University of Wisconsin-Madison. Max Kade Institute. Frautschi Letters (MKI/Frautschi3)

Electronic version: http://frautschi-letters.mki.wisc.edu/let/J1865/Johannes1865.html

Schaffhausen, January 1, 1865

Dearest Brother Christian,

I got your fine letter of August 16th and read with great
interest. Thank you very much for being so open with me. Often,
almost every day I have thought of you, sometimes I wanted to
spend Sundays with you. It seems that only when we are far apart
become one heart and one mind and things would be really
be special now. You really find out who your friends are when you
are far from home. It is my joy and privilege to write you on
this important day. I can make a start with God and with you.
You are probably wondering why I have not written soon, but when
you get up at 4 in the morning and don't get your dinner until 8
at night, and when you like to go to church on Sunday and you
have to feed the animals at noon, and if you like to take a
little walk in the afternoon or rest, well, you can probably
understand and I wanted to send you some ... paper. I have a lot
write you; I think that if we don't know when we will see
each other again I have to tell you the details about my problems
and situation. Maybe you will think this is dumb or boring,
but forgive me, I can't help myself. I don't have any other
friend to tell my innermost thoughts to, my dear Christian. You
have such a good spirit and are not so taken up with the world
like most people are today; an honest man is considered to be
stupid and is ridiculed. A recent incident--actually a scandal--
will give you an indication how things are among the population of
Schaffhausen even though we have good preachers in our three
churches. Mr. Hebicht, our missionary, was holding meetings in
town at the home of Mr. Vonfluth. One evening Mr. Hebicht's
servant was taking him home out in the country about a half hour
away. His route took him past our house and I have seen him. On
the 19th of September about 6 ruffians were waiting for him to
come by. Then they heard that about 300 people had gathered in
front of Mr Vonfluth's house and were spreading rumors. The
ruffians went to join them, or else Mr. Hebich would have been in
great trouble because they wanted to really beat up on him. In
front of the house they demanded that Mr. Hebich come out, but
when he didn't they bashed in the windows and the door; anybody
that offered resistance was beaten. When the police tried to
haul off the worst of the offenders they were beaten too. So
they had to let the guys go. Finally Mr. Vonfluth had to flee
from his house under the protection of 8 officers. It is said
that the scandal was promoted by persons high up. On December
15th, the case went to the Canton court. The public prosecutor
indicted 6 persons for rioting, trespassing, and vandalism. The
defense witnesses were on the stand until 3:30, so that the
passing of the sentences had to be postponed. The audience was
getting into the act. Now we hear the judges were
threatened if they give harsh sentences; they think it will be
appropriate to help the accused pay for the damages. The Junker
[baron/estate owner boss] is getting his kicks out of this and
has nothing good to say about Hebich. He thinks it's good to
have the guy out of town, that he's driving people crazy; he says
that if Mr. Vonfluth brings him back again the people will coat
his house in blood and filth; he says it's a shame that the local
pastors attended the meetings and have to get their instruction
from him [Hebich]. He thinks this missionary work is a bunch of
bologna, he is a good Christian and believes in God. Once a
pastor sent his wife a letter asking for a small contribution for
the construction of a prayer chapel, he yelled and screamed in a
frightful manner and said he wanted to take that priest--that old
sheep's head, that old hypocrite--and thrown him on the ground
and have a few words with him. The railroad workers who don't go
to church are sometimes not the worst; usually the Christian
messengers are loyal and trustworthy. He told me the other day
in a sharp tone: He is as good as the ones who always go to
church. Nowadays he is always complaining about religion and
that worries me. Otherwise he is nice to me and comes around to
the barn to tell me things and give me instruction. Sometimes he
could be like a father to me, gives me newspapers to read.
Sometimes I have to tear myself away from him so I can go to bed
or to church.

