From: Agua Limpa, Brazil
10 February 1927
Valued Staats-Anzeiger!
Although Mr. Strohmaier, the correspondent from Akkerman, sent me cold artillery thunder, he about scared me as much as he would have scared a tiger in the jungle. I have no shortage of ammunition either. (*Editor: But we are short on space and inclination for accepting the effusion of a writer’s war, and surely the same holds true for the readers interests. We therefore hope, that you and Mr. Strohmaier consider this matter closed, especially since both of you are decent gentlemen and really dear to us.)
One year has passed exactly today since I left my old home, Larga in Bessarabia. I could have written all along about Brazilian conditions, but I wanted to be well informed first. With this I can now start and present the readers a fairly clear picture.
I would first like to mention the names of friends who immigrated to Brazil from villages in Bessarabia. Many letters are lost, because of wrong addresses or insufficient postage. So, first of all, it requires ten lei postage for a letter from Bessarabia. (*Editor: We will publish the names of the people from Bessarabia in your area, but not the addresses and will forward to you the letters we receive, so you can pass them on. For that we have certain cogent reasons.)
From Leipzig on Plantation Sao Luis: Gottlieb Wiege, David Franz, Daniel Werner, Emanuel Schweiz, Jakob Müller, and Emanuel Adolf.
From Rohrbach: Johannes Quast, Karl Otto, Johan Bittner, and Gustav Weber.
From Albota: Gustav Knopp, Johann Reis, Johann Reis Jr., Gottlieb Nadel, Martin Sackmann and the single Wilhelm Schweizer.
From Borodino: Johannes Bendewald and widow Sophia Schütt.
From Tarutino: Daniel Braun.
From Klöstitz: Friederich Esslinger.
From Eichendorf: Wilhelm Ost.
From Kulm: Daniel Preis.
From Burlata: The single Emanuel Scharf.
From Alt Elft on Plantation Sao Juan is: Johann Jerge.
From Krasna: Hyronimus Harbura, Kaspar Trefs, Jakob Fleckenstein, Anton Weber, Wendelin Paul, Adolf Paul, Peter Paul, Aloisius Herrschaft, and Peter Herrschaft.
From Tarutino: Reinhold Schmidt.
From Neu-Nikolajewka: David Layer, Johannes Layer Jr., Emanuel Matt, widow Christina Fix, and widow Wilhelmina Lux.
From Leipzig: Daniel Braun, and Johann Hört.
From Krasna: Eustachius Meer.
I also have a few assignments to carry out: Reinhold Schmidt (son of Christian Schmidt) sends his greeting to Gustav Sucke and asks him for his address. Peter, son of Thomas Herrschaft, is searching for Uncle Zacheus Kahl and Peter and his wife nee Weber (daughter of Peter Weber), would like to get a sign of life from their uncle since they would like to correspond with him. Aloisius, son of Thomas Herrschaft is searching for Johannes, Anselmus, and Barnabas Volk, and Regina, daughter of Johannes Herrschaft, who immigrated unmarried with Peter Müller to America. Her current family name is unknown. Aloisius and wife nee Schäfer (daughter of Johannes Schäfer), would like a sign of life from Peter Schäfer and his son Karl. Peter and Anna Paul nee Herrschaft ask for a sign of life from Rochus Ternes, Daniel Dirk, Cornelius Bonakowsky, Peter Müller, Barnabas, Anselmus, Elias and Johannes Volk. These people could not correspond with their friends for a long time because they could not find their addresses. Hopefully, this will now happen by means of the widely read Der Staats-Anzeiger.
