Aug. Schlomann, Railroad Ave., Corner Elm Street, West Hoboken, N.J.
Oct. 29 [1888].
Dear Children. I just got back my next-to-last letter. You must have received my last letter. Everything else is still the same here. We are having beautiful autumn weather here. We heard indirectly from Oregon that Adolph’s wife had twins but that they both died. Next week will be the big [election] battle. Hurrah for Cleveland! Write again soon. Your Grandfather.
<Written in English.> To: Martha at Kerby, Oregon
6 Nov 1888 [excerpt].
… We have heard that Loretta had twins and that they died. …
<Written in English.> To: Adolph at McAllister, Oregon
Dec 1888 [excerpt].
… Glad that you have got a good home a good start and feel satisfied. …
<T293, cont.> Mr. Karl Gottlieb Wünsche, Schönbach near Löbau in Saxony.
Dec. 16 [1888].
Dearest friend. (I will omit the "Sir.") I had thought several times already of inquiring whether you are still alive or whether you entirely <T294> forgot about me, but then on Dec. 11th I received your letter of Nov. 26th, and today I am pleased to answer it.
First, I want to give you a weather report. Spring was late, but beautiful fruitful weather made up for the delay. It was a pleasure to look at the field and garden at the beginning of July. Then, on July 3, a violent rain storm came and broke down everything and flooded the garden. The next morning, when the water had run off, my garden was a picture of destruction. Many plants partially recovered, but continuing rain kept flowers and vegetables from going to seed, but it encouraged the growth of grass, clover, and hay. Although last year many people’s cattle starved or nearly died of thirst, this year there was plenty of water, pasture, and hay and grass. When harvest time began, we had good weather, and everything was brought in well; also it was threshed (we do our threshing in the field with steam-driven machines). Winter wheat matured before the rain, and was very good; barley and oats did not set in; corn did well [at first] but did not get enough heat to ripen. At the time for sowing winter wheat, it was very dry, so that many fields, whose owners were waiting for rain, have not come up at all yet. Luckily, I sowed early after a little rain, and my seed is very good. In the beginning of Nov. we had mild freezing weather with no rain nor snow. Yesterday and today we are having the first rain in a long time.
This was the weather in Wis., but that does not apply to all of America. The different regions had greater differences in weather than ever before, almost. In Dakota, for many years so much wheat was raised that the price fell, but this year they raised almost nothing. As a result, the price of wheat rose from 50 cts. to one dollar. This is the end of my weather report.
Second chapter—Religion: The Catholics in America are increasing very <T295> much. They build so many churches and monasteries and the poor stupid people have themselves patiently bled, meanwhile sending their Peterspfennig [pennies] to the Pope in Rome (the poor man). Associations to eliminate the papacy have been formed recently. There are laws in several states that women have a right to vote in educational matters. In an election for school principals in Boston Mass. a short time ago, all Catholics were expelled from [?] the schoolteachers with the aid of 20,000 female votes.
Third chapter—Politics: You know from the papers that we had a presidential election and also who was elected, but surely the sprigs that brought forth the result are not fully apparent to you. The old proverb, "Money runs the world" became true in this election. Mr. Harrison was elected by bought votes. An honest onlooker could despair about our so-called free constitution when looking at the result of the election. The party of the rich has won, the party of the farmers lost, but they owe it mostly to their own stupidity. Just as in religious matters the poor man lets himself be taxed for the benefit of priests and the Pope, so the farmers for the benefit of the rich factory owners, of the coal mine owners, who are all millionaires. We farmers have to pay almost double the price for everything we need, for the sake of the manufacturers. The slogan of the Democratic party was "lower tariffs for the benefit of the people." Their leader was Cleveland. The slogan of the Republicans was "keep and raise tariffs for the benefit of the manufacturers." They made Harrison their leader and blinded the people with money and lies to vote for their party and they have won.
