Jenny Marx's Email Forward

When was the first forwarded survey? When did the first smartass fill in "sex: yes please!" and "favorite album: an album of family pictures I have" to universal mirth of his friends (the earth being young, and humorous humor not having been invented yet)? I would have guessed sometime in the early 70's, soon after the invention of email.

The Redcloud parents, however, while conducting their Cthulu research in some of their musty old books, found something that looks startlingly like an email-forward survey dating from the 1860's, written, oddly, by Karl Marx's daughter Jenny. This is true: she really wrote this, and made all her famous commie friends and relations take it. Some of her questions ("Your maxim") have a slight old-timey feel, but several ("favorite color", "your idea of happiness") seem just as modern and banal as anything you'd see in your in-box.

In order to keep this 150-year-old forward going, we L&E writers are all going to take the survey and email it to everyone we know. You should too! As an added bonus, next week we'll publish Marx's and Engels's survey answers, which are tons cooler and funnier than ours. (Engels listed his motto as "Take it aisy." Engels is the fucking man.)

Jen's Answers to Jenny Marx's Questions

1. Your favorite virtue: Fortitude.

2. Favorite virtue in man: Temperence.

3. Favorite virtue in woman: Prudence.

4. Your chief characteristic: It involves question marks. Specifically, using them a lot.

5. Your idea of happiness: A big basket of buns (See question 7).

6. Your idea of misery: A big basket of brussel sprouts.

7. The vice you excuse most: Gluttony. Delicious!

8. The vice you detest most: Failing to replace the roll of toilet paper when it is done.

9. Your chief aversion: Luncheon meats (shudders).

10. Literary or historical characters you most like: (tie) Sir Wilfred Laurier, William Jennings Bryan.

11. Your favorite occupation: Any of the ones instituted under the Monroe Doctrine, and later, under the Roosevelt Collorary.

12. Your favorite hero: Plain, extra onions.

13. Your favorite heroine: Anne of Green Gables, until she moved to Ingleside, when she became matronly and uninteresting.

14. Your favorite writer: O. Henry (also my favorite chocolate bar, and how often are the answers to THOSE questions the same?)

15. Your favorite flower: Robin Hood brand.

16. Your favorite color: I'm always torn between FFB6C1 and 6495ED.

17. Your favorite dish: I find that a nice sterling serving platter works in all settings.

18. Your maxim: Hooah! (actually my friend Debbie's motto. Debbie think's she's Al Pacino).

19. Your motto: A Mari usque ad Mare