The young prince, Leopold, has also left the court. He goes directly to Vienna, and it is thought he intends to offer his services to the emperor. If proper encouragement be given, he will go entirely into the Austrian service. In this case, he will probably, when a war happens, find himself in opposition to his two brothers; a circumstance not much regarded in Germany, where brothers go into different services, with as little hesitation as into dif ferent regiments with us.

The strictest friendship has always subsisted between this young man and his sister, who has been crying almost without intermission since he went away.

His mother bears this with more composure, yet her uneasiness is easier perceived. Independent of the absence of her son, she is distressed at the idea of his going into a service, where he may be obliged to act in opposition to her brother,* for whom I find she has the greatest affection, as well as the highest admiration.

I was not surprised to hear her speak of him as the greatest man alive; but she extends her eulogium to the qualities of his heart, in which she is not joined by the opinion of all the world.-She, however, dwells particu

* Prince Leopold did not enter into the Austrian service; but after haying visited Vienna, and made the tour of Italy, he returned to Brunswick.

His uncle, the king of Prussia, soon after offering him the command of a regiment, he went into the service of that monarch, in which he remained till the spring of the year 1785, when being witness to the devastation occasioned by the overflowing of a river, unmoved by the entreaties of those who endeavoured to dissuade him from so hazardous an enterprise, he embarked in a small boat with three watermen, to relieve the inhabitants of a village surrounded by the waters. But before he reached them the boat was drove with violence against a tree, and overset; the three boatmen were saved. This amiable prince alone, being carried down by the impetuosity of the current, perished in the sight of those he attempted to preserve, displaying in his death an heroic instance of that benevolence which had appeared conspicuous through the whole of his life.

That ingenious artist Mr. Northcote, who so successfully painted the wonderful escape of Captain Inglefield, has since, with equal, if not superior energy, finished a picture representing the death of Prince Leopold of Brunswick.

larly on this, calling him the worthiest of men, the firmest friend, and the kindest of brothers :-and as she founds her opinion on her own experience alone, she has the greatest reason to think as she does; for by every account, the king has always behaved with high regard and undeviating tenderness to her.

The departure of Prince Leopold has revived this princess's affliction for the untimely fate of two of her sons. One died in the Russian camp at the end of the campaign of 1769, in which he had served with great distinction as a volunteer'; the other was killed in a skirmish towards the end of the last war; having received a shot in his throat, he died of the wound fifteen days after, much regretted by the army, who had formed a high idea of the rising merit of this gallant youth.

He wrote a letter to his mother in the morning of the day on which he died. In this letter he regrets, that he should be stopped so soon in the course of honour, and laments that he had not been killed in some memorable action, which would have saved his name from oblivion, or in achieving something worthy of the martial spirit of his family. He expresses satisfaction, however, that his memory would at least be dear to some friends, and that he was certain of living in his mother's affections while she should exist. He then declares his gratitude to her for all her care and tenderness, and concludes with these expressions, which I translate as near as I can remember.— I wished the duchess to repeat them; but it was with difficulty, and eyes overflowing, that she pronounced them once. My eyes grow dim-I can see no longer-happy to have employed their last light in expressing my duty to my mother.'

LETTER LIX.

Hanover.

THE duke of Hamilton having determined to pay his respects to the queen of Denmark, before he left this coun

try, chose to make his visit while the hereditary princess was with her sister.

I accompanied him to Zell, and next day waited on the count and countess Dean, to let them know of the duke's arrival, and to be informed when we could have the honour of being presented to the queen. They both belong to the princess of Brunswick's family, and while I was at breakfast with them, her royal highness entered the room and gave me the information I wanted.

Before dinner, I returned with the duke to the castle, where we remained till late in the evening. There was a concert of music between dinner and supper, and the queen seemed in better spirits than could have been expected.

Zell is a small town, without trade or manufactures; the houses are old, and of a mean appearance, yet the high courts of appeal for all the territories of the electoral house of Brunswick Lunenburg are held here; the inhabitants derive their principal means of subsistence from this circumstance.

