Claim

Please investigate my request about returning my belongings, which were confiscated by Leningrad Customs on July 13 of this year while arriving from abroad.  I came here to live for good as a citizen of the USSR.  All my belongs which I had with me I bought during nine years living in New York with earnings which I got working for different companies mostly in the sewing industry.  I am not working now because of pregnancy.  I am living on my husband’s money, who is living in New York and working as a carpenter.  In my opinion, you gave these things the wrong classification.  Many of these things are used differently in the USA from the USSR.

M. Tsfasman [signed] August 8, 1932

Poltava, June 25, 1932

Good Day Motya,

Zhenya recently gave me a letter from you (I don=t understand how you forget my address).  For some reason, she kept this letter for more than three weeks and my mother and I were annoyed at you for not writing to us, like I think that you are now.  I will start to tell you as much as I have time about all our suburban news.  First, about myself.  I am now a second year student and in summer I will be a third year student.  The Party cell gave permission for me to advance to the third year.  But I=m not happy about that.  My mood is bad.  I lose weight like the devil.  I=m terribly overtired.  When I came home yesterday, I had a bloody nose.  I didn=t go to the Institute today because I am very weak.  Life is awful here.  I get four hundred grams of bread, and that is good.  Others get fifty grams.  Can you imagine that?  The intelligentsia beg for bread in the streets like beggars.  Overall, it=s bad.  I am not transferred yet to the worst major.  I=ll put the question like this:  either I will be in [tarovic] or in financial papers.  By April 1, everything will become clear.  Enough about myself.  About Zhenya.  We had some difficulties with her.  We had the party at Mishka=s.  Of course, a liter of vodka, horse sausage and onion.  Mishka invited Freydlen and Zhenya, and I invited Liduska.  Can you imagine what was going on??!  Zhenya didn=t visit me after that.  She said, AI don=t want to see him any more.@  And your letter stayed with her.  Then, she gave up and came.  What else to write to you?  By the First, the sound cinema will be open here, just like you have (?).  Overall, boring, boring.  Almost forgot a most important thing.  Mishka was taken out of school and they sent him to the army.  This is common practice here now.  They take from the school and send to the army.  He is terribly upset.  That=s enough.  I have a headache.  How about you?  Do you go to school or work?  How about Mother?  Very warm and deep wishes to her.  Don=t be angry.  Write about everything in detail.  Don=t think I forgot about you.  My address is:  Shevchenkovskaya 19^th for me.  Write to me.  I shake you paw.  Yours Yura [friend of Motya]

USSR
Moscow
Krovoklennly Per
#14 Apt. 43
Z. Tsfasman

Letter:

October 29, 1931

Dear Zellick,

Yesterday, one of our friends from Elizabeth, Walter Tehinsky, left for work in the USSR.

We sent some clothes for Basheva for you and your family with him. When he arrives, he will write to you and probably will invite you to visit him. Everything for you has a white mark. Everything without this, belongs to Basheva. Besides that, he has a list of things sent to you and another list for Basheva.

When you get these things, please write that you received them. Please write to tell us where mother, Motya and Esther are now. As far as I know, Esther was going to come to Moscow to continue studying and Mother also was hoping to find a job in Moscow. I would like to go to the USSR very much, but it is difficult for me to get a Soviet visa because I left the country after the Revolution. I am thinking of going as a tourist and, anyhow, I will try to stay there. What do you think about that and what advice can you give me?

I hope this time you do not leave me without an answer.

Manya is not home now. She went to New York for some business, but I don=t want to wait for her and I am sending the letter. She will probably write herself.

Be healthy.

In a hurry,

Zellick (Z)

Mr. Zellick Zurav
1060 Sheridan Ave.
Elizabeth, NJ USA

March 22, 1933

So, my darling, although we’ve made you wait so long, our daughter Alla (nickname Allochka) and myself present you a gift–a title f-a-t-h-e-r.  How do you like that!  This is a very important event for us my darling, isn’t it?  First of all, because beyond our expectation we have a baby.  Second, the baby was born OK in spite of a stormy pregnancy and unfavorable conditions which could reflect on the child’s development.  Third, she is in more or less good condition in spite of an incredible environment for a baby.  I am going to write everything that has happened to me in order to emphasize the importance of this event and remembering my promise to tell you in detail about my arrival in Moscow.

