New Holland, Lancaster County, Pa

October 11, 1914        

 

 

Christian G. Weaver, and Wife,

My Dear brother and sister:

 

Today after leaving your place, feeling a little more dejected than usual and wishing to think over things more quietly, than a hurrying walk to the trolly and a hasty ride to my home or Blue Ball, where my family had thought of going, would allow, I concluded to walk slowly across the fields where many other people of different thoughts and wishes had often walked before and planned plans, which I verily believe never came to a successful ending for many.

 

First I struck my line of musings some thing like this:- Here George Weber and his boys and plowed, drove their cows, cut down their trees and at noon slowly traveled up the little stream to their homes by the most beautiful spring that was to be found by any of the first settlers, and we now only see how well he chose his place for a home; after him came his son Henry, then Benjamin, (Bane), who had a brother Christian, the miller(father of our old neighbor Christian) aftre Benjamin, came Moses S. and Benjamin and Moses the present owners what plans, what anxieties these men who walked, worked, and sweated here since 1723, when George Weber and his brothers first looked upon these beautiful fields, and meadows?--

 

Now I crossed a fence and was in the place where Baney Weaver divided a part of his large farm to his son-in-law, John Martin, who came here and married about 1820, I think this man came from Franklin County, and had no near relatives here; his wife died about 1833, and left him two children Mary, and Benjamin. Here it must have been that Benj Martin studied out the plan to leave this "rough farm as he called it” and went to Indiana where he sleeps his last sleep under the shadow of Yellow Creek Meeting House:- here I stop and think of the stories of father and mother as they had received them from mother's brother, David Good, and his numerous boys, our cousins, about clearing the forests and other hardships in Elkhart County Indiana, Benjamin Martin and his entire family, and others that I rember all rise before me and I am soon lost by crossing another line fence, and other familiar faces and incidents of those of whom we often heard from by lips of those who will never speak to us come across my path an I wonder whether if these forefathers,- Jacob, Henry and George Weber left their native land for the sake of serving God in purity and came here to what was then a wilderness suffering great privations for the sake of the Gospel, if they would see us and our work and hear our conversation and our plans, would they think that it was worth their while or would they be ashamed of us and of what was since their labors ended done and transacted? If they feelt ashamed which was the greatest error committed since they are gone? and my mind runs back at least forty-five years, and I call up man after man as I see them walk into the old Meeting house over yonder, old men, old women, younger, people and still younger and surely many of them led Godly lives, and when I measure up I think it is hardly wrong to say that, at least to you, that among all of them the man of the purest ideas and with the least pride or worldly vanity in his heart shown in his entire life that you or I ever met or knew was our sainted father: he had none whatever of these things## what will our children have to say about us some future time? ??????7

 

I now cross over into the meeting house yard and I stand where the old school house stood, here such men as Bishop Henry Martin, Christian and Henry Weber, and a host of others learned to read in their German Testaments, and German Hymn Books, here John Zimmerman's heavy cart with a chair fixed on it stood for the boys to make fun and which caused some of the wellmeaning brethren to protest to his comfortable way of coming to meeting, thinking that he must either come on horseback or walk, "ahorse and cart was to much ease and something new; What would the present day carriages at either meeting houses mean to those people who lived only one hundred years ago; in a hundred years more what sort of carriages will be at Weaverland? By that time an automobile will be a slow out of date way of going: it may be possible that men and women then will sit on a seat at their door and press a button and whizz--they will open the church door and sit in a satin cushion and sleep or dose while the minister gets ready for a sermon some thing will awaken him when preaching begins and at the end of it all another button pressure will whirl them home again; perhaps a flying machine will be fast enough for the common people who are satisfied to move a little on the slow order.

 

Peter Shirk, whose home I do not know, and Deacon Michael Witwer were the first persons on the bench and so on down,- Wanner, Meseman, and George and John Weaver are the first preachers that I remember.

 

Why was the meeting house built here? why not to their graveyard? did they dig the well and have the draw well before the church? with these questions and a dozen other thoughts cross my mind as I cross the road, and notice the other meeting-house; Let foregiveness and kindness be written on our foreheads and we pray God that the same feelings of love and foregetfullness may be well imprinted in to the hearts and souls of all men and women worshipping in both houses (including our-selves) and I am fully persuaded that some teachings and influences would have a tendency to bring the two elements closer together.

 

In the grave-yard--- who is not there to speak softly to a quiet visitor what meditations; what advises; what voices? how many faces?

 

We do not claim any powers above the ordinary, but we have profound pity on any one who can not spend a pleasant hour in any God's acre where his freinds sleep their last sleep. and perhaps the Witch of Endor is not such a great mystery as the unthinking reader imagines; to call up in your mind one after another and hear the voice and ideas (imaginary) is perhaps not such a wonderful feat after all.

 

On th hill in the field near Blue Hall a good view of the entire valley was taken; this was Jacob Weaver's farm containing 500 acres now the grave-yard, Amos Sensenig, Isaac Nolt, all the Gehman farms, Martin Sauder's old farm, and a part of Musselman's and Ruth's farm was included in this tract and strange to mention there is not one of Jacob Weaver, or weber's descendants ownes any of their forefather's land and not one of them is farming in this community; Samuel Weaver has a lot at Blue Ball, but that is out side of the original tract.

 

But is there any wonder that these wise men picked out this beautiful valley, I often look at the natural meadows, from Ball to Conestoga:- Henry Weber's and George Weber's descendendts are doing better in keeping hold of their land, as it is practially all in their names,

 

As I look a trolley car comes slowly creeping up through the meadow and I wonder what would the people of other generations do what would they have been able to think if such a thing should have come moving up the valley when they stood on that hill or field; this answer my imagination can not grasp and it must remain unsolved and unanswered so I walk along the trolley tracks into the village of Blue Ball and some one asks me about how that tumor was removed, and I forget all about the old Weavers and their land and their church troubles and talk common sense about some thing that I know, and after I was full awake I determined to write you a rambling letter and ask you whether you think I am fit to do business for other people or not?

 

I am reasonably sure that sister Susanna will say this man must be geting queer but that can not be helped she has her right to her opinion

 

Lizzie and Lydia, were at Peter Shirks place where I arrived a little after four o'clock and we were there for supper; after supper we came to New Holland Church; Brother Noah H. Mack preached a powerful sermon on faith and on christian giving, some of the luxuries and foolishness of the present day brethren were pretty hard hit, and were put in such a way as only Mack can put them; I hardly know how any one can feel bad over his logical and Scriptural way of putting them; I hardly know whether he meant me or not.

 

I expect to go to Lancaster by Automobile with Stauffer, in the morning, starting at five o'clock.

 

Lizzie is waiting for me to get ready to go to bed so I will close by wishing you a speedy recovery and better health than you had for a long time.