This town was severely harassed by the French army at the beginning of the late war, and was afterwards pillaged, in revenge for the supposed infraction of the treaty of Closter-Seven. The duke de Richlieu had his headquarters here, when Duke Ferdinand reassembled the troops who had been disarmed and dispersed immediately after that convention.

The castle is a stately building, surrounded by a moat, and strongly fortified. It was formerly the residence of the dukes of Zell, and was repaired lately by order of the king of Great Britain for the reception of his unfortunate sister. The apartments are spacious and convenient, and now handsomely furnished.

The officers of the court, the queen's maids of honour, and other attendants, have a very genteel appearance, and retain the most respectful attachment to their ill-fated mistress. The few days we remained at Zell were spent entirely at court, where every thing seemed to be arranged

in the style of the other small German courts, and nothing wanting to render the queen's situation as comfortable as circumstances would admit. But by far her greatest consolation is the company and conversation of her sister. Some degree of satisfaction appears in her countenance while the princess remains at Zell; but the moment she goes away, the queen, as we were informed, becomes a prey to dejection and despondency. The princess exerts herself to prevent this, and devotes to her sister all the time she can spare from the duties she owes to her own family. Unlike those who take the first pretext of breaking connections which can no longer be of advantage, this humane princess has displayed even more attachment to her sister since her misfortunes, than she ever did while the queen was in the meridian of her prosperity.

The youth, the agreeeble countenance, and obliging manners of the queen, have conciliated the minds of every one in this country. Though she was in perfect health, and appeared cheerful, yet, convinced that her gaiety was assumed, and the effect of a strong effort, I felt an impression of melancholy, which it was not in my power to overcome all the time we remained at Zell.

From Zell we went to Hanover, and on the evening of our arrival had the pleasure of hearing Handel's Messiah performed. Some of the best company of this place were assembled on the occasion, and we were here made acquainted with old Field-Marshal Sporken, and other people of distinction. Hanover is a neat, thriving, and agreeable city. It has more the air of an English town than any other I have seen in Germany, and the English manners and customs gain ground every day among the inhabitants. The genial influence of freedom has extended from England to this place. Tyranny is not felt, and ease and satisfaction appear in the countenances of the citizens.

This town is regularly fortified, and all the works are in exceeding good order, The troops are sober and regu

lar, and perform every essential part of duty well, though the discipline is not so rigid as in some other parts of Germany. Marshal Sporken, who is the head of the army, is a man of humanity; and though the soldiers are severely punished for real crimes by the sentence of a courtmartial, he does not permit his officers to order them to be caned for trifles. Caprice is too apt to blend itself with this method of punishing, and men of cruel dispositions are prone to indulge this diabolical propensity, under the pretence of zeal for discipline.

The Hanoverian infantry are not so tall as some of the other German troops, owing to this, that nobody is forced into the service; the soldiers are all volunteers; whereas, in other parts of Germany, the prince picks the stoutest and tallest of the peasants, and obliges them to become soldiers. It is allowed, that in action no troops can behave better than the Hanoverians; and it is certain, that desertion is not so frequent among them as among other German troops, which can only be accounted for by their not being pressed into the service, and their being more gently used when in it.

It is not the mode here at present, to lay so much stress on the tricks of the exercise as formerly. The officers in general seem to despise many minutiæ, which are thought of the highest importance in some other services. It is incredible to what a ridiculous length this matter is pushed by some.

At a certain parade, where the sovereign himself was present, and many officers assembled, I once saw a corpulent general officer start suddenly, as if he had seen something preternatural. He immediately waddled towards the ranks with all the expedition of a terrified gander. I could not conceive what had put his excellency into a commotion so little suitable to his years and habit of body. While all the spectators were a-tiptoe to observe the issue of this phenomenon, he arrived at the ranks, and in great wrath, which probably had been augmented by the heat acquired in his course, he pulled off