chair at the foot of my bed, and leave it till I ring the bell.' At the end of two hours, the baron was summoned, and the king said to him, Take this picture away; I never yet saw the woman worthy to buckle her shoe."

Madam de Walmoden, afterwards Lady Yarmouth, who had been the king's mistress at Hanover, during his latter visits to his continental dominions, came over to England shortly after the death of Queen Caroline. She had two sons, both of whom bore her husband's name, but the younger of them was suspected to have been the king's child, and consequently obtained considerable homage from the courtiers. Lord Chesterfield, on going to the palace to kiss hands, when he was appointed secretary of state, found a fair young lad in the antichamber, whom he concluded to be Lady Yarmouth's supposed son by the king; the earl, accordingly, began to be profuse in his attentions to the boy, and prodigal in expressions of prodigious regard for his mamma. When he had done, the lad said, "I suppose your lordship takes me for master Louis; but I am only Sir William Russell, one of the pages."

Hitherto, the nation, during the reign of George the Second, had been at peace; but it was doubted whether the blessing had not been secured by some sacrifice of public honour. This feeling was so prevalent, that in 1739, the ministry, in spite of their pacific policy, were compelled to enter into a war with Spain, on the ground of the insults and injuries offered to British subjects and their commerce, in South America. The first act of open hostility on our part proved eminently auspicious; Admiral Vernon having, with a force deemed very indequate to the enterprize, attacked and destroyed the fortifications of Porto Bello. exploit rendered the war exceedingly popular; and supplies were cheerfully granted for carrying it on with vigour. Anson was sent with a squadron to distress the enemy in the South seas. After an absence of three years, he returned in his only remaining ship, with which he had gallantly engaged and taken a richly laden Spanish galleon. A powerful armament was also fitted out against Carthagena, which, as it appears, through gross mismanage

This

ment, entirely failed in its object, and tended materially to accelerate the overthrow of Walpole and his coadjutors. The public voice was against them, and the Prince of Wales threw all his influence into the scale of their opponents. At length, on the 28th of January, 1742, they were in a minority of one, on a question relating to the Chippenham election; on the 2nd of February their defeat was more signal; on the 3rd the house was adjourned to the 18th; and in the interval Walpole resigned, and was made Earl of Orford. When he went to take leave of the king, his majesty was affected even to tears, and frequently sought his advice on public affairs, during the brief period between the minister's political downfal and decease.

The king's old and inefficient favourite, the Earl of Wilmington, was placed nominally at the head of the new government, with the title of first lord of the treasury; Mr. Sandys was made chancellor of the exchequer, and Lord Carteret (afterwards Earl of Granville) one of the secretaries of state. These were the principal changes in office, and the policy, both internal and external, of the new ministers was soon found not to differ materially from that of their predecessors.

The people had now become disgusted with naval operations; they sighed for a renewal of the victories in Flanders, and the king warmly sympathized with them in their inclination. Accordingly, on the death of Charles the Second, France and other foreign powers having conspired to divest his daughter, Maria Theresa, of her inheritance, George the Second, who had been guarantee of the pragmatic sanction, sent a body of British and Hanoverian troops into Flanders to oppose her enemies; but the national expectation was most bit. terly disappointed through want of skill in the commanders. A gleam of glory, however, with no permanent advantage, resulted from the battle of Dettingen, which was fought in 1743. The French, in order to prevent the junction of the Austrian and British forces, assembled an army of sixty thousand men upon the east side of the river Mayne. The Earl of Stair, to whom the command of his Britannic majesty's troops had

made acquainted with the fidelity and fate of poor Mac Jan: and declared, that had his conduct to Charles Edward been communicated to him in time, the Highlander should have been placed above the necessity of committing the crime for which he had suffered.

The young Pretender is said to have subsequently visited this country on more than one occasion, for the purpose of ascertaining the state of public feeling in his favour. The king, it is related, one day asked Lord Holdernesse, then secretary of state, where Charles Edward was?" Upon my word, sire," was the reply, "I don't exactly know; I suppose in Italy; but I'll consult my last despatches."-" Poh, poh! man," said the king, "don't trouble your head about despatches; I'll tell you where he is: he is now at No. -, in the Strand, and was last night at Lady

.'s rout. What shall we do with him?" Lord Holdernesse proposed calling a council; but the king said, “ No, no; we can manage the business without a council. Let him stay where he is at present; and when the poor man has amused himself with looking about London, he will go home again.'

While the rebellion was raging, he went one day to the council-board, some time after the members had assembled, and on asking the subject of deliberation, he was told, that they were considering how to take care of his sacred person. "Gentlemen," said his majesty, “ take care of yourselves; for myself, I am resolved to die King of England."

