Letter from Benjamin Franklin Christlieb to Ervin G. Chrislip–22 Oct 1895

Pasadena, California Oct 22, 1895

E. G. Chrislip, Esq

Elk City, W. Va

Dear Cousin: Your kind and interesting letter of the 13^th reached me yesterday. It being preceded several days by your photograph. I am much pleased with your photograph which with your letters impresses me all the more that I would enjoy the society in the original. While I can trace in your picture general resemblances to the race, I discover in comparing it in my mind with the physiognomical appearance of others of the race that in each generation we are departing from the German type and taking on the American. In your picture I discern the southern type especially that of Virginia and Kentucky. While the Penn^a branch is taking on a type common to Pennsylvanians. In the former generation especially the last there seemed to be two types, ~illegible~ one having a very fair complexion with hair, varying further to the red, light red or light shade and prominent features of the face, high fore head, large nose, some with roman prominent chin of this type cousin Jas A. Conner is a fair specimen. He showed me a picture of your Uncle Isaac and I ~illegible~ that he resembled this type as far as I could judge from the picture. He had at least the kindly expression of many of the race. The other type of the race had dark hair, face rather broad across the eyes and of rather darker complexion. In several, these types blended, as Uncle Solomon did not have the high forehead nor the roman nose but was fair complexion and brown hair as I recollect him. His forehead was not exactly low either. His wife, our Aunt Sally resembled Laura Glasscock. Her nose had a slight inclination to the roman. They all had light eyes vary from the grey to the blue, many of them were gray with a slight brownish tinge. My father had dark hair and was of the darker complexion and straight or ordinary nose. His expression seems to be similar to the picture of your Uncle Isaac. The two Isaacs rather resembled each other apparently at least in some respects Cousin David R. Christlieb (Uncle Jacob's son) and I visited our Aunt Sarah Kouts of Michigan the only sister of my father (she was the sister referred to by my grand father when he said that he had six boys and each one had a sister). She left Pennsylvania before our time (that is of Cousin David and myself). So on arriving there we found out where they lived and I happened to be carrying a ~illegible~ mounted on rollers, so when we came to their house we found Aunt and her husband sitting outside of the house and we sat down and commenced talking to them as strangers not making ourselves known at first, building some conversation about the weather ~illegible~ finally I asked my aunt if she knew us. She replied that I resembled one of her brothers and I asked which one and she said Isaac and likewise she remarked that David resembled another of her brothers which she designated as Jacob. She guessed correctly so on enquiry how she recognized us so closely, she replied that I resembled my father and being of the darker Christliebs while David resembled his father was of the lighter Ch. The darker complexioned ones of the race were not swarthy or dark skinned, but were not so light skinned as in others. This Aunt was of the light complexion with red hair but did not have the roman nose. She resembled her own mother. In that generation of the Penna branch there probably was only two that had the roman nose, but their father had a prominent or roman nose while the mother had a nose common to many women.

In regard to the family history if I could have known last winter that I would recover so fair a degree of health I have been blessed with the last six months I would have deferred printing it and had more printed concerning the W. Va branch. It would have given me pleasure to have obtained the material of you and included it in my history. I think that we could have made it interesting. You have undoubtedly been quite an antiquarian of the W. Va branch, having the opportunity from seeing the last generation or your fathers generation being in the locality and at the place of the original settlement of the W. Va ancestor. I have been examining my maps for ~illegible~ where you state that your cousins Mr & Mrs Callahan [Callihan] reside but have not as yet been able to locate the place, but may able to so when I go to the P.O.

If my health recuperates satisfactorily I may some time during the next year visit San Jose as I have many acquaintances there and in the meantime I can inform you as to when I may go there and enable you to give me further information as to relatives. I cannot go there this winter as the weather & climatic conditions would be ~illegible~

You enquire whether I received any communication from Turner Christlip. I think not, but cannot exactly recall. I left most of my historical correspondence locked up safely in my desk in Minnesota, but if I recollect right, you furnished me his corrected address last winter and since receiving it I did not write as the manuscript was already in the printers hands, having then about all I could do in my condition.

I was much interested in your description of the crops and weather of your locality. It has become a little cooler about what we would call pleasant fall weather East [may be missing a line]

The thermometer ranging from 55 to 75 but the mornings, evenings and nights are rather civil, although not freezing being about from 50 to 65 but after one resides here a while 50 to 55 degrees seem as cold as 40 does east. Trees and lawns are green, in fact thery are green the year round, which is ~illegible~ owing to the species of tree. I have seen but few of the varieties of forest trees that we see east of the Rocky Mountains. I have noticed the common willow and ~illegible~ and they during January 1894 shed their leaves taking on new ones about March or April. The trees are still laden with fruit such as oranges and figs, some of which are ripe and others quite immature. The peach and blumb or prune fruits seem to be harvested and dried. They raise two crops a year in berries. This about all I can think of at present unless it is my health. My health continues about the same as it was during the summer months in Minnesota, sometimes I fancy that I see prospects for improvement. There is one thing I can congratulate myself on being here and that is in escaping the changeable and extreme weather of the regions east of the Rocky Mountains especially Minnesota. Remember me kindly to your children and to the relatives generally. I must close by wishing you long life and happiness.

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