I am mortified to realise that I didn't spot an obvious error made by Americans on the subject of tea. Not their first, and probably not their last. From my earlier post:
American experts advise that one does not “take” tea; that being a vulgar expression of the lower classes. One “drinks” tea.
A letter in today's Times points out the mistake:
Sir, “Taking” tea, “a vulgar expression of the lower classes”? (“How dare you dunk”, August 8). I quote Pope: “Here thou, great ANNA! whom three realms obey, Dost sometimes counsel take — and sometimes Tea.”
DR A. W. HARRISON-BARBET, Bandon, Co Cork
Pope doesn't say what Queen Anne did with her little finger.
Update: Paul has reminded me that the queen had favourites. I hope that doesn't make her a Bad Queen, as well as a dead one. From 1066 And All That:
"Finally the Orange... was succeeded by the memorable dead queen, Anne. Queen Anne was considered rather a remarkable woman and hence was usually referred to as Great Anna, or Annus Mirabilis. The Queen had many favourites (all women), the most memorable of whom were Sarah Jenkins and Mrs Smashems, who were the first wig and the first Tory... the Whigs being the first to realize that the Queen had been dead all the time chose George I as King."
