ENGELS TO LAURA LAFARGUE*” 

AT LE PERREUX 

London, 26 February 1890 

My dear Laura, 

Since last Thursday evening when the telegrams announcing victory 
came raining in here thick and fast, we are in a constant intoxication of 
triumph, brought, provisionally at least, to a climax this morning by the 
news that we had obtained 1,341,500 votes, 587,000 more than 3 years 
ago. And yet—next Saturday!” the orgy may begin again, for the stupe- 
faction of all Germany at our success is so enormous, the hatred against 
the Kartell? swindlers so intense, and the time for consideration so 
short that fresh successes, as unexpected as those of last Thursday, are 
quite possible, though I for one do not expect many of them. 

The 20th February 1890 is the opening day of the German revolution. 
It may be a couple of years yet until we see a decisive crisis, and it is not 
impossible that we have to pass through a temporary and severe defeat. 
But the old stability is gone for ever. That stability rested on the super- 
stition that the triumvirate Bismarck, Moltke, William, was invincible 
and all-wise. Now William is gone and replaced by a conceited 
Gardelieutenant,* Moltke is pensioned off, and Bismarck is very shaky 
in his saddle. At the very eve of this election, he and young William had 
a squabble over the latter’s itching to play the working men’s friend; 
Bismarck had to give way and took care to let the philistine know he had 
done so; he himself evidently wished for ‘bad’ elections, in order to give 
his master a lesson. Well, he has got more than he bargained for, and the 
two have made it up again for once. But that cannot last. The ‘Second old 
Fritz’ only greater’, cannot and will not stand leading by the chancellor’s 
hand, ‘in Preussen muss der Konig regieren’°—this he takes au sérieux,4 
and the more critical the time, the more divergent will be the views of 
these two rivals. One thing is certain to the philistine: the man he can 
trust is losing his power, and the man who holds the power, he cannot 
trust. Confidence is gone even among the bourgeoisie. 

4 The Berlin dialect in the original. This refers to William I] — > William II -¢ the 
King must rule in Prussia — ? in earnest 

Now look at the state of parties. The Kartell?© has lost a million votes, 
has had 2% milliions for, 4% against itself. That ministry of Bismarck’s 
parliamentary power has gone to smash, and all the King’s horses and all 
the King’s men cannot put Humpty Dumpty together again. To form a 
government majority, there are but two parties: the Catholics (centre**) 
and the Freisinnigen.° The latter, although already burning with the 
desire to form a fresh cartel, cannot do so—as yet at least—with the 
Conservatives, but only with the National Liberals,>” and that gives no 
majority. The Centre? Bismarck reckons upon it, and the Catholic Junkers 
of that party are eager enough to unite with the old Prussian Junkers. But 
the sole raison d’étre of the Centre is hatred of Prussia, and just you try 
and make a Prussian government party out of that! As soon as the Centre 
becomes anything like that, the Catholic peasantry—its force—break 
loose, while the 100,000 votes the Centre had less (against 1887) have been 
taken away by us in the Catholic towns, see Munich, Cologne, Mainz, etc. 

So this Reichstag is unmanageable. But Bismarck’s last resource, a 
dissolution, will hardly help him. The confidence in the stability of things 
being gone, the supreme factor now is the discontent with the oppressive 
taxes and increasing dearness of living. That is the direct consequence of 
the fiscal and economic policy of the last 11 years, and by this Bismarck 
has driven the people right away into our arms. And Michel is rising 
against that policy. So the next Reichstag might even be worse. 

Unless—Bismarck and his master—on this point they will always 
agree—provoke riot and fighting and crush us before we are too strong, 
and then alter the constitution. That is evidently what we are drifting to, 
and the chief danger to be avoided. Our people, you have seen, keep 
excellent, wonderful discipline; but we may be forced to fight before we 
are fully prepared—and there is the danger. But when that comes on, 
there will be other chances in our favour. 

Nim’s dinner bell—so good-bye for to-day—more about your dogs 
in more peaceable times—also about Paul’s articles. 

En attendant, vive la révolution allemande!* 

Ever yours 
EE.