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First fatalities in Moises
Ville
A history of the first
murders in the colony
By
Mijl Hacohen Sinai
translated
from idish (to Spanish) by Nechama
B.
Hansman
Sinai says: "Some details of the killings
I have been told by members of the colony, others I know from my own
experiences half a century ago when I lived in Moises Ville.
David Lander, the first
shot
The first victim
struck down by a gaucho was an aged Jew, David
Lander. It
happened in late October of 1889, ie two months after his arrival in
the land of Moises Ville.(1)
It happened around noon.
At dawn much of the
"Podolier" men, women and older children were
already aimed toward Sunchales ,
the town that was only six miles (thirty kilometers)
of Moises Ville, to await the train which did get food for the workers
who built the branch railway to Tucuman.
As the train
arrived, the hungry
Podoliers swarmed with frozen
eyes, and with hands outstretched begging for some crackers or a piece
of dry bread.
So
even not speak
Spanish
but had learned to say "give me bread," "Give me cookie," "I'm
hungry" and other expressions of the kind.
It was sad to see them.
And indeed aroused pity,
both among workers and employees of the railway company that arrived
there almost daily to inspect the work, they used to throw muffins and
cookies, even full bags on some occasions.
Then returned quickly
to Moises Ville to share with
family, who were probably hungrier than themselves.
At the moment I will
refer, in Moises Ville were very few of the
Podoliers, the elderly and the weak, and young
children.
Wandering
from one side to another, hungry and weak, waiting for the
begged food from Sunchales, when suddenly
they seen the arrival of a gaucho riding his
horse. It
was not new for
them because they had seen many "semi-wild
creatures" who often appeared there.
However, all crowded around and began to
look at each other.
It was
developed a kind of silent scene as the gaucho, discovering one of the
young girls dismounted, approached her and started gently caressing
and talking.
He immediately addressed
those present and spoke to them asking somethig.
Nobody understood a word but just nodded constantly answering "yes
sir, yes!" While some cried "Give me bread - give me cookies!".
The gaucho remounted and rode away.
It was not long in
returning, accompanied this time by another gaucho, bringing a bag of
cookies and several bottles of liqueur, which gave the Podoliers,
who used up all quickly and eagerly.
Meanwhile, the gaucho who
sought out the girl he liked so much called his companion,
introduced her and after a short conversation
took her under his arm to raise it to the horse.
As
the girl refused and wanted to pull out of his arms, began to drag her
by force. At the
cries of the girl attended the Podoliers, and
protesting loudly tried to free her. The gaucho
instantly drew his dagger and stabbed the nearest.
It was the
mentioned David Lander, who collapsed in a pool of
blood, dying.
The confusion, the turmoil and panic that
broke were unimaginable.
However managed to wrest the knife from
his hands and settle scores.
Knocked
down and handcuffed him, tied his feet and throwing him
back some began jumping on it with the soles of his boots to break her
sternum.
Such a horrible death they caused.
The second gaucho
also drew his knife trying to help his
teammate, but when he saw that
also rushed at him, withdrew.
He mounted his horse and fled quickly.
Lander struggled between life and death
until the next day.
He was finally buried in
the cemetery already existing in Moises Ville,
the first tombs belonged to the younger babes.
Some days later arrived
in Moises Ville from
San Cristóbal
the Chief
of Police with a full commission, sent by the government of Santa Fe,
in order to investigate the matter.
But noting that
they had to contend with "dumb" people
from whom nothing could find out, they decided to
ignore the issue.
According to the account
of the chief of police in San Cristobal to the
people of Moises Ville, it was found that who
had fled was the brother of the deceased and he was
who reported the matter.
His brother,
said, liked the girl and had asked them if they would give her
to wife, to which they replied "yes sir, yes!".
At the same time requiring the cookies wich he gave them
a bag adding several bottles of beer.
They
ate the
cookies and drank cold beer, but the girl did not want
her
delivered: not kept their word!
Finally started to beat him.
It
was then that his brother, "in self defense" drew his knife and
"accidentally" stabbed in the heart of one of them.
So
what killed
him
inhumanely ...
The revenge takes on new
victims
Several weeks later,
around mid November, two and a half months of his arrival in Moises
Ville, the Podoliers lost their next victims,
three at a time.
They
were
the
Iegelnitzer
brothers.
They had gone to look for
any job at the Italian colonists.
But were found dead the
next day in the bushes, not far from the colony.
The three were beheaded.
The funeral of the three brothers was
heartbreaking.
All felt that the crime
was carried out as revenge by the brother of
the dead gaucho ...
Thus fell in the
span of a few weeks four victims.
But that was only the
beginning.
Since the murder of the brothers
Iegelnitzer spent about two years without having had to mourn tragic
events.
Meanwhile the Podoliers
enjoyed an improvement in the material aspect.
