{London,] 1 January 1878 

My dear Friend, 

I hope one good thing the new year will do—act beneficently 
upon your health. 

My best thanks for the Owen addresses and proclamations.* 

The Trafalgar Square meeting of Friday last was much more 
important than the newspaper reports would make it appear.” 
There was a gathering of at least 15,000-20,000 people. The 
Russian party, as represented by the Honourable Bradlaugh, 
Hales, Mottershead, Osborne, etc., was forced, after a tremendous 
hand to hand fight, to evacuate the place with torn dresses, 
swollen eyes and broken noses. A dozen wounded were delivered 
to the next hospital. John Bull came out as a true bull and not as a 
lamb. The Turkish party was in overwhelming majority. Entre 
nous, I had somewhat my hand in getting up this demonstration, 
as, in point of fact, I have since many, many months acted 
through some British workmen and ci-devant> workmen upon the 
very diversified layers of the Pro-Turkishers. But, of course, if I 
had made the least public move, the whole thing would have been 
spoilt. In such national affairs no foreigner must appear. If he 
thinks it his duty to do something, he must do so secretly, behind 
the scenes, by a few natives upon whose discretion he can rely. 
One day I shall tell you [about] the very strange relations into 
which I have thus entered with British Grandees who would get 
into a white rage if they had the least suspicion under whose 
advice they were acting. 

a See this volume, pp. 262-63. - > former 

I have received letters and prints from Russia.*°*’ The misery 
now prevailing there is truly shocking. Save the governmental 
dependents and the by no means strong fraction of Pan-Slavists, 
discontent is universal. They had hoped peace would be at once 
concluded after the fall of Plevna.**° 

As to Turkey, the great danger for her is Mahmud Damad who 
alone is responsible for the failure of the first campaign. This fact 
is known at Constantinople, and I wonder whether some fanatical 
Softas'*° will not have the good sense to ‘extinguish’ that 
scoundrel. As Hobbes said: The equality of men is. proved by this 
... that the smallest man, the weakest man, can in one way or other 
kill the tallest, the biggest one.* 

Apart from all incidents of war, with the help of that model 
administration the Russians owe, the winter in Bulgaria will 
decimate their army. Already all their pontoon-bridges, save that 
of Zimnicea (which also will not stand the repeated attacks of the 
Danube ice), are swept away, and, by the by, they will be cut off 
from Wallachia. 

In France the Dufaure cabinet will not last long. The discovery 
of the military conspiracy will kill it. 

The whole family send you their new year wishes and you know 
that they come from the heart. 

Yours most devotedly, 
Karl Marx