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Napoleon's Letters succeed in their aim of revealing the many sides of Napoleon's character, but they show in particular the man whose vanity was so prodigious that when exiled to the island of Elba, he referred to his 18 marines as "My Guard" and to his small boats as "the Navy." And anyone who wants to get on in the world at any cost will find in the Letters many a useful price tag, e.g.:
¶ "So long as a prince holds his tongue, his power is incalculable; he should never talk unless he knows he is the ablest man in the room."
¶ "When a king is said to be a good fellow, his reign is a failure."
¶ "To pack in small parcels has always been the hallmark of a fool."
¶ "Men put up with injury if it is not accompanied by insult."
* The only surviving ruling house: Sweden's Bernadottes.