From: Krasna, Bessarabia
6 July 1920

Worthy Staats-Anzeiger!

We have now arrived at the time of the harvest and everything is going forward right away. Our farmers are leaving us now. Up to now, we always had small get-togethers at the grocery store. That is all over now.

Unfortunately, the dear Staats-Anzeiger visits us irregularly. (*Editor: The paper always leaves promptly from here.) I have corresponded often, but have not seen any of my correspondences in the Staats-Anzeiger. (*Editor: As far as we remember, we received a report from you, which appeared just a while ago.) We have a plentiful harvest ahead of us, but it seems everyone is afraid to get started. One is afraid of machine failure and if something breaks, it is not available. The farmers have a great fear of that.

In the recently received edition of the Staats-Anzeiger, I found out that Mr. Jos. [Joseph] Herrbach would like to hear something about his old homeland. Something I can tell him is what people say who visited there recently. They insist that Mariental and Josephstal were totally destroyed by the Bolshevists. Only one village, namely Elsass supposedly had been spared.

Now I want to heartily greet my brother and his wife and children. The postal service must be suffering again, since one does not receive any letters. I have written often, but do not get an answer. I am also greeting the editorship of this paper and all readers.

Respectfully,
J. Both

From: Larga, Bessarabia
15 August 1920

Worthy Staats-Anzeiger!

The threshing here in Larga, as well as in the surrounding villages is done. The weather was ideally dry, therefore the grain could be put into storage completely dry. The result of the harvest is only average. Winter wheat is estimated on average at 80 pud (1 pud = 36.11 lbs.) per dessjatin (2.5 acres). The selling price for the best wheat is 21 rubles per pud. Barley and oats brought in 75 pud per dessjatin and sells for 8 rubles per pud. Potatoes brought in 5 pud for every pud planted. The melon fields are good and Welsh corn will be above average.

Herewith, I inform all my friends and all others who write to me that I changed my address. On 1 August, I came to an agreement with the community of Balmas to start as a teacher there. Therefore, my address is now Rumania, Bessarabia. Ind. Tigkina (Bendery), Post office Kainari, D’Lui Invatator Romuald Dirk, Comuna Balmas. (*Editor: With this edition the newspaper will be mailed to this address.)

I received the letter from Mr. Joseph Volk and delivered it as requested. Mr. Volk, I will write a separate letter to you about the circumstances of your friends.

I was very happy about my daughter’s, Mrs.Ignatz Gross, report in Edition #102. But I wasn’t quite clear with the editorship’s remark that a letter would appear in a different section. (*Editor: But your daughter surely did understand.)

For this time it should be enough, because I am very busy. Soon I will write more. I send greetings to everywhere, to relatives, friends and acquaintances and all the readers.

Respectfully,
Romuald Dirk

From: Rubicon, Wisconsin
14 September 1920

Valued Staats-Anzeiger!

I also want to report something from here to the fellow readers. Now we have nice weather, but during the time of threshing we had a lot of rain, so that the grain in the heap of sheaves started to grow, but now have dried out once again. During the summer we also had lots of violent storms with hail, which did a lot of damage. The oats took the brunt of it. Here wheat was yielding 20 to 30, rye 25 to 40, oats 50 to 75 bushels per acre. Also the Welsh corn is growing well. Now the farmers are filling their silos, and so there is constant work for them – a lot more than in North Dakota.

What is going on with the people in North Dakota? One hears very little from them in the paper. (*Editor: They must be quite busy right now.) But I am happy that so many reports from Bessarabia show up in the paper. I am asking Mr. Anton Gedak especially to continue writing diligently. Ultimately we will once again receive reports from the other South Russian provinces.

I also received a letter from the old homeland and found out that my 83-year-old grandmother is still alive. I would like to know if the Staats-Anzeiger is able to send money to Bessarabia. I want to send something there. (*Editor: Yes, we do take over the remittance if you can’t do it yourself at the bank. – We received the payment for the paper for you and Victor Nagel in Bessarabia. For you a calendar for 1921 was ordered, but we do not give prizes to a foreign country. Thank you very much.)

I am greeting friends, acquaintances and sorcerers.

Michael M. Erker