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[Page 48]
(40 years of Fundraising for the United Brisker Relief)
As in a dream the beautiful city of Brest appears before our eyes. Brest with its wide streets and boulevards, the Nevski Prospect on the beautiful Mukhavets River, the City Gardens, with it's hidden corners and paths where the young could dream of organizing themselves against the Tsarist regime to make a better and freer life.
Brest with its great markets and fairs where the poor would come seeking to make a living.
Brest with its many religious institutions, with the Great Synagogue, with its first Zionist conferences, and with its first of May proclamations. The great fortress of Brest where Shlomo the tailor, Michaelevitch, Pessele Katalanski, Reuven (the tailor) Saltzman, Pesach Novick the teacher, Weinstein and many others were held. The 'Butchevnik' who sold potato cakes on the banks of the wide river where the boats were moored, and the singing on the moonlit nights where beautiful ideals were dreamt for a better world.
The first act of retaliation from the revolutionary elements was when the 'dog' Orgenisov paid with his life on the street for his murderous acts against the working classes.
The period between the First World War and the Second World War were difficult ones full of much suffering the Pilsudski pogroms, wars and destruction. Brest was the battleground for opposing armies that came and went. The Tsarist army burnt more than half the city when they left the German army dismantled everything they could find in Brest furniture, machinery, metals, building materials, timber, even the street poles were ripped out and the bricks from the destroyed buildings were all sent back to Germany. Already then, the Germans showed what they could do, they banished the entire population of the city, and for three years the inhabitants of Brest wandered around in exile in the towns of the surrounding district: Biala, Lukow, Mezrich, Antopol, Radzin,Siedlce,Kobryn, Drohicyn, Pinsk, Pruzany, Bereza Kartusza and other towns further away.
When the Briskers returned to their city, they were confronted by the Poznanchiks (non- local hostile Poles), who tore beards off the faces of orthodox Jews and threw them out of train carriages, and beat the beautiful elderly Jew Michael Weisman to death.
Brest became a living hell of anti-Semitism, economic boycotts and pogroms. The intention was to make our beautiful Brisk D'Lita a Polish city, and the Pilsudski and Grabowski governments wanted to erase the remaining Jews of Brest.
Then Brest once more came under attack from the murderous Hitlerite animals that attacked at 3 a.m. on the 21st June 1941 and overran the city. People were still asleep whilst the Nazi murderers were already burning and looting. From then onwards it was the destruction, torture, murder and extermination of the 30,000 Jews of Brest.
From the dreams of my youth until the destruction of the Brest Ghetto it should never be forgotten that the Briskers in North America have worked for 40 years in the name of Brest to help the city and also to assist their fellow Briskers in all different parts of the world.
39 Years of Activity For Our Brest Brethren
Next year will be the 40th anniversary of the Brest Relief Fund. This was the only organization in the U.S.A. that awakened the conscience and requested donations for the Brest Relief to assist Brest and Briskers for the entire 40 years of our welfare and relief work. We still hold dear the beautiful city of Brisk D'Lita.
The idea of creating an assistance fund arose in 1914 with the outbreak of W.W.1
At that time the yearning for the 'old home', was even stronger we understood that there would be a great demand for assistance from the city when the war ended.
A group of 5 Briskers (including the author) met at 179 East Broadway in New York at Sarzer's restaurant, and laid the foundations for this organization. Two months later in January 1915, all the Brisker associations assembled at a large conference under the chairmanship of Yankel Rosenberg. It was unanimously decided to establish the Brest Relief. Today it is called the United Brest Relief.
The whole long journey of providing assistance and help for our needy brothers and sisters has not been an easy one.
A year after its establishment there was a dispute with the older members of the organization. They said that it was not necessary to raise money for Brest because there was no one left in the city to help as the Germans had exiled all the residents. The younger element that were the driving force in the organization felt that the war would not last forever, and that there would be a great need for help from us when the war ended. We conducted this fight to support the fundraising work of the Brest Relief, but the older members stubbornly left the organization, and the younger members continued the work.
At the beginning of 1917 we found an announcement in the Warsaw press that a committee for Brest had been formed in Warsaw with Mordechai Baraks as its chairman. The purpose of this committee was to provide assistance to the Briskers scattered around various towns and villages in dire impoverished circumstances. We immediately sent $1000 to this committee and this proved how right we had been not to stop with our fundraising work. However, until this day there are elements that do not want to support the Brest Relief.
Nevertheless, this stubborn group steadfastly continues with its welfare and assistance work and does not let itself be provoked thanks to them the prestige and status of all Briskers has been elevated (including their opponents). Their fundraising has occupied a prominent position amongst all the Landsmanschaften in the U.S.
Brest Relief Delegates Travel to Brest
After W.W.1 the problems of sending money from person to person was made more difficult due to the great devaluation of money money deposited in the bank lost its value. The Brest Relief decided to sent 3 delegates to Brest P. Rabinovitch, Hyman Kleinberg and Y. Finkelstein. We brought with us over $200,000 cash to the city. This was a colossal sum and a huge achievement for the Brest Relief. As the city had been largely destroyed this money was mainly used for rebuilding the city. People began trading and doing business, workers got jobs and the institutions began to develop.
In 1937 there was a pogrom in Brest there had been a period of inaction in the Brest Relief, but it reorganized itself and resumed its fundraising and sent over $10,000 to the various institutions in Brest. From this time on, the Brest Relief has never stopped its work, although in 1941 we had more advisors who told us to cease our fundraising activities, but once again we did not heed this advice.
Shortly after W.W.2, we began to receive letters from Brest survivors in Poland, France and Germany, in D. P. (displaced persons) camps. A group in Stettin Poland organized themselves with a committee. In France there was an organized Brest Assistance Committee. The Briskers in the D.P. camps in Germany were under the leadership of Avraham Lutenberg. All these committees received help from us: France $5,500, Stettin Poland $4,500, over $1,000 for parcels of food for the D.Ps. plus $500 for clothing and cash to the Briskers that were in Italy. The Brest committee in Tel Aviv received $1500.
When the War of Independence broke out in Palestine, the United Brest Relief sent a fully equipped ambulance and first aid station to the Haganah fighters with the name of Brisk D'Lita on it. When the State Of Israel became a reality the Brest Relief decided to commemorate the name of Brest in Israel. At present there is a kibbutz in the Negev called Kibbutz Gal-On in memory of Brisk D'Lita. The Brest Relief has sent this kibbutz farming machinery worth over $12,000 that was urgently needed. Recently there was a Tel Aviv Brisker Loan Fund set up with $6,000 to provide loans to newly arrived Briskers.
Besides our fundraising for assistance, which was the basic aim of our organization, we did not shirk our community responsibilities. The Brest Relief strongly protested when the Polish Pilsudski hooligans threw Jews out of railway carriages, and tore their beards. They savagely beat the elderly Jew Michael Weisman to death in Domski Square, and boycotted Jewish businesses. When the pogrom broke out in 1937 in Brest, we organized a huge protest rally with many U.S. government and city officials attending. When Hitler began his destruction the Brest Relief together with the other Jewish organizations went to the Jewish Congress to protest. When Brest was liberated from the Nazis the Brest Relief celebrated by holding a great night-time function with various dignitaries addressing the audience, including the Soviet ambassador. We held a large nighttime function to celebrate the establishment of the State of Israel, and many other events that were part of the Jewish community life.
This limited space does not permit me to mention too many details about our long, hard road, the huge efforts made by our volunteers people who dedicated their lives and gave generously to assist their fellow Brest brethren. I would like to single out the different Brest welfare groups that collected money in the cities of the U.S.:
Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, New York and Los Angeles.
This would be an entire chapter on its own the story of how these Brest fraternal organizations distinguished themselves with their hard work. The few Brisker survivors who managed to arrive in the U.S. would by met at the ship, and we would assist them to settle in. Amongst them was Dr Y. Kagan with his family. This talented social and community activist had been the Director of the Jewish Hospital in Brest, and chairman of the Jewish community council (kehilla). He said finding myself amongst my Brest brethren, my wounds from the years of pain and suffering during the bitter Hitler hell have been made lighter.
The Brest Relief was the only organization in North America that maintained direct written contact with Briskers in all parts of the world and provided direct assistance to them. The historian who writes the history of the Landsmanschaften in the U.S. will have a great and beautiful chapter about the Brest organizations and the United Brest Relief, which will only add to the greater glory of the city of Brisk D'Lita.
On the subject of the publication of a Brest Memorial Book I would like to clarify matters if I had more space to elaborate, however as I must conclude I will say these few words on this subject. When our brother Yankel Goldblatt sat with us at our celebratory function he said: I saved myself from death in Treblinka and will not touch upon this great wound today. I have lost my entire family and was left alone, and Brest was wiped out. But I cannot tell you all how happy I feel today when I see the Brest Jews in North America who still hold dear the name of the great city of Brisk D'Lita. I say that the leaders and activists of the Brest Relief should be blessed.
Although the membership of the Landsmanschaft was drawn from former Brest residents, the organization was funded largely by the United Brest Relief that took an active role in helping them grow we always went to the United Brest Relief in New York with our list of needs for Brest and were never refused. Therefore it did not matter where the source of the financial support came from the support of the Relief was the impetus that helped the Brest community workers themselves raise the extra funds that were needed. The funds raised and given to Brest enabled the fundraisers in Brest to go to their compatriots and say: Look at your brothers in the U.S. who don't see the need for this particular organization - you must also give as much and more.
This quote often helped us raised the needed funds.
The dedication, devotion and brotherly love was so strong that after every crisis, e.g. the pogrom of 1937, the Brest Relief would respond immediately with substantial material assistance as well as moral support. This helped 100s of ruined Brest families of tradesmen, workers and merchants the chance to rebuild their destroyed properties, small factories and shops and to get on their feet again.
