ENGELS TO PAUL LAFARGUE” 
AT LE PERREUX 

London, 2 May 1889 

My dear Lafargue, 
Now things are beginning to move. This is what Bebel writes: 

‘Liebknecht and I have agreed that Lafargue and his friends should be 
urged to convene a congress immediately for 14 July. This we are 
doing in the conviction that, once the two congresses have met on the 
same day, it will prove impossible for them to hold separate sessions, 
and that they will join forces, whether the Possibilists like it or not. 

I think you people should now be satisfied. As soon as the convo~ 
cation circular is published by the French, we shall issue an open 
appeal to the Germans, asking them to elect delegates to the congress 
and indicating the procedure by which this may be done’ (under 
German law). ‘I have written in the same vein to the Austrians, and the 
Danes and Swiss will likewise be notified. In this way we shall, I hope, 
manage to expropriate the Possibilists—or at any rate well and truly 
thwart their plan.’*!> 

4.30 p.m. I am just back from Bernstein’s who, however, was not at 
home. He has had a postcard from Liebknecht in which the latter says 
that you are at liberty to make use of ‘their names’ as having assented to 
your congress. ‘Their names’ presumably means Bebel and Liebknecht, 
for they are not as yet officially entitled to commit the German Party. I 
didn’t see the card but Bonnier, who dropped in while I was out, told 
Nim about it. 

I hope to get a few lines from you tomorrow morning which would 
enable me to rekindle Bebel’s ardour by telling him that you are now 
taking action. 

Don’t forget, by the bye, to return to me, deciphered, the letter from 
Lyons. I must not keep the workmen there waiting for an answer. 

Now that you’ve got several provincial papers, choose one to be your 
Monitor for the duration of your congress and arrange for it to be sent 
to the various Parties, along with all your publications.*!” Below you 
will find some of the addresses. The rest will follow. 

Give Laura a kiss from me. I shall write to her as soon as this bally 
congress ceases to monopolise my right hand. 

Yours ever, 
FEE. 

A. Bebel, Hohestrasse 22, Dresden-Plauen, Germany 

W. Liebknecht, Borsdorf-Leipzig, Germany 

The Editor, Socialdemokraten, Römersgade 22, Copenhagen, Denmark 
F. Domela Nieuwenhuis, 96 Malakkastraat, The Hague, Holland 
The Editor, Recht voor Allen, Roggeveenstraat 54, The Hague 

The Editor, Arbejderen, Nansensgade 28A, Copenhagen, Denmark 
The Editor, Gleichheit, Gumpendorferstrasse 79, Vienna VI, Austria 
The Editor, Muncitorul, 38 Strada Sarariei, Jassy, Romania 

The Editor, Justice, 181 Queen Victoria Street, London, E. C. 

The Editor, Labour Elector, 13 Paternoster Row, London, E. C. - 
The Editor, Commonweal, 13 Farringdon Road, London, E. C. 

A. Reichel, Barrister-at-law, Berne, Switzerland the two 
Henri Scherrer, Barrister-at-law, St Gall, Switzerland Hague 
delegates** 

The Editor, Sozialdemokrat, 114 Kentish Town Road, London, N. W. 
The Editor, Volkszeitung, Box 3560, New York City, U.S.A. 
The Editor, Sozialist, 25 East 4th St., New York City, U.S.A. 

(to be continued). 

The (German)? Americans although pressed by the Possibilists and 
Hyndman have said that it is you they still favour, and not the 
Possibilists. If they get your circular in time, I have no doubt they will 
give their assent, but they will go to some congress or other. 

Arbejderen is the radical opposition paper run by Petersen (who was 
acquainted with Rouanet and Malon in Paris, but has changed greatly 
since then) and by Trier, translator of my Origin of the Family. For tacti- 
cal reasons you would be well-advised not to send them anything that is 
not simultaneously dispatched to the Socialdemokraten, organ of the 
moderate majority.*! 

The address of P. Christensen, delegate to London (a good one 
9 Römersgade, Copenhagen. 

Belgians: Vooruit (The Editor), Marché au fil, Ghent. Same address 
for Anseele (E.). At the Jolimont congress the Ghent people declared 
that they would not attend the congress of the Possibilists so long as the 
latter persisted in their claims. The report in the Prolétariat is riddled 
with Possibilist lies.47° 

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