ct, this wandering tumour puzzled
all the workmen about town, who found it impossible to accommodate so
changeable a customer."

Florian Marchand, "the water-spouter," was another performer who
enjoyed considerable fame. Such was the dexterity of this conjurer that,
"drinking only fountaine-water, he rendered out of his mouth in severall
glasses all sorts of wine and sweete waters." A Turk, who walked up an
almost perpendicular line by means of his toes, danced blindfold on a
tight rope with a boy dangling from his feet, and stood on his head on
the top of a high mast, shared an equal popularity with Barbara Vanbeck,
the bearded woman, and "a monstrous beast, called a dromedary." These
wondrous sights, together with various others of a like kind, which were
scattered throughout the town and suburbs during the greater part of
the year, assembled in full strength at the fairs of St. Margaret,
Southwark, and St. 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 t