To review:  The ring, which should have arrived at the Buslee’s home by April 29, 1948, had vanished.

This letter from Z’s mother is undated and I have no way of knowing when it was written other than it must have been written between July and September based on references in the letter.

Dear Mrs. Buslee:

Before I go further with my letter, I am sending the best wishes to you and your family. Thanks once more for the lovely letter and the photos. Please excuse me that I have not written any sooner.

We were expecting a message from you folks that you received the ring, but so far we did not hear from you. I am sending also a few pictures. Out here in the country we are not very well prepared to take pictures as good as the folks in the city. When we are altogether again we will take a family group and send it to you.

We were hoping that our son would be home in June, but new developments made it impossible, and he will not be home before, if then, October. We will be very happy when the occasion comes that you folks could visit us, and also Mr. B. We would be very happy to have you in our home. We are sorry we do not speak English. My husband talks a little German, but not very much. We are thinking of you every day and every time the mailman appears we are looking for a letter from America.

We were thinking we were doing the right thing and sending it the safest way, but as it turned out, it was not safe at all. We realize that you folks are anxious to get the ring, but there is nothing in our power for us to do so you can get it sooner. When my husband came back from Prague we were very happy because they promised you folks would get the ring in 21 days.

Mrs. Buslee, you are asking me how many children we have. The oldest 24 and the youngest 21. [Two other sons besides Z.] Both are healthy and good boys and the oldest one has learned pastry making. The youngest one goes to electrical engineering school. I am plenty busy to get the washing, etc. ready when they are home. We also have with us my oldest sister and my husband being sick needs good food, so we are raising quite a bit of poultry on our little farm and we are enjoying the living in the country. It is very nice and all we hope for is final settlement and peace. I have written you about our family and do not want to bother you any more with a longer letter. We all are happy to get letters from you any time you find a little time. Write to us.

With best regards, Z’s Mother and Family

This transcription is a careful reproduction of the original except for occasional spelling and punctuation corrections. Some names have been masked to protect the privacy of those individuals and their families.  In some circumstances, based on relevancy or a desire to mask locations, some material may not have been transcribed.

Thank you to John Dale Kielhofer, John Oliver (Jay) Buslee’s nephew, for sharing these letters with me.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2015