| Author(s) | Friedrich Engels |
|---|---|
| Written | 3 April 1891 |
ENGELS TO PAUL LAFARGUE
AT LE PERREUX
London, 3 April 1891
My dear Lafargue,
Thank you for your letter, which is of great interest,[1] firstly be- cause we must be au courant with things of this kind if we are to be ade- quately armed vis-à-vis Hyndman; next because the tactics you have adopted are precisely those recommended by Marx to the Germans in 1875 vis-à-vis the Lassalleans 63 and I shall be able to make good use of this, should need arise, to show that in 1875 the Germans could have pursued a line of conduct different from the one they then fol- lowed; and thirdly for the reason given to Laura.[2] But this last you have misunderstood. If you care to re-read my letter, you will see that I only discuss the prospects for an acceptable future after the Brussels Congress. ' 3 5 Never mind the letters Liebknecht is writing to you just now; you ought to know him well enough to realise that he can face one way and then another in the twinkling of an eye. For the past twenty years his policy abroad has been to maintain connections in- dependent of those that Marx and I were able to secure for him. Ab- road, as at home, he likes to form his own personal party of people whom he has placed under an obligation. Nor is he overparticular. Cast your mind back to the Buffenoir affair. 2 ' ' He will behave no dif- ferently the moment new connections become available to him. And since, at Brussels, his last remaining reasons for keeping aloof from the Possibilists 3 and Hyndman will doubtless disappear, it should come as no surprise to you if he approaches those gentlemen in order to use one lot as a counterweight to yourselves and the other to hold the scales against us over here. Were that to happen, it could well be of vital importance that I should intervene at an appropriate moment and for that I should have to be prepared in advance. If it doesn't hap- pen, so much the better.
The £50 from the Calais net-makers have made a deep impression but, as you know, the English are a MATTER OF FACT people and if inter- national cordiality is to be maintained, it would be better not to re- strict the generosity of the French working man to the foregoing. What would create an excellent impression over here would be if a sum of money were to be sent by a French trades union which has jet to receive a contribution from England. That would be an example of French initiative which would be much appreciated here.
Sam Moore has arrived in good health; he has had himself exam- ined by Gumpert who declared him PERFECTLY soum apart from a slight swelling of the spleen, which he hopes to cure before long. Unfortu- nately Sam arrived at his parents' place in the Derbyshire Peak District just in time for the snow, which is none too good for a man arriving from the tropics. He will be here next week.
The assassination in Sofia 2 ' 2 was undoubtedly a Russian exploit, but, since they missed Stambulov, who was the real target, it prob- ably won't lead to anything much. Otherwise we might have seen a bit of EXCITEMENT and I'm very glad that that hasn't happened. For I have grave doubts about the Paris public's powers of resistance to a chauvinist outcry at a time of crisis, just as I have doubts about my Berliners in similar circumstances. Neither Bismarck nor Boulanger are so dead as to be incapable of resuscitation by the virtual inevita- bility of war.
Your tactics towards the two Possibilist sections are the best you can adopt in the circumstances. Since you are in a minority in Paris, you must set one lot off against the other and gradually attract the masses. Besides, there are divergencies of principle which entitle you to refuse a merger pure and simple.
Where on earth in the Socialiste is the letter from Rouen of which you speak? I have searched through every number from 11 February to 1 April and found nothing.2 ' 3
Louise and Schorlemmer send their best wishes to you and Laura, as does
Yours,
F.E.
Schorlemmer has nearly recovered from his cold, though he looks somewhat tired.
We expect you next week so that Sam can retail to you all manner of things about your Negro relations.