fact that the anniversary of the Stalin Constitution805 would create a holiday mood, so that day should be chosen as the most favourable. There had been such a case in the past, and the border [guards] had let people through. This time, people were counting on the holiday mood as well, so they felt sure of a successful outcome.
The attempt was made but proved fruitless. Despite the holiday, the Soviet border guards did not let people through, and everyone returned home. When they had calmed down, they appointed a delegation to communicate with the authorities on all matters. St. Aau. was one of the delegates.
Meanwhile, life went on as before. The Germans let through new groups of potential migrants, but the Soviets border guards did not let them pass. From time to time a Soviet delegation would meet with a German counterpart to regulate border matters. No one knew what provisions or measures they introduced. The border strip, however, became narrower and narrower each time, because both sets of border guards would push their border forward after each meeting. In the meantime, an incident occurred in which the Germans intervened: one day, a group of Polish young men came to the aforementioned dense wood and demanded explanations concerning a Pole who was supposedly [4] being held hostage by the Jews or simply detained by them. They were referring to a smuggler who had been the subject of an incident a few days previously. They threatened that if he were not freed immediately, the Germans would open fire with machine guns. St. Aau., who had encountered the group, returned to the camp and informed the Soviet border post, asking for their help. The Soviet guards took up the matter and promised assistance. The crowd grabbed hold of the four young Poles, beat them a little, and sent them on their way. The Germans, who were standing in a nearby wood, fired a couple of shots and the matter ended there.
The situation, however, remained distressing. People had already been in the border strip for several weeks and saw no possibility of leaving it. Desperation grew, and once again a marching group formed spontaneously with the women in front, “determined” to storm the border and not turn back even if fired upon.
It played itself out as before. The border guards meted out a few blows and the crowd turned back.
