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[Page 97]

Life in Town

Translated by Asher Szmulewicz

Edited by Karen Leon

 

Mindel, the wife of the ritual slaughter, travels to the Admor[1]

As in other shtetls and towns, Khotyn also had its share of odd people whose unique character added a personal touch to the town's atmosphere. I am speaking of ordinary people, common folk, not the wealthy or Torah scholars.

Of course, we are proud of our leaders like Chane Reiss, Yossef Apelbaum, Ayzik Barak, Yitzik-Meir Tissenbaum and so on. I would like to share the memory of a simple woman, well known by all in the town, Mindel, the ritual slaughter's wife.

Mindel, the wife of Mendel the ritual slaughterer, was a special woman. All families in town, especially the poor ones, knew her for her good heart and warmth. If she heard that a house had no bread she did everything she could to help. On Shabbat eve, she went from house to house, collecting challot, meat, fish, and clothing to give to those in need.

Mindel also took care of raising bridal dowries for poor young girls and strove to find ways for the young couple to earn an income. Mindel, the wife of the ritual slaughterer, was a kind of institution by herself.

In addition, Mindel was a fervent Chasid of the Admor of Sadigora. Her husband, however, was part of the Chasidim of Tshortkov. In many households the husband belonged to one Admor and his wife to another. There were Chasidim from Tshortkov, Zinkev, Kapishnitz and others, in Khotyn.

As the Festivals approached, people prepared to travel to the Rabbi. The preparations took place in advance. Since there was no train in Khotyn, you had to reserve a seat with one of the coachmen ahead of time. There was a lot going on and the stress kept rising. The Chasidim complained loudly that the coachmen were racketeers, charging too much because there were so many passengers who wanted a ride.

The passengers were unlucky enough if Chasidim of two different Rabbis ended up in the same coach. They began to insult the coachman and threatened that they would not ride with him again. Ultimately the coachman had to give in so he wouldn't lose his income.

One time Mindel decided to visit her Rabbi of Sadigora for the Festival, but her plans were made too late. The coach travelling to Sadigora was full. This almost prevented Mindel from travelling but no matter what, she refused to give in. She had long, detailed request notes for the Rabbi in her purse and she could not miss the opportunity to deliver them. Who could come to the rescue? She asked other coachmen, arguing that she was travelling for their own sake, to plead for good income and health for everyone in town. The coachmen wanted to help. They knew about her kindness toward the needy but all the seats were taken. She learned that Feitel the coachman had one vacant seat left, but the Chasidim would not agree to travel with a woman.

Desperate and disappointed, she went back home, not knowing that the next day she still would not be able to travel. Then she found a subterfuge. She went to Feitel's house at night and woke him up. He came out to her in the courtyard, half asleep, and said that he needed to rest before the hard and tiring journey. He told her that he was ready to carry her on his shoulders, “but you know that is impossible.”

“Don't worry Reb Feitel,” Mindel said. “Everything will be fine. Lend me your large pelt. I will wrap myself in it from head to toe and no one will notice. Come on, Reb Feitel, let's go.”

Sleepy, and without much thought, he handed her his large pelt and went back home. At dawn, Mindel sat in the coach with the other Chasidim while traveling to their Rabbi.

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Tailors' Street

The real name of the street was in fact, Gribitza, but we called it “Tailors' Street”. I don't know why the tailors had the honor of having a street named for them since other craftsmen lived there too.

For many decades this street was the center of the town, where most of the community lived. The street was very important for trade since it led to Kaminitz-Podolsk and to other towns across the Dnieper.

After some time, new houses and roads were built and the street was perceived as outdated. Its new nickname became “lower side town.” Because of its special character, it stood apart from other side streets.

There were two rows of houses, some small and some large all built close together. The wooden handrails looked like one long railing, and the wooden roof tiles with square holes seemed like one long roof.