The Jewish Hospital got a guaranteed annual budget from the Brest Relief, and received supplemental funds to purchase medical equipment and instruments, set up a laboratory and enlarge it's pharmacy.
[Page 53]
The city of Brisk D'Lita, a city in the Nation of Israel, lies on the banks of two rivers the Bug and the Mukhavets. The city of famous scholars and teachers of Torah such as Shlomo Zalman Luria , Yoshe Ber, Chaim, and Velveleh Soloveitchik - who all lived and studied in Brest, and added many bricks to the foundations of Jewish religious life.
Already in the middle Ages, Brest played a significant role in the life of the Jews of Lithuania and Poland. It was at the head of the Council of Lithuanian Nations, and was a leader of the political and social activity of those times. The city greatly enriched the Yiddish language and literature with a whole plethora of Jewish writers and literary figures.
Today, the city of Brest that exists after W.W.2 has a minimal Jewish participation.
Knowing the history of the city of Brest that had been wiped off the face of the earth more than once, and has endured many fires, wars and social upheavals, we know that in a matter of a few years the city will be rebuilt and enriched and beautified in many ways. Its institutions will grow and it's trade and industries will be developed. The resilience of the city will enable it to adapt and grow into a larger format as it did after W.W.1. The years 1920-1939 showed that the Jews of Brest were capable of rebuilding their city bigger than before and with larger institutions by their own initiative, and with financial support and co-operation of the Brest Relief in New York.
During that period (1920-1939) the city of Brest grew into a city of 30,000 Jews that was more than 50% of the total population. It had a great number of educational institutions such as the Tarbut High School, the Tachkamoni School, the Bet Yakov School - the most famous Talmud Torah in Polessie with it's three storey building, was a yeshiva that drew students from all over the world.
The Trades School (ORT) that was extremely popular and staffed by professional tradesmen, many of who later went to South America. The Yiddish primary school named after the writer I.L. Peretz was a beautiful two-storey building that produced many social activists, writers and poets. There were two primary schools belonging to the left and right Poale Zion, and famous libraries such as Tel Chai, Scholem Aleichem, and the Worker's Circle, the sports clubs such as Maccabi and the Jewish soccer club. There were 36 synagogues and prayer houses in Brest.
Lastly, the Jewish press with its daily and weekly newspapers that gave a detailed coverage of Jewish life in the outside world generally and Brest specifically. I personally know that many of these articles were reprinted in the modern Yiddish press in other parts of Poland and abroad.
Social welfare for the Jewish poor in Brest was concentrated in the Jewish Community Council (kehilla), but community work was also represented by several welfare institutions that ran large enterprises like the orphanage (Beth Israel) with it's 120 orphans, the children's hostel that cared for about 100 children, and the crèches that fed and cared for 100s of poor children.
The many and varied activities of TOZ - the medical organization, that was famous for its medical services and care. The TOZ activities in the battle against tuberculosis and trachoma, and their publicity campaigns for hygiene and cleanliness in the Jewish primary schools. TOZ organized and ran summer camps for children at the nearby health resort of Domachevo, providing full and half board.
The Jewish Hospital had 150 beds, and its fully equipped medical departments could provide every medical service to the Jewish community. This hospital served as a focal point for all Jewish doctors who were not allowed to practice in the government or city hospitals. This was where the young Jewish doctors received their medical internship in all fields of medicine and social work.
All of the above institutions had their own buildings, as well as the financial institutions such as the Jewish People's Bank, the two Merchant Banks and others.
[Page 54]
Flowers lie on the fresh grave- Yitzhak Kagan is no more. The heart that pulsated with so much love and dedication for his people is still. The faithful brother who had so much warmth, idealism and wisdom in his approach to the community work that influenced his whole life. Dr. Kagan, the faithful man and friend is no more who was he?
Already as a child in his birthplace of Narevke he had begun to help the needy of Narevke.
Later, as a medical student in the city of Prague he organized the Jewish students into a literary and cultural club, and gave lessons before W.W.1. As a young doctor he already played a significant role in the Jewish community - he saved many Jews from death, who had been falsely sentenced by anti Semitic officials.
He was appointed medical director for the Joint and organized hospitals and ambulances for the whole of the Bialystok and Polessie districts. In Brest he was the director of the Jewish hospital, president of the Community Council, one of the organizers of the Trade Union movement, and a city councillor. Appointed as a Polish government doctor, he took upon himself the welfare of the children of Brest. He participated actively in the welfare and communal work of the city and lectured on many subjects.
Dr. Kagan managed to save himself and his family from the claws of Hitler during W.W.2. They hid in an attic for 28 months, hidden by one of his patients - a Christian woman. This woman looked after them the whole time (how did she do it? This is an entire chapter by itself). When the Russian Army liberated Brest Dr. Kagan again became active and was appointed as director of TOZ in Wroclaw. He set up several hospitals for Jewish survivors in Poland. After the pogrom in Kielce in 1946, he decided to leave Poland. Upon his departure Dr. Kagan accompanied 500 Jewish children who had been 'reclaimed' from Polish families to Paris. The majority of these orphans are now in Israel, Canada and the U.S.A.
Upon his arrival in the U.S., the United Brest Relief searched for ways to alleviate the suffering that he and his family had endured and to assist them in their new country. He had high hopes of being active in the Jewish community, but the difficulty of adjusting to a new country plus all the sufferings he had undergone had affected him greatly. Eventually we found him a position as a doctor in the new retirement home for the elderly members of the Workingman's Circle.
There he began once again to resurrect his career as a medico, as well as that of a worker for his community. Within a short period, he managed to achieve miracles. The residents of the home idolized him for his selfless dedication, his compassionate understanding of the elderly, just the same as it was for the young. However, the great suffering that he endured as he witnessed the slaughter of the entire Jewish population of Brest appears to have affected his health after finishing work (having saved a member who had a heart attack), Dr. Kagan himself had a heart attack and died in the arms of his patient.
As soon as he disembarked from the ship in N.Y. the Briskers in N.Y. felt enriched by his great and beautiful spirit. He was a man who loved his people with broad understanding and insight. During the 5 years that he lived amongst us, we always felt his warmth and love for his compatriots. One felt that it was a special occasion just to spend time with him in his home. The more you got to know him, the closer one was drawn to him not as a doctor, linguist, Talmudist, but as a sincere friend.
To the Brest compatriots here he was the symbol, a living witness to the Nazi slaughter of 30,000 Jews in Brest.
He would grind his teeth when he read in the press of the revival of various Nazi movements only yesterday they had murdered 6,000,000 Jews and millions of other nationalities. We would sit and converse for long hours, not about personal matters, but about the great social conflicts that were taking place worldwide. Although he had experienced great personal ordeals, he nevertheless was full of optimism and belief for a better future, and in the goodness of man. He believed that in the end, all mankind would live in a beautiful free world.
[Page 56]
Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik, the Brisker Rav or Chaim Brisker as he was known, was greatly renowned as a scholar and rabbi, and renowned even by today's rabbis. After the death of Rabbi Yitzhak Elchanan he became recognized as the greatest Torah sage of his time and the leading authority on all religious subjects. From all the corners of the world, rabbis would turn to him for advice, with many questions and answers. The highest authorities on the rabbinical and Talmudic councils of Russia listened to his opinions with the greatest heed. To the modern world the name Chaim Soloveitchik represents an image of passionate fanaticism, which would not accept any compromise with the modern world, or with secular Jews. Such was the reputation of the Brisker Rav around the world.
One only needed to spend a few days in Brest to realize that this interesting and diverse personality had a different image in Brest. Little was spoken of the learned sages and the fanaticism of Rabbi Chaim. The Jews of Brest knew a different aspect of their beloved rabbi he had made a deep impact on all circles of Brest society by his high moral principles and personality. All were in agreement from the young freethinkers to the elderly orthodox Jews they all would relate various stories about theirrabbi Chaim. These stories resembled the legends of the ancient rabbinic sages.
Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik was a short broad Jew with broad shoulders and large brown eyes that looked out at the world with childlike innocence. He did not possess any forbidding rabbinic airs he never looked down on people or frowned at them. His face was untroubled as he heard the complaints of his followers - he was a simple down to earth Jew, who knew the world from his viewpoint; perhaps better than we did, never resorting to any trickery. And although everyone said that he had a great brain and great intellect, due to which he had attained fame around the world he did not live through his brain but through his heart. His heart was full of love for all mankind, for all oppressed peoples that were fallen, downtrodden, and on the lowest rung on the ladder of human fortune.
The Brisker Rabbi was the last of the bygone generation of rabbis who did not know of financial worries. The shames (beadle) of the Jewish community council would bring him papers with requests, including donations. Rabbi Chaim would take the papers and envelopes without looking at it. Several minutes later, an elderly Jewess enters and complains of her sick children, they have no money for food or doctors and medicine. Rabbi Chaim takes the envelope out of the drawer and gives it to her without a thought it contained 20-30 roubles a large sum. This would happen frequently, it also happened that the rabbi himself would sit down to eat and that there would be no food .
It was then decided by the Kehilla (Jewish council) not to give him any money personally but to give it directly to the Rebbetzen his wife. The Kehilla sent wood for heating to the rabbi it allotted 500 roubles per year for firewood. It was quickly seen that the rabbi was a huge user of firewood. The question occurred to everyone how was it that the rabbi had no firewood? It must be that the timber merchant was stealing from the rabbi they conducted an investigation and found that the timber merchant was not guilty. The rabbi had received all the allotted timber they discovered that he would use less than 20 % of the wood for his personal use the poor, not stealing, but invited by the rabbi to take what they needed, had taken the rest away. The shed was open to all. They decided to put a lock on the woodshed the rabbi would not permit this saying: how can we be permitted to sit at a warm fire whilst the poor sit in the cold?
