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Emerich Grinbaum - January 8, 2001

From the Americans.

That's all, we were very poorly clothed.

From the liberators.

Liberator. We got some clothes, were very poor clothes. Matterof fact [laughs] I mentioned that those Jews who were liberated by the Russians,they were lucky from one side, and not, lucky that they, they found practicallyempty homes they could take. They were, they gathered a lot of shoes and clothingand with, with, with uh, suitcases, majority. Listen. That was the story lateron, I talked to people. But as soon as they arrived uh, closer, they weretraveling more and more, the Russians were taking to them. The Russian soldiers,because you know the Russians didn't care that you were a prisoner. If youhad some-especially watch, that was the, the major thing. Davai Chase-thatwas the-in Europe. That was some kind of expression, the European Hungariansand Czechs and everybody. Davai Chase, that means, give me the, the watch.That was...they were infatuated with the Chase

Can you spell it?

Davai Chase.

Davai.

Davai-give me-Chase. That's-so, and they took away everythingfrom them. So practically they arrived not better uh, home than we arrived.And they were carrying for awhile. We didn't have, we didn't have nothingto carry because didn't have anything. So they arrived. They-I remember there,there were cases, they, they would rape ladies and...

The Russians.

Russians. So that, that was-they, the uh, impression of Russianswas not very good. I remember the first time when we met, met Russians, thatin Czechoslovakia, they was all over the Russians and there was some kindof a bridge we have to go through. And Russians things and he was rude, hewas cursing ???. I don't want to curse in this, the Russian curse.

It's all right. [laughs]

You know, he says, I tell you exactly.

Yeah, okay.

???. This is the bad Russian cursing, you know.

What does it mean?

Uh.

We need the translation, so it's all right.

Yeah?

Sure.

You mother fucker, something like that. You fuck your motheror something like that.

That's the curse.

Curse, right. That was the first thing, first thing we met aRussian. So that was a contrast between American. No-they didn't beat. But,I didn't have uh, they didn't beat us up or something, but, but...

No, no. Was this reserved specifically for Jews, these curses?

No, no, no. That's a regular cursing, every Russian curses.

Okay.

That's not a Jew-anti, anti-Jewish curse.

For Czechs.

Sure, they, they're, they cursing, that's the, that's the, theregular cursing. And um, they didn't, they didn't touch us, they didn't takeaway from us because nothing uh, was to taken off. But those who had it happenedmany times they took away from us, from them whatever they had.

So you're traveling now with your, your brother?

And father.

Your father.

Right.