To satisfy your curiosity about meeting my relatives I will start from the first moment of my arrival in Moscow.

My mother, Motya and Basheva met me on the train station platform.  My mother made a depressing impression on me.  She got very, very old.  She looks exhausted and emaciated.  These ten years of my absence left traces of old age on her.  Her move from Poltava to Moscow made these traces deeper.  Basheva became a little peaky [?] but did not change much.   If I ran into her in America I would recognize her at once.  But I could not recognize my own mother even if I met her on the Poltava streets.  I was excited with Motya.  When I saw a tall handsome guy, I tried to compare this Motya, who is standing now on the platform of Leningrad train station here, in Moscow with that Motya who left on the platform of the Kharkov train station in Poltava in 1922.  He has changed completely.  It seems to me that my sickly little brother was left there, and here in front of me was a totally different guy.  He is grown up, not a fool, and it is interesting to talk to him.  The only trouble is he is crazy about American clothes.  By the way, you can observe here that most of the Russian young people are fond of American clothes.

He (Motya) is working as a wood pattern worker for a plant which belongs to the Aircraft Institute.  He earns more than 200 rubles.  I first saw Zellick a month after I arrived..  He had his annual vacation and on the very same day that I arrived in Moscow he left for a resort in Sochi, in the south.  He got back the very same day and time when Esterka was just going back to Stalingrad.  So at the time seeing out and meetings changed each other [?].

Zellick [Tsfasman] came home with malaria and for a week he stayed in bed.  My first impression of him was as a sickly and tired man.  In general, matured and his bald head makes him look much older than he is.  His personality did not change much.  As before, he is reticent and sullen at home and he is merry and talkative with strangers.  He is working as a senior accountant [?] for a railway carriage construction trust.  He has a lot of influence at work and he goes to the Institute in the evenings.  He is going to be an engineer of cold metal processing.

I found home in the following condition.  The room is small, tight.  My mother’s belongings from Poltava are in the hallway, still unpacked because there is no room for them.  Many things are  on the walls.  It became tighter with my two trunks.  Because of that, we use each inch of the room.  There are even some things under the bed.  We keep food on the window sills.  There is no wardrobe here and we have to hang out clothes on the walls and on the door.  All six families in this apartment use the same kitchen.  For that reason, it is not allowed to keep anything in the kitchen.  So we are forced to keep all food, garbage, and waste water in the room.  The laundry is also kept here, under the bed.

Otherwise, the windows look south and it is incredibly hot during the day.  All this is not good for people, but very favorable to the flies, bedbugs (they have enough room under the wallpaper), fleas, cockroaches, and mice.  Our room is full of this collection.  I could not sleep for nights because of the heat, bedbug bites and the noise the mice made.  During the day, I have to go up to the 6th floor and down many times (the elevator is almost always out of order).  A few weeks ago I had to go to customs.  My hands were full, I tried to get back the belongings they confiscated from me when I arrived.  Every time I went there, I was nervous and upset.  Besides, I had to ride the tramway (street railway).  The tramways are terrible here.  The ride threatens a pregnant woman’s life.  I was pushed, squeezed and pressed many times.  To tell the truth, there is a law here about maternity and child protection.  According to this law, there are some seats in tramways for pregnant women and children.  But in that terrible mess and crowding I really could have used this privilege.

The last two months of our little bird’s development took place in such conditions.  It might have badly affected our baby.  If the baby was born normal it is further evidence of the importance of this event for us.  Nevertheless all this did not pass without the tracks [?].  To make you familiar with what has happened I’ll try to describe to you in a few words the appearance of our little on in this world and my worries because of that.

On Friday, September 16 [1932], at about 4 p.m. I felt light kicks.  By nighttime they became quicker, every 15 minutes.  Mother, Motya and Nakim, who just arrived from Poltava this morning, walked me to the delivery room in the hospital.  It takes 10-15 minutes to walk from our house.  It was raining hard but we went by foot.  On the way to the hospital the pain became faster and harder.  They nearly dragged me to the hospital.  I tried to keep up my spirits, but I felt depressed.  I was scared by the unknown outcome and, most importantly by your absence.

