Charles Philip Yorke, Fourth Earl of Hardwicke, Vice-Admiral R.N. — a MemoirBiddulph, Elizabeth Philippa, Baroness
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Charles Philip Yorke, Fourth Earl of Hardwicke, Vice-Admiral R.N. — a Memoir
Biddulph, Elizabeth Philippa, Baroness
Hardwicke, Charles Philip Yorke, Earl of, 1799-1873
'As I was staring about the town yesterday evening after my return from
Sans Souci, I was tapped on the shoulder and informed that the King
desired that I would come to sup with him at nine, so as it was half
past eight, off I went to dress. By the by I did not tell you that
after our dinner at Sans Souci the whole Court moved up to Berlin by
railroad, thus I was at the Palace at nine. The supper was served at
six small tables, without any covering, the plate and glasses standing
on the mahogany. At one table sat the King and Queen, the Princess of
Prussia and the Duke of Brunswick; the rest of the party and his
household were at the other tables. A seat of honour was kept for me by
the great lady of the Court, but I had already found myself seated by a
maid of honour whose sweet smiles had attracted me and I did not think
it worth while to move. You need not be alarmed, for the stock of
beauty here is small. The King and Queen both crossed to speak with me
before and after supper, and on taking leave for the night the King
kindly shook me by the hand. The King is gone, he visits some of his
provincial towns on his way, and takes no one with him but one
Aide-de-camp and no escort. I go tomorrow in my own carriage, thank
God; a route is given me, a number painted on the carriage, and all
paid, so I go like the devil without anything to pay. I shall be at
Dantzic before the King.
'The road from Hamburg to Berlin lies through a portion of the Danish
territory and the territory of the grand Duke of Mecklenburg Schwerin
and the Prussian, the whole way the country is cultivated, the Danish
territory of Holstein is sandy and little done with it. That of M.
Schwerin is of a better quality, though what we should call moderate
soil but very fairly cultivated. I never saw better farming in my life,
or a country more cared for, the crops looked well and not a weed to be
seen, the road-side planted, and every tree that was young staked and
tied, the side of the roads mowed and trimmed, and stone gutter on each
side of a fairly macadamized road. I felt humbled after my boasting
thoughts of England, as this pattern they have no doubt followed, but
the Prince of Mecklenburg Schwerin deserves well of his people for his
superior copy. The people are well clothed, and I have not been asked
for a farthing since I came to this country.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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