The sun., 1918-12-05
POGROM FALSEHOOD
LAID TO GERMANS
Bolshevist Plot Seen in Tale
Of Attacks on Jews in
Vienna.
~ j. NJ. N. JEFFRIEs.
Special Cabis Dsspateh 10 TIE suS from fAs
London Times Serptce.

Special coob De.psteA 10 TIE sus from az
LONDON Times Service.
VIENNA, Dec. 4.-The stories Of q
great Jewish pogrom are untrue and
are attributed to a German or a Boil.
sherfst intrigue. Friday night there
was a good deal OF pillaging, for the
troops who had arrived to rescue the
city were tired and most Of them
dropped where they stood and slept.
There was no one to keep order and In
number Of streets the disorder was
great. especially In the Jewish quarter.
This is being admitted, but It must
be said the stories OF the whole city
being in the throes OF an unprece-
dented pogrom are baseless.
On Sunday all the principal streets
were filled with people strolling about
looking at the damage caused by the
fighting. Families were out taking the
air. children were sleighing or rum
ming about with their nurses. Al
midday I heard firing in the Jewish
quarter and hurried there to find some
Of the populace who had entered a
Jewish restaurant being driven out by
patrols in charge OF an officer, who
used his stick without mercy upon the
intruders. while the soldiers fred into
the air and dispersed the crowd.
On Monday the situation was well In
hand The Polish commander had is
sued the order declaring that any
pillagers would be shot, and several
men clad in uniform who may have
been soldiers or Ruthenians or mere
criminals, for everybody has an Aus
TRAN uniform OF one type or other
were shot on the spot by the patrols
So the commander himself informed
me- adding that these examples had
put an end TO the disorder.
Boys PiIIaEe shops.
Some boys who fought against the
Ruthenians were concerned first in the
pillaglng, but II would be entirely I'M
fair to condemn the new Polish regime,
This Is the reason why there has been
great provocation in Lemberg, and
even in London itself; under provoca-
ton shops have been wrecked during
the war. Many lower classes OF Jews
In Lemberg are the antithesis Of our
British Jews. who have taken their
places beside the countryman Of other
creeds and worked and fought side by
side with them for four years. During
the war many Lemberg Jews were
persistent supporters OF Austria. There
also are other questions. usually of
food profiteertng and the betrayal of
the Poles to the Austrian authorities
The Jews demand extra territorial
privileges from the Poles, but no one
would seek to excuse the burning of
houses for a moment. II frankly Is
deplorable. but the organized Polish
authority had nothing to do with Il.
The Rev. Coulter Forster, a British
chaplain in South Russia, who was In
Lemberg on Thursday and Friday. as
sured me Of this and asked me to pub
fish the fact that within four hours
after the last shot was fired against the
Ruthenians he was going about the
town and saw Polish patrols dragging
looters out OF houses. making them
disgorge and replace the stolen goods
am obliged to declare that in view
OF the stories being so widely circu-
lated there seems to be latent desire
to prejudice the new Polish regime in
the worlds eyes for purposes which
the Germans and the Bolsheviks know
best.
Needs of Poland.