From: Krasna, Bessarabia
16 January 1914

It seems that the calendar that was forwarded to me got lost after all, because I did not receive it. Well, there are enough villains in the world and herewith I have to give up my waiting. I am curious to know what kind of present the sewing kit is. I would like it, if it could be sent to Russia even if I would have to pay additionally, because it would amount to something. (*Editor: The sewing kit is exactly as described in the newspaper. It certainly can be shipped to Russia. However, it would have to be registered and with the shipping cost it would amount to about two rubles. We will send the “Lahrer Hinkender Bote” (Lahrer Limping Messenger) calendar as a substitute to the honored correspondent. We hope that he will be satisfied.) Until now, none of my reports were lost except the last one, which however may still arrive.

We have a lot of snow and a temperature of 11 to 15 degrees below freezing. The sledge-road is amazingly good.

Simon Fenrich died before Christmas. The old Anton Bonokofski died on 2 January. On 6 January, the widow Helena Spitznagel died. She was known only by the name “Red Lena” in Krasna. This is all the news for now.

Legend has it that King Solomon understood the voices of all the birds and had absolute power over them. So on one nice morning, King Solomon looked out the window of his castle viewing with contentment the temple he had built. That’s when he heard a sparrow that was sitting alongside his partner on the ridge of the roof saying to his partner, “The King Solomon is so proud of this tremendous temple and I, a little sparrow, if I would tread down hard with my left foot three times in a row, would wreck the whole building.” The listener shook his head and admiringly looked at the mighty one. King Solomon, however, whistled for the braggart and ordered him to quickly come to him at the window. This was done without refusal and King Solomon said, “How can you, little fellow, be so overly sassy and boast of such power?” To that the sparrow replied, “Don’t take it so hard, dear King. It is my wife I talked to and as you know, in the presence of one’s wife one likes to acquire some admiration.” “You are right”, said the King, “Now fly off.” With these words King Solomon closed the window. The sparrow, however, flew back to his wife and told her, with his head proudly held high, that he had to make a sacred promise to the King never to use his power.

Friends in need,
Friends in death,
Friends behind your back,
These are three strong bridges.

Don’t let good fortune mislead you, nor misfortune annoy you, and to not attempt anything evil, lest punishment will soon arrive at the door. Oh God, how can this be, that the ones I don’t offend hate me. The ones that begrudge me, nor offer me anything, they still have to suffer seeing me alive. And when they think that I have died, then they will have to fend for themselves.

A greeting to Peter Schäfer and family, to the editorship, and to all coworkers and readers of the paper.

Valentin Herrschaft

From: Emmental, Bessarabia
26 January 1914

Fortune in the New Year, a good harvest to all farmers, and many new readers to the Staats-Anzeiger. Also, that all the current readers of the paper pay their arrears, as the editorship often complains about too much money being overdue. These are my wishes for 1914.

I also would like to wish something for myself for 1914. I received my prizes for the years 1911 and 1912, but not for 1913. I had asked for the shears, but Mr. Brandt has not responded and I did not receive the shears. I would like to have the shears, and when my brother Joseph pays again for my subscription of the paper for 1914, then I would like to ask for the sewing kit as well. Whatever payment is overdue, my brother will pay it, so I am not in arrears. (*Editor: The paper expired on 9 February 1914, but we will keep sending it because we know that Mr. Brother will pay for it. We will also send you the shears. Because of the cost involved at the time, it is bad to send such things to Russia. For such things one now has to pay letter rates, since Russia does not have parcel post. Furthermore, one has to register such items so that they will not get lost. If we provide the shears for free along with the sewing kit, and everything registered, then there will be an additional payment of 95 cents. In this case, we are then liable for everything to arrive properly. If it is not mailed registered, then we are not responsible.)

The weather here is very pleasant this winter. We had a lot of snow at the beginning of January. Half has already melted, but the ground is still covered so that the seedlings are not in danger of freezing.

There were no weddings here this year, only in Fox Valley, Canada where many people from Emmental and Krasna live. There is where a lot of weddings took place, as I read in Edition #25 of the paper.

