London, 22 December 1885 

My dear Laura, 

Herewith I hand you the cheque Paul wrote about °°’ to which 
I have added a trifling étrenne* for yourself. The box with the plum- 
pudding and cake was forwarded last Saturday ” but would not leave 
here before Monday so that you will at best have received it today. 

When Jollymeier came from Paris he told me you were sorely in 
want of dictionaries for your translating work. Among Mohr’s books 
the only one that could have suited you was Mozin’s French and Ger- 
man, but it was so dilapidated that it will be no use to any one for reg- 
ular work; Tussy took it at the time. English and German there were 
none. So I tried to find out what were the best and ordered Williams 
and Norgate to have them delivered to you, bound. They are 

Fligel’s English-German and German-English 

Mozin-Peschier French-German and German-French. 

They will be delivered I expect before Christmas. Now as I had no 
opportunity to look at them, I want you to examine and report upon 
them. Fligel is the best to be had, though it might be better; so if it is 
both English-German and German-English, it will be all right. But 
about the Mozin-Peschier I am not so sure that it is not an abbrevia- 
tion of what J intended to send you, namely: Dictionnaire complet des 
langues frangaise et allemande, 2 volumes French-German and 2 
volumes German-French. If it should not be the latter work, please 
let me know and I will have it exchanged, as not being sent to 
order. 

On Saturday night Jollymeier arrived here, his holidays last till 
12th January; and this morning who should jump in but the inevi- 
table Meyer, fresh from Winnipeg where his first crop of wheat was 
frozen to death last August. He left again and will be in Paris to- 
morrow morning— but, he says, ich sehe die Lafargue’s nicht-— warum 
nicht? — Weil Lafargue einen me besucht°—-which he seems to have 

@ Christmas gift - ° 19 December - ‘I don’t see the Lafargues.— Why 
not? — Because Lafargue never comes to see anyone. 

taken very much to heart, and which I told him was rather foolish for 
him to do. I merely state this to you as it was said, so that you may 
console you in case the illustrious stranger does not call upon 
you. 

I will try and get a copy of Justice for Paul, °°° it is not so easy just 
now, as Tussy and Edward are at Kingston on Thames for a few days 
and will not be back before Friday. Johnny?’ is with us in the mean- 
time, he has picked up his English again rather quickly, especially 
since he goes to school. He is a very good boy and reads an awful deal 
of, to him, unintelligible books. 

I hope Paul is all right again, sound at the core and solid at the 
base, plus solide que le Pont Neuf? which seems also subject to pim- 
ples and boils. 5° By the bye, his last letter does not say a word about 
the final solution of the Labruyére-Séverine-Lissagaray affair, the last 
was the assertion of Labruyére that Lissagaray a menti.© Has it all 
ended in smoke, as most scandals are apt to do now-a-days? 

There is no doubt Hyndman has done for himself this time. If he 
manages to keep together a show of the Social Democratic Federa- 
tion, °°° it will be only a shadow. The provincial branches are sure to 
fall off and here in London his own people have remembered how at 
the time of the Morris-Aveling separation, he packed the general 
meeting by showing in a lot of new members, created for the occasion. 
They have therefore resolved that only those are to vote who were 
members at the time of the general election and of his exploits. 

Nim, Pumps and Jollymeier are gone to the West End, Christmas 
shopping as they pretend, but in reality for a dinner at the Vienna 
Beer Hall. As I am still a little under restraint, I have stopped at 
home and use the time to write to you. But now the dinner bell 
rings——for me and Johnny—- and so good-bye.. Health and spirits 
and a sound foundation for Paul! 

Yours affectionately, 

F. Engels