A Perfect RELATION OF All the passages and proceed of the marquis Hartford, the Lord Paulet, and the rest of the Cavelleers that were with them in Wels.  
With the valiant resolution and behaviour of the Trained-bands and other Inhabitants of those parts, for the defence of themselves, the King and Parliament.  
As also what help was sent from Bristol to their aid; with the manner of the Lords and Cavaliers running out of the Town.  
And many other things very remarkable.  
As it was sent in a Letter from the Committee in Summersetshire to both Houses of PARLIAMENT.  
ORdered by the Lords in Parliament, that this Letter be forthwith printed and published. J. Brown Cler. Parliamentorum.  
12. August, 164●.  
London, Printed for joseph Hunscot, and I Wright.   

A Perfect Relation from the Committee of Sommersetshire.  
SIR,  
FOr want of time to give you a large and perfect relation of all that hath passed here since our meeting at Shepton-Mallet upon monday last, of which you had by our last letters a full relation, I am commanded by the Committee, and Deputy-Lieutenants to send you a brief information, until the other be perfected; and the rather because of the conveniency of this conveyance by your messenger Master Combs, who hath done you very good service, and adventured himself very far to observe the do and behaviour of Captain Digby, upon whom he hath attended some 14 or 16 days to his great expense, and hazard of his life. After our meeting upon monday aforesaid. The Lord marquis with the other Lords, Knights, and Gentlemen lodged altogether at Wells, they laboured to bring in thither all the great Horses that possibly they could procure, and make up amongst themselves and their friends, and had gathered together about 500 excellent good Horses very well armed, and manned with many desperate companions. Upon wednesday morning the Gentlemen, to wit Sir Ralph Hopton, Sir john Strewell and the rest accompanied with all their Horseman came from Wells to Shepton-Malet, and road through the Town up unto a certain great Hill near Shepton called Mendeepe, which being observed by the people (who were thereby strooken into a great affrightment and terror) they forthwith sent scouts and posts unto every Gentleman's house that lay on that side Mend●epe, to wit, unto Sir john Horner, Master Alexander Popham and myself most especially, willing us to look unto ourselves, for that these Cavaliers were coming to destroy us, or greatly to mischief us, and all the good Gentlemen in these parts of the Country, this caused very great stir and combustion in the Country, and every man a●med and made ready for their coming, But those Gentlemen with their Cavaliers after they had made a bravado a mile or two upon the Hill beyond Sh●pton, returned again to the same Town whe●e they spent a short time, refreshing themselves at the Inns and Taverns, during which t●●e some of their Cavaliers marching about the Town found out all the honest religious men● houses that were there, those houses they broke, into plundered, and rob, especially of all Arms and Ammunition, and made ●he owners with their wives and children to forsake their house's, and hid themselves for fear of their lives, and never durst to return home until yesterday; But after the G●ntemen had refreshed themselves, and the Cavaliers done their said pranks, they departed again to Wells, when they had ordered the billeting of 100 of their Troopers there upon them of Sbepton; upon this their bold march and bravado Sir john Horner called many of his Neighbours, and Tenants together and armed them or caused them to be armed, and so marched away unto Mastar Alexander Popham, to whom resorted presently above 1000 armed men ready to spend their lives for the said Gentlem●ns safety.  
From thence upon Friday morning they all marched together unto the place appointed for that day's meeting, in the Town of Chewton, which Town lieth about 4 or 5 miles distant from Wells, and the great vast Mendeepe Hill● lying between the said Town and that of Wells, and thither came unto us all the Trained Bands of that quarter of the shire, and especially Master Pophams' Regiment, complete in number, nay doubled twice over by means of volunteers, who came best armed and were most ready in the use of their Arms. At ●his place met some of your Committees, and some of your deputy Lieutenants, to wit, Sir Edward Hungerford (who lent Arms of his own unto 150 or 200 volunteers) Sir john Horner, Master Alexander Popham▪ Master Cole, Master Harbyn, Master Hipsly, and myself, and after we had been upon the place about one or two hours our company was increased to the number of about 40 thousand as we● did conceive, many of these had no more weapons but their swords, yet all came to show their affections to the King and Parliament, and to oppose with the hazard of their lives the Lord marquis, and his company with their commission of Array, This great company was made up of all the Gentry, & Yeamondry, and lastly youths that inhabitted in the north-east part of the County, there came unto us every one of Master Smith's Tenants 4● Yeomen well armed, and all the Inhabitants in that quarter where Sir Ralph Hopton liveth unto his very Gates.  
There came also out of those parts of Wiltshire ne●re Sir Edward hungerford's quarter, about 2 or 3 hundred Horsemen some of them well armed, the rest only a sword and a pocket Pistol; there came likewise above 300 lusty stout men of very good rank and quality of the City of Bristol, all of them on Horseback with Swords, Pistols, or Carbines; there came from Glostershire a Company of Foot well armed, consisting of 250, or 300 men led by a valiant and expert Captain; they were not of the Trained Bands, but all volunteers.  