Only Jews lived up to the Turkish bridge and the population was mixed beyond the bridge. On Shabbat eves, the street had a clearly Jewish look. In honor of Shabbat, the house fronts were whitewashed, the handrails were cleaned and the streets were swept. Inside the home, Shabbat candles stood in polished brass candlesticks alongside the two challot for the Shabbat meal. Women in their Shabbat clothes chatted with their neighbors from handrail to handrail, while children with freshly washed heads crunched seeds.

This street was full of intense activity during the Days of Awe. The small synagogues where common people prayed, and the great synagogue, were packed full of worshippers. The women came late but made sure not to arrive after the “HaMelech” (the King) prayer, in order to follow along in the festival prayer book. The children carried small bags and immediately enjoyed their treats. During the recess, they went home for a small lunch and to change their clothes.

Families filled the street with hustle, noise and laughter. Loving couples strolled to the far away suburbs.

An excessive high-spiritedness was felt on Simchat Torah. People prepared in advance for the Hakafot[2]; and while it took place, people were duly sipping. The synagogue sexton could not walk straight anymore, swaying left and right again and again.

Children carried hollowed out watermelons with lit candles inside. These glowing lanterns resembled the chubby faces of children.

After the Kiddush in the sexton house, the community went singing on the way to the synagogue. Even the gentiles looked different as if this day was different for them also. They were happy because once a year the Jews allowed themselves to get tipsy. The drinking blurred the hate and brought some understanding between Jews and Christians.

But the next day the joy was gone as if it had never existed. The weekday atmosphere returned to our street and people went back to their daily burdens: one harnessed a horse to a cart, another strapped the horse to work until the next Simcha Torah.

This was the face of the tailors' street in Khotyn.

 

The charitable persons in Khotyn

Nachum Roitman

Nachum Michael, son of Yitzhak Eliyahu, was a wine maker but the burden of livelihood fell on his wife Sheindele. Nachum Michael was concerned with charity and good deeds. He was always ready to go from house to house to collect contributions for the needy in the town before the festivals, or to provide them with wood for the winter. Of course he didn't mean to receive a prize for his efforts, and instead received curses and insults.

He was known in town as an honest man and was often asked to be an arbitrator. Even Rabbi Nachum Strakowski included him in arbitration matters.

Nachum Michael died in the Kapaigorod camp in Transnistria. His sons who remained in the Soviet Union visit his grave each year.

 

Noach Weinstein

Noach was just as his name suggested, kind and pleasant to everyone. He genuinely enjoyed helping others in their hour of need. He had a shy nature, and all of his actions were thoughtful.

I will share one of his good deeds. Every year after Pesach, when firewood was cheap, he bought about hundred and fifty thousand kilos of wood and stored it in his courtyard. After Shavuot he hired woodcutters to chop the wood. In autumn, when the rain and mud made firewood more expensive and beyond the price poor people could pay, he opened his warehouse and sold the wood at no profit, thus helping the poor people in town.

 

Avraham Leib Nerman, compassionate paramedic

If you needed a compassionate paramedic, you wouldn't find him at home or in his office. You would find him in the street or in a tavern because Reb Avraham Leib was very fond of the bottle. Nevertheless, he remained sober enough to make accurate diagnoses. He had the qualities of both an actor and a stage director.

He used to walk through the streets with a bag full of medicines, handing them out according to a list he carried. When needed he also helped to defend the town against rioters.

These were the traits of Reb Avraham Leib, and the people of Khotyn remember him in their hearts.

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The silent separation accord

The avenue in Khotyn was famous for its size and beauty, for its trees and its scented flowers. On Shabbat and festivals, summer and winter, the Jews of Khotyn walked along the avenue. They enjoyed sitting on the benches on both sides of the avenue from the afternoon until late at night.

The women and the young girls wore silk dresses and various hats, and carried elegant umbrellas decorated with golden and silver ornaments. They smelled the fragrance of the flowers along the avenue.

Although from time to time you could hear an insult like “Jewboy” (Yid), usually there were no Christians on the avenue on Shabbat and festivals.

On the other hand, on Sundays and other Christian holy days, the Jews did not appear on the avenue, as if according to a silent agreement not to be seen on a street that was for Christians only.