It was not only the poor who came to Rabbi Chaim, also fallen women like the girl that had sinned. She wanted to kill herself and her illegitimate child who had no father. Who would employ her with her bastard? The entire community had excluded her and everybody pointed at her. Without the child she could travel to another town in another country - the world would be open to her. But the child is her badge of shame she is constantly reminded of her sin. Which rabbi could such a woman approach with her heartache? She approaches Rabbi Chaim with her dilemma. Rabbi, what should I do? Rabbi Chaim does not abuse or accuse her, he listens silently without reproach, and then says: bring the child to me.
The sinner is stunned, she does not believe her ears, people will see this, and what will people say? But Rabbi Chaim quietly says: bring me the child early in the morning, at 5.a.m. nobody will see you knock on my door, I will open it myself and personally take the child.
At 5 a.m. the next morning when everyone lay in deep sleep, the streets and lanes were deserted and dark, all the attics and stores were silent, and an unhappy young woman wanders through the side streets with her basket in her arms she arrives at the rabbis door and knocks. It opens immediately, and a hand stretches out and takes the basket and it's contents from her without a word.
Such legends abounded in Brest about Rabbi Chaim and they said that the rabbi took dozens of such children. How many times did Rabbi Chaim exemplify the words of the Torah? Whoever saves a life and a Jewish soul is the example of the whole Torah. I doubt whether Rabbi Chaim thought about the Gemarrah at such times as he lived more with his heart than with his head.
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Brisk there are those to whom it is a mere word, amongst other words, a synonym, a description, a meaningless sound. But for me Brisk is an echo of a great and wonderful symphony, a reflection of the joys and sufferings on its boulevards and marketplaces. The struggles, victories, defeats and final destruction. The final bitter fate of your sons who have sung of their dreams and aspirations there, of your sadly missed forests and rivers, and of your still blue evenings and surroundings.
Brisk you were a wonderful symphony. A tragic wonderful unfinished symphony. Your sons who have roamed over all the paths and fields in all the corners of the world, still quiver like broken violin strings every time they are reminded of you.
They are reminded of you (although perhaps not exactly as you were) you were their first home, the place where the mother rocked her sons. The first time the son walked - one does not exactly remember when, but one always remembers that bunch of childhood memories, just as one carries inside oneself memories of a dearly beloved person.
Your mornings and evenings, your flowery spring with the lilacs, acacias, and sweet summer blossoms. Your sad forlorn autumn with the fallen yellow leaves. Your frosty winter days with the tinkling bells of the gliding sleighs, and the ringing laughter of your youth. Who can forget all that?
Brisk You are a melody, a melody that has lingered with me wherever I went, from Heidelberg to Rostov, from Paris to Buenos Aires. Wherever fate took me, the fate of a Jew in our stormy century, everywhere I went I sang the song that was deeply imbedded within me. A song of your living days and of your cut-off unlived days. Your fate, the fate of my home Brisk was the same fate as all the other Jewish towns and cities of our Old Home. In all time and over all the generations, you were just a speck on the great expanse of the world map. It was your fate to be wiped off the face of the earth. They tore your strings out and a strange miracle occurred you went on singing the song of the Jewish home with your torn strings.
Memories of youth, this is a lump that chokes in the throat one cannot cry or swallow. This emotion is always near and painful, and one cannot rid oneself of it. On the contrary, these feelings inside me flutter with a strange vitality under the huge mountain of the torn leaves of our lives.
The Bug and the Mukhavets
These two rivers flowed past your shores. Two currents of water that were bright and silvery on your moonlit nights. They carried the sounds of songs of your longing sons and daughters from distant places back with them, and the longings of those who wanted to swim away to the faraway places of the outside world. Certainly for us those moonlit nights were not about going to the railway station .
The railway station, what a gamut of memories it touches upon. Going to the station fanned a feeling within us of going out into the larger world. Going to Kiev, Kharkov, St. Petersburg, Riga, and Berlin, going far away into the unknown world wherever the shiny rails led to. Those shiny unending railway tracks on which one was carried away with the sad long whistles of the train. It evoked a yearning for distant and unknown places, and above all for the student cap and uniform with its brass buttons those lucky enough to go away to study on those shiny unending rail tracks and return for their summer vacations. Those in the student uniforms brought back with them Heidelberg, Paris and St Petersburg, and the renaissance of new ideas that promised a new bright morning in the New World.
The envious feelings towards the 'elite' who were fortunate to go away to study and especially towards their uniforms did not erase the new ideas that had captured us and to which we gave all our youthful enthusiasm and passion.
In secret groups we would meet in the forests, and in boats on the moonlit nights on the Bug and Mukhavets rivers, on the never-ending promenades over the boulevards and along the riverbanks. We would heatedly discuss, debate and argue amongst ourselves about a chapter from Plekhanov, Tolstoy, Pushkin, Lermentov, or over Goethe and Heine. These intense and emotional discussions led to the formation of several groups and circles. It spread in all directions to those who pledged to improve the world and beautify mankind's life.
These groups that would fight like lions over a chapter of Plekhanov, or a passage from Goethe, would however unite against the outside enemy the older generation. The older generation that declared war against going out with girls, against singing songs, against any wrong doing. The struggle was not an easy one wars against ones own fathers as well as the opposition of the orthodox with their 'staff' the porters and wagon drivers who did not like our rebellious behaviour and the promenading with girls and singing songs at night. They tried in their manner, with threats of money and then violence to return us to the righteous path. They had the quiet assistance of the infamous police chief Organiev, who was later killed by a revolutionary bullet, and who did not like our young revolutionary groups. This shows how deep and intense was the belief of these young people who in the end triumphed.
Won and Lost
The revolutionary bullet that pierced the dark heart of Police Chief Organiev was an alarm bell to the higher powers to make an end to all this 'modern' thinking. Especially in a military fortress city like Brest. This was executed by the heavy hand of the Kurlander Baron General Leeming (Commandant of the Fortress). The first step in carrying out his mission was to strengthen the Brest garrison by bringing the famous Libauer Battalion to Brest, which was brought in but later served for other purposes
But the waves of freedom that flowed through Greater Russia also shook the foundations of the Brest government authorities. That year was also met in Brest with red banners and the magic slogan of 'freedom'. Like a strong wine it inebriated the waves of the surging masses that streamed through the streets and lanes of the city where they fell upon the poor. In the 5th year (1905?) the stormy songs of revolution from the exultant youth were mixed with the tears of joy from those older, down trodden, and spat upon, who believed that the end had come to their oppression and persecution, and their anguish and loneliness.
And when the Governor, the famous general Voroniev, holding his grandson at the spontaneous street demonstrations and speeches, embraced his Jewish neighbours who previously would submissively bow their heads and doff their hats to him then the Jews felt that the messiah had arrived.
However, this great joy that spread like a forest fire on a hot day, and had infected all young and old, Christians and Jews alike, was extinguished by a terrible word, that carried within it the cold gleam of a sabre and glowed like the mark of Cain this terrible word that hung over the Jewish streets like a dark cloud and curdled the blood in Jewish veins, this word that brought a beautiful dream to an end was POGROM.
The famous Libauer Battalion stationed in the Brest fortress undertook the true mission for which they had been brought to Brest - they were sent out, not in their military uniforms, but in plain clothes. They roamed through the Jewish streets in gangs, to carry out their mission of splitting Jewish heads to terrorize, rob and loot.
The old classic method of shaking out the bagels from the basket of an elderly poor Jew at the market was the signal for their disguised soldier gangs to begin their activities of beating and looting.
And now there was another surprise the young men who helped their fathers carry their heavy loads and deliver millions of envelopes and cigarettes into Greater Russia the two industries that gave a great number of Brest Jews their livelihoods these young men, who learnt grammatical formulas and arithmetical puzzles, and who would meet after their studies and work in the evenings to discuss Marx and Engels. They would promenade along the boulevards with girls and sing songs of Pushkin and Bialik, recite poetry and express their longings with delicate fingers on a balalaika, dreaming of quiet nights on the Bug River these romantic dreamy youths suddenly awoke to the reality and became cold and with hearts of steel.
As if from under the ground, well organized groups sprang up in reaction to the fear of death spread by the 'heroic' gangs that fled back to the fortress. The term 'self defence' became greatly feared by the undercover Libauer soldiers, who proved to be a great disappointment to their commander General Leeming. He saw that the situation was not advantageous and was forced to make an apologetic speech to the public, and join the Jewish self-defence groups in rushing the 'progromchiks' back to the reserves camp of the military commission at the fortress.
This speech was the first and last of its kind when such an exalted personage as the Honourable Baron General Leeming had to address the lowly Jewish community, which ended just another chapter of the Jewish struggle for existence in the city of Brest.
And here in front of me lie these written pages, just a pale reflection of those wonderful beautiful days, the dawn of our generation that promised a bright new day and brought very dark nights. A terrible night in which our heroic sons and daughters went on their final path. Your song was interrupted at its awful crescendo, and we, the lucky remainder, the lucky accidental remainder, scattered throughout the world, have resumed the interrupted sounds of the unfinished song and will carry the melody further .
[Page 62]
Brest Doctors
Dr. Shteinberg was the Russian Army doctor at the Brest fortress and held the rank of Colonel. In those tsarist times very few Jews ever reached this rank. He was also the chief of all the army doctors at the fortress because of his great knowledge of medicine. He was an assimilated Jew, but he was still linked, body and soul, to the Jews of Brest. One could say that for a certain period he was involved with the Jewish community because he stood for election as a candidate to the Russian Duma (parliament) for the Brest district. Due to various reasons he was not successful.
