The Mysteries of the Court of London by Pauline Clarendon — page 168: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

AN AMAZON 165 cheek, which compliment he returned by means of a some- what hard smack upon the lady’s back; whereupon she dealt him so sound a box on the ears that all the blood in his body seemed ina moment to rise into his cheeks and stagnate there. But the next instant he burst out laughing, and the prince as well as the Amazon herself shared in the merri- ment. A quarter of an hour was thus whiled away by means of smoking, jesting, and chattering; and in the interval the Prince of Wales had made such improvements in his toilet that he now appeared in an elegant déshabillé. Germain shortly afterward entered the room, bearing a large silver tray containing the breakfast-things; and although he observed Lady Letitia and instantly recognized her, -he nevertheless affected to take no more notice of her presence than if she were a phantom visible only to the prince and Meagles. For Germain was a very discreet Frenchman; otherwise he would not have long held the post of valet intime, or rather “‘ confidential gentleman,”’ about the person of the Prince of Wales. An elegant breakfast was now served up, and to which both Lady Letitia and Tim Meagles did ample justice; but George had indulged overnight too liberally in curacoa punch to be able to eat with any degree of appetite in the _morning. ‘You don’t seem to be peckish, my dear prince,”’ observed Meagles, as he committed a second and very desperate assault upon a cold partridge pie. “You made the punch too strong last night, Tim,” answered his Royal Highness. ‘“ Not a bit of it! ’’ cried Meagles. ‘“‘ By the bye, my dear prince,” he continued, turning toward his Royal Highness, ‘I missed you from a quarter to six to nearly half-past ten last evening — ”’ “And you are very likely to miss me for precisely the same period this evening, Mr. Meagles,’’ interrupted the prince, suddenly assuming a tone that had just sufficient haughtiness in it to serve as a tacit intimation that the sub- ject was not be dwelt upon. ‘Then, instead of taking an early dinner with your Royal Hichness, I shall fasten myself upon the hospitality of our Amazonian friend here,’ remarked Meagles, who under- EONNIE DOO KS (EO)