{Lutheran Theological Seminary and Waterloo College
Waterloo, Ontario}
Jan’y 4, 1920.
Dear Mother:
This is the first letter except of a business nature that I have written this year. Your letters to Bonnie and to the children were received a few days ago and were very much enjoyed. I suppose by this time you have received replies to the latter. While Marion can write many words and form a number of sentences she didn’t feel equal to writing a letter but preferred to dictate. Arthur received a letter from [?] and he also dictated a reply. His was even better than Marion’s as he is more original. I was thinking that Arthur wrote to you too, but I guess it was only Marion. Bonnie and the boys are down at Church to-night again and as I have all the others in bed asleep I have a good opportunity for writing. This morning we had communion in St. John’s. Bonnie and I were both down though she said she felt somewhat like a fish out of water as everything was
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in German. Pastor Bockelmann had a fine sermon on Isaiah 40:6-8 upon the theme “What shall I preach?” The congregation was very large, though I suppose there were not over 50 or 60 communicants. The custom among these Germans is to commune but once a year and that time par excellence is Easter. We had an extra fine day to-day, bright and cold but considerably milder than for several days previous. Thursday and Friday were our coldest days. The thermometer was away down below zero. I don’t know how far. On Friday morning we didn’t have a drop of water in the house. Everything was frozen up. But by lighting the oil stove in the cellar I succeeded in thawing out the taps down there and after dinner I got the plumbers up to thaw out the other obstreperous pipes. This afternoon the children enjoyed themselves with the toboggan up at the sand pit and Carolus and I had about an hour’s good skating on the rink back of the Seminary. Carolus is a good skater. He can beat me on stunts, such as skating backward, but on straight skating I can generally
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lay him in the shade. Tomorrow the public school reopens. So to-day is the last day of holidays for the children. Our Seminary and College reopens on Tuesday. So I still have a day of grace – washday. Beginning with Tuesday we will have a long stretch till Easter when we will have another week or ten days recess. Then will come the home-stretch till the last of May. Prof. Lincke is laid up and has been granted four weeks vacation. But I don’t think he will be able to take up his work then and am doubtful if he ever will again. He has been going down steadily for the last six months or more and has been quite bad during the [?] week or more. The Dr. pronounced his case malanemia but the general opinion seems to be that he has cancer of the stomach. He doesn’t think himself that he will be back at work within four weeks. It will mean more work for the rest of us as we will have to make some provision to keep his classes going. I was appointed Sec’y pro tem of the Board
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meeting last week and so was privileged to stay in through the whole session. I recommended a substantial increase of salary of all the Professors myself included and am happy to say that I got it. The two College professors were given salaries of $1500 each; the two Seminary professors $1600 each, and I as Dean was granted a salary of $1800, all salary increases to begin with Jan’y 1,1920. This is very satisfactory, and as I can live on it I will not have to move down South yet awhile. The Board seemed to be quite willing and no objection was raised by any member to the increase. I think now I will order a suit of clothes made, of which I stand sorely in need. I was glad to hear that the Murrays were settled in a parsonage [?] I heard that he had a call but didn’t know where. I think the Port Colborne people were foolish to turn him down because he wasn’t a hand-shaker. There are few better preachers than he is. But parishes now-a-days want a good mixer rather than a good preacher. Well, I must close, Wishing you again a happy New Year, I am
Most Sincerely yours,
[signed] Carroll H. Little
