From Ethel's Memoirs. "
Years later, my mother told me how a felcher (a barber) saved my life when I was about two years old. My crib was positioned between the door leading to the store and the window directly on the opposite wall, I probably was caught in a draft, and became very ill, Despite the fact that Mom was the most wonderful nurse to us all of us, fear entered her heart, as she witnessed my color turning blue, She lost no time, and hurried to the felcher, a couple of blocks away, and brought him to our house.

He took one look at me, and as I was turning even darker, and he said to Mom, in a very offensive way, “I can do nothing for her.”

My mother asked, “Why not?”

He responded in no uncertain terms, “Because she might die if I do what you ask me to do.”

My mother’s brave, emotional answer, also in no uncertain terms, was, “She will die anyway if you don’t go ahead immediately and do what I insist that you must do. Please go ahead and do it.”

Either pneumonia or pleurisy had set in and I was on the way out. The method was to use gehakte bainkies. In order to make the bainkies more more effective, it was necessary for him to make four one-inch incisions through my skin and flesh on my right side above my shoulder blades. The moment the alcohol-dipped bainkies were applied, with their vacuum-like suction, the dark blood that came pouring out was the most miraculous thing that Mom had ever witnessed in her lifetime. It was that cleansing and purifying the blood that was the miracle of my immediate recovery. Even forty years, I could still see the signs of the scars, and would show them to my mother, but by eighty+ years of age, they had disappeared. To this day, drafts, either outdoors or in the apartment if a window and door are opened simultaneously, still bother me. I am always careful to keep my shoulders and chest protected by proper apparel.

People poo-pooed the thought of a felcher prescribing medicine, or even performing minor surgery. What must be kept in mind is that from the moment Jewish boys were born they were being taught the Bible. From the beautiful Torah writings and the Scribesm, those who sought the additional knowledge and education, were very well-informed on the functions and illnesses of the human body. They learned to cope with crises such as mine, Actually, the felchers were regarded as part doctor. One wonders where the Scribes got their knowledge of the health habits and human body, but regardless, I am personally glad it was handed down from generation to generation until I was helped by that special knowledge, especially for my mom’s sake." Page 11

Ethel Danziger Zuckerman's Memoirs "Dad was a handsome Adonis and he took pride in taking his two lovely young daughters for a shpatsere (stroll). I guess we were particularly noticed because of Frances’ exceptionally satiny black hair, dark eyes, and peaches-and-cream complexion. I, on the other hand, was born a cornsilk blond (like a shikse - gentile) and blue eyes. (There must have been some Nordic blood someplace, early on. Our name, Danziger, denotes that we were at some time, from the city of Danzig which, at one time, belonged to Germany, and then to Russia, etc.) To further enhance the picture, my mother always dressed us in the height of fashion. It was obvious sthat my dad enjoyed the compliments from the passers-by.

To continue with our walk -- it must have been a full hour -- time was not important. We walked in a leisurely fashion to allow us to enjoy the beautiful trees all along the way to the Square, which was now enhanced by the delightful, green foliage, as well. The clank of the streetcars and the clip clops of the horses shoes on the cobblestoned midway completed with the announcement of, “Sackarash, Sackarash!!” (Ice Cream Ice Cream). I carry this picturesque memory with me, undimmed by the passage of the years.

As in the tradition of all observant Jews, when we returned from our walk, my parents took their usual Shabbos rest. The store, naturally, was closed. Frances and I, were expected to quietly amuse ourselves at the kitchen table with the games and educational toys my mother always provided for us -- and also so that we would not disturb our parents in their sleep. I remember having to muffle our laughter so that we would not be scolded later. It was a lovely, and most beautiful time, in retrospect."

From Ethel's Memoirs, page -8- "The sidewalks in front of the stores were were very much like those here in the states, so, much of our playing time was spent on them. Besides hopscotch, we girls also played jacks, that was too tame for my Tom Boy sister, however, and one day, she insisted on doing exactly was the boys our age were doing -- taking a stick and pushing it along the sidewalk, not with their hands, but with their bodies, leave it to Frances to follow the same stunt.

Unfortunately, the stick shifted out of position and into her privates. Needless to say, it was most frightening, especially when Mom realized that Frances was bleeding, which indicated that something had been ruptured. She was rushed to a hospital and the doctors had had to do some repairs. Frances improved quickly and was able to get along with her usual programs."

Ethel's Memoirs: " When we left Warsaw, we had never heard the word “ghetto” in relation to our city. The area in which we lived was not a ghetto. When the horrendous stories started coming out of Europe about the Warsaw Ghetto and the Holocaust, I, for one, was very naive and disbelieving about much of what I heard, especially about the Poles. In retrospect, however, I do remember two incidents that were brought on by the soldiers, who were under Russian administration at the time.

We were always friendly with our neighbors and the local police. Through the good and friendly auspices of the Gendarme on our beat, when I was five, my parents were notified of an impending raid/uprising that was about to take place. He told us to lock and chain our premises. Needless to say, it was very frightening for my mom and dadm who feared for their children I remember vividly that Frances and I were dressed and overdressed with dark clothes and taken all the way up to the third floor attic,

There we had to stay in the farthest corner, If the raiders should, heaven forbid, find their way up there, this was the least conspicuous place to hide. we were admonished to keep absolutely quiet and then Mom kissed and hugged us and hurried back downstairs. We remained there, completely mute, throughout the night. In the morning Mom and Dad finally came to retrieve us when the area was clear of the soldiers.

