ESTY (from the Crown-Prince).

"REINSBERG, 26th October, 1736.

... "Yesterday I went across to Mirow. To give my Most All-gracious
Father an idea of the place, I cannot liken it to anything higher than
Gross-Kreutz [term of comparison lost upon us; say GARRAT, at a venture,
or the CLACHAN OF ABERFOYLE]: the one house in it, that can be called
a house, is not so good as the Parson's there. I made straight for the
Schloss; which is pretty much like the Garden-house in Bornim: only
there is a rampart round it; and an old Tower, considerably in ruins,
serves as a Gateway to the House.

"Coming on the Drawbridge, I perceived an old stocking-knitter disguised
as Grenadier, with his cap, cartridge-box and musket laid to a side,
that they might not hinder him in his knitting-work. As I advanced, he
asked, 'Whence I came, and whitherward I was going?' I answered, that 'I
came from the Post-house, and was going over this Bridge:' whereupon the
Grenadier, quite in a passion, ran to the Tower; where he opened a door,
and called out the Corporal. The Corporal seemed to have hardly been out
of bed; and in his great haste, had not taken time to put on his shoes,
nor quite button his breeches; with much flurry he asked us, 'Where we
were for, and how we came to treat the Sentry in that manner?' Without
answering him at all, we went our way towards the Schloss.

"Never in my life should I have taken this for a Schloss, had it not
been that there were two glass lamps fixed at the door-posts, and the
figures of two Cranes standing in front of them, by way of Guards.
We made up to the House; and after knocking almost half an hour to no
purpose, there peered out at last an exceedingly old woman, who looked
as if she might have nursed the Prince of Mirow's father. The poor
woman, at sight of strangers, was so terrified, she slammed the door to
in our faces. We knocked again; and seeing there could nothing be made
of it, we went round to the stables; where a fellow told us, 'The young
Prince with his Consort was gone to Neu-Strelitz, a couple of miles off
[ten miles English]; and the Duchess his Mother, who lives here, had
given him, to make the better figure, all her people along with him;
keeping nobody but the old woman to herself.'

"It was still early; so I thought I could not do better than profit by
the opportunity, and have a look at Neu-Strelitz. We took post-horses;
and got thither about noon. Neu-Strelitz is properly a Village