[in the left margin:]

My dear brother, write me a long letter after our parents write
to you. And tell me how things are in Saanen, of our brothers
are home yet and have done their military time. I have only
written two letters to Saanen and will wait until April to write
again. In October they wrote that they are out of debt which I
was glad to hear. In any case it is better to be home now than
it used to be. Today I got 9 Fr. [francs] and 30 Rap. [Rappen]
in tips, on Christmas Eve a shirt and a Christmas present for
Lena.

[page 2]

By the way I was glad that the pastors took Mr. Hebich's
side when they spoke from the pulpit a week after the scandal.
This they did without fear of the people. They said it cast
dishonor and shame on the entire city that they would persecute a
man or allow him to be persecuted. Our pastor said he was
personally interested in Mr. Hebich's fortunes and that what Mr.
Hebich had received he received from God. This church is only 5
minutes from our house. I listen intently to our preacher, I can
tell that he means what he says. Unfortunately, I didn't go to
church much in the summer, partly because of my work load, partly
because I needed to rest up, partly because I allow myself to be
distracted by friends who take me to the pub. I don't feel bad
about drinking because the wine is good and healthy here, a glass
costs 10 to 30 Rappen and that does me good after a long hard
day. My boss doesn't give me any wine. I really did want to go
to church a few Sundays but the boss came to see me in the barn
and told me all kinds of things so I couldn't go. Now I find a
way to get out and I make it to church almost every Sunday. It
is sad when the worldly society is preferred over church. It is
amazing how nearly everybody lives a godless life nowadays, the
workers don't seem to have any cares year in and year out, don't
ever go to church and think only of lying, eating, and drinking.
If the boss weren't as licentious as the workers--mocking divine
things--I would like to have some bread for dinner (instead of
the usual soup, Kohlrabi, and Flacksraffen) and stay here,
because here I don't have to go over hill and dale in the rainy
winter. In the winter I am usually have to cut feed for 12 cows
and 6 horses and I don't need much by way of clothing. I get 5
francs a week and with tips that makes about 300 francs all
together. I never get nearly as wet as at home and I don't have
to carry a 50th as much as I did in Saanen--where I also got,
chewed out by my parents and brothers all the time and didn't get
any pay. If I ever wanted to go to the doctor I usually had to
pay for my own medicine and they usually said I was a wimp. Most
of the problems I had with Father came when I said we should buy
more land, especially hillside pasture land, and that we should
build up a larger herd of cattle to improve our situation, so
that Father wouldn't have to work himself to death every fall and
that he wouldn't have to lose his shirt leasing pasture land so
he could take care of the cattle the next year. Even though all
of the debts are now paid, I have been foolish for trying so
hard; I haven't received any thanks or recognition from my
brothers. If I had just left sooner I wouldn't have gotten such
a bad reputation in Saanen. This of course doesn't apply to you.
Even though we had our spats when we were kids, you eventually
took my side and defended the idea of buying pasture land and
investing money, for which you sacrificed your pay. And you
wanted to speak up for me when I stay home. Because I trust you
and you are so important to me I can't be anything but totally
open with you and pour out my heart to you. After all, we don't
know when we will see each other again, only God knows that. In
September I told Danner to find me a place in the Waadtland, but
he still hasn't found me one, so I am thinking about going to
Germany and working in a cheese factory or going to America to
Laderach; if I get a chance to save body and soul I will not miss
it. Unfortunately I am still not well, my head aches, I have a
ringing in my ears, my memory is weak, my limbs are tired etc.
Pretty soon I will have spent 20 Fr. for elixirs and have not
gotten any better, because my hearing is getting weaker and I
have less contact with other workers who are always talking about
whores, lying and cheating--my pen almost refuses to write the
words. By listening to them talk I can learn all about how the
whores go about their business, but that hardly interests me.
The young innocent girls are taken advantage of here, are mislead
by the dirty language; out in the fields in public the men are
fondling the girls and trying to get them into corners to take
advantage of them. The ones who get away with the most are the
most respected. There is so much bragging about their exploits
and the girls are made fun of and invited to be a part of this.
[left margin]

Send me your picture. Then I will have my picture taken and will
send it to you. I hope you are at the same address. I am so
glad that you are doing all right. You deserve that and I am
happy for you. You have had your problems in life, may God bless
us with good wives.