The separation was evident although not premediated, as if it was possible to separate the air and the scent of the trees and the flowers between Shabbat and Sundays, between Jews and Christians.

 

Tenth to the minyan (quorum)

The coachmen of Khotyn usually hired non-Jewish drivers. Fanye, one of the coachmen, had a driver named Vania, who spoke fluent Yiddish and knew the Jewish customs as well as a Jew.

During their journeys, the coachmen were often delayed on stopovers in the towns through which they travelled. One time when they arrived in Zwanitz and Vania left the coach, he was invited to the synagogue to be the tenth man to the minyan. He did not decline. He entered the synagogue, answered “Blessed he, blessed his name” and “amen” appropriately, drank a glass to life, wished “ascent to the soul” of the deceased to the person having a “Yahrzeit”[3] and went happily back to work.

This had already happened: Rabbi Eliezer once came to a synagogue and did not find ten people, so he freed his slave who completed the minyan (Brachot 47).

For a dozen years, two matchmakers, a man and a woman, ruled in Khotyn. Most of the young people got married through their help, but if a couple dared to get married without them - oh dear! That match did not last. The matchmakers stepped in with great force and skill to break up the match. Their interference was daring and strong and they managed to drive a wedge between the two young people until the bond fell apart.

 

Names and nicknames

As everyone knows, the origin of Jewish family names often come by adding the suffix “son” to a first name like Moses Mendelson or Yaakov Welwels. If the mother's name was more important, it could appear in the family name, like Aharon, Shimon Chaim Etkis. Sometimes the name indicated the town or village from which someone came. That's why in one family people could have different last names, based on nicknames given for various circumstances.

 

Moshe Dibuk

Nobody knew about Moshe Landa in Khotyn even though he was registered with this name in the list of inhabitants, at the tax office, at the electric company and later in the telephone book. However, this man was known by everybody by his nickname, Moshe Dibuk.

Why the name Dibuk? Moshe's brother Yossel was a tailor for women's clothes, and he was famous for being an excellent dancer. Once, while working as a tailor in a workshop, he felt like dancing, and he asked the tailor's wife to join him. She became frightened, thinking he was possessed by a demon and shouted, “dibuk.” From that time on, this name stuck to him and his family.

 

Moshe Kawal (blacksmith)

Moshe was called this name due to his trade. No one knew his real name, if there was one.

 

Wasserman

This name has all the signs of a family name that originated from a profession. They made their livelihood by delivering water. If someone in the family rejected this name and chose another not connected to his trade, the townspeople still kept calling him by his old, original name.

 

Moshe Loshik (yearling) and Wolf Pulkownik (colonel)

Khotyn is more than thirty kilometers away from the train station. Who would walk this distance when they are coachmen waiting to be hired.

Wolf Pulkownik wanted to travel to the train station in Moshe Loshik's coach. Plowed fields, beautiful trees, fresh air, everything is fine. Still, a journey cannot be complete without some small-talk.

Wolf Pulkownik jokingly asked Moshe,“ Why is your name Loshik?” Moshe became angry and replied, “Then why is your name Pulkownik?” Wolf realized he had gone too far and didn't want to start a useless argument, so he answered in a conciliatory, yet sharp tone. “Listen my friend, neither of us is going anywhere. You won't become a horse. You will return to your ancestor as a yearling and I will end my life as a colonel and not a general.

Moshe Bibola was known by the nickname Moshe Shastopeltza, because he had six fingers on one hand. He was afraid of the evil eye, as was written in the chapter about the Khotyn coachmen.

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Shlomo Sharwitzer was known by the nickname Shlomo Goy because he was strong and healthy, qualities usually attributed to gentiles.

 

Moshe Pirel

Moshe dealt with hospitality in the “Hekdesh”[4]. He made a living by posting announcements and leaflets around town. He called the announcements, “papirel” (paper) and since he spoke very quickly, people did not hear the first syllable of the word, and heard only pirel, which became the origin of his nickname.