Furthermore, Thomas Herrschaft and his wife Magdalena nee Müller are seeking the following friends: Ludwig, Joseph, Peter, Barnabas, and Eduard Müller. Georg Harsche, Fabrizius Harbura, Egidius Müller, and Peter Franz are saying hello to Barnabas, Johannes, Anselmus, and Elias Volk, Aloisius Schneider, Peter and Karl Schäfer, and Thomas Ihli, and ask for their addresses. Wendelin Paul, son of Andreas Paul, is looking for Ferdinand Heitrich, Cornelius, Paul, and Michael Volk. Anton Weber and wife Annamaria nee Paul (daughter Of Joseph Paul) are looking for Uncle Cornelius Paul and Aunt Ottilia Bonakowsky. Jakob Fleckenstein and wife Thekla nee Bonakowsky, seek Christian Schlegel from Katzbach in Bessarabia. Gottlieb Wiege (son of Johann Wiege) says hello to Uncle Gottlieb Wiege in California, and Michael Klaus in North Dakota. His letters remained unanswered. Johann Jerge and wife Regina nee Stumm are seeking Eduard, Johannes, and Theresia Quast. Kaspar Trefs and wife Margaretha nee Kurz are looking for Uncle Ludwig Müller, August, Karl, and Salomon Ihli, Joseph Menges, and Benjamin Migofsky. Hyronimus Harbura is seeking his brother Adolf Harbura, Peter Schäfer and his son Karl, Thomas Ihli and Raimund Koch. Johann Reis did not receive an answer from brother-in-law Samuel Baierbach in Ranchville, Alta, Canada. (*Editor: People, however, who have the addresses of their friends, should not take up the columns of this paper, because we cannot help it if they do not answer.) And so there are many more, whose letters remained unanswered. (*Editor: This is caused because people in Brazil do not correctly write the addresses in Portuguese, and the average people on the outside who just cannot read, write incorrectly, and the letters will get lost. We could sing a song about such written addresses, but we are also affluent in Portuguese. The people there should at least once get their addresses typed for their friends, so they will correctly and legibly receive them. Then this misery would soon have an end!)
I now hope that through the Staats-Anzeiger many friends will be brought together again. All local people from Bessarabia have a great longing for the Staats-Anzeiger and they hope that their friends will order the paper for them. Every day my house is full! Everybody wants to read the Staats-Anzeiger, borrowing it from me before I have finished reading it, and often I don’t know who borrowed it. When I get the paper back, it has gone through so many hands that it is all torn and hardly readable. (*Editor: Hopefully the friends here will soften and order the Staats-Anzeiger for their friends there. Costs $3.50 per year and will surely get there.)
Friendly greetings to all.
Joseph Föth.
From: Krasna, Bessarabia
24 February 1927
Dear Staats-Anzeiger!
To begin with I greet the following friends and comrades: Wendelin Kopp, son of Simon, Emil Joseph Kopp, son of Jakob, Maximilian Mueller, son of Johannes, Zachaeus Kahl, son of Sebastian, Raimund Wagner, son of Domasius, Reinhold Tschischmack, son of Peter, Paulus Wingenbach, son of Anton, Sigismund Krenzel, son of Peter and I greet my old friend Anton Goldade. Maybe one of them will be kind enough to pay for l year for the Staats-Anzeiger for me. I would be sincerely grateful for that and I would always write in the Staats-Anzeiger now and then. I also ask you dear friends to let yourselves be heard in the Staats-Anzeiger more often and to inform us how you are faring in the praised America.
Further, I am looking for my brothers-in-law Eufenius and Magnus Mueller, Remigius Paul and Edmund Soehn. I greet them kindly and ask them for a sign of life, because I have not heard from them for quite awhile. I have already written them six letters, but none of them was answered. Therefore, we ask for information and correct addresses.
On 5 January, the following incident happened in Braila located in the old domain. In the late evening hours, a nun arrived at an inn to spend the night there. The innkeeper assigned her a room to sleep in. The servant took interest in her and went into the room and hid under the bed before she got there. The nun entered the room to go to bed. The servant looked up from under the bed and noticed as she undressed that she was pulling out a knife and a revolver and put these weapons on the table. Now the servant under the bed became frightened, because he noticed that it was not a nun but a man instead. This happened on the 3rd floor.
Now this man opened the window and whistled toward the street. His partners appeared below the windows. He lowered a rope down in order to hoist up his buddies as he was leaning out the window. The one under the bed crawled out from under it and grabbed the guy in the window by his feet and threw him out. The man outside was already quite a ways up as he came crashing down. One man broke a leg and the other one was killed.
Now the servant made some noise and talked about the incident. He received a good reward for hiding under the bed. If he hadn’t been there, the innkeeper’s family would have probably been killed.
In closing, I greet all subscribers and also the editor Mr. Brandt.
Daniel Lauterbach