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Archiver > GER-VOLGA > 2001-06 > 0991592052


From: Vera Beljakova <>
Subject: [GV] Re: Aus den Leidenstagen der deutschen Wolgakolonien
Date: Sun, 03 Jun 2001 20:14:12 +0200
References: <B4BF8BBE.190%reef@teleport.com> <002301bf6f2c$a114c3c0$bdb935cf@innw.net>


On re-reading old letters, I would like to ask what has happened to
part 2 and part 3 of the book which was to be serialised by
AHSGR Journal ?
re: "From The Days Of Suffering By The German Volga Colonies" by Friedrich Bier
and
Alexander Schick, Published by Dr. Jur. and Phil. Karl Esselborn, Darmstadt
1922, Printed by L.C. Wittisch'schen Hofbuchdruckerei, translated from
German by Herman G. Rempel.

vera


Elaine Frank Davison wrote:

> Dear Roy Conrad Derring,
>
> It was very interesting reading your posted message about this book,"From
> The Days Of Suffering By The German Volga Colonies" by Friedrich Bier and
> Alexander Schick, Published by Dr. Jur. and Phil. Karl Esselborn, Darmstadt
> 1922, Printed by L.C. Wittisch'schen Hofbuchdruckerei, translated from
> German by Herman G. Rempel. I typed the translation of this book several
> years ago for Arthur Rempel of Walla Walla. His brother, Herman G. Rempel
> had translated this book many years earlier. I had the honor of typing this
> translation, as well as the memories of Arthur Rempel, his brother Herman G.
> Rempel, and sister Evangeline G. Rempel Dyck, who lived through the
> Revolution in Russia in the Mennonite Molotschna Colonies area of Gnadenfeld
> and Marinskaja and came to America in 1922-1923.
>
> In 1993, I contacted JoAnn Kuhr in Lincoln about this manuscript, and I
> received a letter from Nancy Bernhardt Holland, Acting Editor, AHSGR Journal
> dated 13 Jul 1993 requesting I send a copy of the manuscript to her at her
> home address in Burlington, Vermont, which I did. I never heard any more
> about it.
>
> I took the manuscript with me, along with a computer disk of the manuscript,
> to the AHSGR Convention in Calgary in 1995. I gave this material to Leona
> Pfeifer on the recommendation of Richard Scheuerman who had already read the
> manuscript and was very excited about the possibility of AHSGR publishing
> this material. Soon, I received a phone call from one of the "readers" on
> the committee of Leona Pfeifer for possibility of publishing part or all of
> this manuscript, who was very excited about the content. Nothing happened.
> No word from Leona Pfeifer. While attending the AHSGR Convention in Wichita
> in 1998, I had the chance to talk with Leona, and requested the return of
> the manuscript and disk for submission to other sources for publication. I
> have not received the manuscript and disk and have not heard from Leona
> since that time.
>
> Needless to say, this has been very disappointing. Permission was given in
> writing to publish all or any part of this manuscript by AHSGR. During the
> interim, Herman G. Rempel has died, not seeing his translation of this very
> important work in print, or any part of his compelling memories. Arthur
> Rempel is still alive, just having celebrated his 90th birthday. He was a
> Professor of Biology at Whitman College in Walla Walla, having taught there
> for 37 years before retiring in 1975. Hope is still alive that this will be
> published! The manuscript and disk are still in the hands of Leona Pfeifer.
>
> Elaine Frank Davison
> Walla Walla, WA
> VC for Kautz
>
>
> P.S. Roy Conrad Derring, I must compliment you on your translation of the
> first 3 paragraphs, it is very close to the translation by Herman G. Rempel,
> not word for word, but very close!!
> To me, the translation of this book is more valuable reading than the Beratz
> book, but that is only one opinion. efd
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Reef <>
> To: <>
> Sent: Thursday, February 03, 2000 7:47 PM
> Subject: Aus den Leidenstagen der deutschen Wolgakolonien
>
> > The subject here is the title of a book on loan to me from Steve
> Schreiber.
> > Its translation is, 'Out of the days of suffering of the Volga Colonies'.
> > It's a small paperback book published in Darmstadt, Germany in 1922. It
> has
> > a rather condensed form of printing in the Old German script. The
> publisher
> > is Dr. of law and phil. Karl Esselborn. The book is authored by two Volga
> > Germans, Friedrich Bier of Warenburg, and Alexander Schick of Galka. A
> > foreword introduction in the book is presented by Dr. Esselborn. The
> > contents in the book by the two Volga German authors is this;
> >
> > 1. Bolshevism, crop failure and starvation. Friedrich
> Bier
> >
> > 2. What the Bolsheviks have done to our formerly prospering and rich
> > Volga Colonies
> >
> > 3. Crop failure
> >
> > 4. Starvation
> >
> > 5. Statistical appendix
