The Ayrshire Legatees

Being in the Castle-yard, we followed the crowd into another gate, and up

a stair, and saw the king lying in state, which was a very dismal

sight--and I thought of Solomon in all his glory, when I saw the coffin,

and the mutes, and the mourners; and reflecting on the long infirmity of

mind of the good old king, I said to myself, in the words of the book of

Job, 'Doth not their excellency which is in them go away? they die even

without wisdom!' When we had seen the sight, we came out of the Castle, and went to an inn

to get a chack of dinner; but there was such a crowd, that no

resting-place could for a time be found for us. Gentle and semple were

there, all mingled, and no respect of persons; only there was, at a table

nigh unto ours, a fat Glasgow manufacturer, who ordered a bottle of

champaign wine, and did all he could in the drinking of it by himself, to

show that he was a man in well-doing circumstances. While he was talking

over his wine, a great peer of the realm, with a star on his breast, came

into the room, and ordered a glass of brandy and water; and I could see,

when he saw the Glasgow manufacturer drinking champaign wine on that

occasion, that he greatly marvelled thereat.

When we had taken our dinner, we went out to walk and see the town of

Windsor; but there was such a mob of coaches going and coming, and men

and horses, that we left the streets, and went to inspect the king's

policy, which is of great compass, but in a careless order, though it

costs a world of money to keep it up. Afterwards, we went back to the

inns, to get tea for Mrs. Pringle and her daughter, while Andrew Pringle,

my son, was seeing if he could get tickets to buy, to let us into the

inside of the Castle, to see the burial--but he came back without luck,

and I went out myself, being more experienced in the world, and I saw a

gentleman's servant with a ticket in his hand, and I asked him to sell it

to me, which the man did with thankfulness, for five shillings, although

the price was said to be golden guineas. But as this ticket admitted

only one person, it was hard to say what should be done with it when I

got back to my family. However, as by this time we were all very much

fatigued, I gave it to Andrew Pringle, my son, and Mrs. Pringle, and her

daughter Rachel, agreed to bide with me in the inns.