[page 3]

The boss always has four workers here along with the
different craftsmen who constantly come and go. At dinner there
is all kinds of talk. For nearly a year two carpenters have been
working on a garden house, stone cutters have as well, and
masons, cabinet makers, painters, mechanics, plumbers, etc. He
is still having work done on the current living quarters as well
as the barn, the grain crib, and the barns. He may be a good
man, but he can be gruff and brags about every penny he earns; he
brags about buying land and livestock off little farmers. Last
summer he threw out 4 workers and 5 servant girls in 6 weeks
because they were not doing enough work. He cursed a lot if
things were not done the way he wanted. Among the workers, a few
had to suffer because of the mistakes of others. Later he was
friendly again to us workers and to the gardener when he saw how
we were almost working ourselves to death. Then he bragged to
others about how well things were going but he still didn't give
us anything to drink but grape juice when we were bringing the
hay or the harvest. For dinner we got a bottle of grape juice
and some bread. We were angry and didn't have one good word for
him. Once I came to lunch late after gathering grass with a
worker and a servant girl, the worker got up to leave when the
other workers were done but I told him we came 15 minutes late so
we would be staying longer for lunch; the boss was there and gave
me a dirty look. Another time it was evening and I had just
finished with some tanning and was coining back very tired to feed
the animals he came up to me and said that things were going very
well, better than before. Then I told him we had been very
thirsty and that I had done more than work than I was being paid
for, then he changed the subject. When we came to a pub, I said
I wanted to stop in for a glass of beer, he went on without me
and my plans were ruined. A couple of evenings later he came to
me in the barn and tipped me 2 francs. And he wanted to know why
I wasn't satisfied. I told him that when you have good workers
you have to do some nice thinks for them or else they will get
discouraged. That's the way my father did it. Just giving them
grape juice to drink when they are bringing in the harvest is too
little. It was said that last summer he had given 4 painters a
keg of beer. He said that when you have poor workers you don't
feel like giving them anything better to drink. Then he asked
what he was supposed to do with the grape juice. I told him he
didn't need to throw it out but here I was in the midst of all of
these grapes and hadn't had a pint of his wine to drink. As far
as poor workers are concerned, what they didn't do we did that
much more of. If he were not satisfied with me he should fire me
and I would go home and he could get plenty of workers to replace
me. Then he said that he was satisfied and that I should tell
him when I wanted something to drink. He said he would order a
keg of beer two days later and he did just that. He was almost
in tears. That Sunday we didn't even see him and people were
saying he was really sad. Then he was supposedly complaining
about all kinds of problems and saying that he wanted to lease
everything out and have a foreman come run it. After a long
search in September a proud self-confident man came to be the
foreman; he was keeping tabs on us workers; he wanted us to feed the
animals faster so we could spend more time in the fields. The
worker in charge of the horses stood up to him and said that he
knew how long to feed horses and how long to work in the fields
and that nobody needed to order him around. He said he had
enough experience with horses to know what to do to have fine
horses, you didn't have to be on the road night and day. Anyway,
strong horses will take you further and the foreman asked when he
could have the horses ready and he said when he was done feeding
them. He bossed me around enough at the start and ordered me to
do work I almost didn't want to do. The more I did the more he
ordered me around. He watched all of the workers closely to make
sure they were working. I told him excuse me, I don't want to do
that work. He laughed at me and said, OK, do whatever you want.
That went on for 5 weeks and I was so tired and discouraged that
I said to him a few times that I was surprised that the boss
wanted me to be working so hard. When I started I was told that
I didn't have to work so much in the fields. Later I told him
the truth and said: He doesn't have to order me around in the
barn because I know the job better than he does, I had been
feeding animals since I was a boy. As foreman he had to look out
for the tools and if anybody asked him about it he didn't have to
say that he didn't know were it was. Then he said I wasn't
making sense and I told him that if his questions didn't make
sense then I would give him answers that didn't make sense. Then
he left and went to complain to the boss's wife about me and she
told the boss and he said he wished that Johann would flatter him
a bit more. Now the foreman treats ms better and if he tells me
to do something I don't want to do I tell him so. When he told
me to go sparingly with the straw I told him that real farmers
don't go sparingly with the straw. I was really disappointed
when my fellow worker was fired on October 31st, because he had
whipped a horse in the stall. The horse was always biting him
and trying to hit him and didn't want to have reins put on him.
He was usually such a good and loyal worker and knew his job,
even though he was a bit odd around people he really treated me
well and taught me a lot, but I didn't go with him to the pub.
The boss was not always happy about his tricks either. I told
him that he should have warned him instead of immediately firing
him, that he was still a good worker. He told me he was still
right, then he started saying all these terrible things about him
but I wouldn't agree with him. When he found out that I was on
the worker's side he didn't come around to the barn for another
week and we watched each other like hawks and I was constantly
thinking I could pack my things. Now he comes around to the barn
on Sundays like he used to and whenever I am on duty in the barn
on Sunday he bothers me.

