Books

First edition of the work which Marx took the best part of a year away from the writing of Capital to complete. It is an answer to the slanders against himself, Engels and their supporters which appeared in Karl Vogt's 1859 pamphlet, Mein Prozess gegen die Allgemeine Zeitung. "Herr Vogt is Marx's 'forgotten' work. Mentioned in passing - if at all - in biographical studies, and scarcely at all in discussions of his writings, it has remained for over a century largely neglected. He knew before its publication that many 'clever men' would be 'completely unable to grasp how I could squander my time on refuting such infantile nonsense'. What the clever men and their successors over the years could not or would not understand is that for Marx in 1860, as for Marxists today, the defence and security of the revolutionary party was of paramount concern... Vogt had taken the side of the petty-bourgeois democrats in 1848. Now he reached for the foulest slanders against Communists,... [alleging] that they engaged in secret and violent conspiracies and that Marx acted among them like a dictator. In this book Marx answers Vogt line for line and charge for charge. In the first chapters he holds up to ridicule Vogt's assertion that the Communists constituted a secret conspiratorial gang, producing evidence from German emigrés which leaves the slanderer's arguments in tatters. Marx spares neither wit nor invective in demolishing his opponent" (R. A. Archer, in the preface to his English translation of Herr Vogt [1982]). Karl Vogt was "quietly teaching in Switzerland when an obscure German refugee newspaper in London accused him of being a paid agent of Napoleon III. The matter might have been forgotten if Liebknecht had not sent the accusation to the Allgemeine Zeitung, which was published in Augsburg. Liebknecht was the London representative of the German newspaper. The Allgemeine Zeitung published the story. Vogt was incensed, sued the newspaper for libel, and although the case was dismissed, he was able to claim a technical victory. He suspected, quite wrongly, that Marx was behind the attack. In fact Marx found little pleasure in the affair which dragged on for many weeks, and was relieved when it was over. Matters might have rested in the peace of exhaustion, but late in 1859 the bitterness flared up again. A small book appeared in Germany bearing the title Mein Prozess gegen die Allgemeine Zeitung. It was Vogt's account of his lawsuit against the Allgemeine Zeitung with a stenographic record of the court proceedings and whatever explanatory and contributory documents the author could lay his hands on. Vogt was a scientist, and he took care that the documents should be quoted with exemplary accuracy. Occasionally he would give initials rather than full names, but he was careful not to tamper with anything else. Here, finally, was the full evidence for Marx's treachery and duplicity as revealed in precise and objective testimony. There were no appeals to the gallery, only the documents. Vogt's presentation was masterly, and no one reading the book casually could imagine that it would be possible to rebut the evidence" (Payne, Marx, a biography, p. 318). Marx, outraged at the attack, replied in 1860 with Herr Vogt, in which he denounced Vogt for intrigue, slander, and double-dealing. In the present copy, Marx has made reading marks to pages 59 and 60, highlighting the name of A. Scherzer, whose workingman's journal "Die neue Zeit" was edited by Edgar Bauer. He further makes two corrections to the date events took place, one on page 155, the other on page 160, and additionally corrects two typographical errors on page 188. Bound up with Herr Vogt are the following additional texts: i) [ALLGEMEINEN DEUTSCHEN ARBEITER-VEREINS.] Programm zur Stiftungs-Feier des Allgemeinenen deutschen Arbeiter-Vereins am Sonnabend, den 5. Juni 1869, in Tütge's grossem Salon zu Hamburg. [Hamburg, M. Rosenberg, 1869.] 