state here that the correspondence between Marx and Engels fills four fair-sized volumes. In these letters they discuss their economic and philosophical theories, the books they are reading and writing at the time, all the leading European events of the time, such as the commercial crises of 1857, the Crimean War, the French war against Austria, the war between the Northern and Southern States of America, and so on and so forth.
They also discuss the working-class movements and their leaders in Europe and America. They are keenly interested and exchange their views on all the discoveries of science, both practical and theoretical. In one letter Engels describes a discovery in electricity made by himself, and in a letter dated May 3,1873, Engels communicates to Marx and Schorlemmer some reflections of his own in physical science. Schorlemmer, an eminent chemist and professor of chemistry at that time in Manchester, was an intimate friend of theirs, and, judging by his remarks at the end of the various paragraphs of Engels' letter, thought highly of the points made by Engels.
To deal adequately with this correspondence would require quite a book to itself. We shall, therefore, make no attempt to discuss it, only taking such extracts from it as will serve to illustrate Engels' life and character.
Engels' family very much wanted him to take up commerce as a career, and, of course, to enter his father's business, but every fibre in young Friedrich's soul protested against such a fate. His ambitions lay in a quite different direction. Thus, in March, 1845, he writes to Marx: "I am leading now a veritable dog's life. On account of the affairs with the meetings, and the slovenliness of several of the Communists here, with whom I, of course, associate, all the old religious fanaticism of my old governor (his father) has been reawakened, and his ire has been increased still more by the declaration of my intention to give up definitely the office bench. Further, since my open appearance as a Communist"—(they had had some meetings at Barmen at which Friedrich had spoken)"—he has developed in addition a passionate bourgeois fanaticism.
"Now, just consider my position. As I am going away in about fourteen days or so, I cannot very well kick up a row. I let everything pass by without protest. They are not accustomed to this, and so their spirits rise. … If it were not for my mother, who really possesses a very fine personality, only cannot stand up against my father, and whom I really love, I would not dream for a moment of making the slightest concession to my fanatical and despotic governor. But my mother is in any case ill every now and again, and almost every time she is worried, especially about me, she gets an eight-days' headache. It is unbearable. I must get away, and hardly know how to hold out the few weeks I still have to remain here. Still, they will pass."
In 1845 Engels gave up mercantile life, left Barmen and went to
