Letter to Karl Marx, November 5, 1867

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To Marx in London

Manchester, 5 November 1867

Dear Moor,

Enclosed placed in the Elberfelder Zeitung by Siebel. It is such a pity that the poor devil, who will probably be arriving here tomorrow, will have to leave straight away, he would probably have arranged a few more things. However, I will see what else he can do, perhaps something will be possible nonetheless.

Notre ami Kugelmann appears to have miscalculated in respect of the Hanoverian newspapers, too — at least, to my utter astonishment I discovered one of the articles sent him, and the tamest of them at that, shortened and mutilated to boot, in the Zukunft! We hardly needed amicum for that, and at all events I would have written differently for that paper. But I was writing for the national-liberal papers he had boasted about.

We must adopt a different approach. Have you Liebknecht’s present address, or alternatively his old one in Leipzig? If you let me have it, I will spur him on a bit. I now realise that I shall have to write all the articles myself (Eccarius could probably also do one); the people on the Continent are finding the book is still lying too heavily on the stomach, and, if we are to wait until they have digested it, the opportunity will have been missed. I shall write to Kugelmann again, too, asking him at least what he has done with the other article and whether he can place any more. You must write to Meissner and ask whether he can place any if they are sent to him, and where. In addition, I shall write to Klein in Cologne about the Rheinische Zeitung, and offer an article if need be. It is a dreadful handicap not being on the spot oneself. If we were in Germany, we should already have created a stir in all the papers, and have managed to get the book denounced, which is always the best thing.

Louis in Paris does not know which way to turn. What a mess he has got himself into! Either another retreat or war on behalf of the Pope. I can hardly believe that he has really served the Italians an ultimatum to evacuate Roman territory, no more than I can believe that he can let things rest with Moustier’s churlish note. In either case, he is foutu [done for]. The present mood in Paris was shown at the cimetière Montmartre. Things may begin to happen any day now, and I hardly believe that the great man will celebrate another 2 December, or at least it will probably be for the last time. He is in such a bad way that even the philistines here only treat him as a common adventurer now.

If the storm does break, however, the revolution will everywhere be faced with a quite different situation from 1848. After last year, the disorganisation of that time will be out of the question in Germany, and even if an immediate violent uprising in Berlin has little chance, the impact of events would provoke clashes there, too, which would inevitably end in the downfall of the present regime. Monsieur Bismarck would very soon lose command of the situation. And then this time England would be dragged in straightaway and above all the social question would at once become the burning issue throughout Europe.

Yesterday Blackburn showed the depths to which the English judges have sunk when he asked the witness Beck (who had first sworn to William Martin, but said afterwards that it was John M.): Then, you swore to William, and you meant to swear to John? The whole prosecution will, I believe, crumble increasingly with each new batch of accused, the amount of perjury to get the £200 reward is quite incredible.

Can you tell me where I can find more details about Lord Abercorn’s evictions?

Louis in Paris would once more have to mind bombs and bullets. The Italians are not to be trifled with.

I shall return the Courriers to you tomorrow if I can.

Kindest regards to your wife, the girls and the lovelorn cobbler [Paul Lafargue].

Your
F. E.