rtcuroHD mail tbiduwe, medfohd, OREGON THURSDAY, APRIL 1. 1(63 g 3
Jew Tells of Final Nazi Liquidation Warsaw Ghetto
(Editors nott: Twenty
years ago, on April 19,
1943, Ihe Naris began iheir
"final liquidation" of ihe
Warsaw ghetto. Three
months earlier they had set
about wiping it out but had
been delayed by the first
organized resistance on the
part of the desperately op
pressed Jews. Few Jews
who fought that last de
spairing battle lived to tell
of it. This is the story of
one who did.)
By BERGMAN BORG
As Told To
United Press International
Warsaw-WPII-At first there
were about 500,000 of us pack
ed inside those Rhetto walls.
None could leave without the
risk of being shot. At the end
there were perhaps 60,000,
and with few exceptions they
died, too, in gas chambers.
Twenty years later it is not
in me to bring it all back.
But I will tell you the facts.
In the beginning, the Nazis
divided the area into two sec
tions, the ghetto proper and
an industrial section. German
firms ran the work programs.
I worked as a tailor making
uniforms for the German
army. The work was compul
sory and brought no privil
eges. It was work, when or
dered, or be shot.
The official food ration for
each Jew was about three
loaves of bread, some pota
toes, turnips and jam each
TOPS IN QUALITY!
LOW IN PRICE
month. As time went on peo
ple died by the hundreds of
lunger and disease.
One day a public notice ap
peared saying we would all
be leaving the ghetto. The no
tice promised us we would
be moved to some better
place.
Many Volunteer
At first some people believ
ed it and many volunteered
to be the first to move. Those
who showed reluctance were
caught by police on the streets
and forced into trucks that
rumbled out of the ghetto.
About 10,000 persons were
forced each day from their
families-husbands from their
wives and mothers from their
children.
A few weeks after the first
truck left, we learned where
they went - to the gas cham
bers of the extermination
camp in the forest of Tre
blinka. Go on Trucks
I have reason to remember
where they went. My wife,
my son and my father died
there. On Aug. 20, 1942, I
came home from my work
and they were not there. They
had gone on the trucks. I
never saw them again.
SS Chief Heinrich Himmler
paid a personal visit to the
ghetto early in January, 1943.
and reprimanded his local
lieutenant. SS Brigade Fueh
rer Juergen Slroop, for foot-
dragging in the extermination
program. About 70,000 Jews
still remained in the ghetto
and Himmler wanted them
"resettled'' at once. Stroop,
according to captured docu
ments, told Himmler that the
German army, reeling from
the loss of Stalingrad, had
monopolized most means of
transportation. But he prom
ised "special action."
Enters Ghetto
Such was the situation
when a Jew named Josaphat
Lewartowski appeared in the
ghetto. He brought word that
the Polish Workers' party
(Communist) had been found
ed and that he was its central
committee's emissary. I had
been a Communist before the
war and after Lewartowski's
coming I helped begin organ
izing groups of four or five
to fight by means of sabotage.
We organized political in
struction and military train
ing. Lewartowski's role came
to an end when one day he
was pushed onto one of the
Treblinka-bounn trucks, bui
there were others to take his
place.
The Communists were not
I the only secret resistance
group in the ghetto. There
were many others, and we
decided we had to unify in
order to fight. We set up the
"Jewish Fighting Organiza
tion" under the command of
Mortheim Anielewicz.
Store Arms
We began storing arms and
ammunition. We bought some
from Poles outside the ghetto,
including Polish policemen.
And some from German sol
diers. We also got arms from
the Polish Workers party. We
ambushed Nazi SS patrols for
their arms. We made bombs
out of tin boxes and bottles.
We dug bunkers, and honey
combed the ghetto with tun
nets from one house to an
other. On Jan. 18, 1943. a large
group of SS men entered the
ghetto to finish the job of
liquidation. For the first time
they faced organized resist
ance and for three days fight
ing went on. The Germans
finally retreated because of
heavy losses. But many of us
had been killed or wounded,
too.
Come Back
We knew they would come
back - and better prepared
next time. We organized into
larger units stationed in va
cant ghetto houses. We in
creased patrols. We watched
and waited.
Stroop, the brigade fuehrer,
sent 2,000 of his crack SS
forces into the ghetto. They
The Family Council
Editor's not: The Family Council conilsti ot a Judge, a
phyi'hUtrlft, three clergymen, three editors and a women's editor.
Each article u a summary of a family disagreement presented to the
Council. The Council deals with problems, major and minor,
encountered by guidance counselors and social workrrs. Edited by
Mrs. Alma Denny. (Copyright by General Features Corp.)
Marie W. - She should let
him come to New York alone.
Elaine A.-I wouldn't dream
of letting him travel alone.
Mam W.-My brother lives
in Florida and I live in New
York with our parents. We'd
counted on a visit from him
and his family at Eastertime
because their 12-year-old son
whom we haven't seen for two
years had a 10-day vacation.
His parents make several trips
nnrth a war nn hn;inpc:
Well, we were sadly disap
pointed because Chippy went
on a Scout encampment in
stead. We've as-ked him up for
2 weeks when school lets out.
He can travel alone. Lots of
kids do.
