Memoirs of the Private Life, Return, and Reign of Napoleon in 1815, Vol. IFleury de Chaboulon, Pierre Alexandre Édouard, baron
History
Memoirs of the Private Life, Return, and Reign of Napoleon in 1815, Vol. I
Fleury de Chaboulon, Pierre Alexandre Édouard, baron
Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821 -- Elba and the Hundred Days, 1814-1815
Hardly had I gone down to the town, when he sent for me again. "I have
considered," said he, "that it is desirable that I should know what
regiments are stationed in the eighth and tenth military divisions,
and the names of the commanding officers. You will take care to
procure this information during your journey, and transmit it to me
without the slightest delay. Write triplicates of your letters. Send
one by way of Genoa, the second by Leghorn, and the third by Civita
Vecchia. You will take care to write this name legibly, (here he gave
me a memorandum containing the name of an inhabitant of the island).
Fold your letters in a business-like way. In order that the secret of
your correspondence may not be discovered, should any accident happen,
you will put your intelligence in the shape of commercial
transactions, and you will imitate the usual style of bankers. I will
suppose, for example, that between Chambery and Lyon, going by the way
of Grenoble, there are five regiments. You will write to me ... in my
way I have seen the five merchants whom you mentioned; their views
continue the same: your credit is increasing daily. The concern will
turn out well ... do you understand me?"--"Yes, Sire; but how am I to
send the names of the colonels and the generals in command?"--"Transpose
the letters of their names, and nothing will be more easy. There is
not a single colonel or general whom I do not know, and I shall soon
be able to recompose their names."--"But, Sire, the anagrams which I
shall make will perhaps be so uncouth, that it will be seen at the
post-office, that the names are disguised on purpose."--"Do you think
then, that they amuse themselves at the post-office by opening and
reading all the letters of business which pass through? They could not
get through them. I have attempted to unravel the correspondence
carried on under the disguise of banking transactions, but I could
never succeed. The post-office is like the police, only fools are
caught; yet think of any other method: I shall have no objection."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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