This was in the time that the first Duma (1906) was about to fall, and the police chief that ruled in Brest was anti-Semitic. He would not accept any bribe money from the Jews, and gave them as much trouble as he could. He specifically harassed Jews saying that they were all revolutionaries. As it happened at that time there were indeed well organized Jewish revolutionary youth groups but there was also no shortage of weak Jewish bourgeoisie (middle class) that were spies and provocateurs.
They would drop into the police chief's office to inform on their fellow Jews. This would be followed by many arrests and imprisonment. Michalovitch the Bundist was hidden at Gendrel the printer's house and was spirited away from Brest at night for fear of his arrest and Siberian imprisonment.
The second example occurred on a Friday night two young Jewish soldiers were patrolling and did not notice the two young officers that had just graduated from military school. They did not salute and the officers took their details and reported them the next day. The two young Jewish soldiers, who were not from Brest, knew that they would be arrested and cried. The Jews of Brest sympathized with them then Dr. Shteinberg drove up in his droshky and asked what had happened. He ordered his driver to take him to a certain place where the two officers were he abused them verbally and tore the notes out of their notebooks, and made certain that they would not further harass Jewish soldiers.
After W.W.1 a Dr. Michachinski practiced in Brest, he was a convert to Christianity his origins are unknown, but it was known that Dr. Soloveitchik, the rabbi's brother in Warsaw, had assisted him in his career. During the war he reached the rank of captain, but had fallen in love with a Polish nurse, leaving his Jewish wife and children for her.
He was the best doctor and surgeon in Brest. He operated in all the hospitals as well as the Jewish hospital. A Dr. Kummel, who sadly died young, assisted him. Dr. Michachinski was a great card player and would spend entire nights in the club. Whenever a poor Jewess with a kerchief on her head would appear, he would immediately drop his cards and leave with her going directly to the sick patient. Whenever it was necessary he would leave money for medicines, firewood, coal and food. However, when he treated wealthy patients he would demand $100 payment up front. Brest had several such doctors from its beginnings until the destruction of its Jewish community.
Chairman of the Kahal
After W.W.1 the chairman of the Kahal was the 'nervous' Begin, as he was called. Why was he called the nervous Begin?
Every Brisker remembers that he would walk through the streets, nervously shaking his head, talking and gesticulating with his hands, even more than most Jews normally would. On the holydays he would wear a top hat and formal black coat.
He had another nickname Chamberlain. Nevertheless he was a devout and decent Jew. He was an excellent diplomat who spoke several languages. In addition he was a good speaker his speeches were always full of quotes from the bible, he was a good chairman.
He did a great amount for the Jews of Brest, always running around here and there, whether to provide assistance for the homeless, or to squeeze more money out of the Joint to build barrack style emergency housing, the ORT school and other institutions. He was often in the company of the engineer Winikoff and other community activists.
He would intervene with the Polish district governor General Malagenovski on behalf of Jews who had no papers and help them get Polish citizenship with the endorsement of the Kahal council.
The anti-Semitic Polish government was not satisfied with its discriminatory laws against Jews, and would also send agitators to the town and villages to incite hatred against the Jews. Amongst these agitators was the convert Yadzke Kamietz. Whenever he would speak, the pogroms would follow.
When the Jews of Brest would discover that he was to speak in their town, there would be fear - Orthodox Jews would say their prayers, others would console themselves and the Jewish organizations would talk of self-defence. Jews owned almost all the cinemas, dance halls and theatres and the few Christian landlords would not hire out their halls because of their Jewish clientele. However, the proprietor of the 'Callas' theatre was an anti Semite and hired out his hall.
Then Begin ran around the streets more nervously than ever to collect money to bribe the police and intervened together with his friend Winikoff with General Malagenovski, who was a friend of the Jews. Before the convert agitator arrived (he would choose the Sabbath) on a Friday night, the entire Brest police force was on alert. Which Brisker does not remember that that Friday evening, when no groups were allowed to promenade on the Third of May St? The following day the expected incidents took place but the police would not allow any violent manifestations from the Polish hooligans. Thus the 'nervous' Begin saved all the Brest Jews the Brest Jews from a pogrom. General Malagenovski was presented with a gold handled sword from the grateful Jewish community of Brest.
The Brest Jewish Firefighters
Whenever there was a Jewish or Christian holyday, the fire fighters of Brest would parade through the streets in their uniforms, immaculately groomed and presented. They would be accompanied by their own music band, following them were their beautiful wagons pulled by well-fed horses containing all their fire fighting equipment and machinery.
What Brisker does not remember the light ridicule and hilarity when they would arrive after the fire was already extinguished? The most laughter was provoked by the deceased wealthy gentleman from Kobryn who wore his medals and never took his pipe out of his mouth. But nobody ever doubted the dedication of these volunteer fire fighters and their devotion to saving lives. The alarm (bugle) would sound in the middle of a cold frosty night the bugler would run through the many streets as they fire fighters did not all live in the same locality, he was often joined by half dressed fire fighters asking where the fire was
This fire fighters brigade was formed after the first Great Fire of Brest when half the city was destroyed, little children perished, and much Jewish property was destroyed. At that time the idea arose to establish a Jewish fire-fighting brigade and not to have to rely on the city's firemen.
After many long meetings and negotiations, a Brest volunteer Fire Command was established with two divisions. The first was of firefighters that risked their lives, the second was of lawyers, notaries and businessmen who would assist the fire victims and safeguard their remaining assets.
When the second Great Fire occurred in 1901, more that half the city burnt down once again, but without the efforts of the fire brigade, the entire city would have been burnt to the ground due to the strong winds. As well as the winds there was no running water in Brest at that time. Water was brought by barrels from the river. Despite these obstacles, they saved much of the goods and merchandise that were in the warehouses, several of which burnt down.
They also kept order people were rescued and took what they could of their possessions. Together with the police the second division surrounded the saved goods with chains and set up guards. During W.W.1 when the entire city was evacuated, all the fire fighting equipment was removed from the city and never seen again
Every Brest resident was afraid when they heard the bugle sounding the alarm. After W.W.1 when Brest was being resettled, there was much building activity and the fire brigade was re -established consisting of members that had returned and new volunteers. Which Brisker does not remember them? They would collect donations or hold celebratory firemen's balls to raise money, as the city council did not support them enough financially.
The ORT organization in Brest laboured from morning to night to build a Trades School. This was a place where orphans and Jewish children would learn different trades they saw to it that this school would house the most modern workshops, equipment and machinery.
One frosty night a piece of burning coal fell onto a workbench in the ORT workshop the fire ignited and spread into a large blaze. The watchman was asleep and barely escaped with his life. The Jewish fire fighters risked their lives to extinguish the fire, some were injured and risked burns, Mischa Sarver almost broke his leg they used all their powers to save what they could, once again the lack of water was a problem with all the neighbourhood Jews bringing barrels of water.
The anti Semitic Poles stood by enjoying the spectacle. By the time that the firemen from the Fortress arrived together with the firemen from the railway station, the ORT school fire was extinguished. Who knows how many of these Jewish fire fighters were themselves burnt at Auschwitz or Treblinka?
We Briskers will never forget them.
[Page 65]
On Mukhavets St. in Brest there were two brick buildings encircled by high white walls from which one could only see the barred windows on the top floor. This was the large Brest prison, which one could say was a holding station for arrested political prisoners awaiting sentencing.
They would be held there temporarily, once their verdicts were announced they would be send on to other prisons such as Siedlce, Bialystok, Waranov, Swienta, and elsewhere.
I am reminded of an incident it is six in the evening. A shrill whistle cuts through the damp prison air. The door of the woman's cell (where the female political prisoners were held) opens. A prison elder enters to report on the events of the past day. He makes his count of the cell inhabitants to see that no one is missing with the heavy sound of the cell door closing after him, we know that we will not see their hateful faces until six the next morning. We can hear the sound of other cell doors closing and the retreating footsteps receding down the long dark prison corridors. Then a deep silence would reign, interrupted only by the night guards in the corridors: get away from the windows, you cursed dog or stop your singing, you son of dogs. Otherwise one would think that one was surrounded by the night alone.
The long hot days of summer had not yet ended and the sun is low on the horizon, but the sun has not forgotten us even in our predicament, and in her last hours sends us long caressing rays through the barred windows.
This was the resting hour in our cell, after a whole day of lectures and discussions; everyone is busy with their own private thoughts. Verka, a tall thin woman marches up and down the cell. She walks as quickly as she can, thinking that this will bring more air into her ailing lungs. She seems very frail only when one looks into her beautiful eyes does one can sees a lot of life and hope. The uncertainties about her poor health, and if she can survive several years of imprisonment that still await her must worry her. She is an excellent housekeeper - and therefore was in charge of running the cell. Who else could manage, during the punishment period when no food was allowed into the prison from outside, to divide the daily portion of bread? When we lay tossing and turning on our mats from hunger, she had managed to save pieces of the black sticky bread for each of us.
Beside Verka walks Katya with her broad Slavic features and dreamy blue eyes. What concerns does she have? Aha, it is dusk, the hour when she must take the cows out of the fields!
Then there is the comely Olga, always happy. In her mind she hurries to the nearby forest for a secret political meeting.
Perhaps every one of them is hurrying in her private thoughts, perhaps they are thinking of recent discussions. They all come from similar villages hardened by manual labour, their roughened hands are now without work. Most of them could stand up on their folded mats and look out of the windows that were up high in the wall. One had to be very careful that the guards on the other side of the wall should not notice - the punishment was that the privilege of receiving food and newspapers from outside was taken away.
