Letter to Karl Kautsky, September 29, 1892

Author(s) Friedrich Engels
Written 29 September 1892


First published in full in Aus der Frühzeit des Marxismus. Engels Briefwechsel mit Kautsky, Prague, 1935
Printed according to the book
Published in English for the first time in Marx-Engels Collected Works, Volume 49


ENGELS TO KARL KAUTSKY

IN STUTTGART

London, 29 September 1892

Dear Baron,

Ede and Gine are the most surprising people I have ever met. This morning a postcard dated Berne 27.9.92 with a view of the Schänzli arrived from them and at 1.30 this afternoon they burst in on me in person; both looked very well, especially Gine, despite the fact that she is still receiving treatment for her throat and, most important of all, Ede gives the impression of having got over his neurasthenia. Considering that they have of late been so extraordinarily efficient in the matter of supplying addresses, I shall steal a march on them by informing you that for the time being they are living at 23 Compton Terrace, Highbury, N., quite close to Highbury and Islington Station, NORTH LONDON RAILWAY.

Mehring's letter, which I return herewith, made it necessary for me to reply to him direct if I did not wish to give offence, which would, of course, never occur to me. I did so on the enclosed sheet, which kindly forward to him.[1]

I told Kovalevsky on Friday that he should send you the article.[2]

We see the Centralblatt[3] here at home and also at the Avelings. Evidently the Brauns of the male sex cannot help keeping one foot in the armchair socialist camp. RESPECTABILITY!

Since you have written to me about the article on the history of socialist organisations in England, I would commend Tussy to you, she being the only person capable of doing the thing with E. Aveling. The relevant literature is all very inadequate albeit voluminous, nor does it contain anything about what has actually happened and concerning which the public was supposed to be kept in ignorance. No one who was not a participant can express an opinion about it, i. e. be knowledgeable about individual events and record them objectively. Ede, for example, would have to go through all the numbers of Justice, To-Day, Labour Elector, Commonweal, etc. which appeared before his arrival in London, and even so he would have to ask Tussy to explain to him the significance of what had happened and in that case the whole thing would, after all, be at second hand. However it will be a ticklish job explaining this to Ede who has only just got over his neurasthenia and, since the matter is not urgent, I shall let it rest for the time being. You have seen more of Ede than I have and if you believe that the business would not upset him unduly, it might perhaps be best if the suggestion were to come from you. At all events I leave it in your hands.

Bebel's article,[4] on which I made the necessary comments in yesterday's letter,[5] is very good.

I fully agree that my article[6] should not have appeared until now. I don't even know whether the book has come out yet. Mendelson tells me he ordered it but received the reply that it was not yet available. There was a curious FABIAN review in the Daily Chronicle, mostly excerpts, running to 2½ columns.

From what C. Schmidt tells me, he has not succeeded in solving the puzzle. Nevertheless I shall wait and see what he says in the article.[7] His article on the Menger-Jevonsiad[8] was very nice. Unfortunately there's nobody one can place it with over here.[9]

Mehring's contributions, both the leaders[10] and the Lessing, strike me as quite excellent and I derive much enjoyment from them.

Your

F.E.

  1. ↑ See this volume, pp. 549-51.
  2. ↑ See this volume, p. 528.
  3. ↑ Sozialpolitisches Centralblatt
  4. ↑ A. Bebel, 'Ein internationaler Kongreß für den Achtstundentag', Die Neue Zeit, 11. Jg. 1892/93, 1. Bd., Nr. 2.
  5. ↑ See this volume, pp. 542-43.
  6. ↑ 'Introduction to the English Edition (1892) of Socialism: Utopian and Scientific'.
  7. ↑ C. Schmidt, 'Die Durchschnittsprofitrate und das Marx'sche Werthgesetz', Die Neue Zeit, 11. Jg. 1892/93, 1. Bd., Nr. 3, 4.
  8. ↑ C. Schmidt, 'Die psychologische Richtung in der neueren Nationalökonomie', Die Neue Zeit, 10. Jg. 1891/92, 2. Bd., Nr. 40, 41.
  9. ↑ See this volume, p. 526.
  10. ↑ From June 1891 Franz Mehring had contributed weekly editorials to Neue Zeit, providing a Marxist analysis of current political events. These articles formed an important stage in Mehring's development as a Marxist historian and journalist.