After the battle of Waterloo, the Duke of Wellington received, as a present from the nation, £400,000 and a palace at the entrance of Hyde Park.
With reference to the grants to the famous Duke of Marlborough, that great general, who filled the hearts of his enemies with terror, and the pockets of his family with the money of his countrymen, and whose descendants still receive from the state the sum of £4000 a year, Swift compares, in the Examiner, the generosity of the Romans with the generosity of the English:
A Bill of Roman Gratitude.
| For frankincense, and earthen pots to burn it in, | $22.50 |
|---|---|
| A bull for sacrifice, | 40.00 |
| An embroidered garment, | 250.00 |
| A crown of laurel, | .05 |
| A statue, | 500.00 |
| A trophy, | 400.00 |
| A thousand copper medals, value half-penny apiece, | 10.20 |
| A triumphal arch, | 2500.00 |
| A triumphal car, | 500.00 |
| Casual charges at the triumph, | 750.00 |
| Total, | $4972.75 |
A Bill of British Gratitude.
| Woodstock, | $200,000.00 |
|---|---|
| Blenheim, | 1,000,000.00 |
| Post-office grant, | 500,000.00 |
| Mildenheim, | 150,000.00 |
| Pictures, jewels, etc., | 300,000.00 |
| Pall Mall grant, | 50,000.00 |
| Employments, | 500,000.00 |
| Total, | $2,700,000.00 |
John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough, was pocketing these $2,700,000 about the time when Fléchier, comparing Turenne to Maccabæus, was able to say of him, "that he would never accept any other reward, for the services he rendered to his country, than the honor of having served her."
It is not at the Abbey of Westminster, it is on the façade of the Bank of England that there ought to be written:
HERE ENGLAND SHOWS HER GRATITUDE TO HER GREAT MEN.