(going) The Extra Yad: Letters from Levi Yitzkhak Lederman, 11 May 1911

This post continues translation from Yiddish and analysis of letters sent by Levi Yitzkhak Liderman to his son, Morris, who was settled, initially, in New York City in 1910. For further background, see the first post in this series.

For links to other posts in this series, scroll to the bottom.

As noted previously, translation is an art. Any comments or clarifications by Yiddish speakers/translators are welcome.

As an aid to understanding, I have placed a family tree at the end of the post.

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11 May 1911, Polonnoe, Volin G. [Volhynia Gubernia]
[This is the Julian calendar date, which was in effect in the Russian Empire at this time. The letter was written two days earlier on 9 May 1911. The equivalent in the Gregorian calendar (in use in the United States, then and now) was 22 May 1911.]

Addressed to:

Mr. J. Simberg

134-136 Cannon [Street]

Neu Yorc

for Morris Liderman

[The Russian printed text on the top left side of the card reads: L. Liderman.]

Translation

Translation by Esther Chanie Dushinsky

[Notes in blue as well as those at the end of the post are mine. Levi Yitzkhak tried to squeeze as much on the card as possible and did not break the text into paragraphs. For ease of reading, I have added paragraph breaks in the translation.]

9 May [Russian calendar], 22 May [USA calendar] 1911

Tuesday, Bamidbar[1]

My dear and beloved son, my ____ soul, Mr. Moshe'leh, should live. They sent all you letters from my house, to me, as well as the postcard that you sent to my current address ____.[2]

I read your letters that there is hope that ____ 12 dollars to ____. I am adding my request, and I am asking, who is going to give, and I hope that the Ribono Shel Olam [God] will judge you favorably and your charisma will be seen in the eyes of others, with even greater charisma, good luck and blessings.

Why, my son, wouldn't you write to me the entire time what job you currently have? Will you have a specific job, or will you just be working for them?

____ ____ [last week?] I received the letter and card that were returned to me from America. ____ Rosh Chodesh Nissan ____, 17 March Russia, 30 March English.[3] And I sent you this card to Reuven's address, A 132. Most likely they couldn't find him in America, so they sent it back to me, what is this? It could be, that if you'd write to me that Reuven got married already and is in the country already, that's why they couldn't find him in New York.[4]

You wrote that you had not letters for 12 days. That's surprising to me, because I write a letter to you, from here every single week, They also write to you from home amost every week. What could be the matter [?]?

Moshe'leh, my son, today I picked up a letter today from our Zanvel'n a letter. He's complaining sadly - he tells me "you gave to Faiga'n, you gave to Moshe'n, and I am the sacrifice."[5] I am crying and mourning over this. What can I do? One God should have mercy. I write to mother that she should sell the home and we can settle somewhere else. Because I am depending ____ ____ our situation is very dire.

[side 2]

A fine, smart, a ____ and has nothing to do in Bushtin [?]. It's possible that in Polonnoe he might find something to do. Times flies. He isn't a boy anymore. What can we do? "What do we do?" He wants me to give him 50 Rubles [?], so that he can travel to ____ or somewhere else. What you wrote about, when I will be home I will see where it will take me. I should come up with a good idea, a solid idea to advise him!

Your father who wants the best for you, good luck, and happiness, ____ ____

[upside down]

Send regards to my brother in law and the entire family.[6]

Notes:

1. Bamidbar is the 34th weekly Torah reading in the Jewish cycle. It is the book Numbers 1:1-4:20.

2. Home was, at this time, in Annopol. Levi Yitzkhak was working in Polonnoe, 57.4 kilometers (35.6 miles) distant.

3. The Hebrew date, 1 Nissan (Rish Chodesh) 5671, was the equivalent of Gregorian calendar (USA), 30 March 1911, and Julian calendar (Russia), 17 March 1911.

4. [Don't tell anyone ;-) but] I am working on an hypothesis that this Reuben mentioned in several letters was Reuben Resnick. Reuben and his sister Pearl Resnick Flikoff (some letters also mention Pearl in the same breath as Reuben) were immigrants from the same general area (Zaslav Uyezd) as the Lederman and Garber families. Reuben lived in Lower Manhattan until he married Rose Berse on 19 March 1911. Shortly after that, he moved to Plainfield, Union County, New Jersey, where he opened a stationery/candy store. If this is the correct Reuben, then Levi Yitzkhak might have considered Reuben's move out of New York City as a move out to the country. Reuben's father was identified as Jacob Resnick and his mother as Rose Flikoff (Pearl may have married a cousin). I think that Reuben and Pearl might have been related to the Ledermans via their father's Resnick line. See Reuben's marriage record: New York Co., NY, marriage certificate no. 8218 (1911), Reuben Resnick and Rose Berse, 19 March 1911; Municipal Archives, New York City. More on this possibility as the information does or does not click into place.

5. Zanvel and Feiga are two of Moshe's siblings.

6. Moshe had been staying (or at least collecting his mail) at his uncle's (Jacob Simberg) home.

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Posts in this Series

"Bond of Brothers"

"Letters from Levi Yitzkhak Lederman, 10 December 1910"

"Letters from Levi Yitzkhak Lederman, 17 December 1910"