London, [29 March 1864] 
1 Modena Villas, Maitland Park, 
Haverstock Hill, N.W. 

Dear Uncle, 

I presume all of you are already or still in Aachen, and am 
therefore sending this letter there. Had you decided to wait for 
the fine weather, you’d have had to stay at Bommel until now. 
Here, at any rate, March has been gurre abominable, apart from one 
or two fine days—cold, wet, and changing from one moment to 
the next. This may be one reason why I haven't so far rid myself 
of those confounded brutes, my furuncles. I curse them, but 
under my breath. 

Little Eleanor has had a rather bad cough for the past two days 
which is what is preventing her from writing to you. However, she 
asks me to send you many salutations and, *in regard to the 
Danish Question, begs me to tell you, that ‘she don’t care for such 
stuff, and that ‘she considers one of the parties to the quarrel as 
bad as the other, and perhaps worse’ *. 

The difficulty about understanding Prussia’s policy is due solely 
to people’s delusion in crediting it with serious and far-sighted 
aims and projects. The Mormon Bible,”” for instance, is similarly 
most difficult to understand, precisely because there isn’t an iota 
of sense in it. What Prussia was primarily aiming at was to make 
the army popular, an aim which the Schleswig-Holstein campaigns 

were already having to subserve in 1848.°° Secondly, she was 
intent on closing the territory against German volunteer forces, 
democrats and the small states. Finally, Prussia and Austria, by 
€Xerting PRESSURE FROM WITHOUT, Were to enable the Danish king,? who 
is hand in glove with them, to compel the Danes to make certain 
concessions at home and abroad. Austria could not, of course, 
leave Prussia to play this role on her own, and, at the same time, 
seized on the opportunity to effect a closer alliance with her 
against OTHER PERIPETIES. 

The conference meets in London on 12th Apri The very most 
it will do is resolve that Schleswig and Holstein be bound to 
Denmark in a personal union— maybe less, certainly not more. How 
little in earnest the whole affair is, despite powder, shot and 
blood-letting, will be apparent to you if only from the fact that, up 
till this moment, neither Prussia nor Austria has declared war on 
Denmark, nor Denmark on Prussia and Austria. There is no 
better way of throwing dust in people’s eyes than to set armies 
marching, horses stamping, and cannon thundering. 

Despite ALL THAT, SERIOUS CONFLICTS May BE IMMINENT. Once again, 
Bonaparte finds himself virtually compelled to set his troupiers up 
in business as ‘freedom’ exporters because of the great pisarrECTION 
which is not only prevalent in Paris, but provokingly rearing its 
head in the elections.*” And this time, the way has been paved for 
him by those dogs .of Prussians. 

Garibaldi’s trip to England and the great ovations he will receive 
FROM ALL sipes here’? are, or at least are meant to be, merely the 
prelude ro a xew risinc acainst Austria. As an ally of the Prussians in 
Holstein and Schleswig and an ally of the Russians by virtue of the 
state of siege in Galicia,’ Austria has made things very easy for 
her enemies. What with the present conditions in Poland, 
Hungary, and Italy, the popular sentiment in Germany, and the 
total change in England’s position, a new Holy Alliance! would 
enable even Napoleon le Petit? to play the great one. At this. 
moment, the best thing would be for peace to continue, for any 
kind of war would delay the outbreak of revolution in France. 

May God damn ME IF THERE BE ANYTHING MORE STUPID THAN THIS POLITICAL 
CHESSBOARD! 

There were two other things I had actually meant to write to 
you about—Roman division and darkness in outer space. But as 
the light is failing, my paper is running out and it’s almost time 

| 577 

“ Christian EX - > the Little, ie. Louis Bonaparte. The nickname derives from Victor 
Hugo’s pamphlet Napoléon le Petit.