pdf available - Multiple Choices

ON THE THRESHOLD OF DESTRUCTION
ON THE EVE OF THE HOLOCAUST
By Yehuda Kreyn
The spring of 1938 came early, arriving in March.
The spring sun, remembered well here, brought
groups of inhabitants to the center of town where
they would argue. There were some who expressed
concern about the present political situation and
others who belittled it. Such things had always
gone on, they said.
The first clouds appeared over the skies of
Poland in the first days of summer. There was the
first mobilization, and Luboml's youth were called.
There was talk about the sudden demands by Hitler
and the great opposition he would encounter from
the Polish cavalry. It was the irony of destiny, but
also a source of pride, that a few of our townsmen
were picked for this branch of the army, among
them Shimon Baran and Shimon Kroyt.
During the summer months the situation worsened.
Jews throughout Poland contributed considerable
sums of money to the Polish air force. We
heard that a rich Jew, a native of Warsaw by the
name of Gleizer, had contributed 1,500,000 zlotys
for this cause. We did not know that such rich Jews
existed in Poland. From day to day the political
situation worsened and the threat of war grew. In
synagogues, in the streets, and at home discussions
took place with a sense of approaching calamity.
To the surprise of many, the disaster came
suddenly. On the morning of September 1, 1939,
echoes of shooting in town and sounds of artillery
were heard, followed by dead silence. After a short
time, a column of tanks and half-tracks appeared in
the center of town with officers of the Wehrmacht.
They distributed candy and sweets to the children.
The soldiers were surrounded by large crowds,
mainly Ukrainians from the town and surrounding
areas. Jewish youths and children kept their distance
from the tanks. The Germans spoke with the
226
children. A few officers came down from the vehicles
and asked to take pictures with the people.
I brought them to my studio, located in the house
of Shmuel Hetman (Getman). The Germans asked
for pictures of the big synagogue, picked a few
pictures, and paid for them. In making conversation
they said: "We are returning to the other side
of the Bug River an d the Russians are coming here."
Shmuel Hetman and his wife, Miriam, standing
next to me, did not say a word. We were very
emotional. It was Miriam Hetman, mother of Yakov
Hetman, who was first to express concern about the
refugees who were about to come from the other
side of the Bug, running from German rule to the
territory occupied by the Russians. She did a lot for
the Jewish refugees during the occupation, until
she was murdered by villagers from the town from
which she originally came [Kusnishtch]she and
her daughter Feigele.
The behavior of the Wehrmacht officers during
the short period of occupation did not forebode the
Holocaust that was approaching the Jews and the
town of Luboml. The statement by the Germans
became a reality. The days before Yom Kippur
constituted a period of anarchy for the town. The
Germans had left, the Poles were no more, and the
Ukrainian nationalists disappeared. Yet there was
fear of disturbances. While the Germans were still
in the suburbs of the town, Ukrainian leftists and
Jewish craftsmen organized against attacks by criminals
and hooligans. I also received a weapon. The
entire town was filled with worries. And this is
how Yom Kippur arrived.
Everyone fasted. It was reported that even the
Communists fasted. The call, "Next year in Jerusalem,"
was weak and drowned in tears. The feast
after the fast proceeded in silence, adults went to