| Author(s) | Friedrich Engels |
|---|---|
| Written | 26 August 1882 |
ENGELS TO MARX
IN LAUSANNE
Great Yarmouth, 26 August 1882
10 Columbia Terrace
Dear Moor,
Your[1] and Laura's letter arrived from Lausanne this morning, and I am using the lull momentarily prevailing in this room to write to you. This time it wasn't you who brought on the bad weather, but The New York Herald with its forecast of a depression. Whereas Tussy was able to attribute the previous bout of wet weather here to your undue proximity in Paris, we cannot but observe now that the latest change for the worse coincides precisely with your removal farther afield, and that on Wednesday evening we here were subjected to the same violent downpour as were you in Lausanne. This morning, too, there has been one shower after another, and there's still no sign of the 'FINER LATER ON' that was predicted.
An anathema upon Longuet and his tactlessness. But then, was it absolutely necessary, in a cold north-easter, to entertain Roy in the garden of all places?
The Egyptian campaign[2] is off to a good start. The Kölnische Zeitung goes so far as to maintain that the FORTS of Alexandria were silenced in 2½ hours and that the English had continued the bombardment for the remaining 5 hours simply with a view to destroying the city.— The rapid occupation of the Canal was nicely done, but as soon as I saw that upon embarking Wolseley had ostentatiously proclaimed the bombardment of Abukir to be his intention, the whole thing became clear to me and I was able to give Schorlemmer an exposé of the whole plan of campaign as presently being carried out. Since then I have seen from back numbers of the Kölnische Zeitung that the plan to march on Cairo via Ismailia had already been common knowledge in London 10 or 12 days beforehand,[3] so well had the secret been kept! The plan itself is still the most rational that could have been devised in the circumstances. However its execution won't be particularly rapid. Admittedly the clever English have sent field guns there, but not horses or mules for the teams. They are presently buying up mules in southern Europe and Africa. Ballons captifs[4] essential for reconnaissance in a flat, treeless country, were rejected, but are now being sent out belatedly. Reconnaissances in force were carried out against the fortified Egyptian position before Alexandria — senseless since no one is so stupid as to deploy in strength before a fortified position. The heroism at Shafuir is ludicrous — a five-hour engagement and 2 English wounded! Wolseley, who already has 30,000 men, is now calling for his third division, but this is still in process of mobilisation. And when it does arrive he will have barely enough in hand, once he has occupied Cairo and Alexandria, to clear the Delta and occupy the coastal towns. If Arabi is clever enough to parry each main blow and withdraw to Central and/or Upper Egypt, the affair could become extremely protracted. Apart from the fact that, given a somewhat early rise in the level of the Nile, a breaching of the dams can turn everything to water for the English. However, it is more than probable that the affair will be brought to a conclusion, not by military action, but by diplomatic collusion behind the scenes.
A nice little item: the merits of RED TAPE have been brought to light by C. W. Siemens in his capacity as president of the BRITISH ASSOCIATION. The metric system was, after all, legalised in England alongside the existing one some years ago. Moreover authentic copies of the original metre and original kilogram were sent for from Paris. But if anyone wants to obtain an authentic, standard copy of these units from the appropriate authority, the latter informs him that the relevant Act of Parliament neither entitles nor obliges it to provide one. If, however, you sell by metres or kgs that have not been authorised by the aforementioned authority, that is FRAUDULENT and criminal. So this prudent little omission nullifies the whole Act and basta, you're back where you started. Moreover, Siemens maintains that, since the introduction of the metric system on the Continent generally, the damage done to English industry by its adherence to the old system has been enormous; a great deal of machinery, etc., he says, is no longer exportable, because built in conformity with units other than metres and kgs.
I hope that your cough has abated and that you, too, may get some better weather at last. Watch out when travelling by steamer. In the evenings it is often cold and misty on the water. You'll probably have to continue to take care of yourself until the spring and then, when you have finally got rid of your bronchitis, some respiratory gymnastics in the mountains will see us round the corner.
In Vaud there is a splendid wine called Ivorne which I highly recommend, especially when it's old. Then they drink Cortaillod, a red from Neuchâtel, which has a slight sparkle; the froth forms a star in the centre of the glass; also pretty good. Lastly Veltliner (Valtellina), the best wine in Switzerland. Besides these the petit[5] Burgundy, Macon and Beaujolais were pretty good in my day[6] and not dear. Take heroic draughts of all these varieties and, when bored for long spells by your peregrinations, reflect that this is, after all, the only way to restore your former verve; though it may lie dormant for a little while, the day will come when it will be only too necessary to us. My regards to Becker[7] and Wröblewski if you see them.
Warmest regards from everyone here to you and Laura, who will be the recipient of my next letter.[8]
Your
F. E.