not, but now, in accordance with the instructions received, we have to separate the Jews from the non-Jews”. After the two months we had been through, steeped in pain and horror, these words from the mouth of an officer of the border guard sounded to our ears like a tale [9] from One Thousand and One Nights. He carried out a body search together with other officials and soldiers. We had hidden our little bit of money in places they failed to discover. On the surface, everyone had the sum it was permitted to take: 15 to 20 zlotys. Out of that sum, a couple of zlotys was taken from each of us for the boat crossing. By order of the commandant, the money which the illegal guides had taken from us for smuggling us across the border was brought to the border guard, who confiscated it. Some of us, who on the surface had smaller sums, pleadedwith the commandant that they would not have enough for a train ticket and that he should leave them a few zlotys. Their pleading helped, because less was taken from us. A gold fountain pen was found on my sister. They exam-ined and evaluated it. My sister pleaded that she was ill, that she was a student and couldn’t manage without her pen. To which the reply was: “The wealthy Jews will help”. Anyway, the pen was later given back to her. The couple who passed themselves off as Russians were not searched. They were to be separated from the Jews and ferried across the river the following day. They asked to be allowed to travel with the whole group. They were permitted to do so. Around midnight, we set off from the border post towards the Bug. My brother-in-law and five or six others went first, I followed with mywife and sister, and the commandant walked behind us with the above-mentioned blonde woman, with whom he flirted a little. Incidentally, the womantold us later that the commandant had confided in her that it was a tragedy for him to have to torment innocent people by taking away their belongings andthat, had he been able to, he would have resigned from the distasteful job he had been given. Lagging behind, we lost sight of the group walking ahead ofus, and the commandant showed us the way. When we reached the bank, we found no one there. No people and no boats at the designated spot. We contin-ued along the bank in case [10] the others were waiting further on, but to noavail. We were overcome by boundless despair. What could have happened? We couldn’t shout or call out because we might have attracted the attention ofthe Soviet border guards. It was inconceivable that they had crossed over without us. The blonde woman had given one of the fugitives a package to hold, and my brother-in-law had some of our luggage. Could we imagine that my
BIA ŁY STO K AN D THE WESTERN BE L ARUS [ 17] 168
