I (r. 1558–1603). The Shrewsbury Drapers had to make dangerous journeys through unsettled country to reach these markets. They carried arms and travelled together for protection against robbers. Prosperity and challenges: 17th century In 1609 a charter of King James I (r. 1603–25) confirmed the Shrewsbury Drapers Company's constitution, rights and landholdings. It took £400 for a Shrewsbury Draper to set up in business in the 17th century, a substantial sum at the time. 43% of the 203 Freemen admitted to the Company between 1608 and 1657 were sons of gentlemen. Often a young man would enter business in partnership with his father. In 1608 there were 84 Shrewsbury Drapers. This had risen to 113 by 1625. Many of the drapers were engaged in other businesses such as brewing or the law. In the 17th century Shrewsbury was regularly visited by drapers from the north of England and the midlands. The textile industry created a lively market for pack horses. In 1618 the first brick house in Shrewsbury was built by William Rowley, a brewer and draper. In 1638 the first mayor of Shrewsbury, Thomas Jones, was a leading draper. Sir Edward Coke sponsored the Welsh cloth bill in 1621, which aimed to eliminate the effective monopoly of the Company over transport of the cloth to London. The first draft said that all merchants were to be allowed to buy cloth anywhere in Wales and to export it subject to paying duties to the crown. The export clause was later qualified to add "only after the cloth had been entirely finished at home." Two Shrewsbury burgesses tried to block the bill at its third reading in 1621 on the grounds that it would overthrow a statute that specified standard dimension for Welsh cloth, allow forestalling and/or ingrossing, overthrow the charter of Shrewsbury and allow Welsh clothiers to sell their cloth in any English town. Coke refuted these arguments, saying that Shrewsbury would only suffer from the bill because it had a monopoly. He said monopolies were "to be detested", and could not be justified by "reason of state." The bill was passed by the commons and sent to the Lords. In 1621 the drapers "agreed to buy no more cloth in Oswestry". John Davies noted in 1633 that "Oswestry flourished and was happy indeed by reason of the market of Welsh cottons, £1,000 in ready money was left in the