The Newcomer
Page 26
“A girl said to be about your age. Smaller than you, though.” His eyes skimmed her from head to toe. “Much, much shorter. Blond hair.”
Tessa gave her chin a slight jerk. That’s her, that’s Betsy. The Zooks had immigrated to Berks County from Germany just about a year and a half ago. Tessa had met Betsy when the Amish churches gathered for spring and fall communion. Betsy was a beautiful girl, beloved by all, kind to the core. Tessa disliked her.
Betsy was everything Tessa wasn’t. She was petite while Tessa was tall. She was curvy while Tessa was a table—flat with long thin arms and legs. She was perpetually kind while Tessa had touchy feelings.
But Tessa’s dislike had nothing to do with Betsy. It had to do with Hans Bauer. From the moment they met, Hans fancied Betsy Zook.
A sick feeling roiled in Tessa’s middle. So often, she had wished Betsy’s family would just move away, go west. Go east. Go somewhere. She had even prayed for it! Especially after she learned that Hans had gone to visit Betsy numerous times.
But she had never wished for Betsy to be a victim of an Indian attack, to be taken captive.
Faxon Gingerich swept a glance over the large stone house her father had built, strong and sturdy. “Your father did well to bring you all down here, so many years ago, although your grandfather wanted to stay north. The frontier has become a devil’s playground.”
Faxon and Martin walked back to the horses and mounted them. “I will pray your father returns safely and soundly,” Faxon said, before turning his horse around and starting down the lane.
“Don’t worry, Tessa,” Rumpled Martin said. “I’m sure he’ll be home soon.” He gave her a reassuring smile before cantering off to join his father.
Until that moment, it had never occurred to Tessa that her father might not return at all.
Discussion Questions
Even though there were three characters in this story—Anna, Dorothea, and Bairn—who started together, separated, then came together again, it was essentially Bairn’s story. What did he have to come to grips with before he could move forward? Recall a time in your life when you were held captive by the past.
In what ways was Dorothea different after her time at Ephrata Cloister? What had the biggest influence on her?
Dorothea found something at Ephrata Cloister. How would you describe what she’d been missing?
What, if anything, did you admire about newcomer Henrik Newman? What did you find less than admirable in him?
Henrik Newman wasn’t all bad, nor was he all good. What do you think motivated him? Have you ever known anyone like him?
Squivvers, the sailor, told Felix, “Good leaders don’t grasp it. They live a life worthy of being followed.” What does this story teach you about the importance of leadership, or lack of it?
Why did Anna decide to marry Henrik Newman? How did she view him?
In this day and age, with so many choices available, it might be hard to imagine the commitment Anna had to the survival of her church. Describe a time in your life when you felt a similar obligation—to your church, your community, or maybe even your family. How did your story play out?
“There is nothing without trouble,” Anna told Felix. What are your thoughts about such a remark?
Bairn tells Felix a bedtime Bible story on the Lady Luck about the twelve spies that went into the Promised Land and came back with tales of giants, as well as evidence of fruitful abundance from the land. The giant stories, though, loomed larger. “Fear can be like that,” Bairn said, “can take hold of a person.” And then he realized he had let a giant in the Promised Land (metaphor!) strike fear in his own heart. What did he mean? What about you? What kind of giants keep you from your own Promised Land?
What surprised you most about the time period of the story? Could you imagine yourself living in it? Does anything in particular appeal to you about life in the New World of the eighteenth century? Maybe the vast wilderness, the untouched beauty?
Let’s flip that around: name one or two things you learned that made you glad you’re living in the twenty-first century. Say, for example, the common practice of bloodletting has been extinguished.
If you could write the next chapter in Anna and Bairn’s life, what would it be?
Acknowledgments
A thank-you to Lindsey Ciraulo and Tad Fisher, my crackerjack team of first readers. They help me plug leaks and patch holes so my editor doesn’t have to. Thank you, thank you!
I’m incredibly blessed by the team at Revell who take my manuscript, scrub and polish it, create a beautiful cover to slip it into, and then get it in the hands of readers: Andrea, Barb, Michele, Karen, Cheryl, Mary. You’re all such extraordinary people! And a thank-you to my wonderful agent, Joyce Hart, who has the gift of encouragement.
I spent time walking in Philadelphia with Nick Cvetovic, found through the Travel Channel, who created an outstanding, customized tour focused on the city prior to the Revolution. Thank you for the excellent work you did on my behalf—including a sneak peek into an historical home in Elfreth’s Alley.
Director Becky Gochnauer at the Hans Herr Haus in West Lampeter Township, Pennsylvania, was an invaluable resource—so helpful and so knowledgeable. The Hans Herr Haus, built in 1719, sparked my imagination of a young 1700s farm, carved out of the wilderness. And the Ephrata Cloister, in Ephrata, Pennsylvania, is definitely worth a visit. Don’t miss the gift shop! Lots of unusual books you can’t find elsewhere.
A thank-you to my faithful readers who asked for a sequel to Anna’s Crossing. Originally, it was contracted and written as a stand alone, not a series. But I’m so glad you wanted more! You’re the best. Just. The. Best.
Last but never least, my gratitude goes to the Almighty One. His providence never fails.
Historical Notes
Readers are often curious about how much of a story is fact and how much is fiction. While the characters in this story are made up, the wilderness setting, the time period, the hardships faced are based on historical research. I worked diligently to create a credible story, but any errors are my own blunders.
