In this regard the story of a young man named Halperin (pp. 31-34) is very interesting. Four times he found himself face to face with death, but each time he escaped. He was a pupil in the commercial school, and, before the pogrom, was a member of the ward guard. He was dressed in a soldier's cloak and cap. On Saturday, after dinner, when bodies of murdered people were already lying about the streets, he went to his home, which was on the outskirts of the city, in the direction of the village of Zarechie. Near his house he met a crowd of Gaidamaks, and one of them stopped him and asked whether he was a Jew or a Russian. He replied that he was a Russian. The other demanded evidence, and he showed him his card as a student in the commercial school, in which his creed was not stated. The Cossack turned the card over a bit, looked at him rather suspiciously, but then said: "Well, go along." When other Cossacks then rushed at Halperin, the first shouted to them: "Let him go, he's a Russian." Halperin went to his house, and found it locked, with a window broken. He did not dare enter the house. Only afterwards did he find out that his family had hidden and had not been injured. But a rich Jew named Blechman, who lived in the same house, was found to have been robbed and murdered, with his whole family, consisting of six persons. Halperin went to the neighboring village of Zarechie and visited a Jewish acquaintance named Rosenfeld. About 9 P.M. there began a battering at the door, and some young peasant lads forced their way into the house; they fell on the old man Rosenfeld and killed him. He himself, with Rosenfeld's son, fled in the direction of the woods. Being unable to run far, he stopped. The young men surrounded him and fired at him, but, finding that he was not wounded, they decided to take him to the city and hand him over to the Gaidamaks. Just then a peasant appeared from the city and began to tell of what was going on there. The young men stopped to listen to the newcomer, and Halperin succeeded in
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hiding. Then he went towards the village of Grinovtsy. In this village lived Jewish acquaintances of his named Bucher, but, since it was now very late, he did not venture to go to their house, but spent the night in the open fields. Next day he went to the house, but there it was learned that the peasants were holding a meeting to decide the question of how to deal with the Jews living in the village. He then went back to the city, but, since things were very unsettled there and he did not find his family, he returned to the village again, where he spent the night. Monday morning three Gaidamaks appeared and began to hunt for Jews. Halperin, with two young men and a girl, fled to the woods to hide. After remaining some time in the woods, they decided it would be less dangerous to go to town, and started for Proskurov. On the way they met three young peasants returning from town to the country. One of them had a rifle. The fellows stopped them and examined their documents, and said, "These are just the sort we want," and turned them back towards the village. Halperin was seated in a sledge with the armed peasants. The two other young men and the young woman went on foot. There they met the same three Gaidamaks, who had come to the village earlier, and were now returning to the city. The Gaidamaks stopped them. The peasant with the rifle got down from the sledge and explained to the Gaidamaks that he was taking the Jews he had caught back to the village. The Gaidamaks pulled out their sabres and began to strike the young people who were on foot. All three were killed. Halperin, who was still in the sledge, whipped up the horse, which dashed towards the village. One of the Gaidamaks rushed after him, but could not catch up. Having gone a considerable distance, Halperin got down from the sledge, ran into the field, and stretched himself out on the snow. In the mist he was not easily distinguishable. However, after a time some peasant boys came, who decided to hand him over to the civil authorities as a Jew. They took him to the village of Grinovtsy, taking from him his wrist-watch on the way. In Grinovtsy, where the Buchers lived, it appeared that all the Jews had been arrested, and he was added to the number.
There were about forty Jews, including children, in Grinovtsy. They all had the name of Bucher, and represented the descendants of a certain Bucher who had settled in the village long before. Between the Buchers and the local peasants good and neighborly relations had always subsisted. Nevertheless, when the news of the Proskurov massacre came to the village, the young peasants decided to settle with their Jews, too. Some
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