From: Emmental, Bessarabia
5 February 1912
Eight days have gone by since I sent my last report to the Staats-Anzeiger. But since today is Sunday and I have a few hours of free time, I don’t want to let them pass unused.
The weather this morning is splendid and reminds us that spring is knocking at the door. May God give us the relief from the severe cold. It is true that the cold did not last long, but we had days where the cold was as severe as we have had in many years.
There is nothing special to report. Indeed, I could report a lot about the conditions in the market place, but I’d rather be silent about it, since there could be upset people if I write about everything. If I didn’t have so much to do because of my move to Krasna, perhaps I would have written something about the conditions in the market place. But now I want to write something to my fellow readers about superstitions, which people believe in more than the Holy Bible. Through education and instruction it seemed like the superstitions had totally been erased, but the following episode shows, that superstitions have taken roots here and there.
In the village Eselohr, County Kischnese lived a young couple by the name of Chrizko and Marianna. Since the day of his marriage, Chrizko lived very frugally and this character trait rubbed off on his wife Marianna. The young couple soon owned a nice amount of money.
Chrizko was very careful on his farm so that he wouldn’t have any expenses. That’s why he didn’t buy boots or pants for himself. He manufactured his own “pastoli” (boots) and made himself pants out of sheepskin, which he wore for many years since they were practically indestructible. He saved the same way on things for his house and his farm. For his wife he bought a baking trough, in which she was able to prepare 10 loaves of bread at a time. This way his wife didn’t have to bake as often and was able to save on fuel. In this manner these two people really saved a fortune in a matter of several years, so that the villagers soon started praising Chrizko as a rich and frugal man. Even though he was still wearing the old “pastoli” on his feet and the fur pants on his body, he enjoyed high esteem in the community and he was finally elected an elder of the village.
Up to now Chrizko had been able to wear the fur pants and the “pastoli”, but now as the elder of the village he had no choice but to bite into a sour apple and buy himself boots. It was his official duty now to appear at the office daily. As soon as he got home the boots came off his feet and he reached for his old “pastoli” or did his farm duties barefoot. Chrizko had no idea about washing his feet, and when he had to go again and again to the office, he pulled his newly bought boots on his dirty feet. He put so much dirt into his boots, that finally he couldn’t wear the boots anymore. The boots were actually almost new, but that the same suddenly didn’t fit on his feet anymore, was a disturbing matter for Chrizko. He complained to his wife Marianna about his dilemma. She got frightened and didn’t know m what to say. She immediately had the idea that the boots have to be bewitched, and there was no other way out but to go to the pastor to have the boots freed from the spell of the witch. How lucky that Marianna had the right idea! Now our Chrizko got on the way to the pastor’s and lamented about the dilemma with the bewitched boots. The pastor looked at them and discovered right away that the boots contained several pounds of debris. He explained to Chrizko that the boots were bad and that he would have to pray and bless them for 8 days and that it would cost 10 rubles. Chrizko agreed and left his boots with the pastor. The pastor in turn gave the boots to his servant with the instruction to clean and polish them. After 8 days Chrizko returned, paid the 10 rubles and received his boots. He hurried home to Marianna and in her presence easily put on his boots, since these were once again as roomy as when he first bought them. Great, Marianna said, now I know where I stand. Just as your boots were bewitched so is my baking trough. You surely know that in the beginning I was able to bake 10 loaves of bread in the trough, but now it has come to the point where I can only bake 3 loaves at a time. The two people deliberated for a short time and then Chrizko had to take the baking trough to the pastor, so that the trough also could be freed from the spell of the witch. When Chrizko arrived with the trough at the pastor’s he got very serious and explained that it was a very bad case. The trough will have to soak in the river for 14 days and that the freeing of the spell would cost 15 rubles in this case instead of 10 rubles. Chrizko left the trough with the pastor. The pastor gave the trough to his servant with the order to sink it with a rock in the river for 14 days, and after the dough crust dissolved which had gathered at the edge of the trough and was as thick as a fist, to clean it. After exactly 14 days Chrizko returned, paid the promised 15 rubles and received the baking trough, which now again held 10 loaves of bread, just like when they bought it. The people had had their help. Are there perhaps more superstitious people just like Chrizko and Marianna?
