Orders taken & enacted, for Orphans and their portions.  
Anno MD. LXXX.  
Imprinted at London for Gabriel Cawood.   

❧ Orders enacted.  
AD Commune concilium, tentum in Guildhaldia civitatis Londini. xiii. die Octob. Anno regni Eduardi sexti, Dei gratia Angliae, Franciae & Hiberniae Regis, fidei defensoris, & in terra Ecclesiae Anglicanae, & Hibernicae supremicapitis, quinto: coram Andrea judde Milite, tunc Maiore, & Aldremannis Civitatis illius, ordinata sunt inter alia, inactitata, concessa & stabilita, omnia & singula subsequentia.  
FOrasmuch as the City of London, is of late years sore decayed, and daily is like to decay, more and more: A great cause & occasion whereof among other, hath been, for that free men's children, (Orphans of the said City) sometimes in the lives of their Parents, and sometimes after their deceases, being left wealthy and rich, do bestow themselves in ungodly Marriages, for the most part in their young age, at their own wills & pleasures, without the consent and against the minds of their friends, saying & affirming, that the Law & custom of the said City giveth unto them their portions, whether they marry by the assent of their friends or not, & so do daily cast away & undo themselves, in trust to have their said portions, whether their parents or friends will or will not. And thereby do they bestow themselves upon simple & light people, having neither cunning, knowledge, substance, ne good or honest conditions. By reason where-of●, such Orphans, inordinately, & insolently, do spend & consume their patrimony & portions in short time, not only to the undoing of themselves, and to the great ignomy & shame of their friends, but also to the great slander of the Lord Maior & Aldermen of this city (who been reputed & taken as Fathers & Protectors of the same Orphans) & to the great loss and hindrance of the said City.  
And forasmuch as the said Lord Maior and Citizens; have by their laws, and customs, power and authority to make laws and ordinances, by their common counsel, for redress of the same. It is therefore now (to the intent to reduce the same to a more godly, more profitable and decent order and conformity) by the said Lord Maior, and Commonalty, and Citizens, in this present common counsel assembled, and by authority of the same common Counsel, enacted, ordained, authorized, & established for a Law perpetually to be observed & kept within the said City. That if any Orphan, or child of any free man or free woman, of the said City do offend in any the things hereafter expressed, and be thereof lawfully convicted, afore the Lord Maior and the Aldermen or else where, that then they and every of them, shall to all intents purposes, constructions & meanings; be unabled and barred to demand and claim their portion or portions, & also shall lose & forego & be barred for ever, of all and every his, her, or their part or parts, & portions to him or them belonging, by and after the death of his or their said father or mother, of the goods & chattels, of every such father & mother, by reason of any Law, custom, ordinance, usage, franchises, privilege, act of Commune counsale, or other thing, heretofore had or used, within the said City. The same Law, Custom, Ordinance, or other thing whatsoever, heretofore had, made, ordained, allowed, & put in ure, to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding. That is to wit. First, if any man-child, or womanchild, shall maliciously go about or attempt to do, or cause to be done, any bodily harm, death, or destruction to his or their Father or Mother: Or if any man-child do hereafter marry or contract marriage in the life of his father or mother (by whom he will claim any portion) under the age of xxi. years, without the consent of his said Father, or Mother, by whom he will claim any portion: Or if any womanchilde do hereafter marry or contract marriage, in the life of her father, or other parent, by whom she shall claim any portion, before the age of xviii. years, without the consent of her Father, or such other Parent by whom she shall or may claim any portion: Or if any manchild be a Thief, or a Felon, or a common whore haunter, a common Diser, or a common player at unlawful games notoriously known: Or if any womanchilde shall hereafter commit any whoredom, or be a common Picker, that then every of the persons so offending, shallbe barred & excluded to have, or demand any portion.  
¶ Provided always, that it shallbe lawful, for the father, or mother of any such child, or children, to give & bequeath in Legacy, to such child or children, as much as the portion of such child so, offending shall amount unto, by the custom of the said city and then such child thereby to be enabled to have, & demand the same, as portion, this Act, notwithstanding, so that the same Legacy be contained in his or their testament in writing, & not otherwise. And that then, and from thenceforth, his said child, or children, to be admitted and restored to claim such legacy, or legacies, in such sort, manner & form, as if there had bon never any such offence done, or committed by any such child.  
Item, it is further ordained, enacted, authorized and established, by the authority aforesaid, that if any womanchilde, being an Orphan, & under the age of. xxi. years, at any time hereafter, after the death of her father, do ensure or contract herself in marriage, or else according to the Ecclesiastical laws of this Realine, do perfectly solemnize or consummate Marriage, with any free man of this City, the consent & agreement of the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of this said city of Lond●n for the time being, not obtained & had, that then for every such default & offence committed or done, by any Orphan or Orphans, of the said City, the same being confessed or sufficiently proved by two witnesses, or otherwise before the said Lord Mayre and Aldermen of this said City of London, for the time being, at and in a Court of Aldermen, she or they that so happen to behave her or themselves, as is afore said, shall forfeit, forego and lose. ij. d of and for every pound, so due or to be due unto her, or them, by reason of any such Orphanage, the sum of. xii. d. of every. li. to go, or to be to the use of the chamber of the said city, according to the ancient custom before this time, in such case used. And if the said contract or marriage of the said Orphan or Orphans, be made with any foreign, not being free of this City, at the time of any such contract or marriage made, that then the said Ophan or Orphans, and every of them shall forfeit and lose. iij. s. of every pound, or to be due unto her or them, by virtue of any Orphanage or custom had and used within the said City. The one shilling of the said, iij. s. of every pound, to go, or to be, to the use of the chamber of the said city, in such manner & form as is aforesaid. And the other. tj. s. so forfeited of every pound, to go to the use of such other Orphan, or Orphans, as than shall remain unmarried. Or else for default of such Orphans, or Orphan, to remain to the next of the kindred of the Orphan so offending.  
