London, 17 October 1889 
122 Regent’s Park Road, N.W. 

Dear Schmidt, 

Your work,* which you kindly sent me and for which I am most 
grateful, has brought us so much closer together that I no longer can 
bring myself to address you in the ceremonious style required by 
custom and, if you would like to oblige me, perhaps you would treat me 
similarly. 

Even though I cannot actually say that you have solved the problem 
under discussion,’ your own line of reasoning coincides with that of 
Volume HI of Capital at many, and indeed, at important, points, and 
does so in such a way that the reading of Volume III will give you quite 
exceptional pleasure. For obvious reasons I am barred from making a 
detailed criticism of your work just at present; this will be done in the 
preface to Volume III>, when it will give me particular satisfaction to 
accord your work the full recognition that is its due. So until then, 
perhaps you will be patient. This much however is now quite certain— 
that your work has secured you a place in economic literature that must 
be the envy of all the worthy professors. 

The work has been a source of particular pleasure to me personally in 
one further respect, namely by showing that we now have someone else 
who can think theoretically. Among the younger generation in Germany 
there are remarkably few who are capable of doing so. Bebel, who has a 
fine theoretical brain, is prevented by his practical party work from exer- 
cising this, the best of his attributes, other than in the application of 
theory to practical cases. Consequently there have hitherto been only 
Bernstein and Kautsky, though in Bernstein’s case far too much of his 
time is taken up by practical activities for him to be able to participate 
in, and further his knowledge of, the theoretical side as much as he 
would no doubt like and be capable of doing. And there is, after all, so 

aSchmidt, Die Durchschnittsprofitrate auf Grundlage des Marx’schen 
Werthgesetzes — » See present edition, Vol. 37 

much still to be done here in the way of theory, especially in the field of 
economic history and its links with political history, as with the history of 
law, religion, literature and civilisation generally where the only sure guide 
through the labyrinth of facts is a clear theoretical insight. So you can 
imagine how I patted myself on the back for finding a new collaborator. 

It’s a very good thing that you should be re-editing Knapp’s 
Bauernbefreiung for the Neue Zeit. Excellent material for this task is 
provided by Wolff’s Schlesische Milliarde from the Neue Rheinische 
Zeitung of 1849, reprinted as No. VI of Volume I of the 
Sozialdemokratische Bibliothek. J shall send it to you in separate sheets 
enclosed in English newspapers, which would seem to be a pretty safe 
way. Kautsky will also be glad to have found another capable contribu- 
tor—he has to accept quite enough trash. 

I haven’t been able to do a stroke of work on Volume III since 
February. That damned Paris congress*”> saddled me with such a mess of 
correspondence to all parts of the globe that everything else had to be 
pushed into the background. The chaps had everywhere lost their inter- 
national contacts and as a result hatched up the most incredible 
schemes—sheer good will and a lack of knowledge of one another, as of 
things and circumstances, would have given rise to some fine old set-tos 
and everywhere the chaps would have made enemies of their friends, yet 
failed to appease their enemies. But luckily that’s all over now and I’ve 
just had news that a 4th edition of Volume I is needed. And since the 
English edition? has appeared in the meantime and a comparison by Mrs 
Aveling of each quotation with its original revealed occasional formal 
discrepancies but an even greater number of copyists’ and printers’ 
errors in the relevant passages, I cannot possibly allow the 4th edition to 
appear unless I put these right. All this will take time, after which I shall 
have the proofs to correct, but in a fortnight or so I shall get back to 
Volume III and thereafter allow nothing whatever to get in my way. I 
think I’m past the most difficult bits. 

Kindest regards from 

Yours very sincerely, 
F. Engels