From The Dubois County Daily Herald
Wednesday, January 3, 1951
HARK THE HERALD
The Living and The Dead
By A. T. Rumbach
One of our first missions upon arrival in Reute was visit to the parish cemetery, appropriately named The Friedhof, or “Court of Peace,” for during the many troubled years in Germany, especially since the first world war and during the Hitler regime, it was truly the only place where one might expect to find peace. We had visited first the grave of Stephan Rumbach, the father of our hostess, a nephew of our father, whom he resembled greatly in stature and general appearance.
Stephan had been Fred’s host on his previous visit to Reute, and he had looked forward eagerly to this second visit. Be death mercifully released him from his suffering (cancer) just about a year ago (1949). In fact, the pastor, the Rev. Wolfang Burger, suggested that his anniversary memorial mass be postponed until our arrival. The large attendance at this service bore testimony of the high esteem in which he was held in his community.
The cemetery is a small plot of ground slightly higher than the adjacent land, and is completely surrounded with a stone fence. It is completely filled with graves except a single row, and I learned that as more space is needed, the next oldest row is made available by removal of the tomb stones, only the bronze plagues with the inscription fastened to the front of the tombstones are preserved. The eldest grave dates back about fifty years.
These markers, not only in Reute, but in other villages “Friedhofe” throughout southern Baden, reminded one of Dubois county cemeteries. Here besides Rumbachs and Hettichs, are the Fehribachs, Birks, Birkles, Richs, Becks, Wuchners, and numerous other family names found in our southern Indiana community. Among others is the grave of Karl Sutter, who will be remembered by many of the elder Jasperites as the miller employed by the Eckert Mill here for quite a longtime. In fact, he was my godfather, but he returned to Reute where he married and raised a family of seven children. We met his widow and several of the children, including a daughter, who gave me his photo and two sons, the village green gardener and the other one of the town’s best football players.
In a memorial park in a nearby town we saw the names of Buehler, Berger, Eckerle, Fritch, Gramelspacher, Bohnert and numerous other familiar names. But the town of Wagshurst wins the prize for duplication of local names: a history of World War 1 of that village lists men with the following names: Berger, Beck, Bohnert, Baumert, Danhauer, Dupps, Eckenfels, Eckstein, Ell, Fritsch, Haas, Huber, Hurst, Lampert, Meier, Mueller, Schneider, Schuetz, Sermersheim, Spaeth (Spayd), Vollmer, Becher, Oser, Heitz, Buehler, Baer, Doll and Koch. Other familiar names encountered were Winterhalter, Siegel, Kempf, Goest, Eckert, Scherle, Stenftenagel, etc.
The cemeteries are very well kept, especially the one at Reute. The graves are rectangular mounts, outlined with white shells or small white stones, the tops covered with flowering plants, many of the bleeding heart variety. It lies about midway between Over-Reute and Unter-Reute, which are less than a kilometer apart. The former contains the new parish church, the latter the old one, still preserved as a chapel, and ancient in appearance.
In the B.H. era (Before Hitler) the Angelus was run at both places at 6:00, 12:00 and 18:00 o’clock ( 6 P.M.) and the villagers working in the fields or at home paused and uncovered piously reciting the Angelic Salutation and the Ave. During the Hitler regime the bells were relieved of their mission of Peace, and removed to be melted over and molded into bullets, grenades and bombs. Through the generosity of several American friends, a fund will soon be completed to replace the bells to announce the Glory of God and His Blessed Mother. Pastor Burger has announced that the generosity of the donors will be memorialized in the inscription of the new bells and commemorated at their dedication.