Birth delivery was very painful, but not too long and with no complications.  At 9 p.m. they  put me on the table and at 1:30 a.m. on September 17 I gave birth to our daughter Allochka.  She weighed 7 3/8 lbs and she was small and weak.

Now I am going to mention a couple words about the protection of mother and child in the USSR.  Such protection of a pregnant woman, and a mother who nurses, and a child you could find in no other country.  From the first months of pregnancy a woman must be observed by a doctor in her neighborhood maternity consultation (medical office).

Attention to the health of pregnant women is striking.  For example, after delivery of the baby, I was sent to a special room.  This room is for future mothers who have different kinds of problems during pregnancy (like I had).  To make them feel better and to make the pregnancy easier they try to surround women with as much attention and care as they can.

Involuntary [?] you can compare the care of pregnant women here and there in the U.S.  It took a special note from Doctor Goldfeld to get me to the hospital.  Every two days there are lectures for the mothers who are leaving the hospital.  They teach how to take good care of a baby in his or her new environment.  I could tell about many other interesting things connected to maternity and child protection, but back to myself.

From the first days of her life, I myself experienced the most unpleasant moments connected with our little daughter.

As I already told you she was born a weak child and needed a lot of attention and care.  There is a lack of medical staff at the hospital.  All of them are very busy.  For example, during my sty there, only two assistant nurses took care of 50 babies.  The babies who are not strong and healthy enough die because nurses and others cannot take sufficient care of them.  I noticed from the first days that my baby eats just a little and during the nursing gets blue.  I called the doctor’s attention to that, but only on the fourth day did they take it into consideration and begin to bring the baby for nursing more often, to wrap her up in a downy blanket, to put her on the hot water bags, and even to give her oxygen.  When all was done, they discovered that the baby has a heart disease.  I was afraid to stay at the hospital any longer.  Even though it would have been better for my health to stay a couple more days, I left the hospital in a hurry.  The doctors did not give me much hope for the baby’s life.

The very same day I got home my mother brought the baby to the child consultation (medical center office).  After the checkup, the doctors just shook their heads:  she is a helpless child, they told my mother.  But my mother and I began to fight to save the baby.  We wrapped her up in feathery pillows and for 2-3 weeks did not leave her for even a minute.  All the time we put hot water bags and bottles with hot water by her legs and her body.

By the way, so far the water bags are the first very useful thing I brought with me.  You cannot buy them here, and if you can get it, it is a bad quality.  So that way we saved the baby’s life.

Now every 10-14 days we go with the baby to the child consultation.  Here each neighborhood has its own child consultation where the residents of 2-3 streets have their doctor.  So every child is observed by the same doctor from birth.  The doctor makes the next appointment, and if you miss it, you’ll get a reproof.  They weigh the baby, and if they see she is losing weight, they do something to add weight.  Our Allochka gains weight pretty well.  At 3 months she weighed 14 lbs.  If our apartment’s condition was better, she would be just fine.  Unfortunately she is in conditions that are awful for children which could reflect on her health in the future (I am no longer telling about my health).

In addition to the apartment condition I told you about above there is now more.  There are dirty sheets under the baby’s nose.  They stay and turn sour until I wash them.  This is a big problem and effort here.  I have to boil water.  The kitchen is so far that I have to walk down a long hallway.  I am exhausted running back and forth.  It is a good thing we have a gas stove here. Otherwise I would be lost.  In addition, there is no place to dry the baby’s sheets, and we hang them in the dark hallway.  It takes much longer for them to get dry and they absorb all the smells and dust coming from the kitchen and rooms.  To make them dry more quickly we put the baby’s clothes on the radiators and hang them above the oil stove, which is on all day to make the room warm.  We need it because the room is wet.  The walls are wet and covered by mold from the ceiling to the floor.  Even the clothes which hang on the walls are covered by mold.

So the baby has to breathe in the smell of wet clothes, fumes of wet walls, and carbon and soot from the oilstove.

The window in the room does not open, there is just a small hinged windowpane.  It is not enough for ventilation.  At night it is also closed because of the cold.  So you can understand the air in the small room where four adults are sleeping.  Of course it is harmful for the baby.

