Item, more for him, haulfe an ounce of blewe silke employed upon a coate of blewe damaske, one quarter of an ounce of silke for a doublet of canvas, two dossen white buttons for the same doublet, and one ounce and a haulfe of blew & yellow silke employed upon a Coat of Blew damaske garded with yellow Vellat.
Item for sixe and thre quarters ounce of fine slayne silke frenge of divers cullors employed by the said Edward Jones upon a gowne for the said Beden the foole.
Item to John Bridges Taylor, for making of a gown of purple Damaske, for the said William Sommers our foole with thre gardes of yellow Vellat.
Item for making of a jerkin for him of purple damask plaine, four caps of cloth, two russet, two of them garded with vellat, & stitched with silk.
Item, more to the saide Henry Arnolde our Shewmaker, for seven peire of shews to the saide Jane our fole.
This paper gives us two or three suggestive points. It shows that the knitted silk stockings, supposed to be a new experience to Queen Elizabeth, were liberally given to the Court Fool in the previous reign. It also introduces a new word, “Beden,” evidently a proper name, which can only mean one of two things; either that there was a second Female Fool, and a third Court Fool, nowhere else alluded to, or that “Beden” was the patronymic of Jane, which I take to be the case. I looked carefully through all the household lists of earlier years for a resembling name, and find a “John Bedon” mentioned three times as yeoman of the Chamber to Henry VIII in 1525, 1531, and 1533, who would have been a suitable enough father for her. There was also a John Beddon, master of the vessel sailing to Bordeaux for the King’s wine in 1526, and a Richard Bedon on the commission of the peace for Surrey, 1541. I cannot connect “Jane” with any of these, but thought it wise to note the names, as they may later yield some clue to her paternity.
The accounts here fail us at the Record Office, but fortunately they have strayed no further than to the Bodleian Library, whither they may be followed. Only six months later than the above list there were more garments ordered for Jane, (See Calendar of Charters and Rolls in the Bodleian, W. H. Turner; see also p. xviii.) In the account for 1 and 2 Philip and Mary, 10th April, at Hampton Court, we find:
Item for furring of a gowne (for William Sommer our foole) with gray jennets tayles, with a peere of sleves and a caape of jennets tailes to the same gowne, and fourtie white lambskynnes.
Item for furring of a gowne of grene figured Vellat (for hym) with sixtene white hare skynnes and fourtie and sixe white lamb skynnes.
Item for furring of a jerken (for hym) of the same Vellat, with seven white hare skennes and twenty whyte Lamb skynnes.