What on earth would I do?...
We arrived at "Melton Mowbray" in the midst of a sheet of fog. Thelma's stepdaughter received us, to tell us that the others had been delayed by the fog, but they would not be long in arriving... We entered a heated room, and my temperature began to rise, until I felt that the best thing I could do was to sleep... But that was impossible... We waited two hours before the two Princes arrived; Thelma received them, then presented me to them, and I dragged up what remained of my courage to offer my greeting to the Prince of Wales — and it came off well, contrary to what I had expected.
The Prince of Wales, as I recall, was wearing a coat of "tweed," and his brother had followed his example, though he seemed more reserved... And as I studied the face of the Prince of Wales, I kept thinking of the great resemblance between him and his photographs; but I had never supposed he was so short — exceeding my own height by only two "inches"... His brother George was taller than he, and looked merry, unlike the face of the Prince of Wales, which always wore a touch of sadness.
What drew me to the two Princes was their naturalness, so much so that I forgot that only moments before I had been dreading extreme reserve and a strange aristocratic spirit... Thelma may have drawn their attention to the
fact that I was an American, and that Ernest had studied in America as well; so they talked with us about America most of the time, and that made me forget the fever and the illness.
A little later, Prince George's friends came and carried him off to where he intended to spend the holiday; and I went up with Ernest to our room to get ready for dinner; and I felt better after a hot bath and two aspirin tablets.
There were nearly thirty people at the party, and we knew not one of them; and after dinner, the playing of "poker" and "bridge" began... We did not know the first game, but I took part at the "bridge" table while Ernest sat watching the play, and talking... I listened to the sounds coming from the "poker" room and knew that the Prince was very pleased — that showed in the cries of enthusiasm he let out from time to time... The play ended at midnight, because the Prince was to rise early for the hunt.
I did not wake early in the morning; and when I came down to the drawing room, the Prince and his aide, General Gerald
The day he was invested "Prince of Wales" in 1911 — and a touch of melancholy has lain over his face ever since that day!
A splendid picture representing Mrs. Simpson, "the woman who commands!"
Trotter, had already returned from the hunt.
When we sat down to lunch, my place happened to be beside the Prince, and he reminded me afterward that our conversation turned on the difference between the American and English points of view on heating by gas... The party held in the evening was small, and ran along the lines of the first; and on Monday morning everyone scattered, each to his own place...
A certain notable put up at a hotel in one of the summer resorts, and when he had retired to his bed, the head servant came and said to him courteously: At what hour do you wish the servant to wake you, sir?
The guest answered him:
"There is no need for that — I usually wake of my own accord at six in the morning"...
The head servant thought for a moment and said to him with a smile:
— Might you then be so kind as to wake the servants at that hour?