Moravian Lives

& Mind, that they were Prisoners here in Petersburg; my
Husband was also convincedof it, & we encouraged each other
often to be resigned to our Fate, & happy & chearful in the Near,
ness of our dr. Lord, and to have all our Troubles sweetened by
the Converse with Him. Leave was indeed given us to visit the
Brethren in the Day Time as often as we pleased; but there were
always People who made it very difficult, you often impossible
for us, & thus we got one Fright after another. And besides this
our Savr. took in 1755 Sr. Helterhof to himself, & thus I was quite 
alone in the House with my Child. Not understanding the russian
Language, & being obliged to leave my Child alone in the House,
when I had to go out, & being in continual Danger of a Sur,
prize Surprise by Robbers; the Brn. & Srs. in Petersburg advised me
to make Application to the Congrn for somebody to assist me, &
I got Br. Grumberg who took a most faithful Care of me & my
Child. I had also taken a russian Girl out of Compassion , who got
a Love for our Savior, & when I went out |:for I had to carry to
the Brn. all their Necessaries:| she entertained my Child with Singing
Verses. Once in Winter 1757 when going over the River Neva, the 
Ice broke under me, & the Stream carried me a Piece along,
so that I must have been drowned, if the Eye & Watchman of
Israel had not so faithfully preserved me, But I became very
sickly afterwards. In this Distress I prayed fervently to our
Savior, to grant me the Satisfaction, to nurse the three Prisoners

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as long as they stood in Need of Care & Nursing in this Vale
of Tears & Trouble, though it should even be done in ever so
great Weakness. And this He has done graciously & helped me
so, that through it seemed sometimes as if the Tabernacle would
break, the Brn. suffered however no Want. At this Time I had
a particular Confidence in conversing with our Savior. One of
these Conversations in Oct. 1758 was very imppressive to me, when
I spoke fully with him about my whole Course of Life, & was
richly comforted about all my Mistakes. In Febr. 1759 we were
at last set at Liberty, but ordered to go to Casan. We were 5 in
Number, viz. my Husband, the Brn. Helterhof & Fritshe & I & my
Child. On this Journey new Trials came upon us. The Brethren could
not bear the violent Shaking of the Waggons, on the bad Roads &
Causeways, made of round Wood, after sitting so long in Prison, &
they had to suffer much, particularly my Husband, who had always
been weak. Add to this the Fright of being attacked by Robbers on the
other side of Moscovia, who most cruelly beat our Guards; he be,
came quite enervated, & a mortal Sickness befel him, so that he
lost his Speech. His Mouth was at were burnt up, & his Tongue
withered, I had not even as much as a Drop of Water to refresh
him. I often begged our Savior to comfort him with his Thirst. Besides
this we saw nothing but inexpressible Difficulties before us. The People
did not like to have any Dealings with us, because we had Soldiers
with us, so that we often did not know, where to get a Morsel to eat,
particularly as it was Lent Season, wherein the Russians are very