Friday, November 8, 1968-13

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Joseph Hyams' 'A Field of Buttercups':
Drama and Martyrdom of Janusz Korczak I

CI

L.,--J131

While the story of Jewry's role in
the era of tragedy foisted upon
mankind by Nazi Germany is being
further unraveled, there emerge
the names of the heroes of the
resistance. Some did not carry
guns and did not exercise power in
battling the Hitler terror. But they
resorted to the humane method, to
the appeal for justice, to the pro-
tection of the underprivileged, the
underfed, the aged—the children.
A name that will remain in Jew-
ish history indelibly is that of
Janusz Korczak. He was a pedia-
trician who dedicated his life to
children. He organized and super-
vised orphan homes. He had close
to 200 children under his direction
in the Warsaw Ghetto when the
Jews were being rounded up for
destruction. The children were or-
dered out of their home to be sent
to Treblinka and Dr. Korczak had
a chance to save his own life: he
made the request which was grant-
ed that he should lead the young-
sters on their last walk in life. He
wanted to lead them so that he
could, while hiding their fate from
them, give them a sense of joy in
life. He turned down the offer of
an escape; his lot was with his
children.
The story of Dr. Janusz Kor-
czak is told by Joseph Hyams in
"A Field of Buttercups" publish-
ed by Prentice-Hall. The title
comes from a description that
was given by one of the Jewish
policemen who was among those
who were ordered to direct the
exit of the youngsters from the
orphan home out of which they
were being taken by the Nazi
criminals to be sent with their
director to the extermination
camp. The Jewish policeman
Who escorted the orphans to their
death—he is not identified by
name—is quoted_ by Hyams: "It
was hell, impossible to describe,
just hell. (SS Oberstnrmfuehrer)
Klostermayer ordered another
count of the children. Then their
stars were snipped off and
thrown into the center of the
courtyard. It looked like a field
Of buttercups."
This collection of yellow Stars
of David which were compulsorily
imposed upon all Jews by the
Nazis thus provided a title for an
important book in which the author
reviews the life of Korczak and the
many events that influenced his
life.

He came from an assimilated
home, and he considered himself a
Pole. He served in three Russian
wars, and he never shirked his
duties. From his earliest experi-
ences, he devoted himself to the
needs of the children.
In "A Field of Buttercups" the
author, who first learned about
Korczak in a chance conversation
in Berlin—the Korczak name was
known to educators for many
years as that not only of a great
htunanitarian but also in ranks of
Jewish scholarship — traced his
background by interviewing many
people, survivors from the Holo-
caust, some who had been in Kor-
czak's orphanages who were lo-
cated in Israel, the Jewish police
man and others.
Korczak was born Henryk Gold-
szmidt, and the Korczak name at
first was his pseudonym for his
novels. He learned in the course of
his years about the anti-Semitic
tendencies among the Poles he had
Considered his fellow citizens. He
aligned himself in Jewish ranks
to aid the persecuted. He could
have settled in Palestine and had
been there, but he had a loyalty to
the children and would not aban-
don them.
Hyams did, indeed, go to many
sources for the facts in his story,
and he utilized some material
from Korczak's diary, went to

available accounts about the
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising for a
description of the anti-Nazi ac-
tion. The tale related to Korczak,
linking the humanitarian's life
with the Jewish sufferings, is too
incomplete and not too well coor-
dinated to inspire a complete
understanding of what had hap-
pened and how the man who was
the "Mister Doctor" in the War-
saw Ghetto had gained esteem.
But the book does serve as an
introduction to a great tale of
heroism. It needs to be more
fully implemented, and while
Joseph Hyams had begun a
great task, it is to be hoped that
it will be pursued for more ex-
tensive appreciation of t h e
drama in the life of a very great
man.
In the Hyams story of Korczak,
some significant names appear—
those of the men and women who
led in the anti-Nazi revolt and
some who had held important posi-
tions in Jewish ranks in the
struggle for survival. There are
quotations in this book from some
of Korczak's writings. Much more

needs to be done to link Korczak
with history, with facts, with the
People with whom he labored and
in whose behalf he gave his life in EI
martyrdom. Perhaps Hyams can
be induced to do a larger work to
complete his task. —P.S.

INCORPORATED

4,11.:•■••■

El

,Artistry
in I i

S i t.%;

o ■P

ate47`40.:4-

20010 ,JamesCouzensDrive
Detroit 35, Michigan

a

• SHABBES CANDLES
• PARTY CANDLES
• HAVDALA CANDLES
• HANUKA CANDLES
• YAHRZEIT CANDLES

Stores, Gift Shops and Synagogue Orders
at Wholesale Prices

Free Hanulw Catalogue

T

ewelb

JUST RECEIVED FROM ISRAEL!
LARGE CANDLE SHIPMENTS...

AT SAME PRICES
AS DOMESTIC CANDLES!

T HGrant

a. *

CI

a

BORENSTEIN'S
BOOK & MUSIC STORE

13535 W. 7 MILE at Schaefer

eir-pate acavateac...

DI 1-0569 or DI 1-3268

Phone:342 - 5666

CJI1C1

1:11113

in

El

Authentic
Scotch dollar
(Crown) minted
between 1603-1625.
Symbol of Lauder's.

14i1 11, 1

11'

kt

ESTD

LAUDEO LAUDEI8 LAUDER'S LAUDEO LAUDEFO LAUDER'

EXTRA LIGHT
EXTRA LIGHT
kdaiSCOTCH141 / kaWSCOTCH 141 /

$ 2 7, ,

55

$ 1 2

All Taxes Included

100% BLENDED SCOTCH WHISKIES, IMPORTED & BOTTLED BY GOODERHAM & WORTS, DETROIT. MICHIGAN

VGA!.

fi