Page 11 - Kol Bogrei Habonim - Winter 20
P. 11
almost constant attack and Gesher on the tons of tomatoes, bananas and grapefruits.
Transjordan border was always under attack. “During the past few weeks, we have been
feasting on tamarim (dates); they are simply
After a month, the Garin moved into concrete
buildings, although for some time they lacked delicious. One of the vatikim, Ben Zion
doors or windows, and had to use blankets Yisraeli, who has been at Kvutzat Kinneret
and sheets to cover the openings. since it was founded 26 years ago, went to
Persia and Egypt about 10 years ago and
The work was physically hard and the heat brought back some date palms. Now, after 10
was at times overbearing. They started work years of hard work, Palestine is producing
very early in morning, with breaks, and dates. Everyone in Palestine is talking about
continued until 5 pm. On top of the daily the Kinneret Tamarim" (September 28th,
work, there were assignments to do sentry 1936).
duty at night, at strategic points.
Occasionally the Arabs would infiltrate and After 3 months of working on the farm, many
steal plants. One night they took 35 members of the Garin wanted to be free to
cauliflowers. For security reasons “Lights choose the work they would do. Yehudit
Out” was at 9 pm. Avni was working in an underground room
sewing clothes and complained the work was
After their initial settling into Meshek life, affecting her eyes. The group put the problem
problems started to arise. The year of training to the committee but got the impression the
they had received at the David Eder Farm was committee had no time to consider it, so
not enough. The group did not know enough Yehudit left the sewing job of her own accord
Hebrew. In Shalom's letters to Moggy and transferred to the warehouse. Eventually,
Margolis and chaverim at the David Eder the Garin’s suggestions were taken up:
Farm, he urged everyone to LEARN Hebrew Shalom began working with the grasses,
to get into the feeling of the country, its (when on Kfar Blum, he became an expert in
people, and the problems: the hard work, the alfalfa and the drying plant), Hillel drove the
heat, illness, attacks by local Arabs, learning tractor, and Rivka worked with the chickens.
about farming from scratch, lack of help, and
personal problems with some of the group.
Shalom’s family complained about delays in
receiving letters from him. He wrote, “the
reason you get my letters pretty late is very
simple: The Palestine Government's postal
service is very bad. There are not enough
Jews working there, and we are a long way
from Haifa” (from where mail went by sea).
Shalom worked in the cucumber fields,
grapefruit orchards, in the aubergines and the Shalom at Kinneret 1936 “Conditions at
tomato plantations. He writes home about the Kinneret were hot and difficult”
vegetables and fruits they were planting –
11
