sprightliness and understanding, and a something so very engaging in his
behaviour that needs not the advantage of his rank to appear charming." I
find elsewhere similar panegyrics upon Frederick Prince of Wales, George
II's son; and upon George III, of course, and upon George IV in an eminent
degree. It was the rule to be dazzled by princes, and people's eyes winked
quite honestly at that royal radiance.

The Electoral Court of Hanover was numerous--pretty well paid, as times
went; above all, paid with a regularity which few other European Courts
could boast of. Perhaps you will be amused to know how the Electoral Court
was composed. There were the princes of the house in the first class; in
the second, the single field-marshal of the army (the contingent was
18,000, Poellnitz says, and the Elector had other 14,000 troops in his
pay). Then follow, in due order, the authorities civil and military, the
working privy councillors, the generals of cavalry and infantry, in the
third class; the high chamberlain, high marshals of the Court, high
masters of the horse, the major-generals of cavalry and infantry, in the
fourth class; down to the majors, the Hofjunkers or pages, the secretaries
or assessors, of the tenth class, of whom all were noble.

We find the master of the horse had 1,090 thalers of pay; the high
chamberlain, 2,000--a thaler being about three shillings of our money.
There were two chamberlains, and one for the princess; five gentlemen of
the chamber, and five gentlemen ushers; eleven pages and personages to
educate these young noblemen--such as a governor, a preceptor, a
_Fechtmeister_, or fencing-master, and a dancing ditto, this latter with a
handsome salary of 400 thalers. There were three body and Court
physicians, with 800 and 500 thalers; a Court barber, 600 thalers; a Court
organist; two _Musikanten_; four French fiddlers; twelve trumpeters, and a
bugler; so that there was plenty of music, profane and pious, in Hanover.
There were ten chamber waiters, and twenty-four lackeys in livery; a
_maitre-d'hotel_, and attendants of the kitchen; a French cook; a body
cook; ten cooks; six cooks' assistants; two _Braten_ masters, or masters
of the roast--(one fancies enormous spits turning slowly, and the honest
masters of the roast beladling the dripping); a pastry baker; a pie baker;
and finally, three scullions, at the modest remuneration of eleven
thalers. In the sugar-chamber there were four pastry-cooks (for