Voice of Kremenets Emigrants in Israel and the Diaspora,
Booklet 14

Sketch of a crying woman, by A. Argaman	14
Youth circles in Kremenets I	16
Youth circles in Kremenets 2	16
Professor Opolski	23
Sketch of two men, by A. Argaman	27
Sketch of books, by A. Argaman	35
Sketch of tree, by A. Argaman	38
Utek Biran	42
Irka Biran	42
Dora Ayzenshteyn-Yakobson	44
Frida Rubinfayn	45
Bina Ben-Hari (Blit)	48
Lionya Gokhberg	49
Tsvi Bar-Tana	49

Achad Haam	6
Alexander I, Czar	26
Alkoshi, Gedalyahu	34
Amburski, Mendel	70
Anders, Władysław, Gen.	43
Apter*, Riva (née Tshudnovski)	65-66
Apter, Shimon	65, 66
Argaman, Avraham	iii
Ashkenazi, Lili	37, 38
Avidar, Yosef	41
Avrekh, Hilel	59
Avrekh*, Sosya (née Berger)	59
Ayzenshteyn, Chana	45
Ayzenshteyn*, Dora-Dvora (née Yakobson)	44 (photo), 44-45
Bakimer, Chayim	6, 8
Barak, Barukh	45
Barak*, Sara	45
Barats	53, 69
Barats, Fayvel	53, 69
Barats* (wife of Fayvel)	53
Barenboym, Shmuel	5
Barshap, (not given)	53
Bar-Tana*, Tsipora	49, 50
Bar-Tana, Tsvi	49 (photo), 49-50
Basis, Atara	70
Bat, Chaya	17
Beaupré, Irena	52
Beaupré, Jan	52
Ben-Efraim, Tsvi (see also Rubinfayn)	46, 70
Ben-Hari*, Bina (née Blit)	48, 48 (photo)
Ben-Hari, Tsvi	48
Ben-Yehuda (teacher)	6
Berenshteyn, Chayim Sh.	60, 63
Berenshteyn, Chayim Tsvi (see also Tsvi)	iii, 51, 64, 65, 66, 69
Berenshteyn, Tsvi (see also Chayim Tsvi)	iii, 51, 64, 65, 66, 69
Bergelson, Duvid	12
Berger (sister of Simcha Berger)	59
Berger* (wife of Simcha Berger)	59
Berger, Atara	59
Berger, Eliezer	59
Berger, Simcha	59, 70
Berger, Sosya	59
Bernshteyn, Aleksander (see also Shalom, Aleksander)	70
Bialer	53
Biberman, Feyge	12 (photo), 12-13
Biberman, Leyb	28
Biberman, Nachman	18
Biher*, Nechama	70
Bilatski (priest)	6
Biran, Ilana	43, 70
Biran*, Irka (née Gindes)	42 (photo), 42-43, 70
Biran, Utek	42 (photo), 42-43
Blit, Bina	48, 48 (photo)
Bochek	49
Bodeker	70
Borokhov	6
Brik, Melekh	21
Byk, Fred (Efraim)	31, 69
Charash, Yitschak	70
Chasid, Avraham	5, 25, 58, 70
Chasid*, Etya	58
Chasid, Nechemya	58
Chasid*, Sara	58
Chasid, Yair Yosef	58
Chasid, Zev	72
Chatski, Leybish	6
Desser, Max	iii, 39, 69
Desser, Norman	69
Dobrish*, Ester (née Roytberg)	66
Dorfman, Barukh	64
Dorfman*, Moni (née Kamensheyn	64
Doron, Aviva	35, 37
Egozi*, Bela	70
Elkin, Ilana	70
Epshteyn, Tsvi	69
Eydelman, Feyge	9
Eydelman, Moshe	10
Eydis, Frits	5
Fayer family	64
Fayer, Chayim	62, 63, 64
Fayer, Mikhael (Manuele)	64
Fayer, Moshe	26
Fayer, Tsvi (Enrique)	64
Federman*, Dozya (née Rubinfayn)	23, 46, 70
Fefer, Itsik	12
Feldman	17
Feldman, Dvora	52
Feldman, Malka	16 (photo)
Feldman, Rivka	16 (photo)
Fin, Shmuel Yosef	38
Fishman, Almenat	64
Fishman*, Manya	67
Fishman, Tolye	40
Fishman, Yasha	67
Fridman, Mishe	40
Frishberg	18
Galperson	9
Garber*, Fani (née Reznik)	62, 64
Garber, Yechezkel	64
Gelernt, David	13
Gilboa, Menucha, Dr.	35, 53
Gindes	18
Gindes, Irka	42 (photo), 42-43, 70
Gindes, Miron	43
Gintsberg, Tsirel	59
Gintsburg, Aharon	70
Gluzman	16 (photo)
Gluzman*, Chaya (née Bat)	16 (photo)
Gluzman, Eliezer	16 (photo), 17, 18, 40
Gokhberg*, Gitel	49
Gokhberg, Lionya	49, 49 (photo)
Golberg, Betsalel	58, 70
Golberg, Ilana	58
Golberg*, Irena	58
Golberg, Yehoshue	iii, 23, 44, 49, 52, 53, 69
Golcher, Meir	70
Goldberg, Fanya (Feyga)	39-40
Goldberg, Leya	39
Goldenberg*, Chana	41, 51
Goldenberg, Duvid	7
Goldenberg, Liove	18, 19
Goldenberg, Lola	51
Goldenberg, Manus	iii, 7, 18, 29, 20, 31, 41, 42, 49, 51, 52, 64
Goldenberg, Pinchas	39, 40
Goldfarb, Moisey Borisovitsh	9
Goldring	7
Gorenshteyn	18
Gorenshteyn, Azriel	32, 70
Gorenshteyn, Shmuel	43
Goretski (notary)	23
Gorinshteyn, Natan	16 (photo)
Gorinshteyn, Pesach	70
Gorngut, Azriel	6
Gruber, Kineret	58
Gruber*, Rachel (née Zalts)	58
Gruber, Yosef	58
Grushko*, Ilana (née Golberg)	58
Grushko, Mordekhay	58
Grushko, Yonatan	58
Gurvits, Chana	18, 19
Herzl, Theodore	36
Hes, Moshe	6
Hofshteyn, Duvid	12 (photo), 12-13, 14
Hokhberg, Yonye	49
Hokhgelernter	16 (photo)
Holkin, Shmuel	12
Horovits, Tsvi	70
Ignatiev the Oppressor, Minister	26
Kaganovits, Malka	59
Kamensheyn, Moni	64
Kaminski, Iser	66
Katsav, A.	47
Katz	17
Katz, Bentsion, Dr.	36
Katz, Marcus	iii
Katz, Mark	36
Katz, Meshulam (Maze ben Maze)	36
Katz, Mordekhay	24, 33, 61, 63, 64, 65, 66, 69
Katz, Mordekhay Zalman HaKohen	36
Katz*, Tsipora (Tsipa)	61, 62, 63, 64, 66
Kempler, Zushya	51
Kerensky, Aleksander	5
Kerler*, Ana	70
Kesler, Yitschak	16 (photo)
Kindzior*, Shulya	58
Kindzior, Dina	58
Kindzior, Gedalyahu	58
Kiperman, (not given)	62
Kiperman, Nuta	64
Kogan, William	iii
Koltun, (not given)	59
Kornits, (tailor)	6, 7
Kotkovnik, Idel	68
Kovel, Shlome, R'	9, 10
Koyfman, (not given)	17
Kremen*, Rivka (née Rozental)	40
Kremen, Berel	40-41
Kremen, Pesach	40
Kremenechka, Shila	70
Kremenetski, Azriel	7
Krilenko, 2nd Lt.	7
Krivin, Ester	70
Kutsher, (not given)	17
Kutsher, Pnina	16 (photo)
Kviska, Leyb	12
Lanchotski*, Dina (née Kindzior)	58
Lanchotski, (daughter of Chayim and Dina Lanchotski)	58
Lanchotski, Chayim	58
Landes, Ester	16 (photo)
Landsberg, Bozye, Dr.	6, 7
Levinzon, Yitschak Ber, R' (RYB”L)	1, 17, 26, 30, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 72
Leviten, Arye (Lionya)	70
Leviten, Moshe	70
Liberman, (not given)	17
Libman, Moshe	64
Liftman, Leya	58
Lirov, Moshe (see also Litvakov, Moshe)	5
Litev, Pesach (see also Litvak, Pesach)	37, 51
Litvak, Tsipora	49, 50, 70
Litvak, Tsipora	49, 50, 70
Litvakov, Moshe (see also Lirov, Moshe)	5
Lvov, Prince	5
Manusovits, Shmuel	70
Margalit, Yisrael	8
Markish, Perets	12
Markus, Moti	26, 27
Markus, Yosef Chayim	27
Melamed, Eli, R'	10
Melder, Morris	69
Nadel, Shalom	9
Nicholas I, Czar	26
Nicholas II, Czar	5
Oks, Velvel	64
Opolski, Danuta	23
Opolski, Grazina	23
Opolski, Metsiek	23
Opolski, Professor	23, 23 (photo)
Opolski, Vitek	23
Paran, (not given)	51
Peles, Yedidya	37, 38
Perelmuter, (not given)	17
Perlmuter, (not given)	16 (photo)
Pesis, Hersh	46
Pesis, Masha	47, 70
Pesis, Rivka	47
Pesis, Zalman	46-47, 70
Petliura, (not given)	7
Petsiukim, family	26
Podkaminer, (not given)	16 (photo)
Poniatovski, Yuliush	53
Portnoy, Yitschak	52, 53
Poskis, Beril	10
Rabinovits*, Sara	70
Rabinovits, (not given)	18
Rabinovits, Yisrael	37, 70
Rapaport, David	30, 52, 56-57, 69
Reznik, Fani	64
Rokhel, Chanokh	6
Rokhel, Hirsh Mendil (see Rokhel, Tsvi Menachem)	36
Rokhel, Tsvi Menachem ben Avraham (Hirsh Mendil)	36
Rokhel, Yitschak	iii, 34, 35, 36, 51, 71
Roykhl see Rokhel,
Roytberg, Ester	66
Rozenberg, Gitel	68
Rozenfeld, (not given)	18
Rozental, Rivka	40
Rozental, Yehudit	40, 58
Rubinfayn*, Frida (née Shchopak)	45 (photo), 45-46, 70
Rubinfayn*, Frida (née Shchopak)	45 (photo), 45-46, 70
Rubinfayn, Dozya	23, 46, 70
Rubinfayn, Tsvi (see also Ben-Efraim, Tsvi)	46, 70
Rubinfayn, Tsvi (see also Ben-Efraim, Tsvi)	46, 70
Senderovits, (not given)	17
Senderovits, Beylke	16 (photo)
Senderovits, Rachel	16 (photo)
Shabtay	44
Shafer, Shalom	59
Shalom, Aleksander (see also Bernshteyn, Aleksander)	70
Shavit, Uzi	34, 35
Shchopak, Aharon	46
Shchopak, Bilha	46
Shchopak, Frida	45 (photo), 45-46, 70
Shchopak, Frida	45 (photo), 45-46, 70
Shikhman, (not given)	17
Shnayder, Velvel	32
Shnayder, Vulf	69
Shnitser, Nachman	70
Shpak, (not given)	62
Shpak, Yitschak	64
Shpal, Aharon Shimon	5
Shpinke, Max	69
Shtern*, Maya	58
Shtern*, Tanya	42
Shtern*, Yehudit (née Rozental)	40, 58
Shtern, Lana	58
Shtern, Lev	58
Shtern, Munya	42
Shteynberg*, Tsirel (née Gintsberg)	59
Shteynberg, Barukh	59
Shumski, Dr.	11
Sitsuk*, Atara (née Berger)	59
Sitsuk, Mikhael	59
Skolski, (not given)	17
Skolski, Brayndel	16 (photo)
Skolski, Shlome	iii
Skoropadski, Hetman	7
Slovatski, Yuliush	37
Solzhenitsyn, (not given)	7
Tabatshnik, Hershel	9
Taytelman, Shmuel	48
Toren-Feldman, Dvora	70
Troshinski, (not given)	53
Troshinski, Malka	59
Trotski, Leyb	24, 25
Tsherepashnik, (not given)	17
Tshudnovski*, Brayndel	65
Tshudnovski, Berel	65
Tshudnovski, family	62
Tshudnovski, Riva	65-66
Tsimels*, Malka (née Kaganovits)	59
Tsimels, Victor	59
Tsukerman, (not given)	6
Tsur*, Leya (née Liftman)	58
Tsur*, Osnat	58
Tsur, Lihi	58
Tsur, Omer	58
Vakman, Yitschak	8, 69
Vaynshteyn, (not given)	17
Vaynshteyn, A.	16 (photo)
Vekhetilna*, Brokhe (née Yergis)	67-68
Verthaym, Avraham	6
Verthaym, Yentel	6
Vishner*, Neti	41-42
Vishner, Max	41-42
Vishner, Nachum	41, 42
Vishniov, Hertsel	70
Vishniov, Yair	70
Yakobson, Dora-Dvora	44 (photo), 44-45
Yakobson, Dr.	44
Yehuda Halevi, R'	37
Yergis*, Freyda	67
Yergis, Avraham	64, 67
Yergis, Brokhe	67-68
Yos (Yosl), Mordekhay Chayim	24
Zalts*, Miryam	58
Zalts, (not given)	53
Zalts, Rachel	58
Zalts, Yosef	58
Zinzhirov, (not given)	6
Zuskind, Binyamin	12

