A mericam la t ish Periodical eater

CLIFTON AMUR - CINCINNATI 211/2 OHIO

Detroit Jewish Chronicle

and The Legal Chronicle_

VOL. 45, NO. 40

DETROIT, MICHIGAN, FRIDAY, OCTOBER I, 1943

The Murder of the Jewish People

By ILYA EHRENBURG

Terrible is the roster of Nazi
crimes. The graves of the inno-
cent, the charred ruins of cities,
cry out to the conscience of the
world. In Russia the Hitlerites are
massacring women, old people
and children — Ukrainians, Rus-
sians, Byelorussians. Their treat-
ment of the Jews if fiendish.
History knows no other instance
of an entire nation being exter-
minated with such methodical
ruthlessness.
We have seen much in these
years of war. We have grown
accustomed to human suffering.
Yet I must speak. I must tell of
what the Hitle•ites are doing to
the Jews of Russia. I must tell
of the slaughter of infants. I
cannot remain silent: the shades
of the dead surround me. I know
my words are pale. Who can de-
pict the visitation of hell? I will
speak only of what I know. This
will be a dry record.
In the German-usurped Ukraine
and Byelorussia, in the regions
where the Germans set foot, not
a single Jew, not a single Jewess,
not a single Jewish child sur-
vived.
This is what occurred in the
Caucasion health resort of Essen-
tuki. The Germans entered Es-
sentuki on Aug. 1, 1942. On
Aug. 5 the German commandant
announced that all Jews must be
registered. 1,697 persons were
registered. All Jews, including
old people and children from the
age of 10, were put to heavy
work. Lieutenant Pfeifer, "re-
sponsible official. for Jewish af-
fairs," tortured the unfortunates.
On Sept. '7, the city comman-
dant Von Beck published an or-
der that all Essentuki Jews should
present themselves at the prem-
ises of the "Jewish Committee,"
bringing with them clothing to-
taling a weight of 30 kilograms,
a plate and spoon and provisions
for three days. The announce-
ment stated that the Jews were
to be transferred to "sparsely in-
habited localities".
On Sept. 9, all Jews of Essen-
tuki were assembled in the for-
mer schoolhouse. Some of them,
sensing a trap, tried to commit
suicide. Herzeberg, an instructor
of Leningrad University, hanged
himself. Professor Efrus of the
Leningrad Institute of Pediatrics
and Instructor Michnik also at-
tempted to end their lives. The
Germans saved them only in or-
der to execute them together with
the rest.

