ey could for the toast he was about to give.
He then gave 'The Queen of Wuertemberg,' with many eulogiums on
her and on the connubial felicity of her and the King; not a very
agreeable theme for his host, for conjugal fidelity is not his
forte. At length he desired Douro to go again to the band and
order them to play 'See the conquering hero comes,' and then he
rose. All the company rose with him, when he ordered everybody to
sit down. Still standing, he said that he had been so short a
time on the throne that he did not know whether etiquette
required that he should speak sitting or standing, but, however
this might be, he had been long used to speak on his legs, and
should do so now; he then proposed the Duke's health, but
prefaced it with a long speech--instituted a comparison between
him and the Duke of Marlborough; went back to the reign of Queen
Anne, and talked of the great support the Duke of Marlborough had
received from the Crown, and the little support the Duke of
Wellington had had in the outset of his career, though after the
battle of Vimeiro he had been backed by all the energies of the
country; that, notwithstanding his difficulties, his career had
been one continued course of victory over the armies of France;
and then recollecting the presence of Laval, the French
Ambassador, he said, 'Remember, Duc de Laval, when I talk of
victories over the French armies, they were not the armies of my
ally and friend the King of France, but of him who had usurped
his throne, and against whom you yourself were combating;' then
going back to the Duke's career, and again referring to the
comparison between him and Marlborough, and finishing by
adverting to his political position, that he had on mounting the
throne found the Duke Minister, and that he had retained him
because he thought his Administration had been and would be
highly beneficial to the country; that he gave to him his fullest
and most cordial confidence, and that he announced to all whom he
saw around him, to all the Ambassadors and Ministers of foreign
Powers, and to all the noblemen and gentlemen present, that as
long as he should sit upon the throne he should continue to give
him the same confidence. The Duke returned thanks in a short
speech, thanking the King for his confidence and support, and
declaring that all his endeavours would be used to keep this
country in relations of harmony with other nations. The whole
company stood aghast at the King