‘We must move forward’. Eight years of overseas letters between mother and child

Correspondentie Eduard Willem van Oosterzee met zijn ouders, 1900-1908
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Correspondence of Eduard Willem van Oosterzee with his parents, 1900-1908. Shelfmark: KW 1900 A 397-401, KW 1930 A 028

Between 1900 and 1908, Eddy van Oosterzee and his parents wrote letters to each other, he from The Hague, she from Batavia. Amidst the educational advice, the mutual longing for direct contact is palpable.

In October 1900, Jan Matthieu Henri van Oosterzee and his wife Gustavine Buijn traveled by boat from the Netherlands back to the Dutch East Indies. Van Oosterzee was director of the Handelsmaatschappij v/h de Lange & Co., a firm from Batavia that was responsible, among other things, for operating the Sabang seaport and the coal station there. Despite this position, the Van Oosterzee family found themselves in a precarious financial situation. There were debts, and it was decided to place the three boys—John, Louis, and Eduard—in foster care. Daughter Mathilde (Tilly) was allowed to stay with her parents.

Eddy in The Hague

Eduard (Eddy) was the youngest at eleven years old. He stayed behind in the Netherlands. This was common practice in colonial families. During their teenage years, boys were sent to the Netherlands so that they could receive a solid education there. Over the next eight years, Eddy would have contact with his parents by letter approximately every two weeks, mainly with his mother. This correspondence was later bound into five thick volumes: two red leather bindings containing letters from Eddy between 1900 and 1908, and three half-linen bindings containing letters from his parents between 1900 and 1906. This collection of more than four hundred letters contains a wealth of information about the Van Oosterzee family and provides an exceptionally detailed insight into the life of a boy who grew up in The Hague while his parents lived in an overseas colony. The letters are a unique historical document. The reader learns how young Eddy finds his way in The Hague. He lives there with the 45-year-old widow Steup-de Wit, who takes care of him in the absence of his parents. He seems to be enjoying himself there. She treats him like a sweet, caring foster mother, knitting hats for him or treating him to Indonesian sweets. She also makes sure that he brushes his teeth and maintains his personal hygiene. In Eddy’s words to his parents: ‘Madame is really on the tightrope.’[ii] Sometimes she supports him financially, for example when he wants to buy a special set of building blocks with his Sinterklaas money. In her house, at Waldeck-Pyrmontkade 123 in The Hague, Steup would take several children from the Dutch East Indies under her care between 1900 and 1908. As a widow, this was possibly a way to generate a steady income.

In his letters to his mother, Eddy is enthusiastic and remarkably open. He writes about his skating sessions on the canals of The Hague during freezing weather, about the parties and balls he attends (a game of ‘charade’ provides a great deal of fun), about the plays he sees (‘Journey Around the World in 80 Days’), or about the public celebration of the marriage of Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Hendrik. In addition, Eddy keeps his parents informed about his progress at school. For instance, he sends along all his report cards and writes a letter in French to showcase his skills in that language. In the letters, Eddy also writes about his piano playing (‘it’s going so well that I’ll soon be allowed to start Beethoven’). Music played an important role in his upbringing. Not surprisingly, the famous pianist Cornélie van Oosterzee (1863-1943) was an aunt. Furthermore, in the letters, Eddy consistently tries to come across as positive and brave; this was clearly instilled in him: ‘Boys must be brave and not think about ugly scars, boys are made of stone and girls of brittle porcelain,’ says the proverb. 

Gustavine in the Dutch East Indies

Gustavine’s letters to her son are different in nature. Although she tries to remain positive and writes extensively about daily events in Batavia (fireworks from the Chinese at New Year, a shocking murder in the neighborhood committed by an Indonesian, the renovations to the house), the letters echo the sorrow of a mother who has had to leave her child (‘her blond head’) behind. In the first few years, Gustavine’s concerns about the family’s finances also play a role. She talks about the money her husband Henri has lost and that it will take a long time before he makes up for it. Consequently, holidays such as Sinterklaas are not celebrated. In January 1901, she writes emphatically: ‘we must now live very, very frugally and may not do anything extra. You must also be very careful with your books and clothes.’ Consequently, a request from Eddy for a violin cannot be granted. The parents do look ahead, however, to the future. In the few letters that Father Henri writes, he constantly urges his son to always do his duty, ‘both at school and at home, and always speak the truth, then you will make us happy and soften our sorrow at no longer having you with us!’ It is especially important to him that Eddy behaves himself. In his first letter from 1901 (on May 17), for example, he cannot resist dedicating the entire letter (three pages!) exclusively to Eddy’s poor handwriting. His mother, too, emphasizes that he must listen well and do his best at school, so that he will have no worries later on. Eddy’s letters do cheer them up, and Gustavine regularly concludes her letters with the wish to be able to touch each other physically again. At other times, she fears that this ‘might never happen again now’. Her fear was unfounded. In 1905, Gustavine traveled back to the Netherlands for the first time and saw her son again. Despite a difficult time at school, Eddy grew up to be a promising young man. In 1908, he returned to Batavia. There, he followed in his father's footsteps and became director of the firm De Lange & Co. In 1922, he married Sophia Karolina de Vries. Seven years later, however, tragedy struck. Eddy suddenly fell ill and died on September 6, 1929, two days before his fortieth birthday.

Preserved unique item

Why the correspondence between Eddy and his parents was eventually bound is not entirely clear. Eddy's letters to his parents were bound by the bindery F.B. Smits in Batavia, in all likelihood before his premature death. The volumes containing his parents' correspondence were bound in Amsterdam. Of these, the last volume from the years 1907-1908 is missing, before Eddy turned eighteen. Because the letters were bound, they withstood the test of time well, which is exceptional. They provide insight into the social and cultural thought of the family. In 2023, the collected letters were purchased by the KB from antiquarian bookshop Imagerie in The Hague, along with a few photographs and some loose letters between Eddy’s wife Sophia and his Indonesian family regarding the death.

The correspondence of the Van Oosterzee family consists of the following: two volumes containing letters from Eduard Willem van Oosterzee to his parents (KW 1900 A 397 and KW 1900 A 398), three volumes containing letters from Gustavine Buijn and Jan Matthieu Henri van Oosterzee to their son Eduard (KW 1900 A 399, KW 1900 A 400 and KW 1900 A 401), three folders with correspondence surrounding the death of Eduard (KW 1920 A 281, KW 1920 A 282 and KW 1920 A 283 and a folder with photos (KW 1930 A 028). 

References

  • L. Turksma, Nederlanders in Nederlands-Indië. Sociologische interpretatie van een verleden tijd. Amersfoort/Leuven: Acco, 1987, p. 84-85
  • Ulbe Bosma en Remco Raben, De oude Indische wereld 1500-1920. Amsterdam: Bert Bakker, 2003, p. 204-205.
  • Brieven van Eduard (Eddy) Willem van Oosterzee, geschreven aan zijn ouders (1900-1906), Shelfmark: KW 1900 A 397
  • Brieven van Jean Mattieu Henri van Oosterzee en Gustavine Buijn, geschreven aan hun zoon Eduard (Eddy) Willem van Oosterzee, Shelfmark: KW 1900 A 399
More about the Letters collection (in Dutch)

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