For us Brest girls the windows had a special significance and drew us like a magnet. We were in our own hometown, separated from our loved ones by high white walls. Malka the redhead said that if one could look through a couple of streets, one could see what was cooking at home, see what was happening and almost hear her mother crying. And how far away was Rachel's house? Only a few minutes walk. The river held a special attraction for us the magical river that wound itself from afar like a blue scarf. It reminded us of May excursions and summer evenings when it's gentle waters would refresh and caress us after the heat of the day. One would imagine that one could hear snatches of quiet conversations from groups on the river shore, the still night waters carrying the secret conspiracies away and spreading them over wider horizons.
The sun has almost set and nightfall takes hold the small and pretty Freydl appears close to the prison. Sorka is close to the window and quickly throws a letter out through the bars. The letter is weighted down with a stone so that it will not fly away and stuck shut with sticky breadcrumbs. Freydl picks it up and quickly begins to distance herself but suddenly there is a whistle what is happening? Every one's heart stopped - from the cell, we can see Freydl running from the pursuing prison guard he is very tall, his black shiny boots are almost as large as Freydl herself. We all ask ourselves, why is she running away, she'll be caught anyway? We don't have to wait long for the answer. Freydl is close to the river, and with a strong throw she hurls the letter into the water where she knows that it will be swallowed into the deep waters that seem to be on our side. Freydl stands breathless. A large hand grips her shoulder, through our gritted teeth; we curse him with terrible revenge.
One by one, we return to our mats, some singing a fighting song, some cursing. We can't sleep and all are certain that in a few days Freydl would be joining us in the cell, bruised and beaten, but smiling and asking us: how are you doing girls?
After a while we are all seated in a circle - we would not miss our night lesson which was given by Lubka and Mifka. These two girls were from Vilna Mifka was an intelligent girl that had graduated from high school. Beside that, she had obtained much knowledge in prison. Lubka went to 'university' in prison, she is an open book, and every question put to her is answered fully and clearly, just as she is herself.
It is now late at night and we are lying on our mats. Mania quietly sings a White Russian song she has a beautiful voice, and when she sings it is as if a great eagle has soared from the clouds and put was into a cage. The prison guard listens from behind the locked cell door only when she finishes singing does he call out: be quiet you dog's blood!
Several years have passed since that time, but in my mind the whole group is alive: Rushka and Leska - two teachers who yearned for their students. Little Esterke, for whom the prisoners had a special respect. They were wonderful girls, and I would ask myself how could so much knowledge come out of such small bodies? Genia from Lublin this young Polish girl with her upturned nose had an exceptional memory, whatever she had learnt was retained in her head as if written in a book. Sorka from Slonim, Esther Malka, the black haired Manya, little Mirka, our Sorka from Brest, all of them showed exceptional talent for educating and changing themselves. There were many others, who knows what happened to them and what terrible fate the Nazi beasts prepared for them?
Perhaps their blood stained the river's waters red, or their ashes fertilized the fields. One thing is for certain, that their ideals have conquered and that the ruins of our destroyed city will be rebuilt into a city such as we all dreamed of. But who of you have survived Hitler's living hell to witness the new Brest?
A living, flowering memorial that we will never forget.
[Page 66]
He was born in Brest, for a short period he attended cheder, but he was orphaned early and was shuttled around between various relatives, including his mother's family in Krakow.
At twelve years of age, he went to work as a bookbinder and later in an envelope factory. From 1900 until 1911 he served in the Russian military. After that he worked for several Warsaw newspapers - 'Neies', 'Freindt', 'Heint' and 'Moment'. His poems were published in the 'Lemberger (Lvov) Social Democrat'. He was appointed head master and teacher of the Yiddish primary school in Terespol.
From 1920 he was employed as an editor for the 'Polessie Shtimme', which appeared twice weekly in Brest, and published a weekly edition which was concerned with politics and social issues. He encouraged the concepts of productive labor, using the Jewish agricultural settlements in the Crimea as his example.
[Page 67]
A letter from Brest was received by Shmerel Gershenboim, a Brest born compatriot living in New York. Shmerel sent it Yankel Finkelstein, the executive secretary of the United Brest Relief. Shepsel Ramo writes:
I received your letter today, my dear friends Shmerel and Beile you cannot imagine my joy upon reading your letter, it brought tears to my eyes. You write that surely I must be the only one left of my entire family. You are not wrong, my dear friends the Nazis criminals murdered all of my family my mother, brother, the same for Zelig, Chaya,Mindel, Laibl, and David. Laibl and his wife Chaya were all murdered in October 1942 and buried at 124 Dluga St.
When comrade Pesach Novick (the editor of Morgen Freiheit) visited Brest in late 1946, I was then on leave. I walked with comrade Novick through the city and showed him the great sacrifice our city had made. I showed him the place where my whole family and all our friends were buried. Over 28,000 Brest Jews had perished. In 1940 I went away with the Soviet Army. I survived the war intact; I was never wounded and have been awarded medals.
I beg of you, my dear Shmerel, to give my heartfelt greetings to comrade Novick - he remembers me well as I travelled with him through the whole city and escorted him to the railway station when he left.
Your eternal friend,
Shepsel Ramo.
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Topic: Questions about antidepressants
Does anybody have experience with antidepressants? Did they make you feel really crappy at first, and then when you got used to them, did you feel better? My doctor prescribed Zoloft for me because I am having a hard time with things. I took a whole pill, the dosage I am supposed to take, and I felt really nauseous, really sleepy, and totally drugged up. So the next day I took half a pill, because I could not face another day of feeling that bad, and I still had the side effects, but not quite as bad. The doctor said it would take a few weeks to feel the good effects and get used to them. Do these side effects go away after a while? I couldn't stand to take them if I am going to feel this bad. They make me feel numb with no emotion. I am sure my family likes that I am not crabby or smart with them. I haven't felt this even tempered for a long time if ever. I have always been the high strung, moody, difficult type at home. I put on my happy face when out in public. I feel really weird writing about myself instead of Lauren. But, I hope you guys can help. I am afraid to take a pill today. Thanks.
Love, -Pam
My comments, suggestions, and opinions are based on my experience as a caretaker for my daughter, Lauren and from reading anything I can get my hands on about Cholangiocarcinoma. Please consult a physician for professional guidance.

subset: commoncrawl


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Beauty Mark It! A Gentle Exfoliator for The Red Carpet!
With the Oscars red carpet quickly approaching celebs have already visited their dermatologists, and other "doctors," in anticipation of the ultimate scrutinizing. Now it's time to zero in on the ensemble, get a massage, or two, and refresh the skin so it is glowing on Sunday.
I have just squeezed out the very last drop of my Sweep by Remede facial exfoliator. I keep it in the shower and use a nickel sized amount twice a week on my face. Call me sick, but I like how you can really feel the little particles scrubbing away your dead/dry skin. The best part about this is that it's light and doesn't irritate - this is key since seasoned celebs know better than to experiment this close to the big day.
Since I am such a beauty junkie, I simply refuse to buy another tube. I'd really like to try something different, something that will gently exfoliate me so I shine on Sunday! Let's all go beauty marking to help me find a new facial exfoliator for sensitive skin. Be sure to come back and tell me when your Beauty Marks are up. Tag your choices with gentle exfoliator so I can find them. To learn what a Beauty Mark is and how to make one, click here.
To see some of my favorite online beauty stores,
Saks Beauty Place
Fred Segal Beauty


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The latest reviews from Kevin Bryan.
String Driven Thing, "The Machine That Cried" (Esoteric ECLEC2346)- These prime purveyors of portentous prog rock actually began life as a Scottish folk group in the late sixties, but the addition of demon fiddler Grahame Smith to their ranks a few years later propelled the band in a much more interesting musical direction,and this splendid offering must rank as their crowning glory. "The Machine That Cried" actually prompted a good deal of collective head-scratching at their record label when the quintet delivered it to them for release in 1973,as the powers that be at Charisma felt that songwriter Chris Adams rather morose world view was unlikely to win over too many new converts to their cause. Nothing could have been further from the truth however,and "Sold Down The River" and the title track capture String Driven Thing at their bleakly memorable best.
Huey and the New Yorkers," Say It To My Face" (Naim NAIMCD180)-Native New Yorker Huey Morgan has developed into something of a Renaissance man since he made the decision to cross the pond and set up home in London a decade or so ago, and the streetwise Fun Lovin' Criminals frontman is now firmly established as one of British radio's most popular DJs. The gritty singer and guitarist has just released his first solo album and it's a pleasingly eclectic affair, showcasing Morgan's growing maturity as a writer and performer as Huey's sterling efforts are underpinned by some telling instrumental contributions from his old friends in the Tangier Blues Band and veteran pedal steel guitarist B.J.Cole.
"Last Shop Standing"(Blue Hippo/Proper PFILMS004)- This timely new DVD highlights the perilous plight of Britain's independent record shops, whose ranks have been decimated during the past decade by the twin threats of predatory supermarket pricing and online file sharing. Notable talking heads such as Billy Bragg,Johnny Marr and Paul Weller supply their reminiscences of these endangered musical institutions,and the whole shebang is held together by the knowledgeable presence of Graham Jones,whose book of the same name provided the inspiration for the whole project.
Wishbone Ash, "Live in Geneva 1995"(Angel Air SJPCD402)- Guitarist Andy Powell was the only original member remaining in the Wishbone Ash line-up when the band set out to mark their 25th anniversary with a show at the Rock Heroes Festival in April 1995.Powell and his newly recruited cohorts delivered a crisply performed jaunt down memory lane for their appreciative Swiss audience , with their familiar twin guitar sound gracing much loved old favourites such as "The King Will Come," "Blind Eye" and "Blowin' Free."
