of the Marquis, to see the place, before he went home, we fixed a day,
and made a party, determined to accept the offer of the Noble Marquis,
to visit his seat, and see the beautiful pleasure-grounds, park, and
cascade, which surround the mansion, and likewise view the fine
paintings which it contained. I fell in with this plan the more readily,
because my Berkshire friend rather hoaxed me, for professing to believe
that the Marquis was sincere. He said he was a fine old courtier, and it
cost him nothing to be polite; but, with regard to what he said about
the pleasure he would feel at skewing us Bow-wood, they were mere words
of course, and he would think no more of them afterwards; and if we went
to see it, we should be treated the same as we were when we went to see
Blenheim, the seat of the Duke of Marlborough, which was, we had to pay
about _thirty shillings_ to the different servants that showed us over
the house, gardens, and grounds, at which, considering it was built for
the great Duke of Marlborough, at the _public expense_, I had expressed
my disapprobation. I contended, that we should be treated in a
different manner, and that the old Marquis would not allow his servants
to behave so shabbily. I was, however, laughed at, for expecting that a
Nobleman would take the pains to write home from Wales, to his servants,
to give them any directions about the matter. The day was, nevertheless,
fixed for the 24th of August, 1801.

I shall relate the circumstances of our visit, to shew what sort of a
character the first Marquis of Lansdown was. We appointed to meet at
Devizes, and the party proceeded together to Bow-wood, which is about
six miles from that town. We were six in number, three ladies and three
gentlemen; myself and Mrs. Hunt in our curricle, and our friends two in
a chariot, and two in a gig; each of us attended by a servant. It was a
lovely day, and when we entered the lodge, as we drove down the park,
a distance of about a mile before we came to the house, we drew up and