When he wants to buy livestock then I have to inspect it and
if I like it the boss buys it and I advise him to and the prices
I get humiliate the foreman because he thinks he knows the
business better than I, but he asks me lots of questions about
livestock too. In the case of calves he wanted to show off and I
had to put him down in front of the boss who said I was right.
Now he really treats me well and sometimes he tells me I don't
have to do this or that job because we have enough people to do
that. When I wanted to write this letter to you on Sunday the
boss was always bothering me, so I am now in the horse stall
writing on the trough. I left for just a moment to take care
something when a colt grabbed the letter but I saw him do it and
was able to get it out of his mouth. Luckily it was still in one
piece but smeared a bit. Because you are my brother I will send
it to you anyway, maybe it will interest you, just don't be angry
with me that I am sending it to you, my dear brother. We have a
new boy who works with the horses, he comes from the Grand Duchy
of Baden. Even though he is a bit disorderly and a Catholic, we
are still good friends. He tolerates my religion and I tolerate
his. So far I haven't gone to the pub with him. I can have a
drink when summer comes, but in the winter I have to worry about
my throat. Last summer my friend and I were out hiking, three
hours from here in Baden, when we came to an estate where lots of
Anabaptists live. One man there has 37 cattle and one steer, 20
horses, his own cheese-making operation, cloth-dying house,
carpentry, wheelwright, smithy, a distillery where they make one
Saum [measure] of liquor daily and they have sheep and 100 pigs.
There are 237 acres of land on the estate. On 40 hectares there
was nothing but potatoes. They have their own system of teaching
and writing. They gave each of us a bottle of grape juice,
cheese, and bread and wouldn't take any money for it. All the
time I've been here I haven't seen one person from the Bernese
Uplands. We have workers from Austria, Zurich, Schaffhausen, and
the cook is from Wuerttemberg. The summer was a cold one in
general and the late summer was especially dry. We got lots of
hay but the harvest was below average. The potato crop was poor
because of the lack of rain but they sold well and lots of
potatoes went to the St. Gallen and Appenzell cantons. In the
summer 100 kg. of hay was worth 2 Fr., the same for potatoes.
the fall it was 3 Fr. for 100 kg. hay and 4 Fr. for potatoes.
H ad lots of fruit, grain, wheat, barley and especially oats.
Price of white flour was very reasonable--17 Rappen. The boss
bought 20,000 kg. of wheat at 10 Fr. per 100 kg. Beef costs 54
Rappen but it's not very fat, veal is 50 Rappen. Beef fat is 50-
60 Rappen. Butter is not very expensive now--90 Rappen because
they are dirty dealers here, they mix pork fat and beef fat into
the butter. Pork fat is sometimes cheaper than beef Anschlitt,
and they don't worry much about slaughtering sick animals or old
ones here. In any case pork isn't worth much here. One hour
from here in the Merishausen Valley there is a horse butcher who
sells a lot of meat in town. Some people wonder why it bothers
me to eat horse meat, they say it's good and the New Testament
doesn't forbid it. Some of the people who parade around on
Sunday in fancy clothing eat horse meat because it only costs 12
to 25 Rappen. In the Appenzell Canton the innkeepers ask their
guests if they want horse meat or beef. As far as the vineyards
are concerned, things were in good condition in July and August,
even though the blossoms didn't come out until June because of
the cold spring. Then the first part of October was rather cold
and the hard frost weakened the vines. So the grape harvest
began two weeks earlier than planned. The boss started our
harvest on Saturday, October 8th and we had to work the next day.
I had the greatest time carrying the Buecki [tube-like container
strapped to one's back], eating the grapes and drinking the grape
juice. On the first day we were all given some cheese, otherwise
I haven't seen cheese here. The quantity was low but the quality-
was higher than expected. The frost didn't do as much damage as
we thought it would. And the young vines didn't freeze, so next
spring we will be able to bend them and tie them to the posts.
The results of the tests were: Schaffhausen wine 74-78 degrees,
Hallau wine 83-87 degrees. This year's new wine cost 45 Fr. per
Saum. But now it is in great demand and costs 70 Fr.
The Swiss marksmanship festival will be held here, just 6 minutes
from our house. Last August they began constructing the shooting
stands and the work will go on into May. The shooting stand is
970 feet long. The festival house will be much larger. It will
take 1200 cords of wood to make the blindages. I am hoping to
some people from Saanen. Last September the boss came to the
barn with two men; they had been in Erienbach, Land and Saanen
and had bought 24 animals for auction in the name of the
government including one cow and one steer. They only people
they could name were Anken von Zweifinn and Joneli von der Lenk,
but big livestock dealers. They were friendly to me and showed
me their wares in the local pub. The steer was to be auctioned
off and I had to help select steers for 4 days. Next March they
are going to Saanen again and I gave them the addresses of our
parents and the big livestock owners so they can look them up.
The boss has a Schese [cutlery?] that cost over 2,000 Fr. And
other Schese items for 1,400 florins.

