When I returned to London from Paris, in 1815, upon promotion, I was
accompanied by Colonel Brooke, who was good enough to invite me to pass
some time at his brother's, Sir R. Brookes, in Cheshire, upon the
occasion of the christening of his eldest son. The fete was truly
magnificent, and worthy of our excellent host; and all the great people
of the neighbouring counties were present.
Soon afterwards I went to the Hale, a country house near Liverpool,
belonging to Mr. Blackburn, one of the oldest members of the House of
Commons, where many persons, who had been at Sir Richard Brookes's, met
again. Mr. Blackburn was extremely absent and otherwise odd: upon one
occasion I gave him a letter to frank, which he deliberately opened and
read in my presence; and on my asking him if it amused him, he replied
that he did not understand what it meant. Upon another occasion the
Duke of Gloucester, accompanied by Mr. Blackburn, went out to shoot
pheasants in the preserves near the Hale; when all of a sudden, Mr. B.
observing that the Duke's gun was cocked, asked his Royal Highness
whether he always carried his gun cocked. "Yes, Blackburn, always,"
was the reply.
"Well then, good morning, your Royal Highness; I will no longer
accompany you."
At dinner Mr. Blackburn was very eccentric: he would never surrender
his place at table even to royalty; so the Duke was obliged to sit near
him. Whenever the royal servant filled the Duke's glass with wine and
water, Mr. B. invariably drank it off; until at length, the Duke asked
his servant for more wine and water, and anticipating a repetition of
the farce that had so often been played, drank it off, and said, "Well,
Blackburn, I have done you at last." After dinner the Duke and the men
went to join the ladies in the drawing-room, where the servant in royal
livery was waiting, holding a tray upon which was a cup of tea for the
Duke. Mr. Blackburn, observing the servant in waiting, and that nobody
took the cup of tea, determined on drinking it; but the domestic
retired a little, to endeavour to prevent it. Mr. Blackburn, however,
followed and persisted; Upon which the servant said, "Sir, it is for
his Royal Highness."
"D---- his Royal Highness, I will have this tea."
The Duke exclaimed, "That's right, Blackburn," and ordered the servant
to hand it to him.