188 A HISTORY OF GARDENING IN ENGLAND 
England with St. Albans, he might have been returning home. 
It runs as follows i 1 
After &c. Hauing rec d his Ma ties warr 4 , the Copie whereof I herew th 
transmitt to yow, w ch is as followeth : Our will and pleasure is y 4 yo w 
giue imediate order to y e Farmors of o r Customes or such others 
whome it may concerne to suffer and pmitt-[blank] Le Nostre our 
Architect to transport hue geldings & one mare into France w th out 
paym 4 of Custome or other duty ft: y 4 yow make allowance for ye 
same vpon ye Account of y e said Farm ors for w ch this shalbe yo r 
warr 4 . Giuen at o r Court at Whitehall the 21st day of Octob r in 
y e 14 th yere of o r Raigne. These are to will and pray yow to pmitt 
the said Le Nostre to transport y e said hue geldings and mares into 
France w 4h out paym 4 of Custome or other Duty accordingly. And 
allowance thereof shalbe made vnto yow vpon yo r Accounts. And 
y e Audito r s are to allow ye same accordingly for doing whereof this 
shalbe a sufficient warr 4 . Giuen at South ton howse ye 25 th of 
Octob r 1662. 
T. Southampton. 
To y e Farmo r s of his Ma ties Customes, &c. 2 
The finding of this document gave renewed hopes of pro¬ 
curing incontestable evidence, and all the bills, warrants, and 
payments between May and October, 1662, were further 
searched, but without success. It therefore yet remains to be 
proved that Le Notre was on this side of the Channel, and that 
the horses were not being sent over to him. If he was here, it 
is extremely unusual that no record of any expense being in¬ 
curred on his behalf is recorded. Nothing seems too trivial for 
these interesting Treasury bundles. When the King was to 
receive “ some trees, a basket of cheeses, and a case of wine,” 
Lord St. Albans made a formal request for the Dover packet 
to bring them from Calais ; 3 and when again, in 1663, Charles II. 
was going to the City, Adrian May is agitated lest the park in 
his charge should be damaged, and the letter to the Lord 
Mayor’s secretary is extant, in which he “ begs that the park 
may be spared, and that His Majesty will come by Charing 
Cross.” 4 The absence of records with regard to Le Notre 
1 Treasury Miscellaneous Warrants, vol. x., p. 137. 
2 The next entry is a warrant to “ suffer the servants of Walter 
Mountague, Lord Almoner,” to the Queen, to transport twelve horses 
for his use in France free of custom (October 20). 
3 Calendar of State Papers, 1661-1662. 
4 I hid., Domestic, vol. lxxx., No. 120. 