I noted that young children at age 14 get married there. The editor wrote that Reinhold Kopp, son of Martin, got married. That would mean my brother who is still a child. All the rest that are mentioned are still young, about 14 to 16 years old. The contributing writer mentioned them all by their fathers’ names, so that they may be known to us. However, he did not identify his own father’s name. He also did not write where he came from. He simply signed off Joseph Hirsch. (*Editor: Someone named Schuwiak allowed himself a prank as the brother of the correspondent recently noted.) If one cannot report anything other than these stupidities, then one should shut up. Childish acts should not be written to the paper. The newspaper editor has no way of knowing whether these reports are true or made up, because the editor is not familiar with all situations, nor is he omniscient. Whoever sends in such false reports is a scamp.

A greeting to my old friend Phillip Seifert in Adams County, North Dakota. I am happy that he writes to me so often. No one else writes, although there are so many people from Emmental in America.

I would like to inform him, that his neighbor Mathias Miller will move to America this spring. His son Joseph and his daughter Theophila will remain here. Rudolf Kopp and Marianna, daughter of Peter Gross, son of Jakob, will also go.

Further, Thomas Blotzky married to the daughter of Karl Mass, Elisabetha, died on 5 September 1913 in a hospital in Odessa. No one was with him when he passed away. When his brother arrived for a visit, he had already been buried for five days. May this also inform his brother Romanus, since his brothers have already written him, but did not receive an answer.

Anna Bleile from Bikus will immigrate along with her son-in-law, Johannes Harsche, from Krasna and Valentin Schwengler. From Larga, several individuals, whose names I do not know, will also go. All in all, nine or ten grown girls are going. Well, with that, the young American men should be happy. Rochus Gross conveys a friendly greeting to you, Phillip Seifert, and asks if you could please send him the Staats-Anzeiger if you wish to do so. If not, then you should write him, because then he would have the paper subscribed to him through me and my brother Joseph in Canada. Well, friend Phillip, Rochus would be very grateful to you for the newspaper.

A friendly greeting also to my friend Stolanus Wingenbach near Raleigh in North Dakota, who does not live far from my brother-in-law Barnabas Steiert, and whom I ask to please write me something about my brother-in-law. Whenever my brother-in-law writes, which rarely happens, the envelope is usually almost empty.

A greeting also to Lorenz Löb, son of Peter Löb. I don’t know if he is a reader of the paper, but I believe he is. A hello also to his parents.

Readers who live close to my Uncle Jakob Kopp should please tell him to write. I will send him the 18 rubles* I owe him.

Joseph Hittel in Canada be informed that his father-in-law, Phillip Engel, is seriously ill and his recovery is doubtful. He could scarcely eat Easter eggs. Otherwise everyone is healthy in the village.

Recently a Bulgarian traveled from Anschakrak (Tarutino) to Leipzig. On the way he spotted two wolves that approached him eagerly. The snow was deep, the sled small, the horses weak, and the distress great. He urged his horses on with all his might, but the frightening wolves came closer and closer. In great despair, he tied his long, red sash to the rear of the sled. The wolves did not come to the sled. They were afraid of the red sash, and in this way the Bulgarian saved his life.

The construction of a railroad from Leipzig to Akkerman will begin on 1 March. The material has already been brought in. The railroad will lead from Leipzig to Akkerman, but in Akkerman it will not go to the harbor. It will turn right and continue on for 40 werst (26½ miles) toward Tschibeljen into a Bulgarian village, where a new seaport is being built. There will be a station in Krasna by the big bridge. This will be ideal for the people in Krasna, who otherwise had to travel 29 werst (19¼ miles) to the nearest railroad station in Leipzig. It will then also be easier to journey to Krasna.

Another railroad is supposed to be built by 1915 from Leipzig up to Lewen and to Kischinev, so there will be a huge station in Leipzig, like the one in Rasdelnaja, or bigger yet. The station will be built completely new, and the old one will be left in place along side of it. In time, Leipzig will be a big city.

Well, I have to finally close now. Greetings to my old mother in Canada and to my brothers. They should write me soon. Joseph, why don’t you write more and more often to the Staats-Anzeiger? Now that brother Peter got married, there may be less time for you. Therefore, dear friends all together, don’t let your pens get rusty.

Zachäus Kopp,
Son of Martin Kopp

*Ruble, a Russian currency, the Dollar value of which is unknown at this time.

From: Cullen, Saskatchewan
4 February 1914

Recently, I had to attend a wedding at my godfather Martin Dillman’s place and despite my age I was challenged to dance with the bride. Well, I embraced the bride and told the musician to please play a nice waltz, because the bride and I want to dance. I had hoped that the bride would quit, but she lasted longer than I did and finally she tired me out. This much I know now, the second time around I will not attempt to dance, and I will leave it to younger and stronger people. (Editor: However, we did receive the name of the new reader, but the newspaper will only be sent against prepayment. Nevertheless, thank you very much, dear friend!)