Many times I was scared to death to see a cockroach or bedbug on the baby’s bed.  It wouldn’t be too bad if I could keep her outside in the fresh air for at least 4-5 hours, but that is not really practical.  The elevator is broken (at this time–completely)  It would be impossible to carry the baby’s cart up to the 6th floor even if you could buy one.  So, I take the child outside in my arms, which is uncomfortable for her and for myself.  Because of the freezing weather and a strong frost I put a lot of warm clothes on her.  The clothes weigh more than the baby.  I cannot hold her in my arms for more than two hours.  I can hardly drag myself up to the sixth floor and cannot feel my arms and legs.  After that I am not able to even think about going outside one more time.  I have to rest for a long time to do some other household job.

Anyway you have to go outside again and again.  Sometimes 3-4 times a day.  Either we need kerosine, or some bread, or vegetables, or milk, or apples, or you have to go to Torgsin.  To get any small thing you have to stand on line.  For example, it is permitted to buy bread only for two days.  Because our family received only 4 lbs of bread a day (Motya as a worker gets 1 lb of white and 1 lb of rye bread, Zellick as an office employee gets ½ lb of white and ½ lb of rye bread, Mother as a dependant also gets ½ lb white and ½ lb of rye bread).  I have none because I am not working and have no proof that my husband supports me.  So we have to go to buy some bread every day.  That means we have to stand on line every day.  In Torgsin you can spend a whole hour to buy just one thing:  to order this thing is one line, to pay for it–another line and, to get this thing is a third line.

In addition to all this we have a problem with the water.  It does not get to the sixth floor very often.  Sometimes the water is off for a few hours, sometimes–for a few days.  So, we have to go down to get some water.

All this takes my energy, time and health.  I am not recovered from delivery, and even got worse.  During the day I am moving or running all the time.  At night I just fall into bed like a sheep  [?].  I cannot stand this any more, Zelka.  I give up, I despair of all that.  You know, darling, sometimes it seems to me that I am delirious or I see all this in a terrible dream.

And Mother, my poor mother.  She is completely exhausted.  She is carrying the whole weight of worries.  I feel terrible because of that.  Last time her heart got worse.  I am worried all the time.  She might have a heart attack.  She is full of duty and care for the whole family and she is carrying heavy responsibility for our daughter.  I am just lost in this situation.  I don’t think it is necessary to mention that I began to write this letter a long time ago.  You can see for yourself.  But what you cannot see is how much health and worry this letter is worth to me.  You know, darling, it is a shame to say but every time I sit down to write the letter I have a spasm and cannot continue.

I write at night and often I wake up with a pen in my hand and with paper under my nose.

But in spite of all that I consider myself as a criminal, even twice a criminal because I committed the crime.  I am afraid to confess it.  My mother wrote a letter to you a long time ago.  She told everything about delivering the baby.  But I wanted myself to be the first to tell you.  I thought I would finish my letter soon and send both together.  I confess that I deserve more than reproof.  I am not looking for excuses.  I lash myself enough.

I do not know why I am writing such a letter after you were so exhausted from waiting for a letter from me.  It will not make you feel better.  But after long struggle and effort I decided to share my worry with you.  I am afraid you cannot understand me.  Please darling, do not interpret my mood the wrong way, do not think that I am afraid of a hard time.  I consider myself happy to be in the USSR.  I could reconcile myself to the situation if I knew that these problems were inescapable.  If getting over the problems I knew that I do it, for the public benefit, or for my baby’s and my good.

I left the U.S. thinking that I would send the baby to kindergarten and would go to work and to school.   We could not foresee many problems which came with the baby’s birth.  This particular problem cannot be solved at this time.  The baby is so weak, that sending her to kindergarten means putting her healthy head into a sick bed.  There are many children’s epidemics following one after another, and it is easy for her to get the diseases.  This would not be a problem at all if I could have a babysitter, as almost all young mothers here do.  But this is impossible because of the apartment’s problem–there is no place for the babysitter to sleep.  Also I could not leave the baby with my mother–one person could not handle it.

