On the 15th there were rumors all day long throughout the city about threatening events impending, but most of the citizens treated them lightly and with disbelief. My children and I therefore went to bed calmly (my husband was not at home, he had gone to Turob on business, and has not yet returned). In the town the local militia and a hired guard of honest peasants were on watch. In the night we were awakened by rifle shots. We were not frightened by them, thinking that they were fired by the local guard, which as usual in such cases was frightening the bandits by shots. But hearing wild cries and the sound of broken glass, I at once understood what was up. Wakening all the children, I hastened to get them into the store-room, because there is no glass there and it is safer from bullets. At this time all the windows of my house were smashed by stones thrown by the bandits. No one came into our house and until morning we remained in the storeroom. Going out on the street, I saw many peasant-compatriots. I applied to some of them asking them to grant refuge to me and my children. But all of them, though they were good acquaintances and friends, for some reason refused. By this time reports were coming in, one more terrible than another, about the killing of some Jews, and about what they were getting ready to do. I was afraid to stay over night with the children in my house, and went to my acquaintance Adam Sich (who was afterwards shot by the bolsheviki). I did not find him at home. I urgently begged his wife to let us in. Approximately at midnight the owner of the house, Adam Sich, returned, but soon went away again and until morning kept going out and coming in again. I did not close my eyes all night long; I could not sleep. In the morning I went out into the town; all the frightened people were exchanging experiences about the night with horror, and were talking with fear about the next night. Some reassurance was caused by the collection of money among the population for the ringleaders, especially when a considerable sum was handed over
UKRAINE
to them and they advised all to assemble in Ratner's house. With many others I hastened to hide in Ratner's house; but his daughter-in-law, Yekheved, meeting me at the threshold, said that she herself would not spend the night at home (the next day she was killed in that very house). Therefore I turned back and again succeeded in entreating the wife of Adam Sich to allow us to spend the night in her house. Adam did not spend the night at home; I was told that "he had taken the horses to the field." The next day I learned that the horses had not been taken to the field.