to London bridge, and stood there, he should hear very
joyfull newse, which he at first sleighted, but
afterwards, his dream being dubled and trebled upon
him, he resolv'd to try the issue of it, and
accordingly went to London, and stood on the bridge
there two or three days, looking about him, but heard
nothing that might yield him any comfort. At last it
happen'd that a shopkeeper there, hard by, haveing
noted his fruitless standing, seeing that he neither
sold any wares nor asked any almes, went to him and
most earnestly begged to know what he wanted there, or
what his business was; to which the pedlar honestly
answer'd, that he had dream'd that if he came to
London and stood there upon the bridg, he should hear
good newse; at which the shopkeeper laught heartily,
asking him if he was such a fool as to take a journey
on such a silly errand, adding, 'I'll tell thee,
country fellow, last night I dream'd that I was at
Sopham, in Norfolk, a place utterly unknown to me,
where methought behind a pedlar's house in a certain
orchard, and under a great oak tree, if I digged I
should find a vast treasure! Now think you,' says he,
'that I am such a fool to take such a long jorney upon
me upon the instigation of a silly dream? No, no, I'm
wiser. Therefore, good fellow, learn witt of me, and
get you home, and mind your business.' The pedlar,
observeing his words, what he had sayd he had dream'd
and knowing they concenterd in him, glad of such
joyfull newse went speedily home, and digged and found
a prodigious great treasure, with which he grew
exceeding rich, and Soffham church being for the most
part fal'n down he set on workmen and reedifyd it most
sumptuously, at his own charges; and to this day there
is his statue therein, cut in stone, with his pack at
his back, and his dogg at his heels; and his memory is
also preserved by the same form or picture in most of
the old glass windows, taverns, and ale-houses of that
town unto this day."[13]

Now this version from Abraham de la Pryme was certainly obtained from
local sources, and it shows the general popularity of the legend,
together with the faithfulness of the traditional version.[14] But
other evidence of the traditional force of the story is to be f