Brayne, in August, 1586, led John Hide, who by reason of
the defaulted mortgage was legally the owner of the Theatre, to
redouble his efforts to collect his debt. He "gave it out in speech
that he had set over and assigned the said lease and bonds to one
George Clough, his ... father-in-law (but in truth he did not so),"
and "the said Clough, his father-in-law, did go about to put the said
defendant [Burbage] out of the Theatre, or at least did threaten to
put him out." As we have seen, there was a clause in the mortgage
which prevented Hide from ejecting Burbage;[76] yet Clough was able to
make so much trouble, "divers and sundry times" visiting the Theatre,
that at last Burbage undertook to settle the debt out of the profits
of the playhouse. As Robert Myles deposed in 1592, Burbage allowed the
widow of Brayne for "a certain time to take and receive the one-half
of the profits of the galleries of the said Theatre ... then on a
sudden he would not suffer her to receive any more of the profits
there, saying that he must take and receive all till he had paid the
debts. And then she was constrained, as his servant, to gather the
money and to deliver it unto him."[77]

[Footnote 76: Wallace, _op. cit._, p. 55.]

[Footnote 77: _Ibid._, p. 105.]

For some reason, however, the debt was not settled, and Hide continued
his futile demands. Several times Burbage offered to pay the sum in
full if the title of the Theatre were made over to his son Cuthbert
Burbage; and Brayne's widow made similar offers in an endeavor to gain
the entire property for herself. But Hide, who seems to have been an
honest man, always declared that since Burbage and Brayne "did jointly
mortgage it unto him" he was honor-bound to assign the property back
to Burbage and the widow of Brayne jointly. So matters stood for a
while.

At last, however, in 1589, Hide declared that "since he had forborne
his money so long, he could do it no more, so as they that came first
should have it of him." Thereupon Cuthbert Burbage came bringing not
only the money in hand, but also a letter from his master and patron,
Walter Cape, gentleman usher to the Lord High Treasurer, requesting
Hide to make over the Theatre to Cuthbert, and promising in return to
assist Hide with the Lord Treasurer when occasion arose. Under this
pressure, Hide accepted full payment of his mortgage, and made over
the title of the property to Cuthbert Burbage. Thus Brayne's widow was
legally exc