So it was in Felshtin (Government of Podolia). When the Jewish community heard of the frightful massacres in Proskurov, they began to negotiate with the commander of the militia about taking measures for protection, gave him 15,000 rubles and promised a valuable set of furniture besides. He promised that he would invite the security police of the village Porichie to support his soldier militia. And in fact the security police actually appeared the next day. But their activity consisted in not allowing any Jews to leave the place, so that the latter fell into a trap and were cut down in considerable numbers.
In a number of cities Self-help was organized. The fate of this organization is very instructive.
In Kremenchug the union of Jewish soldiers organized a volunteer security police numbering about 1,000 men. During the first pogrom in Yelisavetgrad a portion of these, about 200 men, proceeded thither and brought the pogrom to an end. This security police consisted mainly of Jews, but there were Christians in it also. It was under the command of Grag.
During the second pogrom in Yelisavetgrad the security police no longer played any role. This time the resistance came from the Committee of Public Safety which controlled a sufficient number of defenders. They had 22 men killed (8 Jews and 14 Christians) and about 30 men wounded. During the third, genuinely military and most frightful pogrom, which was carried out by the bands of Grigoriev, no security police could do anything.
On the day after the pogrom the union of metal workers and the members of the peasant congress organized the class-conscious workmen into a division for the protection of the city. A number of automobiles with armed workmen passed through the city. The soldiers and sailors thought that this division was organized by order of the staff. But when they found out the next day that no such order had been given, they began to kill the Jews. The Jews, who had come out of their hiding places, thinking that the pogroms were over, could not hide themselves so well on the third day, and the number of victims on this day was therefore particularly large. The infuriated bandits murdered whole families and spared neither old men nor infants.
On representations being made by the unions of metal workers and the president of the peasant congress to the staff of the troops of Grigoriev, the pogroms were checked.
We see from this case that the volunteer organization of the security police was not able to offer resistance to the troops. The same thing is shown in the pogroms of Golovanevsk and Alexandria.
Golovanevsk is situated in the government of Podolsk on the boundary of the circuit Uman, in the government of Kiev. This place had gained legendary fame among the Jews by reason of its well organized Self-defense, composed of several hundred young Jews who had guns, machine guns and even bombs. The surrounding peasants had respect for the Self-defense of Golovanevsk and did not dare to attack the place. The Self-defense succeeded even in driving away a band of 1,000 to 2,000 men. But even this "safe rampart," in which by reason of its safety more than 2,000 fugitives had gathered from the neighboring pogrom-visited places, was powerless when the strong band of Sokolovsky appeared. The Self-defense could not offer adequate resistance, and in the course of a
UKRAINE
half hour about 200 Jews lay dead in the streets. The band killed all who came in their way.
The same fate befell the "Workmen's Fighting Defense" in Alexandria, at the time of the second attack of Grigoriev on the 27th of June. The Defense consisted of 600 men, of whom 300 were trained in arms, while the other 300 were just learning to shoot. They stationed watches every day. The suddenly appearing band of Grigoriev met a division of only 40 men. These resisted them in a four-hour fight and lost n men killed. The remaining members of the Defense did not appear at this moment when action was imperative. But they would not really have made any change in the general picture of the pogroms. After the pogrom the members of the Defense fled, fearing the vengeance of Grigoriev' s bands.