In the 10th anniversary booklet of Voice of Kremenets Emigrants, published in December 1972, the extensive report on this project gave many details on the content that has been published. We considered booklet 10 an anniversary booklet. Now we celebrate another anniversary of this project: Voice of Kremenets Emigrants has existed for 10 years, and we look forward to the publication of booklet 14 in July 1977. (The first booklet was published in April 1967.) One of our members gave a full report on the activities of the Kremenets organization in Israel, which made it clear to us that each organization has its own way of seeking to preserve the memory of the annihilated community: establishing an institution (which usually has no direct link to the memorialized community), establishing a club, or doing social work, etc. What makes the Organization of Kremenets Emigrants unique is that it concentrates on projects that commemorate the community in cultural arenas o that typify this particular community: a library for Enlightenment literature and an endowment fund for research on Enlightenment literature. Both are named for and in memory of RYB”L (R' Yitschak Ber Levinzon) of Kremenets. The third commemorative project is the publication of the Voice of Kremenets Emigrants booklets, which have appeared for 10 years now. Likewise, in 1954, the organization published a memorial book, one of the first of its kind on this subject. The spirit of RYB”L, who brought the Enlightenment movement to Russia, must be inspiring his former townspeople in the Land and the Diaspora, and when they erected a memorial to their annihilated community, they dedicated the memorial projects to culture and attached them to cultural institutions in the Land: first, to the Kibbutzim College (where our club is still located) and later to the Katz Institute for Research in Hebrew Literature at Tel Aviv University. A Kremenetser who reads the booklet experiences a resurrection of his native town's Jews and their lifestyle on weekdays and holidays and the events the community experienced during peace, war, and changing regimes. While reading chapters about the Holocaust, he aches for the loss of the community. Thirty-five years have passed since the annihilation of Kremenets Jewry. Their way of life and the story of their annihilation were described in two books (one published in the Land and one in Argentina) and in many dozens of articles in our booklets. And the stories of the memories are not yet finished; material in Hebrew, Yiddish, and Polish continues to flow to us. With every new booklet, the Editorial Board has to decide what to include and what to hold for the next issue. As long as the generation of those who were born in this town is alive, it falls to us to tell and record everything, so that we and for future generations can read and know their origins – the life of the previous generation and its annihilation.

