Appendix

The following three letters are appended as a sample of the voluminous correspondence from Ebenezer to England and Germany. The first of these is a request by Boltzius for the Trustees to contribute toward the building of the orphanage and also to pay for the passage of two indentured German families to serve in it.

Ebenezer Nov. 6^th. 1738.

Dear Sir,

The Rev^d. M^r. Ziegenhagen has sent to me a Copy of a Letter, which you have wrote to him about the Money, which the Honourable Trustees have allow’d for Ruprecht Kalcher, Servant to M^r. Vatl.³²¹ The said Money, which is 6 £ 3 sh: 10d sterlg., is now placed to my Account by M^r. Causton, & I have satisfy’d the said Kalcher, who desired me to return the Honourable Trustees most humble Thanks for this favour. I had the satisfaction of acquainting General Oglethorpe with the Building & Intention of our Orphan-House beseeching Him for some Assistance in Victuals & Clothings. He is very we’ll pleased by it, being perswaded of the Necessity & great Use of it in regard to My Congregation & other poor people, but having no power to allow any thing towards it without the Consent of the Honourable Trustees, He advised me to lay my humble Petition before them, doubting not but they would find out some Means for the Supporting the Orphan House, for which He promised me to write himself some Intercession to them. Be pleased therefore; good Sir to acquaint the Honourable Trustees that I want their generous Assistance in the maintaining our Orphans, Widows & other persons, who are imploy’d for the sake of the poor Children, our Saltzburgers being now not yet able to contribute any thing to it, tho’ they are very willing being persuaded of the Usefulness of this Institution. Besides this I beseech humbly the Honourable Trustees to approve graciously of the generous Design of General Oglethorpe in shewing my Congregation a particular Favour. I intreated him for 2 families of the Dutch³²² Servants, which Cap Thomson brought over to Georgia, whom we want very necessary for being our Cowherds. Our Saltzburgers intend unanimously to go this Winter to their Works upon their Plantations, now fully laid out by strict Order of the General, for planting Rice & other kinds, & having a good Stock of Cattle, which they allways use to keep upon good Pasturages under the Care of some Cowherds, for want of which they would loose them as it happened in the Beginning of our Settlement to some, or to have them Wild & of a little use in the Woods, therefore they beseech the Honourable Trustees to allow those 2 families, consisting in 5 heads, for the use of our Town to be imploy’d for being our Cowherds. I have engaged my self to the General to find Victuals, Cloathes & every thing, necessary for them, intreating only the Honourable Trustees to pay their Passage, which as the General knows, neither I nor the Congregation is able to do. It is not to be doubted of, that this Gift of the said Servants will redound to our Saltzburgers great Advantage as well as to the said Servants great Satisfaction & Welfare, being now already mightily pleased & thankful to God & men for being brought by the General’s Leave to my Congregation. M^r. Gronan begs the favour of you to recommend his inclosed Letter to the Honourable Trustees. Pray present mine & my Congregations most humble Respects to them returning them many hearty Thanks for the many Favours & Benefits, that are bestow’d heretofore upon us, being in Hopes, they will generously add to the former Benefits this new likewise of allowing us the said Servants gratis, for which benefit we shall allways put up our fervent Prayers to bless them with good Health, long Life & happy Success in their praizeworthy Undertakings. Please to accept my hearty Wish & Prayers for your Happiness, who am

Dear Sir

Your most humble Ser^vt.

John Martin Bolzius.³²³

The following is the letter of 25 November 1738 that the Ebenezer congregation sent to Urlsperger praising their situation and requesting him to encourage and enable their kinsmen in South Germany to come join them. The German original was, of course, worded by Boltzius, but we may trust that he wrote only what they wished him to. This English translation was probably made in London.

Most revernd Sir.

