C R  
HONI SOIT QVI MAL Y PENSE   royal blazon or coat of arms  
THE King's majesty's Most Gracious LETTER and DECLARATION To the Bishops, Deans and Prebends &c.  
CHARLES R.  
AS nothing is more in our desires then to provide that the 〈…〉 ●ngland, under our Reign might be furnished with a Religious, Learned, Sober, Modest, and Prudent Clergy 〈◊〉 we are ready to give encouragement to their labours and study in their several degrees and stations, that they may give Check to all profaneness and Superstition, and as zealously affect to remove all scandals, and reproach from them and their callings, conceiving therefore a competent maintanance to be a necessary encouragement: And that all other persons who have power to dispose of tithes, may be invited to cherish all Learned and Godly ministry. We do resolve that because where tithes have been appointed for the support of Bishops, Deans, and Chapters Collegiate Churches, and colleges: And other single persons that have not taken due care to Provide, and ordain sufficient maintenance for the Vicars of their respective places, or for the Curates where Vicarages were not endowed, to settle for the future some good addition and increase on such Vicarages and curates places. Our will therefore is that forthwith provision be made for the augmentation of all such Vicarages, and Cures, where your tithes and profits are appropriated to you and your successors, in such manner that they who immediately attend upon the performance of ministerial Offices in every Parish may have a competent portion out of every Rectory impropriate to your See. And 〈◊〉 this end our further will is, That no lease he granted of any Rectoryes or Parsonages belonging to your See, belonging to you 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 successors, until you shall Provide that the respective Vicarages or curates places, where are no Vicarages endow 〈…〉 tithes, or other emoluments, as commonly will amount to 100 or 80 l. per annum, or more 〈…〉 it will bear 〈…〉, settle it upon them and their Successors and where the Rectoryes are of small value, an● cannot permit of such pr●●ortions 〈…〉 vicar and Curate, Our will is that one half of the prof●t of such a Rectory b● reserved for the maintenance of the V●●ar or 〈◊〉 Curate. And if any Leases or grants of such forenamed Rector●●● have been made by you since the f●rst day of June last past, & 〈◊〉 you did not ordain competent Augmentation of the Vicarages or Cures in their respective places, our will is, That out of the Fines which you have received, or are to receive, you do add such increase to the Vicar and Curate as is agreeable to the Rates and Proportions formerly mentioned.  
And our further will is, that you do employ your Authority and power, which by Law belongeth to you as ordinary for the Augmentation of Vicarages, and stipends of Curates, and that you do with diligence proceed in due form of Law, for the raising and establishing Convenient maintenance of those who do attend holy duties in Parish Churches; And if any Prebendary in any Church (the corpse of whose Prebend consists of tithes) shall not observe these our Commands, than we require you, or the Dean of the Church, to use all due means in Law, where you or he hath power to compel them, or that otherwise you report to the Bishop of the diocese, where the said corpse doth lie, that they may interpose his Authority for fulfilling this our Order; and if any Dean, or Dean and Chapter, or any that holdeth any dignity, or Prebend in the Cathedral Church do not observe these our Commands, that you call them before you, and see this our will be obeyed; And if you or any Bishop do not your, duty, either in their own grants, or seeing others to do it than we will that upon complaint, the Archbishop of the Province see all performed according to this our Declaration, Will and Pleasure: And whereas there are divers rural Prebends, where the Vicarages are not sufficiently endowed, we require you to see those our Commands be fully observed by them. And we do declare our Will and Pleasure in all the particulars forecited to be, that if you or any of your Successors, or any Dean, or Dean and Chapter, of 〈◊〉 our Cathedrial Church, or any other person holding any Office, Benefice or Prebend in the same, do or shall refuse or omit to observe these our Commands, we shall judge them unworthy of our future favour, whensover any preferment Ecclesiastical shall be desired by them from us.  
And lastly our Will and Command is, that you and your Successors do at or before the first day of October in every year, render an account to the Archbishop of how these our Orders and Commands are observed, That the Archbishop afterwards may represent the same unto Us,  
By his majesty's Command. EDWARD NICHOLAS.  
This is a true Copy of the King Letter, showed in the House of Commons by Sir Allin Brawdriff the 7th of August 1660.   

LONDON, Printed for John Jones. 1660.