The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1903-05-20
HORRORS OF KISHINEFF
First Refugee In America De-
scribes Massacre of Jews.
SAYS RICH RUSSIANS JOINED IN

He Escaped From scene Of AtrOci-
ties.
Jacob Friedman, the first refugee
from Kishineff, the city of the recent
Jewish massacre in Russia. who land
ed in New York recently, brought with
him bruises from Russian knouts and
clubs, and it was only through the
help of a Christian friend that he
escaped at all The slaughter Of his
people in Kishineff is so impressed
on Friedmans mind that he cannot
believe he is safe.
Details Of the first two days Of the
massacre were given to a reporter for
the New York World by Friedman
through an interpreter
1T was the most awful butchery
that men ever saw said Friedman.
'.The rich Russians of the town joined
in and with gloves on their hands
helped to tear the Jewish children limb
from limb At first it was the lowest
/ people Of the town, then the better
class became enraged at the sight of
blood. saw men dressed in fine cloth
ing mixed in with the dirty rufIlans of
the town.
II am a Polack and went to Kishineff
three years ago to visit my grand
father, Solomon Friedman. / liked the
town, and as | had GOO rnbles about
$500 saved up. / moved my family
there from Warsaw With my grand
father / started in the glassware bust
ness at 4 Alexandroffsl1y street We
Were doing wen and saving money.
ION Sunday, the last day Of the
Passover, while we were eating dinner
about / o'clock in the afternoon, |
heard shrieks of women and children.
We ran out to see what was the
matter. | saw wild mob coming,
beating down women in the streets
and breaking the windows and burst
ing open the doors They were yell
ing and shouting in all sorts Of lam
guages. There were Wallachians, Rou-
manians and other people besides the
Russians, so it seemed.
"Come, grandfather, let us run
away or wen be killed. called out.
oh, it's nothing, my grandfather.
answered. Don't fear; it's only holi-
day among the gentiles, and they feel
somewhat gay.
4 saw that it was bloodthirsty
mob and tried to convince my grand
father but the old man said he had
lived in Kishineff all his life and that
there was never anything there but
peace. The mob came nearer, and we
saw that they were beating people to
death. / saw fifteen persons killed be-
fore they got to our door. / could hear
cries from all over the city. / called
out to my grandfather to run. but he
said he would close up the shop and
stay in the house. As he was closing
the doors the mob rushed up and began
beating us with clubs.
Il was struck on the arm and knock
ed down. / tried to help my GRANDPA
Their, but the mob was so large l could
not get to him. SO ! ran away to save
my life saw them beating him with
clubs. They broke his arms and beat
him SO that he died as soon us he was
carried to the hospital.
4 ran to the house Of Ivan Fiodron,
IA Christian who had bought glass from
me. He was good man, ana he hid
me Ia his cellar. / lay there all night,
expecting every moment to be hunted
out and killed. was crazy with the
thought that my two little girls had
been butehered and worse by the mob
and that my two boys were killed
had seen tile wretches tear little chill
dren in two and throw their arms and
legs into the gutter, and | thought that
was the way they must have treated
my own children Monday morning |
slipped out Of VANS cellar and went
by side streets and through alleys into
Alexandroffsky street
My feet slipped in The blood mud
died clay. Bodies lay across the road
way and stumbled across them.
There were tile bodies of men mutt
lated in ways | dare not tell There
were the bodies Of women ripped open
as butcher cuts a beef
From the house of a carpenter came
the gr0ans OF the dying man whose
hands had been cut off with his own
saw by a great brute who laughed
at the fitness Of the jest and who was
applauded by the other brutes who
clustered around laughing at the sight.
There was not house in that quarter
that did not have its dead and dying
within it's wallis
"The whole street was filed with
feathers and blood. The Russians had
torn open every pillow and bed and
had thrown the feathers in the air.
They were scattered everywhere. My
wife was peeping out Of a hole and
saw me. She ran out with the chill
dren, and together we escaped into
the country. We went to village,
but there was no security there. We
expected every minute that the Rus
SLAMS would come and kill us After |
few hours I slipped out and went |
back into Kishineff The streets were
a terrible sight, with mutilated bodies
here and there. | don't know how / |
got up courage enough to 20 into the /
city, but did slip in and reached the
home Of Ivan Fiodroff.
ffEIn 4oaIr ,,ln H., t43,i,,i, Il 1850. 49,.