we ask, that as we haif, of the Lawes of this
realme, after long debaite, obteaned to reade the Holy bookes of
the Old and New Testamentes in our commoun toung,[744] as
spirituall foode to our soullis, so from hensfurth it may be
lauchfull that we may convene, publictlie or privatlie, to our
Commoun Prayeris, in our vulgar toung; to the end that we may
encrease and grow in knowledge, and be induceid, in fervent and oft
prayer,[745] to commend to God the holye Church universall, the
Quoin our Soverane, hir honorable and gratiouse Husband, the
habilitie[746] of thare succcssioun, your Grace Regent, the
Nobilitie, and hole Estait of this Realme.

Secundly, Yf it shall happin in oure saidis conventionis any hard
place of Scripture to be redd, of the which no proffeit arysith to
the convenaris, that it shalbe lauchfull to any qualifiit personis
in knowledge, being present, to interpreit and open up the saidis
hard places, to Goddis glorie and to the proffeit of the auditour.
And yf any think that this libertie should be occasioun of
confusioun, debait, or heresie; we ar content that it be providit,
that the said interpretatioun shall underly the judgement of the
most godly and most learned within the realme at this tyme.

Thridly, That the holy Sacrament of Baptisme may be used in the
vulgare toung; that the godfatheris and witnesses may nott onlie
understand the poyntes of the league an