Elaine A.-I don't care what
other kids do. I know my son,
and I'm not putting him on a
bus, as Marie suggests, to go
to New York alone. And we
can't make another trip to
bring him so soon after this
one. It's hard to make our
plans coincide with his vaca
tions. Chippy loves New York
and really wants to accept his
grandparents' standing invita
tion. But he'd have to be at
least 16 before we'd consider
letting him travel alone. He'd
lose his money or his way.
a
The Council: Let's hope the
Scout toughening program can
win out with Chippy over his
mother's swaddling closeness.
She's far behind in her duty
of preparing her son to take
full responsibility for his so
cial behavior, by age 16 when
a htpful of new rights and
privileges descends upon him.
A child psychiatrist. Dr. Jer
ome L. Schulman, claims that
a normal time-table would
have a boy of 9 making 50 per
cent of all decisions affecting
his daily life - such as how
much milk to drink, what to
wear, how to handle his al
lowance, when to do home
work. If Elaine had been set
ting the proper groundwork
for self-sufficiency. Chippy
might now - even at 12 - be
ready to try a solo trip with
enough poise and self-possession
not to get lost or even
flustered. We don't approve
of pushing a child. But neither
can we condone "ploughing
under" what's ready to grow.
How many would-be oaks are
metamorphosed by over-protective
parents Into hothouse
plants?
had tank;;, artillery and flame-
throwers. Stroop confidently
' advised Himmler the job
would be done in three days.
we saw the tanks come
rumbling in, They came for
our final liquidation. I knew
it. We all knew it. I was in
t the resistance fighting group
commanded by Hcnryk Kawe.
We had '2'A such units number
ing altogether a few thousand.
Our general staff under
Mortheim Anielewiez'i com
mand operated from a bunker
in MUa street. My group work
ed from a hou.se at 74 Leszno
street.
Open Fire
' We attacked first. We open
ed heavy fire on SS troops
marching toward the center
of the ghetto. We inflicted
big losses but finally had to
retreat back to the house in
Leszno street.
Meanwhile fighting broke
out in other streets. Before
it was over everyone fought,
induding women and small
children. Those who had no
guns or bombs were throwing
stones. From buildings wom
en poured boiling water on
charging Nazi soldiers.
Three days went by and
Himmler became furious at
Stroop's delay in finishing the
action. Stroop reported how
Jewish women were firing
pistols with both hands and
hiding grenades in their
bloomers. On the fifih day
Himmler ordered "the great
est severity'' and Stroop de
cided to burn down the whole
ghetto.
The SS troops began burn
ing the ghetto houses one by
one, using flamethrowers. We
fought on, but we could not
stop the flames.
Houses Burn
It became difficult to es-
Members of the
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Urge you not to miss
the exciting
Pear Blossom Festival
and the
6th Annual Crater Lions
PARADE
SATURDAY
The big parade will begin at the
Shopping Center parking area
promptly at 2:30 p. m. Saturday
. , , will proceed south on Haw
thorne to East Main, then west
on Main to Medford's Library Park
opposite the Courthouse. Be sure
to bring the youngsters . . . they
won't want to miss this colorful
and exciting parade either!
A Full Weekend
of Fun and Frolic
Friday - Saturday - Sunday
At the Medford Armory
A wonderful BENEFIT FAIR you won't want to mist!
Hobby and home exhibits - sporting event - faahion
shows - stte entertainment carnival fun games
art exhibits - square dancing - rides - science exhibits!
. . . and, Remember--
Parades, Fairs and excitement takes energyl So, bo
sure you and your family have plonty of milk on hind
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events You never outgrow your need for MILK.
DRINK AT LEAST 3 GLASSIS OF MILK IVHY DAYI
CO-ORDINATED MILK SALES
cape from the burning houses
The pavement got so hot it
burned the feet and set our
clothes afire. Countless peo
pie jumped to death from
upper floors of their build
ings, choosing such a death
In preference to being burned
alive.
In his reports, Nazi Briga
dier Stroop reported on the
jumpers. "With their bones
broken, they still tried to
crawl across the street into
buildings which had not yet
been set on fire. The Jews
and bandits often preferred
to return into the flames than
risk being caught by us . . ,"
The survivors of my unit
withdrew to the bunker in
Leszno street. Several days
14 of us stayed there feeling
the heat of the burning house
over our heads. But we still
managed to keep up some fir
ing from the rubble.
Stroop reported to Himm
ler "More blocks of buildings
were burned down. This is
the only and final method
which forces this trash and
subhumanity to the surface."
Try Drowning
The enemy saw us shooting
from the Leszno street bunk
er. They had tried fire. Now
they used water, trying to
drown us. They pumped wa
ter into our cellar bunker for
three days.
Luckily we had good drain
age. Somehow it still was
working. It saved our lives.
On May 8 Anielewicz and
his command post in Mlla
street was wiped out. We
knew that meant the end.
Those of us in Leszno street
waited some time and then
took an underground passage
under the wall. But as soon
as we emerged, waiting Ger
mans seized us. We were tak
en back to the ghetto and i Glieilo Is No More." He waa . Instead of being gassed, I
then sent on trucks to Tre- j hanged after the war on the was picked among a very few
blinka. site of the ghetto. Borg, now from the ghetto for a work
Final resistance ended about j 56. ended the war at the ex- gang. I was still strong enough
a week later. Stroop titled termination camp, from which to work, and that Is why I
his final report "The Warsaw I he was liberated. am alive.
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