[Footnote 1:  “During the winter England was stirred with constantly recurring alarms of a French invasion....  Addresses were moved in both Houses entreating or empowering the King to summon over for our defence some of his Hanoverian troops, and also some of hired Hessians—­an ignominious vote, but carried by large majorities” (Lord Stanhope, “History of England,” c. 22).]

As I have already told you one mob story of a King, I will tell you another:  they say, that the night the Hanover troops were voted, he sent Schutz for his German cook, and said, “Get me a very good supper; get me all de varieties; I don’t mind expense.”

I tremble lest his Hanoverians should be encamped at Hounslow; Strawberry would become an inn; all the Misses would breakfast there, to go and see the camp!

My Lord Denbigh is going to marry a fortune, I forget her name; my Lord Gower asked him how long the honey-moon would last?  He replied, “Don’t tell me of the honey-moon; it is harvest moon with me.”  Adieu!

VICTORY OF THE KING OF PRUSSIA AT LOWOSITZ—­SINGULAR RACE—­QUARREL OF THE PRETENDER WITH THE POPE.

TO SIR HORACE MANN.

STRAWBERRY HILL, Oct. 17, 1756.

Lentulus (I am going to tell you no old Roman tale; he is the King of Prussia’s aid-de-camp) arrived yesterday, with ample confirmation of the victory in Bohemia.[1]—­Are not you glad that we have got a victory that we can at least call Cousin?  Between six and seven thousand Austrians were killed:  eight Prussian squadrons sustained the acharnement, which is said to have been extreme, of thirty-two squadrons of Austrians:  the pursuit lasted from Friday noon till Monday morning; both our countrymen, Brown and Keith, performed wonders—­we seem to flourish much when transplanted to Germany—­but Germans don’t make good manure here!  The Prussian King writes that both Brown and Piccolomini are too strongly intrenched to be attacked.  His Majesty ran to this victory; not a la Molwitz.  He affirms having found in the King of Poland’s cabinet ample justification of his treatment of Saxony—­should not one query whether he had not these proofs in his hands antecedent to the cabinet?  The Dauphiness[2] is said to have flung herself at the King of France’s feet and begged his protection for her father; that he promised “qu’il le rendroit au centuple au Roi de Prusse.”

[Footnote 1:  On the 1st of the month Frederic II. had defeated the Austrian general, Marshal Brown, at Lowositz.  It was the first battle of the Seven Years’ War, and was of great political importance as leading to the capture of Dresden and of laying all Saxony at the mercy of the conqueror. “A la Molwitz” is an allusion to the first battle in the war of the Austrian Succession, April 10, 1741, in which Frederic showed that he was not what Voltaire and Mr. Pitt called “a heaven-born general;” since on the repulse of his cavalry he gave up all for lost, and rode from the field, to learn at night that, after his flight, his second in command, the veteran Marshal Schwerin, had rallied the broken squadrons, and had obtained a decisive victory.]