 

Shlomo the red (redhead)

Some of his acquaintances said that this name stuck to him because of his grandchild who was a red, that is to say communist. Some people said that the origin of the nickname came from his nose, which was always red because of excessive drinking.

 

Reb Wolf Yehuda Bandage

He was close to the town Rabbi, Reb Shaulikel. Once, a circus came to Khotyn and set up its tent on an empty lot near the clock. The circus people stayed at the inn in the house of Isser Apelbaum, right next to the clock. When people realized that the circus people worked on Shabbat, the Rabbi sent Reb Wolf Yehuda to ask them to stop, since most of the town's inhabitants were Jewish. Reb Wolf Yehuda went, and the landlord called the circus director who listened, and agreed to stop. Then the circus director wanted to pay the messenger. His mistress came out half naked with a large décolleté, cuddled up to Reb Wolf Yehuda and kissed him on his cheek. Reb Wolfe was so ashamed that he put a bandage on his cheek and never removed it.

 

Moshe Tamuz (Moshe Feldman)

People from Khotyn didn't know what the nickname meant, and Reb Moshe, an observant Jew, Torah scholar, bookseller, did not like it. However, when this nickname caught on, people forgot his real name, which was Feldman. His walk was a little bit odd, but that alone is not a sufficient explanation for this strange nickname.

Here is an almost complete list of nicknames for Khotyn Jews: Moshe Ander-Guy, Chaim Artleshik, Dudi Abramovitz, Invalid quite widow, Moshe Badni, Wolf Yehuda Bandage, Itzik Diuk, Meir Leizer with the thoughts, Hirsh Got, Avraham Yitzhak Genzele, Alter Dreier, Yossel Drang, Moshe and Yossel Dibbuk, Itzik Hirsh Belagolk, Israel Hatzka, Mati Haderke, Leib Wartner, Reuven Yaakov Welwes, Moshe and Chane Zhali-Bok, Israel Spicy, Starosta, Israel Ber Humachel, Moshe Lashik, Somer the tall, Moshe Clever, Shaya Malay, Chaya Sarah Mamaliga[5], Moshe Nose, Wolf Soldier, Moshe Aharon Smetena, Simcha Prempa, Matke Pritz, Wolf Pulkownik, Yoil Prakoror, Nachum Farber, Avraham Moris, Avraham Praka, Yodel Pamieshtshik, Yankel Finzhi-Rinzhi, Moshel Pirel, Chaim Falke, Moshe Yossel Pitza, Berel Tzoper, Moshe Tzvoek, Yehuda Leib Tzafef, Yankel Tzigeiner, Zeide with the onions, Yossel Kirzshner, Shmuel ben Moshe Kuker, Moshe Kilimnik (son of the Romanian baker), Nachum and Chaim Kemele, Moshe Kawal, Israel Kartofel (Kirzshner), Yeshua Knobele, Shabtai Kleinman, Berel Klishkinitzer, Shaya mit di ketz (with the cat), Avraham Kalenik, Avraham Kawe, Alter Katshke, Mordechai Knopf, Itzik Karete, Hirsh Kapeliush, Mendel Kaloter, Klein, Kromens Kopf, Shmuel and Leizer Kritz, Shimon Kanafkitze, Moshe Kanarik, Koni-Lemel, Meir Roitman, Shlomo the red, Itzik Wolf Ruach, Hirsh Raznashtshik, Yossel Ruach, Gedalia Shreiber, Achim Shwiger, Israel Wolf Shneider, Avraham Shochat, Mindel di Shochtke ( wife of Reb Mendel Shochat), Yaakov son-in-law Yitzhak Leibe Sheptiles, Yehuda Baruch Leib Tzipes, Chaya and Rivka di Swartze (the black), Shmuel Shaltik, Chaim Shmoish, Moshe Tehilim-Bei.

 

Thieves

The truth must be told that there were Jewish thieves in Khotyn. Given the poverty and stress in town, their number was negligible: two in total.

Filke the thief was a skilled pickpocket, especially during fairs. Even though he was almost the only one in town, and well known even by the police, he did not stop stealing. For him, it was simply his profession.

