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English text

Albersloh, August 13, 1882

My dear Franz!

We received your letter 3 weeks ago and must excuse ourselves that we haven’t written before because of all the work. We have finished harvesting rye and wheat and have brought in 45 cartloads of rye and 5 cartloads of wheat. Now we are harvesting oats. We were so happy to see your photograph, but why did you only send one? Husams and [?] Seebroeckers [/?] would have liked to have one, too. We have a pig and 3 piglets. This summer we attended a lot of weddings [names follow].

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Otherwise everything is all right with the family. Horses, pigs, and cattle demand high prices… [illegible] bought 36 acres of land at a cost of 9,000 Marks. We are all healthy and well and hope the same of you. Next time I shall write more. Many regards from Husams and Seebroeckers and especially from your brothers and most of all from

your Mother.

Please write soon.

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Dear brother-in-law and sister-in-law,

We were surprised when we saw Franz’s picture – he has grown so tall and strong! Please write to us and tell us how Franz is doing in America. Everyone at Husams is well.

Translated by Joan Schell