45. To Marie Engels, about the end of August
mouth drooping, not uttering a word. If he suddenly gets into a tantrum, he can't snap out of it. Emila is still great at misunderstanding things. Hedwigb is not developing much character apart from a touch of obstinacy. Rudolf0 is just like Hermann was, he wanders about dreaming half the day and gets up to silly tricks the rest of the time. What he likes best is when I give him a rapier and then knock it out of his hand. Little Elised will become important but for the time being she's still unimportant. She shows signs of amiability and will put you all in the shade in the end. And what about me? I might look interesting if, instead of my present young moustache, I still had the one I had in Bremen and my long hair.
You've had enough for today. I'll write to you from Milan — if it's raining there.
Yours,
Friedrich
45
TO MARIE ENGELS
IN MANNHEIM e
[Barmen, about the end of August 1841] Dear Marie,
If I have really got to write to you I must tell you in advance that it will not come to much, for nothing ever happens here. Weddings, parties, why yes, I go to them, I eat and drink, but afterwards I find it impossible to write a lot of tittle-tattle about them. And anyway you are not used to that kind of thing from me. I now sit in my little room upstairs nearly all day long, read and smoke like a chimney-stack, fence until the swords nearly crack, and amuse myself as best I can. This disgracefully bad weather is nearly driving me to desperation, you can't go to Elberfeld without the risk of getting soaked three times over.