[London,] 23 July 1877 

Dear FRrep, 

The enclosed Journal des Débats is already a bit out of date but is 
not without interest, notably the teaver on the oriental war and the 

articles from Russia. Also, Volksfreund,” which seems to have 
become Mr Diuhring’s monitor. Collet’s ‘ENGLAND, ENEMY OF TURKEY’, 
etc. 

I had intended to pay you a two- or three-day visit in Ramsgate; 
a trip to see Gumpert would be pointless for I know sy Heart, both 
from him and from the Karlsbad doctors and _ professors, 
everything that medical science cannot do in this particular case. 
Besides, my insomnie is somewhat better. But un homme propose et 
l'autre dispose.” The other, in this instance, being Hirsch who has 
come to London for the express purpose of spending a week in 
my company. More about him and what he has told me in the 
course of this epistle. But tout d’abord,“ my plans for the immediate 
future. 

I intend to leave shortly, if possible on 12th August, for 
Neuenahr*” and not for Karlsbad, and this for the following 
reasons: 

First, because of the expense: As you know, my wife suffers from 
serious digestive disturbances and, since I shall in any case be 
taking Tussy who has had another nasty attack, my wife would 
take great exception to being left behind. For the three of us plus 
luggage—if, for the sake of the cure one travels at one’s leisure as 
I have several times done—the journey there and back would 
alone amount to £70. Moreover I long ago promised Lenchen,* 
who is very much run down, to convey her to her home where she 
cannot live completely gratis. Moreover, the family has all sorts of 
purchases to make for the trip. 

Secondly: In unguarded moments, the Karlsbad doctors have 
themselves told me that, if one didn’t want to visit Karlsbad every 
year, Neuenahr might be beneficial as an intermezzo. Of course, 
they would rather one always went to Karlsbad. But it might be 
better even from the viewpoint of hygiene to make a change for 
once and take less potent waters, for variatio delectat corpus. 
Besides, my trouble is not so much my Liver as the nervous upset 
occasioned by it. Hence, less potent waters, but of essentiellement 
the same composition. 

Furthermore, there is one important matter I have always 
neglected because of the expense—the after-cure. In view of the 
greatly reduced travelling expenses and the fact that the house will 
be shut up (under Withers’ care) for the duration of the cure, all 

a Braunschweiger Volksfreund - > One man proposes, the other disposes. - © first of 
all - ¢ Helene Demuth - © variety becomes the body (an expression traced back to 
Euripides’ tragedy Orestes, 234). 

18* 

these birds would be killed with one stone by exchanging Karlsbad 
for Neuenahr. 

Hence q.e.d. I hope you approve. 

Now for other matters—first of all Hirsch. 

He has turned out very well and has not been wasting his time. 
I tried him out, amongst other things, on the subject of French 
statistics and found him to be 4 la hauteur.” He also gave me some 
very interesting information about the almost universal transforma- 
tion of French industrial concerns into joint stock companies. In the 
first place, this was facilitated by legislation in the days of the 
Empire. In the second, the French are not partial to business, 
preferring whenever possible to live as rentiers. And to which end 
this form of business is, of course, A GODSEND. 

According to Hirsch (and here he may be taking too rosy a 
view) the officers of the French Army, with the exception of those 
at the top, are republican. However that may be, it is a racr and a 
typical one, that Galliffet (the incident with la Beaumont *” really 
did take place, as Hirsch ascertained,according to further recherches”) 
offered his services to Mr Gambetta in a letter written in his own 
hand, and that the self-same Galliffet, after the préfet of his garrison 
town had been dismissed by Broglie, called on the disgraced 
préfet, together with his general staff, to proffer his 
condolences. If these things occur in a dry tree, etc.* On the other 
hand, there is a widespread belief among the non-commissioned 
officers, largely consisting of new men, that Mac-Mahon got rid of 
the Chamber’ because it had put forward a series of proposals 
intended to improve the lot of non-commissioned officers. 

Everything that happens at the Elysée*” daily becomes common 
knowledge in Paris, for the Bonapartist tapageurs’ who frequent 
the place cannot hold their tongues. Mac-Mahon is exceedingly 
embittered. The brute, whose first historic words were: J’y suis, j’y 
reste *" his second being: C’est assez‘ is now uttering his last one. 
All he says from morn till night is: ‘Merde ! 

Hirsch is furious with the Vorwdrts over the Dihring business as 
well as ‘Nieder mit der Republik!.?” He wrote an exceedingly 
brusque letter to the executive (Geib, etc.) ''' about both these. He, 
too, now realises that fusion has degraded the party, both in theory 
and in practice. 

With reference to ‘Nieder mit der Republik!’, he remarked that 
the great Hasenclever as a Prussian soldier (probably a reservist or 

4 up to the mark - > researches - © Cf. Luke 23:31 - 4 brawlers - © Here I am, here 
I remain. - § That’s enough - & Shit! 

militia man) was at the gates of Paris at the time of the Commune, 
and hence has no reason to lay down the law in matters of principle. 

He maintains that, at the time of the Prussian conflict,*” 
Hasenclever was editor of a progressist *'? paper in Krefeld,’ sold it to 
an ultra-reactionary, and gravely compromised himself in the course 
of a lawsuit arising out of the sale. This, as Bracke himself told him, 
was known to Bracke and Co. when they appointed Hasenclever 
co-editor with Liebknecht of the Vorwairts. 

Liebknecht, MeanwuiLe, est puni par ot il a péché” The Lassallean 
gang is doing everything it can to harass and humiliate him. For 
instance, they reproach him with the pittance he is paid by the 
Vorwarts, say his wife (with five children) doesn’t need a maid, etc. 
They have, contrary to all party and journalistic practice, 
deliberately so organised things that Liebknecht has to go to jug 
for all articles,”"! even if written during his absence, thus in fact 
playing the same role on the Vorwdrts as the man of straw on a 
French paper. 

Next month Hirsch is leaving Paris for Berlin where he is going 
to take over the editorship of the lithographed party papers for a 
month* and proposes to do so in such a way as to mortify the 
allied riffraff. 

I enclose herewith a letter from the Zukunft, in case you have 
not also received one.*! Send it back to me for answering. 

What a nice piece of cunning on the part of ‘citizen’, ‘thinker’ 
and ‘socialist of the future’ Most. So a second fusion is planned; 
ourselves, combined with Mr Dühring, for he'll be there without 
fail; at the same time, our names under the editorship of Most 
and Co. will mean our swallowing all their infamies in public, and 
most gratefully at that! In which case I would infinitely sooner 
have obliged Wiede.” But I am obliged to Most for having given 
me the opportunity of tendering my refusal. These fellows 
imagine they are dealing with ‘babes and sucklings’. Quelle 
impudence!* 

I should say that the Russians have grossly miscalculated with 
their sabre-rattling; and when unsoldierly coups de téte of this kind 
don’t come off HERE AND THEN, their effect on their own army and 
the public is highly and miserably compromising, particularly so 
soon after the exit from Armenia. 

a Presumably Westphdlische Volkszeitung. - > is reaping what he has sown (Bible, The 
Wisdom of Solomon 11:7). - © See this volume, pp. 252-53. - 4 What impudence! - 
€ brain-waves 

Friend Lopatin, it seems, has in the meantime again waxed 
unpatriotic. 

I trust that your wife is feeling better. 

Salut to all. 

Your 
Moor