Aba Ben Berishkes was also a thief who had a special way of doing his job. He broke through windows and took everything he could. The landlord caught him on the spot, but he frightened everyone so much that they let him go with the loot still in his hands.

When the Soviets invaded Bessarabia, they ended his business. They threw petrol on him, ignited and burned him.

 

Sound of joy and sound of happiness, sound of groom and sound of bride

Until World War II, marriages were held in the synagogue in Khotyn. It was a place that brought people closer and set their hearts towards our Father in the sky. The synagogue was used for various social events, lectures, meetings and also wedding meals. People felt at home in the synagogue, and the gatherings there were a success. Most of the weddings took place in the small, Shmuel Yaffe synagogue. Rabbis, cantors and sextons took care of the wedding ceremony. The parents of newly wedded couples gave these officials a generous donation as a complement to the salaries they received from the community.

A comedian played an important role to drive away the melancholy and add joy to the mitzva. The comedian, Reb David Ber, was very good at this. Just his noble appearance radiated joy to the guests and the parents of the wedding couple.

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He managed to bring out tears of joy. He was small, skinny and humble. Only his eyes sparkled when he pulled the red handkerchief from his pocket and started entertaining people with his sayings, which were like rhymes of pearls. He went crazy when dancing in front of the bride!

Of course, no wedding was complete without music. It helps to fulfill the tradition of bringing joy to the bride and the bridegroom as well as the guests.

Hersh Yona Mendik had a band with his sons, playing violin, flute, trumpet and drums. Though nearly all of them had disabilities their music was wonderful. Yona, who had a wooden leg, conducted the band.

By the way, all the musicians had other jobs. Nonia used to be a sergeant major. Yodel Contrabass was a furrier. Leib Itzik Frankfurt, who was crippled, played the trumpet and sold pretzels in the morning. It is worth remembering Shlomo the drum player, Yankel the accordion player, Yossel Fibnik and his son Yankel, violinists, Chaim Mendel the blind, whose nickname was Chaim-Mendel cerebral bone, and Leib Rochman who had a wooden leg.

We should also remember Eliosha, a Christian, who played a major role in Hersh-Yona's band. He was able to play any instrument and filled in for absent musicians. He lived close to the Jewish bath house and spoke Yiddish like a Jew.

There was also a non-Jewish band In Khotyn led by Patik. He had once been sergeant major in the eighth battalion of archers stationed in town. Jewish musicians sometimes played in this band.

 

Here comes Haman – Kuza, the antisemitic visitor of Khotyn

In early 1938, when the antisemitic government of Goga-Kuza rose to power, harsh decrees were imposed on Jews. Their civil rights were taken away and a push for “Romanization” began in all parts of the economy. Jews were fired from working in many factories and replaced by Romanians.

Of course, the decrees also reached Khotyn. An atmosphere of a pending pogrom was felt in town. When people learned that Kuza, who founded Romania's national antisemitic party was supposed to come to Khotyn in person, the hearts of the gentiles rejoiced.

In honor of their guest, the gentiles from the town and its surroundings gathered in the courtyard in front of the church. The streets were decorated with the national flag with a photo of Kuza. It was on Sunday and all the church bells rang. The non-Jews were full of joy while Jews felt grief and sorrow as if it were Tisha B'av. Every sound raised the fear that a catastrophe was coming soon.

Here came Haman - the guest headed to the church. After remaining half an hour in the church with his public, he stepped out on the church stairs and spoke harshly about the Jews, like fire and sulfur. At the end he warned the crowd not to act violently, and to trust the government. Kuza said that anyone who initiated violence would be punished to the full extent of the law.

The government of Goga-Kuza did not last long. I remember the night, when at 10 pm I heard knocking at the door. “Who is there?” I asked, frightened. “Shlomo Feldman,” I heard from the other side of the door. He entered joyfully and said loudly: “Why are you at home? Kuza is down! They already removed the flags and his pictures from the church. All of the restaurants are full of people. Joy and happiness to the Jews!”