Firstly, help came from
the Jews of Buenos Aires, though they were few and poor.
After making a collection (which added about nine thousand
pesos and was a huge effort for them), they
sent a commission that distributed the money evenly,
according to the number of members in each family.
Thanks to this support
the Podoliers no longer had to begging bread.
It is the turn of Zimi
Zaivik
Soon
fell another victim.
One morning in July
(maybe August) 1891 a young Podolier settler,
Zimi Zaivik, 21 years age, went to ride around
the colony looking for a cow that had
disappeared from the pens at night .
Just
hours
later
was
seen
a
galloping horse
crossing the colony, carrying a person.
The man and his horse came to the house
occupied by the Zaivik family.
The animal stopped and
Zaivik fell down and stayed down.
The neighbors came realizing that it was
the young man, who lay unconscious.
When trying to
incorporate they noted that bled, and by
removing his shirt to reveal her chest hurt.
They called the doctor,
who by that time was already residing in the
colony, but his help was futile because the
injured expired at night.
During the short time he
was awake could explain
haltingly that he ride back home when he saw a
gaucho who stopped him to ask for money.
As there had not
it, drew his knife and stabbed him and fled
immediately.
New murders
Barely a month
later
another crime happened.
One of the Podoliers
that was not "settled" for not meeting the necessary conditions (to be
married with children not too small) named Fainman, had gone to the
post office in Palacios to collect
correspondence as Moises Ville had not
yet own mail.
That same day was found dead, lying on
the floor with his belly open.
From his horse no trace
was found,
probably the murderer had taken it.
Two murders occurred until late 1891,
although I can not specify the months.
It happened as follows:
One of the Podoliers
named Kantor, a "unsettled" bachelor, remained in the
colony by installing a little grocery.
He used to open his
shop early every morning before any other door
of the place opened. But one morning it remained closed while the
neighbors began their tasks.
At
first no one noticed
about.
But when lapsed
time and Kantor shop
remained closed, people began to worry.
They began knocking getting no response
from inside.
Then
distressed because they knew that Kantor had not left the place.
By breaking the door and
enter the room their blood became
frozen: on the cot the man lay
in a pool of blood almost dry, his abdomen completely open and his
face slashed.
At first it was a mystery how murderers had entered
because there were not any doors or windows except the
entrance of the store, locked from the inside.
Finally found some bricks of the
fireplace were removed and loose ...
Obviously the motive was
robbery because nothing was found of Kantor's
money.
Not known
if the store merchandise also failed.
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Gregorio
Gerschunof
The next murder was
perpetrated against a Podolier named Gerschunof,
a middle-aged man and father (his son was the celebrated writer
Alberto Gerschunof).
Went out
one morning with several oxen to plow his field.
Later, animals returned
with
the plow, but he
doesn't...
It was two or three days
or almost a week
until he was found among the high bushes, not in his
field but in one of
another settler.
His body was torn by
prey
birds or wild animals.
So only their bones were
buried ...
Crying, wailing and
terror that caused these deaths are
indescribable, especially that of Kantor, because if something had
happened within the same colony, this meant that they
was not sure even within their own homes.
Add to that the economic
hard times and the departure of Dr. Loewenthal from office
New Casualties
Neither the year 1892
passed without causing any casualties, and their number was as high as
in previous years joined eight, with which the figure had risen to
sixteen.
The first case was the
the JCA administrator Hurvitz
(or as it used to sign, Horovitz).
Within months of taking office fell into
the hands of a gaucho.
Many predicted this outcome because of his
extreme approach to the gauchos, with it wanted
to show that being friendly there was nothing to fear.
And this he paid with his life.
One
evening went riding around the colony but never returned.
The
next morning his family waved
the
neighbors who went out in groups.
He was
found among the tall grass, decapitated, half a kilometer from the
colony.
Another victim was Moishe Waks, Austrian,
colonized by Dr. Loewenthal.
In Moises Ville
frequently called him Moishe Compot due to his
red beard.
However he was lucky to escape the angel of death and survival.
This happened within the colony, in broad
daylight and in view of all residents.
He saved from certain
death because of his great courage,
when he was attacked gave his assailant a punch that he had
to drop the knife without finishing insert it
in his chest as his heart was not pierced.
Although the wound was quite deep putting his
live at risk, he has recovered.
The assailant fled
immediately.
Other
victims fell further from the colony, in different ways.
Between one
fact and other lapsed short
intervals.
As I mentioned the economic situation became critical, so many must
turn to other more or less distant places to earn a living as
employees among Italian settlers.
Among them six fell in
1892, all Podoliers.
The circumstances
of these deaths remains unclear;
there were no eyewitnesses.
Two of them were parents,
Tzvi Wainer and Jaime
Shmukler.
The remaining four were young singles:
Samuel Bersanker, Ruben Kristal, and two brothers Finkelstein.
