1653 preamble of the will of my 10x great grandfather John Butter

[okkool]

Hello

This is my first attempt at transcription. This will is 2 pages long and the first quarter of page one is this preamble. I am hoping that with a good transcription I will have enough points of comparison to complete the "meat" of the will. After a week of work this the transcription I have. Any help will be appreciated

Brian
 
In the Name of God Amen
I John Butter of Cheswardine in the countie of Salop yeoman being soro sisilish with sickucfious yett in profert mind and iminionisbbefsch -- this last will firoiring that the times of man's life for all thir best is sonorr Juiurcy much more intion this Lorbe friend is upon them upon theren and considerings that it is the __tie of all men, much more of Christian men to sell their  housed in  ----- -- ---- critfeiy yoe  honre  not more :Labing  by the grace of God endoab ---- make my prare with the Lorde and all this worlds  ----and or ordaine ------ last will and testament in ---- and f--- following J--p-innis ----- and bequeath my spirit soul e Allmightie God my Creator who yaroe ill --- trusting to boe saved by this suarrillo of his sonne my Lorde and Saviour and my bodie to the ground from where itt was jafon to be dorentlie lie interred att the discretion of my Executor's in hope of a ivyfull resurrection to eternal life And as for my worldly goods I here dispose of them as follows

[pinefamily]

I, John Butter of Cheswardine in the county of Salop yeoman, being sore (blank) with sickness yet in perfect mind and memory, blessed be the Lord well knowing that the time of man's life at the best is uncertain and much more; when the Lord's hand is upon them, and considering it is the (blank) of all men, much more of Christian men to set their houses in (long series of blanks).... having by the grace of God's endeavours, make my peace with the Lord, and all the world, do constitute and ordain this to be my last will and testament in manner and form following: Imprimis I give and bequeath my spirit to Almighty God, the Creator who (gave it to me, trusting?) to be saved by the merits of His Son, my Lord and Saviour, and my body to the ground from whence it was taken, to be decently interred at the discretion of my executors, in hope of a joyful resurrection to eternal life; and as for my worldly goods, I then dispose of them as followeth: Item, I give.....


That's the best I can do without studying it for a while; some of the punctuation I have added to make it easier to read.
Hope it helps.

[Bookbox]

A few suggestions for the blanks ...

being sore (blank) with sickness

being sore visited with sicknesse

considering it is the (blank) of all men

considering it is the dutie of all men

to set their houses in (long series of blanks)

to set their houses in Order before they goe hence and bee noe more

who (gave it to me, trusting?) to be

who gave itt mee trusting to bee

May I offer a tip? It’s easier to keep your place if your transcription keeps to the same line-breaks as the original. Also, it’s best to transcribe exactly what is written, without modernising spelling or adding punctuation, as that can sometimes lead to misinterpretation. You can always modernise the transcription later, if required. 

[pinefamily]

Thanks for filling in my blanks, Bookbox. And thank you for the tips. Keeping the lines the same is a good idea. I do know not to punctuate, I just added a couple of commas to help in comprehension, where I didn't feel it would affect the meaning. Regarding the spelling, you're probably right, but my typing fingers were being "too correct". 

[okkool]

Firstly: A big thankyou pinefamily and Bookbox for corrections and transcription. And also for the great tips.

I have a few questions.
Is it normal to split words in these documents i.e. uncertain line 3 endeavours line 6?
In line 4 Lords and line 6 having: L and h look the same, how do I tell them apart? also on line 6: is that punctuation between bee noe more and having?
line 6 first word Order is capitalized, why?

One more: Is this length of preamble normal?

Brian

[okkool]

another question:
on line 2 it was transcribed as "with sickness yett" there seems to be many more letters in the original text. What is the true word for sickness?

Brian

[pinefamily]

Hi Brian,
Pleased we can help you. I'll answer the easiest question first. Yes, this sort of preamble was fairly normal, and was almost set to a certain formula. Although this one differs a little from most I have seen, the sense of it is the same.
As far as I can tell, there was no rhyme or reason why they split words, used capitals, or anything else. Spelling was certainly fairly fluid, and even though some people could write, it doesn't mean spelling was standard. I have seen the same word spelled differently in some documents.

Cheers,
Darren

[pinefamily]

With the word sickness, the writer has spelled it "sicknesse", although he has used the symbol that looks like a cursive "f" that was normally used as a double "s" for the first "s", if that makes sense.

[okkool]

Darren

ok, I can see the "sicknesse"  but what is with the "iaus" at the end of it?

Brian