Briefe aus Amerika (1865 - 1906) - Amerikanetz

Your brother and brother-in-law
Anton
Dear brother, dear sister-in-law
The next letter is from the l2th of December 1884.
One year went by since we wrote you and didn't get an answer again. Dear brother, I will not pay you
back the same and will not take revenge. I see it as my brotherly duty to write to you at least once a
year. Even though you did not answer, but I want to call out in joy that we are all healthy and well.
Last year again the grain grew in great abundance, the harvest was very good and we harvested 1325
bushels wheat, 550 bushels barley, 1188 bushels oats, and enough corn that I can feed 100 hogs. I
think God blessed our harvest with a full hand and we thank him from the bottom of our hearts. We
have a lot of cattle and also other livestock, eight horses, 20 cows, about 60 head of cattle, and we
make a lot of money with the cattle which is very high priced this year. We do not the butter ourselves
but we give it to the creamery, so we get $ 80.00 a month. The milking makes a lot of work, but we
got enough feed and stables and everything is in good order. We sold the fatted hogs and made $
1012.00. We also got about 250 chickens and get about 60 dozen eggs for sale. Selling eggs brings lots
of good money every year. Yes, dear brother, so we earn our money in America. You know the saying,
if you work bard that will bring you bread. I got so far took a lot of work and effort. Yes, the farm
is in the best of order, and I also got $ 25000.00 in the bank which brings interest. Yes, dear brother,
we got enough in this world if we only stay healthy and when we leave this world than we hope we get
to heaven. In any case we want to live accordingly. Now we got seven children, four from the lirst
wife and three from the second wife. All seven are well and healthy. The oldest ones work very bard
and help us a lot outside and inside. I am now 45 years old. In winter I do not work so hard anymore, I
go to town and look after my business every now and then I like to drink a little glass of beer. I could
tell you much more but there isn't enough room here on this paper. It is late, so I will close this letter.
Please greet my sister Elisabeth and brother-in-law, Anton Schwering, and all our relatives and
friends.
Greetings from your brother and his wife Elisabeth
Dearest brother, dear sister-in-law
The next letter is from the 2sth of November 1885.
A year went by again since I wrote you and again. We didn't get an answer. But I cannot let it be and
at least once a year I want to tell you the news from us. Thank God we are well and healthy and God
again blessed our harvest with a full hand. And we threshed 3610 bushels grain. Then there is carn and
now we got 92 hogs and we can feed thorn, Looking at those hogs yoy would tliink a herd ofsheep in
Germany. If you would come here dear brother you would bo surprised how everything 8008 so well.
All the buildings are in the best ofcondition and this year we toak a $ 1OOO.OO to the bank again.
which will bring us interest. For 500.00 I bought some beautifiil gold piecos. I gat thorn strn in the
hause but I will also take thorn to the bank for intere St. For quite a few years we got very good times
becauso what we produced brought a lot afinoney. We got 18 milk cows and we made $ 50.00 a
inonth an niiik. Dear Bernand you see everything is being done in great style, now you would say,
,,Anton is a wind bag. I don't believe what he writes" Hut my dear bratlier, I told you the truth, we gat
everything in abundance. Now you say, „That is easy in America. you erin keep honse well over here
but you knaw the old saying ,,How you work--so its goes." Not everybody is doing so well like we do.
Then wilere it doosn't go so well, you can sec it depends on the work they do. I could tell yau so much
more, but since you do not writo I am going to make this short, now I just want to tell you that our
sister Gertude and brother-in-law Bernand and children in Mount Storling arc well and everything is
gaing in the best of order. They are so happy that they are in this fteo country of America, now at the