footman’s uniform … waiting for me …’
‘Very pleased with herself, Highness, having hooked the Prince of Wales.’
The Prince was irritated. It was not pleasant to have been so duped by a slip of a girl. He had only been mildly involved. She was not really his type; she was far too young. And thefact that she had deceived him had completely changed his feelings towards her.
But she should not be allowed to get the better of him. He had an idea. It would be almost as good a joke as the duel.
‘Listen, Major. The carriage will be waiting to pick her up. She will be expecting me inside it. You shall put on the coat and hat I wore for my meetings with her and be there in my place. Madame Lottie will trip along, enter the coach … See how long you can keep up the deception. Then you can take her to London and enjoy the little jaunt which was to have been mine.’
The Major slapped his thigh.
‘By God, Sir, trust you to think up a first-class joke. I’m ready to choke with laughter in anticipation.’
They started to laugh together; then the Prince was sober. It was rather an anti-climax to what was to have been a pleasant adventure.
After the Major had gone, he started to think how pleasant it would be if he could meet a woman who was good and beautiful, who was his ideal, who loved him tenderly and whom he could love.
There is no satisfaction in light love affairs, he told himself.
In due course the Major reported the consternation of Charlotte Fortesque when she discovered that her deceived lover had taken the place of the Prince of Wales; and the incident made the two men even closer friends. The Major’s eccentricities were very diverting and he could always be relied on to think up some original trick to amuse.
On one occasion over dinner at Carlton House the Major became involved in an argument with Mr Berkeley over the merits of turkeys and geese and which could travel the faster. Major Hanger was sure the turkeys would; Mr Berkeley was equally certain that it would be the geese. Other conversation around the dinner table ceased and all attention was concentrated on the argument between Hanger and Berkeley.
The Prince joined in and said there was only one way of settling the matter. They must have a race. Because this was the Prince’s idea it was taken up with enthusiasm. It was in any case another opportunity for a gamble.
Bets were taken and the stakes rose high.
The Prince was on the Major’s side and backed the turkeys, declaring that he would be in charge of the turkeys and Mr Berkeley should be the gooseman. The preparations were, in the Prince’s mind, hilarious.
‘Now, George,’ he said to Hanger, ‘you must select twenty of the very best turkeys to be found in the land.’
Hanger said he could safely be trusted to do that.
Mr Berkeley was equally determined to find twenty of the finest geese.
It was not possible for the Prince to do anything without a great many people knowing of it; and the proposed match between turkeys and geese was no exception.
What will they be up to next? people asked themselves; and they came out to watch the race which Berkeley had artfully decided should take place in the late afternoon.
There was great hilarity when the birds were set on the road leading out of London for the ten-mile race. The Prince and Major Hanger were with their turkeys carrying the long poles on which pieces of red cloth had been tied with which to guide the birds if they decided to stray; and Mr Berkeley and his supporters were similarily equipped to deal with the geese.
The turkeys got off to a good start and the betting was in their favour; in the first three hours they were two miles ahead of the geese; and then as dusk fell the turkeys looked for roosting places in the trees and finding them would not be dislodged; in vain did the Prince and the Major endeavour to do so; they were engaged in this when the geese came waddling into sight prodded by their supporters and
‘Very pleased with herself, Highness, having hooked the Prince of Wales.’
The Prince was irritated. It was not pleasant to have been so duped by a slip of a girl. He had only been mildly involved. She was not really his type; she was far too young. And thefact that she had deceived him had completely changed his feelings towards her.
But she should not be allowed to get the better of him. He had an idea. It would be almost as good a joke as the duel.
‘Listen, Major. The carriage will be waiting to pick her up. She will be expecting me inside it. You shall put on the coat and hat I wore for my meetings with her and be there in my place. Madame Lottie will trip along, enter the coach … See how long you can keep up the deception. Then you can take her to London and enjoy the little jaunt which was to have been mine.’
The Major slapped his thigh.
‘By God, Sir, trust you to think up a first-class joke. I’m ready to choke with laughter in anticipation.’
They started to laugh together; then the Prince was sober. It was rather an anti-climax to what was to have been a pleasant adventure.
After the Major had gone, he started to think how pleasant it would be if he could meet a woman who was good and beautiful, who was his ideal, who loved him tenderly and whom he could love.
There is no satisfaction in light love affairs, he told himself.
In due course the Major reported the consternation of Charlotte Fortesque when she discovered that her deceived lover had taken the place of the Prince of Wales; and the incident made the two men even closer friends. The Major’s eccentricities were very diverting and he could always be relied on to think up some original trick to amuse.
On one occasion over dinner at Carlton House the Major became involved in an argument with Mr Berkeley over the merits of turkeys and geese and which could travel the faster. Major Hanger was sure the turkeys would; Mr Berkeley was equally certain that it would be the geese. Other conversation around the dinner table ceased and all attention was concentrated on the argument between Hanger and Berkeley.
The Prince joined in and said there was only one way of settling the matter. They must have a race. Because this was the Prince’s idea it was taken up with enthusiasm. It was in any case another opportunity for a gamble.
Bets were taken and the stakes rose high.
The Prince was on the Major’s side and backed the turkeys, declaring that he would be in charge of the turkeys and Mr Berkeley should be the gooseman. The preparations were, in the Prince’s mind, hilarious.
‘Now, George,’ he said to Hanger, ‘you must select twenty of the very best turkeys to be found in the land.’
Hanger said he could safely be trusted to do that.
Mr Berkeley was equally determined to find twenty of the finest geese.
It was not possible for the Prince to do anything without a great many people knowing of it; and the proposed match between turkeys and geese was no exception.
What will they be up to next? people asked themselves; and they came out to watch the race which Berkeley had artfully decided should take place in the late afternoon.
There was great hilarity when the birds were set on the road leading out of London for the ten-mile race. The Prince and Major Hanger were with their turkeys carrying the long poles on which pieces of red cloth had been tied with which to guide the birds if they decided to stray; and Mr Berkeley and his supporters were similarily equipped to deal with the geese.
The turkeys got off to a good start and the betting was in their favour; in the first three hours they were two miles ahead of the geese; and then as dusk fell the turkeys looked for roosting places in the trees and finding them would not be dislodged; in vain did the Prince and the Major endeavour to do so; they were engaged in this when the geese came waddling into sight prodded by their supporters and
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