Had not the Duke of Cumberland been successful, it is positively asserted, that the king would have personally taken the field against the rebels; and no doubt exists, but, had need been, he would have fought for his crown, with courage equal to that displayed by Richard Plantagenet, at the battle of Bosworth.

Although he was not destined to draw his sword, it is stated, that despicable as literature was, in his opinion, he actually wielded a pen in support of his rights; having corrected the proofs for press, of a pamphlet against the Jacobites, written, at Earl Gower's request, by Dr. Webster.

Before the battle of Culloden, additional troops being required to act

against the rebels, the king was exceedingly desirous of strengthening his forces in the north by those regiments of the guards which had recently arrived from the continent; where, although the campaign was by no means fortunate, they had eminently distinguished themselves; but he felt some delicacy in calling upon them to march against an enemy, so recently after their fatigues and exploits abroad. In this dilemma, by the advice of an experienced general, he called a military levee, at which the principal officers of the guards attended, to whom he delivered the following brief but exceedingly business-like speech :-" Gentlemen, you cannot be ignorant of the present precarious situation of the country; and though I have had such recent instances of your exertions, the necessity of the times, and the knowledge I have of your hearts, induce me to demand your services again. All of you who are willing to meet the rebels hold up your right hands; all you who may, from particular reasons, feel it an inconvenience, hold up your left." In an instant, every officer elevated his right hand; and the king was so affected at their alacrity, that he burst into tears and immediately retired. The next day the guards marched to Finchley; and Hogarth, as it is well known, some time afterwards painted a humorous picture on this subject, which he had determined to dedicate to George the Second, but altered his resolution on account of the following dialogue, which took place between the king and a nobleman in waiting: -" Who is dis Hogarth ?"inquired the king. "A painter, my liege," was the reply. "I hate bainting, and boetry too," quoth the sovereign; "neider de one nor de oder ever did any good." "The picture, please your majesty, must undoubtedly be considered as a burlesque." "What, a bainter burlesque a soldier! He deserves to be bicketed for his insolence. Away wid his trumpery!"

Dull as George the Second evidently was, he does not appear to have been altogether inaccessible to broad humour. On one occasion, during his return through Holland from Hanover, his carriage broke down, and he was compelled to seek shelter and refreshment, with Lord Delaware, and three or four of his servants, at a Dutch public

house, the master of which charged nearly a hundred pounds for the royal entertainment, which merely consisted of coffee for the king and his lordship, and gin for the attendants. "Are coffee and gin very rare articles in these parts?" inquired Lord Delaware. "No, but kings are," replied the Dutchman. The king laughed at this reply, called the fellow a clever rogue, and ordered the bill to be paid. After he had ceased to attend the theatres, Macklin's farce of Love à la Mode having been acted with much applause, he sent for the manuscript, and had it read to him, by a sedate old Hanoverian gentleman, who, being but little acquainted with English, spent eleven weeks in puzzling out the author's meaning. The king, however, it is said, was much pleased with the piece, and highly enjoyed the Irishman's getting the better of his rivals, and gaining the lady's hand. He is reported, also, to have had his risibility greatly excited by the following ludicrous circumstance: Heidegger, who was a sort of reformer of masquerades and operas, and who is celebrated in the Tatler as the Swiss Count, having been purposely made drunk at an entertainment given by the Duke of Montague, at the Devil Tavern, near Temple Bar, he was laid on a bed, in a state of insensibility; and Miss Salmon was introduced to take a mould of his face, from which an excellent cast was afterwards made, and coloured in imitation of life. The duke next procured a suit of clothes exactly resembling Heidegger's; in which, with the assistance of the mask, a person of Heidegger's height and bulk was engaged to personate the latter, at a masquerade, conducted by Heidegger, and honoured by the presence of his majesty and the Countess of Yarmouth. No sooner was the king seated, than Heidegger ordered the musicians to play the national anthem; but immediately that his back was turned, the false Heidegger appeared, and commanded them to strike up the Jacobite measure of "Over the water to Charley." All who were not in the plot felt wofully dismayed. Heidegger stamped liked a madman, and the king and the countess, who had, doubtless, been let into the secret, laughed immoderately. "God save the King" was re-commenced, and Heidegger again

retired; but he had only proceeded to the next room, when his malicious facsimile appeared in the gallery, and, imitating Heidegger's voice and manner, swore at the musicians, and enjoined them on pain of his displeasure to resume "Over the water to Charley." The orchestra obeyed, and a repetition of the previous scene ensued. At, length the duke told the amazed Heidegger that the king was in a violent passion; and that he had better go to his majesty and beg pardon for the musicians, who were evidently mad. Heidegger accordingly approached the king, and was about to make a humble apology, when the counterfeit advanced, and protested that the obnoxious tune had not been played at his instigation. "It is clearly," said he, pointing to the true Heidegger, "the work of that devil in my likeness." Heidegger, who had not seen his imitator before, stared, turned pale, and could not utter a word. The counterfeit was then directed to terminate the hoax by taking off his mask.