But I don’t want to bore you any more with my idle talk. You can read about it in the papers. I enclose an excerpt from a German paper with part of Cleveland’s speech, and this will give you a better understanding of the way America works than my idle talk. The speech is even stronger in English <T296> than in German. But I am afraid that you will disagree with me in politics, just as you do in religion. I will give you an example of how tariffs have made everything more expensive: The farmer who brings his goods to town and wants to warm up his stomach a little has to pay five cts. (20 pf.) for a tiny glass of Schnapps; in Sparta, the next town, he has to pay 10 cts. (40 pf.). A gallon of alcohol costs $3. The innkeeper in Cashton has a $125 per year license for permission to sell beer and brandy at retail; in Sparta he has to pay $525 and in even bigger cities $1025. The first $25 goes for a Government license, the other $100, $500, or $1,000 for the Town license. If we buy sugar for $1, we have to pay $0.75 for tariffs, and so on. You are glad about the mercy [generosity?] of the Germans. This proves only that there are even more poor people and rich people than here.
That’s enough for now. If my letter has some value to you, you won’t keep me waiting so long for an answer.
Mr. Fischer, M.D., Norwalk, Wis.
Dec. 19 [1888].
Dear friend. Perhaps you still remember our conversation about my wife’s sore leg. Her leg is sore from her foot almost up to her knee. It is swollen and infected, and a watery liquid comes through the skin, along with considerable itching. She has tried all kinds of lotions, but nothing helps. New skin forms but then breaks open again. My wife has now decided to take blood cleaning medicine. You said you could make something for her and send it to Cashton. If you have the medicine ready and no occasion to come to Cashton, please write to me and I will have it picked up. I suppose the medicine will have to be used for a long time. If you don’t have some of the ingredients, we are not in too great a hurry and you can send for them. If you have a chance to send the medicine to Cashton, please address it to Frank Delle.
<T297> P.S. I must also mention that my wife is very old-fashioned. That’s all I can think of for now. If you want any more information, please write to me. With my friendly wishes, F.A.M.
Matthias Heinz, Jr.
Dec. 19, 1888.
Dear friend. You seem to have entirely forgotten that you still owe me 90 cts. from last year for seeds. Be so kind as to tell Fred Springer that he also owes me 40 cts. from the same time. With my friendly wishes …
If you don’t want to come down, you can leave the money with Mr. Delle.
Mr. Fischer, M.D., Norwalk, Wis.
Dec. 31 [1888].
Dear friend! Ten or 12 days ago I wrote you a letter and asked you to make a blood cleansing medicine for my wife who has—as you may recall—a sore leg. You said you would send it to Cashton, but so far I have received neither the medicine nor any reply. My wife gets impatient. Please write and tell me whether you received my letter and the medicine is ready, so that I can have it picked up. With my friendly wishes …
Miss Anna Gerstenberg, 411 Bloomfield Str., Hoboken, N.J.
Dec. 31 [1888].
Dear Anna. Nearly a full year has passed since I received a letter from you. If you are still at the same address you will receive this letter from me and perhaps you will let me know how you are doing. And if you want to make me very happy, send me your picture.
I, your Grandfather, and my children who are still at home, Carl, August, and Dora, are all well, but my wife is ill. Schlomanns visited us last spring: August, Emma, and the children [see <T292>]. They live in West Hoboken now. This must be close to you. I am expecting a letter from them any day.
We send you our greetings and wish you a Happy New Year. Your Grandfather.
<T298> Aug. Schlomann, Railroad Ave., Corner Elm Street, West Hoboken, N.J.
Jan. 4, 1889.
Dear A. & Emma. Just imagine that it is possible. Santa Claus paid us an unexpected visit from N.J. He was locked in a box. August took a hammer and pliers and opened the box, and so many things came out that I can hardly remember: a beautiful dress for Dora, a wonderful bushel of cigars for August, Altona drops [candy? - see note at the end of this letter] for Carl, Stomach Bitter for Father, cocoa for Mother, apples, nuts, candy, and a candy heart that Dora took.
We were happy to hear that all of you are well. We are quite well also except for Mother. If you have time to write again, let us know whether you bought something, and how you like your new place.
I wrote to Anna a few days ago. If she no longer lives at the same address [411 Bromf. Str., Hoboken], she will have to pick up the letter at the post office. Dora will write to you as soon as she has time. Poor girl, she has both hands full with work to be done. Carl does the chores, and August is celebrating Christmas.
On the first day of Christmas we had beautiful warm weather; on the second day it snowed all day, and since then we are having beautiful mild winter weather, with 1-1/2 foot of snow on the ground, but it is getting less every day so that the sledding tracks are becoming bad.
