Thursday Noon, being Feb. (26) 84/05 
 My dearest Soul,  
THou only preserver of my Life, O thou Div— e Being, how can I pay Duty enough to thee for all thy immense Goodness to me thy poor Slave; no I am never able to requite Dearest thee, if I should continue these Thousand Years; and yet, if thou makest good thy Promises, I shall go near to live a good part of them. I have now no farther doubt but that thou art resolved to save me, therefore 'tis no matter how soon thy Tyrant knows I cannot Live without thee, for come Life, come Death, I must and will have thee, for thou art mine, and I shall die if I am much longer absent from thee. Dearest Angel, dost with thyself with me? ah! thou may'st have me when ever thou pleases. O don't let me want what we both so much desire, if it be thy bl— t will, for nothing can be Physic to cure my dying Body, but thy Div— e Presence. 'Tis fine work those Fellows Rich. and Moody intends to make; my Villain Madley shall pay dearly for his Inquisitiveness, and being such a Traitor to his Master; but assure thyself 'tis only guessing, for I have examined the Boy, who protests he never saw nor knew he had a Letter, or to whom Directed; but I will defer his punishment till I hear more from thee. Mrs. Savory may easily hinder them from finding out the Plates, by sending them out of the House, and then she may say she has them not: The Esquire came here on Friday last when I was at London, my Mother Eve begged of him but to stay till I came home, which would be at Night; no not he, for he said he had Sworn never to lie in the House more, but declared he would spend a Thousand Pounds in opposing my coming in for Parliament Man: He went away in a great rage, and told my Mother, he had a ridiculing Letter from an unknown Hand, who told him all that had passed in his Absence; I fear all for thee, nothing for myself, for he is the pitifullest of Men where he cannot domineer. By the Love thou bearest me, suffer him not to strike or abuse thy Devil— e Person, without giving me speedy notice of it; I claim this Justice of thee, thou being my better Part, and know I shall die with Grief, as well as Absence, if I should live in dread of his beating thee, and thou not Advertise me of it; I hope thou wilt not do so cruel a thing to thy faithful Lover: No doubt but his Worship brought home his delicate Humour to thee on Saturday Night, he spent most of that Day at Mid— t, making all he could against me; he together with his Myrmidons, has spread abroad that I was not at the Charge of getting them their Ch— r, and a great many such silly nonsensical Lies, he being, thou knowest, good at them. I sent Ch— s to the Burghers on Monday, and he is not yet returned, so can give thee no account what Lord Mount—, the Town, and Mr. Alcock says, for I writ to them all, I hear that some of the Burghers stickle very much for me; I will get it if possible, only if it be but to disturb my Destroyer. Dearest, there is no fear of his taking my Letters to thee, if our dear friend will be sure to let her trusty Maid be at the Posthouse, on Fridays as soon as the Letters come in, because he can have no way of coming at them, but to get the Postmaster to give him or his y Agents any Letters Directed to our Friend, till he finds one; but if she takes this course, 'tis impossible for him to intercept a Letter, therefore pray discourse it with her. Then for thy blessed ones to me, never fear their being opened; send a Packet if thou pleases, there's no danger. I wonder not at all at the Insolency of Ri— n. Thy Tyrant, and my Destroyer, intends to make all so to thee that he can, but blessing on thy dear Heart, his Reign is but short; and since my Life depends upon thy Divine Promise, let me once more, before I end this Scribble, beseech thee on my bended Knees to remember what I tell thee, that I cannot promise thee to secure my Life to thee long, if I continue thus deprived of thee, and my Destroyer is contriving all the ways he can invent to keep me from thee; he knows it will kill me, and that he knows is the safest way to be rid of me. 'Tis only by thee and from thee I can receive my Life, and thou my Divinity can frustrate his, and all their cruelties to me; and since 'tis so, I fear nothing, thou art my G—d, and I pray and praise thee every Day, by whose blessed Promises and Mercy I Live, and my Days will not be long enough to express to dear thee my Gratitude for thy saving me thy poor Slave; but while I Breath, thou shalt see me attend thee with the purest Love, the vastest Obedience, and the greatest Reverence that can or ever was paid by Man. Ah! dearest Life, what can I return thee for all thy Benefits bestowed upon me thy poor Creature? only a Heart brimful of Love and Admiration of thee, the which will continue so for ever, being I am thine, and only thine, thou hast been pleased to accept of so mean a Gift, for which be pleased to accept of the most humblest Thanks and eternal Adoration of thy most Dutiful and Affectionate Hus. On Monday Night N— d Th'— d and Three Men coming from London, all very drunk, one Sy—n n, the best of them, fell into our Gravel-Pit, and was drowned, the Night being very dark, and it being about the hour of Twelve: This comes of drunkenness. Thy dear Sister is to be Married on Shrove-Tuesday, and at Night to be laid upon her back as flat as a Pancake, and no doubt will give and receive a curious time on't. Ch— s is just come in, and brings me in an account what Opposition there is against me made by my Lord, the Esquire, and Sir W— m M M —y, but find all that were Bailiffs and above Thirty are for me; I intent to come down once more amongst them, and try how far it will go; next Week I tell thee more. God Almighty keep me in thy blessed Favour, 'tis no matter what becomes of this Affair.  
Sir W. Knox's Letter to his Mistress in the Country.   

LONDON, Printed in the Year 1689.