Note 121 — SCENE I.—Sir John Bevil's House.
Reading edition
Belsize House was the forerunner of Ranelagh and Vauxhall. There were gardens, in which refreshments could be obtained, and hunting, races, &c., were provided to amuse the visitors, for whose protection twelve stout men, well armed, patrolled the road to London. A poetical satire, Belsize House, appeared in 1722, the year of this play. In the same year unlawful gaming at Belsize was forbidden (Park's Hampstead, 246-9).