I wrote the following piece after the destruction of the Disna Ghetto, in an hour in which I was depressed, broken, homeless, roaming through forests and fields: naked and barefoot, suffering from hunger; lying soaked in heavy rain; and not just once shot by the German parasites. At that time I felt a sacred obligation to sketch the horrible events which befell the innocent Disna Jews, who fell as martyrs.
No more Disna, no more our home, no more our father and mother, no more our brother and sister; no more our lovely, dear, hearty children. A great holocaust has come upon them! The day of there holy downfall: the first day of Tammuz-- should be, for all our countrymen, a day of great sorrow. On its anniversary all our countrymen should tell their children and grandchildren everything that happened to their brothers and sisters; that great suffering was brought upon us Jews and that they cruelly murdered Jews just because they had been born Jews.
Disna was an attractive city, well furnished with trees. The streets wide, smooth, clean. With buildings build of red brick. In Disne there were two boulevards with tall trees, with lovely flowers along the side paths. The boulevards stretched along the Dvina. In the boulevards many Jews, men, women and children, merchants, workers and intellectuals, would all cme. They would come to rest a bit and to sop up some fresh air.
But also Jewish schoolchildren would come from the Polish and Russian schools to read a book, and would prepare themselves for their examinations: playing chess, dominoes, croquet, and tennis.
On a sabbath or a holiday the boulevards were particularly charming. The children with their parents would come looking their best to rest from the worries of a whole week, and to breathe deeply.
In the boulevards in the evenings there would often be a dance with music. Then the boulevards would be lit up with lamps of different colors.
In Disna there were two high schools: a Polish and a Russian. The greater part of the Jewish children in Disna and the surrounding region completed the Polish high school, continued their studies in colleges and
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wound up as doctors, lawyers, teachers etc.
The Jewish cooperative public bank did very well in Disna, and carried out a lot of business. The bank helped both the large and small merchants very much to develop their enterprises. The poor merchants would get a long term loan in the band to be paid in instalments. The head of the bank was my father, Reb Shamrihu-Zalman Yafeh of beloved memory.
Reb Shamrihu-Zalman Yafeh of beloved memory was an intelligent and educated man: a Jew -- a capable student. He knew dozens of pages of the Gemara by heart, was lucid in the Mishnah, knew on what page it was written. He did not need to look. Would take down the Gemara and point at once. Great students of wisdom admired his powerful memory, deep understanding and clear explanations. Every evening he would explicate a page of Gemara before a large public.
Reb Shamrihu-Zalman Yafeh of blessed memory was knows to be a clever Jew. He would receive many letters every day from various places, in which he would be asked about what is not good, or to give advice. Reb Shamrihu-Zalman Yafeh of blessed memory would look into the matter proprely and then give an answer on the spot, for which he would later receive a letter of thanks. Such letters of thanks filled up a special file.
Reb Shamrihu Zalman Yafeh of blessed memory was a great supporter of Zionism. He helped a good deal in collecting money for the Keren-Hakayement l'Yisrael, and gave not a little for the purpose.
Reb Shamrihu Zalman Yafeh of blessed memory was a Lubavitcher chasid. In his youth Shamrihu Zalman Yafeh of blessed memory was a great wood merchant.
There was a Jewish community. The president of the community was Reb Shamrihu Zalman Yafeh of blessed memory. The community administration had the income from the meat tax. Among other things the burial of the dead was the responsibility of the reb. The talmud-torah, giving support for various social institutions, also the poor, sick or unfortunate Jews.
In Disna there was a magistrate. A great number of his advisor were Jews. The lavonik (?) of the magistrate was Rabbi Reb Shamrihu Zalman Yafeh of blessed memory. The representative of the vice mayor was the Jewish teacher from the high school - Ares.
Shmuel Katzenelbogen was a talented man, knew 16 languages and was an enthusiastic Zionist. Was in Eretz Yisrael, but couldn't stay because of his father's illness. As the eldest child he had to carry on his father's business. He had been called home and stayed.
Large and beautiful farms belonged to Benyamin Kalmanovich and Dan Kalmanovich. They were inherited from their father the lawyer.
Also Mordechai Katzin, Leib Dimentstein, Moshe Bimbad, Aharon Yazmir, Yitzchak Yazmir, Yosef Glezer, Shlomo Katzin, Yisrael Glezer had farms. The mill belonged to Moshe Bimbad.
There were 8 bet midreash in the citye, where one would daven or study. Disna was a chasidic city, with many chasidim.
The days of shabbat and holidays were particularly nice. All Jews would go nicely dressed to daven. They wore there nicest and best clothes, and a special holilness and calm were felt throughout the city.
One of the strongest and best known organizations in Disna was the "Hachalutz" (pioneers). The youth of Hachalutz were active in all areas of communal life. The Hachalutz helped a great deal to prepare the youth for aliyah to Israel and many from among the youth of Disan when off to Eretz Yisrael.
In Disna there were also: "Betar"; the "Bund"; and democrats. But these were smaller and weaker orgznizations. There was also an underground communist organization, where Jewish youth were also active, who because of their
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activities landed in the "tower" and sat there for a number of years. Others were expelled across the border (the Dvina) becauseof their activities. They were arrested there, because they were taken for Polish spies. So the organization did not hold together long and fell apart.
