they work as labourers in the Białystok textile factories, and Polish workersare thrown out and replaced by Jews. For this reason the Polish population’s hatred of the Jews is strong.
Economic life: If a Jew is registered and has work, he is more or less legally secure. The work provides a means of existence, and no signs of poverty are noticeable among the Jewish population. The war with the Soviets found the Jews of Białystok in good condition (economically). During the Soviet period it was possible to earn a good living and save a bit of money, because there was more than enough work. Aside from that, speculation blossomed greatly. With the large sums of money they amassed, Jews for the most part bought things and the various goods with which the Soviets simply inundated Białystok. So when the Germans arrived in Białystok, the Jews had large-enough stocks of goods and clothing. During the first half year of the war and up till now, the Jews have been selling their goods, and thanks to this there is money to be had and they live from this. The items are bought by Poles for good prices. Apart from this, people live from smuggling, from buying up things. Each item passes through a dozen hands before it gets to the right buyer, to the non-Jew. And of course each middle man gets a few groszes from the transaction… . There are no shops apart from grocery stores, because all businesses and shops were already nationalised in the Soviet period. [4] The official currency is the Reichsmark. Food prices are as follows: (in zlotys) a kilo of bread – 4 zlotys; potatoes – 1.80 zlotys; butter – 70 zlotys; lard – a little cheaper. Cooking is done on wood. The peasants bring cartloads of firewood into the ghetto, giving the German guards a bribe. A metre of wood costs around 130 zlotys. In the Białystok ghetto there is also a free market at which one can buy all kinds of things, from clothes and various utensils to food and haberdashery. Above all, there is a lot of haberdashery left over from the Soviet period. The Soviets simply flooded the market with haberdashery: various soaps, socks, and so on.
Wa ges are as follows: 1/2 kilo of bread per day for a worker, plus a payok332 every 2 weeks or once a month. In the various production enterprises the workers also receive cards for lunch in the kitchens. The lunch consists of a thick, nutritious soup with potatoes. In addition, the workers also receive 50 kilos of potatoes; this is apart from the ration por-
