[10] Here follows the well-known story of Mrs. Montague’s May-day entertainment of the chimney-sweeps, and the incident to which it is usually said to have owed its rise.
After this comes an account of the mad attempt of Mr. Montague, the ci-devant sweep, together with a Mr. Barnett, to descend the falls of Schaffhausen in a boat, where both were of course lost. All this, being both familiar to us, and inaccurately told, has been omitted. The cicerone, who professed to have been a servant of this Mr. Montague, had probably heard the incident related of Mr. Sedley Burdett and Lord Frederick Montague. It only proves how necessary was the author’s disclaimer of responsibility.—Transl.
[11] English physicians expect a guinea at every visit.—Editor.
[12] Let me take this opportunity of advising those of my Berlin friends who mean to run horses, to have them trained by well-recommended English grooms; for it is far from being the fact, that every English groom without exception understands the business, as I have satisfactorily convinced myself. They think they have trained a horse, when by blood-letting, medicine and exercise, they have reduced him to a skeleton, and taken away all his strength, which real training increases tenfold. Both the well and ill trained are equally thin; but in the latter it is the leanness of debility and exhaustion; in the former, the removal of all unnecessary flesh and fat, and the highest power and developement of the muscles.—Editor.
[13] The art of carving, which is too much neglected in Germany, forms part of a good English education.
[14] When leaving the presence of the King, ladies are compelled to go out backwards (as one of them assured me.) It is against the laws of etiquette,—the observance of which is, particularly, so extremely rigorous in England,—to turn their backs upon Majesty. This has been reduced to a regular military evolution, sometimes very embarrassing to a new recruit. The ladies take close order with their backs to the door, towards which they retreat in a diagonal line. As soon as the fugel-woman reaches it, she faces to the right about, passes through, and the others follow her. Lady C—— commands.
[15] Probably Berliners. This accords with what has been said in the note p. 5, as to the North German acute and satirical character, as contrasted with Southern bonhommie.—Transl.
[16] A very useful piece of furniture to introduce at Court.—Editor.
[17] Idee des Wildes:—The double sense of the word wild in German,—which when used substantively, exactly corresponds to our game (feræ naturæ,) though adjectively it is the same as the English adjective,—makes it impossible to render this.—Trans.
[18] The reader will see that there is great confusion in this account of the state and tenure of landed property in England, which, indeed, it is extremely difficult to make a foreigner understand. It cannot be too often repeated, that no attempt is made to correct the author’s impressions or statements. To do so, is not to translate but to forge. The mistakes and misrepresentations are numerous,—almost as numerous as those in English works on Germany, which is saying a good deal.—Transl.