Whearto may bee answeared (which your good L. for your godly wisedom can far best iudge of) that as honest recreation is a thing very meet for all sorts of men, so no kynd of exercise, beeing of itself corrupt & prophane, can well stand with the good policie of a Christian Common Wealth. And that the sayed playes (as they are handled) ar of that sort, and woork that effect in such as ar present and frequent the same, may soon bee decerned by all that haue any godly vnder-*standing & that obserue the fruites & effects of the same, conteining nothing ells but vnchast fables, lascivious divises, shifts of cozenage, & matters of lyke sort, which ar so framed & represented by them, that such as resort to see & hear the same, beeing of the base & refuse sort of people or such yoong gentlemen as haue small regard of credit or conscience, draue the same into example of imitation & not of avoyding the sayed lewd offences. Which may better appear by the qualitie of such as frequent the sayed playes, beeing the ordinary places of meeting for all vagrant persons & maisterles men that hang about the Citie, theeues, horsestealers, whoremoongers, coozeners, connycatching persones, practizers of treason, & such other lyke, whear they consort and make their matches to the great displeasure of Almightie God & the hurt and annoyance of hir Maiesties people, both in this Citie & other places about, which cannot be clensed of this vngodly sort (which by experience wee fynd to bee the very sinck & contagion not only of this Citie but of this whole Realm), so long as these playes & places of resort ar by authoritie permitted. I omit to trouble your L. with any farther matter how our apprentices and servants ar by this means corrupted & induced hear by to defraud their Maisters, to maintein their vain & prodigall expenses occasioned by such evill and riotous companie, whearinto they fall by these kynd of meetings, to the great hinderance of the trades & traders inhabiting this Citie, and how people of all sorts ar withdrawen thearby from their resort vnto sermons & other Christian exercise, to the great sclaunder of the ghospell & prophanation of the good & godly religion established within this Realm. All which disorders hauing observed & found to bee true, I thought it my duetie, beeing now called to this publique place, to infourm your good L., whome I know to bee a patrone of religion & lover of virtue & an honourable a friend to the State of this Citie, humbly beeseaching you to voutchsafe mee your help for the stay & suppressing, not only of this which is now intended, by directing your lettres to the Iustices of peace of Middlesex & Surrey, but of all other places, if possibly it may bee, whear the sayed playes ar shewed & frequented. And thus crauing pardon for this ouer much length I humbly take my leaue. From London the 3. of November. 1594.
Your L. most humble.
To the right honourable my very good L. the L. high Treasurer of England.