Claudio Arrau, "Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas" (Decca 478 3694)-The great Chilean pianist built up a vast and varied repertoire during the course of a career which spanned more than half a century, but he always felt a particular affinity for the music of Beethoven, and this weighty anthology draws on the great man's complete cycle of piano sonatas. Arrau's distinctive blend of fervour and restraint informs these highly acclaimed archive recordings from the early sixties,and as an added bonus the compilers have also included the "Diabelli Variations" from a decade or so earlier


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Santa Fe is brown and its water is green.
As New Mexico continues to suffer one of its most protracted droughts in memory, SFR has resurrected our annual list of the Top 10 water users in the city.
One of our main findings based on public records from 2013: Where the water flows the most in this brown high-desert oasis, so does money.
To take a tour of the top residential water users is to visit some of the city's most expensive homes, situated on large plots of land with gardens, pools, tennis courts and gates. Fashion designer Tom Ford is on the list, but not at the top. He's joined by self-proclaimed environmentalists.
To visit the highest-consuming commercial water users is to see the largest institutions in Santa Fe that drive the city's economy, including four hotels, a college, a hospital and even the conservation-wise city itself.
The most water-hogging commercial users collectively used 89.5 million gallons last year and paid a combined cost of more than $1.5 million, or about 3 percent of the revenue for the water division, $45.5 million.
For residential customers on the list, one problem persists: leaks. The top 10 residential consumers paid a combined price of nearly $80,000 for 4.9 million gallons of water last year. (An average of $8,000 per year compared to the average city family that pays about $1,800 per year, or roughly $154 per month.)
The US Environmental Protection Agency declares this its annual Fix-A-Leak Week, estimating that household leaks nationwide are wasting more than 1 trillion gallons a year. The EPA says that's equal to the amount of water used annually in more than 11 million homes.
In Santa Fe, city officials estimate that 10 percent of homes have leaks that waste 90 gallons or more per day.
In some cases, residents on this list weren't aware of leaks because they were out of town.
"A lot of people here who own homes are from Texas, California and all over the state," says Robert Martinez, owner of Santa Fe Express Plumbing and Drain. As a result, many find floods in their New Mexico houses when they return in the spring.
The city allows customers to apply for a leak credit once a year—provided the customer can prove the existence of a leak and that it spilled more water than used the same month in the previous year. But even with that credit, there's often still a hefty tab plus a bill from a plumber.
That's another reminder of how pricey water is in the City Different. Residents have also seen rates rise in each of the last five years to pay for new water-supply projects, but officials haven't announced any plans to hike rates again soon.
Many bemoan that increases in water rates go against promises officials made when the city acquired the water utility from the Public Service Company of New Mexico two decades ago. (For more about this, see page 9.)
Yet, City Hall boasts that water policies including "conservation surcharges" for excessive use have reduced consumption in Santa Fe by more than 39 percent since 1995, besting other southwestern cities of similar sizes by using an average of only 107 gallons per person per day.
Our research nevertheless shows that Santa Fe's guzzlers are swallowing millions of gallons every year—just as the city's surface water supplies, the Santa Fe River and the Rio Grande, fight to flow.
Letitia Quinn
Los Arboles Drive
Gallons consumed: 635,000
Annual water bill: $5,770.97
The news that she made the top of this list is "just appalling to me," Quinn tells SFR.
Aerial photos of her home off Old Taos Highway show shrubs and trees surrounding a pool and tennis court.
"I do very little in the way of gardening and landscaping," she says, noting that she splits time between Santa Fe and California. "I'm an environmentalist. I'm very conscientious about these things. But if a pipe bursts and you're out of town, there's really nothing that can be done about it— it's an accident."
Records support her story about a pipe problem. The city billed her for $9,827.97 in January 2013. In April, she got a leak credit of $9,728.79.
Quinn's bills in the 11 months after January averaged $388 a month with a high September bill of $1,738.81. Her total water use last year could refill the 30,000-gallon swimming pool at La Fonda hotel every year for more than 20 years.
"You know it was an extremely cold winter, so I'm sure a lot of people had burst pipes," she says. "But maybe they were luckier than I was and there were people that were there all the time."
Patricia P Antich
Seville Road
Gallons consumed: 544,000
Annual water bill: $11,178.17
This isn't the first time Antich has been on a top- 10 water users list, and she too says it's "a horrible feeling."
From October 2011 to September 2012, she was the fourth-highest water user in the city, using 569,500 gallons. She told The Santa Fe New Mexican that medical issues prevented her from watching her yard closely.
Antich tells SFR she tries to conserve water with underground tanks. She says two pipes froze and burst during the winter.
"I feel terrible about all this and will do all that I can to keep our usage in check in the future and will certainly be more diligent about monitoring my utility bills, which are on automatic pay, and thus easy to overlook," she writes. "This is the other factor in this sad tale, that I simply never noticed what the water bills were trying to tell me."
Old piñon trees adorn her yard, which features a small lap pool and hosted visitors last summer on a tour by a local garden club.
"Clearly I'm going to have to cut back on keeping so many flowers alive I guess," she says, "because I can't let the piñons die."
Roy Trice Jr.
Canyon Road
Gallons consumed: 544,000
Annual water bill: $11,178.17
This $1.9 million home built in 1929 is tucked behind a gate off Canyon Road.
Trice, a founding partner at the real estate investment firm Canyon Road Capital, didn't respond to multiple attempts to contact him.
Records show low January usage with bills climbing north of a grand per month in the summer. Trice's September bill of $2,513 was the highest monthly cost the city charged the former Texas hedge fund manager in 2013. And so far, there's no evidence of any leak reimbursements credits issued by the city.
Dan Terrell
Old Pecos Trail
Gallons consumed: 497,800
Annual water bill: $3,449.41
Terrell's monthly bills are some of the lowest among the residential users in the top-10 list.
But there's one exception. In November, the city charged him $9,992.94.
Records show he received a leak reimbursement from the city worth $9,956.03.
For 11 months, his average water bills were $54.78 each month. The usage is impressively low for his home, which is tucked back from Old Pecos Trail, hidden by a thicket of bushes and trees.
Along with calling him multiple times, SFR left a business card on the front porch to inquire about his water woes.
A tag sticking up from a modest garden plot nearby suggests hyacinths have been cultivated there.
Melody Paulishak
Mansion Ridge Road
Gallons consumed: 494,100
Annual water bill: $2,309.09
Melody Paulishak's father George is a Pennsylvania transplant who says he's worked in construction before, and he knows that "if there's a pool of water in the ground, there's got to be a pipe around there leaking."
Paulishak, a surgeon, and her parents rent the 5,600-square-foot home on Mansion Ridge Road, so named for its proximity to the home occupied by the state governor's mansion.
Sometime in late spring of 2013, an outdoor pipe for the irrigation system began leaking, they say. Records show they got hit with over $9,700 in water bills in May and June.
Anthony Gonzales, a general contractor for the property, says the age of the pipeline to the property contributed to the "massive" leak.
"There was one spot up on top of the hill where the grass was green, green, and it was dry at that time," he says.
The city reimbursed Paulishak $9,612.19 for the problem, data show. Most of the monthly water bills without the leak ranged from $60-$80.
The house is about 45 years old. Gonzales notes that's when construction workers often threw whatever dirt was at the site around piping instead of creating bedding for it.
"A lot of times they'd throw like a sharp rock or something on a pipe," he says.
Diana Coles
Zozobra Lane
Gallons consumed: 470,600
Annual water bill: $9,833.21
A cluster of pine trees grows in the middle of Coles' U-shaped driveway, where signs warn away solicitors and say video surveillance is conducted on the property, estimated by the county assessor as worth $305,700. Coles wasn't home on a recent Sunday. A man showed up and said he would relay the message to Coles that she's made this top-10 list. Asked for his name, the man replied: "None of your business."
Records show water bills in the $40 range until May, when her bills skyrocketed from $1,144 to $2,457 in warmer months before dipping back down to the $40 range in October.
Tom Ford, Richard Buckley
Camino Santander
Gallons consumed: 452,500
Annual water bill: $9,262.37
Fashion journalist Richard Buckley answered the intercom at the gate the end of Camino Santander, the entrance to a home he shares with his partner, world-famous fashion designer Tom Ford.
"You know we come and go, so we don't use a lot of water. So I don't understand how we can be in the top 10," he says. "On top of it, we're really water wise."
Records show monthly water bills for the 9,400-square-foot, east-side home were between $220 to $465 until June through September, when monthly bills ranged from $900 to a high of $3,275.
According to building plans on file with the county assessor, the home has 10 fireplaces and 13 finished rooms and an estimated value of $5.6 million.
Days after SFR's brief interview with Buckley, we received a letter from attorney Janet McKay, representing Angus Buckley, LLC, the entity that owns the property.
"[M]y client wanted me to communicate to you that 2013 was an unusual year for this property," reads the letter, "and is not reflective of the ongoing water usage."
Three factors in the summer contributed to the high usage, says the letter: leaks in a newly installed irrigation system not detected until the water bill was received; power outages that caused the irrigation system to malfunction; and the installation of newly planted trees required as a part of the city's development rules on hilltop homes.
The trees required "intensive watering," says the letter, during "the extraordinarily dry spring and summer season."
An inquiry to the attorney about the type of trees went unanswered.
"We weren't even here that much in 2013," Buckley says of the water use.
Linda Saurage
Camino Del Monte Sol
Gallons consumed: 437,800
Annual water bill: $8,757.48
There must be something about the east side of town and intercoms. SFR left a message over the intercom posted at the front of a gate at this $1.8 million house, and we called a number listed in the phone book. We've received no reply.
Saurage received only two bills in the $40 range in February and December, but otherwise had high monthly bills ranging from roughly $230-$1,500. She did not receive a credit for a leak from the city, according to records.
A November 2012 newsletter from the Santa Fe Conservation Trust lists a woman with the same name as a $1,000 to $4,999 patron of the preservation network.
