[Illustration: MARY BELLENDEN, 4th Duchess of Argyll. Copied for this book from the Gallery at Inverary by the kindness of the present Duke.] FOOTNOTES: [35] _Gentleman’s Magazine_, April, 1736. [36] Alas! Poor Mary Bellenden, then fourth Duchess of Argyle, died on the 18th September, that year, still young. Lightly rest, thy native Scottish soil upon thee, Mary, Sweet be thy soul’s eternal rest! CHAPTER XIV. LADY ARCHIBALD. After the marriage nobody seems to have been able to find sufficiently superlative expressions in which to convey their appreciation of the Princess’s conduct at the wedding. Lord Waldegrave stated that she distinguished herself “by a most decent and prudent behaviour, and the King, notwithstanding his aversion to his son, behaved to her not only with great politeness, but with the appearance of cordiality and affection.” The aged Duchess of Marlborough, who was by no means in love with the Royal Family, said of her “that she always appeared good-natured and civil to everybody.” While Sir Robert Walpole paid her a greater compliment than all when he observed how she had conquered the gruff old King and attracted her husband’s esteem, he declared that there were “circumstances which spoke strongly in favour of brains which had but seventeen years to ripen.” It may be said here that the Princess’s future conduct fully justified these favourable comments. She had indeed a most difficult and painful part to play, considering the state of affairs which existed between the Prince of Wales, her husband, and his father, and this at the very threshold of her married life was greatly complicated by a most disagreeable episode which ought never to have occurred. This was a dispute between the Queen and Frederick as to whether Lady Archibald Hamilton, the lady of thirty-five with ten children, who had obtained a strong ascendency over the Prince, should be appointed one of the ladies-in-waiting upon the Princess. The Queen very properly argued that scandal had linked the Prince’s name with this lady’s, and it was invidious to appoint her to his household, but to this, of course, the Prince retorted very improperly--but _que voulez-vous_ with such a father?--that “Lady Suffolk had been appointed to his mother’s household under similar circumstances.” Lady Archibald Hamilton, however, had her way in the end. It was arranged by the astute Queen Caroline that only three ladies-in-waiting on the Princess of Wales should be appointed, leaving Lady Archibald out, and that the fourth should be left to the Princess’s choice. The Queen, no doubt, had a pretty shrewd idea who the fourth lady-in-waiting would be, but was anxious to avoid the responsibility of her appointment; as a matter of fact, later events point to Lady Archibald really being a creature of Queen Caroline’s.