H. Landes Extended

Letter from Charles/Carl Christoffersson Springer, dated 1 June 1693, from Delaware to his mother Beata Balzarsdotter Salina in Stockholm--English Translation Translation by Courtland and Ruth Springer from the manuscript presently in Svenska ecklesiastika handlingar 1684-1694, R 1100 #185, Riksarkivet (National Archives of Sweden), Stockholm as published in Eckman, 106-08. Thanks to Christian Andersson of Sweden for sending me this translation. My highly esteemed, dear Mother: I cannot not permit this opportunity which, thank God, I now have, to go by without making known to you distinctly, dear Mother, my present condition and life. First of all, I find it wholly deplorable to be so far away from my dear mother, brothers, family, and relatives, and in a land so distant from you, and not able to receive any communication from you, for all that I have written to you many times, without getting any answer except for one letter in England. Further, I shall also let you know about my coming here to this land. When I was in London, and was of a mind to journey home to Sweden, my native country, again, having gone to school there [London], learned there English speech and the writing and reading, and [having become] well versed in arithmetic, and, as I say, was about to journey home, I was kidnapped and, against my will, taken aboard an English ship. And against my will I was carried to America, in the West Indies, to Virginia. And when I got there I was sold off like a farm animal that is driven to market. Thus I was sold, to labor, and held in ver[y] slavery for five years together. My work was unspeakable. In the summer it was Extra Ordinary hot during the day, and my work was mostly in the winter, clearing land and cutting down forest and making it ready for planting Tobacco and the Indian grain [corn] in the summer. I had a very hard master. But now - to God be praise, honor, and glory! - I have overcome it all. When I had faithfully served out my time I heard, accidentally, that there were Swedes at Delaware River, in Pensellvenia, which formerly under the Swedish rule, was called Nya Swerige [New Sweden], and so, as I now will tell you, I made that difficult journey of about four hundred miles. And when I got there I beheld the Old Swedes, and they received me very kindly. When I had been here about a year and a half, then it pleased God to send and vouchsafe me a most virtuous wife, by name Maria Hendrichsdotter, whom I married on 27 December 1685 and with whom it has pleased God to grant me three children, all three of them daughters, and she is even now with the fourth child. May God Allmighty give her a good delivery! As for my activities, I am a reader here in one Swedish congregation, and serve it, because now we have no pastors in this land, for they are all dead. I serve the congregation in the church with the reading and expounding of God's Word, for I have a Swedish postilla [book of family sermons], and the singing of hymns. It is now upon the fourth year that I have served the congregation in this way. Moreover, I have two plantations that I have bought, and on one of them I live, and plough and plant sowing all kinds of seed during the year. I also have a livestock for the needs of my household, and so live, thank God, that I and mine suffer no want. My highly esteemed Mother, dear, let also hear of you and my dear brothers, whether they are living, and how they fare. God has known my sadness at not being able to hear anything from you. That would make me truly glad of heart. My fondest longing has been that I might be permitted. before I die, to hear of your well-being. We here in this land now have a godly enterprise, we who are Swedes. We have received a letter in our country here concerning our king in Sweden, that he will, upon our writing and representation, send us pastors and Swedish books, of which we have a great lack. They have no one among them to write for them but me, I have done it diligently. I ask also, my beloved, dear Mother, that it may please you send me a Bible, here, and two manuals and hymnals, for I have no one of my own. And if you please, you could send them here to me thus, that is, first, send by some dear person to Gothenburg, to His Majesty's faithful servant and postmaster, John Thelin, by name, who will surely send them to me by messenger at the first opportunity. Dear Mother, I am wholly at a loss for books. I send greetings to my dear brothers, and my dear brother Lorentz Springer [half-brother] and his wife and children. Greet all good friends, relatives, and family, and all who know me and my name. My dear wife and children send all of you their greetings. I remain always your ever most obedient son, unto death. Dated at Pensellvenia in Delaware River the 1 June 1693 /s/ Karell Christoffeson Springer