A ROYAL DRINK 



and Pastimes, and I am indebted to the publishers 

 of the latter for their courtesy in permitting its 

 repetition here. 



The fame of the old sportsman reached the 

 ears of the late King, then Prince of Wales, when 

 he was an undergraduate at Oxford, and one day, 

 when out with the South Oxfordshire, his Royal 

 Highness, knowing that Joseph would appreciate 

 it, good-naturedly determined to give him a call 

 and taste his ale. The old man was in a fine 

 flutter when he found who had pulled up at his 

 door for a drink. In double-quick time, and a 

 high state of excitement, he was outside with a 

 jug of foaming ale in one hand and a horn in the 

 other. Advancing to his Royal Highness, who 

 was mounted, Harris, with a beaming face, was 

 just about to fill up the horn and hand it up to his 

 distinguished guest, when a sudden look of horror 

 came into his eyes, and he stood transfixed, as 

 though he had made some terrible discovery. 

 And so he had, for the awful truth had flashed 

 across him that, in his bustle and excitement, he 

 had clean forgotten to remove his head-gear. 

 Truly, he was in a dilemma, for, with both his hands 

 full, how could he uncover himself, and yet he felt 

 he daren't stand there in the presence of Royalty 

 as he was ! 



Happily, nature came to the rescue by un- 

 loosing his tongue, and setting free what was on 

 the tip of it, though without giving him time to 

 choose his words. Hence his pent-up feelings 

 found expression in the agonized appeal : " For 

 God's sake, somebody take my hat off ! " 



This was too much for either Prince or people 



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