Letter to Friedrich Adolph Sorge, December 7, 1889

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To Friedrich Adolph Sorge in Hoboken

London, December 7, 1889

Dear Sorge

Letters of 8 and 29 October received. Thanks.

Things won’t turn out so well that the Socialist Labor Party will go into liquidation. Rosenberg has a lot of heirs besides Schewitsch, and the conceited doctrinaire Germans over there certainly have no desire to give up the position they have arrogated to themselves to teach the ‘immature’ Americans. Otherwise they would be nobodies.

Here in England one can see that it is impossible simply to drill a theory in an abstract dogmatic way into a great nation, even if one has the best of theories, developed out of their own conditions of life, and even if the tutors are relatively better than the S.L.P. [Socialist Labour Party of North America.] The movement has now got going at last and I believe for good. But it is not directly Socialist, and those English who have understood our theory best remain outside it: Hyndman because he is incurably jealous and intriguing, Bax because he is only a bookworm. Formally the movement is at the moment a trade union movement, but utterly different from that of the old trade unions, the skilled labourers, the aristocracy of labour.

The people are throwing themselves into the job in quite a different way, are leading far more colossal masses into the fight, are shaking society much more deeply, are putting forward much more far-reaching demands: eight-hour day, general federation of all organisations, complete solidarity. Thanks to Tussy [Eleanor Marx Aveling] women’s branches have been formed for the first time – in the Gas Workers and General Labourers’ Union. Moreover, the people only regard their immediate demands themselves as provisional, although they themselves do not know as yet what final aim they are working for. But this dim idea is strongly enough rooted to make them choose only openly declared Socialists as their leaders. Like everyone else they will have to learn by their own experiences and the consequences of their own mistakes. But as, unlike the old trade unions, they greet every suggestion of an identity of interest between capital and labour with scorn and ridicule this will not take very long.

I hope the next general election will be deferred for another three years — 1. So that during the period of the greatest war danger Gladstone, the lackey of the Russians, should not be at the head of affairs; this might already be a sufficient reason for the Tsar [Alexander III] to provoke a war. 2. So that the anti-Conservative majority becomes so large that real Home Rule for Ireland becomes a necessity, otherwise Gladstone will cheat the Irish again, and this obstacle — the Irish question — will not be cleared away. 3. However, so that the labour movement may develop further and perhaps mature more rapidly as a result of the set-back caused by the business recession which will certainly follow the present period of prosperity. The next parliament may then comprise 20 to 40 labour deputies, and moreover of a very different kind from the Potters, Cremers and Co.

The most repulsive thing here is the bourgeois “respectability” which has grown deep into the bones of the workers. The division of society into a scale of innumerable degrees, each recognised without question, each with its own pride but also its native respect for its “betters” and “superiors,” is so old and firmly established that the bourgeois still find it pretty easy to get their bait accepted. I am not at all sure, for instance, that John Burns is not secretly prouder of his popularity with Cardinal Manning, the Lord Mayor and the bourgeoisie in general than of his popularity with his own class. And Champion — an ex-lieutenant — has intrigued for years with bourgeois and especially with conservative elements, preached Socialism at the parsons’ Church Congress, etc. Even Tom Mann, whom I regard as the finest of them, is fond of mentioning that he will be lunching with the Lord Mayor. If one compares this with the French, one can see what a revolution is good for after all. However, it will not help the bourgeoisie much if they do succeed in enticing some of the leaders into their toils. The movement has been far enough strengthened for this sort of thing to be overcome.

The 4th edition has been finished and is printing.

Rappaport has been sent to Kautsky. Anyone with such an appalling name must be capable of every kind of nonsense.

Little Hepner is such a clever and, in his own eyes, such an impartial, and at the same time such an impractical, little chap (what the Jews call Schlemihl—a born Jonah) that I’m surprised he hasn’t long ago come to grief out there. It’s a pity about the little fellow, but there’s nothing we can do.

Time has now been bought by Bax, who has also, I believe, arranged everything with the Avelings. But it depends on what Bax makes of it. For all his talent and good intentions, Bax is an unknown factor—an impractical academic who has plunged himself into journalism and been somewhat thrown off balance as a result. Add to that his peculiar notion that nowadays it is men who are downtrodden by women.

Your catalogue of the Tribune articles by Marx is doubtless buried under a mountain of unsorted letters. I have got the Tribune articles pasted in somewhere, but whether they are complete I can’t say just now. I only came upon them again this autumn.

Strictly between you and me, I have only just heard that, before leaving here, Schlüter’s wife apparently alleged that Kautsky had elbowed Schlüter out of his post. If she should say anything of the sort out there, there is no truth whatever in it. Schlüter resigned of his own accord and his resignation was accepted by the parliamentary group in Germany. He had a personal quarrel with Motteler, with whom no one can get on, but who is of great value to the party leadership because of his absolute and universally acknowledged reliability in money matters. If on this occasion Schlüter didn’t get from Ede Bernstein all the support he might have expected, the blame rested partly with Ede but also partly with Schlüter himself. Our thoughts only turned to Kautsky as a replacement for Schlüter in the post of archivist after Schlüter’s resignation. I would not have bothered you with this tittle-tattle, but now feel obliged to do so.

A fortnight ago a long letter arrived from Sam Moore. He finds the district salubrious, the situation very fine, and the company tolerable, subscribes to a whole lot of periodicals, but nevertheless would already appear to be looking forward to 1891 and his 6 months’ leave in Europe.

In Germany things are going swimmingly; little Willie is an even more proficient agitator than Bismarck, the miners of the Ruhr are certainly ours, those of the Saar soon will be, and the Elberfeld trial, with its revelations about mouchards is also doing its bit. In France our parliamentary group now numbers 8 men, amongst whom 5 of the delegates to the Marxist congress in Paris, Guesde is their secretary and prepares their speeches for them. There is once more some prospect of a daily paper. The group is going to put forward as a motion the resolutions taken by the congress. Everywhere work is under way for May Day 1890.—In Austria things are also going very well, Adler has managed splendidly and the anarchists there are done for.

I, too, am well, my eyes have improved and if this goes on until the end of January, through the period of fog and shorter days, I shall be able to work at a brisker pace again. Tussy is busy with the Silvertown strike,549 which would have been over long ago had it not been neglected by Burns & Co.

Cordial regards to your wife,

Your

FE.