WHere the ale brewers and beer brewers of this realm of england haue used and daily do use for their own singular lucre profit and gain to make in their own houses their barrels, kylderkyns and firkyns of much lasse quantity content rate and assize than they ought to be, to the great hurt prejudice and damage of the kings liege people, & contrary to diuers acts statutes ancient laws & customs heretofore made had and used, and to the destruction of the poor craft or mystery of coupers. For reformation whereof, be it enacted by the king out sovereign lord, the lords spiritual and temporal, and the commons in this present parliament assembled, and by authority of the same, that no bear brewer, nor ale brewer, that shall brewe to sale bear or ale, shall from henceforth occupy by himself, nor by any other to his use in his house nor else where, the mystery or craft of coupers, nor make any barrels, kylderkyns, fyrkyns, or other vessels by himself, nor by his or their own servants, whereby they shall put their beer or ale to sale, but that all such barrels, kylderkyns, and other vessels of wood, wherewith they shall put their bear or ale to sale, shall from henceforth be made & marked according as hereafter shal be expressed, by the common artificers of coupers exercised & practised in the said occupation vpon pain to forfeit and pay for every such barrel, kisderkin, firkin, or other vessel, hereafter to be made contrary to the tenor of this act. iii. s. iiii. d.  
¶ And be it also enacted, that every artificer of the craft or mystery of coupers, that will exercise or practise to make any of the said vessels for bear or ale to be put to sale, shal make the same vessels, & every of them, of good and seasonable wood, and put his proper mark vpon every of them. And that every barrel for bear shall contain. xxxvi. gallons, every kylderkyn for bear. xviii. gallons, and every firkin for bear nine gallons of the kings standard gallon. And that every barrel for ale shall contain. xxxii. gallons, every kylderkyn for ale. xvi. gallons, and every firkin for ale. viii. gallons of the kings standard gallon. So that they shall bee of good and just measure, or elles above and not under. And that no couper shall make any other vessel for bear or ale to be sold within this realm of any greater or lasser number of gallons than is abovesaid, unless he shall cause to be marked vpon every such vessel, that he shall so make of greater or lesser number of gallons, the true and certain nombre of as many gallons, as every such other vessel shall contain, to thentent that every person may know the content thereof.  
¶ And that no such artificer of coupers shall enhance the prices of any such barrels, kilderkins firkins, or other vessels in the sale of them to any ale brewer or bear brewer, or other person, but keep the rates of such prices as hereafter ensueth, and not above, vpon pain to forfeit for every barrel kilderkyn and firkin defective or enhanced in price in any point contrary to this act. iii. s. iiii. d. That is to say, for every beer barrel. ix. d. For every bear kylderkyn. v. d. and for every beer firkin. iii. d. And the ale barrel. xvi. d. the ale kylderkyn. ix. d. and the ale firkin. v. d.  
¶ Also be it further enacted by the said authority, that no bear brewer nor ale brewer at any time after the feast of Lammas now next coming, shall put their bear or ale to sale to any person or persons to be spent and occupied within this realm in any other barrels, kylderkyns, firkyns, or other vessels of wood, other than shall be made and marked by an artificer of coupers abovesaid, whereof every barrel for beer shall contain and hold. xxxvi. gallons every half barrel or kylderkyn. xviii. gallons, and every firkin. ix. gallons. And every barrel for ale shall contain. xxxii. gallons, every kylderkyn. xvi. gallons, and every firkin. viii. gallons of full and just measure, or above, and not under that measure.  
¶ And that any bear brewer or ale brewer shall not take over and above for any such barrel, kylderkin, or firkin of ale and bear, but after such prices and rates, as shall bee thought convenient and sufficient by the discretions of the Iustices of peace within every shire, where such bear brewer and ale brewer shal dwell without any city borrow or town corporate, where no head officers, as Maires, bailiffs, sheriffs, and other head officers, haue none authority nor rule, and in every city borough and town, where there be Mayres Sheryffes, or other head officers, the same rates and prices to be name and sessed by them & every of them by their discretions. And that the said ale brewers or bear brewers at any time hereafter shall not sell their bear nor ale at any higher rates or prices than shall be to them assigned, after the form above rehearsed, vpon pain to lose and forfeit for every barrel so put to sale contrary to this statute. vi. s. for every half barrel or kylderkyn. iii. s. iiii. d. and for every firkin. ii. s. and for every vessel conteinynge greater number of gallons. x. s. and for every other vessel containing lesser nombre of gallons. xii. d. The one half of all the which penalties and forfeitures to be to the king our sovereign lord, and the other half to him that will sue for the same by action of debt, bill, plaint or information in any of the kings courts: In which action & svit the defendant shal not wage his law, nor any essoin protection or privilege to be admitted.  
¶ Be it also further enacted by the said authority, that al maner of soap makers within this realm of England, which shall put to sale any soap by barrel, half barrel, firkin, or other vessel, shal from Lammas now next coming, make or cause to be made their barrels, half barrels, firkins, & other vessels, according to the rates contents receipt and assizes of old time used and accustomend, that is to say, every empty barrel to hold and contain. xxxii. gallons or above, and to be in weight. xxvi. pounds, and not above, of full and just measure, and every half barrel empty to be in weight. xiii. li. and not above, and to hold and contain. xvi. gallons or above: and every firkin empty to weigh. vi. pounds and an half, and not above, and to hold and contain. viii. gallons or above, vpon pain of forfeiture for every such barrel half barrel firkin or other vessel hereafter to be made had or used contrary to this act. iii. s .. iii. d.  
