Lodz, 23 December 1925

To my dear and devoted nephew and his dear wife,
   E. M. Zissman,

Today, I received your letter of December 1 with which was
enclosed a letter to Mr. Neifeld.  But, dear Sol, your letter
concerns me...and it left me feeling troubled.  You write in
your short letter that you had intended to write me a good
letter, but...such a letter doesn't allow itself to be
written.  Apparently, your head or your mind is worn down
from some sort of aggravation, so your hand doesn't write.
Truly, dear Sol, I sit here in Lodz and read on your face
that something has happened, but I don't know what it is.

You write that perhaps I can guess what the reason is for
your not having written.  So, my response is that I am not a
guesser, but I read between the lines of what you have
written that you have a great deal of pain, whether from
business or something else, I don't know.

You can't imagine, dear Sol, what sort of impact your letter
had on me.  I read and am amazed; I want to read something
from it.  Is this really a letter from my dearest one?  And
where is his humor, his joking, his anecdotes, his reassuring
words?

My dear and devoted one, don't torture your uncle whom you
love, and write me immediately and in detail exactly what,
chas v'cholilah, has happened, or what is pressing you there.
I don't conceal anything or have any secret from you.
Therefore, I insist that you reveal everything to me.  I
don't know whether I can make things any easier with my
advice, but in any event it's better to get things off one's
chest.

It's not enough that I go around weepy and confused.  It's
not enough that I don't hear any good news from my mother
concerning her illness.  In addition, last week I endured a
week of fear.  Evil reports spread and reached me in Lodz
that my brother-in-law, Lazer, had committed suicide by
drowning himself.  It's "good" to hear such news.  I
immediately raced where I don't know, either to the telephone
or the post office or the train, but I couldn't get anything
correct or concrete.  Finally, after a few days, I received a
letter, which I am enclosing, from which you will be able to
understand what was going on.  Moshe Zilberspitz, his
brother-in-law, is waging a battle with him concerning an
inheritance.  He caused him to be so overwrought that he
became unbalanced and, and...not being able to find an
alternative to drowning himself...  Due to a miracle that two
men were going to the mill at midnight, his life was saved.

Imagine, dear Sol, my old, weak, sickly mother lies in bed
and sees all of this.  Can it have an effect on her recovery?

In this way, I lived through a week last week with
aggravation, with concern.  As if that were not enough, I
received from you today such an incomprehensible and
cryptic letter...  I would not ordinarily write you a letter
now because two of my letters are on their way to you.
However, your last letter disturbed me so that I can't think
clearly.

In my last letter, I wrote you about a plan to go to Canada.
What do you think about it?  Have you received a letter about
me from my brothers-in-law in Toronto?  And what do they
write?  Will it be possible for them to do something for me?
What do you think, Sol?

What's happening with respect to your father-in-law's trip?
Will he be coming before Passover or after Passover?  And,
most important, what is his purpose in coming to Europe?  Is
it for a short while or is he going to stay?

Write how you are doing as far as your health and business
are concerned.  Why don't you write anything about your wife?
How she is doing, how is her health, etc?  And what is
happening with respect to Ruchele's state of health?  Is she
better?  Write everything in detail and with precision.  Also
write how Bryndl and Rifkele are doing and whether you have a
good relationship with your father.  I would also ask you for
your father's current address.  It has been requested of me
by a friend of your father with whom he did business at one
time, Noah Chmielnicki, 32 Vosadnia Street.

Also let me know how sales were there for your recent
Christmas season.  Here in Poland, earnings are really
not good at all.  Every day it gets worse.  Now we have a new
problem.  Grabski is no longer in office, (and) the thought
was that better times were coming.  It turned out that the
dollar rose in value from 5.20 to 12 gulden.  Naturally, the
cost of living also rose and all the factories are at a
standstill.  In short, things are not good, not only with me
but with others as well.  One can't know what will happen in
the future.  Day after day, I go around as if I were
bewildered.  If one survives a day, he is fortunate.  As to
selling, there is no merchandise and no money.

In short, my devoted one, we have come upon "good" times.
Aren't we entitled to be envious of our ancestors who are not
witnesses to this growing and long lasting crisis?

So, I send heartfelt regards to you and your wife and my
worthy wife and children also send you heartfelt regards.  I
send heartfelt regards for your in-laws, family, and so on.
Your grandmother in Opoczno is ill.  May the Almighty,
Blessed be He, help; may she have a complete recovery.  The
doctors say that her illness is serious.  The cause is age.
(She is) weak and exhausted.  Her heart is worn out.  She has
more than enough care (and) nourishment.  May the Almighty,
Blessed be He, help her.  Your Uncle Lazer and Aunt Estherl
send their hearty regards to you, your wife and family.
Please answer promptly.  From me, your uncle,

                              Wolf Lewkowicz


All material Copyright 1995 by Marshall L. Zissman and Sol J. Zissman.