THE INTERNATIONAL 343nonsense; they did not need to undergo a lengthy bourgeois movement
like the workers of other lands; their geographical situation would compel
them to declare war on eastern barbarism since all reaction against the
West had come from Asia.'^50
In France, still the centre of European socialism, the International
made fair progress, but was hampered by ideological disputes, both
internal and with the General Council. There were two separate groups
which had been represented at the International's foundation meeting:
the followers of Proudhon led by Tolain, and the Radical Republicans led
by Lefort and Le Lubez. The Proudhonists wished to build up a purely
t rade union movement overwhelmingly working class, whereas the Radical
Republicans were mainly middle class and had political objectives. Since
the followers of the Proudhonists were mainly shopkeepers, peasants and
artisans they attached most importance to the institution of co-operatives,
credit facilities and protective tariffs and were extremely suspicious of all
centralising tendencies and strike action. Dissensions began with the very
translation of the Rules by the Proudhonists who, in the key sentence
declaring that 'the economical emancipation of the working classes is
therefore the great end to which every political movement ought to be
subordinate as a means',^51 cut out the words 'as a means', thus giving
the impression that political activity was something of quite secondary
importance. The Republicans regarded this as tantamount to compromise
with Bonapartism. The Proudhonists replied that only workers should
hold positions of responsibility in workers' organisations and that Lefort,
who was the International's Press agent in Paris, should resign. Le Lubez,
as Secretary for France and prominent among the French workers in
London who never accepted very easily the authority of the General
(Council, was sent to investigate and naturally produced a report favour-
able to Lefort. But Tolain came to London to put his case in person.
I 'he English members of the General Council were bewildered and bored
by the ideological quarrels of the French, and Marx wished to keep both
parties inside the International, seeing 'on the one side Lefort (a literary
man and also wealthy, and thus "bourgeois", but with a spotless reputation
and, as far as la belle France is concerned, the real founder of our
society), and on the other side, Tolain, Fribourg, Limousin - the
workers'.^52 However, when Tolain forced the issue the General Council
was compelled to come down on the side of the workers after a long and
stormy discussion which, according to Marx, 'created, particularly on the
I' nglish, the impression that the Frenchmen really do stand in need of a
Bonaparte'.^53 Lefort was removed from his post, Le Lubez resigned and
Ma/.zini's followers, who were sympathetic to the French Republicans,
also eventually withdrew.