[135] Richard Sadler was running a Musick House when, in 1683, during a renovation of the gardens, discovered the mineral spring.

 

      To increase clientele of his establishment, he claimed that the waters could cure "dropsy, jaundice, scurvy, green sickness and other distempers to which females are liable - ulcers, fits of the mother, virgin's fever and hypochondriacal distemper".

 

      As even this was not enough to draw the crowds, live entertainment was also offered, not of the highest level, either.

 

      The Inquisitor of 1711 characterised Sadler's Wells as "a nursery of debauchery," most likely having seen the Lilliputians’ performances.