Morris R. Jacobson, silk merchant, who lives at the Empire Hotel, disclosed to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency yesterday that while on a trip to Germany, on September 1, he was struck by Nazi storm troopers, although he had offended them in no way. He did not report the incident to the American authorities.
“I was standing on the train platform of the Anhalter Bahnhoff,” said Mr. Jacobson. “Along the street I saw approaching a detachment of storm troopers. I turned away from them and pretended to be engaged in reading a sign post. All of a sudden somebody hit me. The blow was not violent. I turned around. An elderly officer leading the troopers demanded to know why I had not saluted the swastika flag. I explained that I was an American. Without an apology, he left me staring.”
Mr. Jacobson explained that his visit to the Reich was brief. He stayed with relatives who are of Polish extraction. He said that they are anxious to get out of Germany, but added that they are not annoyed by the Nazis. The reason, according to Mr. Jacobson, is that the Polish government “has put fear into the hearts of German rulers.”
Mr. Jacobson warned that travelers in Germany are exposing themselves to unnecessary danger. He said that in other European countries there is a prevailing hatred of the German policies.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