4pp. The programme for a celebration party of the German Workingmen's Association, held in Hamburg on June 5 1869, listing the music to be performed and speeches to be given, with songs "Zum Stiftungsfest" by August Geib printed on page 3 and "Volksgesang" by J. Audorf jr. printed on page 4. August Geib (1842-1879) was a German Social-Democrat, a book dealer by profession. He first joined the General German Workers Association, later joining with August Bebel to found the Eisenacher party (The Social Democratic Workers Party) in 1869. ii) DYER, Frederick William. [Prospectus for his The Lingualumina, or the Language of Light, see below.] No place, no printer, no date [?London, 1874.] 3-page prospectus, beginning "In the far-extended and ever-increasing intercourse of nations which so eminently marks the present above all preceding ages of the world, the obstructive and isolating influence of a multiplicity of tongues must have struck the most casual observer." Dyer refers to Wilkins, Pasigraphy, and many Enlightenment authors, and invites subscribers. iii) DYER, Frederick William. The Lingualumina, or the Language of Light. A simple, self-evident, easy, and philosophical mode of international communication between all the civilised nations of the earth. London: printed at the "Industrial Press", 1875. Pp. [2], 33, [1]. Small puncture to last two leaves just touching text. First edition.iv) [ANON. Poem, unidentified, begins:] Ein stiller Gruss mit feierlichem Klingen Zieht heut' durch jedes deutsche Herz, Und trägt's auf der Errinnerung Schwingen Im Geisterfluge heimatswärts. Pp. 8. v) FEUERBACH, Friedrich. Die Religion der Zukunft, 3. Heft: Mensch oder Christ? Nuremberg: Verlag von Theodor Cramer, 1845. Lacking title page and pp. 13-14. Die Religion der Zukunft. Half-title and pp. [5]-12, 15-22 + advertisement. Stained. Feuerbach (1806-80) was a German philosopher connected with the Young German movement in literature and, during the early 1840s, a key contributor of atheist and materialist writing to the Young Hegelian magazines. vi) [DEUTSCHEN EIDGENOSSEN.] Ob konstitutionelle Monarchie? Ob Republik für Deutschland? Ein Vergleich der politischen Entwicklung und Gestaltung Englands und Deutschlands. (Wiederabgedruckt aus dem "Deutschen Eidgenossen" vom Sept. u. Novbr. 1865.) London and Hamburg: Trübner & Co., 1866. Pp. 34. First 3 leaves with marginal stain, last page with ink splash. vii) CAMUS-MUTEL, François. Extrait de L'ouvrage sur l'organisation du travail. Paris: Typographie de H. Vrayet de Surcy et Cie, [1848]. Pp. 39, [1]. Stain to p. 12. Without the printed wrapper which acts as cover title: Organisation sociale de tous les travailleurs de l'agriculture, de l'industrie, du commerce, des arts et des sciences: adressée à l'Assemblée nationale (extrait de son ouvrage.)] Paris: chez tous les principaux libraries, et chez l'auteur, 1848. First edition. viii) [DEUTSCHEN RECHTSSCHUTZ-VEREINS IN LONDON. Erster Bericht des Vorstandes und Comités des Deutschen Rechtsschutz-Vereins in London an die General-Versammlung gehalten den. 3. October 1865. London: J. Wertheimer & Co., 1865. Pp. 15, [1]. With articles signed by J. H. Epstein, Schriftführer, Baur, President of the General-Versammlung, and Victor von Erlanger. ix) KINKEL, Gottfried. Festrede bei der Schillerfeier im Krystallpalast, 10. November 1859, gehalten von... Preis 1 Schilling. Der Ertrag der ersten Auflage ist entweder für eine Londoner Schilleranstalt oder die Schillerstiftung in Deutschland bestimmt. [London: Wertheimer & Co., 1859?] Pp. 15, [1]. First edition, also published by Petsch. Kinkel (1815-1882) was a German man of Letters and political publicist. x) SMITH, James Walter. Eine englische Stimme über Franz Müller's Prozess. Ist Müller gerichtet worden? und hat Müller bekannt? Zwei Schriften... Übersetzt, bevorwortet und mit Noten versehen von Eduard Eberstadt. (Zum Besten des deutschen Rechtsschützvereins in London). London: Wertheimer & Co., 1864. Pp. vi, [7]-24, including cover title. Title repaired at foot, final leaf guarded. Discussion of the