For tragedies and comedies _Donate_ the gramarian sayth, they wer invented by lerned fathers of the old time to no other purpose, but to yeelde prayse unto God for a happy harvest, or plentifull yeere, and that thys is trewe the name of Tragedye doeth importe, for if you consider whence it came, you shall perceive (as _Iodocus Badius_ reporteth) that it drewe his original of _Tragos, Hircus_, and _Ode, Cantus_ (so called), for that the actors thereof had in rewarde for theyr labour, a Gotes skynne fylled wyth wyne. You see then that the fyrste matter of tragedies was to give thankes and prayses to GOD, and a gratefull prayer of the countrymen for a happye harvest, and this I hope was not discommendable. I knowe you will judge [th]is farthest from abuse. But to wade farther, thys fourme of invention being found out, as the dayes wherein it was used did decay, and the world grew to more perfection, so yt witt of the younger sorte became more riper, for they leaving this fourme, invented an other, in the which they altered the nature but not ye name: for sounets in prayse of ye gods, they did set forth the sower fortune of many exiles, the miserable fal of haples princes, the reuinous decay of many cou[n]tryes, yet not content with this, they presented the lives of _Satyers_, so that they might wiselye, under the abuse of that name, discover the follies of many theyr folish fellow-citesens: and those monsters were then, as our parasites are now adayes: suche as with pleasure reprehended abuse. As for commedies because they bear a more plesanter vain, I wil leave the other to speake of them. _Tully_ defines them thus. _Comedia_ (sayth he) is _Imitatio vitæ, speculum consuetudinis, et imago veritatis_, and it is sayde to be termed of _Comai_ (emongste the Greekes) whiche signifieth _Pagos_, and _Ode, Cantus_: for that they were exercised in the fielde. They had they beginning wyth tragedies, but their matter was more plessaunt, for they were suche as did reprehend, yet _quodam lepore_. These first very rudely were invented by _Susarion Bullus_, and _Magnes_ t[w]o auncient poets, yet so that they were mervelous profitable to the reclamynge of abuse: whereupon _Eupolis_ with _Cratinus_, and _Aristophanes_ began to write, and with ther eloquenter vaine and perfection of stil[e], dyd more severely speak agaynst the abuses the[n] they: which _Horace_ himselfe witnesseth. For sayth he ther was no abuse but these men reprehended it. A thefe was loth to be seene on there spectacle. A coward was never present at theyr assemblies. A backbiter abhord that company, and I my self could not have blamed your (Gosson) for exempting yourselfe from this theater, of troth I should have lykt your pollicy. These therefore, these wer they that kept men in awe, these restrayned the unbridled cominaltie, whereupon _Horace_ wisely sayeth, _Oderunt peccare boni, virtutis amore, Oderunt peccare mali, formidine penæ._