This is my situation now and the only way out–is your arrival.  Everything will be in order then.  I don’t know how, but it will be.  We’ll see when you come.  About your coming.  Please come as soon as possible, because I can’t stand it any more, all this life is killing the baby and me.  But remember:  under all circumstances don’t leave a job.  If it is possible, take a vacation.  This is not just my advice.  Everybody I’ve talked to about that said the same.  One thing is clear now:  even if you could find a job, it is impossible to get an apartment.  This is the only thing which could make us go back to the USA.  All others–nonsense.  We can make it up with others.  To tell the truth it is a hard time both–in getting food and in getting a job.  But anyway, the future for us, as well as for all Soviet youth, is excellent.  I hope we do not leave.  But just in case take my advice and find out about the possibility of returning, about my reentry permit (if we have to return, we can do it together at the same time).  Register the baby as your daughter in the recording office at the Elizabeth Court House.  Tell them that your wife went to visit her mother in the USSR and had a baby there.  Tell them you did not register the baby until now because we did not know if she would survive.  In any case register as 2 or 3 months younger.  Philip told me that you can do this.  He thinks that it is better for me to go back.  When he went on a business trip to Finland a few months ago, he learned from the American Embassy about the possibility of registering the baby.  I registered her at ZAGZ already.  I wanted to give her your last name, but I did not have proof of our marriage.  So I had to give her my last name and no middle (father’s) name.  I named her Allochka without any ideological meaning, just because of the nice sounds.  But I like your idea–Alla-May.  Let it be like that in Russian–Alla, in American–Ella-May.  Let us hope that our Allochka will continue Alla-May Wiggins’ work.  And now, darling, if the first lines of this letter were not really happy, in the last ones I’ll try to make you happy, so I am going to tell you about our daughter.  First of all, here is her picture:  the nose, the mouth, the hair, even the little ears are yours; dimple on the right cheek and the color of the eyes are Mina’s.  It is a pity, nothing from the Tsfasman’s.  But many people think that she is beautiful.  I’ll be modest and say, she is far from beautiful, but very pretty.  About her intelligence we will argue for a while with you.  I am afraid you have to let me have it that time.  Anyway, she is a great little girl.  It is a pity you cannot observe her development, how she changes from an unconscious condition to the conscious.  It is so interesting to see how she is turning her head to the light, to the sound.  She started to do that at 1.5 months.  At two months she started cooing “agu.”  At three months she started laughing loudly.  She started it all of a sudden.  At first, I was scared, I thought something was wrong with her.  Now it is a normal thing, she is laughing very often.  By the way, she borrowed that from Sofie–easy to laugh, easy to cry.  See, no offense is meant to Sofie.  So, your dream you wrote me about in one of the letters became more or less true.  At four months she started to reach our her hands and now she grabs everything that she sees.  My hair suffers most of all.  But you are not going to miss it either.  By the time you come she will have more strength and you are not going to leave your hair untouched.

At five months she is trying to hold up her head.  Now we put her on the pillow, and when we take her in our arms, she dances and jumps–it is hard to hold her.  I do not have enough milk for her, that is why I started to give her kasha at 4 months.  Now she eats a vegetable soup, an apple kissel, and fruit juices from an orange, an apple, or a carrot.  All this I give her following doctor’s instructions.  All these fruits and vegetables I buy for her in Torgsin.  Last time I added to this diet fish fat, because the doctor found out she has signs of rachitis [?].  At three months she had a vaccination.  We had a few worried days.  Her arm was swollen, she had a high temperature.  My mother and I did not sleep for two nights.  After that we invited a famous child professor.  He did a checkup of the heart.  He found out that her heart is good but the apartment’s condition is killing her.

By the way, I bought a [?] for her–the wicker basket.  Standing on the height runners.  I thought, I’ll make my life easy, and it is the other way around.  It is easy to go down., they slide by themselves, but I hurt my stomach carrying it upstairs.  Just imagine how it is to take ten staircases with 18 stairs in each, with a baby and a slide [?] in your arms.  I wish I was freed from all that.  Zelka, I cannot do that any more, I really do not have any strength any more.

