FRIEDRICH (Fritz) TUCHMANN

Friedrich Tuchmann was born in Markt Uehlfeld on December 16, 1841 and was my grandfather.

In 1848 his parents moved with him to Fuerth. Though the Judenedikt was still in force he did not learn a trade, but attended the Commercial School. Later he worked with his brothers in his father's business and continued the firm with them after his death.

He married Lina Obermeyer in 1869. Like his father's marriage this too was a true love match. The letters which the bride wrote, are still in existence. They are remarkable because they do no show one single correction. Unfortunately Lina Tuchmann suffered from a disease which the physicians could not diagnose. She died in Wiesbaden, only 54 years old and is buried in the Alte Friedhof (Old Cemetery) in Nuremberg.

It was fortunate that Salomon Tuchmann had seven sons and only one daughter. As a result he had only one dowry to pay while the business benefited from the dowries received by his sons.

In Europe the dowry was a very important consideration for both Jews and Christians. Besides the "Austattung" (trousseau) every girl was given a dowry; the amount depended on the circumstances of the father‐in‐law and the bridegroom. The better the chances for the future of the son‐in‐law were, the higher was the dowry which he could expect. Even the Rothschilds frequently married their cousins, nieces and nephews to keep the dowries in the business.

The hop business required a great deal of capital.

The breweries expected financial assistance from their suppliers in the form of purchase of shares or in a second mortgage. In addition the hop dealer often had to wait 18 months or longer for payment of his hops. Of course the hop dealer received good prices in return for his confidence in extending credit and did not have to fear competition. Thomas Mann describes a hop dealer in his famous book: "The Buddenbrooks" by the name of Permaneder. He uses the expression: "Das fleckt" in describing the profitability of his business. i.e. "this makes a strong impact."

Of course great industry and application to the business were also necessary, but times were very good, the breweries prospered and the hop dealers prospered with them. Grandfather travelled a good deal to visit his customers, present and future and travel was very hard in those days. There were no sleeping compartments on trains and hotels were not always clean, particularly in small towns. Besides customers had to be entertained and while a friendly relationship was a great advantage for the business, the never ending drinking and eating at parties was a great strain.

Grandfather travelled in Russia, Finland and Belgium. The breweries in Russia were very large and profitable. However, it was in this country that the greatest difficulties existed. Jews were not permitted to stay in large towns longer than a few days. Therefore grandfather and after him father obtained their visas at the Embassy in Paris because they knew an employee there would stamp the visa in their passport : "Russian orthodox". Father was always prepared to be questioned on this point and planned to say he was unable to read the cyrlllan letters in which the visa was written.

Mother once waited in a car outside the Embassy and became very fearful as it took a very long time before father returned. However, it developed that the delay was due merely to the fact that the employee was busy elsewhere. A friend in the lumber business told that he was in a small town in Russia to buy lumber and that he had gone deep in the woods with his local business friend. Suddenly an employee of the local dealer appeared and stated that the passport of my friend was not in order. My friend grew very angry and insulted, for carrying incorrect identification papers was considered a very serious crime in Germany. However, the Russian dealer merely laughed heartily and explained: "The policeman who finds your papers irregular, cannot read. Besides he has six children. If he could not collect some bribe from you and other visitors, they all would starve to death."