It so happened that a representation of the Castle of Carlisle--in pastry--was served up at the Prince’s table--it must be remembered that his table was supplied by a caterer--no doubt it was intended by the cook as a surprise, such as cooks are very fond of preparing for their masters. Great exception has been taken to the fact that the Prince _and_ the Maids of Honour--these Maids of Honour seemed prone to evil--bombarded the sham castle with sugar plums! What else could be expected from a parcel of Maids of Honour and a lighthearted Prince who rolled Bubb Doddington, in all his priggish solemnity, down a flight of stairs in a blanket? Yet the Prince’s traducers endeavoured to give the incident a political significance as a sign of the Prince’s indifference to the sufferings of the besieged! As a matter of fact it was a most bloodless siege, and only lasted five days, the garrison marching out and going home unmolested. From Carlisle, with four thousand five hundred men, Prince Charlie marched by Shaw, Kendal and Lancaster to Preston, where he arrived on November 27th. Very different marching this to the progress of our army under Lord Stair, when moving from Flanders to the banks of the Maine in 1743, which progress took, as we have seen, four months! Preston was regarded by the Highlanders as a fatal barrier, beyond which they could not pass, as the Duke of Hamilton had been defeated there in the Civil Wars, and Brigadier Macintosh surrendered at the same spot in 1715. To break this tradition Lord George Murray marched across and beyond the Ribble bridge. From Preston, Prince Charlie pushed on to Wigan and Manchester, still unopposed, for the aged Marshal Wade had withdrawn to Newcastle on finding the mountain roads around him blocked with snow. The following is a description of Charles’s entry into Manchester, given in the letter of a spy stationed there and sent to the Duke of Cumberland: “28th November. “Just now are come in two of the Pretender’s men, a sergeant, a drummer, and a woman with them. I have seen them; the sergeant is a Scotchman, the drummer is a Halifax man, and they are now going to beat up. These two men and the woman, without any others, came into the town amidst thousands of spectators. I doubt not we shall have more to-night. They say we’re to have the Pretender to-morrow. They are dressed in plaids and bonnets. The sergeant has a target.” “29th November. “The two Highlanders who came in yesterday and beat up for volunteers for him they called His Royal Highness Charles, Prince of Wales, offered five guineas advance; many took on; each received one shilling to have the rest when the Prince came.