London, 31 March 1884 

My dear Laura, 

Even if it had not been for Paul’s letter this morning, this afternoon 
was set apart for a letter to you. I am so bothered and pestered just 
now that not only my time, but also my room and my desk are not my 
own, On Monday last* we got clear of 41 Maitland Park Road, paid 
Willis and gave him the key. '*° What furniture there was left, is in 
Gittens’ hands, they offered £ 12.10.- but advised a sale— we are try- 
ing to get £ 15.- out of them to have done with it; this will be attend- 
ed to this week. Then I have been busy with the books, and was get- 
ting clear——two more days would have settled the heavy work — 
when lo! the landlord sends the painters to do the house outside, and 

2 24 March 

here we are, three dawdling fellows in the house, all windows open, 
every room invaded at the most unexpected hours, and to crown all, 
a bleak east-wind blowing inside as well as outside. That I got as fine 
a specimen of rheumatism as could be wished for, was only natural. 
Fortunately, if the dawdlers keep possession of the house even now, 
the east-wind has left us and so has, more or less, the rheumatism; and 
I am promised possession of my room for to-day,—on condition of 
giving it up to-morrow. So let us enjoy the present while it lasts. 

Nim says there is such a weight off her mind now since the old 
house is done with that she at last can sleep again, it was a nightmare 
for her which even an occasional nightcap of ‘Irish’ could not drive 
away. Our place has much changed, two of my book-cases have gone 
below, the piano is in the corner between the fire-place and folding 
door (in the front room), the other corner filled up by one of Mohr’s 
book-cases, while his large book-case (that behind his sofa) now takes 
the place where the piano stood in the back room. As soon as the 
painters will have cleared out, I shall finish the sorting of the last heap 
of books, and then try and get off the last box of books, for you, there 
is a nice little lot of things relating to the French Revolution, Lousta- 
lot, Feuzlle Villageoise, Prisons de Paris pendant la Révolution,?°% 
etc., etc. 

I have settled with Meissner that the 2nd book (Zirkulationsprozess 
des Kapitals*) is to be published first separately; as soon as the gross 
work is finished, I can begin. The 3rd book will follow, along with 
Theorien tiber den Mehrwert,” a long critical work forming part of the 
Jirst ms. of the Kapital (1862) which I have discovered. !7! The En- 
glish translation is going on slowly, Sam has too much law-work to 
attend to, and is too conscientious to hurry on with it, ‘regardless of 
quality’. °° 

The movement here is showing more and more of its emptiness 
every week. Justice drives me to despair by its utter incapacity of tack- 
ling even one single question. To-Day will live this next month en- 
tirely by Davitt and Paul who you will have been glad to learn from 
Justice is the first living authority on French peasant property. ?°6 
These fellows cannot even give a man his due without trying to make 
him look ridiculous. Bax and Aveling are the only two, as far as I can 
see at present, of whom something can be made; but Bax has Kant on 
the brain and Aveling in order to live, has to keep a good many irons 

* The Process of Circulation of Capital- » Theories of Surplus Value 

in the fire and is a perfect novice in everything relating to political 
economy. Paul will no doubt see Bax at Roubaix '°5; he and a work- 
ingman* have been delegated by the Democratic Federation, °° 
much against Hyndman’s will who has lately made several attempts 
at forcing his personal plans and dodges upon them, but was ignomin- 
iously defeated: so he opposed sending delegates to Roubaix as he 
wanted to keep open the chance of a connexion with Brousse and Co. 
That fellow will not go far: he cannot bide his time. 

I am afraid Paul will be disappointed with regard to a German del- 
egate to Roubaix; unless Liebknecht does come’; but as he has 
promised to do so, it is not likely. The others do not speak French, ex- 
cept perhaps Bernstein, and him the deputies are sure not to send, as 
they mostly hate him, and would replace him in Zurich if they could 
and dared. Thanks to the great accession of petit bourgeois — 
gebildete Schafsképfe,° our ‘leaders’ in Germany have become a sorry 
lot. Anyhow I hope Roubaix will be a great success devant le public, * 
it will help on enormously; in the meantime I enclose the cheque 
£ 10.- and send you plenty of kisses from Nim and your affectionate 
old cripple 

F. Engels