WEITLING AND MARX 117
The quarrel between Marx and Weitling began at a meeting
attended also by Gigot, Weydemeyer, Seiler, Heilberg, and Edgar
von Westphalen. "Jupiter Marx" sat at the head of the table, with
pencil and paper in hand. The discussions began innocently
enough with a consideration of the kind of propaganda best suited
to Germany. As Marx's desire to rid the movement of all senti
mental appeals to emotion became more and more apparent, the
debate became heated,^18 and suddenly Marx turned on Weitling,
bluntly demanding a summary of his program for the future and
arguments in defense of his methods of agitation. Confused and
ill at ease, and really without a definite program, the older man
made repetitious statements, expressed entire satisfaction with his
program and his methods, and indicated that he felt his influence
and achievements were not appreciated properly. Marx angrily
interrupted the speaker to denounce a fantastic propaganda cal
culated to arouse the people without first giving them a definite
basis for social action, and sarcastically observed that Weitling's
ideas might be suitable for a country such as Russia but were
wholly inappropriate for Germany, whose workers needed a doc
trine which would be both scientific and specific. Marx argued
in favor of his evolutionary concept of communism, while Weitling stubbornly insisted that no mere intellectual could compre
hend the sufferings of the common people.
The dispute ended with Marx stamping up and down the room,
and making caustic references to his opponent's ignorance. Weitling in a letter to Hess admitted that he too lost his temper. He
accused Marx of turning for support to people with money. It is
interesting to note, however, that after the quarrel Weitling sent
Marx an article which he had promised, and that the latter invited
Weitling to lunch. Hess wrote to Marx, "You have made him
completely mad, and then you are astonished because he is mad."^19
In May the final break came. The immediate cause was Kriege,(^18) Weitling to Hess, March 31, 1846, in Barnikol, Weitling der Gefangene,
269-70. 19
Zlocisti, Moses Hess, 225-27.