I'm finding the quoted writing hard to read, although that could be due to translation. Was it translated soon after the original was written, do you know?
Your own thoughts bring an interesting perspective along side it. I hope to remember to check back in and read more.
If memory serves, Marx published Book I in the 1860s, and died a few years later. Engels edited Marx's notes and published the entirety in the 1870s. This edition is a 1906 printing of an earlier English translation. I could wade through the assorted prefaces and forwards for more info later. My intro post has a link to a digital version though, if you want to check for yourself.