Letter to the General Council of the International Working Men's Association in New York

Author(s) Frederick Engels
Written 13 August 1875


First published in Briefe und Auszüge aus Briefen von Joh. Phil. Becker, Jos. Dietzgen, Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx u. A. an F. A. Sorge und Andere, Stuttgart, 1906
Printed according to the manuscript
Published in English for the first time in Marx-Engels Collected Works, Volume 24

London, August 13, 1875

122 Regent's Park Road, NW

TO THE GENERAL COUNCIL

OF THE INTERNATIONAL WORKING MEN'S ASSOCIATION

Citizens!

The circulars[1] sent to me with the letter from Secretary Speyer (June 4, received 21st) have been put into circulation according to the instructions, and I have been able to do the following in the interests of the cause:

1. On account of its amalgamation with the Lasselleans and its over-generous policy in accepting new members—roughly 120— the Working Men's Society (German section) here[2] would not be suitable for confidential communications, unless one wished them to be published immediately. I therefore gave circulars to Lessner and Frankel, who agreed with me that the content was not suitable for official release to the Society, and that we should have to confine ourselves to communicating it to suitable persons, and work behind the scenes in other ways to promote the matter in question. Since it is fairly certain that no German workers will be sent to Philadelphia from here, it will not affect the practical consequences in any way.

2. Our friend Mesa from Madrid, who now lives in Paris, happened to be here when the circular arrived. He showed a keen interest in the matter; I translated the circular for him, and as he knows members of the committee that administers the subscriptions in Paris to the workers' donations to Philadelphia, I dare say that, with his well-known energy, he will be able to get something done. He is also sending it to Spain.

3. I could not send it to Belgium, as the whole Belgian International supports the Alliancists,[3] and it is not in our interests to communicate the plan to them. I have no addresses for Portugal and Italy. The Plebe of Lodi has virtually joined the Alliancists and would be quite capable of publishing the story straightaway.[4]

4. As Germany, Austria and Switzerland are not mentioned in the instructions, and the General Council has plenty of direct contacts with these countries,[5] I have taken no steps there, so as not to frustrate any action that may have been taken directly on the spot.

5. The circular has been very well received by all who have seen it, and the just proposal for a conference is universally regarded as the sole practical one. It appears impossible to us here, however, to hold a ballot on the issue. The Society here has already been mentioned. Other sections in England have all fizzled out; the best people have mostly left. In Denmark, France and Spain, where the International is officially prohibited, there can be no question of a ballot. In Germany there has never been a vote on anything like this and, after uniting with the Lassalleans, they have totally renounced the already loose connection with the International. In these circumstances, the American votes should be enough to cover the General Council if it tables the motion for a decision, especially since we know from a reliable source that the Alliancists are not holding a congress this year either (and probably never will again).

6. Would it not be a good thing if a brief announcement were placed in the European party newspapers around the time the exhibition opens, to the effect that: "Socialist workers visiting the exhibition in Philadelphia are asked to go to ... (address), where they will be put in touch with the Philadelphia party comrades", or if we founded a "committee for the accommodation of socialist workers, or to protect them against trickery" and published its address? The latter, in particular, would look very innocent, but a few private letters would suffice to make the true state of affairs known.


Fraternal greetings,

F. Engels

  1. ↑ Engels is referring to the confidential circular of the International's General Council ("An alle Sectionen und Mitglieder der IAA, New York, 16. Mai 1875"). The Council proposed changing the decision to hold a general congress in September 1875, adopted at the Geneva Congress of the International in 1873, and convening a congress or conference in July 1876 in Philadelphia (USA) during the world industrial exhibition there. This was a calculation to guarantee the security of working-class delegates from Europe
  2. ↑ The reference is to the German Workers' Educational Society founded in London in February 1840. After the establishment of the Communist League in 1847 its members played the leading role in the Society. During various periods of its activity die Society had branches in working-class districts in London. In 1847, 1849-50 and in the late 1850s-mid-1870s, Marx and Engels took an active part in the Society's work. Its members were involved in the activity of the International Working Men's Association. The Society at large joined the International in 1-865 as a section. It existed up to 1918, when it was closed down by the British government.
  3. ↑ On December 25-26, 1872 Brussels hosted the Congress of the Belgian Federation of the International, at which the anarchists had a majority. The Congress voted down the decisions of the Hague Congress, stated its refusal to maintain contacts with the General Council in New York, and resolved to support the decisions of the international congress of anarchists which was held in Saint-Imier on September 15, 1872 and which openly declared the split of the International. In a resolution of May 30, 1873, the General Council said that the Belgian Federation had, in consequence of its actions, dissociated itself from the International. For the Alliancists see Note 30.
  4. ↑ See this volume, pp. 174-78.— Ed
  5. ↑ The contacts of the General Council of the International in New York with Austria, Germany and Switzerland were maintained through Friedrich Adolph Sorge, who corresponded with Wilhelm Liebknecht, Johann Philipp Becker, Johann Schwarzinger and others.