HH The honeymoon

Susanna’s married sisters, the Neustaedters and Klievers were also there with their children and husbands. Soon afterward, we visited them as a married couple. The Klievers lived on rental property, which had belonged to the 1905 murdered Abr. Newstadler and his widow and daughter. He was a brother of  my brother-in-law Heinrich Neustaedter. My brother-in-law Johann Kliever and Heinr. Sawitzky rented the property from the widow. Soon the partnership did not work out and Sawatzky gave his part to Heinr. Neustaedter who lived on his smaller estate near the Russian village Schierokaja. The estate where the Klievers lived was only very small. The stables and granary were built of raw bricks and thatched roof. The calves roamed the barn free and sucked on the horses’ tails so the horses always had short tails. We stayed there for coffee and then went on to Neustaedters for the night. It was a beautiful small estate on a small river bank. They had a jung garden with fruit trees that were just in their prime at the time. We liked it there very much. The land was very fertile. Their neighbors were Julius Bergmans, the son of the member of Parliament Bergman and he was the father of Rudolf Bergman who later married our niece Helena Kliever in Canada.

We went on our honeymoon trip by train first class to Grieshence. We usually only traveled second class, which was very nice too but for this special occasion, we could be extravagant. The compartment had red plush tapestry and a mirror on the door. It was very elegant with wide open windows and in complete isolation. We were all by ourselves in a compartment. This was the first and last time that I ever went first class.

In Grieschince, a coach was waiting to take us to uncle Jon Weins of Wasieljewka. We were warmly received by our uncle and aunt Jon Weins as by our cousins. From here, we were driven from one place to the other. We visited aunt Jacob Wiens and her family uncle and aunt Heinrich Sudermanns of Seljienaja. We also saw Susanna’s uncle Johann Friesen and their oldest son Job Friesen, who lived on the same estate that they had bought from Iwan Ity Lurin. As well, we saw Julius Friesens who lived in a mud house as their place was under construction. We liked it there very  much and had a lot of fun. 

Then we went to Abram Sudermann’s. He was my cousin from my mother’s side. They had just completed building their new place. It was a big two-story house that Abram was mad about. He said it was far too big. He also complained about his wife who he said was stupid. She washed all the furniture with soap so that all the polish and gloss came off on the new modern furniture. On Selejrina, he had built an equally large two-story house for his brother Heinrich on the same site where grandmother’s house had stood. Abrams’s land bordered on Johann Wein’s land so all the land was connected whether by marriage or purchase. At the time they had two children. Mariechen and a son who later died. His buildings were all very practical. He also had a windmill to pump water and produce electricity for the lights.

We went back to Friesental by train but this time we took second class. We had satisfied our curiosity beforehand. Soon, I was tired of the lazy life and visiting and I longed for work. I took Susanna by car to Reimerhof where we lived for almost a year. Next spring, at the beginning of May we moved to Widnaja on our new estate so that we could complete and manage it.

Not long afterwards, in 1914 World War I broke out and I too was mobilized and had to serve in the Ohrloff hospital as an orderly.