Daniel Burrell
Circle Drive
Gallons consumed: 434,500
Annual water bill: $9,292.60
"So you're chasing me down about my water bill?" jokes Burrell when he answers the phone.
Burrell is a hard guy to chase. The former CEO of Santa Fe's Rosemont Realty, he recently formed Burrell Western Resources, a mining venture that seeks to extract garnet, a mineral found in gemstones, in Orogrande, NM.
Bills show water use began to climb from the $55-$70 range in early 2013 and jumped to the $725- $880 range in the warmer months. In December, he was hit with a $4,064.43 charge for 184,100 gallons used. An underground pressure gauge of an irrigation system that feeds an outdoor patio area burst, Burrell says, while the couple was out of town for the holidays.
"It was not that big of a break, but it was flooding underneath the house," he says, "so there was nothing on the surface we could see."
Workers fixed the leak, and he says they applied for and received a leak credit with the city. The next monthly usage in the $2.9 million home dropped to 5,500 gallons.
Karen and Steve Durkovich
Camino De Cruz Blanca
Gallons consumed: 406,600
Annual water bill: $8,329.01
Fixing the leak was an "expensive process," sighs Steve Durkovich.
The first warning came with the high water bills. The couple checked their drips, he says, and everything seemed okay. "But our bills were high, high, high, and then they were high when they shouldn't have been high," says Durkovich, a lawyer.
The first few water bills for the couple were average—between $70 and $80 a month. But the price slowly climbed to a peak of $1,462.27 in July. The bills then slowly dropped off to a low of $69.81 in December.
He says the home was built with bad copper piping. The three-bedroom, $2.1 million home sits near Atalaya Mountain.
After a while, water started pooling up in the bathroom, Steve says, while walls grew damp.
"Most people have ongoing leaks outside," he says, "Ours was inside."
Quail Run Association Inc.
Old Pecos Trail
Gallons consumed: 17,293,800
Annual water bill: $346,572.39
A security guard at the gate prevents entry into Quail Run, which advertises that it "epitomizes gracious Southwest living." The condominium community—advertised to members as "a high desert oasis" with more than 100 landscaped acres, a nine-hole golf course rated by the Professional Golfers' Association, a full-service restaurant, spa services and a 65-foot indoor ozonepurified pool—has been at the top of similar lists before.
While management didn't return SFR's calls, the city gives one clue about Quail Run's water use: The city sends one bill to the association, not individual bills to each homeowner, says Nick Schiavo, acting Public Utilities Department director. In the cold months in 2013, water bills for the association ranged from $1,300 to $1,700, then increased at an enormous rate, with monthly bills ranging from $25,000 to $76,000 from May through November.
The association's average daily water use in 2013 matched the average daily use for more than 800 people in Santa Fe during the previous year.
La Fonda Hotel
Water Street
Gallons consumed: 9,832,100
Annual water bill: $169,569.00
While La Fonda is second on the list, it used 56 percent of the water Quail Run consumed in 2013.
Jennifer Kimball, hotel board chairwoman, attributes the high water usage by the 306,000-square-foot building to a number of factors. The 179-room luxury hotel has a higher occupancy than other hotels, she says, adding that it underwent renovation in 2013, for which the hotel had to drain the 30,000-gallon swimming pool.
Kimball says spikes in water use at the hotel aren't due to the guests staying in the hotel, but guests who use its public restrooms during the peak of tourism season, when foot traffic on the Plaza is heavy. It's long been the hotel's policy to allow anyone to use its restrooms off East San Francisco Street.
She argues the hotel takes a number of steps to be a good environmental steward, including using low-flow toilets and reminding guests that Santa Fe is a high-desert environment. Signs in rooms say that towels hung on racks will not be washed. The hotel also installed three 3,000-gallon cisterns in the parking garage in the '80s that help water the hotel's plants.
"We had a big fountain up on the terrace years ago," Kimball says. "We now just put pots and plants there and don't use it because of water usage."
General Manager John Rickey notes the hotel, which employs roughly 230 workers, also has the second-largest banquet facility in Santa Fe and is a "very large, very busy facility. And therefore, you know, we use more water than less successful properties."
City of Santa Fe
Zia Road & Avenida Chaparral
Gallons consumed: 9,105,000
Annual water bill: $150,815.81
Ragle Park's green playing fields are costing taxpayers a pretty penny.
"It's not an aberration," Public Works Department Director Isaac Pino says of the park's 2013 usage of over 9 million gallons of water. "You're talking about a park that has close to 40 acres of irrigated turf that gets watered from roughly late March all the way to November."
The city retrofit Ragle with water-saving irrigation elements as part of the parks bond issued in 2008, he says, noting that timers and moisture meters that help the city save on irrigation.
Santa Fe has more than 170 acres of irrigated playing fields citywide. It's also introducing reclaimed water for some irrigation, he says.
He notes the city does not exempt itself from the water-use restrictions during drought conditions that call for watering only a few days a week.
"We're supposed to lead the pack by example, I suppose," he says.
St. John's College
Camino De Cruz Blanca
Gallons consumed: 8,710,900
Annual water bill: $150,937.56
With an undergraduate enrollment of 350 students, St. John's College may be known for small class sizes. But that doesn't mean this private liberal arts college—whose annual undergraduate tuition is currently $47,176—isn't a big gulper.
A spokesman for the school says officials have set a goal to reduce water use by between 10 and 20 percent with the help of an outside organization.
Monthly water bills show a bell curve, with the most expensive bills in the summer, topping off at $47,923.29 in June—although records show no bills in the subsequent two months. Data also suggest the city credited the school for $7,929.76 in April. That month's bill of $3,696.80 was also its lowest of the year.
The picturesque campus is located on the edge of the Sangre De Cristo Mountains, and it affords students plenty of recreation and study space on the 250-acre plot. At the center of campus, a small koi pond embellishes Schepps Garden. Sun Mountain Field, just off the campus, will be opening in April 2014. Signs warn passers-by to keep off the grass "while the field takes root," but the school does provide a free space for visitors to get their toes on the luscious lawn for its "Music on the Hill" concert series each summer.
Inn and Spa at Loretto
Old Santa Fe Trail
Gallons consumed: 8,274,900
Annual water bill: $151,139.59
Marketing Director Dana Ortega says while she's surprised the hotel made it at the No. 5 spot, it does have one of the highest occupancies in Santa Fe, "so I can understand that."
One of four hotels on the commercial users list, the Inn and Spa at Loretto has 136 rooms, a full-service spa and fine dining.
"One of the challenges that we face is that, because we're a luxury hotel and people are spending over $200 a night here, is trying to get our guests to recognize how much water we use just by washing towels and linens," Ortega says. Each room has four towels, two hand towels, robes, sheets and pillowcases that all require washing.
Cards in the room encourage guests to "partner with us in 'Destination Earth,' our program of conservation and sustainability." The cards note that towels left in the tub or floor will be changed while towels on the racks or hooks "tell us that you wish to reuse them."
Ortega notes the hotel is recognized for its conservations efforts by Green Key Global, which gave the hotel a ranking of four out of five for being eco-friendly.
Eldorado Hotel
San Francisco Street
Gallons consumed: 8,101,000
Annual water bill: $147,025.49
Eldorado Hotel and Spa's amenities include a rooftop pool, hot tub, restaurant and a spa. The county assessor estimates the hotel's property value tops $32 million.
Monthly bills ranged from $9,200 to $16,000. Records indicate it hadn't received a credit from the city in 2013.
Although hotel management didn't reply to a request for comment for this story, an environmental policy posted on Eldorado's website states it uses low-flow toilets and fixtures in all its bathrooms, guests participate in a towel-reuse program and that it uses front-loading, low-water-use washing machines for all its laundry. It says the hotel agreed in January 2013 to engage in those practices, along with others, to qualify for HospitalityGreen's Green Concierge Certification program.
Coronado Shopping Center
Cordova Road
Gallons consumed: 7,469,500
Annual water bill: $89,533.28
Tom Simon, owner of Westgate Properties LLC, is the property manager for the Corodado shopping center. He says the water meter at the shopping center covers all 19 business tenants—which include establishments like Radio Shack, Santa Fe Baking Company, Trader Joes and Subway, Furr's Family Dining, Dahn Yoga and Great Clips. Water bills list the entity that owns the property as 505 Cordova LLC.
In the fall of 2013, he says, Westgate noticed a dramatic increase in water usage. It wasn't until December that a leak detection company located the source, he says: a jetter that helped clean grease from a drain line at a restaurant. The jetter was on continuously, he says.
"Once we found the source of the leak it was fixed within 24 hours," Simon says. "It wasn't the kind of leak where you see water everywhere. It was going right down the drain."
Monthly bills ranged from $5,000 to more than $8,000, with a high November bill of $17,887.44. Records do not show it received a leak credit from the city.
Christus St. Vincent Hospital
St. Michael's Drive
Gallons consumed: 7,183,200
Annual water bill: $113,577.91
Santa Fe's largest hospital—and one of the biggest employers in the area—says it has a number of water conservation practices.
Spokesman Arturo Delgado writes that the hospital has low-flow water fixtures throughout the 268-bed facility. The hospital's water use is from drinking water, wastewater and evaporative cooling, he writes.
Water bills up to March were no more than $1,800, but spiked to almost $31,000 in April before dropping off to about $5,200 in August. Drip irrigation is used on the main campus, he says, along with xeriscaping with city-approved trees and plants.
For the campus landscaping, Delgado says the hospital uses a 10,000-gallon tank to collect runoff to water plants and trees on its campus.
Bluffs at Tierra Contenta
Jaguar Drive
Gallons consumed: 7,159,000
Annual water bill: $113,429.71
This affordable housing community is distinctive in that it's the only entity on either list that's on the far south side of town.