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Note: I received the following email message in July 2005: |
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Dear Loren Meissner, I was searching Google for information on homeopathic medicines for a friend of mine here in South Australia and I typed in 'Altona Drops', the name of a homeopathic medicine still manufactured in South Australia today but first made here, in Adelaide the capital, in the 1850s. It was said to cure stomach ailments, fevers and other ills in animals and humans! The pharmacist who made it was Henry Heuzenroeder, who came to South Australia from Duderstadt in central Germany in 1847. Henry was my husband's great grandfather. The only reference to Altona Drops that my search Google produced was in a letter from your great grandfather. Since you had a query next to the name Altona Drops, and wondered if it referred to candy, I thought I'd send you this message to tell you what Altona Drops really are. I presume that your ancestor took them because of his recurrent fevers contracted when he lived in the swamps of Florida. Since Altona is now a suburb of Hamburg, and since your great grandfather had lived in that vicinity, I think that Altona Drops were perhaps already being made in Germany at Altona, and that the South Australian ones were a derivative, copied by the ancestor in our family. With best wishes, Angela Heuzenroeder |
Mr. Ferdinand Kaiser, Eisleben, Germany.
[Jan 1889].
I read from the notice attached to your catalog that you had a bad seed crop last year. It is not much better here with me. Besides, we went a step backward in the last Presidential election.
The seeds I received last year were all good with a few exceptions … My order for this year is small, and although your crop was bad this year you must still have some good seeds left from last year.
Seed list: …
<T299> Mike Baetz, Cashton, Wis.
Jan. 19, 1889.
Dear friend. If you want an easy way to make money, I will give you a chance: Sell my farm and I will give you $25 commission.
I have 160 acres of good valley land and good ridge land, enough wood for personal needs plus some to sell, good pastures, good corn land and excellent wheat land, a good road to the ridge, the best water that never stops, a good new barn, a good road to Cashton and many other advantages. I will sell it cheap and you will make "Twenty-five Dollars."
Mr. August Breitenfeld, Bruce, Brookings Co., Dakota [now SD].
Jan. 19, 1889.
Dear friend! How do you do? How do you like it in Dakota? How is your dear wife doing? Is Julie married yet? My wife has had a sore leg now for several months.
If you don’t like it in D., come here and I will sell you my farm very cheap. Here you will have a road in front of your door, also water; it’s only two miles to Cashton, good corn land and pasture in the valley, good wheat land on the ridge. Last summer we build a new barn, 20 by 48 feet.
I believe there is no farm like it in all of Portland, that has so many advantages as mine and is so easy to manage. Let me hear from you soon. Give my regards to my wife and Julie. Your friend F.A.M. (Address: Cashton, M.C., W.)
To Karoline Gerstenberg, Kummerfeld near Pinneberg near Hamburg, Germany.
Jan. 21, 1889.
Dear Daughter. I always hoped that I would receive a letter from you for my 84th birthday, but my hopes were not fulfilled. I wanted to write to you some time ago, but I always put it off, waiting to hear from Ernest. But I have not heard from him since last spring. So I wrote to his postmaster before Christmas, but received no answer. <T300> I wrote again a few days ago, and today I received the news that Ernest was there last summer and autumn, but this winter he has probably gone to work in the deep woods again. This is all I can tell you about him.
Last spring, Schlomann sold out his business for a good price, and came with his wife and children to visit us. They stayed here for three weeks and then returned to N.J. The trip cost them $100 (= 400 Mk). They now have another store in West Hoboken, N.J. They wrote me in their last letter that they have not received any letters from Kummerfeld. Emma is fat and seems to be quite good-natured. Anna visited the Schlomanns at Christmas and brought gifts for the children. Emma told me that you are fat too. I really can’t imagine this, remembering what a slender girl you were.
I would have liked so much to have a picture of you, so that I will recognize you when we meet in Heaven, but my request is in vain, no doubt. Emma said that I shouldn’t feel hurt if you don’t write. You have too many children and they all want letters from you. Emma had her 5th child last September, but it died of whooping cough.
You must be 61 or 62 years old now [She is 62 and he knows it: b. 12 Nov 1826]. How is your health, and how about your husband, is he still well? As Emma and Ernest have told me, you now have quite a big farm and you have added extra parcels to it. I am still quite well. People say I’m not getting any older, but I can feel my bones getting stiffer. You don’t have to worry about Ernest; he will surely manage.