My thanks to Mrs Hinde
Fistl, arrived with the first Podoliers
in 1889, who helped in the survey of all the above cases.
Next I know from my own
experience in Moises Ville.
The Waisman family, 1896
For three years the situation calmed
down, so it was thought that never again would repeat something like
that.
But it did not.
In April 1896 came news
from Palacios
about the killing of the whole
family Waisman, who had established a short time before opening a
store and a small shop.
The first statement said
six family members had perished.
Then it was
clarified that the dead were five and that one child
could hide from the murderers and through him
was known how the events
took place.
As night fell the family
head, Jose Waisman, went to close the store
while his wife, Guitl, taken the four children
to sleep.
The oldest was the age of
bar mitzvah, two twin girls and a boy six years old.
Closing he
heard a loud knocking at the door.
As he opened it appeared
several gauchos and immediately received a stab in the heart.
On hearing the cries of
her husband, the woman ran from the bedroom and also was stabbed in
the chest.
She fell with her husband and both remained
dying.
The next act was
developed in the bedroom, where they
killed the oldest child tearing apart him,
and beheaded the two girls in their bed, while
the smallest could slip away and hide in the tall grass.
The assailants robbed the
store and fled without a trace.
The neighbors just
learned the calamity in the morning despite the
piercing screams of the victims as six or seven houses of Palacios
were away from each other.
When the people of Moises Ville came they
faced a surreal scene.
The place seemed to have suffered a
pogrom.
What the murderers did
not take lay broken and trampled on the bleeding
floor where remained lifeless bodies with a hideous
expression on their faces, causing the bitter tears of women and men.
Worse was the image of the bedroom, like a slaughterhouse.
All were taken to Moises Ville, where
there were numerous blackouts during funerals.
Marie Aleksenitzer
Less than a year later there was another
crime, also in the colony in February 1897.
The settler Zalman
Aleksenitzer, of the first
Podoliers, had a beautiful daughter named
Marie. One
morning the mother noticed that she was not
inside.
The news of his disappearance spread
through the colony.
The father returned
hastily from the Administration, extremely
terrified.
All the neighbors helped search for her, and was eventually found in
the backyard of your own home, in a pool of blood, half naked,
dressed only with his shirt.
His body was completely dismembered so
horrendous.
Now Jaime Raiter
was murdered
The
murder which took place later that of Marie, happened in December
1898, when I
had moved
to
Buenos Aires.
At that time A. Vermont
published his "Folks Shtime" where in Issue 19
of December 18, 1898 (found in the IWO
archives) publishes the strange news that I get ready
to copy:
<<A
new tomb is added in the cemetery of Moises Ville -
other
one killed.
Otra víctima de la
maldita colonización, de nuestra propia sangre.
Another victim of the
bloody colonization, of our own blood.
Jaime Raiter, parent of 45 years
old,
was killed by a
gaucho
...
We need not mourn because
we have little praise him, he do not deserve.
He
was one of the "ten sons of Haman" that helped the administrator
"Haman II" to oppress the colonists.
While the extremely poor
were
busy
bathing in their scalding tears, he enjoyed.
While some unfortunate families were
driven from their homes achieved with effort, he was glad.
We have no reason to say funeral prayers
for him, but we must not defame or humiliate ...
However we can point
out to administrators, to Haman II, to the
Lithuanian Ignatiev, to the "Egyptian black"
and their followers who cause shedding blood
and tears to the settlers, that G-d mills grind
slowly but finally they grind ...>>
(2)
In 1900, I don't
remember exactly whether
in the beginning or end, there was another crime.
A few miles from
Moises Ville, en route to San Cristobal was killed a
Podolier
Jew in his middle age called
Iejiel Tzifin.
It was not actually
of Moises Ville but came to buy leather to Jews and non Jews in the
area. I
think this was the last murder in that colony.
In
some of the JCA colonies in Entre Rios
had
also happened several murders , in the early years of its existence,
but this is another issue.
Monigotes defends
itself
We have to
highlight what happened in neighboring Monigotes,
although its population did not remain there for many years (only
three or four) due to the inability to eradicate the locusts.
During the time of
their stay in Monigotes they achieved
to dominate the gauchos, at the
point that were the
gauchos who were frightened by the Jews.
According to Mr Wolfsi story,
an inhabitant of Monigotes, Jews used to behave this way: just noticed
that a gaucho approached, took to the road and hid in the bushes.
When he was close rushed
all at once before he could draw, and beat him. Then they
sat him again on his horse and threw him.
This was
repeated dozens of times, until these other attackers warned they'd
rather avoid Monigotes.
"Those settlers are hardy
murderers," claimed.
Gauchos did not
remained really there.
And the monigotes
people was quiet most of the time
without fear and without regret any
casualties.
Hacohen Mijl Sinai
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