Letter to Laura Lafargue, July 15, 1888

Author(s) Friedrich Engels
Written 15 July 1888


First published in full, in the language of the original (English), in: F. Engels, P. et L. Lafargue, Correspondance, t. II, Paris, 1956 and, in Russian, in Istorichesky Arkhiv, No. 2, 1956
Reproduced from the original
Published in English in full in Marx-Engels Collected Works, Volume 48


ENGELS TO LAURA LAFARGUE[1]

AT LE PERREUX

London, 15 July 1888

My dear Laura,

You ask why Schorlemmer cannot come too, and you hope to see Pumps over at Le Perreux. Well, I am afraid you will have your wish fulfilled and your question answered with a vengeance.

Pumps' boy having improved extra-rapidly, sudden resolutions were come to last Monday, and on Wednesday the lot—Jollymeier, Nim and Pumps, all three set off for Germany. Pumps to Paulis', Nim to St Wendel. And then, according to what was arranged here, Pumps and Schorlemmer are to take up Nim at St Wendel and all three start for Paris, where they will arrive somewhere about the 29th or 30th July— but they will let you know. Nim and Schorlemmer must be here again on Saturday, 4th August; Pumps talked of going from Paris to St Malo and Jersey where Percy intends taking the children.

How you will manage to quarter the lot of them is more than I know. But Nim thought you would get over that difficulty right enough. Anyhow you will be wanting some little cash for the occasion which I shall not omit sending you in time.

Last night your letter with Longuet's document came to hand—at the same time as Edward who is again brought to London by his dramatic industry. He is going to read two plays today to speculative actors (Alma Murray is one) who intend to invest in a bit of novelty. Of course Longuet is again counting without his host, as Edward and Tussy will be going to America for at least two months and I shall take my holiday as soon as Nim comes back—if he likes to leave Jean with Nim at my place, all right, and Nim would be glad of his company; but is that what Longuet contemplates? Anyhow Tussy will return the plaidoyer[2] to you and write, and you and Nim can settle the remainder.

What a nice mess that was which Boulanger and Floquet cooked betwixt the two of them the other day—Boulanger's coup de théâtre, pre-arranged in every detail and yet miscarried because he could not keep up his part to the end—Floquet's rage and invective where a cool reply would have been required—the insults, the duel, and le beau, le brave général worsted by an avocaû[3] ,2 Decidedly, if the Second Empire was the caricature of the First, the Third Republic is getting a caricature not of the First, but even the Second. Anyhow, let's hope this is the end of Boulanger, for if the popularity of that fool continued, it would drive the Czar[4] into the arms of Bismarck, and we don't want that any more than the Russo-French war of revanche. If the popular masses in France absolutely require a personal god, they had better look out for a different man, this one makes them ridiculous. But moreover it is clear that this desire for a sauveur de la société[5] , if really existing in the masses, is but another form of Bonapartism and therefore I really cannot bring myself to believe that it is as deeply rooted and vraiment populaire[6] as some people say. That our people fight the Radicals, well and good, that is their proper business, but let them fight them under their own flag. And as a journée[7] is only possible—so long as the people are unarmed—with the help of the Radicals[8] as on Carnot's election[9] ), our people have only the ballot-box to rely on for the present, and I do not see the advantage of having the voters' minds muddled by this plebiscitary Boulangism.[10]

Our business is not to complicate but to simplify and make clear the issues between the Radicals and ourselves. What little good Boulanger could do, he has done, and the chief good he did is to bring the Radicals to power. A dissolution would be a good thing—while a Radical govern- ment is in, upon whom we can exercise pressure; but Boulanger seems to me the least likely person to bring that dissolution about.

Here, after two fine days, it rains again cats and dogs since this morn- ing. This is really a solution—summer dissolved in rain water—which makes one dissolute and drives one to drink. In fact I shall go and open a bottle of Pilsener and drink your health. Sur ce, je vous embrasse. Bien a vous[11]

F. E.

  1. ↑ A brief excerpt from this letter was first published in French by the journal La Pensee, No. 61, 1955. For the first publication of this letter in English, see note 40.
  2. ↑ speech for the defence
  3. ↑ Engels' article 'The Labor Movement in America' opened the American edition of his The Condition of the Working Class in England, published in New York in 1887. That same year the article appeared, in Engels' German translation, under the heading 'Die Arbeiterbewegung in Amerika', in the Sozialdemokrat (10 and 17 June). In July separate prints, in German and English, were distributed in New York. The article was also published as a pamphlet in London (see present edition, Vol. 26) and, in French, in Le Socialiste (9, 16 and 23 July). Even before the publication of the book the article was, without Engels' knowledge, translated into German by Alexander Jonas, editor of the New Yorker Volkszeitung, and published in this paper in April 1887. Engels, displeased with the quality of the translation, lodged an official protest.
  4. ↑ Alexander III
  5. ↑ saviour of society
  6. ↑ truly popular
  7. ↑ showdown
  8. ↑ The Radicals were a parliamentary group in France in the 1880s and 1890s that emerged from the party of moderate republicans ('Opportunists', see note 199). The Radicals relied chiefly on the petty bourgeoisie and to some extent on the middle bourgeoisie; they upheld the bourgeois-democratic demands: a unicameral system of parliament, separation of the church from the state, a progressive income tax, limitation of the workday, among other social issues. The Radicals were led by George Clemenceau. This group transformed itself into the Republican Party of Radicals and Radical-Socialists (parti republicain radical et radical-socialiste') in 1901.
  9. ↑ The reference is to the resolution of a presidential crisis in France over the exposure of speculatory machinations committed by Daniel Wilson, son-in-law of President Jules Grevy (see note 168). Under public pressure J. P. Grevy had to tender his resignation on 1 December 1887. Nominated as candidates for the presidency were the moderate republicans M. F. Sadi Carnot, Jules EC. Ferry, Charles Louis de Freycinet, among others; the ultra Right nominated Felix Gustave Saussier. Ferry's candidacy elicited sharp protests from left-wing organisations and Paris workers. The Blanquists, headed by Emile Eudes, a former general of the Paris Commune, and Edouard Vaillant, a member of the municipal council, joined hands with the Guesdists (see note 33) and organised several meetings and demonstrations against Ferry's candidature. After the first round of the election Ferry and Freycinet withdrew their candidacies in Marie Francois Carnot's favour, who was then elected president.
  10. ↑ Plebiscitary Boulangism was a description that Engels gave to Boulanger's attempt to obtain a deputy's mandate from many departments of France. Making use of the voting 'according to the lists' (see note 254), Boulanger nominated his candidacy in any department where a deputy's seat happened to be vacant. As soon as a new vacancy was open, Boulanger relinquished his mandate so as to run for Parliament in another department. Boulangeoped that with the aid of such tricks he would appear an elected representative of the entire nation. Boulanger's victory at the election of 1889 compelled the French government as early as 31 January 1889 to table a draft bill on restoring the old system of balloting in electoral constituencies. This bill was approved and came into effect on 13 February. On 17 July 1889 Parliament passed yet another law whereby no one could be elected deputy other than in one constituency only.
  11. ↑ Meanwhile the best of love Ever yours