The Lady Spouse is small; a Niece to the Prince of Hildburghausen, who is in the Kaiser's service: she was in the family-way; but (ABER) seemed otherwise to be a very good Princess.
"The first thing they entertained me with was, the sad misfortune come upon their best Cook; who, with the cart that was bringing the provisions, had overset, and broken his arm; so that the provisions had all gone to nothing.

Privately I have had inquiries made; there was not a word of truth in the story.

At last we went to table; and, sure enough, it looked as if the Cook and his provisions had come to some mishap; for certainly in the Three Crowns at Potsdam [worst inn, one may guess, in the satirical vein], there is better eating than here.
"At table, there was talk of nothing but of all the German Princes who are not right in their wits (NICHT RECHT KLUG)," as Mirow himself, your Majesty knows, is reputed to be!" There was Weimar, [Wilhelmina's acquaintance; wedded, not without difficulty, to a superfluous Baireuth Sister-in-law by Wilhelmina (_ Memoires de Wilhelmina,_ ii.

185-194): Grandfather of Goethe's Friend;--is nothing like fairly out of his wits; only has a flea (as we may say) dancing occasionally in the ear of him.
Perhaps it is so with the rest of these Serenities, here fallen upon evil tongues ?] Gotha, Waldeck, Hoym, and the whole lot of them, brought upon the carpet:--and after our good Host had got considerably drunk, we rose,--and he lovingly promised me that 'he and his whole Family would come and visit Reinsberg.' Come he certainly will; but how I shall get rid of him, God knows.
"I most submissively beg pardon of my Most All-gracious Father for this long Letter; and"-- we will terminate here.

[_OEuvres de Frederic,_ xxvii.