Transcript:Letter from Wapakoneta to Schwenningen 1847

WAPAKONETA, OHIO, THE 9TH OF SEPTEMBER 1847
Whol. (?) Mayor’s Office and District Council
And Citizens Committee

Filled with gratitude, love, and faithfulness we, the undersigned feel obligated to let you, dear superiors, know about our situation and fate up to now, and to inform you about the dispute with the agent Mr. Beck.

A concise description of the journey can be found in a letter I have sent to Christine Schlanker earlier. I am sure it is open for reading to whoever is interested in it.

I find it appropriate to start immediately with the matter of Mr Beck. In Mainz he could the 180 people….. (sentence not finished) rush with 63 to London, shipped them to New York, came back and fetched the 117 of us also. In two and a half days he drove with us to Rotterdam, from there in 25 hours to London. Here there was a halt. Mr Beck had to work very fast already at the journey. With time consuming difficulty the ship was being furnished for passengers since it normally was only a regular merchant ship with three masts, carrying 550 tons. On the ship we were not allowed to say anything. It was built well and had a good crew. How startled we were, however, when we found out by accident that the ship was heading for Quebec and not for New York! We confronted Mr Beck (with this) . Of course, he did not deny it and tried to tell us it would be to our advantage. However, we did not agree with him at all. We believed we were still too far away from the United States and felt abandoned by everyone. Mr Beck always countered with plausible reasons like it would not cost more to go inland from there than from New York. He also kept insisting there was no ship for us available to go to New York. We called upon the contract you wrote for us and even went to the Prussian Wurttemberg consul. He inquired at the main agency and he was told Mr Beck was quite unknown to them here. Thereupon he gave us the advice that we should have him arrested and that we should immediately let our city council know, so that he will not be able to claim rectification. However this seemed too troublesome to us and too expensive. And now pitty entered the scene. He also paid about 150 to 160 gulden to those people who did not receive a capitation fee from you. And thus ended- as was stated out of pity- the dispute. He just did not know which way to turn. The ship and we were his responsibility.

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After a delay of 4 to 5 days we went to sea on the 26th of May. Mr Beck treated us very well during the whole journey; we did not lack anything. He could have saved another 100 on us, but he did not do it. The food on the ship was also of excellent quality as well as enough in quantity. I would advise every emigrant to entrust himself to him. The reason he took us to Quebec was that he had to pay only 64 gulden per person while it was 72 gulden to New York. And this savings he needed even more because he has lost much money in a hurry since we left home on the 26th of April and went to sea only on the 26th of May. Also one may count 48 gulden per day for board-wages for little and big people etc.

Signed
Jacob Weiler
Johannes Rapp