This same night people strolled in the street until 3 am. Nobody wanted to go back home. The gentiles walked about, ashamed.

The situation remained the same until 1940 when the Soviets annexed Bessarabia.

 

The story of the disappearing candlesticks

Israel Shor married the daughter of Kalpaktzi, from a nearby town. After a few months, Kalpaktzi came to Khotyn as a guest of his son-in-law. He checked directly and indirectly to find out if his son-in-law was still keeping mitzvot, and received a satisfactory answer. To be fully sure, he hid the Shabbat candlestick in the tallit and tefillin bag of his son-in-law and returned home.

On Shabbat eve, when it was time to light the Shabbat candles, the candlesticks could not be found. A few days later, the son-in-law asked his father-in-law if he had intentionally hidden the candlesticks. The father-in-law replied with a question, asking if he still put on tefillin. The son-in-law did not understand the relation between those two things. The father-in-law explained that when something was lost, people sometimes check their mezuzahs and tefillin. Sure enough, after the verification, the candlesticks were found and it became clear that Israel Shor had not put on tefillin for a few days.

 

Irony of fate

The pharmacist Morozovski, a Christian man, born in Poland, sold to all in Khotyn. He lived in the city center close to the Jewish quarter. Morozovski was about seventy years old, tall, with a large beard and imposing figure. Although most of his customers were Jews, he was the chairman of the “Black Hundreds”[6] in Bessarabia, which spread antisemitic propaganda and incited riots against Jews.

The Jews tried different ways to defend themselves and declared a boycott against the pharmacist. But the Jews did not take the boycott seriously enough and did not achieve the desired results.

Nevertheless, the reward for his actions came from another side, and he himself came to taste the flavor of a riot.

Each year in February-March, a battalion of soldiers, Cossacks from the Don River, came

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to Khotyn for two weeks. They arrived with their famous horses and weapons for winter exercises which caused panic among Jews. Cossacks were known to snatch goods from Jewish shops and harass Jews in the streets. Many women were frightened by the Cossacks and did not leave their homes.

The Cossacks roamed the streets of the town looking for Jews, but did not find any. One evening, they saw the pharmacist Morozovski, walking quietly down a street, and the Cossacks mistook him for a Jew. They attacked him and ripped out his beard before Morozovski had time to explain the mistake. Since he tried to resist, he received twice as many blows.

Broken and depressed, he returned home, went to bed, and never got up again.

 

Memories

I got to know the town of Khotyn thanks to my family, especially uncle Mendel Sadovnik, who lived there. We did not have a modern school back home in Bnoboslitz and we did not know Russian. So we went to Khotyn to learn Russian and be like everyone else.

In Khotyn we saw stylish clothes, listened to orchestras and experienced the town's delights. Back in Bnoboslitz, we learned in a dark cheder and tasted the sting of the teacher's whip.

My uncle, Mendel Sadovnik, was a traditional Jew, but my aunt Sheine-Chaya, raised her children in the Russian style. My uncle took me to meet his Chasidim, and his sons took me to the castle to see the Turkish cellars.

Some of the educated people in Khotyn leaned toward socialism and followed the Russian idea to “go down to the people.” Some girls went to Odessa to learn in “Kursim”[7]. Other young people were drawn to the Jewish national movement of Zionism.

After 1905, following the pogroms in Kishinev and in other cities, a new generation rose up to support the cause of Eretz-Israel. I would like to remember the teachers who played a role in this movement: Ayzik Barag, Yossef Appelbaum, Tzvi Strarakovski and others. Some of the youth became pioneers and emigrated to Eretz-Israel, including my brother-in-law Ezra Zeltzer and his brother Eliahu.

After the revolution in 1917, during Kerensky's government, the Jewish street was filled with joy, and people started to prepare elections for the community committee. I remember one day I read a notice saying that there would be a public meeting in the Khotyn theater on behalf of the “Bund”[8]. This interested us, the young people with Zionist leanings. About ten of us went to the theatre and we sat in a special booth.