Very beloved and honored father in Christ, we, the undersigned Salzburgers, and others of our brethren in Ebenezer, are reminded often to the glory of God, of his many loving and sacred gifts which were brought back by your worships in abundance to our poor souls and bodies not only in Augspurg; but also, as it were wafted to us from time to time even to America. Praised be the Lord, our God, for all the blessings that you have conferred upon us; for all the exhortations and consolations which you have given us by word of mouth and pen; for all the devout care, intercession, petition, and fatherly good will, with which up to this time you have always honored us; of these we have felt and continue to feel the need daily. So long as we breathe we shall not desist from praying to the merciful Lord each one by himself and in concert, that with a bountiful grace, he will reward your works in belief, your labors in love, and your patience in hope, both in this life and that to come and that at last when our wandering and pilgrimage are at an end we will be presented joyfully before the face of His blameless splendor with you as our pious father: how still later, without sin, we will praise our Redeemer with glorified voice for all the mercies He has shown us through your service to the healing of our souls and to gratifying our most cherished desires. In truth God has dealt kindly with us in so far as he bore us safely to Ebenezer, which now he lets us know better continually, on this account we have cause to be ashamed that at first we were not properly contented with His wise and good guidance but he helped us to understand that the former severe, though never too severe, but rather well-meaning test, was for our own welfare and He has also in a material way begun to bless us with such timely sustenance that we would be very sinful if we complained and did not wish to be satisfied. There is no one among us who has become poorer but remarkable to say, every one has received from God’s hand so much since the last harvest as he might need for his necessities and something for clothing and living expenses; thus it will be easy for the almighty Lord to let flow to us here from other places, a substantial blessing; such is then our cherished hope from our last letters written to our beloved pastor: that we should receive linen and other necessary articles from Augspurg and Halle, for which we will value with due humility His holy care and merciful providence, we have percieved the fruit of your own prayers and of those of other godly teachers not only in the many benefits received of God which have been bestowed upon us here and indeed, also often sent to us from across the sea; but we see it also as a result of your heartfelt petition that we now again presume and suppose that the land already surveyed which belongs to the town but for the most part has been in bad shape such a good piece of Land on the Habercorn River³²⁴ about one and a half hours journey from Ebenezer by chance we have procured, better then which we do not wish; therefore on account of our religious zeal it may be put into condition so that we will be able to hear the word of the Lord as plentifully as in the past while one of our beloved pastors draws hither to us where most of the members will live comfortably together in one place. When we reflect upon how much kindness the good holy Lord has done for our souls in the past by His sacred word how tenderly he has given us the entire treasure of his mercy through the Gospel during the whole time we have been here in Ebenezer and how faithfully he has worked on our hearts for the benefit of our own welfare, we could not believe otherwise than it was for a special benevolence, that we come so closely together and without becoming hindered in our external occupation, we are able to seek further the care and protection of God for our needs. In short the Lord has done great things for us and still continues his goodness and care; and because we know we differ in prosperity from our friends and brethren who formerly were also included to come to America, so we ask your worship to announce that spiritually and bodily we are enjoying the care of our heavenly Father and in accordance with our love for them as our fellow-countrymen we wish that they were with us. So far as we can foresee in a human way, they would find already on their arrival here that they would have many a privilege to gain from us which we have acquired in a desert, unknown country and at first had to learn from experience in various ways with many a disadvantage and obstruction. The land is fully prepared to be cultivated, so that like us, they also, as soon as they arrive, can work on it; while we, on the contrary, had no land of our own for a long time, and had to do much work almost to no avail. They will find here well known people who would come to them with advice and assistance at hand and we could give them the experience that we have acquired of some things during this time; say that soon they could reward their work in like manner with profit and advantage; while, on the contrary, from lack of experience, we have had many sorrows and drawbacks. For cattle-breeding are all good arrangements now made whereby they, too, would have large profit. Through God’s mercy we have now 200 head of neat cattle, besides hogs and poultry. At first so far as our dwelling was concerned seemingly we had a hard time, because in New Ebenezer as yet nothing was built; but now every one who might come here would be welcomed in houses and cottages already built until they could build something for themselves in the town on a lot which they could choose. We enjoy here entire Christian freedom in religious affairs and in every day life are subservient to no one; and we can conduct all our business in the best and most comfortable manner as it seems good to us. No one is allowed to harm us and there is a great difference between a free landholder in Ebenezer and a servant in Germany, even if he has a good master; indeed also between a farmer and a landholder in the same place. To the advantage of our place and company this is added that the noble General Oglethorpe recently without our request, has had given to us the gracious assurance that no one should come to our locality and settle among us before he is recommended and nominated by us and our pastors themselves. As in our case, could our countrymen also be sent here voluntarily in one year with provisions; also where possible, with tools and stock; thus we believe if they would fear God and would await faithfully the result of their labors, they will find here already their support and livelihood. It would be very enjoyable and pleasant if our region would be populated with such honest people of whom it is requested to do this only in order to save their souls and they would support themselves at last honorably by the work of their hands; then we would live together as brothers in great joy and peace. No true Christian looks for riches and luxuries in this world and the man who wishes to seek for these in Ebenezer must stay away; but he who is content with food and clothing and also his dear necessities can be advised to come here yet first must he consult with God in hearty prayer so that he shall come not of his own accord but by the will of God; when one is convinced thereof he is satisfied with all that God gives and such a one can trust indeed to the holy faithful Lord, that He will know how to protect him. Especially we ask your worship to offer the call to Ebenezer both to those neighboring Salzburgers and Austrians who are still well known to us and who, we know, would like everything here; we would rejoice heartily over their arrival.

