The originals in the Jacob B. Mensch letter collection number 49, 1871-1907. Some of the letters are out of chronological order, numbers 1 and 9 are here corrected. One is included from Andrew Mack's son Noah to Mensch about his father's health (11) that Mensch #192 catalogs separately. The microfilmed order arranged by catalogers in 1972 transposes a letter of Enos S. Gehman into the Mack collection, what would have been number 24 is included here at the end. As Isaac R. Horst says in his translation, "how this letter found its way into the Mack group is beyond me!" There are still 49 letters however. While the catalog identifies Enos S. Gehman’s letter of August 9, 1885 as Andrew Mack’s, it does not identify the first letter, 1 Aug 1870. These cancel and make 49. The numbered letters count 50 with the inclusion of Noah Mack's.
It would be hard to find one better suited to translate these than Isaac R. Horst, a writer of Old Mennonite life and customs. He has written 23 books, including his Separate and Peculiar: Old Order Mennonite Life in Ontario (2001) and has translated the entire Mensch archive from German to English. These number in excess of 1100 single spaced typed pages. The Mack translations begin on page 616 of the entire collection. I inquired of him 21 March 2005 and received the Mack translations thereafter. His idiomatic translations reflect the graciousness of the letters. Producing these from copies of microfilmed handwriting seems heroic itself.
As the Mennonite Archives of Ontario indicate, Jacob B. Mensch (April 24, 1835-Feb. 17,1912) received and kept some 1600 letters. The son of Abraham Mensch and Mary Bechtel, he married Mary B. Bower and had three children. He lived in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, but had a wide correspondence and apparently saved the letters he received. He was a fellow minister, traveling companion and confidant of Andrew Mack.
The 49 letters here sample what must be a much wider correspondence. Years pass between letters so it is accidental when one hits a high spot. Mack emerges as a good writer, fluent speaker and gracious man. Mensch, his correspondent, ordained minister of the Skippack Mennonite Church in 1867, had an edge, but if the two had different dispositions they were like minded enough to travel extensively together. Mack’s sincerity and courtesy served him well in the friendship. The letters tell of travel near and far in the performance of his duties. He is concerned that he exercise his office, as he calls it, diligently.
One of the operating assumptions held by Bishop Andrew's niece Anna Mack, a chief informant of these matters, probably shared by his correspondents, was that after a letter was received it had served its purpose and was disposed. Mensch’s antiquarian insight in saving the letters sets him apart. There are a great many scriptural citations in these, often of familiar texts, recognizable when read aloud. It was the purpose of some letters that they be read publicly from the pulpit.
Andrew S. Mack (1836-1917) was bishop of the Old Mennonite church for 41 years. Ordained by John B. Bechtel, 15 Sept 1863, elected bishop 6 November 1875, his letters give a picture of how humility might look. He had two brothers also in this crucible, Peter and Henry, but as the oldest he experienced it early, as he puts it, the “abundant grace, love and peace through the knowledge of God and Jesus Christ, our Lord.” We find in his letters his remains.
Names and places are bolded for easy recognition. Annotations by this editor appear [italicized in brackets]. Biographical notes of the life of Andrew Mack's brother, Peter, a Lutheran pastor of Hummelstown occurs at the end.
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