From: Krasna, Bessarabia
15 July 1913

My sister Eugenia lives in Raleigh, Morton County, North Dakota and my older sister Amalia in Brisbane in the same county.

In Edition #50 of the Staats-Anzeiger, I found an article from Raleigh dated 29 June signed by Mr. Emil Joseph Kopp who is greeting me as a classmate from school. Of course one is happy about such a greeting. But since I was only a 12-year old boy when I attended school in Krasna, I cannot clearly remember which boys from Krasna attended school with me. Therefore, I ask Mr. Emil Joseph Kopp for more details. Maybe Mr. Kopp is mistaken and has me mixed up with someone else.

Well, I am Romuald Dirk’s son, single, 21 years old and subject to the lottery as a recruit without privilege. I most likely will have to serve in the military for 2 years and 8 months. A decision will be made on 23 October. I am a journeyman blacksmith in the homeland colony of Krasna, and my brother Daniel works as a journeyman blacksmith in Tarutino. Before that, we both worked at dad’s forge. But since the harvests were always so meager and all commercial life came to a standstill, we had to close the forge for the time being. Even father works for someone else, at least until a decision is made on my conscription.

For the time being, best of thanks to Mr. Emil Joseph Kopp for remembering me. I ask him to please inform me either in this paper or in writing to me, so I can be sure if we were classmates or if there is a mix-up. Since my sisters live in the same county as he, all of this should soon fall into place.

I am also curious to find out why my sisters are so lazy about writing. Only rarely do they let something be heard about themselves. They may not be skillful at writing, but surely they write as well as the average correspondent. If I were so lucky as to meet both my brothers-in-law, I would harass them also for not writing. If I were a free master blacksmith as they are free farmers over there, then there would be a sign of life from me in every edition of the Staats-Anzeiger. Since I am a hired worker, it is not so easy. Furthermore, I am a young, single man and have to let older people have their prerogative about corresponding. But you, dear brothers-in-law, Ignatz and Eduard, are both your own bosses and don’t have to answer to anyone.

Father was on a visit for three days in Taraklia; however I could not be there. Sister Antonia Perpetua and brother Zachäus were there and told me that so far dad is healthy, but has problems with his eyes.

I hope also to hear soon something from my cousin Lorenz Dirk in Emmons County, North Dakota.

With greetings to all relatives and friends, and the Staats-Anzeiger readership.

Korbinian Dirk.

From: Krasna, Bessarabia
19 July 1913

Today I received another edition of the Staats-Anzeiger and read the article written by my Uncle Thomas Franz Ihli, saying that he had paid the Staats-Anzeiger for my subscription. Since he wanted to know how I liked the newspaper, I want to say that he could not have made me any happier. I like the paper so much that I can hardly wait to receive the next edition. I also received the beautiful wall maps for which I am very grateful. However, the Marien Calendar was omitted. (*Editor: For that, the correspondent will receive the “Lahrer Hinkender Bote”.)

Honorable editor, Mr. F. L. Brandt, I was often asked to write for the paper. Since I am not good with a pen, I am always worried that my scribbling will end up in the waste paper basket and be laughed at. Should I be fortunate enough to read my write-up in the paper, then I will write again off and on. The editor would have to correct any errors. (*Editor: OK already, we ask you to continue to write. Your contributions are welcome.)

Since 6 July, we are busy with threshing. We cannot accomplish much because we continue to have rainy, foggy weather. Our threshing proceeds are very slow since we still use horses. The yield of the harvest is good, and so is the wine. On the contrary, the cattle pastures look bad and the poor cattle have to feed on old straw.

Emil Joseph Kopp from Raleigh, North Dakota conveys greetings to his grandparents in Edition #50 of the paper. Unfortunately, I have to inform him that his grandfather Mathias Miller [Müller] passed away on 22 June.

The widow Angela Bachmeier nee Herrschaft, married widower Joseph Sehn [Söhn] from Rumania. The wedding took place in Krasna on 10 June.

My Uncle Thomas Ihli challenges me in Edition #50 to show a sign of life. Well, I am doing this. Although up until now he has not answered my last letter. As soon as I get to the post office in Tarutino I will send a big shawl for his wife. Johann Nagel will also send one to Phillip Nagel.

Why aren’t Karl and Phillip writing? They surely attended Saint’s Day of Peter and Paul. I also would have liked to be at my brother-in-law’s; we certainly would have had a good time.

Greetings to friends and acquaintances in America and Canada as well as to Kilian Ibach and family. Isn’t he a subscriber to this paper in Canada? (*Editor: We cannot answer your question, since you do not indicate where in Canada.) If he is not a reader of the paper, then he should immediately subscribe to it and correspond. He is a good old school teacher but seems to have become lazy in writing. Anyway, it would make me very happy, if I could read something from him in the Staats-Anzeiger.