On the stage, a tall, slim young woman with glasses started to sing the International hymn. Immediately in response, we began to sing the Hatikvah. An uproar broke out in the theater until everybody stopped singing.

That was not the end of the matter. Later, guests spoke about the “black and blue flag.” A commotion began again, and people shouted from all sides: “boo! You are pretending to be red!”

I rose and asked for permission to speak. The chairman asked me to come onto the stage and I spoke in the name of the blue and white flag.

Everyone in the audience agreed with me and the Bund members were forced to leave the theater. The meeting became a Zionist gathering and everybody sang the hymn “Hatikvah”. The young people lifted me on their shoulders, thanks to the victory I helped to bring about.

 

The General revealed himself. As Yossef with his brothers.

I would like to relate an event that took place in Khotyn during my youth which is still deeply engraved in my memory.

As it is known, Czar Nikolai ordered in 1827 that Jews had to join the army, and the drafting began. The community had to produce a list that contained the names of a certain number of recruits. Since they could never get enough volunteers, a new rule was decreed in 1853, which allowed the kidnapping of young people for the army. Of course, most of those taken were poor and helpless children without anyone to protect them.

The kidnapped children were sent far away in order to have them forget their origin and their parents' home.

In 1908, something happened in Khotyn that has remained in my memory until today. There were two brothers living there, Avraham and Hersh Kabuk. Avraham ran a grain shop and Hersh was a tailor. One morning, under a clear sky, their younger brother Mendel, who was six years old, was kidnapped and disappeared from the town. The crying and begging did nothing. A year passed and then another. New children were born, and the tragedy was almost forgotten.

Only the unfortunate parents were unable to overcome their bitter pain and died in grief. The brothers and the sisters went on with their lives as usual. Sometimes they remembered their kidnapped brother, but the memory faded as time passed. As people say: far from the eyes, far from the heart.

Once, two rich Jewish traders who had permission to travel in the country, took a train to Moscow. On the same train was a general with his entourage. When the general saw the two bearded Jews, he sent one of his escorts to invite the Jews in his compartment. When the Jews heard about the invitation they almost died from fear. It was not a minor matter. However, it was impossible to refuse a general.

The general ordered his guards to leave the compartment and addressed the Jews in Russian, of course, as follows: Do not fear. No harm will come to you, I need your help. I am of Jewish origin, which is a secret that cannot be shared. I was kidnapped when I was only six years old. I don't remember the town of my birth, however I remember that my parents' name is Roitman. I remember that I had a brother, Avraham. I remember that my father went with me to bathe in the river at the edge of town. Please, help me to find my family. You will not regret it, and you will be rewarded.

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The two Jews immediately sent letters to Lipkan and Khotyn and asked the Roitman family to contact them in Kishinev and to send photos and a résumé. They gave these items to the general who recognized his parents and his brother Avraham.

It is easy to guess that the whole town was excited. It was like Yossef and his brothers. The authorities were ordered to prepare Avraham Roitman (Kabuk) for the important visit of the general. The preparations were like before Pesach. The apartment was whitewashed and painted, everything was thoroughly cleaned.

Finally, the general arrived and revealed himself to his family, like Yossef and his brothers. The meeting was hearty and emotional, with hugs and kisses. The joy lasted for several days in their home, and the whole town talked about this rare event. Before he left the town, the general ordered the authorities to free his family members from paying taxes.

From time to time the general sent money and letters from his wife and children. After the general died, his family cut the bond with the Jewish family. It was not pleasant for Christians to have Jewish family members who live in a small town at the edge of the country.

 

Foyme the porter

Foyme the porter lived with his wife and children in the lower part of the town near the old bath house. Everyone in Khotyn knew him. He lived in a house he had inherited from his ancestors which was small and decrepit. He was indigent with only a meagre livelihood. He was miserable, and poor among the poorest.

People also called him Foyme the blind, when he suffered from an eye disease.

He left his parents in his childhood and grew up wild and neglected, without education or learning. When he became blind, the porters took pity on him and brought him into their group.