We had a pretty good summer, plenty of grass and hay, and we are now having a very mild winter.
Greeting you all, I remain your Father.
<Written in English.> To: Ernest at Kerby, Oregon
22 Jan 1889 [excerpt].
… We are better situated than ever before, have a good road on the hill, a good barn, a nice pair horses, wagons, harrows, plows and most every kind of tools, still I would sell out if I had a chance. …
<T300, cont.> Emma & Aug. Schlomann.
Jan. 24, 1889.
You must have received my letter of Jan. 4 by now, and maybe you will answer it. We are still having beautiful winter weather, nice sunshine, and not too cold, and good sled tracks. Please be so kind as to deliver the enclosed letter to Anna. Dora has a dressmaker here who can make her new dress, but oh—there was not enough material: six yards is not enough to make a dress for her. This morning she went <T301> to Cashton and bought two more yards, but she couldn’t find cloth as good as what you sent her. Mathias Cremer, the saloon keeper’s father, died suddenly a few days ago. I am unfortunately still alive, and don’t know when my time will be up. Greetings. Your Grandfather.
P.S. I wrote to Ernest Gerstenberg’s postmaster. He replied that E. picked up letters in summer and autumn, but he does not know where he is now. He is probably still working in the Pinery this winter.
<Written in English.> To: Henry Crouse, Moab, Emery Co., Utah; from sister Eva.
Jan or Feb 1889 [excerpt].
Dear Brother. I just received your letter of Jan 26 1889 wishing me to tell you whether I still have any of your letters, written to me while I was in Elyria, O. in the winter of 1857–1858, also whether I still remember seeing Henry Krauss at his home in Montolpha [?] on July 4 1861. … I reply: Of course I remember very distinctly seeing Henry Krauss, talking to him and calling him Uncle Henry, on the 4th of July 1861 … I have not got any of your letters you wrote to me at Elyria, neither do I remember anything about their contents. You wrote to me in English which at that time I could neither read nor understand [?? But she had been in USA for 10 years before 1857 and had attended school in OH]. …
<T301, cont.> Mr. A. Breitenfeld, Bruce, Brookings Co., Dakota.
Febr. 20, 1889.
Dear friend! I received your letter, and we were all glad to hear that all of you are well and that your dear wife found a good home with Wilhelmine. I can understand if you don’t feel completely satisfied. It’s the same with me. I am old and unable to manage the farm alone. But the boys want to play Master, and I cannot stand that either. That’s why I wanted to sell. We have not had severe cold so far. We have just enough snow for sledding tracks. Mathias Cramer, who used to live in Pine Hollow, died suddenly. Bill Hankee is now Postmaster and Chairman, C. Person is Treasurer, and Albert Jones is Town Clerk. Christ. Erikson is Registrar of Deeds in Sparta. That’s all the news I can think of. Give my regards to your dear wife and Wilhelmine. If you write again, you must address your letter to Cashton. Your friend.
Miss Anna Gerstenberg, Care of Hermann Rübsamen, 124 East 81st Str., N.Y.
Wednesday, March 13, 1889.
Dear Anna! I received your letter last Saturday, and your picture arrived on Monday. You look very friendly to me. I am glad to hear that you are well and healthy and that you are doing fine. Your picture seems to confirm this. From their name, I assume that the people you are living with are Germans. I don’t expect that I will ever see you here with us, because you wouldn’t <T302> be able to earn as much money here as you do in N.Y. If anything should ever happen to you, remember that your Grandfather is your friend. I got a letter from your mother recently. They were all well. I have not heard from Ernest yet this spring. We are all quite well, too, except for my wife. I send you our and Dora’s picture. Dora is not quite as tall as she appears in the picture. Right now we don’t have any more pictures of the boys. We’ll be glad to hear from you again, and we send our best regards. Your Grandfather.
Mr. J. Sternberger, Bangor, Wis.
April 25 [1889].
Dearest friend. Yesterday I received your kind letter of the 18th that was mailed on the 25th. I will send Madam Bossart the flower seeds she ordered today. They should not be planted before May. The beautiful weather turned cold and rainy today. Recommending myself to you and your dear wife, I remain your devoted F.A.M.