So Allochka and I are looking forward to your coming.  I am sending Allochka’s picture.  As you wanted, we took her picture at 2 months.  The picture is not good enough, she is even prettier.  That is why I did not want to send it to you.  I am sending you this one because I could not find the time to take another picture.  And soon you will see with your own eyes that she is much prettier than in this photo.  In a few days she’ll be six months old and we’ll take another picture of her.  So, darling, do not waste time, get packed for the trip.  But be sure not to spend much money.  Each dollar here has great value for us.  I learned that myself.  If not for your support through Torgsin, I would not survive.  In Torgsin I buy the most necessary food such as butter, eggs, flour, sugar, apples and oranges for the baby.  It is hardly enough money for a month.  But you can’t do without Russian money too.  For example, you cannot buy some milk at Torgsin.  You have to go to the farmers’ market, and everything there is very expensive, one ruble (sometimes a ruble and a half) per glass of milk.  We buy 2-3 glasses of milk every day.  That is more than 100 rubles per month.  Last time there were no carrots at Torgsin, we had to buy it at the farm market and pay 1 ruble, sometimes 50 kopecks for each carrot.  But this is necessary for the baby.  We have to buy other food with rubles also, and because my brothers do not get a big salary compared to prices for food, we have some difficulties.  But I go back to your trip.  Buy only necessary clothes.  My advice is–buy two more suits, one should be heavy and good quality.  You’ll be strangely surprised that people here like to dress up and prefer foreign clothes.  Knickers are especially in style now.  To copy this style men put long socks on top of the pants, and it looks like knickers.

So if you can, buy some clothes for yourself:  a three piece suit, two or three pairs of long socks with a check pattern, a few nice shirts, a few beautiful ties, two pairs of boots, black and brown, and one that is high, as you bought for me.  Also buy one or two good quality sweaters with a beautiful pattern, a raincoat, thick leather jacket for the winter, underwear, one extra pair of pants, a couple good belts with a pretty buckle.  There are no nice belts and ties here, so if you’ll bring a couple of extra, it could be a good gift for somebody.  Try to buy anything you will find necessary.  Anything you bring would be useful here.  But remember, only good quality, you can find the bad things here.  Just in case of trouble with Amtorg, find out the number of things they allow.  Do not take more than that.  By the way, you are interested in what I brought with me that is really useful.  Most of all is children’s clothes.  It is impossible to find them here.  It is really sad I did not take with me a traveling card [?] and that little tub Fanya suggested to take.  Now I wash the baby in a zinc tub.  I don’t think you can bring something for Allochka.  You have no proof that she is your daughter, and bringing gifts is not allowed.  Speaking of pharmacy items I brought, Vaseline and water bags are very useful, I did not need the others yet.  Please pick up some Vaseline, but not the small jar, the big one.  First, it is so low quality here, and second, you can’t find it.  Also take with you “Seidlitz Powder” [?] and boric acid.  I cannot use at all the household items such as an iron and electric stove.  Of course, they would be very helpful, but first, they take a lot of power and second, we have one meter for all the tenants.  If we had our own meter, I would use them.  Things that were taken at customs I sent back.  I could leave them for one of the children’s charity homes, but it takes so much trouble.  You have to have good health and a lot of free time to do that.  I thought if Sofie decided to come here, she could take some of these things, she could take as much as she can.  By the way, when is Sofie herself thinking of coming here?  Philip was here a few months ago and said that he sent shifscarts [?] for her.  Maybe you can come with her before May 1st.  And how about Mina [Minnie?], doesn’t she think about making her wish real this time?  Nat of course, will not stay home.  It would be great if you all came here together.

I am writing to you Zelka, and again I am distracted.   My mother and Allochka are here, next to me, Mother makes her laugh, and she is laughing.  The whole room is full of her.  Right now Mother teaches her to say pa-pa-pa.  Mother wants her to name you “papa” when you arrive.  The baby becomes silent hearing a new sound and all of a sudden begins to turn her tongue and lips, copying Mother and finally making a funny sound.  It is a pity you are not here now.  But she is practical–could not say father until she sees for herself who he is and what he looks like.  So, daring, don’t pack for long–go.  We are waiting for you by May 1st.  Let this holiday be twice happy because of your arrival.