Shrove Tuesday was on 6 February and this was celebrated, as is the custom with us Germans, with gladness, food and drink until 12 o’clock midnight when Ash Wednesday started. Now we are in the holy time of Lent, living on oil, cabbage and bread.
I am greeting all readers,
Romuald Dirk
From: Emmental, Bessarabia
20 February 1912
Good morning Uncle Michael! These words originate from my pen and from my heart. But wherever your scribbling in Issue #29 of the Staats-Anzeiger comes from remains questionable. It could not be any other way but that the writer of your essay pretty much is a man like you, because birds of a feather flock together. It is true as your companion writes in Issue #29, “Every human being has a price.” And now it really surfaces as such. Like you were saying on that December day at your home, that your wife got into an argument with you after reading my report in the Staats-Anzeiger, namely if the coat fits wear it. At that time you wanted to conceal yourself from me, but you couldn’t bear that concealment too long, because the coat did fit you.
With that the argument ended and you felt at ease under the concealment until 15 December. I did not attack you or anyone else in Emmental with my correspondences in Issues #12, #13, #14 and #19. This was also pointed out by the editorship in Edition #29, because I only report about conditions in general. Still, I am happy that you did lift the concealment and showed your true personality through your companion in Edition #29. Now then, every reader of the Staats-Anzeiger can see that the coat fits you. Now you are trying to get out of that fact by disavowing an individual who is way above you.
Riches do not make a man, but education does. Through the pen of your companion, what Mr. Dirk…… (Text missing)……..from the people in Emmental have bought land. One person bought more land, another person bought less. I didn’t even think about that in my report, because I only talked about conditions in general. But you look at this differently. I try to bring the truth to light. It is true that 3 years ago the people from Emmental did buy the land, which they had leased for 30 years. During those 30 years they accumulated enough money so that half of them could purchase 1¼ acre on which their leased house was located, and you Mr. Gross own several acres of land. How much debating did it take with credit banks until the needed cash was obtained? You should also ask the rest of the people of Emmental why you possess several acres of land while they have only 1¼ acres for their homestead. Enough talk of that. The people here are well aware of the conditions surrounding this subject. Yet, nobody wants to put a bell on the cat’s tail. There are also several families from Emmental in America. They will certainly vouch that I did write the truth.
Furthermore, your companion writes in your name that you are very eager to find out what I own. Now, my riches I have published a long time ago in the Staats-Anzeiger. – Sorry to say it was not much. It is my own fault that I do not have the belongings like you. I do not have the frame of mind like you either. I would not be able to sleep with debts on my mind, and my conscience will not let me acquisition something in a crooked way. Educated to be a teacher I am not used to cheating. I am always content with the small amount, which I earned in an honest way. An honest hand will make it through the entire land.
Furthermore, I must tell you that the small belongings I have are my own. First off, I have 2 sons who have been blacksmith masters for 3 years now. One son is ready to work as a shoemaker. The youngest son, 9 years old will also not get lost without your gracious help. Secondly, I possess sufficient knowledge so that I have been able to make a decent living for my family up until age 53 years. What good is it for someone to be rich when he is a fool? Thirdly, I always have sufficient resources to be able to purchase enough, so as not to have to live badly, maybe like Uncle Michael and his companion. I worked as a teacher from the age of 18 years until I was 41 years old. This is proof that I did not live off of a dowry or an inheritance from my father, but instead earned a living by using my mind and my hands. Young and old always liked and honored me. My colleague Mr. Anton Jochim in America will gladly confirm this. Even in Krasna to this day it is being said, that those who attended school under Mr. Dirk learned a lot and turned into competent men. Uncle Michael, I do not blow smoke at people like you do. I freely admit that I am poor but honest. I also would much rather wear a torn coat on my back than blemishes on my conscience. Now Uncle Michael knows what I own.
