Page:Memoirs of the Lady Hester Stanhope.djvu/219

 day, on Windsor Terrace? The king and all the princes and princesses were walking, and he turned round to him—'Pitt,' says he, 'I have got a new minister in your room.' Mr. Pitt immediately replied—'At your majesty's pleasure; and I shall be happy that your majesty has found one to relieve me from the burden of aifairs: a little retirement and fresh air will do me good.' The king went on, as if finishing his sentence, and without heeding what Mr. Pitt had said—'a minister better than yourself.' Mr. Pitt rejoined—'your majesty's choice cannot be but a wise one.' The king resumed—'I tell you, Pitt, I shall have a better minister than you, and, moreover, I shall have a good general.' The raillery began to grow puzzling, and Mr. Pitt, with all his courtly manners, was at a loss to know what it meant. So he said, 'Do, pray, condescend to tell me who this unknown and remarkable person is, that I may pay him the respect due to his great talents and your majesty's choice.' The king relieved him from his embarrassment: 'There is my new minister,' said he, pointing to me, whom Mr. Pitt had under his arm. 'There is not a man in my kingdom who is a better politician than Lady Hester: andI (assuming an air of seriousness, which his manner made quite touching) 'I have great pleasure in saying, too, there is not a woman who adorns her sex more than she does. And, let