The “underground railroad” from central and eastern Europe to Palestine is rapidly being disbanded, competent sources disclosed here today. These same sources said that the entire network would be liquidated “within 24 hours” if Britain would agree to open a port in Palestine to Jewish immigration.
In recent weeks, it is revealed, most of the rank-and-file workers in this hidden network have been recalled and there remains today only a framework of top leaders ? in Poland, Rumania, Hungary, Austria and Germany. For the present, the J.T.A. correspondent was told, comparatively full-strength organizations of these underground workers will continue to exist in France and Italy since Jews are still being collected in ports of those countries for shipment to Palestine. in recent days and in Germany by 70 percent. Only skeleton groups remain in Poland now that the smuggling of Polish Jewish youths across the face of Europe to French ports has been accomplished, for the most part.
Competent leaders of the underground in Vienna so not foresee any more large-scale influx of Jewish refugees from Poland and Rumania, and they believe further that the only arrivals to expect will be small groups of Jewish middle-class representatives. They also point out that today the Rumanian-Hungarian frontier is almost hermetically sealed and that virtually no more refugees may be expected from Rumania.
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.
