“Look! Miss Lubliver!” It was Lipiczany who cried out that way. He was pointing at the singer, who still—so tightly—held her gown. In all this talk she had not said a word. Now, with the bangs lying girlishly on her forehead, and in a girl’s voice, she was talking just to herself.

“This is the kind of dress I wore for my first solo performance. It came to my ankles. It had lace at the neck. That was not in my village, but in the city. A full orchestra. A mixed chorus. My sisters in the audience. My two sisters! Israel in Egypt, by the composer Handel. It was about Moses and Pharaoh and the terrible plagues. The locusts, the lice, the flies. The chorus sang first. Their voices boomed. Hailstones! The cattle dying! The withering wheat! Then the whole sky came down in a storm of dust. It was time. Time for me. My spotlight! Oh, my pretty dress! The piano alone. Then the double bass. Thirteen years old. Thou didst blow with the wind. Thou didst blow! Thou didst blow, blow, bl-ow, bl-ow, bl-ow-ow-ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!”

It was not a song. The woman stood stiffly, beating her fists against her thighs. Her head lashed. Trumpelman ran to her and gripped her arms.

“Miss Lubliver! Don’t cry! I swore to protect you. Like a soldier! I will take you to my summer palace. My Queen. You can have whatever you wish.”

Phelia Lubliver swayed against him. Like a child, she repeated, “Whatever I wish?”

“You will be the mother of my sons! Your wish in the Ghetto is law!”

Everyone turned to the woman to see if she would accept the proposal. Her head twitched just once. “No more singing! Print that on the posters! No music allowed!”

“A problem. One problem. I wanted to tell you before.” Grundtripp had pulled his oversized cap onto his head. His uneven eyes were hidden beneath the visor. “Oh, there are no objections to this marriage. I congratulate you. I myself will attend the wedding. The difficulty is in the second order I received in Berlin. Jewesses in the Suburb are forbidden to give birth to more babies. The reason for this is the same need to increase production in the mills. No more useless mouths to eat up our food. No interruption in the worktime of women. This order takes place at once. Those who are already pregnant will be allowed to receive abortions. The Jewish police are to enforce the measure. And it is to be announced to the population by the Elder of the Jews.”

Those in the room then saw something that no one else in our town had seen before. The Elder on his knees. He held his hands together like a Christian praying. “Please. I’m just an old man. Just an old Jew. I’m not even from here. I’m from Vilna. A little town near Vilna. I didn’t want this job. I’m too weak to do it. Look at my white hair, look how my old hands are shaking. Look, I’m even crying. I resign! I’m not the Elder anymore. If you want, you can shoot me. Yes! I’ll drink poison. I’ll jump from the Zgierska Boulevard Bridge. Don’t make me announce such a thing to the Jews!”