Also be it further ordained, enacted, & established by authority aforesaid, for, & in eschewing of divers variences, contentions, & suits, that daily heretofore have, & hereafter may ensue: that if any free man's child, man or woman fortune to be married hereafter, in the life time of his, or their father, by his consent, & not fully advanced off, & to his, or her full part, or portion, of his, or her, said Fathers goods, as he shallbe worth at the time of his disease, according to the ancient laws and customs, of this said City: that then every such free man's child, so being married in the life time of his, or her Father shallbe to all intents and purposes, disabled to demand any further part or portion, of his or her father's goods, after the disease of his, or ●ir father, but shallbe adjudged, reputed and taken to be fully advanced, according as the law and custom of ●his city, hath been long time out of mind, except his or her said father, do mention certainly in his last will, or testament, or by other writing signed with his own proper name, or mark ●he certainty of the sum or sums of money, goods and chattles, & the value of them that the Father gave, paid ●r departed withal, or otherwise assured or hereafter shall give, pay, ●epart withal, or otherwise make assurance off, unto him, or her, before at ●r after the marriage of him or her, or otherwise in his life time, for and towards their advancements, in the name of his, or her part, or portion.  
And then every such Orphan, or child which after the decease of his or her said Father, can bring forth the said Testament or other writing signed or marked with the father's hand or mark, wherein the certainty of such mone● goods, or chattles, as they have o● shall have received of their said Father, or by the same father, assured b● especialty, or otherwise shall have a● much of the ready money, goods, chattles, and debts, of the said Father as (with that which he or they shal● have received towards their advancements, in the life of their said father shall make up a full child's part, o● his goods and chattles, as he shall b● worth at the time of his decease. Th● same to be demanded, asked, & claimed, or sued for against the executor or executors, administrator, or administrators, of the goods, and chattles of the said Father, by bill Original, to be commenced to our sovereign Lord, the king's court, holden in the utter chamber of the guild-hall of the said city, before the said Lord Mayre and Aldermen of the same city for the time being, any law or custom, heretofore made, or used to th● contrary, notwithstanding. In which action, no wager of Law, or essoin. shallbe admitted, or allowed.  
Provided always and it is further ●nacted, that if any free man's son, ●éeing of full age (which shall hereafter be married with the consent of his father, or any other perten, being of full age, which shall hereafter marry any free man's daughter) do at the time of the espousals, or any time after, confess themselves, by writing fully satisfied, of his, or their portion, or do otherwise acquit and discharge, the Father of such free man's sons, or daughters, of all their part and portion, due, or to be due, by the Law and custom of the City, that then every such person, so confessing, acquitting, or otherwise discharging, shallbe reputed and taken, as fully advanced, of his, or their whole part, or portion, & shall not be enabled, to demand any further, or greater part of the substance, goods, & chattles, of his or her Father: this law, or any other law or custom heretofore had, made, or used to the contrary, notwithstanding.  
And further, for as much as it is thought very prejudicial & hurtful the fatherless children & Orphan when the mother, or mother in law being executrix of the last will & testament of her late husband, by whom after whose death, the Orphans a● entitled to an Orphanage, (according to the said laudable customs 〈◊〉 this city) do divers times marry 〈◊〉 contract matrimony, some with for●●…ners, & persons unknown, & some 〈◊〉 Free men, or ever a just Inventory 〈◊〉 the goods, cattles, plate, juells, re●dy money of the testators, be by t●●● brought in: By reason whereof, man● times, they (either for fear or affection of their husbands, or for some other sinister cause) do bring in very suspicious inventories, omitting there●● either ready money, Plate, juells, o● debts, or some other thing, or things whereby some benefit should redound to the fatherless children, to the grea● loss and hindrance of the Orphane● and sometime slander to the Lord Mayre, and Aldermen of the City notwithstanding their great care, an● travail that they take for the good ordering, and true answering of the said Orphans.  
It is therefore, by like authority, ordained, established, and enacted, that if after the first day of November next ensuing, any widow, which is, or shall be made executrix of the Testament and last will of her late husband, (being a free man) or shall take upon her the administration of the goods, & chattles, of her late husband (being a free man) do not upon her oath bring in, and exhibit, or cause to be brought in, & exhibited before the Lord Mayre, and Aldermen of this said City, for the time being at, and in a court of Aldermen, a just and perfect Inventory (to their knowledge,) of all the goods, chattles, plate, and juells, ready money, and debts, as were her said husbands, at the time of his death, appraised according to the law of the said city, before she do ensure herself in marriage, or contract marriage, or else according to the laws of the Realm, do perfectly solemnize, or consummate marriage with any person, before such time as aforesaid, that then every person so offending, shall forfeit and lose viii s. of every pound, of her portion, of the goods of her late husband, due to her by the laudable custom of this said City, the same to go to the use of such Orphan, or Orphans, as then shallbe entitled to have or demand any Orphanage, or portion, after the death of his or her late Father, the same to be demanded, asked, claimed, or sued for, against such executrix, or administratrix, by bill original of debt, to be commenced, in our Sovereign Lord the kings Court, holden in the utter chamber of the Guildhall, of the said city, before the Lord Mayre, and Aldermen of the same City, for the time being, any law, etc. In which Action, no wager. etc.   

¶ Imprinted at London by Thomas East, for Gabriel Cawood.