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Today we have a carbon copy of a letter written by Paul Zerzawy in New York to his aunt Helene in Vienna — you can tell it is a carbon copy because his signature is off kilter on the second page. He arrived in the U.S. in April. This is an interesting artifact because the vast majority of the correspondence in the archive between Helene and her family from 1939-1941 is in one direction. Fortunately, Paul saved a copy of this letter and copies of those written by his cousins Eva and Harry to their parents while they were in Istanbul establishing citizenship (see April 27, April 28, and May 6 posts) so we hear a bit from their perspectives.
718 West 178th St., #44 New York City, 11 August 1939.
Dear Helene!
To divert you from the worries that you have expressed again I will start by telling you that I am doing very well. I am in sort of a summer hibernation mentally because of the climate. I am not inactive – for example, I am taking classes in English and business subjects which take up 5 or 6 hours a day. But with that, my will power and my initiative are totally exhausted. Everything which is not tied to these prescribed hours gets put off to another time. I’m not the only one who feels this way. Most of the New Yorkers are suffering from the heat and humid weather just as much as those who have promised me a position who don’t seem to be able to get it together to make a decision. Because of this I am quite sure that I will, after Arthur gets back from San Francisco at the beginning of September, make my move to San Francisco. The refugee committee here which has pretty much failed to find work for me has at least pledged help for me to pay for the move, since my funds are not enough to pay for the trip and some amount of time of living costs.
About me you need to worry not at all, I’m not worried either. I am only nervous when new arrivals bring reports from different parts of Europe and I wonder how I can possibly enable you and Robert can immigrate here. In order to extend his stay in England or perhaps if it doesn’t work out in England to try and make it here, Robert desperately needs an affidavit. I have not found anyone here and it’s getting harder and harder. But it has to happen and it will. For you two, I will do what I can within my powers. However, there is a problem here and that is the reason why I have to wait to hear your opinion about this, before I speak to Bertha or other people. It has to do with the field in which Vitali is so successful and with which he could certainly earn his livelihood. But there are some legal blocks to that. The laws in the individual states are different. As far as California goes, apparently there, according to a letter that Bertha wrote, anything having to do with astrology or palmistry and such is forbidden. (I have already talked to Bertha and at least hinted around for you, and you may also have expressed your wishes to go to San Francisco.) It is possible that it is not an explicit ban on this, but it may be more like it is in the state of New York where according to my inquiries, general anti-fraud regulations are sometimes used against false prophets/swindlers. Sometimes there are police involved in this. (I will try to find out more exact information about the conditions here and in other places.) Now I don’t need to tell you that I hold Vitali’s talents in very high esteem and that I am sure that he if he were here, he would be able to convince doubters, whether official ones or not, of his abilities as he has done so in Vienna. By the way, even in New York, I know of some cases where this kind of work is in fact accepted, and some people have even put notices in the paper, while other people are not allowed to make any kind of propaganda.
But the risk, whether large or small, will make anyone shy away who might be able to sponsor him if it is not a relative who is particularly interested and wants to bring the immigrant here. As far as non-related sponsors, it is normal procedure that there would be a fee to pay which might be paid over several years and might be several thousand dollars. So really, the only ones who come into question are Bertha or someone in the family, and besides the fact that they believe they have already done their familial duty, and really they have already done quite a bit, they may be afraid of having trouble with the official bureaucracy. In order to mitigate these concerns, it would be good to provide proof that you are able to support yourself by writing. I don’t have any connections myself. There’s no point in going to a newspaper with empty hands. But do try to get some of the articles you’ve written for your work, and of course that doesn’t cost anything. Try to make them sound interesting and you do know the American taste - try to write something that would be appropriate and send it to me. In good English, or if it’s German I could see that it gets translated. If a newspaper accepts this, then you have already won quite a bit. I don’t think I can get an affidavit via a newspaper, but if we did get something published, we might be able to go to the relatives with a little more assurance that you could be successful. Please don’t be angry with me that I’ve burst your bubble [literally, thrown water into your wine], but there is no reason to shut your eyes in the face of the truth. There are problems, but of course they are just there for us to overcome, and doubt would be, as you would put it, a sacrilege.
I don’t think Vitali’s relatives in Istanbul will help you much according to what I know about Eva and Harry’s experiences. Or am I being unfair to them? I was, however, quite horrified when Eva wrote to me that the small amount of money which she has earned by the sweat of her brow she had to pay to them for room and board costs. I was so angry that I was afraid to answer because I was afraid the letter would be censored and it would just hurt the children. If they are not with you again, do please send them all my love. For the time it takes from the ship arrival to the delivery onto the right train to go to San Francisco, which could mean a few days in New York where they can take a rest and maybe take a look at the city, I will certainly take over the costs and the responsibility for them. I owe you some money anyway, for example for the music newsletter, which I got the first issue of but not the subsequent. Just make sure the children come soon while I’m still here. If that doesn’t happen, I will have someone take care of them, most likely Arthur. Those who can issue the affidavit - the Zentners and Firestones - should take out a power of attorney or proxy in my name and send it to me. Or if Arthur is already there, then they can send it to Arthur. It is a good thing if the sponsor or authorized representative is present when they land. What about the cost of the trip to San Francisco?
What I said above about my excuses about not writing is true for relatives whom you may see and to whom I may not have written yet. Keep me informed if it’s not too much trouble for you and you don’t have to pay for postage. Tell me, rather, what I owe you. You may complain to your heart’s content about my rudeness for not having written for so long - but, write! write! write!
Kisses from
PaulHelene, can you draw the family tree of our American relatives and how they’re related to us once more? Arthur’s version does not correspond with your memories, which seem more accurate to me.
We learn so much from this letter. As usual, Paul’s correspondence is almost all business. It is filled with everything Helene and Vitali need to know and understand to facilitate their children’s and their own journey to America. Vitali’s unusual occupation is a stumbling block.
In the May 22 post, I included testimonials from satisfied clients. Also in that document were translations of several newspaper articles (including the ones in the April 7 and June 29 posts) – after reading this letter, I assume the document was created in response to Paul’s request for writing samples and other things that might convince officials and potential sponsors to help them emigrate.
We see that it was Paul’s responsibility to bring over his brother Robert from England, and his aunt and her family from Europe. This was quite a responsibility given his own lack of resources and limited English. He is doing everything he can and it’s proving extremely difficult.