My dearest brother, for a long time I wished I could see the
world and gain valuable knowledge in order to be of service to
others and a good example, but my plan has been ruined. Here in
my best years I have to live cooped up like an old man because of
my health. My nerves are still weak, as is my reason and my
mind. The Good Lord is keeping me humble. The only thing that
keeps me going is my hope of a life hereafter through the blood
of the Lamb, with this faith we should begin the new year, my
dear brother. Oh, pray for me as I do for you. Everything else
is earthly. Even the most famous and learned men return to the
dust, their bodies rotting while the soul awaits the resurrection
where no knowledge nor brilliant deeds will lead men to the
light. I must acknowledge the hand of the Lord in the fact that
I have grown attached to several humble families and am happy
among them. The lady of the estate invites me in sometimes to
read or write. She gives me books and newspapers to read. And I
can't understand why the boss would rather spend Sundays with me
in the barn than in his beautiful house. When she calls him he
goes in but then returns as soon as he can. Maybe he likes the
fact that I am happy in my shepherd's situation, even though my
pants are not always clean, he can see in me a certain morality,
that I don't joke and gossip with the girls. I am not sure if I
should resort to the electro-voltage apparatus for my health.
Mr. Marie at Rue 33 Soffroy prolongee 17 arondissement Paris; the
apparatus costs 25 Fr. You always see it in the paper next to
the health products. Write me a long letter. I truly wish you
a happy new year. May the Lord be with you 'till the end.
Greetings and kisses from your sad but loyal brother. From the
estate of Br. Ziegler Hoos.