A.L.S. OF TALLEYRAND IN PARIS TO NAPOLEON I. AT BAYONNE CONGRATULATING HIM ON THE BIRTH OF NAPOLEON III., AT WHICH HE HAD BEEN PRESENT, APRIL, 1808.
LETTER SIGNED BY THE EMPRESS JOSEPHINE, 3 VENTOSE AN X (FEBRUARY 22, 1802).
I possess letters and documents signed by Napoleon in Egypt (1798-99), at Rambouillet (1807), at Bayonne (1808), and on a pardon (1812). Possibly the finest is on a letter written in 1805 from the camp at Boulogne. I paid £5 for this; it is worth at least five times as much now. Letters of most of Napoleon's Marshals vary in value from 10s. to 20s. The rarest are those of Desaix (killed at Marengo) and Poniatowski (drowned in the Elster in 1813). They are worth from £3 to £5. An autograph letter of the Duc d'Enghien would probably bring its owner £20. I gave £5 for a good L.S. Letters of Murat are worth from 15s. to 20s. I bought the letter written to Napoleon by him for 12s. 6d. in England. Letters of Eliza Bonaparte and Marshal Masséna are now somewhat hard to procure, as those of the former are purchased by an historian, while the present holder of the title of the Prince d'Essling is credited with being a liberal buyer of the MSS. of his gallant ancestor.
A.L.S. OF MARSHAL NEY, PARIS, DECEMBER 23, 1813.
