| 18 March, 1866.

5 Lansell’s Place,
Margate

My dear child.  Siehe Erl. zu Engels an Marx, 5.3.1866.
Schließen
From the address you will see that I have been banished, by my medical adviser, to this seaside place,
which, at this time of the year, is quite solitary. Margate lives only upon the Londoners, who regularly inundate it at the bathing season. During the other months it vegetates only. For my own part right glad I am to have got rid of all company, even that of my books. I have taken a private lodging which fronts the sea. In an inn or Hotel one might be have been exposed to the danger of falling in with a stray traveller, or being pestered by local politics, vestry interests, and neighbourly gossip. As it is,  Aus dem engl. Volkslied „The Miller of Dee“. Siehe auch Marx an L. Marx, 20.3.1866 und Marx an Engels, 24.3.1866.
Schließen
“I care for nobody, and nobody cares for me”.
But the air is wonderfully pure and reinvigorating, and you have here at the same time sea air and mountain air. I have become myself a sort of walking stick, running up and down the whole day, and keeping my mind in that state of nothingness which the Buddhaism considers the climax of human bliss. Of course, you have not forgotten the pretty little diction:  Mittelalterliches engl. Sprichwort.
Schließen
“When the devil was sick, the devil a monk would be; when the devil was well, the devil a monk was he.”

Withdrawing a little from the seaside, and roaming over the adjacent agricultural districts, you are painfully reminded of “civilisation”, because from all sides you are startled by large boards, | with governmental proclamations on them, headed: Cattle Disease. The ruling English oligarchs were never suspected to care one farthing for  Vgl. hier z. B. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: Faust. Eine Tragödie. Erster Teil. Kerker: „Der Menschheit ganzer Jammer fasst mich an“ oder Friedrich von Schiller: Das Eleusische Fest: „Doch der Menschheit Angst und Wehen Fühlet mein gequältes Herz.“ Wörtlich in Eduard Duller: Der Fürst der Liebe. 2. Aufl. Cassel 1854. Sendung S. VII-XII.
Schließen
“der Menschheit ganzes Weh”
, but as to cows and oxen, they feel deeply.  Am 6. Februar 1866 war im britischen Parlament heftig über einen Gesetzentwurf debattiert worden, der u.a. im Falle von Seuchen für Viehhalter eine finanzielle Entschädigung vorsah. Am 23. Februar wurde das Gesetz verabschiedet.
Schließen
At the opening of Parliament, the horned cattle gentlemen of both houses, commoners and lords, made a wild rush at government. All their talk sounded like a herd of cows’ lowing, translated into English.
And they were not like honest king Wiswamitra,   Nach Heinrich Heine: Buch der Lieder. Die Heimkehr. 45. Den König Wiswamitra. – Siehe auch Marx an L. Marx, 20.3.1866.
Schließen
“der kämpfte und büsste für die Kuh Sabalah”.
On the contrary. They seized the opportunity to “battre monnaie” out of the cows’ disease ailings , at the expence of the people. By the by, the East sends us always nice things—Religion, Etiquette, and the Plague in all forms.

 Waaratje – nach dem niederl. Wort „waarachtig“ (wahrhaftig), ein oft benutzter Ausruf des Studenten Pieter aus dem Roman von Hildebrand (d. i. Nicolaas Beets) „Camera obscura“ (Haarlem 1839). Hier ist vermutlich Hendrik Roodhuyzen, der spätere Ehemann von Nanette Philips gemeint.
Schließen
I am very glad to hear of Warratjes' Waaratjes'
winding up adventure. Verily, verily, I tell thee, my sweet little cousin, I always felt deep sympathy for the man, and always hoped that one day or other he should fix his melting heart in the right direction, and not persevere performing his the nasty part in the children’s tale:  Märchen von Jeanne-Marie Le Prince de Beaumont: La Belle et la Bête.
Schließen
“The Beast and the Beauty”.
I’m sure he will make a good husband. Is his inamorata a “Bommelerin” or an importation?