THere was also a circle for charitable purposes. The leader of the circle was Alexander Gafung. He devoted a lot of time and energy to the circle, which would often produce evenings for sick Jews.
The outbreak of the Second World War between Germany and Poland
Disna was unexpectedly shocked by the German attack on Poland, and without regard to the fact that Disna was far from the German border the noise was already great in the first days. Many Jewish youths were mobilized. The Polish authorities took to requisitioning shoes, textiles, canned goods etc.
People started to run to the PKA-bank to take out their savings, which were not returned to them. The population had already taken provisions of essential goods. The prices increased from minute to minute.
There were a lot of people Around the radio speakers !!hilkhers. The German advances and destroys many cities. Also on the railway line there was a huge turmoil. Many of the mobilized soldiers were begin sent to the front.
Men took their leaves of their families. Who knows, whether it is forever. Women and children are wracked by sobs. The men are horribly disturbed and tears flow from their eyes.
For private parties there is no longer any place on the train. The situation turns even more and more serious.
On the next day there is already sad news about the destruction of many citiesin Poland, the German goes on and takes many Polish cities. There were many civilians killed. The tension rises from minute to minute.
Sonday the third of September it was heard on theradio that France and England have declared war on Germany. National flags were hung out and it was estimated that Poland would soon wni. But in reality it had no significance. The German came on.
Panic became somewhat more pronouncedin Disna. Shooting had been heard, closer from day to day. There had been warnings of air attacks. In the courtyards barrels of water were stored and fire extinguishers. On the attics sand had been spread. Others got in gas masks.
The first day of Rosh Hashanah
When all Jews were in the bet-midrashim a siren was heard suddenly. People started to run to look for a place to stay, but soon it was quiet.
In ten days roughly Jewish refugees reached Disna. They related that the German was killing not only on the front, but was destroying weak and unarmed civilians.
The Soviet Union occupies Disna
In the time when we were terrified by air attacks and the news about what the Germans were doing to the civilian Jewish population, a rumor spread that the Sovie Union was getting ready to move across the border.
Disna lies on the border. My husband of blessed memory and I would often go to our farm "Lipovke", which is on the shore of the Dvina. And now
we noticed that in Slobode there was suddenly a large forest and the forest was moving closer to the Dvina every day.
Early Sunday, the 17th of September 1939, the Soviet military was across the river and had occupiedthe city of Disna. As was learned later, the Soviet power had brought tall trees to Slobode and there were armed troops behind the trees.
Soon we heard Molotov saying on the radio that as the Germans were going and taking Polish territory and committing massacres there, and the Polish government had abdicated, leaving the state in a horrible position, in order to save Byelorussia from the murderous German hands, the red army was going to free Byelorussia. And so it was. In those days the war ended for western Byelorussia.
Some weeks later--day and night--Soviet troops went through Disna toward the west. The force was seen to be very large. One had hardly seen anyone on foot.
THe danger of war was truly over for us. But with the political situation thereby created new problems arose for the Disna Jews as a result of the Soviet system. The Jews, who until then had been occupied in trade, had to move into governmental positions. Private businesses had been liquidated. The rich had had their possessions nationalized. Also the large houses had been nationalized and some proprietors sent away. Those who had farms -- they had had even their crops and animals taken.
In the end we adjusted to it as if nothing had changed. Other Jews went away.
The year 1839/40 was very harsh and cold. Jewish refugees had started to arrive in Disna from occupied German cities. They would steal across the border and go to Soviet territory.
In winter 1940 a German commission came to Disna to exchange refugees with the Soviet Union. Jewish homeless from Poland registered to come back to their homes. They were tired of wandering in strange lands. They had not imagined what awaited them there, by the German. But to thir good fortune rather than sending them back to the Germans in Poland the Russians sent them back to Russia. Thanks to that they avoided a horrible death by German murderes. In truth, they thought themselves unfortunate. But if had pleased God the same had happened to more Jews, they would also have remained alive.
The outbreak of the Second World War between Germany and the Soviet Union
Notwithstanding the peace treaty signed by Germany and the Soviet Union, on Sunday the 22nd of June 1941, quite unexpectedly it was announced on the radio that Germany had murderously and without cause attacked the Soviet Union and had already managed to bombard a few cities such as Kiev, Zhitomir, and Bialystok.
The news shook everyone up horribly. In the city disorder was created. Essential goods were soon gone and even for a great deal of money one could get nothing. Communications with other cities was interrupted. The post office and telegraph were closed.
The 23rd of June many airplanes started to appear ovr Disna. It was a warm and still night. In the evening one could hear distant shooting from artillery. Many Russian troops then came through Disna. During the 24th of June they were already running back, many of them without rifles or helmets.
Autos and wagons, laden with goods,
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women and children ran through Disna without stopping.
The 25th of June 1941 the Soviets started to remove the archives from the military commisariat !!Voyenkamat in Disna and the panic was very great. The Jews, Soviet employees, started to run off. Some managed to take something with them, others ran off as they were.