These with the rest discovered abundance of stoutness and resolution, we had likewise two Wanes loaden with Powder, Bullet, and Match and some Arms sent us by the honest good men of Bristol, with two Wanes more loaden with four small field pieces, and their carriages, and two Gunners; although the Major and sheriff's of Bristol by the means of the Lord Pawlet, and Master Smith (as we were informed) did hinder and oppose it with all their skill, by one or two of the clock we had put our Company in order, but with much ado for want of expert Soldiers and Commanders, which done the Soldiers (although they had neither meat nor drink) could not be stayed, but would march over the Hill which was near four miles, until they came in sight of Wells, and there pitched upon a great Hill in view of the Town; by this time the day was near spent and victuals we had none nor could we get any upon the sudden, yet such was the courage and resolution of our Company, that after they had planted their Ordnance, they would not dep●rt that place but lay all that night upon the Hill, fasting and in the ●old, and spent the time in prayers and singing of Psalms, Sir john Hornor, and Master Alexander Poph●m with his two valiant Brothers, and Sir john Horners youngest son, with many other young Gentlemen, Captains, and others, lay all that night in their Arms upon Fursbushes in the open Fields amidst the Camp, the old Knight often saying that his Furs-Bed was the best that ever he lay upon. It was very much to be admired, that the spirits and resolutions of so great a Company, and men so tenderly b●ed could be kept up to tha● height, as to endure so much hunger ●nd cold. But such was the love and affections of all the County within 6. 8. and 10 mile's distance that by the next mo●ning day light they sent in such provisions of all sorts in Wanes, Carts, and on Horses, that this great Company had sufficient and to spare both for breakfast, and dinner, and would not take one penny for it, nay many men did carry home again their provisions, for want of company to eat it.  
After our Camp had been victualled, we your Committees and Deputy-Lieutenants could scarce prevail with them, but upon the Town they would fall, they would destroy the Cavalleers and take the Incendiaries, those Delinquent Gentlemen then with the marquis and carry them to the Parliament. Thus fare I have made you a true and perfect relation, the rest of the story (because it concerns the Lord marquis Hartford, the Lord Seymore, and the Lord Paulet (and it's reported an Earl and some Lords more) besides the Gentlemen my neighbours, of which were twelve Knights besides M. Smith, M. Wyndham, M. Kirton, and other Esquires) I shall at this time omit, until your Committees and Deputy-Lieutenants give their consent to that which shall be written; only I shall tell you that before we removed from Chewton, the Lord marquis, etc. sent us a Message to stay there, and to find a way to preserve the peace of the County; in our next you shall receive a copy of that message, for I have it not by me. Our answer was that for want of the rest of our Deputy-Lieutenants and Committees which we expected every hour, we deferred our full answer until the next day: the next day we sent five propositions unto them, with advice that if they were not yielded unto very speedily, we should not be able to keep our Soldiers from falling upon them, they desired time for an hour or two to consider of an answer to our propositions, and in the mean time whilst we expected the answer, and our soldiers very impatient with the delay, They, the Lords, Knights, Gentlemen, and Cavalleres forsook the Town and rod all way. In this I have been brief in regard I have not all the papers by me in which the messages are contained, it gave the soldiers some content to go down into the Town to see the place where these lewd Cavalleers their enemies lay. Some of us went down with them to keep all things in order and quiet (when we could not prevail nor persuade them to departed without going into the Town) we left all in quiet and do hope that those which remained there after our departute were not disorderly, unless they were provoked by the Cathedral Company.  
Upon all this relation, you may clearly see the condition and stout resolution of our good Country men, how ever heretofore ill thought of. But observe I pray you, this company now appointed to muster at Chewton was the Regiment only under M. Popham called Bath-regiment, and some part of Wels-regiment, they all dwelled within the compass of one quarter of our shi●e, and they were the ●est and principallest Company from whom Sir Ralph Hopton, Sir Francis Dorrington, and M. Smith might expect obedience, and over whom they had the greatest power heretofore. M. Rogers, M. Fra●cis, M. Pyne, nor M. Sirode did appear at our muster, nor could bring or send us one man, for as they were coming up unto us with some Gentlemen and good Yeomen of those parts to accompany them, they were met by the way with Sir J. Stowell and his two sons, and about 120, or 140. of the desperate Cavaliers, by whom some of the ho●est country men w●re wounded and slain, and so for want of powder and sh●t not able to resist, they returned home again, and came not forward unto us. I shall leave this relation to M. Pyne and M. Strode who were eye-witnesses to what was done. But this wounding and killing hath very much daunted the honest countryman, yet not to forsake his good resolution's; for I am confident that the Commissioners of Array will never be able to make any of them to fight to maintain them or their Commission, for when they were at Wells that friday which we came to Chewton, they had got into Wells by fair means and by foul, about 400. of the trained-bands and Volunteers, but that Friday at night (as we were credibly informed) they all stole away out of the Town, and some of them came up the hill unto us upon Saturday morning. But sir, having now done with the relation, the Committee and Deputy-lieutenants do very much fear, that the Lords and the other Commissioners will attempt again in some other part of the County, and so may do us extreme mischief in case they prevail any where to raise a regiment of Foot; Wher●fore I do humbly pray you in the behalf of this county▪ that without any further loss of time, ten or twenty good Commanders with some ammunition may be speedily sent down unto us, and that my Lord of Bedford with three or four hundred horse would presently come amongst us. And then I am confident you shall find this County as right as the best; but if you should forget us, and my Lord not speedily to come unto us, we may notwithstanding (after this very good beginning) be yet lost, and we all destroyed by the Cavaliers. Sir, I have been over tedious, and trespassed upon your patience, wherefore pardon I pray you,  
Your most humble servant, John Ashe. Freshford. 7 Aug. 1642.