SECTION THREE

10c Single Copy; $3.00 Per Year

Joe Is Going to the
Peace Conference

were bodies into a well. There were
people
The doomed
brought to the schoolhouse at thousands of eve-witnesses to
By ROBERT BROWN
night. The children wept. The these massacres. They say, "Ever
He was sitting in the bus study course which the Research
guards cursed and sang songs.
At 6 a. m. on September 10 the since that day we cannot sleep-- alongside of me reading some Institute on Peace and Post-War
Jews were put into motor trucks the murdered children hover he- pamphlets. On the cover I could problems of the American Jewish
see the caption: Jewish Post-War Committee have prepared on the
and driven to Mineralnye Vody. fore our eyes."
In the town of Morozovsk lived Problems, A Study Course pre- Jewish problems that will have
Their things were distributed
among the police. About a kilo- a physician, a Russified Jew pared by the American Jewish to be settled. You see I ant the
meter from Mineralnye Vody named Ilya Kremenchuzhsky, his Committee. The man had a Jewish Joe Doakes and the Jew-
there is a glass factory. Near it wife and two daughters. One of friendly face. As he looked up, I ish problems, as you know, be-
an anti-tank trench had been dug, the daughters had a husband at said to him, "Going far?"
cause of the unusual severity of
"No," he replied, "just a few the Jewish situation, will require
and to this trench the Jews of the front. She had been left with
Essentuki were brought. The lips an infant. Kremenchuzhsky's wife miles down the road, but soon, particular consideration."
of the children were anointed was a Russian. She survived by I hope, I'll be leaving for a
"Well, Joe," I asked, "what are
with poison. The adults were or- a miracle. She related, "The Ger- very long trip, that is--as soon some of the particular problems
as
the
war
is
over."
dered to undress and the Ger- mans killed 248 Jews in all, but
touching the Jews, that you ex-
"Going to Europe after the pect to come up?"
mans piled their clothing and in one night they killed 73. They
footwear into trucks. Those who came to our house that evening, war?" I asked.
"Well," said Joe, "I would boil
"Maybe," he said. Maybe to it down to this—the equality of
tried to run away were shot. The shouting 'Is Doctor Kronen-
rest were lined up beside the chuzsky at home? Get ready and France, maybe to Switzerland, Jewish rights throughout the
trench in contingents and slain. your family, too.' My husband maybe to China. Anyway, I am world and the question of Pal-
At this same spot all the Jews immediately realized what was going to the Peace Conference." estine."
"You going to the Peace Con-
of Mineralnye Vody, Pyatigorsk afoot. While we were driven in
"Yes," I said, "I guess after
and Kislovodsk were all massa- the truck he handed doses of ference!" I remarked. "I guess the Nazis are defeated, the equal-
cred. In the trench were discov- poison to me and our daughters, I must be sitting at the side ity of Jewish rights will take
ered over 10,000 corpses muti- saying, 'Swallow it when I make of a very important man. May I care of itself."
lated by motor vehicles and bu- a sign with my hand.' One of know your name?"
"Well," said Joe, "if you had
"Sure, I'm Joseph H. Doakes. been reading this Study Course,
ried in several layers. The work- the powders Ile reserved for him-
ers of the giass factory have put self. We were led into a cell. But just call me Joe. I guess you wouldn't say that so glibly.
up a memorial tablet stating that It was crowded; we all had to you've heard about me," he You will find here that there
over 10,000 Jews were slaugh- stand. Outside the window SS added.
are some students of the sub-
"Can't say I have," said I.
tered beside that trench. men kept bawling, 'We'll finish
ject who believe that there are
"0, yes, you have„" said Joe. some special measures needed to
In Stavropol, the Jews were you off soon.' The children
exterminated on Aug. 14, 1942. wailed, some of the women were "Everybody knows me. You know definitely outlaw anti-Semitism.
They were also lured to assem- hysterical. My younger daughter Willkie, dontcher?"
You know the situation after the
"Well, I've read about him," war is likely to be no bed of
ble with the promise that they wanted to swallow the poison,
would be "transferred to un- but my husband tore it from her I said.
roses, and demagogues, you may
"Well," he replied, "he works rest assured, will be likely to
populated districts". They were hand saying, 'You must not.
for
me
sometimes.
All
those
big
then stripped and put into special, Imagine what will happen to the
resort to the old tricks of in-
hermetically-sealed vans where others. We must support them shots work for me."
flaming the people with anti-
"Are you in Who's Who?" I Semitism. There are other stu-
within eight minutes they expired and share a common fate.' Then
asked.
from asphyxiating gases and were my husband cried aloud two
dents of the Jewish problems, as
"Listen, buddy," he replied, "I this study course points out, who
then carried outside the city and words in Yiddish, 'Brider Yiden,'
buried in a ditch. Twelve-year- (brother Jews)—he could not am too important for that. If feel that the attack on anti-