They are:

1. From Lindaus

Philip Wenger

Nicol Rothenberger

Georg Brandstetter

Andrear Pittz

Georg Wenger

Peter Breitfusz

Andreas & Jacob Brandstetter and their two sisters, Ursula & Anna

Matthias Harmel

Michel Steiner

Matthias, servant of the Holy Church

2. From Memmingen

Peter Dritscher

Joseph Mitterecker

Hans Eisenhoffer

Matthias Bacher

Hans Guldicker

Simon Brandstetter

Jacob Kranewinter

Philip Eischbacher

Bartholomeir Stickel

3. From Kaufbeuern

Gertrand Lacknevin,³²⁵ and many others whose names we forget.

Wolffgang Baumgartner

4. From Nordlinger

Anne Cornbergerin

5. From Augspurg

Ruprecht Helpfferer

Hans & Balthasar Ebner

Balth, and Wilhelm Gruber

Hans Grumpold

Christina Roshlacherin

Hans Reiter

6. From Leutkirch

George Hohmann

Lorentz Lickewalner

7. From Ulm

Michel Kasewurm

Paulus Kasewurm

8. From Liebrach

Veit Zefferer

9. From Kemten

Martin Grundner

Veit Hollaus

10. From Regenspurg

Bartholomeus Lerchner & Frantz Ecker

Thomas and Martin Schmidt

Sebastian Topf Schuhmacher

If the company were together, then more safely among such could come over here some unmarried Christian Salzburger women or other honest members of the female sex who it is hoped would not regret to marry here and likewise to establish an orderly household.³²⁶ Hitherto the young bachelors have endured much disorder in their dwellings rather than marry such persons in whom they did not discern the token of a genuine fear of God and an exceptionally honest life; and moreover our benefactors in England and Germany should know that they would not be served with indiscriminate people, but with Christian, painstaking, and honourable persons; how kindly their benefactors would grant this if they would help to settle our dear Ebenezer with genuine Salzburgers for the honor of God and their own good; and also how such Salzburgers would thank them for it at the same time as the arrivals; they would be glad to bestow their charity in such a way, that they would help a transport to America in the future if the honourable trustees should not be in condition to undertake it themselves. This is the colony, we have learned, that has been illy spoken of because no livelihood could be had here; indeed this might have been reported here through a great misunderstanding; but if every one seen that if still more Salzburgers were sent hither on request of the dwellers in Ebenezer, and one can hope to earn his living here; so would this be nothing else than a clear and sure defense of this country against enemies and slanderers. Still two points must be considered (1) That the people wishing to come here should not leave behind simple German implements and what they may bring along for tools and clothing, especially linen and shoes, because all such things are expensive here and hard to get. (2) They must so plan their journey that they will be here in Ebenezer at harvest time that they may get ready further and plant by degrees a bit of land that is ready, or that which is prepared around the town, so that something can be given to them for employment for some time until they have gotten their own in condition, which will be very useful to them. It was not so easy for us. The best and pleasantest time to work in the field is in the Autumn and Winter. And moreover they must leave Augspurg in April or at the latest in May or June; for thereby if they find a ship soon in England they can be here toward Autumn or at any rate before winter. But may the wise and kindly God bring them hither by his merciful and good will. May he rejoice your worship with all kinds of good tidings about our settlement which in the time of the reports that were first published about us, caused you much sadness on our behalf may He bless you richly and all servants of the Lord as well as the rest of the beloved benefactors and may our poor prayer for you in Christ seem good to Him. Herewith we remain, with a thousandfold greeting to all of you.

To his worship our very true and strong father in Christ, from his spiritual children fast bound to love and obedience.