The panic grew from minute to minute. Jews ran up and down, not knowing what to do. Men lost their families. Yosef Cohan, who was working in Vilejka then, ran from Vilejka to Disna to his family, and his family ran to him in Disna from Vilejka. The same thing happened with Shlomo Kupperman and his family.
Many were separated in Disna itself: Moshe Rozet and his son Yitzhak ran off to Slobode and his wife with her daughter Dvorah was to follow later, but never managed. And so thew were separated forever.
The authorites had claimed that Disna would not be given over to the German, and if so -- then for just a couple of days.
Jews started to run off to the villages, thinking that the villages would not be bombarded. Many Jews foresaw that a great battle would take place in Disna, because Disna lay on two rivers and so one should leave Disna, but for various reasonas they could not escape.
In Disna there was no railway and the link to the railway was a very bad one. Some ran off and turned back. It was said that there were already German troops on the roads.
The Christians too started to get ready for the entry of the Germans and put icons in their windows. They knew very well that the German murderers would first rob the Jewish houses.
Some days before the Nazis were in the city, they bombarded it and from the first bombs there were many killed: Yitzhak Abramson, a soldier, who stood on guard in the Military Commisariat next to Sarah Lifshitz' building, and many people were wounded. Yosef Genz' daughter was badly wounded. Sarah Lifshitz' building was badly damaged.
The city remained without a government and the Christians started to rob the cooperative, the kindergarden, the businesses and houses, from which the proprietors had fled.
Christians came into Shlomo Kupperman's house through the window and took everything they could. Among the robbers was Fietke Kukel. A bomb fell and killed him.
The 28th of June when the firing took up again, we gathered together the most essential things and went over into our cellar. Our nearby neighbors also came down to our cellar with their families: Yakov Abramson with his family; Chane Machinson with her two daughters, Vuske and Reye; Feige Bliachman with her husband and children, Leibe Kluft; Fayvish Dlugin with his family; Slave Mindlin, the teacher; Mordechai Zelig Sushkevich and family; Shcharanski with his wife and two children; Hirsh Shulman with his wife Bela and children; Nachum Shushkevich and wife Sonia, Ashri's wife; Aharon Grunis with his family ; Leib Nyevnyanski; Volf Grinshpan; Saprinove, the teacher, with her child; Iser Segal, with his wife and children; Bimbad the furrier from the marked (the grandfaher of Hofmann); Barkan with his family and also poor Christians from the neighborhood with their wives and children.
There were 50 to 60 people gathered in our cellar. Regardless of the fact that it was a great crown, it was very quiet in the cellar. Even the small children, who were shaken and
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were listening to every whistle of a bullet, were silent.
Until late in the evening, artillery shells exploded in the city. When it was quiet, we went out to take a look in the street, what was going on in the city. Disna was full of smoke and sulfur. It was not possible to breathe and there were no people to be seen in the streets.
Many cellars fell in, and the people in them were buried. They tried to dig them out, but the work was useless. Other cellars were burned together with the people in them. Among the burned, there was Mendel Gildin and his daughter.
In the morning the Germans again began to throw bombs. A whole day the bombs fell and thecity burned on all sides. When Hendel Abramsons house started to burn, the fire came over to our house. We listened to hear whether the house would fall in on the celler. In the cellar it had become very hot and it was impossible to breathe, and we were afraid, that the colonnade of the cellar would fall in on us. Then we all went over from the second cellar to the first, which was closer to theexit. We started to pour water on the iron door.
In the evening the shooting stopped and we came out of the cellar. The whole city had been burned, there were no streets. Disna looked like a big field without streets, without houses and also no people could be seen. Some placesone saw a fire, where a last wall of a house was burning.
A few days earlier Disna had still been a city with large beautiful buildings, with broad streets, with people, and now ... nothing to recognize. Fear and terror come. One thinks, this is not Disna, it is nothing but a dream. I cannot not get used to the idea that this actually happened.
The other side of the Disienke was not at all burned. But the iron bridge was damaged by the bombs. At that time we were still naive and we did not imagine the horrible times that we experienced later.
The 2nd of July 1941, German officers and soldiers were seen, arriving on mechanized transport. Many, many prisoners, hardly able to keep on their feet, were brought into the cloister. Many of them were Jews. They stood in the street and begged for a piece of bread, a potato. But to give a prisoner a piece of bread was punishable by death.
Vuske Machinson threw a piece of bread to a prisoner and a German noticed it at once. He did not catch her, and ran after her. She managed to escape from him and stayed alive.
The same day, when the Germans took Disna, a car stopped next to our cellar and two Germans came in, tall, young. They told everyone to leave the cellar for the courtyard. The Germans began to appropriate everything, turning over everyone's things. What they liked, they took off with them.
In a couple of hours other officers came. Again they ordered everybody out of the cellar. Again turned over everyone's packs, asked where we had our arms. When we said that we had no weapons, they took everything they wanted, so a few times a day they came into the cellar.
At Chaim Gutkin's in the cellar a Nazi officer beat all the Jews there with his whip, because he tripped on a step in the cellar. The step was broken.
