"The King's cittizens of Hereford, who have the custodye of his citty (in regard that it is the principall citty of all the market townes from the sea even unto the boundes of the Seaverne) ought of ancient usage to deliver their lawes and customes to such townes, when need requires, yet in this case they are in noe wise bound to do it, because they say they are not of the same condition; for there are some townes which hould of our Lord the Kinge of England and his heires without any mesne Lord; and to such we are bound, when and as often as need shall be, to certifie of our lawes and customes, chiefly because we hold by one and the same tenure; and nothing shall be taken of them in the name of a reward, except only by our common towne clerke, for the wryting and his paynes, as they can agree. But there are other markett townes which hold of diverse lords of the Kingdome, wherein are both natives and rusticks of auncient tyme, who paie to their lord corporall services of diverse kinds, with other services that are not used among us, and who may be expelled out of those townes by their lords, and may not inhabit in them or be restored to their former state, but by the common law of England. And chiefly those and others that hold by such forreine service in such townes, are not of our condition; neither shall they have our lawes and customes but by way of purchase, to be performed to our capitall-bailiff, as they can agree between them, at the pleasure and to the benefitt of the citty aforesaid." Towns were extremely jealous of their purity in this respect, a fact which may be illustrated in another way. Thus no person of servile condition was allowed to be a freeman of the city of London. If, after admission, he was ascertained to be of such condition, he forfeited his rights. During the mayoralty of John Blount, Thomas le Bedelle, Robert le Bedelle, Alan Undirwoode, and Edmund May, butchers, lost their franchises, because they acknowledged that they held land in villeinage of the Bishop of London and dwelt outside the liberty. On July 18, 11 Rich. II., it was ordained that no one should be enrolled as an apprentice or received into the freedom of the city by way of apprenticeship unless he first swore that he was a freeman and not a native, and whoever should be thereafter received into the freedom of the said city by purchase or any way but by apprenticeship should make the same oath, and also find six honest men to undertake for him as had been wont to be done of old. "And if it happen that such native be admitted by false suggestion without the knowledge of the Chamberlain, as soon as the circumstance is notorious to the Mayor and Aldermen, let him lose the freedom of the city and pay a fine for his deception, at the discretion of the Mayor and Aldermen.