The petition of Frances Hughson of Macclesfield, Cheshire, Easter 1655
<Macclesfield in Cheshire>
To the ho[noura]ble Bench at ye Q[uart]er Sessions for ye s[ai]d Countie:
The humble Petic[i]on of Frances Hughton daughter of Thomas Hughson late of Macclesfield afores[ai]d Shoomaker (deceased)
Sheweth
Y[ou]r s[ai]d poore Petic[i]o[n]er to be an Orphane both Fatherlesse and Motherlesse whose s[ai]d s[ai]d Father Tho[mas]: Hughson was slaine at Yorke battell in ye service of ye Parl[iamen]t being a trooper in S[i]r W[illia]m Fairefaxes Regim[en]t vnder ye Com[man]d of Capt[ain] Thomas Talbot, And yt by reason of ye kings-evill in her eies, together with ye small poxe when she was an Infant, her eies are become so tender and dimme of sight, yt she is altogether vnable to do any thing towards her livelihood and is oftentimes so indisposed yt she cannot endure ye light wherby she might see her way; And yt her grand-mother Elene Clearke (who hath mainteined her eu[er] since her s[ai]d Fathers death) being now lately dead, and so she being left destitute of Meanes of subsistence (the truth of all w[hi]ch pr[e]misses may further appeare by ye annexed Certificate) being driven therto through extreame necessitie, she is now at last enforced to make her humble Addresse vnto this ho[noura]ble Bench for some Reliefe:
Maie it therefore please you in much tendernesse to consider ye necessitous condic[i]on of y[ou]r s[ai]d poore Petic[i]o[n]er, And to afford her some reliefe by way of yearely Penc[i]on towards her maintenance, as vnto others in like condic[i]on:
And y[ou]r s[ai]d Petic[i]o[n]er shall ever pray &c:
<referred to the ou[er]seers of ye poore>