¶ And also be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, that the wardens of thoccupation or mystery of coupers with in the city of London from henceforth at al times hereafter when they shal think convenient & expedient, taking with them an officer of the Mayres, shal haue full power and authority by virtue of this act, to search view and gauge all maaer of such barrels kilderkins, firkins, and other vessels to bee made or occupied for ale beer or soap to be put to sale within the city of London, and suburbs of the same, & within two miles compass without the same suburbs, to view and se that the same barrels kilderkins firkins & other vessels as well within liberties as without, be made & marked well & sufficiently, and bear & contain their true contents rates & measures, according to theffect of this statute: And also to mark every such barrel kilderkyn firkin & other vessel by them so viewed & gauged, bearing and containing their true contents, with the sign & token of a saint Antonies cross. The same wardens to haue for the search & gauging of every such barrel, kilderkin firkin & other vessel by them so searched viewed gauged & marked one farthing, & not above, of the owners or makers of the said vessels. And shall & may haue authority by virtue of this act to retain every such vessel as they shall so gauge search and mark, unto such time as they shalbe satisfied thereof. And in case they shall find any of the said vessels defective, not bearing their true contents, that than by authority of this act, they may seize take and retain every such vessel, and cause the same to bee marked or amended, accordying to the true content, or else cause the same to be burned. And also the party owner of such vessel to lose and forfeit for every such vessel not being of the full contents after the rate above expressed. xii. d. to be recovered and employed as is above said.  
¶ And be it further enacted by the said authority, that in al other cities, borrows, and towns, wherein no such wardens of coupers be, that the Mayres, Sheryffes Ba●●●stes, Constables or other head office●s in such Cities, borrows and towns shall haue power and authority to search, view, and gage all such barrels, kylderkyns, fyrkyns, and other vessels to be made hereafter any such city borrow or town, and to haue and take all such advantage thereby and in like maner and form as the wardens of coupers within the city of London or other persons by this act should or may haue or take on every behalf.  
¶ provided always that every bear brewer may keep in his house one or two servants of the mystery or crait of coupers to hoop and amend his barrels, kylderkyns, fyrkyns, & other vessels, wherein they shall put their bear to sale from time to time, this act or any thing therein contained to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding.  
〈…〉 it further enacted by the said authority, that if any person at any time after the said feast of Lam 〈…〉 coming, do minish or cause to be mynished any maner of barrel, kylderkyn, or firkin to the ●●●eyte of any the kings subiectes by reason of taking out the head of any such vessel, or taking out of any staff out or from any such vessel, that then every such vessel to be brent, and thoffender to forfeit for every such offence. iii. s. iiii. d. the one moiety therof to be to the king our sovereign lord, and tother moiety therof to him or them of the kings subiectes that will sue for the same, to be recovered in maner & form above rehearsed. And the party so offending to be further punished by the discretion of the head officer or officers, before whom such default shalbe presented.  
¶ It is enacted by authority of this present parliament, that notwithstanding any thing contained in this act of brewers and coupers, whereunto this Cedule is annexed, it shalbe leeful to every alebrewer mentioned in the same act to haue and retain in his service one person of the mystery or craft of coupers, to exercise in his service the craft of a couper, only in binding, houpyng & pinning his maisters ale vessells, recited by the said act, and in none otherwise to use or exercise any making of vessels concerning the craft or mystery of a couper, whiles that he is in the service of any ale brewer. Also it is enacted, that every couper, which hereafter shall make any ale vessel specyfied in the said act, shall from the feast of Penthecoste next coming make every such vessel according to the assize specified in the treatise called Compositio mensurarum, that is to say every barrel for ale shall contain. xxxii. gallons of the said assize or above, of the which. viii. gallons make the common bushel to be used in this realm of England every kylderkyn for ale. xvi. gallons of the said assize or above, and every firkin. viii. gallons of assize or above, vpon pain of forfeiture of iii. s. iiii. d. for every of the same vessels by him vntruely made contrary to this act: the one half of the same forfeiture to be to the king, and tother to him that will sue for the same, by action of debt, bill, plaint, writ or otherwise: In which action none essoin, protection or wager of lawe shalbe allowed.  
¶ And be it also enacted, that every couper mark his vessel with his own mark, vpon pain of. iii. s. iiii. d to be levied and recovered after like maner and form as is above said. And that no maner of person in the search making for the true gaugyng of any such vessells, shal put out the ale of any such vessel. whereby the same ale shalbe the worse. And that it shalbe lawful to every ale brewer to bring, carry, & cause to be brought and carried their ale to the households of our sovereign lord the king, the queen, the princes, and to every archbyshops, byshoppes, dukes, markesses, earls, barons, or other honourable mennes houses in tons butts, pipes, hoggeshedes, or other vessels of greater or larger quantity than is expressed in this present act, as before time hath ben used in that behalf. And also it shall be lawful to the said ale brewers to bring carry, or cause to be brought conueyde or carried their ale to every mans house in barrels, kylderkyns, & fyrkyns bearing and holding their true contents, according to the purport and effect of this present act, any thing contained in the same act to the contrary hereof notwithstanding.