> > -----------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > The return of the great-grandson Alexander
> Schick
> >
> > I would like to ask any of you out there if you have ever came across a
> copy
> > of this book? Does anyone from AHSGR have knowledge of this book? If so,
> has
> > it allready been translated, and the possibility of copies that could be
> > made available? The reason I ask, is that it would save me the time of
> > transcribing it from German into English for the historical significance
> and
> > research that it would provide interested parties to receive copies once
> > translation into English is completed. I have read the book and it is most
> > informative and interesting, listing names of people and various
> > villages,i.e.,Lauwe, Beideck, Niedermenschuh, Krasnojar, Schoendorf,
> Anton,
> > Franzosen, Wiesenmueller, Jagodnaya Polyana, Schwab and a few others I
> cant
> > recollect off hand. Now for those of you who are a bit 'aengstlich', and
> do
> > not like to learn about the suffering of the Volga German Colonies and its
> > people, then this historic accounting will definately not suit you.
> However,
> > for all these people went through, learning about those dark days of
> events
> > in time is a miniscule effort, compared to the harsh existence they were
> > confronted with, died for, and to those who endured life as it was so
> > cruelly bestowed upon them. When translation is completed, I am sure that
> > Steve Schreiber and myself will see to it that interested parties will be
> > provided copies when available. That wont be in the near future, but
> > completed as time allows. I have allready completed the translation of the
> > foreword by Dr. Esselborn which begins with a lead in about the early days
> > of the Volga settlers. Here then is the just a beginning segment of that
> > foreword I have translated;
> >
> > Germanhood on the Volga
> > Dr. Karl Esselborn
> >
> > The Hessen Lieutenant Friedrich Peppler arrived in Russia during the year
> > of 1812 to 1814, and found it just as exciting and as descriptive as it
> was
> > portrayed, and as he was told in the little booklet broschure in the
> fourth
> > chapter, upon his stop in the German Colony village of Schwab on the
> Volga,
> > northeast of Kamyschin, and there in his relegated quarters at an Inn, an
> > odd good natured woman he met, her dialect stemmed from the Wetterau; she
> > took him to be trusting as a fellow countrymen, "Vetterchen!" she called
> > out. She was married to a man from the Palintate by the name of Gensemer.
> As
> > a nine year old child along with her parents, left her birthplace of
> > Dauernheim out of poverty and came to Schwab. There, at first, it was no
> > better, but in a few years their situation improved.
> > The old lady was, as she spoke to Peppler, some sixty years old, he was
> > somewhat younger. Her parents heard the Manifest of Kaiserin Katharina
> from
> > Russia of July 22, 1763, that for the immigrants there would be golden
> > mountains, free land, freedom from taxation, free from military service,
> and
> > other priveleges promised to those from the German Homeland immigrating to
> > the far off promised land. In the years 1764 to 1767, subsequently 8,OOO
> > German families with 27,OOO souls to heed the call to immigrate the Volga.
> > Also Hessen especially, placed its contingency on immigrant multitude. On
> > June 29, 1764, the first immigrants met the promised land. A severe and
> > harsh disappointment they were confronted with; they found nothing in
> front
> > of the night, undeveloped land without housing or huts, and also the
> absence
> > of tools.
> > The immigrant sat down relating to each and every profession together,
> > farmers, craftsmen, soldiers, doctors, students, artists, were all in
> hopes
> > of worthwhile work to take up, and now found only farming a field for his
> > occupation. So were all compelled to be dedicated to this trade.
> Despondent,
> > however not, placing themselves in the next cave, cavern, burrow, den or
> > hut, while their hardworking efforts and diligence, in spite of many and
> > various obstacles soon converted themselves into homes they constructed.
> The
> > tools and instruments they themselves must manufacture, and soon, they
> > became aware, as it turned out, that their product was better than the
> > Russians. An awful fiend was the Wolf, treading about in packs in the
> > wintertime, still worse was the Kirghiz robbers, the worst yet was the
> > disease by the name of Typhoid fever.....
> >
> > So there you have a brief segment, with the majority of the book focusing
> > in on the years between 1917 and 1921.
> >
> > Mit Freundlichen Gruessen,
> > Roy Conrad Derring
> > Portland



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