So long

Manya

P.S.  Today is March 17, our special day.  Exactly 6 months ago, at 1:30 a.m. our Allochka was born.  My congratulations and in honor of that I will try to finish this letter.  I want to remind you one more time, Zelka, about your job.  It is not easy to find a job here at this time.  Find out if you can give somebody your warrant [permission?] to receive $100 from the post office, in case you stay here for good.  If it is possible, give this permission to Nosok.  Bring our marriage licence.  One more thing, if you can, buy for my mother the teeth she likes.  Sor’l [?] Schkolnik sent them with me for her sister.  Ask her to find them for you.  If you buy them, put them in your pocket.  Also bring one watch, a couple barotok [?], red and cream.  If a woman comes, send a rubber apron with her.  Mina knows which one I need.  I can’t [stand to?] see how Allochka is wetting all my dresses.  Bring some food–a carton of cocoa–it is very expensive here, and a carton of malted milk.  It’ll be good if you could bring a ziny [?] of kosher kielbasa for my mother.  That is it so far.  You need a lot of clothes so do not bother to take [?].  Money is the most important thing here.  I want to tell you that I’ve received all the money you sent to me every month and spent it for myself and our daughter.  I want to confess that the time when you did not send money was and is the hardest for myself.  I could not buy anything even at the farmers’ market because we do not have enough Russian money.  But I expect this punishment from you. It is fair. I am not blaming you, but lash and tear to pieces myself  enough.  By the way, they gave me advice that you should buy the tour at Intourist and the ticket at the private agency.  Try through Ayzner.  Go through Europe, so you can visit Paris.   However you will see yourself what is best for you. Write if it is really possible to come by May 1st.  On the day you leave send a telegram.  Let me know if my luggage came back.  If yes, let it wait for me.  Or, if Sofie is going to come here, maybe she will take some of the things for me.  How does Sofie feel, when I left she was not feeling good.  Special greeting to Noson.  I feel sorry because I received a letter from him a long time ago and did not answer yet.  In a day or two maybe I will try to write him.  Say hello to Aunt Mary and Uncle Israil-Moshe.  Who did Sara give birth to–a boy or a girl? [Final line is unclear.]

[Translated from Russian by Valya Yarovaya 1998]

From Zellick Z

First to Zellick and Motya Tsfasman
Second to F. Tsfasman
#44a

November 11, 1932

Hello Zellick! (Alosha [Russian name] if you prefer)

Well if you want it to sound like Russian, you can have it.  Honestly, this puzzle is not easy for me.  Manya knows that and she knows the reason.  I am saying that because I don’t want you to be surprised by my sometimes wrong expression.  Honestly, I do not know what to write about.  I think that to write about myself is not important because Manya knows every detail of my private life and if you are interested you can learn everything from her.  Maybe you know more or less from the papers.  Anyway, I don’t want to tell about that in the letter, because I expect to see you soon.  For now, I just want to say hello to you and wish you all the best.  Also, my congratulations on your new title uncle.  I’m taking some of the responsibility for that, but she is herself responsible for the disturbance she’s giving you (for waking you up at night, etc.  You can sue her in family court).  Of course, I appreciate your troubles about my accommodation when I arrive.  I agree that it is hard to say something certain, without me.  But I think that this is not the most important thing.  The most important is, do you think my visit is timely?  I am just interested in your opinion as a person who lives there.  Not because I am going to change my mind.  I want to know my real condition.  Please be honest with me and write without any hesitation.  What do you think about it?  Your friend, Zellick.

Tsfasman
Nr 12

Cream 100 gms.
For ten days

[signature]
November 9, 1932
[seal]

Dear Zhenya!

