Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive

• Contents
• Map

Anne Eisenberg - May 11, 1982

Can you describe the punishment by the guards and the Kapos?

Well, for instance, if somebody was caught stealing, they used to get twenty-five lashes. Most of the time after they finished the twenty-five lashes and they never got up. For instance, one day a girl when we were marching, she couldn't stand the hunger anymore. She went into a German house to ask for a piece of bread. And a German Lagerführer was there. At that time already we had another one. And he came back to the camp, he got the girl out, we were all standing in line for our potato. He pulled out the gun, shot her and then the other girls to obey to why she was alive.

Was there illness in the, uh...

Definitely. A lot of illness.

Was there any medical attention for it.

Some doctors may have tried, but they had nothing to cure with.

Hm. [pause] Was there any religious activity when you were in the work camps?

Every time bombing was taking place we used to curl up and say Sh'ma Israel.

Uh.

Some girls--three sisters and a mother was found dead like that after the bombing was over.

Did you receive any special punishments?

I was no uh, no different. If I have it coming they didn't spare me.

Did you ever have it coming?

Yeah. Well, I try not to. Actually, I, I shouldn't say if you had it coming. It didn't--we didn't, they didn't have to have an excuse.

Right.

I go--I had my share of beatings, yes.

And you witnessed some? Did you witness any ex...uh, executions?

Yes I did...

Just wanna...

in Auschwitz.

In Auschwitz. Can you describe it?

I have to say whoever went to the gallows was pretty brave. They didn't say nothing. They, they just went and there was nothing to say. And we couldn't say much either. It's nothing to describe. It's just too vivid.

Were they hanged?

Yes.

Were there difference between the Wehrmacht guard and the SS?

I couldn't tell. Well, I think like our Lagerführer was a Wehrmacht, because he was a little bit more with human understanding. The SS were the real uh, real cruel people.