The 8th of June two German officers came down into our cellar and seeing my father's (obm)
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beard, one of them grabbed him by the beard and wanted to rip itout. I ran up to father obm. but then I got a sharp knock ont he head with the whip and I was covered with blood. From that time on my father obm took to going around with his beard wrapped up, as if his teeth hurt him, so that they would not notice his beard.
The 14th of July the Germans drove out all the men from the cellar and they were told to go out to the square by the Russian cloister. Everyone was put into a row. From the row some were told to go right and some left. Those were on the right side were put in a row and shot. From the 10 men who were shot there were 7 Jews and 3 Christians.
The Jews were: Yechiel Greiniman's two sons, Iser Vaksmachers son Mordechai; Michal Vaksmacher's son Izie; Shcharanski, who had a business in writing materials; Leib Kluft and Fayvush Dlugin.. Yechile Greiniman came up with a shovel and with his own hands buried his two sons. Also Iser Vaksmacher buried his own son.
The panic in Disna was very great. Jews ripped their clothing, the hair from their heads. It it hard to imagine, what was done by the Disna residents.
The murderers said afterward that they had shot the ten men because they had ripped up the telephone cable. But in reality the telephone cable was not even moved.
To meet a German in the street became very dangerous. Chatzkel Nigdin was going through the garden. A German saw him, took out his pistol and shot him. Leib Ne=yevnyanski met a German not far from his building. The German told Nyevnyanski to take off his clothes and dance naked. After that he told him to run back and forth in the street, till he had him at the command post, where he was terribly tortured and shot afterward. A German met Feige Blachman in the street. He took her away to the Kishkurina's house, which is next to our building. (The building was not burned up.) The Germans demanded that she say where the Jews had their golden items and their weapons, and beat her terribly.
Every day the German murderers brought Jewish corpses to Ikhshkuin's house: Chanankinds daughter; Dormann's son, and others. Such corpses were plentiful in Disna. The honest Jewish children have gone through a great deal. Some could not bear the suffering and wanted to kill themselves.
The 22nd of July a German came to us in the cellar and ordered me, Shcharanski's wife and Rive Abramson to go with him. He brought us to Gushche's in the building and told us to clean it up and wash it down. Soon we had taken up the work, but he had given us nothing to clean with. When the German came back and saw that the work was not finished and we were still cleaning, he took out the whip and no blow missed us. with.
The 3rd of August the Nazi power gave an order, that all Jews from the houses and cellars should gather off in the Ghetto. In the Gheeto they had also gathered the Jews from the surrounding towns, such as: Yazne, Mikoleyev, Volkove etc. In the ghetto only those who had been Jews for 5 generations could go.
At first the Germans wanted to make the ghetto in a little street next to the iron bridge. Many Jews had already brought their packs but seeing that it was in the city and the place was too small
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they gave an order that the Jews should gather in Zadisienke, on bouth sides of the houses in Polotsk Street, going left from the bridge. Like herring in a barrel they pressed us all together, three to five families in one apartment. Going into town was strictly forbidden under the threat of death. On the iron bridge there was a guard, who controlled things strictly.
Soon after taking Disna the Germans designated Sergei Solntsev as mayor. His first oder was that every family, independently of it size, could have just 20 kilos of flour, breat, or grain. The rest must be given to the magistrate within a couple of hours. His second order was that all residents must have passes. The color of the passes was different, depending on the nationality. The Jews had light yellow passes. For failure to obey the laws the death penalty threatened. Everything was was written down with great meticulousness.
The population had hauled the goods collected up to the magistrate, stood in a long line, and was satisfied that they had been expropriated without any compensation.
Soon after the Nazis took Disna, they started driving the Jews to work. The Jews were exhausted by this work, beaten for no reason. The oder for slave labor was for men from 14 to 60 years old and for women from 16 to 50. To carry out the work punctiliously was the responsibility of the local Christian police: Sviniarski was the chief of police, Tcheshik Chasinievich , Zinke Vrublievski, Lipove Galagavski, Zivara. In three weeks roughly there was an order from the German authority that all Jews -- young and old, including children -- should wear yellow bands (patches) on the right shoulder, breast, and sleeve of their outer clothing, to distinguish them from the non-Jewish population.
It was also announced that it was forbidden for Jews to use the sidewalk. One should not reply to their greetings. Jews were outlaws. Their life is outside the law. For shooting a Jew there was no punishment.
As one had given the degraded Christians this liberty, they were generally well avenged on us. At the beginning the Jews would try to find protection from the older German officers. But seeing that the Germans laughed at them, the Jews were very depressed.
In a short time after the occupation of Disna there was an order that Jews were forbidden to buy food from peasants. In the Disna shops there was lacking salt, kerosene, matches, tobacco and other goods. Needy Christians would come into town, stand a whole day in line, to get a little salt, a small pack of tobacco, or kerosene. They would bring into the town chickens, furs, honey, milk and other goods, hardly to be found in the shops. They would beg for some kerosene, salt, or tobacco from the city Christians. It would also happen quite often that the Germans would take their furst, or honey, for their own use and give the peasants a note, or pay with money according to the official price. So that the Christian would go home without any salt and without anything.