I received your letter.  I appreciate it very much.  Perhaps you do not suspect that you were the first one who wrote me about my daughter and Manya.  I got the only letter from Manya from Moscow.  Of course, it worried me and your letter relieved me.  I don’t need to write about myself.  I think that Manya made you more or less familiar with our life, and Harrison knows well about the lives of American workers.  He knows about this maybe better than me.  About ours, everyone is healthy and everyone would like to see their friends and everything in the USSR.  Unfortunately, this is easy to dream, but not easy to make real.  We need money for that, a very rare and valuable thing for this time.  I can say that they give us a teaspoon of money once a week.  Many others, too many, do not have even that.  Concerning my visit to Russia, I can say nothing particular, I mean about time of arrival.  The only thing I know is that I should celebrate the fifteenth anniversary of the Revolution here.  I would like to know more about your life, Zhenya.  If you can find some time and you are not lazy, please write about how people who I know live, what do they do, how do they work, how do they have fun, etc.  By the way, I have received a letter from uncle in Kursk.  He says they are old men and old women and it is hard there.  He asked me to bring a watch for him.  Honestly, I don’t know how I can satisfy everybody.  If so, I have to buy a couple dozen watches and be suspected of speculation.  I don’t know about others, but I will try to do that for Uncle.  Give my regards to everybody, especially to the children.  I will come back to my daughter for a minute.  You see, I don’t know her yet.  I don’t know what she looks like and what is her name.  I hope soon that Manya will give me all the information.  Just in case, I would appreciate it very much if you would write me about her (without a mother’s point of view).  I want to know her length, weight, face, body, what color are her eyes, hair and, of course, don’t forget her name.  Zhenya, please forgive from time to time my wrong Russian.  I am not among Russians and I lost the habit of speaking Russian and it is difficult to write.  I hope everything will change pretty soon.

Zellick.

All ours say hello to you.

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Moscow-Center
Krivokolennly Per (short street)
#14 Apt. 43
F.Y. Tsfasman

October 13, 1932

My Dearests!  Can you imagine what I can think if it is September 27 already and I have no news from you.  Mother sent me the postcard from the 15^th, but at that time you didn’t have any results yet.  I am very worried.  Write as soon as possible.  About myself, I can tell you another time.  Now, I have to hear about Manya.  Everything is ok with my apartment.  My address is Stalingrad CMZ [tractor plant], Nishny Posolok, House 520, Apt. 34.  Esye.

[Return address]

Stalingrad CKTZ [Stalingrad Tractor Plant] Nisniy Posolok

House 520 Apt 34 Esye Tsfasman

October 5, 1932

My Dearest One,

At last I received the news.  I have been waiting anxiously and Esye sends tremendous congratulations to Grandmother Fanya, to Mother Manya and to uncles Zellick and Mark [Motya] Naumovich!!!  I have an unbearable wish to see my little, still-nameless (I would name her Maya), niece.  I don’t know her yet, but I dreamed of her and she is such a charming girl.

My Dearest One!  For the last two weeks, my heart was heavy because I did not know what was going on with you.  It is terrible that I didn’t receive the telegram.  Can you imagine how I was worried?  At one time, I felt so upset because I couldn’t get my apartment, did not have any news from you and had other troubles.  I was in such a bad state that I did not sleep for five nights, also because I had a toothache.  But it is over now (that is why I am writing to you about that).  Everything is alright with my apartment.  I already sent a postcard about that.  Do you remember, Mother, where Rivuchka Chernikova used to live?  It is above our apartment on the fourth floor.  She left and I took up her room.  I have two roommates and we live in peace and friendship.  We put our apartment in order.  It is clean and comfortable here.  One of the girls works and goes to school.  Another just works.  Everything we get we share for breakfast and dinner.  Of course, remembering my previous experience, I made an agreement with the girls to put some of our money together to spend for our needs, for example to buy some bread, potatoes, tomatoes, etc.  The rest of my needs, of course, I buy by myself (with no pooling).  I am explaining this for you, Mother.  Do not think that I am as careless as before.  I am very happy about my new shoes because even if I could save 40-50 roubles it wouldn’t be enough to get the shoes.  This year, it would be easier for me with a scholarship.  I made good progress at school and they gave me the highest score for my first school year.  That means my scholarship will be higher.  I don’t know yet how much higher (approximately 85-90 roubles).

My dearest one!  I think Mulya will give you this letter.  I will be looking forward to his return to receive regards from my niece (I am very proud of that)!  I tell my friends now that I am not just Esye anymore, I am Aunt Esye!  See!  I hurry to finish.  I beg you my dearest one, write me about everything in detail.  Manya!  If you have recovered already, write me everything you went through.  Motushka.  Why don’t you write to me???  Give my regards to Misha.

[Esye]