THE MENNONITE BROTHERHOOD IN RUSSIA (1789 - 1910), P. M. Friesen, 1911

hat the authorities would grant me the liberty of conscience to do this work as I would wish to do it. Without such liberty, as God gives me grace, I do not want to engage in it. It looks as if we cannot be used in this world anymore; therefore, may God help us quickly to attain the next where He Himself is Tsar, King and all. November 29. Last night we again visited Neumann. He was in good humor and rather talkative, giving us reason to hope that not only would we be able to find out in St. Petersburg at what price the land was being sold, but also whether the higher authorities would sanction your resettlement, and, if so, whether you could receive a written guarantee — black on white— that your privileges would remain intact. Neumann wants to achieve all these things, but since he is hindered in his movements by some kind of illness, he commissioned us to ask Pastor Nielsen to visit him, so that they might jointly pursue the matter. November 30. Yesterday Nielsen assured us that he would go to Neumann and enquire of the ministry concerning the above matters. The day after tomorrow, in the evening, we have another appointment with him. Brothers and sisters, may it go well with you! Write us . . . with cordial love, O. Forchhammer.” b) O. Forchhammer to Kappes, no date. “Dear Kappes! Finally you too are to receive a letter from me, from the large and magnificent dty of St. Petersburg. You will have heard that I accompanied Claassen .... Because the brethren at Kharkov [followers of Wuest] are more or less our opponents ... we drove straight through without stopping .... Nielsen 14 ® is a bosom friend of Saib, which in itself describes his essential character. Yet he is very obliging .... But he does not speak well of you. He says, ‘Kappes has written me a rude letter and is ungrateful; for a few years ago the Lord used me in a special way to get him out of a difficult situation.’ I told him that by the grace of God I was your brother .... But it did not help .... ‘What Kappes is seeking to do is not good!’ . . . Secondly, we visited a Mr. Neumann. He is a somewhat mysterious man. He owns an orphanage, which as I believe I heard, he established at his own expense. He is in touch with the highest authorities and is even supposed to have access to the Tsar himself. This is precisely where the mystery lies, for he is otherwise quite an ordinary person, without rank or dignity, and yet undertakes to handle cases of the greatest importance, and that free of charge for poor people. [Neumann was probably an outstanding lawyer and as such, even though ‘without rank or dignity,’ influential.] He has a Christian 362 THE MENNONITE BRETHREN CHURCH philosophy of life, and fortunately for us, cannot endure the Lutheran clergy, which is why he is sympathetic to the brethren. For this reason, too, he has shown a deep interest in Claassen’s concerns and has stood by him in word and deed .... The third great man w