I read in the paper about the Alpine Herbs and sent them 5 rubles*, but did not receive the herbs, only an answer that the Alpine Herbs cannot be exported. I did not get my money back. (*Editor: We ask to write us how the money was forwarded, by postal money order, or how. If you have not as yet received the money back, we will take care of the matter, because the company is very reliable, otherwise their advertising would not appear in this paper.)

The Berendsin Nr 2, which I ordered through the Staats-Anzeiger for rheumatism, I received promptly. I am very satisfied with this product.

With a greeting to all readers of this dear newspaper.

Valentin Herrschaft

*A Russian currency, the Dollar value of it at that time is not known.

From: Krasna, Bessarabia
20 July 1913

“If anyone knew anyone more, then anyone would honor anyone more and so on.

Most likely that’s what happens to the “A Farmer” in the paper, who we have heard from in three articles and deceitful reports. The “A Farmer” is laughing and thinks that one does not know who puts it in the paper, and that one thinks it is Gedak, another that it is Romuald Dirk, and a third that it is Peter Leinz. Now then, the “A Farmer” is totally in error, since we believe that only someone who escaped from an insane asylum could have written that trash. No rational person, but only one without a brain, will sneak up to strangers’ windows in the night. Or just a crazy person or totally immoral and depraved man runs after strange women at night, or worries about how other men like to take widows to the market instead of their own wife. “When your heart is filled up, then your mouth runs free!”

The “A Farmer” certainly does not belong to the nicest people in Krasna, or else he would sweep in front of his own door, leave other people’s dirt lay, and remove the beam from his eye first, before he concerns himself with the splinter in the eye of his fellow man.

The “A Farmer” doesn’t even know that he is cutting off his nose and disfiguring his own face. The night owls, who always know what is going on in the village, those are the slick ones.

Also A Farmer

From: Haynes, Adams County, ND
25 August 1913

On the 12 August, we were hit by a terrible storm - rain, wind and hail. Even the oldest people couldn’t remember ever having experienced the likes of it. Most people were just harvesting wheat, when a few innocent looking clouds gathered in an almost clear sky. Hardly ten minutes later we had to take refuge under the “header” vehicle. We were only 200 paces from the straw stack, but we had to stop. My maid suggested, “Uncle, let’s go over to the straw stack.” But I told her that it would soon stop since the cloud was right over us. However, the cloud remained in place and it rained and hailed without interruption for over three hours.

The hail was as big as walnuts and destroyed everything. There was no more need for mowing because the wheat had already been threshed. Fortunately, some people had already mowed some and they will have enough for bread and seed. I myself had mowed 25 acres, but I lost a total of 150 acres of wheat. The rain came down like a cloud burst. We were afraid that we would drown.

At my place, the water had flooded a mile wide and the creek ran more than eight feet deep. Thank God that no human lives were lost. Eight of my horses with harnesses ran off during the storm. Five of them I found the same day and the three others the following day. The harnesses were still in place, only two traces were lost.

My brother-in-law’s hogs surely would all have drowned, if they had not been restrained by the garden’s wire fence. 45 of his rabbits in the stable drowned pitifully. An area two miles wide and four miles long was hit, and the storm happened to hit the poorest people.

I greet my Uncle Dominik Brückner and his children in Canada, also Uncle Valentin and Aunt Elisabeth Herrschaft and children in Krasna, South Russia. Likewise Zachäus Kopp in Emmental, South Russia whom I ask to write more in the paper.

I heard that some people from Emmental immigrated to America, but I don’t know who they are or where they went.

I also greet Michael Masset and all readers of the Staats-Anzeiger.

Phillip Seifert Son of Martin

From: Shields, Morton County, ND
26 August 1913

Once again I have to write a few lines to the Staats-Anzeiger, but I am afraid that they will end up in the wastepaper basket because I had promised the editorship to submit new readers, but I was not able to do so. (*Editor: It is all right, dear friend! That which isn’t, could still happen. We are not upset with you because of that.)

We are completely done with the harvest. On August 20, we had a wind and hailstorm, the likes of which I had never experienced. The weather was worse than a blizzard in winter. You couldn’t see past 20 paces. Hailstones fell weighing up to ¼ of a pound. In the garden and the field everything was battered. The melons were especially badly damaged.

Luckily the wheat was already cut. The strong wind also caused damage to the wheat and haystacks. Many of them were toppled over.

I send greetings to the editorship. I wish them many new readers. I once again call my friends’ attention to order the Staats-Anzeiger and work for a broader circulation of the same.

Philipp Kahl