Chapter FourThe Marquis, thanks to his brilliant organisation, reached his yacht at Greenwich before noon the following morning.
He had made all his arrangements before he did so. He had written very plausible letters to his friends such as Willy, telling them that he had heard of a sale of pictures in Amsterdam that he must attend.
He wrote,
“The King pointed out to me recently that I was short of Dutch Masters in my Picture Gallery and this was certainly a smear on what I intend to be the most comprehensive private Picture Gallery in England.
You will understand therefore that there was nothing else I could do, having heard of this particular sale, but leave for Holland immediately. ”
When he had finished it, he read the letter through again and decided that it sounded convincing.