The companion of the uncle writes further, that wasting time is my biggest problem and that Mr. Dirk surely is not frugal with his time. I totally agree with you on that, because I have my own outlooks in this regard. But you Uncle Michael, lookout so that you don’t end up again as a boot repairman on a shoemaker’s stool. The only thing that can happen to a poor man is to stay poor. But to a rich man with borrowed money it can easily happen like the saying, “easy come easy go.” It is really a pity that I have to waste my time because of your scribbling in Edition #29. But since you want to blame me directly without a cause, I cannot pay attention to the precious time. I have to show the readers of the paper who the man is that intended to dishonor me in #29 through his pen pal. The uncle bumped his nose so hard that his eyes will cross with the remark that my father had sent me to a seminary in Sarata for schooling. I can list people who can verify in this paper that this story is made up and a lie. Once someone tells a lie he cannot be trusted again, even if he speaks the truth. For instance, I have a classmate, Mr. Anton Jochim in Harvey, North Dakota who can confirm that Uncle Michael is not telling the truth, and that I was never a student under a director of a seminary, who supposedly expelled me. It is well known that priests do not originate from central and county schools which my colleague Jochim and I attended. Uncle Michael where did you get your education? You should always have your facts straight before making a comment.
At the time of my father’s death I was a teacher in Nikolaital, Cherson Province. Besides his home, my father left 150 rubles. My mother used this money for her livelihood. I did not inherit one kopek (penny). But I live well and maybe better than Mr. Uncle. It is true that the county court ruled that my father’s house was mine, but it took me 2 years with court proceedings to fend off people who had no right to the estate but still attempted to get it. Finally, I got sole possession. It cost me a lot of money and it was hardly worth the trouble with the court proceedings. But my sense for justice would not allow it, that people who had no right to my father’s house should own it. That is the inheritance from my father. But since there were 90 rubles of tax to be paid on the house, I sold it for 372 rubles in order to pay the tax. This is not like the uncle wrote about 450 rubles more for a livelihood. I ended up with an inheritance of 232 rubles – a large fortune. This is almost enough money to pay for a person’s trip to America.
Once again, Uncle Michael is not telling the truth when he calls Wolontirofka a gypsy village, since it is more of a larger city than a village. There you will find 5 big tea houses, 2 restaurants, 6 beer halls, 1 hospital, doctor, pharmacy, provincial governor, about 50 wine stores, 2 bakeries, etc. Every 14 days there are open market activities. They are almost bigger than you can find in the south. Every individual who knows Wolontirofka can confirm that, and you poor individual want to call that a gypsy village. How embarrassed I would feel, at least in front of people that know Wolontirofka, and those that have read your silly scribbling in Edition #29 of the paper. It is true he who has no modesty also has no honor. Else you would not have written that I had gone to church in Krasna, and that nobody wanted to sit next to me, because I was supposed to have been full of vermin. Well, the people in Krasna know me better than you do, and should I go to church there, then certainly no one would hesitate to sit next to me in a pew.
So Uncle Michael, now preferably we want to bring this subject to an end, because at a sooty kettle I cannot wash myself clean. But if you want to vindicate yourself, then go right ahead. (*Editor: As far as the Staats-Anzeiger is concerned, we order to stop the argument. We accepted Mr. Michael Gross’ correspondence after careful consideration. We did mention at once in the same edition, that the assault made against Mr. Dirk was unjustified. We also knew that the latter would react. But now it is enough. Each of these gentlemen had the opportunity to voice his opinion. In the long run, the newspaper cannot publish personal faultfinding. As mentioned above – it’s closing time.)
To every reader of this newspaper it is known that I have never attacked anyone personally in my reports.
At this time I have nothing new to report. In March there is always a lot to be accomplished. This time especially with me, because I am moving to Krasna. In closing, I want to remark that since Michael Gross’ personal attack on me was published in the columns of the paper, I hope that my justification will not end up in the wastepaper basket.
A greeting to everyone,
Romuald Dirk