Whilst the table was preparing, we were considerably disturbed by the irruption of 4 or 5 smart looking females, who entered exclaiming, ‘This is the room, we were to have’ & shewing a great inclination to despute our possession. I went to the one who seemed the principal, and who seemed a person of some importance, at least equal to a Banker’s wife, & was modestly going to inform her, I feared there was some mistake, and to offer to withdraw with my party, when two of the ladies hastily drew chairs to the table, and were clapping themselves into them, to ensure their right, with a manner & resolution that I should not have ventured to oppose, when luckily for me, one of the principals of the House came into the room, and assured the ladies that another room was ready for them, and that the one we were disputing was for me and my party. I had heard that the Duchess of Richmond was in the house, but I little dreamt that I should have such a roncontre with no less persons than 4 or 5 of her Grace’s waiting maids, I mean ladies in waiting! I was most glad to escape from them, for we were all hungry, and our table just beautifully spread with glasses, napkins, rolls and waxlights, and in minutely expectation of our dinner, and then to have our seats occupied by the above mentioned resolute and appearantly ravenous ladies, would have been a trial I should have ill stomached.

Our dinner was excellent. Potage au vermiceil, fricandeau à l’oreille, Beefstake and un volaille roti were the chief, & some excellent champagne. I tasted the vin ordinaire blanc, & found it very pleasant as a summer beverage, but it would be too tart for weak stomachs.

We retired after dinner to St Louis’s and found a cheerful room and a good wood fire in an open fire place, and coffee was served in beautiful porcelain, & tea offered. Our rooms were dull looking and peculiar, the papers smart and like Indian paper, but a part of the rooms dark inlaid wainscot, & the ceilings painted dark colours. The doors and window fixtures, & all the iron work and fastenings, were old fashioned & of very clumsey, indifferent workmanship, a hundred years behind us at least. Our beds were hard, but clean, and no vermin or closeness.