London, 1 December 1892 
My dear Schorlemmer, 

My sincere thanks for your kind good wishes for a day that was happily 
spent.” Though I may not actually be fit for active service in the ‘glorious 
army’ as I enter on another year of my life, I am nevertheless in good health 
and, on the whole, robust and I think you are right in saying that for the time 
being I shall continue to pull my weight. 

To go by your latest information on Anschutz, it would certainly be best if 
we were to hear no more of him. Old Pfliger—a nephew of mine used to 
work in his laboratory—is, so far as I can judge, a real philistine and if, on 
top of that, Anschtitz’s father was a Prussian officer, that makes matters even 
worse, The fact is that it will be difficult to find the right man for Carl’s? 
biography, one who is not only a chemist but also a Social Democrat, and not 
only a Social Democrat but also a chemist and, what’s more, a chemist who 
has made a close study of the history of his discipline since Liebig’s day. 
Presumably we shall have to wait and see whether we can find that man or 
whether we must content ourselves with the two aspects of Carl being treated 
separately. I myself must above all else finally complete Volume II I of 
Capital and cannot see how I could break off just now—and on top of that 
there are also the proofs of the 2nd edition of Volume I] ! 

And then, too, we live in very turbulent times, what with the military 
affair, ’° the impending crisis in Germany, the Panama scandals °° and the 
crisis that has already set in in France as well as the crisis over Ireland that 
will almost certainly occur over here next spring. ”’ In times like these my 
correspondence increases twofold and threefold and if, on top of everything 
else, one is forbidden on account of one’s eyes to wield a pen by lamplight, 
how can one possibly manage? And as for daylight here in London in winter! 
We’re glad if we get four or five hours of it and often there’s none at all— 
gaslight all day because of the fog. 

* See this volume, pp. 37-38 - ° Carl Schorlemmer; see also this volume, p. 14 

But it can’t be helped and so long as things keep moving ahead in the 
outside world, one mustn’t complain. 
With my best compliments to your family, 

Yours, 
F. Engels 

Best wishes from Mrs Kautsky. 
I almost forgot to tell you that Pumps gave birth to a baby girl a fortnight 
ago last Sunday; both are doing well.