_Vienna, Jan_. 1. O. S. 1717

I HAVE just received here at Vienna, your ladyship's compliments on
my return to England, sent me from Hanover. You see, madam, all
things that are asserted with confidence are not absolutely true; and
that you have no sort of reason to complain of me for making my
designed return a mystery to you, when you say, all the world are
informed of it. You may tell all the world in my name, that they are
never so well informed of my affairs as I am myself; that I am very
positive I am at this time at Vienna, where the carnival is begun,
and all sorts of diversions are carried to the greatest height,
except that of masquing (sic), which is never permitted during a war
with the Turks. The balls are in public places, where the men pay a
gold ducat at entrance, but the ladies nothing. I am told, that
these houses get sometimes a thousand ducats in a night. They are
very magnificently furnished, and the music good, if they had not
that detestible (sic) custom of mixing hunting horns with it, that
almost deafen the company. But that noise is so agreeable here, they
never make a concert without them. The ball always concludes with
English country dances, to the number of thirty or forty couple, and
so ill danced, that there is very little pleasure in them. They know
but half a dozen, and they have danced them over and over these fifty
years: I would fain have taught them some new ones, but I found it
would be some months labour to make them comprehend them. Last night
there was an Italian comedy acted at court. The scenes were pretty,
but the comedy itself such intolerable low farce, without either wit
or humour, that I was surprised how all the court could sit there
attentively for four hours together. No women are suffered to act on
the stage, and the men dressed like them, were such awkward figures,
they very much added to the ridicule of the spectacle. What