The Jewish Community: The Jewish Council
In the Disna ghetto there was a Jewish Council (Judenrat). The main representatives on the Jewish Council were: Efraim Gordan and Nachum Rochlin. The chief of the Jewish police was Ber Vayspapir, The dudy of the Jewish Council was to carry out the orders and regulations of the occupying Nazi power relative to the Jewish population. The Jewish Council had organized and also selected the Jewish workers for the Germans and olso for the Christian population. The Jewish Council had authority. From which one
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would get a better or worse assignment. Also the Jewish Council divided up the food that was distributed to the Jewish population.
In this connection it got a lot of workers and the office of the Jewish Councili was constantly full of people and a lot of chaos. Professionals, like cobblers, tailors, sewers, hairdressers and others worked for the personal use of the German rulers. They would had new clothes and boots from those stolen from the Jewish merchants.
The workers, who worked on the labor site, would often be envious of the professionals. They figured that the professionals might be left alive. In addition the work on the labor site was very hard and dangerous. In particularone would beat the men heavily for no reason. They were sent to break bricks from the burned houses for no purpose, just so that the Jews should always be busy with some kind of hard work. During the work a brick would often fall and kill a Jew, as happened with Zalmand Abramson (Krele's son) during slave labor: a basket fell and killed him.
They would send the Jewish workers to clean the snow by the railway line. The Jewish workers would often fall in the water there, or in a deep hole, covered with snow, and would work with frozen feet, and as a result beocme lame in their whole body, as happened to Chaim Levin and other workers. After this work Levin never left his bed.
The Jewish workers would be sent to break the ice on the river. The ice was thin and the Jewish workers would fall in the river, as happened to Chideklen, whom the workers pulled out of the water with great difficulty.
In the Disna ghetto there were two Jews who had Christian wives. One was Fortovich, who had a wine and brandy business in Disna, and the other was Hirsh, Moshe the kettelmaker's son.
On the 1st of September, as usual, the lessons started in school. All the Christian children went to study in the school, on the other side of the river, outside the ghetto. But for the Jewish childern studying was forbidden. The Jewish children, from 14 onward, went to slave labor. The small children saw at first with great disquiet, that the Christian children were going to school and studying. But then they were told: "What can we learn now? How can one try to study, when any day they can kill us all? We should rather see how to remainalive. Only how to stay alive, that is now the biggest question."
It is hard to convey what how horrible the feelings of the Jewish children were.
The 13th of October 1941, there was Simchat Torah on Monday and Tuesday, my father obm got a note from the Gluboker rabbi Katz obm in which Rabbi Katz obm wrote: "We Jews have fallen into a very bad swamp and I do not know if we will"
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"be able to get out of it". My father obm had passed around the note doing his davnening. All the Jews knew about it and came to ask if it was right that we had fallen. To which my father obm would answer: "Perhaps America will take us, or another land. But we cannot rely on this miracle. We should seek our paths ourselves, how we may save ourselves."
Once sitting with us at home Yechzakel Beilin obm cries out and turns to my husband obm: "How do you think, my children in Israel, they know what's happening? I have a daughter Hinde and a son Yitshak in Israel after all!" "Know, they certainly know from the radio and are going through a lot on that account, but whether they can help us, is a big question." -- my husband answered.
Nachum and his wife Manie Smushkavich went through a lot,that their children Chane and Zislie were not with them in Disna.
Here one should remember and say a good word for the Disna Christian Jan Zalnerovich. In a time when many Christians lay in wait for Jewish goods, Jan Zalnerovich would bring fish into the ghetto for us on a little boat and also for the Smushkeviches and other Jews. He would catch the fish himself and take no money for them. A little more: Zalnerovich got into the Bialystok ghetto in those hard times, where he found Smushkevich's daughter Zislie. He took her things to wear and brought a note from her.He also tok things to Chanhen in Lvov. For this Zalnerovich deserves to be counted amomg the ust of the the world.
The 26th of November I was off in the market buying something to eat as I often did. I had taken off the yellow patch. On the iron bridge they hadn't noticed me. Also I came through the streets of the city undistrubed and met no one. In the market I went over toa wagon, where there were some greens. But there, suddenly, someone started yellig "Jew! Jew!" At once I threw away the greens and ran across the market, but they ran after me. I got a bad blow on the shoulder from a whip. I had hardly got my breath back when I was home. For a few days I stayed in bed overcome by the excitement.
The winter was a difficult one and there was no place to get a piece of wood. A worker going home from the slave labor would bring a little piece of wood from a burned out house, for which he could be executed.
Also illumination was hard to come by. One would light a kerchief. But for the most part we sat in the dark. Cooking in the ghetto was very unpleasant. One stove for six to eight families -- one can imagine. So generally one didnt' cook and one didn't eat.
Regardless of the fact that Jews in the ghetto were living very tightly, it was clean in the ghetto. Staying clean was everyone's interest and each helped the other. Outside the ghetto, among the Christians, typhus was raging with many deaths. In the ghetto, where we were choked in close quarters and never ate our full, the epidemic did not reach us.