But that is not all. The booklet also tries to show the present – what is happening among the remnants of the town in the Land and the Diaspora. The booklet accompanies Kremenetsers in their sorrow (in the case of death) and their joy – on the occasion of a special family event.

[Page 2]

The 14 booklets that have been published contain 202 assorted articles and 127 necrologies and condolences. The Mosaic section reflects mainly the usual happenings among Kremenetsers in the Land, and there have been 120 segments dedicated to a specific event.

This is a “harvest” of the 14 booklets published so far, including the present one, which is more extensive than previous ones. The enthusiastic reactions that reach the Editorial Board from readers in the Land and abroad encourage the workers to continue the project as long as they have the strength. We feel that the booklets help unite Kremenetsers wherever they are as well as preserve the memory of the Kremenets community.

[Page 5]

Sixty years have passed since the revolution known as the February Revolution in the history of all nations. I see a need to write down my memories of that year's events as they unfolded in Kremenets. World War I was then at its height. The town was full of soldiers, who were billeted in rooms in civilian homes confiscated by the army. The 11th Army headquarters was then stationed in Kremenets in the many buildings of the Religious Pravoslavic Seminary, which was surrounded by a wall. On February 24, the newspaper with the largest circulation in town, the Kiyevskaya Misl, brought us the news that Czar Nicholas II had been deposed. This surprised all of us, because until then, the newspapers, which had been severely censored, had not reported such events to the public. Before the war, the newspaper's reporter had been the Hebrew teacher Aharon Shimon Shpal, who wrote under an assumed name. One of the paper's writers was the notorious, infamous Moshe Litvakov, who used to sign his name as Lirov and later was executed by Stalin. Kerensky gave a speech at the Duma (Parliament) for the Labor Party and was accused of instigating against the government because he accused it of being incapable of providing food to the population. This was the background. Now the first news of the revolution, called Kerensky's Revolution, arrived. Two days later, Jews spontaneously gathered en masse at the Great Synagogue to elect a community representative to the town's revolutionary board, which included representatives of the town's three religious communities: Pravoslavs, Poles, and Jews. Frits Eydis was elected to represent the Jewish community. I remember the great excitement of the assembled; Frits Eydis was carried up to the acclaim of people cheering in his honor. The news from Petersburg announced the appointment of a temporary government under the leadership of Prince Lvov, with Kerensky as minister of defense. All laws of racial discrimination were abolished, giving complete equality of privileges to Jews and freedom to the newspapers. Everyone's heart was bursting with joy. Crowds gathered spontaneously in the market square, and red flags were carried. Those who made speeches to the thousands of listeners were mostly from army units; they proclaimed the destruction of the evil regime and instilled hope for freedom and democracy. The people began singing the “Marseillaise.” Of the best of the speakers, I remember our fellow townsman Shmuel Barenboym, who was in the army and on furlough. Eventually he became a fervent Communist. One of the first functions of the revolutionary board was to fire the old regime's police commanders and transform the police into a popular militia. Instead of Gordovoy, the old nickname for “policeman,” it was now Militsioner, with a red stripe on his sleeve.

[Page 6]

Many policemen who were known for treating civilians cruelly, as well as those known as bribe takers, were fired and replaced by city residents, a few Jews among them. I remember Zinzhirov, Leybish Chatski, Kornits the tailor, and others. Two citizens known to be liberal were appointed as militia commanders. One was Azriel Gorngut, a veteran Zionist and government-appointed rabbi. In addition to his job as a militia commander, he used to lecture on the Bible on Sabbath afternoon in the Zoviyezda movie theater. It was one of the amazing things about the new era: a rabbi as a militia commander and Bible lecturer. I remember a mass meeting in the Tivoli Gardens (known at that time as Ploshtshedka) in which representatives of all the religious communities made speeches. In his speech, the Catholic Polish representative, the priest Bilatski, who was known to be liberal, noted the suffering of the Jewish people and his hope for the end of discrimination. The May 1 celebration was also held in this park (see Voice of Kremenets Emigrants, booklet 12). Slowly, branches of the various political parties were organized: the Bund and the Jewish Social Democratic Workers Party^[1] (before the split into right and left factions). The Zionist Organization developed widespread activities. Avraham Verthaym (kindergarten teacher Yentel Verthaym's brother) played a prominent role in the Kremenets Zionist community at that time. He served as a representative on the government board for war casualties and was also the representative of the Joint. He turned out to be a talented organizer and brilliant speaker. He appeared with Dr. Bozye Landsberg at public assemblies, in which they instilled the Zionist idea among the masses. I remember that at one of those meetings, Verthaym impassioned the audience to such a degree that they all voted to demand the Land of Israel as the solution to the Jewish plight.

In August 1947, the Russian Zionist convention was held in Petersburg. Verthaym and Landsberg were the delegates from Kremenets. One decision made at that convention was to use the Hebrew language in all Jewish schools in Russia. The early meetings of most of the associations took place in the hall called Tshaynaye, previously known as a tea club founded by the Society for Abstaining from Alcohol. It was in Chayim Bakimer's house, near the market. This club was intended for the activities of students attending school in larger cities (Kiev, Odessa, etc.), as no schools were open in Kremenets because of the war. The Zionist Organization branch rented a large apartment in Tsukerman's courtyard. The Zionist library, which had previously been housed in private homes since it was illegal, moved there. Lessons in Hebrew were organized and taught by a young man named Ben-Yehuda, who had studied at Hertseliya High School in Jaffa, Israel. Dr. Bozye Landsberg, Chanokh Rokhel, Sunye Grinberg, and others gave lectures on Zionist topics. I remember lectures about Achad Haam, Moshe Hes, Borokhov, and so on.

[Page 7]

In spite of promises to the Jews of equal rights and the hope for a stable, democratic life, most Jewish people in Kremenets were inclined toward Zionism and saw the solution to the Jewish problem as the establishment of the Land of Israel as a homeland. The Bolshevik party, whose leaders in Kremenets were from the army, was very active then. Second Lieutenant Krilenko, who served in the 11th Army headquarters, stood out as a brilliant speaker who impassioned the masses. In the army, he earned the party many supporters by promising to end the war immediately, which the temporary government decided to continue until the final victory. The soldiers, who were very tired of war and desperately wanted to return to their homes and families, were moved to join the Bolshevik party (at that time, they were not yet called Communists). Krilenko was an educated man. He had been a history teacher at a high school in Lublin. Solzhenitsyn mentions him in The Gulag Archipelago as the lead district attorney against the SS.

He ended up being executed by Stalin. In the mid-August, toward the start of the school year, many young people left town to continue their studies in other cities, as the schools in Kremenets were still closed because of the war. At the same time, a new town council was assembled in Kremenets from the representatives of various parties. The Jewish representative, I recall, was Azriel Kremenetski, who served on the town council for many years. The election “war” reached its height over the establishment of the Constituent Assembly, scheduled to take place October 25, 1917. Party leaders and propagandists scattered to all the cities in Russia, and the leaders of the Bund and the Jewish Social Democratic Workers Party even came to Kremenets, where Dr. Bozye Landsberg debated expertly with them.

But the primary did not take place as planned; on the day of the election, the Bolsheviks broke it up and took over the government. Soon after, civil war began, and anarchy prevailed. There were many incidents of killing and robbery, mainly by bands of soldiers who had deserted the front. A few Kremenets citizens were killed and robbed, and stores were burned (among them the store and house of Duvid Goldenberg, Manus's father). The town's newly organized self-defense group stopped the riots. In Ukraine, Hetman Skoropadski seized the government and installed a dictatorship, which led to political skirmishes. In Kremenets, most community functionaries were arrested, among them Bozye Landsberg, Goldring, and Kornits. They were jailed until Petliura's army took over the town. So ended the year of the February Revolution's spring, which had brought bright hopes for an orderly life in freedom and democracy, hopes that very quickly turned to naught.

