Event Comment: Benefit for Johnstone. 3rd piece [1st time; F 2, by Thomas Knight; incidental music by William Reeve]: Partly taken from The Committee [by Sir Robert Howard]. Morning Herald, 21 June 1797: This Day is published [by G. Cawthorn] The Honest Thieves (1s.). True Briton, 25 Apr.: Tickets to be had of Johnstone, No. 19, Piazza, Covent-Garden. Receipts: #434 7s. 6d. (210.4.0; 11.18.0; tickets: 212.5.6)

Event Comment: Pepys, Diary: With my wife to the King's house, but there found the bill torn down and no play acted.... Here [at lif; see below] met with Mr Rolt, who tells me the reason of no play to-day at the King's house. That Lacy had been committed to the porter's lodge for his acting his part in the late new play [see 15 April], and that being thence released he come to the King's house, there met with Ned Howard, the poet of the play, who congratulated his release; upon which Lacy cursed him as that it was the fault of his nonsensical play that was the cause of his ill usage. Mr Howard did give him some reply, to which Lacy [answered] him, that he was more a fool than a poet; upon which Howard did give him a blow on the face with his glove; on which Lacy, having a cane in his hand, did give him a blow over the pate. Here Rolt and others that discoursed of it in the pit this afternoon did wonder that Howard did not run him through, he being too mean a fellow to fight with. But Howard did not do any thing but complain to the King of it; so the whole house is silenced, and the gentry seem to rejoice much at it, the house being become too insolent