The children would play happily and vigorously on the only piece of clear land found in the ghetto. Once in the middle of their game, they remembered something and were fvery sad. They sat down on a board together (Shimshon and Brochele Rositsan, Shmuel's children, were among them) and talked quietly among themselves. They talked about themselves, what was brewing in the ghetto. They knew very well that the children would be the first victims of the German action and they looked for advice, made plans, how to save themselves
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form the murderous German hands. The sudden fuss in the ghetto had attracted their attention and they quickly broke off their intimate discussion and ran up shaken to see what had happened.
Messengers had come from the Jewish Council to say that the number of Jewish workers had been increased.
The men who died in the ghetto could, be buried, according to a special permission of the commandant, in the Jewish cemetery which was behind the city, outside the ghetto. Then the Jews could go to the funeral through the city. The Jews felt bitter and would say, that the dead stood better: they had died a natural death and lay among Jews in a Jewish cemetery.
No doctor was in the ghetto. When one of the Jews was sick, they went to Alexander Gafung or Gelman Chanah-Leah, who worked in the pharmacy of the German power and could sneak out some medecine for the sick. If the Germans had known that Jewish workers were taking out medecine for sick Jews -- they would have gotten their punishment immediately -- the death penalty.
Even though the Jews had already given up their possessions to the Germans, at the beginning of January 1942 there came to the Jewish Council a strict order from the German authorities, that within one day all Jews must give everything of value, such as money, gold watches, gold earrings, golden finger rings, articles of silver, meeshne (?) chfetzim, and also monetary notes, of whatever value. Jews should not have any property!
The Disna Jews stood in a long line, brought in there most valuable possessions, most expensive items, from who knows how many generations, that they have inherited from their parents, grandfathers, and greatgrandfathers. The Jews wanted the Germans to take it quickly with no nonsense, with no struggle, and just to let them live.
In a couple of days or so a new order came from the German authorities (always with the threat of execution) that within one day all Jews must give up their textiles (?), cloth, suits, coats, furs, leather etc. and again the Jews stood in a long line. One cannot describe the intensity of their fear. They were read to remain in their shirts, just to stay alive. They thought, that if they gave up everything to the German authorities, perhaps they would be left alive.
Very often the Germans would come into the ghetto, to stroll around a bit through the streets. Then there would be a huge massacre in the ghetto. All the Jews, also the children, would stay inside the houses. The ghetto would be devoid of people. Everything was so destroyed. If a cat ran by -- they would take out their pistols and shoot it: if a bird flew through -- it was shot at once. Everything was superfluous for them, they destroyed everything.
The 18th of February, 1942, I met my friends Reie Kalmanovich (Rumer) and Sonie Vigderhaus (Lapid) obm. And they told me that they had heard that Christians had come from Polotsk Street and were talking about partisans. I went off with Sonie obm to see the Christians who were talking about partisans, but we didn't find them.
The next day in the evening when I came home, in a few minutes a tall Christian came in, a boy. Seeing me, he scolded, "What are you sitting there for, you Jews? You know"
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"the Germans are going to shoot you. Go right away into the forest! There are partisans there." I ask "In what forest?"
-- In all forests, they're there! -- he replies.
-- Where can one go, which way? -- I ask again.
-- Any way, you will meet them -- he answers again.
I told my father obm and he told the Jews while davening. He advised the youth to link up with the partisans, perhaps they can save themselves and possibly even help.
-- There is nothing to lose! -- my father obm said.
The young ones placed great trust in my father's statement. Some courageous boys went off into the woods. There was a Polotsker among them, who had said that he knew the routes. But after wandering about a couple of weeks in the woods they came back with nothing. They said: "We were in many forests, went many kilometers with swollen and crippled feet and never met a partisan. It is a settled matter!"
Of course, the partisans could not yet go about openly in the forests. They were well disguised. It could often happen that one would hear a partisan talking and have no idea where he was, we saw that later.
The greater part of the Disna youth, the bravest, were ready and decided to fight for their life and for the life of the Jewish population and to die with honor. But the matter was not so easy, not so simple.
Some Disna lads went off and managed to meet partisans. They worked together with the partisans and carried out the greatest tasks. Later we met in the woods: Moshke Chidekel, who worked with Idl Sushokovich in Zavod, and Katz.
Mulie Shlomo, who was distinguished (got a medal?).
In Disna not many of the youth were left, as the better part had been taken for the war. The remaining youths had to go every day to forced labor. There were no weapons for fighting.
Some Disna Jews went off from Disna to another ghetto to their relatives and died there. Such as: Shulman Hirsh with his wife Bela and son Abraham -- in Luzhki; Leiser Beilin with his wife Fanie and children with their mother Yente Gurevich -- in Glubok; Chane Machinson with her two daughters, Vuske and Reie -- in Miar; Chaim Gutkin with his wife and two children -- in Breslau; Shlomo Greiniman with his wife Katye and children -- in Glubok; Yisrael Machinson with his wife and children -- In Glubok; Grunie Yafeh with her daughter -- in Ziavki; the pharmacists Zelvianski with his wife and two children (they said that one of his children survived) -- in Ziavki; Shimeon Lakach with his wife and child -- in Glubok.