[Page 8]

The years fly by. One year rushes after the other. And age rushes by. As I look in my telephone book, where the numbers of my friends and acquaintances are written, my heart aches. I must strike out one number after another, and each time my heart is pained–yes, brother, it's not good … it's not so good. “And does it give you an idea of where you're going?”… No, it's not good to think about it. No, it's better to just turn the page and go on … but how far??? An acquaintance (who has also departed) used to say, laughingly, “Think young. Sing an old song and keep thinking young.” Nu, I think about those long-gone years. And thinking thus, I decided to begin writing about my youth in my beloved city of Kremenets. In modern times this is perhaps foolish, but I set it before the eyes of my landsmen so they may look away from the ordinariness of the day and return to the valley of Kremenets, that faraway city, contemplating for a while and refreshing their memories. Then you might think for a time that you are young again, fresh again, and a smile might cross your wrinkled face …. And then back to work: “Think young and feel young!”

The “Jewish School”

My friends know that this was in Chayim Bakimer's courtyard. Opposite lived the wealthy Yisrael Margalit, and to the side, the blind musician who taught us singing. Those dear, beloved, childhood days in the school–now the “Bultshnik,” entering the courtyard. During the breaks, one bought a roll, a pasty, or a salted bagel. We would bet on who could eat a bagel without using his hands, holding the bagel only with his lips so that it would not fall–whoever could do that did not have to pay for the bagel, and he got another one as well.

[Page 9]

–I was not very good at that. But Hershel Tabatshnik or Daniek could do it. And another thing I remember: how in March we would go pick snowdrops, and we tracked clay into the school. The custodian–Moyses Borisovitsh–would scream as we sat there acting innocent. Boym, the teacher, would often send the children to shop. He sent me to buy kerosene. I bought it in a glass jar–covered with straw. I banged it against the wooden blocks on the sidewalk and what do you think? Bang–and I stood there holding the handle while the kerosene flowed down the street. I ran home and told my father, who was upset. I was ashamed before my good teacher, who had played cards at night and came to the school tired and worn out–he was Galperson's son-in-law and had, I think, five or six daughters.

“Lepke,” the Jewish magnate

[Page 10]

Moshe Eydelman was never in the shop. He ran around as an agent for Strakavoy. I was then a child of three. I played on the porch with Perel, R' Shlome Kavel's grandchild. One went up via several steps. My father was a watchmaker, and my mother did the selling. Suddenly there was a disturbance–Lepke, the wealthy one, was a little drunk and staggered from one wooden post to the next. Those posts were there to prevent carriages from coming up onto the sidewalks. They were sunk deep into the ground. Lepke slowly went from one post to the next. He pushed each post from one side to the other, and one after the other they were uprooted and lay on their sides. When he came to our iron porch, he lifted the whole thing up. We began to complain, so Lefke put it back in its place and said, “Don't scream, Jewish children.”… And he went on his way, continuing his efforts ….

In “Cheder” with Eli the Teacher

My friends must remember R' Eli the Teacher–a scholar, a gaon, but unfortunately a sickly, nervous man. He used to fool with us, and we resented him. Who can forget our former cheder: a long, narrow table with 10-12 boys on either side. The rabbi sat at the head. He sat holding a stick with a metal knob under the table. The class studied the Pentateuch. At the other end of the table, far from the rabbi, the students did what they wanted–they played with buttons and other tchotchkes. They talked aloud. Suddenly, the rabbi paused, and everyone became silent. The rabbi asked, “Where are we, Berel?” How should Berel know where we were? He was pulled out, and the rabbi started to hit him. But Berel was a big guy and struck back.

[Page 11]

The rabbi suffered, and everyone decided to hang papers in the corners and on the walls that said “Garlic” and showed the rabbi's face, without hair; it had been pulled out by the rabbi himself long ago, and there was only a bit of yellow hair below, so he looked like a garlic.

So he beat each of us, and we studied nothing–until the rabbi promised our parents there would be no more beatings. The years went by. I got married and became an important figure in the Polish government. One official, Bazhinski, was very close to me. He would reach into my pocket, take out my wallet, and take as much as he wanted. He always repaid me. Once old Eli the Teacher came to me and said that in the register he was listed as having one son, Manus, whose family name was given as “Samber,” and another son with the family name “Sambirer.” People demanded that both sons be soldiers. He was troubled because he really had only one son. I treated the rabbi with such honor in my office. I went with him to the official, whom I assured that “Sambirer” and “Samber” were the same person. And then, with Dr. Shumski, I arranged for the son to be exempted from service. I think all of this was to my credit.

How does one recapture one's youth? Let us “think young” and then write about those years.

[Page 12]

On August 12 it will be 25 years since the Soviet Union killed the best Jewish writers and artists: Duvid Bergelson, Der Nister, Duvid Hofshteyn, Perets Markish, Leyb Kvitko, Shmuel Halkin, Itsik Fefer, Binyamin Zuskin, and others.

This act brought an end to Yiddish culture in the Soviet Union, which had begun long before. The October Revolution of 1917 had aroused great hope among Russia's Jews. People thought freedom and equality had arrived for the Jewish people. But immediately they felt the impress of Russification. Later, Jewish schools were closed, as were theaters and other cultural sites. A significant number of the victims of Stalinism in the 1930s were Jews. Jewish writers, teachers, and other representatives of cultural life were actually in the same camp as the Conversos of Spain some 600 years earlier. Formally, they favored the regime and even praised it, but their troubles and suffering were widespread–I shall not die, for I shall live!

Feyge Biberman with her husband, Duvid Hofshteyn, of blessed memory, Kiev, 1939

[Page 13]

The well-known Yiddish writer Duvid Hofshteyn–one of the victims–was born in 1899 in Korostishev, Kiev province. His father dealt in timber and was a learned Jew. Duvid studied in cheder until he was nine. Later he learned Russian and Hebrew with private tutors. He studied at the Kiev Commerce Institute. He began to write poetry in Hebrew. His first book in Yiddish, Bei Vegn [By the Road] was published in Kiev in 1919. In the 20s he published several poetry collections. Hofshteyn was active in the community. He participated in the Culture League publishing house. He was an editor of the journal Shtrom. In 1924, Hofshteyn signed the well-known memorandum to the government against the prosecution of Hebrew. The General Assembly of Authors condemned him for this act.

In 1925, Duvid Hofshteyn and his wife, Feyge Biberman, came to Israel. During the year he was there, he wrote Hebrew poems, articles, and memoirs of the civil war in Russia. His piece “Purim Shpiel” was published in the Israeli press: Davar, Haaretz, etc.

After 1926, Hofshteyn was back in the Soviet Union. More than once he had disagreements with the Yevsektsia [the Jewish section of the Communist Party] over nationalist themes in his writing.

He was arrested on September 16, 1948.

We present two poems by Duvid Hofshteyn. The Hebrew poem was published in the first issue of Davar in Tel Aviv on 9 Sivan 5685 [May 19,1925].

[Page 14]

My heart's contemplation, my spirit's sorrow – what for? (If they could only be a labor for enjoyment!) In every reed basket here – from the Nile of despair, a son, And each brick – a longing. Uncorrupted, pure of heart, Ascending the mountain. Standing in a holy place, Beating swords into plowshares. Abandoning songs of combat… But our memory – a deep cistern We should not forget: The universe is a battleground! Cry…

I am not afraid of sorrows. I know them. I know their variety. You have sent me great joy, From then, too–from then, too! So many mighty forces, you know, Have wanted to crush me Over scraps and notebooks. Have I brought forth the best gold … How much charm shows through! It has dispersed, floated away– I stand on ruins. I hoped and I believed, And in storm and whirlwind Held myself up, protected myself. The challenge of my arm And the zest of my spirit … With my whole being, Lord of life, Throw me into the abyss: Even the abyss will provide a path For my singleness, for my current.

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Boys, right to left: Hokhgelernter, Yitschak Kesler, Perelmuter, Gluzman, Podkaminer, A. Vaynshtey

Girls, seated, right to left: (1) Ester Landes, (2) Chaya Gluzman-Bat, (3) Natan Gorinshteyn, (4) Eliezer Gluzman, (5) Beylke Senderovits, (6) Malka Feldman. Standing: (1) Rivka Feldman, (2) Rachel Senderovits, (3) Pnina Kutsher, (4) Brayndel Skolski.

