Life of Franz Eicher as told to Charles A. Eicher
I was born in Steinwendun, province
of Bavaria, in 1819. The scenery around this place still lingers in my memory, the houses,
the kind of country, all are as plain to me as if I had them right before me.Steinwendun
was at that time a small village situated just fier stunt (4 leagues or 12 miles)
from the city of Kaiserslautern. Hay was the chief crop, while hemp and flax were raised for the purpose of making
linen cloth. I can say that I never wore any wool clothing in Germany, it all being linen.
I was the youngest of a family of five sons. My father’s name was Henry, and my
mother’s maiden name was Margaret Baker. My oldest brother’s name was Philip,
and Martin who was drowned in childhood; after him came one whose name I think was Henry
who also died young; then my brother Daniel and myself. I can remember the
book from which I learned my ABC’s as plain as if I now held it in my hand before me.
It had the picture of a rooster on the back, and I think I was the picture of proudness
while carrying it. At school we had a fine teacher and I had no trouble in learning, while
my older brother Dan who is three years my senior could study all day and still find it
hard to learn. He used to envy me a great deal, while brother Philip was a fine penman.
Cut Turf for Heating Fuel
Our fuel there was turf, which was
cut out of the government lands in a marshy place about two miles wide and the length of
which I never knew. Each man was allowed to cut out just so much according to his
household. My father had a large knife with which he would stand in the trench and cut it,
while my brother and I would carry it away on a small lot and pile it up to dry, and for
inspection. It was cut in pieces about six inches square and about one foot long. It
looked like wax and made fine fuel when dry.
My mother was an invalid while I knew her. She couldn’t walk very much and had to
use two crutches; but she was confined to her bed most of the time, her ailment being a
running sore on one of her limbs. She was continually doctoring while I knew her. Father
would take her to Kaiserslautern quite often when the weather was fair, and I being the
youngest often went along. The kingdom’s penitentiary was at this city, and alongside
of which were the ruins of the old one, parts of the walls still then standing 15 or 20
feet high.
Mr. John Glazer, who now lives in Dayton, and Mrs. Wetz who lived there during her
life, used to take my brother Dan and I and climb up on those old walls and look over into
the new penitentiary and more for the purpose of hearing the prisoners singing which we
greatly enjoyed. I can see the walls of the new penitentiary now, they were as smooth and
shone like glass, making escape impossible. They would hold open-air meetings on Sunday
which we attended quite often; more for the purpose of hearing the songs.
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