Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 12.djvu/11

 us. xii. JULY 3, i9io.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

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military men who have seen service feel more or less, became more apparent daily. He wished for a war somewhere. " Per- haps," said he. " Murat may prove trouble- some and an English force be sent there," little thinking at that time of the occasion on which he should be shortly recalled to his old post of Commander- in-Chief of a large army. As far as we know at present of the plan of the Campaign, the Allied forces under the Duke will be divided into two corps d'armee, one of which will be commanded by th^ Prince, the other by Lord Hill, and it is not improbable that the Duke of Richmond may command a body of reserves. All here are sanguine that the Allies will be at Paris in two months. . ..

III.

[To his father.]

Brussels, June 13, 1815.

.... The family are at present gone to Enghien to a cricket match amongst the gentlemen of the Guards, in which the Duke takes a part. You have, of course, heard of his fame as a cricketer. He was, I believe, considered one of the two best in England ; the ^ other is Lord Frederick Beauclerc. Tho' on the spot, I can give you little news with respect to public affairs which you will not see sooner in the English papers. In fact, we have all along received accounts of the downfall of Murat (omen hand malum, for the imperial cause) much earlier by way of England than of Vienna, and the case is the same with reference to Paris intelligence. From Germany we have it in its way to you. The latest is that the Prussians are on the Rhine, and no doubt active operations may be expected very soon. The Allied force which will bond fide enter France, may be safely computed at 500,000 (sic) men/ An officer told me a few days ago that he had observed many droves "of cattle, marked G. R., which had quitted their pastures and were proceeding to the frontiers. These he conceived to be destined for the subsistence of the army on its march, not whilst it remains stationary. English officers who have come from their quarters to Brussels to make purchases for the campaign, &c., say that they have left it for the last time. A Westminster man cannot fail of knowing people, go where he will, and it is curious to think how many old schoolfellows I have fallen in with, that I have not seen for years. It is an interesting thing to take leave of these brave fellows, all of whom it is impossible that we should see again.

Some must fall, and all stand a chance of it. Lord March, A.D.C. to the Prince called a few days ago whilst we were at dinner, to say they were going. He shook hands with every individual round the table, and departed. He has been back- wards and forwards many times since the- Prince fixed his headquarters at Brain-le- Comte, and each time he takes leave as if the last. It has this good effect that the Duchess and his sisters, who doat on him, do not mind the parting ; they say, " Oh ! we shall see him again in a day or two.'" The Duke of Richmond has three sons, some- nephews, and many other relations, besides an extensive acquaintance, amongst whom are his Irish Secretary, the Duke of Welling- - ton, and eight A.D.C. 's, engaged in this business. The Secretary is the Duke of Wellington.* Lord G. Lennox is A.D.C. to his Grace, Lord William to General Maitland, Lord W. met with a fall about two months ago, riding a race at Enghien. He was taken up for dead, but has experienced a most wonderful recovery. He cannot yet go to his duty, and is living with us for the present. . The Duke of R.'s offer of service has been declined by Ministers, because he is senior to the Prince and must therefore have a. larger command than him. He is very much \ annoyed about it. Tho' I have given some fairly good reasons for supposing that hostilities will soon commence, yet no one would suppose it judging by the Duke of Wellington. He appears to be thinking of anything else in the world, gives a ball every week, attends every party, and par- takes of every amusement that" offers. He took Lady Jane Lennox (the youngest of the four) to Enghien to the cricket match and brought her back at night, apparently having gone with no other purpose than to amuse her. At that time Bonaparte was said to be at Maubeuge, about thirty or forty miles off. The whole scene of military preparations is new to me and, of course, very interesting. In the Allee Verte, which is the ride here, there were a few evenings ago the King and Queen of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange, Dukes of Wellington, Berri, and Brunswick, Prince de Conde, Blucher, &c., &c.

ALAN STEWART.

(To be. concluded.)

Lieutenant of Ireland 1807-13, and the Duke of Wellington was Chief Secretary in 1807. It seems, therefore, that the former continued playfully to call the latter his Secretary still.
 * The Duke of Richmond had been Lord