Here are a few memories of some groups that I had the opportunity and pleasure of belonging to. One of the many groups was the literature circle named after Y.B. Levinzon, which met once a week at Tsherepashnik's and studied Yiddish literature: Sholem Aleichem, Mendele, Peretz, Naumburg, Asch, etc. The meetings were serious and detailed. No member was permitted to miss a meeting. Friendship and camaraderie ruled the circle. Most members remained fast friends their whole lives. The Liberman brothers, Katz, Shikhman (Koyfman), Tsherepashnik, Gluzman, Perelmuter, Vaynshteyn. This Is only the small number of members I recall. The circles had their own character that came from a single gender, men separate from women. The dominant attitude was that women would not be conducive to a serious atmosphere. Life showed us, to everyone's satisfaction, that the men were mistaken.

The second circle was created at the instigation of young women, who did not have the opportunity to study in the city's middle school. The main initiators were the Senderovitsh sisters, the Petrikov rabbi's daughters, and the Feldman or Kutsher sisters. Their active technical leader was a young woman, Skulski, along with Chaye Bat. This small group had little knowledge of literature, especially Yiddish literature, but they had great interest and youthful enthusiasm for learning and knowing.

[Page 18]

In a short time, this became one of the most serious groups. After a while we began to deal with community and political questions. And then came the second stage, brought about by Young Pioneer, so that almost all the members immigrated to Israel, where they built their futures.

One of the important youth circles was composed of students from the School of Commerce middle school. They would meet on the premises of the Zionist Organization. To this circle belonged the Goldenberg brothers, Rabinovits, Gindes, Gorenshteyn, Frishberg, Gluzman, Rozenfeld, Nachman Biberman, and others. This circle, too, was only for male students, not women, for the same reasons I have already mentioned. They sought plans for community and political tasks as well as answers to questions that interested and captivated young people at that time. The program was not well organized because we lacked a leader with the knowledge and ability to direct us.

A major change occurred when Chane Gurvits came to us in Kremenets and joined. She was the daughter of refugees from the civil war. She was a university student in Kiev, but she left her studies because of the civil war. She spoke beautiful Yiddish and knew about community and political issues, especially the Zionist movement. She knew how to deal with 17- and 18-year-olds. Soon after her first meeting with our circle, her personality enchanted us all and affected us. Thanks to her, the principle of single-gender groups was broken, to everyone's satisfaction.

In one of the circle's gatherings, she said these words: “I came to you of my own accord. I will help you and study with you whatever interests you. I have heard that you have excluded your elders' daughters. I find this absolutely absurd and you should stop.

[Page 19]

Allow me to participate in your circle.” She really interested us, and we agreed to accept her as a circle member. In time, she arranged a reading and lecture program. Each member had to prepare a talk on a theme that she proposed. She helped prepare theses and sources for the talks, after which she proposed questions and techniques for the talks.

Here is an interesting curiosity connected to the program. The talks each member gave were in Russian. First of all, their knowledge of Yiddish was limited, and second, most of them spoke only Russian. Because at that time Zionist activities were not legalized by the police, the Zionist community would not permit us to use their premises, since they were only allowed to have a library there. Therefore, we held the talks in one of the most secluded corners of the Vidomke Mountain. Once, the School of Commerce director was called to the town official's office and told that his students were holding secret meetings in the hills. The secret agents who kept track of these activities were especially concerned about the Russian used at the meetings. Manus and his brother Liove, may he rest in peace, were called to the director and strongly admonished to curtail these activities, for otherwise the government would close the school. You must understand that the activities continued, but in other places. The circle conducted serious and important work. We dealt with questions of antisemitism, assimilation, Achad Ha-Amism, etc.

Thanks to us, Chane Gurvits befriended the Zionist youth of our city, and her part in the development and activities of the youth in our city, especially of Pioneer Youth, was greatly respected. The best evidence of this friendship is that she married a circle member, Manus Goldenberg, and came with him to Israel, where they live honorably with their family and parents.

[Page 20]

After the bloody tragedy that played out at the station, the coachmen sat stupefied. They could barely speak to each other. Even Shimele the drummer held back on his drumming, And Moyshe Shive subdued his chattiness. Those flowers of nobility, the coachmen's sons and sons-in-law, ceased their tomfoolery. When a priest walked by in his long cassock, people did not silently poke fun, as usual, by attaching a long paper tail with which he walked with among the shops, arousing the laughter of the merchants and the few passersby on hot summer days. And after it rained, no one had it in mind to quickly and secretly stretch a rope from one sidewalk to the other so that when a newly married couple came along arm-in-arm, they would trip and fall in the mud with their brand-new clothes. Then the fun-seeking young people would split their sides laughing, as would their elders. Their other pranks, too, of which there were so many, were no longer seen.

Now seriousness ruled over the “exchange.” People discussed the disturbing signs of an approaching war; spots on the moon; the comet that neared the earth and threatened to obliterate it in its fiery tail. The inhabitants of the steps heard rumors from their passengers “who read newspapers” about the troubled relations between Nicholas and Franz Joseph. It did not last long, and the signs seemed justified. The next summer, an artillery regiment came to Kremenets for exercises in the surrounding hills.

[Page 21]

On one such exercise, two soldiers were killed when they rolled down the Tshertshe hill with a cannon. These were the first victims of World War I, which broke out two months after this tragic incident. This was a long period of still, quiet years, which was particularly shocking in our surroundings.

Once, on a foggy morning, there came, bit by bit into one of the stables between the coachmen's houses, a harnessed phaeton with an empty driver's seat. A few hours later, people found the coachman's murdered body near the Yakutsk Regiment's barracks. His wife's and children's heart-rending laments pierced the heart of Heaven. Such calamities recurred in the same place over the next few months, when other wives received the bad news about fathers and sons who fell in battle–in the fields of Galicia or Frisia.

And when the attacking Austrians came to the Ikva River on the King's Bridge, and Sapanuv, and the last divisions of the panicked, fleeing Russian forces stopped at the Dubno border, the war was at the inhabitants' threshold. Day and night, the shooting or artillery thunder never ceased. And when night came, the horizon was red with fire. The nearby villages were burning, as well as the barracks, the mills, and other military and civilian objects, among them the train station. The train line was disrupted. Thus the coachmen lost almost their entire source of income. There was no one in town to convey aside from drunken officers, which involved great danger. One of the coachmen was killed when he, like others, brought officers to the Russian trenches.

[Page 22]

Thus ended the coachmen's old life-affirming and carefree vocation. Abandoned were the steps. One no longer heard their laughter or the loud yawns of those who had not slept enough at night because of late or very early trains. Only after the revolution and the renewal of train service did the coachmen gradually begin to return to the steps, to the exchange. They appeared far different during the civil war and under Polish rule, but we will see that in another chapter.

During 1936-1938, when all of Hitler's speeches foretold the coming catastrophe to the nations of the world in general and the Jews in particular, Opolski was the only teacher who had the fortitude to explain to and discuss the coming events with all the Lyceum students, and the students all tried to be with him and hear his comments.

For many months, I worked with him in the Lyceum's biology laboratory, which was very well equipped, thanks to his dedication. I had the use of the biology library for a price – changing the water in the aquarium during the school's summer vacation.

I lived with my parents at the end of Slovatski Street. The Opolski family's small house was near the Lyceum park, surrounded by greenery. I was very close to the family and was friends with his daughters, Grazina and Danuta, and his sons, Metsiek and Vitek. Their house was open to many poor people, and particularly those of our people. In spite of his modest salary, he used to support whole families singlehandedly, particularly neglected children. During summer vacation, when he left Kremenets to climb in the Carpathians, he never forgot to leave support money for those under his protection with his daughter Grazina.

During the riots at the Technion in Lvov^[2], as a result of increasing anti-Semitism, he always stood by the Jewish students, supported them, and fought for equal civil rights. He believed in a better humanity.

