London, 19 March 1895 
41 Regent’s Park Road, N. W. 

Dear Kugelmann, 

The eachets crampons* have arrived here safely and have already been put 
to use. The machine presents no difficulty to the doer-up of letters—whether 
it does to the opener thereof is something that could be elucidated for us by 
the German and Austrian postal authorities to whom we have already most 
humbly submitted several samples. Many thanks. Kéller will, I hope, be 
obliged to introduce a Subversion Bill *** for the subversion of these staples 
in the face of which the best intentions of the cabinets noirs’ fail so 
ignominiously. 

Thanks for your endeavours in the Bielefeld district. If there is anything of 
mine or, indeed of Marx’s in the Dampfboot, it is likely to be anonymous. *** 

No news from Livingston. °°” 

The cold suited me very well; it acted on me like a powerful tonic while it 
lasted, and I felt twenty years younger. On the other hand, it precipitated 
London as always back into an age of barbarism. The water pipes froze; we 
went on having water until the Company shut off supplies, whereupon the 
water froze in the mains. Ours was about four and a half to five feet down 
and when uncovered a fortnight after the thaw, was still completely frozen 
up. Then we had to wait another two days until our connecting pipe thawed 
out. At eight o’clock in the evening, a week ago today, the water at last came 
on again. We then discovered that the drains were blocked because of the 
inadequate flow of water. By the end of last week everything was back to 
normal again, after four weeks during which we had to have forty buckets of 
water a day carried up to the attic on the 

* A type of staple for closing letters —° The name given in France to the office where letters of 
suspect persons were opened and examined before being forwarded to the addressees. (Trans.) 

fourth floor in order to keep the house supplied with water and prevent the 
boiler exploding every time the range was lit in the kitchen. 

There was no need for you to worry and take so much trouble over the duty 
on the staples; in this country all industrial products are duty-free. Many 
regards to you and your family from Louise and 

Yours, 
F. Engels