The German liner St. Louis will disembark its 907 Jewish refugee passengers at Antwerp on Saturday afternoon. The refugees, who had been denied admittance to Cuba, will be divided among England, France, Holland and Belgium pending re-emigration.
Those in the Dutch contingent will be taken to the Hook of Holland by Belgian Red Cross tenders. The British and French contingents will also be transshipped by tender. The French group will be taken to Boulogne, where they will remain eight days pending examination and determination of their individual distribution. The group will then be distributed throughout the country, under the auspices of all cooperating Jewish organizations, to children’s homes, workshops and farms.
Morris C. Troper, European director of the Joint Distribution Committee, who directed the successful efforts to avert return of the refugees to Germany, will fly to Antwerp tomorrow to supervise the disembarkation. He has special permission to board the liner at Flushing two hours before it is scheduled to dock to prepare the lists of persons going to each country.
A radiogram was sent by the refugees aboard the St. Louis addressed to Mr. Troper, which follows: “The 907 passengers of St. Louis dangling for last thirteen days between hope and despair received today your liberating message of the 13 June that final arrangements for all passengers have at last been reached. Our gratitude is as immense as the ocean on which we are now floating since May 13 first full of hope for a good future and afterwards in the deepest despair. Accept Mr. Chairman for you and for the American Joint Distribution Committee and last but not least for the Governments of Belgium, Holland, France and England the deepest and eternal thanks of men women and children united by the same fate on board the St. Louis.”
The Interior Minister today announced that the French Government has agreed to admit 97 refugees on the liner Flandre, who had also been turned back by Cuba. The refugees will be permitted to stay in France on the same conditions as the St. Louis passengers, that is on the J.D.C.’s bond of $500 for each refugee as guarantee that they will not become public charges. The ship will dock at St. Nazaire.
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.
