[Copy] 

London, 4 August 1879 
Dear Bebel, 

Since I last wrote on 25 July”! Hirsch has informed us of his 
correspondence with Bernstein and Liebknecht about the new 

a In the original, the following passage is deleted: ‘and the class struggle which 
finally leads to a social revolution. What distinguishes critical and revolutionary 
socialism from its predecessors is, in my opinion, precisely this materialist basis. It 
shows that at a certain stage of historical development the animal inevitably 
transforms into a man’. - > In the manuscript of the draft: ‘which I trust you received 
(it was registered)’. 

paper.*” To judge by this, matters would appear to be materially 
different from what your letter had entitled us to assume. 

Since Hirsch’s altogether justifiable inquiries as to what arrange- 
ments had been made and who would be running the paper, on 
the one hand financially, on the other administratively, met with 
no other reply from Liebknecht save: ‘the party plus Hoéchberg’,*”” 
and the reiterated assurance that everything was in order— we could 
only assume, even then, that the paper would be financed by 
Héchberg and that the ‘we’ to whom, according to E. Bern- 
stein’s letter, ‘the production and supervision’ would be en- 
trusted,*” would, once again, be Héchberg and _ his secretary 
Bernstein.* 

From Bernstein’s second letter to Hirsch just received, it 
transpires that such is indeed the case.*” 

You will not, I presume, fail to perceive that the errors against 
which I warned in my last [letter] will now almost inevitably form 
an intrinsic part of the paper. Héchberg has shown himself to be 
exceedingly muddle-headed in matters of theory and, in practice, 
impelled by an irresistible urge to fraternise with all and sundry 
who profess to be, not merely socialist, but also and even simply 
social. He showed his true colours in the Zukunft, discrediting the 
party both as regards theory and in practice. 

What the party needs above all is a political organ. And really 
Héchberg is at best a wholly unpolitical man, not even a social 
democrat, but a social philanthropist. Nor, according to Bernstein’s 
letter, is the paper to be in the least political, but socialist on 
principle, which, in such hands, necessarily means social-fantastic, 
a new edition of the Zukunft. A paper of this kind would represent 
the party only if the latter were willing to degrade itself and 
become a mere appendage to Héchberg and his armchair socialist 
friends. If the party leaders were really to try and bring the 
proletariat under the leadership of Héchberg and his ambiguous 
friends, the workers would be unlikely to go along with them; 

4 The following is deleted in the manuscript of the draft: ‘That C. Hirsch cannot 
assume the editorship in these circumstances without quite specific guarantees of 
his independence vis-a-vis his superior on the financial side, goes without saying. I 
doubt very much whether sufficient guarantees of this kind could be given, and 
regard it as fairly certain that the negotiations with C. Hirsch will come to nothing. 
But even were they to succeed, it is virtually certain that Hirsch’s position would 
ultimately become untenable through his being controlled by two superiors of 
whom one, who provides the finances, is not a social democrat but a social 
philantropist. and the other, as Liebknecht admits, “would himself like to be 
editor”.’ 

dissension and disorganisation would inevitably result; but Most 
and the ranters over here would experience their greatest 
triumph. 

In these circumstances, which were quite unknown to us when I 
wrote my last letter, we believe that Hirsch is absolutely right in 
refusing to have anything to do with the matter. The same applies 
to Marx and myself. Our consent regarding contributions was 
given in respect of a genuine party organ and hence was 
applicable only to such—not, however, to a private organ of Mr 
Héchberg’s masquerading as a party organ. To that we would in 
no circumstances contribute.* Marx and I therefore specifically ask 
that you should kindly ensure we are not named as contributors.