Penn’s Woods in 1737 was a vastly unsettled wilderness. The fertile land, abundant with natural resources, had never been claimed, surveyed, or deeded. Immigrants seeking religious freedom and economic prosperity, largely German, along with Irish, Scots, Dutch, and others, swept into Philadelphia. The population of the city was swelling to 12,000. Rules for immigration changed constantly. In 1728, Mennonites filed a petition for the naturalization of those who, because of the dictates of their conscience, would not pledge allegiance to the Crown and thus could not become citizens. Here’s how the naturalization document was adjusted: “promise and swear” was changed to “promise and solemnly declare.” “Will be faithful and bear true allegiance” was changed to “will be true and faithful.” “Majesty” was removed from the title of King George the second. “Abhor, detest and abjure” became “abhor, detest and renounce.” “So help us God” was eliminated entirely. Interestingly, the signature of the Germantown printer Christoph Saur is on that document.
In 1737, Lancaster County encompassed a huge area. It wasn’t until 1752 that it was divided up and a northeastern portion became Berks County. That would be the location, up the Schuylkill River, where the fictitious character Bishop Jacob Bauer in this novel had first settled.
The Ephrata Cloister was a commune in colonial Pennsylvania led by Conrad Beissel (known as Father Friedsam), a German Pietist immigrant who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1720 and became a Sabbatarian (a fancy way to say that he insisted on Saturday worship, not Sunday). A charismatic figure, Beissel attracted a group of followers who, in 1732, formed a commune on Cocalico Creek in Lancaster County, near the present town of Ephrata, Pennsylvania. The Ephrata Community became one of the most successful experiments in communal living in American history, with a significant contribution to the printing of German materials. By the way, it was true that Christoph Saur’s wife left him and lived at the Ephrata Cloister for
a period of time.
The newcomer’s switcheroo with the land warrants was not entirely fictitious. After a warrant was applied for, the boundaries would be surveyed and the number of acres determined. Remember, this land had never been claimed, surveyed, or deeded. There were no hard-and-fast rules, except to file a claim one needed to mark the desired boundaries—with rocks in the ground or slashing the bark of a tree with a hatchet. Upon the final payment for the land, a patent deed was issued to the new landowner. As you can imagine, land warranting was an inexact process in the 1730s. And yet, by 1766, the land in Berks County was nearly fully claimed, and new arrivals of Amish families moved west to Lancaster and Mifflin Counties.
How likely was it for Anna’s grandparents to sail across the ocean, in springtime, in such a seamless way? There were few crossings that went so smoothly. A few. Most were horrific. In fact, 1738 was dubbed The Year of the Destroying Angels due to overcrowded vessels, contagious diseases, and late autumn arrivals. I wanted Anna’s grandparents to have a swift and smooth sailing on prosperous winds. Rare, very rare, though it did happen.
But then, that’s the fun of being an author.
Resources
These books provided background materials that were helpful in trying to re-create an eighteenth-century Penn’s Woods:
Beachy, Leroy, Unser Leit: The Story of the Amish (Millersburg, OH: Goodly Heritage Books, 2011).
Grove, Myrna, The Path to America: From Switzerland to Lancaster County (Morgantown, PA: Masthof Press, 2009).
Hostetler, Harvey, “Descendants of Barbara Hochstedler and Christian Stutzman,” Gospel Book Store, Berlin, OH.
Isaacson, Walter, Benjamin Franklin: An American Life (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2003).
Kenny, Kevin, Peaceable Kingdom Lost: The Paxton Boys and the Destruction of William Penn’s Holy Experiment (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009).
Larkin, Jack, The Reshaping of Everyday Life 1790–1840 (New York: Harper Perennial, 1988).
McCullough, David, 1776 (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005).
McCutcheon, Marc, The Writer’s Guide to Everyday Life in the 1800s (Cincinnati, OH: Writer’s Digest Books, 1993).
Silver, Peter, Our Savage Neighbors: How Indian War Transformed Early America (New York: W. W. Norton, 2008).
Wright, Louis B., The Cultural Life of American Colonies (New York: Dover Publications, 2002).
Suzanne Woods Fisher is the bestselling author of The Imposter, The Quieting, The Inn at Eagle Hill series, the Lancaster County Secrets series, and the Stoney Ridge Seasons series, as well as nonfiction books about the Amish, including Amish Peace. She is also the coauthor of an Amish children’s series, The Adventures of Lily Lapp. Suzanne is a Carol Award winner for The Search, a Carol Award finalist for The Choice, and a Christy Award finalist for The Waiting. She lives in California. Learn more at www.suzannewoodsfisher.com and connect with Suzanne on Twitter @suzannewfisher.
Books by Suzanne Woods Fisher
Amish Peace: Simple Wisdom for a Complicated World
Amish Proverbs: Words of Wisdom from the Simple Life
Amish Values for Your Family: What We Can Learn from the Simple Life
A Lancaster County Christmas
Christmas at Rose Hill Farm
The Heart of the Amish
LANCASTER COUNTY SECRETS
The Choice
The Waiting
The Search
SEASONS OF STONEY RIDGE
The Keeper
The Haven
The Lesson
THE INN AT EAGLE HILL
The Letters
The Calling
The Revealing
THE BISHOP’S FAMILY
The Imposter
The Quieting
The Devoted
AMISH BEGINNINGS
Anna’s Crossing
The Newcomer
The Return (Summer 2017)
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