When the Germans entered Kremenets, they immediately took him and the notary Goretski as hostages.

[Page 24]

In the front room, right by the entrance to the bath, where people would undress and dress, everyone would drink a big glass of soda water before dressing and chat amicably about the past week's news.

Mordekhay Chayim Yos (Yosel), who sold the soda water with a little sugar, would sit there right by the entrance with a big copper container of seltzer and discuss Kremenets and neighborhood gossip. He liked to inject his own folk wisdom. Mordekhay Chayim Yos, who was the cemetery man and lived in the field, thought nothing of night in the “prayer house of the dead.” Therefore he knew no fear and laughed at all the delusions and alarms at that time, when there were reports that at night in Kremenets there was a “dark lady.” Mordekhay Chayim Yos would say with a laugh to the leading man in the bath, “You know, the ‘dark lady’ comes to me every night and asks me to prepare a nice dry place for you.”

In the bath, everyone was equal. One could not tell who was poor or wealthy. Almost everyone used the familiar “du”–people were like brothers. It often happened that the bath was overcrowded and there were not enough ladles for washing, so people would lend them to each other. Thus did people do a good deed right there in the bath.

Of all the interesting conversations in the bath, the following one remains with me:

This was soon after the Russian Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, when Trotsky was the war minister. One fellow said to another, “If it weren't for Trotsky, Stalin would be a big fat nothing …”–“So?” said a second, “a Jewish head!”–“Oy, oy, oy,” called an older man. “I'd like to live to see what happens!”–

[Page 25]

“What are you talking about?” said the first fellow. “Leybele Trotsky will redeem the whole world, and the Messiah will come, as it is written “[in a generation] that is entirely innocent” [Sanhedrin 98a]. Sender of the Geese quickly rose from his spot and roared out to the whole bath, “A fine messiah, Leybele Trotsky, curses upon him. Always one guy has much and another has nothing. The world cannot be equal.” “Oh ho, that's the thing,” says the first fellow. “Money must be abolished. Away with money.” “What?” says the old guy. “How would that be possible?”–“People will change,” yells the first fellow. “For instance, a tailor will give clothes to the shoemaker, who will give shoes in return. And you,” he says to Sender, “if you want to buy bread, you must bring a goose.”–Then Sender says, “And what will the gentile with his whiskers give you, who brings his barrels to the pharmacy at night, I ask you?”–and everyone started to laugh.

“You're right, Sender,” said Mordekhay Chayim Yos. “I'll be sure to ask Leybele Trotsky that question.”

Slowly the bathhouse emptied as the Jews, clean and refreshed, made their way home to welcome in the Holy Sabbath.

Many Jews lived in the Kingdom of Poland in 1795, before its final division escaped from Western Europe, persecution by the Crusaders, and later the cruel edicts of ruling governments. They made a living by leasing taverns from landowners and supplying liquor to dissolute farmers and estate owners. A few worked in farming.

[Page 26]

After Russia conquered Vohlin and Podolia during the reign of Catherine the Great, who declared that she did not want any services from the “enemies of Jesus,” the royal government passed punitive edicts against the Jews settled in those regions. In a particularly well-known edict passed in 1804, early in the reign of Alexander I, all Jews were exiled from the villages and strictly prohibited from working the land. In spite of the strict prohibition, a few Jews stayed in the villages, thanks to a special connection to some government officials or by somehow circumventing the law. During the pogrom period in southern Russia, known in history as the Southern Storms, Minister Ignatiev the Oppressor renewed the edict, forbidding Jews who escaped the pogroms to settle in villages and declaring that the west was open to them. Only Jews who had been living in the villages before 1882 were permitted to remain there. Alas, the local authorities did not respect this amendment, and many Jews were cruelly evicted from the villages. I am aware of two cases in which Jews officially lived in a village and were permitted to own and cultivate land.

(1) In Dregny village, Kremenets district, lived a Jewish family named Petsiukim, who worked their land like the other villagers. They were known in Kremenets as suppliers of dairy products, which they brought to town each Sunday. I heard the story of how they acquired this rare privilege from Mr. Moshe Fayer, of blessed memory. In the early 1850s, Czar Nicholas I went on a tour of Vohlin. It was fall when he and his entourage arrived in the area near Dregny^[3]. The roads were in bad condition and covered with sticky mud. The carriage in which the czar and his retinue traveled had sunk into the mud, and they could not continue their trip. One of the Petsiukims happened by, and he called some more farmers. With their help, he got the carriage out of the mud, enabling the czar to resume the trip. To thank him and show his appreciation, the czar rewarded Petsiukim with a written document commending the courteous deed. This document gave the Petsiukim family the privilege of residing in the village, owning land, and cultivating it in perpetuity. It is also said that whenever the czar visited Kremenets, he would surprise the writer RYB”L, with whom he corresponded, and when he saw him, he gave the traditional greeting for a ruler: “Blessed is the One who has given of His glory to flesh and blood.”

The second story is that in a region near the border of the Ostrog^[4] region, there was a large estate officially owned by a Jewish family known as Markus. My father told me how this family came to own the estate, and here is the story. A Jew named Moti Markus, who made a living by selling land for the local estate owners, lived near the estate.

[Page 27]

One day, a Russian officer with the rank of colonel came to the village and expresses an interest in the history of the village and its residents. After he met the Markus family, it was discovered that this officer was a cantonist^[5] who had been kidnapped as a young boy and taken into the army, and that he was Moti's brother. In the army, he converted to Christianity. Being a talented boy, he rose through the ranks of command and reached the rank of colonel. He still retained a spark of Judaism and longed for his Jewish origins and heritage. Now, after investigation and many searches, he had discovered the family from which he had been stolen, and he became close to it; he visited often, spoke with the children, and expressed his praise of the Jewish religion. He urged them to follow all the commandments of the Jewish faith, the simple as well as the difficult ones, and made sure that they prayed by telling them “Molitesi,” which means “pray.” Being well off, he purchased an estate near the village and appointed his brother Moti as administrator. One day while visiting his brother's home, he had a stroke and died. Now Moti had a problem with the burial ceremony. He took the problem to the rabbi, who decreed that it was his duty to accompany his brother to his last resting place. And so Moti walked behind his brother's casket among the priests, holding his hat in his hand, as they sang Pravoslavic burial prayers. As his brother's only heir, Moti became the estate owner, since according to the law, the right of inheritance of immovable property applied to Jews, too, and this privilege was given in perpetuity.

After Moti's death, his son Yosef Chayim inherited and lived on the estate, behaving in every way as noble, aristocratic estate owners do.

When the Riga agreement of 1920 established the borders between Soviet Russia and Poland, the estate was in the Russian area. Yosef Chayim immigrated to the Polish area as a refugee. I remember when he visited us while participating in a convention of estate owners who demanded compensation from the Polish government for their property, which had been given to the Russian government. In spite of all the harsh edicts, there were Jews who held onto the farming life generation after generation and even succeeded in owning large estates.

[Page 28]

September 1926

Today I went to the medical board in Jaffa and got lost. I must tell you that Tel Aviv has nothing to be ashamed of compared to other big cities. There was a huge wave of cars in the streets, as well as carriages and bicycles. Even Warsaw does not have such fine walls today. Before the walls, what really beautiful art works. They are beautiful in their variety. It's amazing that such a fine city sits on sand, with all the comforts of a modern European city, with sewers, electricity, and so on.

No matter how low you may feel, you'll be inspired when you hear the sounds of Hebrew. Even the Arabs use it, not to mention the young people who have grown up in the language. In the streets, actually, you also hear other languages. But this is a habit from home. Officially, people speak only Hebrew. Even in Arab Jaffa, the Arabs have to speak Hebrew. And since the police in Tel Aviv are Jewish, you know that, too. These policemen stand in the middle of the streets and direct traffic just like in Lviv or Warsaw. On Sunday, Jabotinski held a lecture in the People's House, and a thousand people attended. Many of them had no tickets.

