Planer, and attorney Rubin went to Mr Leister, the then mayor [sic] of Łódź.
Leister had always treated Rumkowski very well and was certain to help in
any way he could. When Leister heard what the delegation had come about,
he exclaimed, “Why did he go there?” He got straight into his car and went
to the SS in Zgierska Street. As soon as Leister entered the hall where all the
detainees were doing exercises, the officer asked him who he was and what he
was doing there. Mr Leister showed his ID and said he needed Rumkowski.
The SS officer declared that he would release no one. Mr Leister then asked the
officer to show his ID, which he did. A heated argument ensued about releasing
Rumkowski. The officer left the hall for a moment and Leister seized the
opportunity. He simply smuggled Rumkowski out, put him in his car and
drove him into town. Leister told him to go away and lie low for a while.
Rumkowski remained in hiding for two days, but no one made any enquiries
about him. After two days he went out and resumed his normal work.
ARG I 897 (Ring. I/959)
Description: duplicate, handwritten (MS*), pencil, Yiddish, 148×210 mm, minor
damage and fragments missing, 2 sheets, 2 pages. In the margins, the Hebrew
letter “ ל” and the sign “. .” (ink). The document was kept in a binder. Attached is
a note in Yiddish by Hersh Wasser: “By Mordkhe Schwartzbard.”
Date unknown, Warsaw ghetto, [Rabbi Sholem Trajstman?], “ ”לאָדזש
[Łódź]. A conversation of several hours between the author and the chief
of the Gestapo. Persecution of Łódź rabbis.
[1] Łódź
The outbreak of the war hit us on Friday, 1 September, and on 6 September there
was already a great exodus from Łódź. Tens of thousands of people set off with
packs on their backs, not knowing where they were heading. On the evening
of Friday, 8 September, the Germans entered the city. That same evening,
there was a radio broadcast about Łódź, in which Łódź was declared to be
a German city built by Germans: Germans had built the finest buildings, as
well as the industry, and so on. Admittedly, there were a lot of Jews in the city,