A greeting to Romanus Bogalofsky in Karamurat, Rumania. Romanus says that he does not know anything about the yellow stripe on his newspaper, and doesn’t know when its time expires. (Editor: The date is printed directly under his name. The time expires on 15 May 1914.)

A greeting to my three boys Blasius Müller, Karl Furch, Isidor Both, and brother-in-law Joseph Bolischky, and Joseph Wolf as well as to all readers of the paper.

A. Blasius Müller.

From: Gladmar, Saskatchewan, Canada
6 February 1914

On 11 January at Pius Ruscheinsky’s, it was decided to build a prayer house. A building committee was also nominated at the same time consisting of three gentlemen, namely Jakob Ehret, Georg Bub, and Nikolaus Balzernik. They drove off already the following day to obtain construction lumber.

(*Editor: We received $2 and sent the Marien Calendar. Thank you very much!)

I send a sincere greeting to brother-in-law Franz Deiss and family in Argentina, South America. He should be informed that if he wants to let his son come here, then Peter Fenrich would send him a complimentary ticket. His son may then work off the amount of the cost. We are asking for an immediate response.

I send a greeting to our children in Karamurat, Romania. Are my brothers Anton and Martin no longer there? We don’t hear anything from them!

Johannes Fenrich,
Son of Heinrich

From: Shields, Morton County, ND
11 February 1914

On 27 January, my brother Z. [Zachäus] and I were at the Land Management Office because of homestead land, since I also obtained 160 acres of it. Now I would like to ask the editor, Mr. F. L. Brandt, if it is true that one could obtain an additional 160 acres, meaning a total of 320 acres, because in the land office I was told that I could only have 160 acres. (*Editor: The laws pertaining to land have changed a lot lately so that one cannot keep up with them. However, if you were told at the land office that you could have only 160 acres, then that is certainly the truth, because who would be in a better position to give out information about that, if not the officials in the land office?)

We also intended to visit the Staats-Anzeiger. But we were told that the wastebasket would immediately devour all people wearing Russian fur coats as soon as they entered the print shop. That’s when we got scared and stayed away, although we would have liked to have seen the editor, Mr. Brandt.

Our people in Krasna are really quiet. It seems as if no one wants to write, other than the “A Farmer” and the “Also A Farmer”. But, dear people in Krasna, such reports have no value. The reader’s circle would certainly prefer other reports pertaining more to real news and less to nagging.

My father paid for the newspaper for Gottlieb Leinz, and also had the Marien Calendar sent to him. (*Editor: Everything was promptly taken care of.) We have been waiting in vain a long time for a report from him in the newspaper.

As far as I know, the following were inducted into military service last year, Gottlieb Mund, Joseph Sehn [Söhn], Johannes Streicher, Nikolaus Volk, Alexander Paul, and others whose names I do not know.

The gentlemen Wendelin Kopp and Anton Dressler journeyed to Lemmon and Adams County to fetch Mr. Kopp’s runaway horses.

I say hello to friends and readers of the paper everywhere.

Phillip Kahl

From: Brisbane, North Dakota
16 February 1914

In Edition #29, I again read in the newspaper a correspondence by the “A Farmer” which was of interest to all of us. I hope that he will write often about the truth concerning the old colonists. The “A Farmer” is a resident of Krasna and sees everything that is going on.

In January I had to carry a heavy burden. My wife Amalia was sick the entire month. I had to act as the servant and the maid at the same time. Finally, our parents took my wife into their home. That’s when I could better accomplish my work. Now the ailing one has fully recovered.

In #28 of the Staats-Anzeiger, we also read the correspondence of our father and father-in-law, Romuald Dirk, which made us very happy.

I have to stop now, because it is midnight and tomorrow morning I have to get up early, as I want to drive to Bismarck. There, if possible, I will also visit the Staats-Anzeiger. (*Editor: In the meantime the visit has already occurred.)

I greet all my friends in the Old and New World, and especially my in-laws and the editorial staff.

Ignatz Gross

From: Brisbane, North Dakota
18 February 1914

Matheis Bonagofsky traveled to Canada. There he will visit friends and stay for a short while.

Eugenius Riehl who visited friends and acquaintances in and around Strasburg, N. D. has happily returned.

Alexius Wingenbach