Bartholomew, in
Smithfield. These gatherings, which usually lasted a fortnight,
were looked forward to with considerable pleasure, and frequented
not only by citizens bent on sport, but by courtiers in search of
adventure.
Nay, even her majesty was tempted on one occasion to go a-
fairing, as we gather from a letter addressed to Sir Robert
Paston, contained in Ives's select papers. "Last week," says the
writer thereof, "the queen, the Duchess of Richmond, and the
Duchess of Buckingham had a frolick to disguise themselves like
country lasses, in red petticoates, waistcoates, etc., and so goe
see the faire. Sir Bernard Gascoign, on a cart jade, rode before
the queen; another stranger before the Duchess of Buckingham, and
Mr. Roper before Richmond. They had all so overdone it in their
disguise, and look'd so much more like antiques than country
volk, that as soon as they came to the faire, the people began to
goe after them; but the queen going to a booth to buy a pair of
yellow stockins for her sweethart, and Sir Bernard asking for a
pair of gloves, sticht with blew, for his sweethart, they were
soon, by their gebrish, found to be strangers, which drew a
bigger flock about them. One amongst them [who] had seen the
queen at dinner, knew her, and was proud of her knowledge. This
soon brought all the faire into a crowd to stare at the queen.
Being thus discovered, they as soon as they could got to their
horses; but as many of the faire as had horses, got up with their
wives, children, sweetharts, or neighbours behind them, to get as
much gape as they could till they brought them to the court gate.
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