Anna Gerstenberg, 1237 Franklin Ave between 168th and 169th Str., N.Y.
May 15, 1889.
Dear Anna. I received your lovely letter of April 29, and was glad to hear that you are still well and that you still think of your Grandfather. We have not yet heard from your brother Ernest this spring. We are having very beautiful weather, the apple trees have already blossomed and everything is green. It was just a little bit dry, but today we had a nice rain. The fields are all in order, but in the garden the sowing and planting goes on all year. I can’t do hard work that goes on for a long period—I leave that to the boys. When you write again, tell me about your domestic life. What business is your master in, how big is his family, and so on. My wife’s leg is no better. Greetings. Your Grandfather.
A. Schlomann, Railroad Ave., Corner of Elm Street, W. Hoboken, N.J.
May 15, 1889.
The return address on your last letter was J.C.; however, I am addressing my letter the same as before. My answer is delayed, but Dora already excused me. This spring we are having <T303> beautiful weather. The apple trees have already blossomed. Wheat and rye are already putting on their kernels. But it was very dry until today; now we are having a beautiful rain. We are all quite well except for Mother’s leg.
Anna sent us her picture. She is a pretty girl. I think she looks like Emma. We have not yet heard from Ernest Gerstenberg this spring.
Delle’s business is going well. His wife works as his clerk. Cashton House has a new innkeeper again. I hope and pray that you and your children are all well. August has cleared three acres of land, which we will soon break up, and in autumn we will sow wheat on it. Our wheat and rye is excellent. When you have time once again, please answer. Greetings to Emma and the children, from F.A.M.
To Karoline Gerstenberg, Kummerfeld near Pinneberg near Hamburg, Germany.
May 18, 1889.
Dear Daughter. Yesterday I received your letter of May 1st, and I am glad to hear that you are still alive and thinking of me. But we all feel cheated because you did not send us a picture of you. Did you forget your promise? You will have the same feeling when you get this letter and I tell you that we have not heard from Ernest yet. We wrote to him once already this spring, but got no answer. A little while ago I got a letter from Anna saying that she is well. She is earning $14 a month. She also sent me her picture. She is a pretty girl and looks quite pleasant and happy. A few days ago I also got a letter from Schlomanns saying that they are all well. I cannot quite say the same about us. I have some rheumatism, and my wife still has her sore leg. We are having excellent spring weather. Rye and wheat will soon bloom. This spring August cleared three acres of land—that means he pulled out trees, burned the brush, and sawed off the roots—with the help of another boy. Now the trees and roots have to be hauled off, and in June the land will be plowed, and sowed with winter wheat in autumn. Carl helps in the garden. He is tall and broad, but his health is not very good <T304> and he cannot stand hard work. Dora milks the cows and does the housework. She suffers a lot from toothache. My children speak and understand German but don’t know how to write it.
According to the newspapers, there is quite a movement in Germany. 100,000 coal miners are said to be on strike. We are also having hard times here. Farm products are very cheap, but coffee and sugar are expensive.
Mr. Emanuel Habel, Bangor, Wis..
Jun. 10 [1889].
Dear Sir! Your letter of June three almost failed to reach me, as Mount Pisgah has already been forgotten for a long time—our post office is now called Cashton. We have good rosemary plants and several seeds. If you want to visit us, go first to Sparta and from there to Cashton, where anybody can tell you where I live. You will arrive here at 10 o’clock, and can return again in the evening. Respectfully, F.A.M.
A. Schlomann, Railr. Av., Corner of E. Str., W.H. N.J.
Jun. 10 [1889].
Dear Children! When I brought my last letter to the post office, I picked up your letter of May 13. We were glad to hear that you are still well and thinking about us. Since my last letter the weather has changed a lot. We have had a lot of cold rain and frosty nights, which ruined the corn and potatoes. It has been raining almost every day, but we have not yet had any heavy storms or flooding, as we read in the papers that many places were damaged by these. The corn and potatoes are recovering, and everything will still be alright if we get warmer weather.
A little while ago I got a letter from Kummerfeld; all was well there. But I have not yet heard from Ernest. Did he write to you perhaps? Mother’s leg seems a little better, but I have rheumatism, Dora has toothache, and Carl is lame too. Greetings to all. Your Grandfather.
