Letter to August Bebel, May 7, 1892

Author(s) Friedrich Engels
Written 7 May 1892


First published in: Marx and Engels, Works, First Russian Edition, Vol. XXIX, Moscow, 1946
Published in English for the first time in Marx-Engels Collected Works, Volume 49


ENGELS TO AUGUST BEBEL

IN BERLIN

London, 7 May 1892

Dear August,

So we can expect to see you here on Saturday,[1] a week today.[2]

Let's hope you instil so much confidence into Paulus[3] while afloat that he will regard the crossing via Ostend as a trial trip for the crossing to Chicago.[4] For if he plucks up enough courage, he could go straight on to Chicago by water all the way—from Liverpool to Montreal on the St Lawrence and thence through the Great Lakes, after which he would for ever be immune; for on the big, inland lakes even the most seasoned old salts are sea-sick and, when the four of us survived a storm on Lake Erie without being affected in that way,[5] we were regarded as prodigies by the entire company.

But if you imagine I now intend to reply to your three letters in detail and in writing, you are mistaken. Louise has just come back from town bringing with her a tremendous thirst, so that we have ventured on a second mid-morning glass of beer and are in exceedingly merry mood. For it is very warm outdoors and hence we must, to use a Prussian expression, bring about a change.

You will be meeting Mendelson and his wife[6] who were here last Sunday and will also be able to go and converse with them at their house.

The fact that we had good weather for May Day and you did not, serves you right. You should have been over here and then you'd have been able to see what it looks like when 600,000 people foregather in one place[7] ; it was really tremendous; and an impression like that leaves one in no state to sustain even such criticism as is called for by the deplorable scheming and squabbling before the event, and yet sustain it one must.

When you come over here, your doctor's orders will safeguard you against any sort of public speechifying, always assuming that you yourself abide by the said orders. You know how it is — anyone who lets himself be talked round on just one occasion, is lost for good and all.

Laura Lafargue writes to say that, while our chaps have so far been victorious in the French municipal elections[8] at a number of places, the real results, because of the second ballot, won't be known until next week. So far I haven't seen much about it in the press.

Well, mind you bring with you a pair of good horny hands; we have already written to the BOARD OF WORKS, instructing them to put at our disposal sufficient ancient trees in the parks of London to enable you to uproot at least one a day for your breakfast.[9]

Cordial regards from Louise.

Your

F.E.

  1. ↑ 14 May
  2. ↑ August Bebel and Paul Singer visited Engels in London approximately between 14 May and 1 June 1892.
  3. ↑ Paul Singer
  4. ↑ Paul Singer intended to visit Chicago as a member of a Berlin deputation in the summer of 1893.
  5. ↑ Engels toured the United States and Canada with Eleanor Marx-Aveling, Edward Aveling and Carl Schorlemmer in August-September 1888. For Engels' impressions of the journey see present edition, Vol. 26, pp. 581-86.
  6. ↑ Maria Mendelson
  7. ↑ Hyde Park
  8. ↑ At the municipal elections held in France between 1 and 8 May 1892 the Workers' Party scored a considerable success, polling over 100,000 votes and getting 635 socialists elected. In 26 towns the socialists obtained more seats than any other party and in Roubaix, Marseille, Narbonne and Toulon they headed the municipal councils.
  9. ↑ In his letter of 5 May 1892 Bebel told Engels that he was well again and could, if necessary, 'uproot a few oaks'.