The executive director of the nonprofit Tierra Contenta Corp., James Hicks, says there are 160 affordable housing units in the Bluffs, with about three people occupying each unit for a population of roughly 480.
Bills for 11 months ranged from $5,200 to $14,000. Its highest bill came in July, when the city charged $17,787.66. It did not receive a leak credit from the city. A fence cages off a swimming pool.
Hicks says more than 90 percent of the Tierra Contenta development, which comprises about 2,400 homes with a population of 7,500, uses lowflow toilets. "Quite a few of the houses do not have dishwashers because of water usage," Hicks says
Santa Fe Hilton
Sandoval Street
Gallons consumed: 6,549,900
Annual water bill: $70,583.53
Like other luxury hotels, the Santa Fe Hilton offers guests a pool, spa and dining services.
Hilton officials haven't returned several messages to comment on its monthly water bills, which ranged from $3,400 to $8,600, with its highest bill of $12,453.78 in October. Hilton Worldwide's Corporate Responsibility Report says the international chain reduced its water use by 10.2 percent since 2009.
Marie Jonsson, 34, thinks the hotel can do more to conserve water. A scientist from Sweden, she was a recent guest at the Hilton attending a symposium on molecular and cellular biology.
For more than two years, she stayed in Australia, she says, where hotels in the arid country encourage guests to not shower for longer than two minutes. Here, there were not enough hooks in the bathroom for her and her roommate to hang up towels, she says. "They don't have to change the bed sheets every day," she adds.
Jonsson says this is her first time visiting Santa Fe. She got a snapshot of New Mexico's dehydration from thousands of feet in the air.
"Flying from Texas, you know, you could see all this cultivated ground like on the surface everywhere," Jonnson says. "And then all of the sudden it just went desert—nothing."


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MADISON - Entering Wednesday's game against in-state brethren Green Bay, senior guard Jordan Taylor already had a 3.42 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Following Wisconsin's 70-42 dismantling of the Phoenix, and Taylor's 10-assist night, his 4.25 assist-to-turnover ratio flashes a bit brighter.
"He's been Jordan Taylor," UW head coach Bo Ryan, who now stands 79-6 at home against non-conference opponents, said. "I mean 10 assists, zero turnovers? Not too many guys in the country that have that."
Not too many guys in the country are Jordan Taylor.
The senior All-American also chipped in 15 points and a couple of rebounds. He incorporated his bigs - - Ryan Evans and Jared Berggren scored 14 and 13 points, respectively - - and role players alike.
"I think we did a good job of moving bodies and moving the ball and just getting good shots every time down," Taylor said. "We did a better job of taking care of the ball this time around.
"I think it's a matter of just trying to get better every game."
Wisconsin only turned the ball over six times against Green Bay. Defensively, the Badgers badgered the Phoenix into 16 turnover and more importantly, converted those turnovers into 21 points.
Green Bay didn't score any points off UW's mishaps.
"You're going to lose to a really good team in their arena by 25 or 30 if you do that," Green Bay head coach Brian Wardle said. "Again, there's a lot to learn for our young club and we just weren't ready to compete at this level tonight."
Plenty of that had to do with Wisconsin's post defense, and the way it shut down Green Bay big man Alec Brown.
Standing 7-feet-1, Brown led the Phoenix with 14 points per game entering Wednesday's contest. Though he finished as the only double-digit scorer for Green Bay, his 10 points never came easy.
Berggren and Frank Kaminsky did a stand-up job defending him in the post. Brown finished the game shooting 4-of-12 from the field. He was held to just four rebounds and only blocked one shot.
"That was definitely an emphasis of ours in practice," Berggren, whose four steals established a new career-high, said. "WE know he is a good player. If he catches it inside it's not good for us.
"We just tried to focus on keeping the ball out his hands and working to front him."
Brown was never comfortable and because of it, Green Bay never stood a chance.
Wisconsin stormed out of the gates with an 8-2 run to open Wednesday's contest. Though Green Bay closed UW's lead to 12-11 midway through the first half the Badgers eventually found an offensive rhythm, allowing them to pull away from the overmatched Phoenix.
UW went on a 16-4 run to open up a double-digit lead at the break.
"We played a good team on a mission tonight," Wardle said. "You could tell right off the bat that Wisconsin was coming out (hard). They lost their last home game and we were going to see their 'A' game tonight.
"We definitely saw a team that was on a mission to win this game and we didn't compete at a very good level."
Senior guard Rob Wilson scored the first five points for Wisconsin after entering the game during the early portions of the first half. Sophomore guard Ben Brust also chipped in six points off the bench.
Freshman guard Traevon Jackson shot 50 percent from the floor, finished with four points and collected three rebounds, all of the offensive variety. He played 11 minutes.
"We know we have plenty of guys that can step in and give us some good minutes," Berggren said. "We were able to show that tonight. I think when we get guys going like that we're going to be tough to stop.
"It's good to see."
Team notes:
-With Wednesday night's win, Wisconsin has now won 42 consecutive home games against unranked non-conference opponents. It also improved its record to 79-6 under Bo Ryan at home against non-conference foes.
-The Badgers have never lost at home to Green Bay, improving to 15-0 all-time in Madison.
-Wednesday's official attendance was 17,076. That mark snaps UW's 143-game Kohl Center sellout streak that dates back to the 2003 season. According to a UW spokesperson, Wisconsin would have extended its streak had it sold 143 more tickets leading into the game.
-Holding Green Bay to 42 points marks the sixth time in nine game the Wisconsin defense has held opponents to 50 points or less. UW continues to lead the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 44.2 points per game. With Bo Ryan at the helm UW is 66-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 50 points.
-Consistent with the defensive theme, Wisconsin has held 13-straight opponents to 65 points or fewer, the nation's longest such streak.
-UW swatted seven Green Bay shots. That matches its season high.
Individual notes:
-With 15 points and 10 assists, Taylor becomes just the second Badger player to post a points and assists double-double since 1993. Josh Gasser's triple double last season at Northwestern is the other.
-Evans scored 13 points in Wednesday night's win. That marks his fifth double-digit scoring effort of the season.
-Evan Anderson scored his first career points (2) as a Badgers with a running jump hook late in Wednesday's win.
-Wisconsin football quarterback Russell Wilson was given a standing ovation during the first half of Wednesday's win.
-Wisconsin's national championship cross country team was featured during a halftime celebration Wednesday night. Head coach Mick Byrne and his team were saluted at midcourt by the Badger faithful.
Taylor on UW's ability to score 70 points even though it shot 18 percent from downtown:
"I guess that's nice when you can go out and still put up 70 points when you shoot (a bad) percentage from three. I guess it's nice to know you can go out and score. We did a good job of touching Jared and Ryan down low and they made some nice moves down there. We got to the foul line and we did a little better job of making free throws. We still have to do a better job of taking advantage of that, but I guess it's nice to know that you can still score when the 3's aren't going down.
"It shows the different elements we have to our team."


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Given the many advantages of cycling to work, why can't we persuade more of our colleagues onto bikes? Rob canvassed opinions from some online forums. It wasn't a scientific survey, but the 50 or so most detailed replies gave plenty of advice based on experience.
Find out the results by clicking on the PDF below.


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NEWPORT Gwent Dragons openside Nic Cudd says the Rabo Direct Pro 12 end of season play-offs are still the target ahead of tonight's huge test away to reigning champions Leinster.
The Dragons are currently seventh, 16 points off the top four with a game in hand, and flanker Cudd admits they need to get their season back on track quickly, starting at the Royal Dublin Society (kick-off 7.45pm).
It will be the Gwent region's first league encounter since defeat in the derby at Cardiff Blues on New Year's Day and they have won just once this year – at Italian minnows Mogliano in the Amlin Challenge Cup.
As well as the Blues defeat, the Dragons were humbled by English trio Bath, Northampton and Newcastle in January and last week's home clash with Edinburgh was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch at Rodney Parade.
"It would have been nice to get that run-out against Edinburgh last week leading up to the Leinster game because it's going to be a tough game," said Cudd.
"But in other ways it gives us a good rest, time to get over some niggles and be fresh for this game.
"The play-offs is definitely still a possibility for us but we just want to get as high as we can, starting with this game against Lenister," he added.
"We've had a few bad results lately and we want to get back on track this weekend.
"We've had some good results here but there are games where we should have done better.
"There's still quite a bit of the season left and we want to finish on a high as we can.
"We're out of the Amlin and the LV so everything is focused now on the league and trying to get that play-off position if possible."
Conditions will be difficult in Dublin but Cudd is looking forward to facing a Leinster side who will be missing their Irish internationals.
"They've got a lot of strength in depth and it's always a tough game whatever team they put out," said the 25-year-old.
"We've prepared the same way we would if they had all their internationals and I don't think they're going to be that much weaker at all.
"Obviously it's going to be difficult to handle the ball in wet and windy conditions but we'll have to play as well as we can with ball in hand.
"They get good crowds out there and these are the games we all want to play in."


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Professional Associations
Association of Professional Landscape Designers
The decision to hire a professional landscape designer can be one of the smartest investments you'll make toward enhancing your home and its setting. A landscape designer can work with you to turn that neglected corner into a garden sanctuary, or help you completely plan and furnish your outdoor living spaces with the creative use of plants, hardscaping, and other garden elements, resulting in a unified, balanced environment that you'll enjoy for years to come.http://www.apldca.org/
California Landscape Contractors Association
Are you looking for a landscape professional to maintain or manage a current property, renovate an existing garden or design or install a new landscape? The professional you select should have certain qualifications. The California Landscape Contractors Association lists some things you should look for to help ensure that your landscaping experience is positive and professional.http://www.clca.org/