<T305> Aug. Schlomann, Railroad A., Corner of E. Str., W.H. N.J.
[Sept? 1889].
Dear Children. If I expect to hear from you, I suppose I first have to remind you of the fact that we are still alive. I am as usual an old man with a white beard. The rheumatism I had in spring is finally gone. Mother’s leg has improved enough so that she can get around the house, but she cannot stand to wear a shoe on her sore leg.
Dora had a tooth pulled just a week ago today, and since then she has had so much pain day and night that she cannot sleep nor eat. Carl is always sick; he can only do light work. August is strong and well, but spends half his time in Cashton.
We are having the nicest summer and autumn weather imaginable, just enough rain and not too much. My flower garden is a true spectacle. Our wheat and barley are doing well. The corn has bigger ears than ever before. If we don’t have frost too soon, it will be extraordinarily good. Our barn is full of hay. The horses have enough food, the cattle have enough pasture, and four of our five nice pigs will be butchered this autumn leaving one sow to raise little pigs. If you could see our farm now, you would not think we are poor
How are you doing? Did you make a lot of money this summer? How is Emma and how are the children? All well, I hope. I have not heard from Kummerf. nor from Ernest G. The last time we heard from the boys in Oregon, they were all well.
Write soon and let me know how you are doing. Your Grandfather.
Aug. Schlomann, W.H. N.J.
Oct 14, 1889.
Dear Children. Your letter of Oct. 8 came. I thought you knew that we don’t have $100 in cash to buy potatoes, and if I had them I would not risk them for such a <T306> small and uncertain profit.
We are glad that you are all well. We are fine too, and we are having the nicest autumn weather imaginable. Regards, Your Grandfather.
Mr. Michael J. Müller, Stocking Manufacturer, Sparta, Wis.
Dec. 6, 1889.
Dear friend! As you requested, I brought you 30 cabbage heads and 35 celery bulbs, for which you owe me $2.20. I expect to be in Sparta next week and I will call on you. In case you are not at home, leave the money with your wife, as I need it very badly. I will also bring butter with me, if you would like to have some. Be so kind as to let me know whether you received this letter. With my friendly greetings, F.A.M.
To Karoline Gerstenberg, Kummerfeld near Pinneberg near Hamburg, Germany.
[Dec. 1889].
Dear Daughter. I have your picture in front of me, looking at me in a friendly way, but it is hard for me to change the mental image that I have had so far of a slim pretty girl to one of a respectable matron. My family says you look very much like me, and I think you look like my mother’s brother, Uncle Karl August Seidel, whose picture I have.
I would have answered sooner, but I had hoped to hear from Ernest. I wrote several letters to him, to no avail. But I believe he is quite well. He just doesn’t like to write letters.
We had a cold, wet spring, a very good summer, an early frost in autumn, and then beautiful weather again till about two weeks ago. Now we are having fog and heavy air. My two boys in Oregon are doing well. Ernest has three children and Adolph has two, but he is expecting a newcomer any day now [Adolph Elmer MEISSNER, b: 08 Dec 1889 in Merlin, OR]. August, Carl, and Dora are still at home and my wife and I are quite well.
As we read in the papers, the great powers in Europe keep preparing for war. This means big expenses and <T307> hard times. Are any of your children liable for military service? I can hardly expect to receive an answer from you soon. Writing seems to be difficult for you. When I hear anything about Ernest I will let you know. Farewell for now, Your Father F.A.M.
Mr. August Breitenfeld, Bruce, Brookings Co., Dakota [now SD].
Dec. 30, 1889.
Dear friend. I see from your letter of Dec. 4 that you are still alive, and that you sometimes think about your old friend. We are also still alive and quite well. August is in the Piney Woods; Carl and Dora are at home. We are having beautiful weather—no snow so far. We had a cold, wet spring and an excellent summer; autumn was a bit dry. The wheat was good, the barley very good. Some cornfields were damaged by the wet spring, but all of the prices are very low: wheat 60 cts., corn 25 cts., barley 15 cts., fat pigs three cts., butter 15 cts., eggs 18 cts.
Everything is still the same as always. How is your wife? Is she still living with Wilhelmine? You are thinking of going west—I should think you will soon be too old to start a new farm. My two boys in Oregon are well. They each have three children already and a homestead farm. Give my regards to your dear wife and to Wilhelmine as well. Write soon again, and tell me how you are doing. Your friend, F.A.M.