Jerusalem 4/3/27

My precious days, weeks, and months rush by … It is now a half year since I left home and came to a new world, with new people, customs, and ways of life, and still I know little about it.

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By six in the morning, I'm already on my feet. At quarter to seven I leave my home and cut through streets and fields to Mount Scopus. This is a walk of four kilometers. Then begins the climb up the hill on the footpath. Around fields green with grain, shepherds drive sheep to pasture, and finally I arrive. At seven we begin to work. We are a group of five. In Malinin's operation–the cooperative discount establishment. Three of us were from Young Worker, and two were communists. We never “pulled each other's beards” (which would one day appear) over party affiliations. In general, we coexisted well. I will write more about our group. The group was called Firuk, which in Yiddish means “disassembly.” The building was one of the largest in Jerusalem. To give you an idea of the riskiness of the work, you should know that there were 1,500 meters of concrete in the foundation. Understand that every pound of material went through our hands. There were days when we would transport stones for building. It was like being in Dante's hell. It would take too long to describe this hard work. One thing I should stress is that all this work was a stage in construction. Naturally, at first, I fought with my whole being and my sweat flowed like a river, but I never fell behind. On the first day I stood with another fellow clearing a spot of stones. I worked wholeheartedly, and he said to me, “You'll be tired out by midday.” But such an idea is still strange to me. If someone gives me a job, I get right to it. I am used to the hardest work in the worst weather. In the winter there is rain and wind, real Mount Scopus winds that carry off our barracks.

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Jerusalem 12/4/1927

My dear ones: Everything is fine with me. In a month I will go to Kfar Saba, where I will work in “our” nursery, even though in Jerusalem I have enough work and earn a half pound a day (note that I work only three days a week). In addition, I make pictures for the university and get 3-4 pounds a month. And in Kfar Saba I will have to sweat for 20 piasters a day. But I don't care, because in the future I will triumph. If I had more time, I would describe it more. I have little time. I cannot talk about wasting it. Finally, I often travel around the country. Gvalt, I've already been here for over two years, and I haven't been to the “valley.” People climb the mountains and crawl in caves .… And what will it mean when you've seen everything? Will you be satisfied, you curious man!

The sets in flames. I hear a song from a tent. The trees sway together, Standing as if to pray the afternoon service. Mothers with strollers Stroll on the green roads, Impishly lure the stars From a blue sky with white snow. Quiet peace after a full day of work. A breeze stirs the leaves, like notes on a piano. I marvel at the kibbutz, And I see old Jews with rifles going on guard duty.

[Page 31]

We have often written about the moving letters from our landsmen abroad and in Israel that we receive after every new booklet.

We would like to present excerpts from all the letters, if space permitted. But we will present excerpts from a few of them. But we can say that all the letters are precious to us and give us encouragement in our work.

Fred Byk from Lincolnwood in the United States, after receiving Booklet 13, wrote:

Dear Landsmen,

I thank you much for sending me Kol Yotsei Kremenets. Your intention of memorializing our destroyed brothers and sisters in Kremenets shows that people can hack off the branches of a tree, but if the trunk is healthy, the branches will come out. We dare never forget the branches.

I remained alive by ignoring that the Germans had put a price on my head. But they never found me.

Now as the father of three fine Jewish children who are proud of their Yiddishkeit and of their beloved Israel … I hope in the near future to be with you.

Your true Efraim Byk and family.

[Page 32]

And Azriel Gorenshteyn writes to us from Paris:

… Sadly, I could not read everything in the booklet, because my poor knowledge of Hebrew would not allow me to. But what I read in Yiddish called forth tears. I saw before me my parents and relatives in their tragic end, and also I saw myself as if I were young and hopeful among my young friends in our old, beloved home. Congratulations to all of you for your holy and generous work ….

The other letters we received were in a similar spirit.

Excerpt from a letter from our member Velvel Shnayder, Detroit, America

5/11/77

… And now to the point, or to the points.

1. Relating to the library. A matter that is dear to us and should be dear to everyone. Let us all remember: funding an ambulance, planting a forest in the name of a destroyed city, or doing another great charitable deed is not exceptional nowadays; many cities have done so. We, however, have done something characteristic and appropriate for our Kremenets. With this, our city is unique, for I know of no other such case. Therefore, the RYB”L Library is dear to us. There will come a time of peace and quiet in Israel. In their peaceful lives, our children and grandchildren will surely seek their roots. And in this search for knowledge, for enlightenment, they will discover the RYB”L, and through the RYB”L–our destroyed city. So let us remember: Our pride will be their pride.

2. Relating to the books. Surely the library should be richer in books. It seems to me that under all circumstances, the library should send official letters to university libraries in different countries and tell them that the RYB”L Library was created for Enlightenment research, and we should ask them to send books in this specialized area as gifts, if they have extra copies. I would try 20 libraries in Germany, France, England, Holland, and the United States. This is not a fantasy. It is the custom in many libraries.
3. Relating to Kol Yotsei Kremenets. I propose that the booklets appear as regularly as possible. Kol Yotsei Kremenets should not be stopped. The booklets are a beautiful and important thread that ties together us Kremenetsers from around the world. They are the organization's pride and a good way for us to seek support from Kremenetsers, whether for the booklets or the library.

To the editors of Kol Yotsei Kremenets

Dear Landsmen,

On the occasion of the 10th publication of the Kol Yotsei Kremenets booklets, we send our heartiest congratulations, praise, and recognition of your efforts, exertions, generosity, and sincerity. We appreciate it, and we wish you long days and years so you can continue with the same enthusiasm and optimism. How poor we Kremenetsers would be if we did not have this bridge that unites us and gives us the ability to hear from each other and share our joys and sorrows, God forbid. Our greatest acknowledgment for those who do so much; all honor to our landsmen. Let us extend our hands to help them to the best of our ability and tell them: may your hands be strengthened.

Secretary Mordekhay Katz

[Page 34]

Booklet 12 contained a report on the RYB”L Library by Mr. Uzi Shavit, head of the Katz Institute for Research in Hebrew Literature at Tel Aviv University, and by Y. R. in the Mosaic section. Therefore, this report is for the two years 1975-1977. During that period, 70 more books were added, and now the library contains 1,400 books. In all, I£5,627 was paid for the newly acquired books, half by the Kremenets organization, and half by the university. The books are generally very rare, having to do with the Enlightenment period (1740-1900), which is what makes them so expensive. Even so, we see it as our obligation to acquire every book on Enlightenment literature that is available for purchase, as it may be years until that book is found again. At the same time, before a purchase, Professor Gedalyahu Alkoshi scrutinizes the list of books and decides which ones are suitable for purchase.

The RYB”L Library was established in 1964. Its first home was in the clubhouse of the Kremenets organization at the Kibbutzim College, but the books remained in their bookcase, unused. In March 1972, the library was moved to the Ben Tsion Katz Institute for Research in Hebrew Literature at Tel Aviv University, subsequent to an agreement between the organization and the university. Since then, an important development has ensued: the library is managed by the institute's scholars. And, most important, the books are being used by students in the university's Enlightenment Literature Department and by young Hebrew literature scholars at the university.

In October 1976, another change occurred. As it happened, this change caused a dispute between the two sides but ended well: books on Enlightenment literature are found not only in the university's RYB”L Library but in the central library as well, and in a much larger quantity. Having the same type of book in different locations was difficult for those for whom they were intended (students, researchers, librarians). The university rector demanded that the RYB”L Library, which was originally located in the book hall at the Museum of the Diaspora, be transferred to the main library's Hebrew literature section. At a joint discussion on October 21, 1976, the two sides agreed that there was no way to avoid moving the library to the main library's Enlightenment literature section. The uniqueness of the RYB”L Library, though, will be preserved by establishing a Kremenets Corner in that section. They placed a statue of the RYB”L there, with appropriate pictures of life in Kremenets (such as Levinzon Street, etc.) nearby. The decision was implemented within a few months.

