From: Krasna, Bessarabia
19 January 1911

The weather is still very nice. It looks like we can travel around a bit this winter.

On the last day of the year, Uncle Longlegs (the Stork) left a young one at the farm of Theobalt. M. Nagel. The new addition is of good health. Godparents were Kaspar Kuss and Martha Scheiber at the baptism.

The midwife (Babuschka) is old and a bit clumsy. The mother-in-law of Theobalt Nagel is still young, in her mid-forties, was helping the old midwife bath the new addition to the family as well. Then she dressed him and handed him to the godparents, who carried him to church for the baptism. The mother-in-law was given the right to name the baby. In church, the pastor asked what the child would be named and the answer was, Peter. So Peter was the name accepted.

Back home, the child was given to the mother with the information that he was baptized as Peter. The mother discovered quickly that a terrible mistake had been made. My God! How can you baptize a girl as Peter? Midwife, where have you been? Babuschka shrugged and said she did not bathe and diaper the little one, but the mother-in-law had, who also named the little one.

As soon as the incident was told to the pastor, he was taken aback. He could not baptize a child twice. Something like this had never happened to him before. But he would enter in the baptismal record, not Peter, but Petronilla. Thus, the new parents now have a new daughter. More care will be taken next time!! The puzzle answer to Joseph Hilzendeger's riddle in #25 is: 36 geese in the flock.

Joseph J. Müller passed away January 22. He leaves behind a grieving widow and nine children, two of whom are married and seven are bachelors. He was only 47 years old.

Marriages this month: Widower Philipp Leintz and widow Theresia Kuss nee Böller/Völler; Rudolph Nagel and Dorothea Kopp as well as Clemens Schlick and Salomea Söhn.

Greetings to brother-in-law Martin and sister Theresia Kopp, and my friends Johannes Kopp and Michael Volk. I wish all the best for 1911. Order the Staats-Anzeiger, as it is by far the best publication for German families. I will continue to report the news from Krasna, Bessarabia, if the publisher wants them. (*Publisher: We will be happy to have them. Your changes in the premium have been made and your scissors will be mailed.) The snow did not last. We had snow flurries January 16, 17 and 18. It was by far more pleasant to baby-sit the stove than to go hunting.

Alwin jenwein (?) and I went hunting January 14. I managed to get the only rabbit we spotted all day. On the way back, we saw a flock of geese. I managed to shoot one of them as well, but it kept flying. I had a tough time trying to find it over the next hill. I did find my goose the next day, but the fox had already made a meal of it. I will not spare friend fox either, should I sight in on him!!

Greetings to the publisher and all readers.

Anton Gedak