To Karoline Gerstenberg, Kummerfeld near Pinneberg near Hamburg, Germany.
Jan. 4, 1890.
Dear Daughter. I received your birthday greeting, and you must have received my letter too. I am 85 years old and am still able to walk as far as Pinneberg (Cashton) [i.e., the distance from Kummerfeld to Pinneberg is about the same as from here to Cashton]. Already this year I have had several attacks of rheumatism, but now I am completely free of it. But when one is so old, life offers nothing more. I have all I could want, good clean clothes, beds and nursing; but the best food or drink, coffee, tea, beer, or wine does not taste right or I cannot stand it. <T308> And if I want to do some work that is heavy, I have no strength for it. I have, as they say, outlived myself. It is a comforting to think that my time has run out. We can die at any age, but I know it is inevitable.
I can’t remember the day and year when you were born [Karoline Marie Eleanore MEIßNER b: 12 Nov 1826 in Germany] but I know it was autumn. We lived in Thesdorf and had a fried goose that your mother helped eat before you were born. I was about 22 years old then, and now I am 85, so you must be 63. Your birth did not cost your mother’s life, but it cost her health, which caused quite a lot of discomfort for both of us for many years.
It hasn’t snowed here yet, but it has been cold since New Year’s. August, along with several other young people from the neighborhood, went to work as a lumberjack at the Piney Woods, where they pay quite well. Carl feeds the horses and cows, and hauls wood. There is nothing else to do in winter here; Mother and Dora do the housework and I sit in the room most of the time and read papers or books.
You wrote that Frieda has left you also. That makes it quite hard for you. I have not heard from Ernest yet; also not for a long time from Heinrich Meissner (Sennewald). He is living in this state, has lost a foot in the war, is married and receives a monthly pension of $30. We just received a small box of Christmas gifts from Schlomanns, so I assume they are all well. Give our regards to your husband and Otto. I wish you all a Happy New Year.
Aug. Schlomann, Railway A., C. of Elm Street, W.H. N.J.
Jan. 4, 1890.
Dear Aug. and Emma. A cigar box arrived yesterday, addressed to me. Carl brought it home. I opened it and found a box of cocoa, dried figs, Altona drops, and a needle pillow. Dora just said, "It is a Christmas … It is from Schlomanns." Today we made a good cup of cocoa and drank it to <T309> your health. Maybe we will still get a letter. We are all quite well, and hope the same is true of you. We wish you all a Happy New Year. August is in the Pinery; we don’t have any snow yet, and hard frost only since New Year’s Day. Dora went to the New Year’s Eve dance in Cashton, and in the morning she brought the news that fire broke out in the night in the meat market, and that all the houses along that side burned down, as far as the blacksmith shop. I have not gone to see it yet. Louise probably already has a beau, Hans pushes your market wagon, and what are Fritz and Clara doing?
Once again, good luck for the New Year and success in your business.
Mr. Ferdinand Kaiser, Eisleben, Germany.
Jan. 8, 1890.
I received your catalog yesterday, and I want to send you my small order right away. Please ship it as soon as you can. Send it to me by mail as "samples without value." I will pay you for it this summer, along with what I still owe you from last year.
Respectfully ...
Aug. Schlomann, R Ave., C. of E. St, W.H.
Feb. 10, 1890.
Dear August and Emma. Why haven’t you written? You must have received my letter saying that we received your Christmas box.
This winter we had two weeks with sledding tracks, then it thawed, and now it is freezing again.
August is home from the Pinery. He got sick. We all had the sniffles or a cold, but non of us had been very sick. We are afraid you may be sick. Write soon and let us know how you are doing.
Aug. Schlomann, W.H. N.J.
Mar 8, 1890.
Dear Children. Is it because you are too lazy that you haven’t written, or are all of you sick, or did you hit the jackpot and become stuck-up? Why is it?
We are all quite well. We are having real winter and cold weather, but only since the first of March, and Carl and August bring in enough wood so that we aren’t suffering too much from the cold.
Your grandfather.
<T310> Aug. Schlomann.
Mar 20, 1890.
