We found they were both daughters of our hostess, and born and bred at Devizes.  We were extremely pleased with them, and made them a long visit, which I wished to have been longer.  But though those pretty girls struck us so much, the wonder of the family was yet to be produced.  This was their brother, a most lovely boy of ten years of age who seems to be not merely the wonder of their family, but of the times, for his astonishing skill in drawing.(117) They protest he has never had any instruction, yet showed us some of his productions that were really beautiful.  Those that were copies were delightful, those of his own composition amazing, though far inferior.  I was equally struck with the boy and his works.

We found that he had been taken to town, and that all the painters had been very kind to him, and Sir Joshua Reynolds had pronounced him, the mother said, the most promising genius he had ever met with.  Mr. Hoare has been so charmed with this sweet boy’s drawings that he intends sending him to Italy with his own son.

This house was full of books, as well as paintings, drawings, and music and all the family seem not only ingenious and industrious, but amiable; added to which, they are strikingly handsome.

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Lord Mulgrave on the “Services.”

Bath.-I shall now skip to our arrival at this beautiful city which I really admire more than I did, if possible, when I first saw it.  The houses are so elegant, the streets are so beautiful, the prospects so enchanting, I could fill whole pages upon the

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general beauty of the place and country, but that I have neither time for myself, nor incitement for you, as I know nothing tires so much as description.

Monday.-Lord Mulgrave, Augustus Phipps, Miss Cooper, Dr. Harrington, and Dr. Woodward dined with us.

I like Lord Mulgrave(118) very much.  He has more wit, and a greater readiness of repartee, than any man I have met with this age.  During dinner he was all brilliancy, but I drew myself into a little scrape with him, from which I much wanted some of his wit to extricate myself.  Mrs. Thrale was speaking of the House of Commons, and lamenting that she had never heard any debates there.

“And now,” said she, “1 cannot, for this General Johnson has turned us all out most barbarously.”

“General Johnson?” repeated Lord Mulgrave.

“Ay, or colonel—­I don’t know what the man was, but I know he was no man of gallantry.”

“Whatever he was,” said his lordship, “I hope he was a land officer.”

“I hope so too, my lord,” said she.

“No, no, no,” cried Mr. Thrale, “it was Commodore Johnson.”

“That’s bad, indeed said Lord Mulgrave, laughing.  “I thought, by his manners, he had belonged to the army.”

“True,” said I “they were hardly polished enough for the sea.”