Page 44 of The Righteous
DAYS PASSED WHILE Theresa and Julia waited for appointments to be scheduled.
Carl was in Switzerland and had been there for two weeks.
He cabled that he had important information in several matters and wanted to meet with them as soon as he returned.
He was aware that Hungarian citizens were being rounded up and taken to ghettos in the small country towns, with the ultimate purpose of taking them to prison camps in Poland.
He didn’t know whether the transfers had begun yet, but there were unconfirmed rumors that trains had left northern Hungary.
They were also waiting for Sammy to set an appointment with Joel Brand and Israel Kasztner, but that had not happened yet either.
Julia had made it a routine to appear at the Weissbachs’ home each morning to take Althea for a walk while Theresa had coffee with Anya.
When Julia returned from her walks, she usually commented on the increasing number of ordinary people she would see on the sidewalks, with no apparent place to go.
Sometimes they walked in groups, sometimes carrying suitcases or their belongings.
Sometimes they walked holding the hands of children.
“I don’t know where they are going or where they are staying,” Theresa said as she sadly shook her head, “but it is very upsetting. There are so many little children. Last night, it was cold. I don’t know where they went.”
“Apa said that Rabbi Levy had opened the doors to the Great Synagogue for homeless refugees at night,” Julia said. “The sanctuary is very large and can shelter a great many people, but the number is increasing every day.”
“That is very kind of the rabbi, but it is not a solution; it’s only a temporary stopgap. These families can’t go home or they’ll be arrested. They left everything. Maybe the king of the Judenrat can help them,” Theresa said. “He can talk to his friend Adolf.”
“No, his friend is Miklós Horthy, remember? I’m sure that Eichmann is calling the shots for the Judenrat, however, and Stern is doing what he is told to do without argument.”
“By leaving their country homes and moving into Budapest, aren’t the families doing what the Nazis are telling them to do?” Theresa said with a shrug. “The people are following the rules to come out of the country and move into the city, aren’t they?”
Julia shook her head. “No, not at all. The Nazis want them rounded up and put under guard. That is what they have done in the smaller towns. From there, they will be shipped to detention camps, just like the Nazis did in Holland. You’ve seen Carl’s messages.
The prison trains have started to roll. If the families escape and come to Budapest, they are avoiding being taken to Poland.
They are staying out of Auschwitz and Majdanek prisons. For the time being.”
In the middle of their conversation, Sammy entered the room and immediately asked if there was any coffee left for him.
“For my handsome boy, I’ll make a fresh pot,” Anya said.
“Thank you, Anya.” He turned to Theresa. “I was finally able to talk to Joel.”
“He is so hard to reach. How did you make that happen?” Theresa asked.
“I work at the telephone company, remember? Contacting people is my job.”
“Very funny. What did Joel say? Will he meet with Julia and me?”
“Right now, Joel is in Aleppo, Syria. He said we would meet when he returns next week. He suggested Monday evening.”
“That would be great,” Julia said. “We have a few meetings at the end of this week, but we can meet with Joel then. Will any of the other members of the Aid and Rescue Committee be present? I’m talking about Israel Kasztner or even Ottó Komoly.”
“I don’t think Ottó will be there, but Joel said he would try to bring Israel Kasztner.
Sometimes he’s called Rezs? Kasztner. He goes by both names.
” Then Sammy looked out of the window and said, “Have you seen all these people walking around the city? There must be thousands of them. Entire families!”
Theresa nodded. “We were just discussing that when you walked in. They come from the countryside, almost all of them are Jews, and most of them are Orthodox. They are here because they are running away from Eichmann and the SS. If they didn’t leave their homes in the countryside, odds are they would have been taken into custody.
Out in the country, Jews are being herded like cattle into the towns and held there.
I think that’s so the SS will have an easier time watching over them.
Julia is convinced that sooner or later, probably sooner, they will be put into trains and shipped to prison camps in Poland. ”
“That’s right,” Julia said. “I think these people on the street know what’s going on.
Word travels fast. Many of them have friends or relatives in other European countries, and they have heard about Judenfrei and what happens when the SS takes Jews into custody.
They’re afraid that will happen here, and that is why they are fleeing. ”
“We have a meeting later this week with Carl Lutz and his wife, Gertrud,” said Theresa.
“She is an impressive woman. She went to business school in Bern, and then, at age eighteen, she immigrated to the US to look for a job. For three years, she worked for the Swiss consulate in St. Louis, and that’s where she met Carl.
In 1935, Gertrud Fankhauser married Carl Lutz in a fancy wedding in Bern.
She told me all about it,” Theresa said with a smile.
“I wish I had been invited. Anyway, the reason I bring her up is that she has a background in real estate and has been in contact with some of the agencies here in Budapest. She is assembling lists of properties that may be used for housing some of the refugees.”
“Right now, there are refugees sleeping on the benches in the Great Synagogue, or in their cars or wagons, or wherever they can find shelter,” Julia said. “Hotel rooms are expensive, and they are not readily available.”
Theresa agreed. “Even if the Jewish refugees have the money, the hotels don’t want to rent to them. They don’t want the SS storming through the hotels looking for Jews. Most of the hotels, especially the quiet, fancier ones, don’t want homeless refugee families. So they put out No Vacancy signs.”
“Where are these families supposed to get the money to buy or rent property for as long as they’ll need it, which could be forever?” Sammy said.
“Julia is working on that,” Theresa pointed out. “She has been talking to John Pehle at the WRB about funding from the Treasury Department to be used for the families’ housing expenses.”
“I am,” said Julia, “but it is a struggle. Conservative US congressmen don’t want US funds spent overseas, especially for aid to Hungarian refugees. John and his staff are fighting that battle.”
“You know, this isn’t the first time that Jewish refugees have been smuggled into Hungary,” Sammy said. “They have come into our country before without money and were able to find shelters and jobs and raise families. And they are now successful members of Budapest society.”
“Are you talking about a century ago? The Habsburg Empire era?” Theresa said. “Are you trying to compare the two?”
“Refugees who came to Hungary a couple of years ago had been hunted in their native country. They made it to Hungary, which was considered safe for Jews. Jewish refugees were welcomed when they arrived from Poland and Slovakia, but now, because of Eichmann and the Germans, they are no longer welcome and are being hunted again,” Julia said.
“Carl and Gertrud will be returning from Bern, and they are bringing tools to help us in our humanitarian efforts,” Theresa said. “He cabled us that he couldn’t reveal the details over the wires, but I think that the Swiss government has approved plans for aiding the Jewish families.”
“What plans?” asked Sammy.
“We’ll see.”