At the beginning of November, all the Jews, about two thousand people,
were locked up in barracks. I, together with my wife and child, managed to
flee to Warsaw.
December 1940
(b)
[1] Koło
On the evening of 18 September 1939, the town was occupied by German
troops. A decree was issued immediately placing the Jewish population outside
the law and stripping it of all civil rights. From the morning of 19 September
1939, there were constant searches of Jewish homes, purportedly for weapons;
everything of the slightest value was looted and stolen. At the same time, the
whole male Jewish population aged 12 to 90 was taken for heavy engineering
work repairing the destroyed bridge over the Warta. Their treatment has
no parallel in history — torture, executions, and the like. On 20 September
the synagogue was burnt down. The following ordinances were announced:
1. Jews are not allowed to possess more than 200 marks (thorough
searches were carried out and any amount over or under 200 marks
was confiscated).
2. Jews are not allowed to leave Koło.
3. Jews are not allowed to walk on the pavement, only in the middle of
the road.
Jews were constantly subjected to all kinds of physical torment.
On the pretext of collecting donations for the NSV, Jewish stores were
robbed clean. A good time was had at the expense of prominent Jewish merchants. All the Jews had to report every day for unpaid forced labour. The attitude towards them was beyond contempt. A Jewish hostage was taken every
day. All Jewish goods were constantly requisitioned, and soon all the textile
stores, grain stores, ironmongeries and haberdasheries were empty. In mid-
October a decree was issued requiring all Jewish possessions to be declared
on pain of death. In connection with 11 November, both the intelligentsia and
the larger tradesmen were arrested. The state of uncertain vegetativeness,
[2] accompanied by incessant plunder, acts of violence, and a systematic war of
extermination against all things Jewish, lasted till 1 December 1939. It should
be mentioned that food prices barely went up and remained at prewar levels.
On 1 December all the Jews were thrown into barracks or various ruined