Because of the great poverty in which he was raised, he was inclined to an extreme communist opinion. He waited for the day when he could move to the home of Shlomo Zelman, after throwing the landlord from the second floor, with his head pointing down.

Finally in 1940, when Bessarabia was annexed by the Soviet Union, the Soviets arrived in Khotyn. Many men were tortured and sent to Siberia. Many apartments became empty. This was not the case for Shlomo, or more exactly, citizen Shlomo. Foyme stayed in his run down home, full of sadness and disillusion because equality still had not happened.

The liquidation of the trade in town caused his livelihood to dwindle. The porter's rope was now useless, except for the purpose of hanging. He killed himself.

 

Yankel Zhorzh

The controversy about the relation of Jews to their environment is very old. By rights, when neighbor relations are good, all prejudices against foreign people should be torn from the heart. But it was not like that.

An event that happened in our town showed that the rift between the two nations did not end. The gentiles took advantage of their closeness to the Jews, to act out their cruel and violent instincts. Careless and weak Jews who had gentile landlords were especially exploited. The closeness between them actually widened their differences. This happened during peaceful and quiet times when there was no reason for anger, like during wartime.

Also, in Khotyn, there was no shortage of special or crazy people. One of them was Yankel Zhorzh, a strong healthy man from a good family, and well known in town. However, he had a particular default. He was submissive and had a particular arrangement with the clever non-Jews of the town. This was a classic type of being too good. He was the kind who suffers from a feeling of inferiority, common among the do-gooders of our people, urging for the end of conflict and aspiring to bring peace to the world.

Yankel Zhorzh strived to please the “magnates” and their ideas. He curled up like a dog after its master, ready to help, lighting their cigarettes, carrying their parcels from the market and doing any work in their houses. Because of this, he was able to stay in the houses and courtyards of the magnates who bothered to feed him. But the way they served the food was disrespectful.

The nickname Zhorzh came from the magnates, like a dog nickname.

It can be assumed that the relation between the magnates and Zeirash (Yankel's real name) came from one sentiment. He was the kind of diaspora Jew they liked. He was a “good” one. Nevertheless, their heinous inclination kept rising in their hearts, needing an outlet, because without this outlet, their peace of mind would collapse.

Each time their evil inclination took over, which happened frequently, they beat him vigorously. He bore it all with love. He endured many strong blows, which became a kind of sport or humorous fun.

The non-Jews looked at this savage spectacle and liked to see Zhorzh crying and yelling.

Nonetheless Yankel was still serving them faithfully.

There was not one honest advocate among the gentiles to intervene and prevent the beatings.

Finally, he got used to the blows and endured and received them like a decree from above.

Once they beat him so harshly he stopped coming to them. He no longer mixed with them. Because of the blows, he died in the hospital.

[Page 104]

Kho104a.jpg
The Malmud-Yanobar family

 

Kho104b.jpg
The post office

 

Translator's footnotes:

  1. Admor: is the spiritual leader in the Hasidic movement. Return
  2. Hakafot: The joyous climax of Simchat Torah is the dancing of hakafot, circular dancing and singing while carrying the Torah scrolls. Return
  3. Yahrzeit: The word, Yahrzeit, means anniversary in Yiddish. It refers to the anniversary on the Jewish calendar, of the date when someone died. It is traditional to light a 24-hour memorial candle on the evening before, and to go to Synagogue to recite the kaddish memorial prayer. Return
  4. Hekdesh: a kind of night hospitality home for poor travelers. Return
  5. Mamaliga: a polenta-like dish made out of yellow maize flour, traditional in Romania, Moldova, south-western Ukraine and among Poles. Return
  6. Black Hundreds: These were reactionary, antirevolutionary, and anti-Semitic groups formed in Russia during and after the Russian Revolution of 1905. Return
  7. Kursim: in Hebrew means courses. In this context, it seems to be the name of a girl's school. Return
  8. Bund: a secular Jewish socialist party initially formed in the Russian Empire, against Zionism. Return

 

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