old Lina Nankin escaped the gen- speak Yiddish. He went on to they were to print my biography Semitism should be widened by
eral fate: her mother had not say, 'We must die with dignity, in "Who's Who, they wouldn't an International Bill of Rights,
taken her along. All (lay German without wailing or tears. Let is have no place for other guys. which will shield the interests of
soldiers armed with tommy guns not give pleasure to our execu- Catch on?"
other races like the Jews who
I thought a moment and said, have been the targets of special
looked for this 12-year-old. The tioners. I beg of you, brothers
following day Lina, deaf to the and sisters, to keep quiet.' An "Yes, Joe, I began to catch on. discrimination and intolerance.
entreaties of neighbors who had awful silence followed his words. You are the people, the really There are other factors that
concealed her, went herself to the Even the children fell silent. important fellow who really sits must be considered. While there
Gestapo and said, "I want to go There was an engineer, Margules. at the Peace Conference. The is little talk now of a League
to my mother." The Germans among us. He suddenly began plenipotentiaries, the men whose of Nations, there is much talk
killed her. hammering at the door, shouting, names appear in the newspapers, of the Federative Principle. Eco-
The Germans made parcels of 'There are Russian women here have got to do what you say, nomic unions and federations of
in the final analysis. I was read- groups of nations are a possibil-
the things taken from the Jews. by mistake.'
"One of the Germans asked ing the other day where Norman ity after this war. It is a fact,
Seine 300 parcels of clothing
stripped from the women and 'Where?' They pointed to me and Angell said that the real reason that this study course points out,
children before their execution my daughters. The Germans led the League of Nations failed was that generally speaking, the Jew-
us into the corridor, saying 'We'll that the people had not been ish position has been more se-
were sent to Germany.
educated to the need of a cure in the larger political unit
In the village of Izobilnoye, look into this tomorrow.'
"Then they began to massacre League."
near Stavropol, the Hitlerites
than in the smaller.
"That's right," replied Joe. "I
publicly slew 62 Jews among all the others. They were mur-
"I begin to see," I replied,
whom were 38 children under 10 dered in the courtyard. Not a cry see you do catch on and I am "there is quite a bit to this ques-
years of age. On the Bolshevik was uttered. I wanted to save studying the problems that will tion of insuring the equal rights
State Farm, Ipatovo District, the my grandchild and so we ran come up before the Peace Confer- of the Jews."
Germans shot 26 Jewish children away. We were concealed by the ence. These pamphlets that I
with tommy guns and threw the schoolmaster, Svishchev. That was have in my hand are part of a
See JOE—Pag e 12
in August."
In the village near Morozovsk
- s
there were some children working
on a collective farm. The rumors
of the fate of the Jews reached
the village. Six Jewish children
aged 8 to 12 set out for Moroz-
ovsk. Learning that their parents
had been carried away by the
1
Germans they went to the com-
mandant's office. There they were
given a glad welcome and taken
to the Gestapo. In the cell there
was a Russian woman of 47,
Elena Belenova, superintendent of
a children's nursery. The children
wept and Belenova comforted
them, saying their parents were
Again we take pleasure in wishing the friends
alive. The exhausted children fell
asleep, lulled by her. At three in
and patrons of Frank & Seder
the morning the executioners
came. "Auntie, where are they
taking us?" the awakened chil-
dren cried. Belenova reassured
The Greatest Measure of Joy and Happi-
them, saying, "To work in the
country."
The story of that niglit was
ness Throughout the New Year
told by Matryona Izmailova, who
AND
happened to be in the same cell.
The bodies of Belenova and the
It has been a pleasant year in which we have
six Jewish children were found
in a common grave in Morozovsk.
continued contact with our old friends and
In Belgorod, during the massa-
cre of Jews, a Russian student,
made many new ones; in which we have tried
Tamara Savitskaya, was shot.
sincerely to be worthy of being known as your
She was the wife of a Jew named
Lifschitz. She hail a four-year-old
favorite store. Here's to the New Year .. .
son. The child was killed with her
and the other Jews. Mother and
may it be a happy and prosperous one for all!
son faced to execution together.
In Kursk there were 400 Jews.
The Germans killed them. They
dashed out the brains of infants
against stones to save ammuni-
tion. Among the slain were the
eminent medical men Gilman and
Simendels, who had saved the
FURS • CLOTH COATS • DRESSES
lives of thousands. These old men
were slaughtered together with
SUITS • MILLINERY • ACCESSORIES
their families. When the Hitler-
ites were. retreating from Kursk
they remembered that there were
• CORSETS

5705

Greetings

944

To our many friends

THE NEW YEAR

eS

and customers on the

occasion of

Rosh Hashonah

Yom Kippur

A

at 160

at Wi t

at 104

che ROLLINS a.

1.528 0Yoodward ave.

FRANK 8( SEDER

_11

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