food, bread, butter, cheese, meat, and other foodstuffs, helped prepare supper, gave them back their leftover change, and stayed there as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
After supper he remarked, again in a matter-of-fact tone, that they should prepare for their journey because it was getting late.
[3(5)] And so with a heavy heart they began to pack, virtually certain that danger awaited them. Having no alternative, they paid the landlord for the night’s lodging and followed the German. He nonchalantly accompanied them a few dozen steps, led them to a sort of barn, showed them exactly where to go, advised them how to behave, wished them well, said auf Wiedersehen141 and turned back. They followed his directions, although weighed downby suspicion, and … came to the village of Dachbagerotka, already on the Russian side.
Breathing sighs of relief, the travellers set off for Białystok. There the Kh. and B. families went their separate ways. The Kh. family (Salomea’s family) remained in Białystok at her grandmother’s home. The B. family went onto Lvov.
Białystok was teeming with crowds of refugees and new arrivals, creating unnatural congestion. There was a shortage of accommodation, food, and many consumer items. The shops were full of people. For the time being, the enormous demand could be met from existing stocks. The most pressing problem was accommodation. All private lodgings were full. It was hard to get accommodation with strangers without protektsye.142 Enormous con-fusion reigned.
[3a] The government came to the aid of the refugees by establishing a committee where all refugees could register and obtain vital necessities: soup, bread, and accommodation. The soup and bread were distributed inpublic canteens. Accommodation was provided in flats and houses which had been abandoned by their owners and, in particular, in houses in the summer resorts near Białystok.
Employment for refugees was provided by the labour exchange, whichallocated jobs to those who registered with it. Local residents were the first to obtain work. The refugees also got jobs, but were second in line.
