KEW GARDENS GEORGE III 109 



was angry because Banks had " not kept faith with the 

 public/' who were led to expect that the flock would be 

 sold by public auction only. Yet Mr. Coke had been 

 allowed to purchase some independently. Now Mr. 

 Snart (whose status as an official at Windsor is not easily 

 identifiable) had managed this part of the business 

 with Banks's concurrence, but without satisfactory 

 explanations to the King. In reply to Sir Joseph's 

 reprobation of the unkindly charge, Mr. Greville wrote 

 the next day to say that all was calm again. ' The King 

 came up to me yesterday, and in great good-humour 

 said he now understood the business of the sheep better. 

 ... I am writing to desire you to forget the flurry, 

 which I trust has passed away ; and you need not renew 

 the recollection by any marked explanation just now." 



But Sir Joseph was not so easily mollified. He had 

 reason to believe that Snart had not dealt fairly with 

 him when reporting the business to the King. He sent 

 word to Snart that he was about to resign his connection 

 with the management of the King's flock, and wrote as 

 follows to Mr. Greville : 



(August 20, 1805.) 



" MY DEAR SIR, I enclose a justification of my conduct 

 respecting the sheep, drawn up as concisely as I am able 

 to do it. I hope it will not appear to you too long. 

 Whether you use it in the whole or in part, and the 

 manner in which you introduce it, I must leave wholly 

 to your prudence and friendship. This Flurry, as you call 

 it, appears to me deeper than meets the eye. The ex- 

 plosion was delayed from the time you first mentioned 

 the circumstance till the Catalogue gave a proper oppor- 

 tunity for a vent. It was not the ebullition of a moment, 

 but a concerted menace, or I am mistaken. 



" Great, therefore, as the misfortune will be to me 

 to lose His Majesty's good will, I must make up my mind 

 with fortitude to the event, whatever it may be ; and as 