Ebenezer November 25, 1738

1. From Lindau:

Simon Steiner

George Koyler³²⁷

Matthias Brandner

Christ. Riedelsperger

Matthias Burgsteiner

Ruprecht Kalcher

Stephan Rottenberger

Ruprecht Steiner

Gabriel Maurer

Rupr. Eischberger

2. From Memminger

Thomas Bacher

Martin Lackner

George Bruckner

Peter Reiter

Meiggitzer³²⁸

Zettler

Thomas Pichler

Paul Zittrauer

Hans & Carl Floerch.³²⁹

Leonhard Crause

Ott. Bach

Zant

3. From Augspurg

Barth. Rieser

Simon Reuter

Ruprecht Zimmermann

John Cornberger

Christian Leimberger

Veit Laudfelder³³⁰

George Schwaiger

Peter Gruber

Veit Limmenhoffer³³¹

John Maurer

Thomas Geschwandel

Joseph Leitner

4. From Regenspurg

John Schmidt

Jacob Schartner of Kempten

Christian Hester of

Leipheim³³²

by Ulm

John Pletter

Ebenezer Dec^r. 12^th. 1738.

To M^r. H. Newman.

Dear Sir

My last Letters to you are Sent by the way of Charles Town in Sept. & Oct. last by which I took the Liberty to acquaint You w^th. the Receiving of our Salaries by Cap^t. Thomson as well as to give you a little Account of y^e Condition & Intention of our Orphan house, which I humbly desired you to recommend to y^e Hon^ble. Trustees & Society.

I have now the Satisfaction to acquaint you that by order of Gen¹. Oglethorpe our Plantations are now laid out in such a manner, as it will be very convenient & advantageous to my Congregation. By this Generosity & Goodness of M^r. Oglethorpe our Saltzburgers will be enabled, if merciful God continues to give his Blessings to their Endeavours, to reap many good Fruits of their Labour in y^e Ground, & are now so well Satisfyed, that the whole Congregation has desired me to give the Rev^d. M^r. Senior Urlsperger an Account of the many good things & Preferences which they enjoy now here under the Wings of Providence of y^e Almighty. It will redound to our Towns & y^e Colony’s advantage, if our whole Town cou’d be Settled with Saltzburgers, as it was the praise worthy Intention of y^e. Hon^ble. Society from the beginning. And Seeing that our Saltzburgers know a good many of honest & industrious Countrymen at Augsburg & Linden & other places in Germany, who are resolved to join w^th. their Brethren here in their Worship & Labour upon the first good Acco^t. of their being settled well they give now w^th. one Accord such an Account, doubting not at all, but they will ingage themselves very soon for being sent hither to Ebenezer. But being informed, that the hon^ble. Trustees cannot take up Saltzburgers upon the former establishment, I beseech the Gentlemen of y^e Society to think on some means of gratifying our Saltzburgers humble Petition in paying a new Transports Passage & allowing Provisions & other necessary things for their Support and Subsistence in y^e beginning. Our people’s health continues pretty well, & have a mind to do a great deal of Work this Winter upon their Plantations for raising more Provisions for their & other Comers Subsistence. We shall endeavour our selves to the utmost of our Power to attend on our Congregation both in Town & upon their Farms, ministring to them the Gospel & holy Sacraments, which is the first and chiefest Thing, they constantly aim at.

My utmost necessity obliges me to build a house my Hutt being almost rotten, & very inconvenient for preserving my Health & doing my Business well & Successfully. I design to beseech Gen¹. Oglethorpe to lend me 40^lb Sterl. being in hopes, Almighty God will incline our Benefactors Hearts to contribute some to this very necessary & useful Building, by which I shall be enabled to return this Money to y^e General in time. And as the Honourable Society are always very strongly inclined to do every thing to our & the Saltzburgers Welfare, I make bold to beg y^e favour, of their intercessions at the Board of y^e Hon^ble. Trustees, to allow besides the 10^th. w^ch they have allowd for one House, some thing more w^ch Intercession will, I doubt not prevail very much w^th. them to my advantage.

May the Lord Jesus bless you and all the worthy Gentlemen of the Society w^th. good health and all manner of happiness, which is the sincere Wish and Prayer of y^e Congregation, of M^r. Gronan & mine who am

Dear Sir

Your most Obed^t.

humble serv^t.

John Martin Bolzius.