From Elodee’s collection, a document from Charles Olm. Latest news is far more interesting than what I proposed before (travel documents).
Once again, Jean-Paul translates:
“I have skimmed over the legal document you sent me (btw, there was just the legal document in the last mail, not the german letter you also spoke about !).
It’s rather hard to read at moments, as it’s really not calligraphed, and this legal language is a very special thing, if you’re not used to …
I have ignored the details and picked out just the main information.
The document is not really dealing with preparations of the emigration of the Olms, but I fear it puts a light on why they emigrated.
In fact, the document is a judgement from June 13, 1894, opposing the merchant Mathias Bastian to the Olm couple, the merchant claiming total depts including interests and costs of 191 Luxembourgish francs and 35 centimes.
Charles is mentioned as “formerly head controller of the Octroi in Luxembourg, actually without profession” (For the ‘Octroi’, see below).
He and Caroline were living at that time in Hollerich, in the Hollerich street (this is another suburb of Luxembourg, this time in the south of the town)
Although they have been convoqued personally by the marshal to appear in court, neither Charles or Caroline, nor a person to represent them had appeared. Thus the judgement was pronounced in their absence. They were condemned to pay the requested amount to the merchant and additionally to bear the costs of the judgement (8 francs 46 centimes)
Pages 8 and 9 in the pdf document are the order of the judge to the marshal to execute the judgement, and to the public forces to support the marshal in this task.
Page 10 is the certificate of the marshal that he delivered 2 copies of the judgement separately to both Charles and Caroline, and states costs of 11 francs 21 centimes , and finally, on the bottom of the page, the receipt that the amount of 191.35 francs, stated in the judgement, has been paid by the Olms to the marshal.
That’s in short the content of the document. Thus, for wathever reason, Charles had quit or lost his last job as a senior tax controller. (The ‘Octroi’ mentioned in the document was a special tax that people from outside had to pay when they came into town to sell their goods). Already in the death certificate of his father Nicolaus and on the birth certificate of his son Charles-August, he was mentioned to be Senior Octroi Controller
As it looks, they were in financial trouble, and maybe that is the reason why they decided to emigrate to the States.”
Elodee concludes:
“So being unemployed with 6 children in a bad economy might be a good reason to emigrate, but one has to wonder where the money came from to travel and how they lived when they arrived.“
Makes sense to me.