pedestrians’ attention, to stand out in the grey mass of beggars by being different, and to use his distinctness to get a few groszes or a slice of bread. Hence, you sometimes hear a complicated sentence, stylistically or grammatically unusual, about the beggar’s fate. Strange in a beggar’s mouth, it attracts attention, often bringing [the desired] effect. Other beggars speak like preachers, tribunes, or prophets from [. . .]. This beggar sings a religious song. That one sings a Hasidic or a peasant song. Another one adds a sentimental-erotic song. The important thing is not to be doomed to singing about [. . .] because this is a no go.
In the spring (of 1942) the situation improved slightly, as far as child beggars were concerned. Thank God, their number is slightly smaller now. This must be chalked up to the Centos, which saved many children from death by starvation [. . .]. Against the bleak background of savagery and indifference [. . .] fed, washed, watched over [. . .] snatched away from the ferment of the street. [. . .] But many children tried to avoid that kindness. The reason was that some parents use their own children or besprizornik95 for commercial purposes. [. . .] 2 instances of this phenomenon. A [. . .] (from Elektoralna Street) carried a 4-year-old boy to Leszno Street in the morning. She put him on the sidewalk and hastily walked away. [11] The child attracted the pedestrians’ attention with its big head (elephantiasis), dejected gaze, grotesquely disproportional trunk (the head constituted 50 percent of his body length), lanky legs, and completely mature features. Once the lady fetched the child at mid-day she swiftly disappeared in the nearest courtyard (where I inadvertently exposed her). Policemen were taking children to some“point” and she was afraid of losing her source of income. The neighbours, however, could not tell me if the child was hers. Another case: a child with very yellow skin is lying motionless on Żelazna Street near [its intersection with] Krochmalna Street. The child does not suffer from jaundice, but from another more serious disease. It looks positively dead. Only its eyes are very much alive and surprised. They seem angry, outraged by the situation. The child is lying, motionless. It just stares. When it tries to get up, a white-haired witch hurls abuses and curses from the basement window, thus restoring the child to its previous position. A smuggler who was “on duty” nearby claimed that that old witch had bribed the police not to remove the child.