[Page 35]

Nowadays, everyone from the wider community who comes to the Hebrew literature section is impressed with the Kremenets Corner. The members who helped arrange the corner – Argaman and the sculptor Yakov Epshteyn – are satisfied.

We take this opportunity to thank sculptor Yakov Epshteyn, a Kremenetser, who voluntarily initiated and executed the statue of RYB”L with great talent. He also monitored the casting. With added expenses, the cost was I£5,700. About I£2,000 was donated by a member who wishes to remain anonymous.

The master of ceremonies was Mr. Uzi Shavit, head of the Katz Institute for Research in Hebrew Literature at Tel Aviv University.

Dr. Gilboa opened the evening with a short review of RYB”L and the Enlightenment period in Russia and ended with words of thanks to the organizers of the Kremenets project:

“And so I want to give thanks to those who gave the prizes and to those who received them. Also, I thank Aviva Doron, who will lecture on an important project of the Enlightenment period. May they all be blessed.”

[Page 36]

Yitschak Rokhel

The thing that makes the Organization of Kremenets Emigrants so unique is that it concentrates on the establishment of two cultural projects that typify this community in particular, namely, a library for Enlightenment literature and a scholarship fund for research on Enlightenment literature. Both are named in honor of RYB”L, who was from Kremenets; it was he who brought the Enlightenment movement to Russia and was called “the Russian Mendelssohn.” Both projects are under the auspices of Tel Aviv University.

In the university library's Enlightenment section, the organization has also erected a statue of RYB”L. This is the third time that the fund has given awards to young scholars who specialize in the study and research of Enlightenment literature. So far the fund has accumulated I£104,000 (including interest and income after the Israel pound was attached to the dollar standard), and the prizes come from the fund's income, while the university invests the principal in securities.

In connection to the RYB”L memorial project, I will talk about two Kremenets Jews, both of RYB”L's generation: one was his student and admirer, and the second was his fierce opponent. I will talk about them and their grandchildren.

Maze ben Maze (Berakhot 28) was the literary pen name of R' Meshulam Katz, which was the acronym of his and his father's names (Meshulam Zev HaKohen ben Mordekhay Zalman HaKohen). He signed his articles in Hamelits^[6] and Hatsefira with this acronym. He grew up in the Hasidic movement, but from his youth, he was attracted to philosophy books. He joined Enlightened circles, perused Enlightenment literature, and was a student of and was influenced by RYB”L. At the same time, he was a loyal Zionist, and as soon as Herzl appeared, he joined the Zionist movement and served as a representative to the Sixth Congress. He sent his oldest son to Switzerland and Germany to study – a most daring thing in those days – where he graduated from the physics and mathematics faculties as Dr. Bentsion Katz. Sometime later, he served as principal of the Tarbut High School in Kremenets. Eventually he was killed as a member of the Judenrat. Meshulam's grandson is Mark Katz, a world-famous mathematics professor in the United States and a trustee of the Weitzmann Institute. He donated $5,500 to the scholarship fund, which is about half the amount accumulated by the fund.

In contrast to R' Meshulam Katz, I now introduce R' Tsvi Menachem ben Avraham (that is how he was called when he went up to read the Torah), but the townspeople knew him as Hirsh Mendil. His family name was Rokhel, or as pronounced in Kremenets, Roykhl, and people called his entire family “the Roykhls.” He was very wealthy and owned a paper factory. He was the ancestor of a large family tree, with branches throughout the world.

[Page 37]

His sons-in-law and other relatives all lived on Slovatski Street (named after the famous Polish author); they were a large family with about 40 grandchildren. He was tall and erect, with an imposing, wise, stern appearance. He both worked for the benefit of the community and forced his will on the community. He donated generously to various projects and demanded the same of others. A scholar and learned man who sometimes decided matters of Torah law, he was also a religious zealot who never gave in or compromised. Obviously, he hated the RYB”L, and when someone mentioned the name Levinzon in front of him, his reaction was to say, “The name of the wicked will rot” (Proverbs 10:7). He opposed Zionism and the Bund, as both drifted away from the Torah's strict ways.

The irony of fate is that one of his grandchildren – the one who stands before you – is working to commemorate the RYB”L by developing the library named for him and even helped erect a monument to his memory.

This is the story of two grandfathers, RYB”L's contemporaries – one his admirer, and the other his caustic opponent – and of their two grandsons, who each in his own way is working toward commemorating RYB”L.

I will close by mentioning the names of two of our outstanding members who had a hand in establishing the scholarship fund and raising funds for it: Pesach Litev, who passed away on May 23, 1975, and Dr. Yisrael Rabinovits, who passed away on December 7, 1975. May their memory be blessed.

And to the recipients of the scholarship award, we send our wishes for advancement and success.

I would like to express my thanks and the thanks of my partner (Mrs. Lili Ashkenazi), too, on this occasion. Certainly, each of us will do the best we can – each in our area and time – to prove that the scholarship has not been given to us in vain. And so we are thankful to the board for finding us worthy.

Even more so, it behooves us to thank the Organization of Kremenets Emigrants, which initiated and donated to the scholarship fund. Apparently, I am not mistaken to say that the idea for the scholarship was based on the opinion that encouragement should be offered – particularly in view of the tribulations and Holocaust that engulfed Jewish communities – for the continuation of Jewish culture in all its areas, as it is written, “It is a tree of life it is to those who hold on to it, and her supporters will be happy.”^[7]

It is good, then, that the organizers have penciled in for now a lecture by Mrs. Aviva Doron, who will bring together Jewish studies and one of the great Hebrews of the middle ages, R' Yehuda Halevi. Jewish studies tries to collect and store all the treasures of our cultural tradition by approaching it from a distance and with objectivity, which is its strength, but some say is also its weakness.

Jewish studies – the length of its period, the breadth of its scope, and the depth of its perusal – are still in need of much attention.

[Page 38]

There is a wealth of material waiting to be translated so that it can be integrated into the framework of the “Judaism” of our century as it is studied today in centers of learning and research, particularly in Israel and the United States. I hope we will be found worthy to be called “followers of the tradition of Jewish studies” – this time without the quotation marks.

The winners of the annual scholarships of I£3,000 each were:

1. Mr. Yedidya Peles for his work “A Scientific Edition of Poems by Bachye Ibn Bakuda”
2. Mrs. Lily Ashkenazi for her research on the periodical Hakarmel, edited by Shmuel Yosef Fin (1818-1890)

[Page 39]

In 1928, both sisters emigrated to Canada, where they worked in Winnipeg as cashiers in a theater.

Feyge leaves behind her only sister, Leye.

I have a duty to mention their brother Pinchas, of blessed memory, who, in his time as a student, played an important role in the underground work of the revolutionary young people in Kremenets. He left Kremenets for Russia long before the Poles occupied our city.

[Page 40]

His nephew, our landsman Max Desser, had long planned to see him. Finally in 1968, when Max and his wife came to Moscow from Canada and found his home, it was all closed up. After they had rung the bell for a long time, a neighbor came out and told them that he (the neighbor) had just come from “the engineer Pinchas Goldberg's funeral ….”

May his memory be blessed.

When World War II broke out, he was called up for the Polish army. After some time, he fought in the ranks of the Red Army.

In 1944 he visited the ruins of Kremenets, and seeing no future there, went to Odessa. There he married and had a family. Every year he would go with some Kremenetsers–Misha Fridman, Tolye Fishman, Gluzman–to visit his family's graves.

Until his death, Berel maintained Jewish traditions and always dreamed of coming to Israel.

[Page 41]

Once, by accident, Berel was walking on the street in Odessa and met the ambassador from Israel, our landsman Yosef Avidar, and his wife. Avidar recognized his former schoolmate. Avidar gladly accepted Berel's invitation to his home.

In 1964, Chane Goldenberg, on a trip to Russia, visited his home twice. His emotions cannot be described.

In his letters to us he wrote that these visits were the happiest hours of his life.

Max, unlike his brother Nachum, of blessed memory, was indifferent to his family in the old home and distant from Jewish community life in Chicago, where both brothers lived.

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