Last August a group of Hitlerists in the small Rhinoland town of Dolgesheim besieged during the nigh the home of a Jewish resident named Frank who had been living there for 36 years, firing at the house and putting the inmates into a state of terror. Attempts were made to rush the house, and threats were made that everyone caught inside would be killed. The assault was started at three o’clock in the early hours of the morning and was kept up all through the night. Frank and the members of his family barricaded themselves into the garret. The local gendarmerie took no measures to protect the house, because they were so largely outnumbered, and called reinforcements from Mayence. Several members of the militant anti-Hitlerist organisation, the Banner of the Republic, came to Frank’s aid, and helped to keep off the mob until the arrival of the reinforcements. Twelve Hitlerists were arrested, and taken to the prison at Oppenheim.
As soon as the siege was raised, the Frank family, fearing for their lives, fled to Worms, where they are now living.
The district court at Mayence has now fined Frank 100 marks, finding him guilty of causing a breach of the peace, on the ground that he had incensed the local population by his attitude. This was done in spite of the evidence given by the Mayor of Dolgesheim, that the Franks had been quiet residents and had never interfered in local politics, and of Frank himself, who swore that he had taken no part in the conflict between the local organisation of the Banner of the Republic and the Hitlerists, and had only asked the Banner of the Republic people to protect his house when he was warned that the Hitlerists were going to attack him because he was a Jew, and the police to whom he had applied first had said that they could not give him any protection.
One of the men of the Banner of the Republic who helped to protect the Frank house, has been sentenced to one month’s imprisonment, and three other Bannermen have been fined a hundred Marks each.
The Hitlerists who were arrested for attacking the house have been acquitted, with the exception of one peasant, who has been fined a hundred Marks.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
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.
