Prussian Curiosities

I noted before in a post about the Noth- und Hülfs-Büchlein für Bauersleute that Friedrich August Ludwig von der Marwitz was most likely aware of the book and it may have had something to do with his fear of being buried alive.

Funnily enough there turns out to be some evidence for this, at least for his knowledge of the book, in “On the Causes of Crime Getting out of Hand” (1836) , but it seems he had a somewhat unfavourable view of such books:

All schoolbooks, a few very new ones excepted, are demagogic in nature. The Brandenburgische Kinderfreund and the books by Wilmsen, etc., preach freedom and equality. Indeed, the previously well-known Not- und Hilfsbüchlein presents a picture of a village community that, although it has a good lord, cannot achieve happiness until a constitution has been introduced. According to these principles and with these objects, the youths are educated, removed from their jobs, and provoked to arrogance.

PDF in German here.

I can't find an electronic copy of the original essay, yet, but I'll keep looking.