"It was really a mighty pretty procession. The little Princess Amelia, just three years old, in a colored robe, covered with fine muslin, a dressed close cap, white gloves and a fan, walked on alone, turning from side to side to see everybody as she passed, for all the people on the terrace stand up against the walls, to make a clear passage for the royal family, as soon as they come in sight. Then followed the king and queen, no less delighted themselves with the joy of their little darling." Little Amelia was a great pet with her parents, and when she observed Miss Burney among the guests, and actually stopped to kiss her, the breach of etiquette was merely smiled at, though the queen was not pleased; for she only addressed a word to those whom she desired especially to distinguish. So rigid was the court etiquette that no person ever passed a room occupied by the royal family if the door chanced to be open, and the children never spoke in the presence of their parents unless called upon to answer an observation directed to them.
[[A.D. 1786.]] But everything was different at Kew, where the absence of restraint formed a striking contrast to the life at Windsor. There the king was called "Farmer George," and there were some odd sketches made by the caricaturists of the day, representing his
{ 185}majesty with his wife on his arm, trudging along in true rustic fashion. Some very amusing anecdotes are given of "Farmer George's" visits to the cottages of his neighbors, which were made with the least possible ceremony, and often at most inconvenient periods.
He rode for hours every day, and would poke his nose wherever the fancy happened to take him. Once he was caught in a shower and took shelter in a cottage, where he found a girl roasting a goose. He requested her to go and put his horse under an adjacent shed, which she agreed to do if he would keep the goose from burning during her absence. Presently the girl's father entered, and, though surprised at seeing the occupation of his sovereign, had the good sense not to recognize him. George began to talk to the man about the disadvantage of roasting with a string, and explained how much easier and safer it was to cook with a spit, which required less watching and only occasional basting. At the conclusion of his lecture, he secretly wrote upon a piece of paper "to buy a jack," and enclosed five guineas, which he placed upon the table before his departure.