In February 1942, there was an order that the number of ration cards for the Jewish population was to be reduced by 50%. Until that time the Jews got 100 grams of bread per day and 200 grams of sugar per month per person. The economy, as the Nazi authorities expressed it, was for the Polish village sector. But in reality the cause was different, we learned later. The German murderes had begun the
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mass murder of the Jews in the occupied territories.
At the beginning of March 1942, the German authorities put up some disgusting pictures in the Disna ghetto. One picture showed a black Jew with a long nose, sneaking out of work. A second picture: elegant German officers walking with Russian girls by the hand beside the Volga; a third picture: the polished German officers with their white hands and cigarettes walking in the Caucasus.
As soon as the Germans occupied Disna they said that in 14 days they would be in Moscow. In the first days of March 1942 militarized divisions went through the Disna ghetto and the men looked quite different from those of the first days. They were not select, young, tall, healthy and raised up yokels, clothed in new uniforms with shining boots. Now they were experienced military men, clothed in ragged outfits, tired, hardly able to stay on their feet, with ill fitting boots on their feet.
Village Christians would go through the ghetto and we would offer the last things we had for a potato, a little bottle of milk, a piece of bread. If a German noticed that a Christian was in the ghetto, it was dangerous for the Christian and for the Jew. They would be led off to the command post and were threatened with execution.
The 19th of March 1942 a German noticed that a Christian had come to Itshe Velie Minkav and brought some onions into the house. The German came to Minkav in the house, threw away the onions and told Minkav to go with him to the command post. Minkav said that the Christian had just left the onions for a while and would come back to get them soon. Nothing helped. His daughter, Shifrah Minkav, went off instead of her father to the command post. But by a miracle she got away and came home.
In a horrible day, the day they shot up the Prozoroker ghetto, my father obm came and related that Hirst Klat's daughter had come the day before naked from Prozorok with barely her soul. She related that they had gathered together all the Jews of Prozorok, told them to remove all their clothes, put them all together and shot them. By a great miracle she got away and escaped to the Disna ghetto.
On the eve of Passover at 12 noon two Gestapo agents and a policeman came to our home. They told Shmuel Rositsan to get dressed and go with them.
-- His elder daughter said -- "You're taking him just for a while?" --
-- He will be back soon.
But Chaya Hanie knew quite well that they would never let himi go and she was seeing her father for the last time. As soon as Shmuel had closed the door, she threw herself on the floor with a great sob and the five abandoned children with her. Their young mother had died a little while before, leaving an infant, and now they took away their food provider from the house, taken to be shot. And who knows whether those left will be taken soon. As if lamed we stood around speechless.
Shmuel's son came back from forced labor and had missed his father on the way. "Maybe he was not discharged" -- he said. In a few hours we heard shooting. That day they also shot Aharon
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Grunies. His attractive and sensible daughter ran after her father. She wanted to go in his place. But the murderers took her as well, led her away and shot her.
On that day they shot: Nachum Kliat, son of Mordechai; Yosef Epshtayn the photographer and his son Zalman; Tevl Kliat; Yosef Fuks; Henie Fuks; Hirsh Shatzman; Rafael Kliat's wife, Dvorsh Rositsan; Zalman Fuks, Rafael Chernitski; Iser Kliat, Shlomo Sierkin; Yakov from the Balagan (see map); Leib Machinson; Avraham-Leib Kliat; Betzalel Yaktan; Avraham Hirsh Kunkes; Niura Fisman; Reuven Prager; Fayvel Milner; Moshe Aharon Tumarkin; Ben-Zion Cohen and his wife Sime.
As I have mentioned already, Hirsh Shulman and his family had left Disna for the Luzhki ghetto. His daughter, Frume, while in forced labor had suddenly seen that they had taken off her parents to be shot, and escaped into the woods. But wandering about a few days and nights, in cold and wet, her feet all swollen, and completely broken, with scarcely her soul, she crept to Ramser's house. But her "good friends" dis not keep her long. In a few hours they told her they wanted to take her to the Disna ghetto to the Disna Jews, but instead of bringing her to the Disna ghetto, Ramse brought her to the Disna command post. They gave her directly into the hands of the German authorities. They asked for a thousand marks and a pack of cigarettes, as the Germans authorities had put up a notice, that whoever brought in a Jew or a spy would be paid on the spot with a thousand marks and cigarettes.
Ramse got no money and no cigarettes. They told him to go home. When the Disna Jews found out about it, they gave up the last of what they had kept for food to the Jewish Council -- money and goods -- to buy back Frume. She was brought on a wagon back to the ghetto.
When I saw Frume, I did not recognize her. Her face was yellow and swollen. The eyes did not see and all her features were somehow different. She could not walk on her feet. Her hands had were shaking. Her words came out disconnected and unclear.
They brought her to Nachum Shmushkovich. They put her on her bed, gave her something to drink. But Frume was too confused, did not know what was happening, where she was and who was with her.
The situation just got worse and worse. At the end of May a rumor was put about, that the Gestapo had come by car and they were going to kill everyone. It may easily be imagined what a fuss there was in the ghetto. But the car with the Gestapo agents soon left Disna and the killing subsided.
The Jews calmed down a bit. But all night people went around in the street and stood guard, as the situation had become very tense.
