Letter 29

Published on: March 26, 2019

Date (sent): March 11, 1888
Writer: Harmen Jan te Selle
Place: Firth, Lancaster County, Nebraska
Addressee: Derk Willem te Selle
Address (sent to): Fökkink, Winterswijk, Netherlands

Summary:

Harmen Jan sends greetings to his brother Derk Willem:

  • HJ has received - through Uncle Bloemers - the invitation to attend the wedding of Derk Willem's son, Bertus Jacobus te Selle (married 03-Feb-1888). HJ and his brothers had to decline because cold, wet weather in Nebraska made it very hard to be away from their farms and families.
  • Now Harmen Jan invites Derk Willem to attend the wedding of his daughter Dela and Dick Abbink late March 1888.
  • HJ, as always, reviews the agricultural prices and weather.
  • Harmen Jan inquires about their other brothers, Hendrik Jan and Jan Albert; HJ apparently has had no contact with them.

March 11, 1888 Firth, Lancaster Co, Nebr

Dear Respected Brothers with your family

We let you know that we all are healthy and well. From your letter, sent to us by G.W. Bloemers, we understood your welfare.

We had to give up on your request to come to the wedding, as it was a prolonged period of cold here and therefore the wrong time to travel. If you would have waited a little for a later moment, there would have been a chance. But I will offer you a better opportunity. My oldest daughter, Dillie or Dela will get married later this month with a son of G. Abbink, a Dutchman.  So we invite you to the wedding. We will set the day if you let us know when you can make it here.  it is already spring‑like although the roads are bad and muddy. Nevertheless, we had a pretty severe winter. February was beautiful, however.  In March the weather set in a bit more inclement. Just a week ago already.

Here cattle are very cheap too, certainly about one-third of other years. Horses are still at the old price. Last week we sold another one for $115 (12 years old). We still have 4 horses to work and a two-year-old foal. We have 12 cows to milk this summer. Butter is only 18 cents now. Eggs one cent a piece. Live hogs 4.50‑4.75 per 100 pounds. Hay 2 dollars per 1000 pounds. Straw about 75 cents to one dollar per carload, etc. So you can see that everything here is a little cheaper than in Holland. But it all grows here with less work, so you don’t need as much money for your products. And if you have money, you can get 7‑8% interest, a little more than in Holland, sometimes even 9 to 10%. If we would not do everything with machinery equipment, it would also here be more expensive.

How is Hendrik Jan doing? We don’t hear too much from him anymore. And Jan in Bredevoort — just write once! We brothers are all very healthy and also Mother Miena helps Gerrit Jan’s wife a lot. But our days fly away, but let us fight more and more under the banner of King Jesus, that’s my wish!

Regards to the other brother. (1).

 

H.J. Te Selle

(1) This must have been Jan Albert (born 1835, deceased 1905). Brother Tobias (born 1830) died in 1887.