184 
THE SOCIALISM OF TO-DAY. 
the war put obstacles in the way. Already, before the Congress 
of the Hague, the council was divided into two hostile parties, 
and when it obtained the right of exclusion, it gave the death 
blow to the old Association.” 
The International of the Marxists held its session from 
the 8th to the 13th of September. Marx himself took no part 
in it. There were only about thirty delegates, representing 
Germany, France, England, Switzerland, and Holland. The 
fact that Germany, where Socialism was making such prodigious 
strides, was represented by only one delegate, Burckhart, proves 
what little influence the association exercised. Two principal 
questions were debated : first, ought the working classes to 
take part in political contests, or to abstain and silently 
prepare the way for the social revolution? It was decided, 
as had been done before, that they ought to engage in politics, 
and, if need be, unite with the middle classes to obtain any 
reforms useful to the workers. Secondly, it was resolved that 
working men ought to associate everywhere in trade corpora 
tions, which should form national federations, these federa 
tions themselves uniting so as to keep up a universal league 
in each trade. It would be the part of this league to give 
constant information as to the state of labour, and to defend 
the interests of labour in the different countries. This, as may 
be seen, is the parent idea of the International, reappearing 
in a specialized form and applied to each trade. This congress 
was the last organized by the Marxists. Their leader, the 
author of the famous book. Das Kapital., seems since then 
to have retired completely from active life, in order to prepare, 
in his retreat in London, the second volume of his work.” * 
The Autonomists convened a general assembly at Brussels 
on the 7th of November, 1874. From the official report it 
appears that the assembly was international in name alone. 
There were only about twenty delegates, all Belgians, except 
Gomez for Spain, Switzguebel for the Federation of the Jura, 
* [This had not l)een published at the time of Marx’s death (14th of March, 
1883) ; but it IS believed that he had practically completed the second 
volume and had commenced the third. These two volumes will, it is said, 
be brought out by Friedrich Engels.—TV.]