4. The citizens are allowed the privilege of holding an annual fair in the borough of Southwark, together with a court of Pye-powder, with the rights and customs thereto belonging, &c. all at the ancient fee farm of 10l. _per annum_. Afterwards, in the year 1479, the city gave the same Prince 1923l. 19s. 8d. for the liberty of purchasing lands, &c. in mortmain, to the value of 200 marks _per annum_; and also purchased of the King, for 7000l. the offices of package, portage, garbling, gauging, wine-drawer and coroner, to be enjoyed by them and their successors for ever. In the same year, a dreadful pestilence raged in London, which swept away an incredible number of people. On the death of Edward IV. the Duke of Buckingham strove in vain to make the citizens join in raising the Duke of Gloucester to the throne, to the prejudice of the young Prince, Edward V. by making a long speech to them in Guildhall. The Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and some of the Common Council, were, however, prevailed upon to go and persuade that inhuman monster to accept of the crown; and afterwards the Lord Mayor contested with the citizens of Winchester the right of being chief Butler at the coronation of a man who was a disgrace to human nature: but the Mayor of London had for some ages enjoyed this privilege, and was not now denied it. In the beginning of the reign of Henry VII. the sweating sickness first raged in London, carrying off great numbers within twenty-four hours; but those who survived that time generally recovered; and of this disease died two Lord Mayors and one of the Sheriffs, in the space of the year. The next year the privileges of the citizens were struck at by their own magistrates, in a very extraordinary act of Common Council, which enjoined the citizens, under the penalty of an hundred pounds, not to carry any goods or merchandize to any fair or market within the kingdom, for the term of seven years; but this scandalous and unjust by-law was the next year set aside by act of Parliament. In the year 1500, the plague carried off 20,000 persons in London; and during this reign the city also suffered greatly by the oppressions of the King’s ministers Empson and Dudley; Alderman Capel was, upon several penal laws, condemned to pay a fine of 2700l. but by the intercession of friends, it was mitigated to 1600l. Thomas Knesworth, who had been Mayor, with Richard Shoare and Roger Grove, his Sheriffs, were accused of abuses committed in their offices, for which they were dragged to the Marshalsea, and confined without any legal process, till they redeemed themselves by paying 14,000l. and, in short, Sir Laurence Aylmer was, in the next year after he had served the office of Mayor, also imprisoned by these rapacious ministers, in order to extort a sum of money for his liberty: but the death of Henry VII. delivered him and many others from their troubles.