Lübbecke i/Westf
Osnabrückerstr. 16
July 13/33
Dear Mother and Dad,
After having put my correspondence back on a receiving basis today I'll be able to rest and wait for the ships to come in for a while. I haven't been getting my mail lately so I thought perhaps I had better give them all a line.
I received your letter this morning which certainly sounded like the Hospital report alright. If the Crandalls don't receive their seat in the celestial glory it certainly won't be because they didn't serve their fellowmen and relation. What? But being as how brotherly love and good will to man is the grand principle upon which the gospel of life and salvation is founded and on which Zion is to be built, I figure you'll receive your reward in heaven OK. Here is hoping that Aunt Ethel pulls through OK. It is too bad that things have to go from bad to worse with her and the family. But it seems as though the Lord has his ways of putting the faith of his children to the test. Give her my regards and that I said not to give up.
I'm sitting here trying to write this letter and scratch my back all at the same time. The Fourth of July, we missionaries of this district came together in a town called Salzuflen and had a short missionary meeting after which we went swimming. And naturally we got so sunburned that we could hardly move around. I'm fighting the after effects right now by scratching my back and peeling the hide off at the same time. This place called Salzuflen is one of the greatest heatlh centers of Germany, and fortunately through one of the Saints there we were taken through the entire plant of the Sanatorium. It was very interesting in that they had something new in the way of science.
While in Minden a couple of days ago, we had a sister or rather a friend come up to us and tell us that she wanted to be baptized. So I have an idea that we are going to work a reformation in this little place of Lübbecke and baptize the whole town. In spite of the fact that the town mayor, police, and pastor have been working against us here, we have been winning new friends right along. In fact we have about a dozen friends who are just about on the verge of baptism. The only thing holding them back is that they are afraid of losing their employment should they join up with the Mormons. The Town Pastor has so much power here that he can relieve them of their work should he want to take such steps. However, we think that he is about to give our case up and be quiet. He has already come to the conclusion that he can't do anything with us. We reported ourselves to the district police in Minden last week and showed them that we weren't a sect of any kind at which they should be afraid of. I n spite of the fact, however, they won't let us hold open meetings. No one will even rent us a meeting hall where we can hold meetings. We have hopes in the near future though of being able to turn this place Mormon and then they will have to leave us alone.
My companion asked one of the Brethren in Minden last week if he had any ideas which we could use to increase our attendance in Sunday School. And he said yes and that we ought to marry a couple of these German frauleins and raise some kids. And since then he has been trying to marry us off to every girl in the branch. If we don't watch our step he is liable to get us into some embarrassing conditions. He has never been able to understand how we can come over here on a mission and stay single so long. Evidently he has been reading too much in Brigham Young discourses. Ha!!
We had an interesting experience the other day upon visiting one of our friends in Minden. These friends happened to be of the New Apostle Church and while having a nice quiet chat together with them, someone knocked at the door which proved to be their pastor. Naturally we put our bibles away and let him do the talking. And not knowing that we were missionaries he began talking of things pertaining to religion etc. After he had talked for about an hour we began to question him on some of the things he had told us. Of course this started a hot argument. And after arguing with him for a couple of hours we had him so tied up and hot under the collar that he couldn't stand it any longer. He just picked up his hat and said "Goodbye, I've got work to do." He found out afterwards that we were missionaries of the Latter-Day Saint Church. Of course, after having talked with their pastor, the people of this house are almost Mormons now.
It is time for us to go tracting so I'll shut this thing up for the present.
Lots of love,
Clarence
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