A few days before leaving London, I made the acquaintance of  Cesare Orsini.
Schließen
Mr. Orsini,
a very fine fellow, the brother of  Felice Orsini. Siehe auch Marx an Engels, 15.3.1866 und Erl.Einer der Gründe für das Attentat war, wie Orsini im Prozeß aussagte, dass Napoléon III als junger Mann in Rom den Eid der Carbonari geschworen und später als Kaiser gebrochen habe.
Schließen
the Orsini who was sent to the grave.
for sending Bonaparte to Italy. He has now left England for the U. States, in commercial matters, but during the few days of our acquaintance, he did me good service. Although  | an intimate friend of Mazzini’s, he is far from sharing the antiquated antisocialist and theocratical views of Mazzini. Now,  Seit Ende Januar 1866 hatte Marx wegen Krankheit nicht an den Sitzungen des Zentralrats der IAA teilgenommen.
Schließen
during my forced and prolonged absence from the Council of the International Association,
Mazzini had been busy in stirring a sort of revolt against my leadership. “Leadeship” is never a pleasant thing, nor a thing I ambition. I have always before my mind  Lion Philips.
Schließen
your father’s
saying in regard to Thorbeck that “der Eselstreiber den Eseln immer verhaßt ist”. But having once fairly embarked in an enterprise which I consider of import, I certainly, “anxious” man as I am, do not like to give way. Mazzini, a most decided hater of freethinking and socialism, watched the progress of our society with great jealousy.  Marx erinnert an die Abfassung der Gründungsdokumente der IAA im Oktober 1864. Siehe auch MEGA2 III/13. Br. 21.100–169.
Schließen
His first attempt of making a tool of it and fastening upon it a programme and declaration of principles of his hatching, I had baffled.
His influence, before that time very great with the London working class, had sunk to zero. He waxed wroth, when he saw that we had founded the English  Zur Reform League siehe Erl. zu Marx an J. Ph. Becker, zw. 9. u. 15.1.1866.
Schließen
Reform Ligue
and  Zur Zeitung „The Commonwealth“ siehe Erl. zu Marx an J. Ph. Becker, zw. 9. u. 15.1.1866.
Schließen
a weekly paper, the “Commonwealth”,
to which the most advanced men of London contribute, and of which I shall send you a copy after my return to London. His anger increased,  Zu Charles Longuet siehe auch Marx an J. Ph. Becker, zw. 9. u. 15.1.1866 und Marx an Engels, 15.1.1866.
Schließen
when the editors of the “Rive Gauche” (the journal of la jeune France, directed by Rogeard, author of the “propos de Labienus”, Longuet etc.) | joined us,
and when he became aware of the spread of our society on the Continent.  Siehe auch H. Jung an Marx, 27.2.1866 und Marx an Engels, 24.3.1866.
Schließen
He improved my absence, to intrigue
with some English workingmen, raise their jealousies against “German” influence, and even sent his bully, a certain  Luigi Wolff.
Schließen
Major Wolf
(a German by birth) to one // the Council there to lodge his complaints and  Siehe Marx an Engels, 24.3.1866 .
Schließen
more or less directly to denounce me. He wanted to be acknowledged as “the leader (I suppose par la grace de dieu) of the continental democratical movement”. In so doing, he acted so far quite sincerely, as he utterly abhors my principles which, in his eyes, embody the most damnable “materialism”. This whole scene was enacted behind my back, and after they had made sure that my malady would not allow me to be present. The English wavered, but, although still very weak, I rushed to the following séance and // , Mr. Orsini accompanying me.
 Marx beschreibt die Sitzung des Zentralrats der IAA am 13. März 1866. Siehe Marx an Engels, 24.3.1866 sowie The Minute Book 1864–1866. In: MEGA2 I/20. S. 393.18–19.
Schließen
On my interpellation, he declared them that Mazzini had lost his influence even in Italy and was, from his antecedents and prejudices, quite disabled from understanding the new movement.
All the Foreign secretaries declared for me, and, if you,  Nanette Philips gehörte der niederländischen Sektion der IAA an. Sie berichtete Marx über deren Arbeit, weshalb er sie seinen „holländischen Sekretär“ nannte.
Schließen
our Dutch secretary,
had been present, I hope you would have also cast your vote for your humble servant and admirer. As it was, I carried a complete victory over this redoubtable adversary. I think that Mazzini has now had enough of me and will make bonne mine à mauvais jeu.—I hope to ha // receive a few | lines from you. Don’t forget that I am quite an insulated hermite.

Your most sincere friend
Bloch. /

Zeugenbeschreibung und Überlieferung

Absender

Zeugenbeschreibung

Der Brief besteht aus einem Bogen dünnem, weißem Papier im Format 213 × 13 mm. Marx hat alle vier Seiten vollständig beschrieben. Die letzte Passage und die Unterschrift stehen auf der ersten Seite oben, unter dem Datum. Schreibmaterial: schwarze Tinte.

 

Zitiervorschlag

Karl Marx an Nanette Philips in Zaltbommel. Margate, Sonntag, 18. März 1866. In: Marx-Engels-Gesamtausgabe digital. Hg. von der Internationalen Marx-Engels-Stiftung. Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Berlin. URL: http://megadigital.bbaw.de/briefe/detail.xql?id=M0000071. Abgerufen am 28.03.2024.