The Duke of Wellington to General Macaulay.
"Paris, December 22, 1814.
"My dear Macaulay,—I received only yesterday your letter of the 9th, and I had already received one from Mr. Wilberforce on the same subject, to which I have written an answer. I am quite certain that he has nothing to say to the publication in question.
"It is, I believe, very true that secrecy in such a matter cannot be expected, but the people of England ought to advert to this circumstance when they are pushing their objects, and if they will have news and newspapers at their breakfasts they should show a little forbearance towards their Governments, if Foreign Courts are a little close towards their agents. In the case of the Slave Trade I could be successful in this country only by being secret, and in proportion as we should be secret. And in point of fact I have found the agents of this Government much more disposed lately to oppose our views than they were six weeks ago, and I have been reproached with having allowed what has been done to be published in our newspapers.
"I must observe also that though Mr. Wilberforce could not prevent what was published from appearing in the newspapers, Mr. Whitbread might have avoided to mention the subject at a public meeting held in London upon some other subject; but the truth is that we mix up our party politics with our philanthropy and everything else, and I suspect we don't much care what object succeeds or fails provided it affects the Ministers of the day.
"Matters here are apparently in the same state as when you went away, but I believe are really in a better state; the appointments of Monsieur Didule to the Police and of Marshal Soult to the War Department have done some good.
"Ever yours,
"Wellington."
Wilberforce was a member of a committee for the relief of the "poor German sufferers," the wounded Prussians in 1814-15. The translation of Marshal Blucher's letter to the Managing Committee after Waterloo is as follows.[37]
"Chatillon Sur Sambre,
"June 24, 1815.
"Are you now satisfied? In eight days I have fought two bloody battles, besides five considerable engagements. I have taken one fortress, and keep three more surrounded. Yesterday the worthy Wellington was with me: we are agreed, we go hand in hand: the blockaded fortresses will not stop our operations, and if the Austrians and Russians do not speedily push forward, we shall finish the game ourselves. Farewell, and remember me to all England.