Waterloo, Ont.,
June 19,1918
Dear Mother:
Here I am a little late again this week. As certain breakfast foods state “There is a reason”. Monday as usual was wash-day and I am the motor of the machine. The afternoon and evening I spent hard at work in my garden till it was too late to write. And yesterday I went trout fishing. Pastor Weidenhammer called for me in his automobile, or rather “Tin Lizzy”, about a quarter past five yesterday morning and we had a trip of about 18 miles to the woods. We had a splendid day of it and caught 52 trout, within 8 of the number the law allowed. The trout were of the brook-trout variety – not as large as those we used to get in Nova Scotia, but they are sweeter for eating. We expect to have a good mess of them for dinner to-day. It was about 9 o’clock when I got back home last night, somewhat tired from the day's outing but feeling fine. I would enjoy going again this summer sometime, but don’t know whether I will be able to get around to it again or not. To-day I will have to get into my garden again and also mow the lawn. I’m afraid I will hardly get through with the latter job to-day. The lawns are in fine shape and the grass is like velvet. Our bushes of peonies are now in blossom and look very pretty. The weather is fine and reasonably
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cool. The summer has so far been very delightful. Last Sunday I preached for Pastor Behrens morning and evening and the coming Sunday I am to preach for Pastor Voelker, President of the Canada Synod, in his Church at Preston, about 9 miles west of here. So you see I am getting a good deal of preaching to do this summer and am not much in danger of becoming rusty or of getting out of practice. While I think of it, Bonnie asked me to request you to send her your recipe for canning corn and beans. She anticipates a large crop of these from my garden and would like a better recipe for doing them up than she has at present. Saturday will be our national registration day when every man, woman and youth from 16 years old and upward will be required to register and tell what he can do or what service he can render that will help to whip the Hun. I don’t know to what use the registration will be put, but the Government feel that they must do something. So far we are far behind the regulations and restrictions of the United States. Your [?] democracy is much more restrictive of personal liberty than our Monarchial government. Living is much more pleasant in Canada than in the U.S. now. But, of course, I do not know what developments may yet come. Rev. Gomann, one of the Canada Synod men and who stopped at the same place I did in Elmira was arrested in Toronto on his return from Synod because he had failed to register as an enemy alien. He was locked up in the cell over night, but the next day Dr. Hoffmann succeeded in getting him released. The magistrate agreed to appoint Dr. Hoffmann as his jailor and made him re-
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sponsible for his keeping until the Ottawa authorities should be heard from. The likelihood is that he will be interned. He claimed to have forgotten to register. It was a rather lame excuse, however, as there have been so many reminders of it. Rev. Gomann is a nice young man, probably not over 25 years of age and speaks a fairly good English. In spite of such instances, Canada trusts her Germans better than they are treated in any other of the allied countries and they have very little to complain of. Last Friday was a Gala day for Kitchener and Waterloo, the occasion being the visit of their Excellencies, the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, to our cities. They appeared in Waterloo at the bank and were greeted with patriotic songs and flag-waving by the school children en masse. The Governor General made an address of about two minutes to the school children and asked for them a holiday. I heard some of the school boys commenting on the way home, “I thought he would look like a king, but he looked just like any other man.” And it is quite true that he wasn’t prepossessing either in his looks or his dress, but was exceedingly plain. The German Canada Synod, I hear, was much pleased with my address and passed a flattering resolution declaring that they were most favourably impressed with the new English Professor at our Seminary. The Seminary Board will meet either this week or next and I am in hope that they
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will take action to call another professor. In that case I think I will suggest Rev. Murray. The Canada Synod authorized the Board to call another professor and I believe Rev. Murray would be acceptable to them. I don’t know yet what Rev. Behrens’s congregation will do with reference to a successor. His resignation will be acted upon Sunday. I haven’t seen him since he returned yesterday from Pa. His Church here pays a good salary $1400 and parsonage. But I must close and get to work. With love to all,
I am
Most Sincerely yours
[signed] Carroll H. Little
