The “fantastic story” of how an American Jew organized the escape from Budapest of 60 of his relatives is related today in the Daily Herald.
The newspaper reports that Paul Fried, 41-year-old American businessman, went to Vienna this week to try to make contact with family members whom he last saw in 1937 when he left Hungary for the United States. He met his brother Bela, who had escaped, and the two men laid plans for the rescue of the entire family.
Bela recrossed the border into Hungary, made his way to Budapest where he rounded up the family and put them in a freight car moving toward the Austrian border. They passed 15 patrol checks by using forged documents. After the train stopped, a considerable distance from the frontier, they continued their trek on foot.
When they were only 200 yards from the border, Soviet machine gunners opened up on them. The Jews spread out in a thin line and, chanting the traditional prayer which Jews recite at moments of danger–“Hear Oh Israel. . . “–they crossed the marshes into Austrian territory. There they were met by Fried, who had hired a bus for his private rescue mission, and driven to Vienna, the Daily Herald dispatch said.
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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.
