CHABELOK
Mojsze Chabolak
Wersja oryginalna -Mendel Wołkowicz, Paris
Wersja skrócona i tłumaczenie z Jidysz – Beni Warszawski, Los Angeles
Polish translation generously donated by Polaron
Po mieście i okolicach krążyły legendy o Mojsze Chabelaku i jego braciach. Zajmowali się handlem koni i mieli stosunki z rządem carskim. Byli znani z odwagi, niezwykłej siły i tym że w obliczu niebezpieczeństwa nigdy się nie poddawali. Mojsze, sam jeden, jak niegdyś Samson wobec nienawistnych, zbrojnych Filistynow, stawał w obronie honoru Żydów.
Mojsze Chabelak cieszyl sie duzym szacunkiem. Obdarzony wielka sila, ktora budzila respekt wsrod mieszkancow, nie naduzywal jej, bedac z natury lagodnym czlowiekiem. Z wielkim szacunkiem traktował miejskich rabinów. Często mawiał: “Poza bojaźnią Boga, boję się tylko jednego“ Lewiego Icchaka Leviego, błogosławionej pamięci, wnuka wielkiego cadyka Lewi Icchaka z Berdyczowa. Wystarczyl tylko cien sugestii ze strony Rabina, aby Mojsze wykonal jego polecenie, nie zwazajac na przeszkody.
Nawet dziś, dziesiątki lat póżniej, nazwisko Chabelak, kojarzy się z aktami bohaterstwa, w których antysemiccy chuliganie spotkali się z pięścią Chabelaków. Stało się jasne, że nie warto atakować Żydów w Zduńskiej Woli, bo mozna było za to srogo zapłacić.
Moishe Chabolok
Original written by Mendel Wolkowicz, Paris
Translated from Yiddish and abridged by Beni Warshawsky, Los Angeles
In our city and the surrounding towns entire legends were told about Moishe Chabolok and his brothers . They were horse traders who dealt with the Czarist government and were known for their courage, amazing physical strength and not stopping in the face of danger. Moishe stood alone, as Samson had in his time against the hate-filled armed Christian populace when Jewish honour and existence were in danger.
Moishe Chabolok, the head of the family, despite his great strength was not a captive to it. Just as he was unafraid, moving freely without fear, anywhere and everywhere, in the city. He acted with great reserve in the presence of the town’s rabbis and treated them with great respect. In this regard he used to say, “I only have one fear other than fear of the Lord,” In this he meant the frail, ascetic Chief Rabbi, Levi Yitshak Levi of blessed memory a grandson of the Great Tsadik Levi Yitshak of Berditchev. All that was usually required was a wink of the rabbi’s eye and Moshe Chabolok would go through fire and water, face any obstacle or danger at his command.
Even today decades later when the name Chabolok is mentioned memories are piled up on innumerable facts in which the Chaboloks displayed great bravery, giving the attacking Christian hooligans a taste of their fists. It became known fact that in Zdunska Wola attacks against Jews did not pay as there were Jews in town who would repay the attackers in kind and with interest.