At last you have shown signs of life! We are glad that you are well. Emma has again presented you with a pledge of love. As the Bible says, "Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth." Our best wishes to your little daughter. I’m sorry you live so far away and we can’t come and see you. Carl is still sick. He can’t even do his chores any more. Mother is always ailing, too. Dora and August are still coughing from the influenza.
We are having warmer weather again, but the soil has not thawed yet. We have been having a bad time lately. Everything we have for sale is cheap, and everything we have to buy is expensive.
How is your business doing? Are you doing well financially? Are you still planning to sell out for a good profit?
I am very sorry that I did not receive Anna’s letter. My regards to Emma and the children from your Grandfather.
To Mrs. Karoline Gerstenberg, Kummerf. near P. in Holstein.
Apr. 22, 1890.
Dear Daughter. Today on the 22nd, I received your letter of April 6.
You ask me whether I haven’t yet heard from your son, my grandson Ernest G. His last letter was from Mar 31, 1888, Eldred, Cass Co., Dakota. I have not heard any more from him since then. My letters after that were returned unopened. Also the postmaster at Eldred, to whom I wrote, could not tell me anything more about him. My two sons in Oregon have also written to me that they have no news from him either. Also your two daughters Emma Schlomann and Anna have not heard from him. Ernest G. has vanished and is missing.
Poor daughter! What will you do if Otto has to become a soldier? Your husband is ailing and you are old. Who will do the work? Your father, F.A.M.
Monroe County, State of Wisconsin. This 23rd day of April 1890, F.A. Meissner appeared before me, a Notary Public, and swore an oath that the facts stated about Ernst Gerstenberg are true. [SEAL] Henry H. Cremer, Notary Public
<T311> Mr. Hague & Schmidt in Erfurt, Germany.
May 21, 1890.
If you will send me the seeds listed below as soon as you receive this letter, they will arrive in time for me to raise plants for next year. I enclose $1, which should be sufficient. F.A.M.
To Ernst Gerstenberg, Saloon Keeper, Corner of E Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C.
[1890]
Dear Sir. I found in the "Weekly Wisconsin" a wonderful report about the talents of your inhabitant [?], Mr. Charles Kinkel, but what interests me most is your name: Ernst Gerstenberg. Namely, a daughter of mine has a son with the same name who has been missing for a couple of years. It is certainly very unlikely that you are the young man, but I thought it would be worthwhile to write to you. My daughter’s son Ernst Gerstenberg is about 27 years old and was last in Dakota, so far as we know. His parents still live near Hamburg in the Holstein region.
Asking you to greet Mr. Carl Kinkel for me, I sign respectfully, F.A.M.
To Mrs. Karoline Gerstenberg, Kummerf. near P. in Holstein.
Aug. 18, 1890.
Dear Daughter. I received the letter that you started on July 8 and completed July 24. I learned from it that you are still alive, that your health and your husband’s are not too good, and that you are having bad weather.
We had dry, cold weather in May, with frost almost every night. In June it thundered and rained continually, so that we had several big floods that destroyed bridges and roads and did a lot of damage to my garden. Then we had a week of very hot weather, so that horses fell down dead while working in the fields, and many people died of sunstroke. We had good weather during the hay and wheat harvest, and it is continuing now. My garden is very poor this year: few potatoes; wheat, <T312> barley, and rye have plenty of straw but not much grain. Corn is good, unless we have an early frost. In some regions it’s so dry that there are no crops at all; in others wind, rain, and hail ruined everything. Butter costs only five cts. = 20 Pf. per lb. this summer. The price for wheat has gone up, and potatoes cost $1 per bu.
We too were sick a lot this summer. We have not yet heard from Ernst; also Schlomanns have not written for a long time.
To Hermann Meyer, care of J.H. Holze, Barrington, Cook Co., Ill. [Came to U.S. with Ernst G.—see T253.]
Sept. 13 [1890].
Dear friend. I received your letter of Sept. 7, but I cannot give you the information you are looking for. His last letter was dated March 31, 1888. His address at that time was Eldred, Cass Co., Dakota. Since then I have not heard anything more from him, and our letters have not been answered. We don’t know whether he ever claimed land. An appeal in the "Germania" will probably be of no help.
My daughter wrote me that you had returned to Kummerf. for a visit. If you ever come this way, please visit us. With greetings ...
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