arrested żydki,¹⁸¹⁵ sparing them, just like the żydy,¹⁸¹⁶ no blows, and in the
end crams them in together with the Jews. And where? In the bóżnica¹⁸¹⁷ of
all the places! So the poor things wriggled like worms, unable to settle down.
What shtetl does not have its town idiot? Serock, too, had an idiot of its
own, who was known by the name of ‘Gogele.’ This idiot’s ‘occupation’ was to
walk around the streets all day with a torn sack, into which he would throw
any scrap of rubbish lying in the street. He was filthy, covered with thick matted
hair, and struck terror into children. It was with this ‘Gogele’ that the
Aryan pharmacist happened to share a spot. The two of them lay and slept on
the same plank! Did I say sleep? Every minute, [5] ‘Gogele’ woke him up, ordering
him to take the bag and pick up the rubbish in the synagogue. The pharmacist
was so confused and rattled by everything he had been through that
day that he did not realise he was dealing with a madman, so he started to
bicker and argue with him, much to his neighbours’ amusement.
The ‘guards’ in charge of the mass of around 300 people were ruthless.
Going to the window for a breath of fresh air resulted in a savage beating.
Permission to go out to the ubikacja was so hard to get that people simply
resigned themselves and strained with all their might to hold it in. Most of
them abstained from the food brought for them from home just so they would
not have to ask for such permission too often. They tried to fast like the angels.
The Germans, for their part, did not let the people get bored. The front
was very close and new troop units were arriving all the time. Their officers,
upon hearing about the Jews held in the ‘prison camp,’ came to pay them
a visit. After raging and fuming about the Juden who had instigated the
war and the Jewish financiers in America who were inciting the world
against Hitler, they left generous ‘parting gifts’ that sufficed for several
days. Some people suffered a worse fate, receiving pamiątki¹⁸¹⁸ that lasted
much longer.
On the second day, an officer came and sat down at the entrance from
the synagogue to the prayer house. His task was to write down the names of
all the people, and everyone had to walk past his table from the synagogue
1815 (Polish) Jew boys.
1816 (Polish) Yids.
1817 (Polish) synagogue.
1818 (Polish) souvenirs.
