It seemed to me—but it might be fancy—that he took particular interest in myself, for he frequently spoke to me with such words of encouragement or praise, that my young heart swelled with gratitude; and I felt certain when the time came, that I would follow the brave old man, even to the cannon's mouth, with the devotion of a son, rather than the mere obedience of a soldier.
An anecdote of our veteran colonel, then current, related that when George II., who frequently displayed much favour and partiality for the Greys (notwithstanding his hatred of the Scots), was reviewing them in Hyde Park one day before the Marshal Duke de Broglie and a prince of the House of Bourbon, Louis Philippe, Duke of Orleans, he said—
"Monseigneur le Prince, did you ever see a finer regiment?"
"They are fine indeed," replied the Prince, as the royal staff passed along the line; "but pardon me if I think them inferior to our Gendarmes de la Garde. Did your majesty ever see them?"
"No," replied the king; "but I have little doubt that my Scots Greys have—eh, Colonel Preston?"
"Yes," said the Colonel, grimly, "we have seen them."
"Where?" asked Louis Philippe.
"At Dettingen, when auld Jamie Campbell, who was killed at Fontenoy, led us to the charge against them."
"Well—well," said the king, impatiently, "and what followed?"
"We cut them to pieces, and there I took their white standard, cleaving the bearer down to the breeks; and the prince, if he chooses, may see it now, hanging in Westminster Hall."