The king felt very indignant at being opposed, as he frequently was, by his ministers, and sometimes obstinately persisted in having his own way. Perceiving that the name of a general, whom he admired, was omitted in a list of promotions, his majesty inquired for what reason that particular person's name had been so unaccountably passed over. "The man is mad," replied the minister. "Oh! is he?" said the king, "then let him be advanced and employed, so that he may have an opportunity of biting a few of my other generals."

A somewhat similar instance of the king's opposition to the wishes of his ministers, with regard to a military promotion, has been recorded. An officer, named Otway, having the rank of colonel in the service, was advised by his friends to present a statement to the king, complaining that several junior colonels had been appointed to regiments over his head. He accordingly employed the chaplain of his corps to draw up the necessary petition to his majesty, which concluded with the usual words, "And your petitioner shall ever pray," &c. The colonel objected to this phrase, and said to the chaplain, "You have ended the petition as though it

were your own." The chaplain in vain contended that the conclusion was regular; the colonel insisting that, as the petition came from a soldier, and not a clergyman, fight ought to be substituted for pray; and it was eventually forwarded to the king with this termination: "And your petitioner shall ever fight," &c. The king was much pleased at the oddity of the expression, and soon afterwards gave Otway a vacant regiment, which the ministers were exceedingly desirous of bestowing on one of their supporters in parliament.

We find another case, in which a brave soldier was, perhaps, as much indebted to his ludicrous ignorance, as to his services, for the king's favour. At the termination of that glorious battle, in which Wolfe expired in the arms of victory, a gallant Scot, named Donald Macpherson, sat down by a heap of the enemy who had fallen victims to his prowess, and after wiping the perspiration from his sunburnt brow, regaled his nostrils with a hearty pinch of snuff. The king having heard of the circumstance, on the regiment's return from Canada, expressed a desire to see the valiant old highlander, who was accordingly taken to court by his captain, and introduced to the royal presence. The king graciously presented his hand for Donald to kiss; but the old soldier, being totally ignorant of the ceremonies of a palace, thought his majesty wanted snuff, and thrust his horn into the royal hand, to which he gave a very hearty squeeze. The sovereign laughed, took a pinch from the horn in great good humour, and, as it appears, without asking any one's leave, made Donald a lieutenant, with liberty to retire on half-pay for life.

A young lieutenant of marines, who had lost both his legs at the siege of Fort St. Philip, having in vain memorialized for some addition to his half-pay, at length represented his case to the king, who not only presented him with £500 smart money, but insisted on his being granted a pension of £200 a year.

In the contest of obstinacy between the king and his "faithful servants," the latter, however, were frequently successful. A lucrative office having become vacant, his majesty promised it to one of his personal friends; but his

ministers determined that it should be given to an adherent of their own. The king was made acquainted with their resolution, and when Lord Chesterfield went to him with the blank appointment for the purpose of asking, as a matter of form, in whose name it should be filled up, the king exclaimed pettishly, Give it to Belzebub, if you like." "Would it please your majesty," askd the earl, taking up a pen," that the document should be addressed as usual, To our trusty and well-beloved cousin?" The king smiled, and Lord Chesterfield, who had come prepared for an angry discussion, carried his point without difficulty.

Soon after the rebellion, the king felt so disgusted at the conduct of the ministry, who, he stated, held him completely in thraldom, that he solicited the Earl of Bath's assistance in re-modelling the administration. The earl, rather reluctantly, consented, and some steps were taken to further the sovereign's wishes; but the ministers, having obtained information of what had transpired, before the king's plans were matured, threw him into a state of the greatest consternation by unexpectedly resigning their offices. In a few days they were recalled, although the king, whom circumstances had placed in their power, felt so indignant against them, that he begged the Earl of Bath to expose the whole transaction in a pamphlet. "Rub it in their noses," said he, "and if it be possible, make them ashamed." An account of the affair was accordingly written, but never published, the manuscript having been, either accidentally or designedly, burnt by the author.

In 1748, the war, from which England had derived neither honour nor advantage, was terminated by the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle.

The long enmity that had subsisted between George the Second and his son Frederick, Prince of Wales, was terminated by the death of the latter in 1751. The king was playing cards when he received intelligence of this event, and we have two opposite versions of his behaviour on the occasion. According to one of them, he evinced no emotion or grief, but rose calmly from his seat, and leaning over the chair of Lady Yarmouth, whispered to her in