(Draft) 
{London, 18 July 1872] 

Citizen, 

In reply to your letter of 27 June, postmarked Florence 6 July, 
and which, not being correctly addressed, reached me not until 
the 16th of this month, I should advise you that we have no other 
flag than that of the world proletariat, the red flag. 

It would appear from the same letter that your society has 
constituted itself and considers itself as a section of the Interna- 
tional; it is therefore my duty to inform you that the General 
Regulations currently in force require the completion of a number 
of formalities before new sections can be admitted. 

Section II, Art. 4 states: 

Every new branch or society intending to join the International, 
is bound immediately to announce its adhesion to the General 
Council. The General Council has the right, etc. (Basle resolution). 

And in Section V, Art. 1: 

Every branch has the right to make particular rules and 
bye-laws, adapted to the local circumstances and the laws of its 
country; but these must in no respect contain anything contrary to 
the General Rules and Regulations (Geneva resolution). 

And since, according to Section II, Art. 2, ‘the General Council 
is bound to execute the resolutions of Congresses’, to which it is 
responsible, this General Council cannot recognise as sections of 
the International any societies other than those which have 
conformed to these articles, agreed to abide by the General Rules 
and Regulations of the Association, and whose Rules it has 
recognised as being in conformity with the General Rules and 
Regulations. We are sure that you have omitted to do this only 
because you were unaware of these rules, of which an authentic 
Italian edition does not exist. I therefore enclose a copy in French 
with the relevant articles marked in red. 

As the Congress is approaching (2 September, in The Hague,*”° 
Holland) we would also draw your attention to Article 7 of 
Section I, which states: ‘Only the delegates of such societies, 
sections or groups as form parts of the International, and shall 

have paid their contributions to the General Council (10 c. per 
member), will in future be allowed to take their seats and to vote 
at Congresses.’ 

Greetings and brotherhood.