Besides, The Prince Royal, Determined To Be Economical, Almost
Descends To Parsimony; And Perhaps Depresses His Subjects, By
Labouring Not
To oppress them; for his intentions always seem to be
good - yet nothing can give a more forcible idea of
The dulness which
eats away all activity of mind, than the insipid routine of a court,
without magnificence or elegance.
The Prince, from what I can now collect, has very moderate
abilities; yet is so well disposed, that Count Bernstorff finds him
as tractable as he could wish; for I consider the Count as the real
sovereign, scarcely behind the curtain; the Prince having none of
that obstinate self-sufficiency of youth, so often the forerunner of
decision of character. He and the Princess his wife, dine every day
with the King, to save the expense of two tables. What a mummery it
must be to treat as a king a being who has lost the majesty of man!
But even Count Bernstorff's morality submits to this standing
imposition; and he avails himself of it sometimes, to soften a
refusal of his own, by saying it is the WILL of the King, my master,
when everybody knows that he has neither will nor memory. Much the
same use is made of him as, I have observed, some termagant wives
make of their husbands; they would dwell on the necessity of obeying
their husbands, poor passive souls, who never were allowed TO WILL,
when they wanted to conceal their own tyranny.
A story is told here of the King's formerly making a dog counsellor
of state, because when the dog, accustomed to eat at the royal
table, snatched a piece of meat off an old officer's plate, he
reproved him jocosely, saying that he, monsieur le chien, had not
the privilege of dining with his majesty, a privilege annexed to
this distinction.
The burning of the palace was, in fact, a fortunate circumstance, as
it afforded a pretext for reducing the establishment of the
household, which was far too great for the revenue of the Crown.
The Prince Royal, at present, runs into the opposite extreme; and
the formality, if not the parsimony, of the court, seems to extend
to all the other branches of society, which I had an opportunity of
observing; though hospitality still characterises their intercourse
with strangers.
But let me now stop; I may be a little partial, and view everything
with the jaundiced eye of melancholy - for I am sad - and have cause.
God bless you!
LETTER XXI.
I have seen Count Bernstorff; and his conversation confirms me in
the opinion I had previously formed of him; I mean, since my arrival
at Copenhagen. He is a worthy man, a little vain of his virtue a la
Necker; and more anxious not to do wrong, that is to avoid blame,
than desirous of doing good; especially if any particular good
demands a change. Prudence, in short, seems to be the basis of his
character; and, from the tenor of the Government, I should think
inclining to that cautious circumspection which treads on the heels
of timidity.
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