Stegers, 12/3/1893

Praised be Jesus Christ

Much loved Parents Since I can no longer refrain from writing to you because my longing and thoughts are with you day and night, dear Parents and siblings. And I do not know how I offended you so that you would not even respond to my letter, since a year and day went by and soon it will be 3 years that my son Franz is in America and I have not yet seen a letter from him. And my brother wrote to me last year at Christmas and said Franz stayed with him during the winter and during the summer he went to make money and had already saved 300 Thaler. So I wrote back to him that I was very delighted and if it was possible he should keep an eye on him, so that he would not waste the money, he should care for him as if he were his father as well as his uncle. But now Christmas is here and I have

[page 2:]

not yet received a reply. Dear Father, my thought is and remains that he does not like it in America. Otherwise, if he was well over there, surely his heart would break knowing he causes me to shed so many tears and write that two of his colleagues that went away at the time are now here for a visit. We had a bad harvest this year. The rye is worth a lot but there was only little. No summer grains at all because we had no rain all summer long. Shortly after the harvest it started to rain and it rains every day. There were many potatoes, but the people say because of all the rain they are rotting. Ours are so far OK, but we have to account for damages over 100 Thaler because of the pigs. Here we have lameness and fire among the pigs [presumably FMD or anthrax] and we were hit by this disaster, too. All our income we use to cover our interest and taxes is gone. We still have three pregnant sows. They are expected to have piglets in February.

[page 3:]

Perhaps we’ll get lucky with it. Each piglet costs 5 to 6 Thaler and the fat ones 44 to 46 Mark. Dear Father, we are very sorry that we let our Franz go we have a stranger as a farmhand who gets 30 Thaler in wages and Martin, my husband, is constantly ill and our two small ones are attending school daily. Paul is 12 years old and Alois 9. Martin is now 56 and in 3 to 4 years we would like to hand the farm over to him. Dear Father I have not been sick since I have been in Stegers. But ever since Franz went away, there is something so wrong with me that no matter how healthy I am, after the cold I get it as if they blow up a pig bladder, such am I within a quarter of an hour and if someone is around to quickly tear my clothes off my body and get me under heat it gradually goes away but if no one helps me then I shall explode because my doctor says no other illness is as bad this one. When my little boys are grown up they could maybe go to America, but if Franz could come home before things change here

[page 4:]

what would become and do write how Joseph and Antonge [Antonia] are doing and if my brother Franz has married yet, if my Franz is with him and how he feels over there. I have already shed so many tears over him and my face and all my memory is gone. If only I see a syllable, a single word written by his hand, I would find peace. And you can imagine, that for as long as Franz has gone, all I say to my husband is who knows where Franz has to roam about amongst other people, it is your fault, and there is no peace in the house and I won’t find rest until I am dead. Here in Stegers 14 women have died within two months, two will be buried tomorrow, all are about my age. I have to close now and send greetings to you, much-loved parents and siblings and I wish you all a merry Christmas and much luck and blessings for the New Year and also a cordial greeting from my mother-in-law and also dear, dear Father my best wishes for your birthday and that God may give you many years of health and if only we could see each other one more time, dear Father. Please answer soon. A hearty farewell.