Sunday, the 14th of June 1942, late, I came home very tired. I had bought some things. I went to sleep, but was too tired to fall asleep. Suddenly I heard steps by the window. I took a look: the clock said 2 AM. I go to the window, and I see: Michal Merkin runnnig and looking behind him. The night was bright. The matter was very suspicious. I woke up my father obm and my husband obm and all the rest, who were with us in the house. Moshe and Mushke Lakach said that they knew for certain that there was nothing happening, they were protecting the ghetto and they had stayed on their posts.
I got my morning shotes and bonnet
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and went out to take a look at what was going on. My son had said that he would take a look too. We did not see the Merkins in the street, but we saw other Jews running. I ran after them and wanted to ask what was going on. But suddenly one cried out.
-- Mama, a German is aiming to shoot!
I fell down in fright and lost consciousness. I came to myself when Kresle's daughter raised me and asked me to come bandage her bloody shoulder.
I had been standing a few minutes and didn't know what was going on, where we were and what was happening. But soon I regained my wits, took a leaf from a bush and bound up her wound. I raised my eyes and saw that Jews are calling out not far away. We run to them. But at the same time we hear wild, horrible, unbearable, human yells and a thick, black smoke with fire covers the sky. We stand petrified, lost, and lamed.
Everyone is lost: the best, the dearest, the closest! We will never more see them. We are separated forever. At one time, in one day everyone is lost! This was the 14th of June 1942, Monday ch''a Tammuz. Such horror, such a nightmare the world had not yet seen.
Soon Christians came to us with packages from Disna and told us that the ghetto was burned down and destroyed. In a short while other Christians from Disna came and said:
-- What are you all doing there. The Germans have shot all the Disna Jews. The ghetto is burned, just a few professional people have been left for the moment until they finish their work for the Germans. Escape into the woods.
They gave us a piece of bread and showed us where to run. But we could not go away. We needed to know exactly and for certain what had happened in the ghetto. Soon we found out: the German gendarmerie surrounded the ghetto from all sides and opened fire on the Jews with rifles. The Jews, seeing this, took to throwing stones, scythes, iron bars, bricks, bottles and whatever they could thinnk of on the gendarmes. Others hid themselves; others ran off, like Mendel RUmer, who was found after the war lying by the iron bridge under a bush. Then the gendarmerie opened fire with bommgs and grenades. Some Jews set the ghetto on fire, in order to prevent the enemyh from capturing the Jewish God. And the Jewish Council had poured gasoline in some places. People thought that it might be easier to save themselves. The bandits seeing this made a thick ring.
Alexander Gafung and his family hid themselves in Vatin's building. They were there a while. But the city Chrisitans noticed them and denounced them to the commandant. Soon they came from the command post to take them and shot them.
Many Jews hid, but the city and village Christians would look for them in every corner, would find them and immediately denounce them at the command post. In the Disna ghetto over three thousand Jews died.
What happened to us, who I and my child stayed alive, what sort of difficulties I went through, how I and my chld fought with life, to stay alive -- I describe in my second part.
I only wish to add, that when I and my child came to Disna just after the war, at the beginning of 1945, and I saw the place where they destroyed the Jews from the ghetto, the large grave, which is on the sand, Zadisienka, which took with it the horrible cries and yammering
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of the innocent, holy Jews together with their children, who were buried alive, because they spared their bullets for the children, they had been pitifully thrown alive into a special ditch-- I got a huge fright.
The frightful pictures are always before my eyes. I will never forget the ripped clothes, bones, shoes, pieces of tallit which wandered about on the sand and goats and pigs wandered about the holy grave. I went then, on account of the situation to the president of the City Council (Gor-Soviet), to Semyanov, and asked him to tell me when the City Council would have its next meeting. At that meeting I asked them to fence in the place where the Jews had been destroyed. Semyanov answered me, that he had no money for such a purpose. I said that we did not ask for money, only that one would allow the Jews to cut down trees in the forest and that the trees cut down should be brought by the horses under the control of the City COuncil into Disna and that they give wire to the Jews to make a fence. My suggestion was supported by the director of the Russian high school, Radin. The session decided to fulfill my request.
The Disna Jews went off into the forest, cut down trees and gathered them up. The City Council brought the trees into the Disna ghetto and contributed wire to make a fence. We made a fence. But it did not last long in the ghetto. Already in the first winter the city Christians dug out the treees from the fence to heat their houses.
THen I wrote for the remaining Jews in Disna a written request to the president of the high court, to Stroy, and asked him to help us set up a fence with a foundation around the graves of the Jews who were killed in the ghetto. This request was supported by Stroy and he asked that a sum of money should be assigned for a fence. This letter was sent off to Minsk. In a few months two thousand rubles came back from Minsk for a fence. The fence was made of brick. But this fence was also taken apart by the Christians, to use to make stoves.
Then I went to the president of the Gorispolkom (city administration) and asked him to institute measures to prevent these crimes. The president of the Gorispolkom issued an order that whoever took brick from the fence from a cemetery or even from the burned out buildings, would be strictly punished.
After a while the Disna residents gathered money from the Disna Jews and made a permanent fence in the Disna ghetto.
