it was our turn to be
presented.

"I have the honor to present the lord high admiral of Great Britain to
your majesty," said Judge People's Friend, who had waived his official
privilege of going first, in order to do us this favor in person; it
having been decided, on a review of all the principles that touched the
case, that nothing human could take precedence of a monikin at court,
always making the exception in favor of royalty, as in the case of
Prince Bob.

"I am happy to see you at my court, Admiral Poke," the king politely
rejoined, manifesting the tact of high rank in recognizing Noah by his
family name, to the great surprise of the old sealer.

"King!"

"You were about to remark?--" most graciously inquired his majesty, a
little at a loss to understand what his visitor would be at.

"Why, I could not contain my astonishment at your memory, Mr. King,
which has enabled you to recall a name that you probably never before
heard!"

There was now a great, and to me, a very unaccountable confusion in the
circle. It would seem, that the captain had unwittingly trespassed on
two of the most important of the rules of etiquette, in very mortal
points. He had confessed to the admission of an emotion as vulgar as
that of astonishment in the royal presence, and he had intimated that
his majesty had a memory; a property of the mind which, as it might
prove dangerous to the liberties of Leaphigh, were it left in the
keeping of any but a responsible minister, it had long been decided it
was felony to impute to the king. By the fundamental law of the land,
the king's eldest first-cousin of the masculine gender, may have as many
memories as he please, and he may use them, or abuse them, as he shall
see fit, either in private or in the public service; but it is held to
be utterly unconstitutional and unparliamentary, and, by consequence,
extremely underbred, to insinuate, even in the most remote manner,
that the king himself has either a memory, a will, a determination, a
resolution, a desire, a conceit, an intention, or, in short, any other
intellectual property, that of a "royal pleasure" alone excepted. It
is both constitutional and parliamentary to say the king has a "royal
pleasure" provided the context goes to prove that this "royal pleasure"
is entirely at the disposition of his eldest first-cousin of the
masculine gender.

When Mr. Poke was made acquainted with his mistake, he discovered a
proper contrition; and