Collector's Office, 1st District, Illinois
Chicago, Thursday, Dec, 7, 1871

My poor dear sister,

Just now I received the information from Mathilde that you, too, were burned out on November l3. Will this year of 1871 be cursed for our family? I was very glad to learn that you at least retained your presence of mind, but I worry that Mathilde may have underestimated the amount of things of value that you lost. I imagine that you had stored things in the attic, such as beds and other furniture which must have been burned. Mathilde did not mention whether you carried insurance and, if so, enough to cover the value of what you lost. At any rate I suspect the 150 dollars with which you hoped to live until spring probably will be spent before Christmas and I immediately arranged with Greenebaum to telegraph to the banker Carter in Leipzig that he should send you $200. Should you not have received it, possibly because of misspelling of the name in the telegram, do get in touch with him right away. You are not to consider this as an advance but as a Christmas present. So far as the advance of $200 for 1873 is concerned my previous suggestion remains - that you are to take the 240 to 250 Reichsthaler, either all at once, or in part from Mathilde's Letter of Credit.

From you I expect only one thing for Christmas - that you give up the idea of you and Marie going into service. I would be greatly offended if you did this. Just for the sake of our good name you ought not to consider such a thing for a moment. What would the cheapskates over there think of me if I allowed something like this to happen? They would consider me as mean and dirty as they are themselves. If you dislike remaining in Zerbst too much (which I suspect you do) so move to Dessau and accept 30 dollars per from me for the present. I have written of this to my mother-in-law and hope she will straighten out your thoughts on this point.

For your maid who showed herself so courageous during the fire, I am enclosing for her Christmas a $10 bill, which Sonnenthal in Dessau undoubtedly will exchange for you at its full value – namely 12½ Thaler.

Please express my sympathy for their fire loss to my brother-in-law and Marie and assure them that I am always ready to help.

Again regards and kisses from your loving brother H.Raster