criminal procedure in the murder trial of Franz Müller for the robbery and beating death of Thomas Briggs who was attacked on a train and thrown overboard. He later died of his injuries. Müller took a ship to the United States but was extradited to England. He was in possession of the victims watch and hat at the time of his arrest and had also had the victim's gold chain after the murder.... xi) BLIND, Karl. Russlands Herrschaftsplane und seine kaukasischen Kriege. London: 1860. Pp. 24. Title soiled, pale damp mark to lower outer corner. Blind (1826-1907) was a German radical publicist, from 1849-50 a member of the Communist League. Lived in England from 1852 and devoted himself to support of nationalist-republican causes on the continent. xii) [Legal text lacking the title page. [Probably: Sachsen und Coburg gegen Streit und Struve, oder öffentliche Gerichtsverhandlung über die Frage: Ist es Hochverrath, drei deutsche Herzogthümer dem deutschen Bunde, der Bevölkerung und dem rechtmäßigen Thronfolger vorzuenthalten? : ein Beitrag zur praktischen Lösung der Schleswig-Holsteinischen und der deutschen Frage Heft 2. Coburg: Streit, 1865.] Inhaltsverzeichniss leaf, followed by pp. 46 text & advertisement leaf. Soiled in places, ink smudges, last leaf with tape repairs. xiii) [DELANNOY, J. E, editor.] Le Portefeuille diplomatique et politique, Blue-Book européen. Recueil de documents internationaux et des principaux travaux parus dans la presse périodique européenne... Sous la direction de J.E. Delannoy, rédacteur. Livr. II-V. [Vienna, H. Gresser, 1877]. Pp. [25]-120. Fascicules II-V only of 15 of a French language diplomatic periodical published in Vienna by J. E. Delannoy, giving extracts from European newspapers and parliamentary proceedings. xiv) [DEUTSCHEN EIDGENOSSEN]. BLIND, Karl, and others. [Pages 121-156 only of a German language periodical, circa 1865, containing several articles by writers including Karl Blind, on European and American political matters. Articles include Neubildung der Volkspartei in Deutschland; Sendschreiben Zu Handen der Darmstädter Versammlung; Ein Programm der Zukunft; Ein Nachruf an Dr. Martin Mohr; Ob konstitutionelle Monarchie? Ob Republik für Deutschland? (Schluss); Zur Erinnerung an Robert Blum; Die angebliche Initiative der Fürsten; Skandinavische Bestrebungen II; and Das junge Deutschland, Frankreich und Italien. xv) [SCHLEIDEN, Rudolf.] L'interêt de la France dans la question du Schleswig-Holstein suivi d'un apercu historique sur cette question jusqu'à l'époque du soulèvement des duchés en mars 1848. Paris: Firmin Didot Frères, Librares-Éditeurs, 1850. Pp. 112. Dampstained throughout in the upper half of the page. Schleiden (1815-95) was a German administrative jurist who from 1848 travelled as a diplomat in the service of the Provisional Government of Schleswig-Holstein. READ MORE Octavo (226 x 149 mm), pp. VI, [2], 191, [1, errata]. Bound first in a near contemporary French binding of pebble grained cloth and marbled boards, spine ruled in blind and lettered "Ecrits divers" in gilt. Housed in a custom morocco backed box. With 2 marginal marks and 4 manuscript corrections to the first work in Marx's distinctive hand written in black ink, very slightly cropped when bound into the volume. Front joint split, corners worn, inner joints cracked but cords very firm; front free endpaper and title page a little chipped along fore edge; final leaf of text with small portion torn away and repaired, affecting the last seven lines of text on the recto, with loss of approximately 30 letters, the missing text supplied in photocopy, text on verso unaffected. Some light soiling, but generally very good. Bound with 15 additional texts as detailed in the note. Herr Vogt: Andréas 39; Draper ST/M 51; Rubel 567. See Francis Wheen, Karl Marx, p. 238ff.

Herr Vogt is a polemic by Karl Marx against Carl Vogt, who was a defender of the Second French Empire. The book provides a critical examination of Vogt's political positions and writings.