After that, my dad, who feared for the lives of his precious children, revealed that he had a gun and that he would not hesitate to shoot to kill if it became apparent that our lives were in danger. Fortunately, we were all spared that gruesome experience, The soldiers did break down all the barriers and ransacked the store, but did not break into our home, nor entered the second floor or attic. The store was left totally devastated, with very little to be salvaged Every keg and pain was turned upside down, a horrible sight, and so much loss.

The ordeal was especially gruesome for my mom and dad. Years later, Mother recounted about the time when pogroms were rampant all over Europe. At the time these two incidents happened to our family (years 1910 - 1911), the Russians were aware of the fact that the soldiers were getting restless and had given the okay for them to act as they had. Because of the kindness of the beautiful Polish people we knew, who had heart and soul, we were spared any loss of life.

A year later, we were again forewarned by the same Gendarme. This second occurrence must have been the turning point for my father, for that is when he decided to leave for the United States, though I was unaware of Dad’s decision to leave Warsaw."

The SS Rhein manifest lists the fourth child as Chaim age 2 3/4 years on 18 December, 1913, so he would have been born in March of 1911.

The Danzigers see a silent movie in Warsaw about the sinking of the Titanic. It is the story of Dorothy Gibson, a survivor and actress, who plays herself in the dress she wore on the boat.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saved_From_the_Titanic
Ethel pursued this memory although no one else could confirm that such a film existed. The studio burned and no copies are left. The rights did not expire until the 1940s.

Ethel's Memoirs: 'Dad’s plan for moving to America called for his departure first so he could establish a home for us in the new country. I feel certain that we children were not told of the destination for fear that we might inadvertently say something to an outsider. Dad departed in October of 1912. He must have arranged to leave incognito, so as not to be recognized and forced to serve in the army or jailed. When the Polish army had tried to recruit him earlier, he had one of his his big toes amputated so he was unfit for service."

DWJ: I heard that Grandpa shot off his toe to avoid the Polish Army. Traveling incognito helps us understand why we haven't found Abraham on passenger lists. The ship passenger lists of departures from Bremen (his likely departure point) were destroyed in 1944 and the copies were probably destroyed as well (http://www.progenealogists.com/germany/articles/gdepart.htm). A previous recording process looked only at Germans (ignoring Slavs, Hungarians and Jews). So we have to look at Baltimore for records on incoming passengers.

There are three places named Miłosna.
Miłosna may refer to the following places in Poland:
Miłosna, Lower Silesian Voivodeship (south-west Poland)
Miłosna, Łódź Voivodeship (central Poland)
Miłosna, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship (north Poland)

Ethel's Memoirs: "I do not remember much of the first stage of our trip, except that we were all dressed in dark clothes and traveled incognito. We must have traveled at night and were probably so all tired that we slept during the train ride. The first stop on our journey was the small town of Miellosna, Poland, where we had relatives, an aunt, uncle, and cousins, who were our age. The apartment must have been rented for us by a cousin who had lived there a long time.

The time passed quickly because we were with cousins our own age, who were good company. One favorite thing was reading the stories out of that beautiful green leather book which I had won at school. Mom had permitted me to carry that one treasure on the trip. It was the last time I saw it, however. Either my book got lost during the flight from Miellosna, or my cousins kept it in their home, where I had permitted them to read it.

Even though it was early winter, the weather was exceptionally mild. My cousins, Frances, and I could play games outdoors and this kept us from feeling cooped up and fearful. I recall that I shared my expertise with needlecraft and taught my cousins how to sew and crochet during our sojourn when we were inside."

Ethel's memoirs on the journey from Miłosna to the railroad to Bremen. "I have a vivid picture of our clan -- dressed in dark clothes and trudging on uncultivated land, outside a country town -- to reach the railroad station. Because the roads were so rugged, we walked in constant fear of missing our step and falling. I remember Gramps holding two-year-old Howard in his arms, mom holding baby Helen (8 months) and Frances and I holding onto three-and-a-half year old Moey. We blindly groped our way after Mom and Gramps, who were in constant fear of, God forbid, being followed or discovered before we got to the railroad station and the train that would take us to Bremen. God was truly with us that moonless night, protecting us from discovery, yet guiding our footsteps safely."

We finally reached the train and were guided to our seats, which, unfortunately, did not include sleeping accommodations That really didn’t matter, though, since we were all so tired that we immediately fell asleep in our seats. My sleep was disturbed several times, as we signaled our approach to towns with the eerie “Too-oot Too-oot” of the train whistle. As I recall, I was the onlyt one of mty siblings that awakened each time that sonorous whistle sounded. I fell easily back into a sweet, deep sleep each time. To this day, every time I hear a train whistle blow, I am transported into that seat on the train with two siblings huddled around me.

"We arrived at Bremen, Holland [sic], safely. Certain things then elude me, such as the trip from the station to our hotel. In my eyes it was a beautiful, impressive building, constructed mostly of stone and so very clean looking, with cobblestoned grounds around it. The next morning I wsaw Mom peeking out the window by slightly opening the curtain. It wasn’t until later that I realized that she was constantly on the alert to see if we had been followed. What agony that must have been. She didn’t take an easy breath until we were safely on the boat from the port of Bremen and steaming toward the United States. Every moment that we, and the other families, had to wait for the time to depart must have been a torture, for if we were caught escaping, we would have been imprisoned. My heart skips a beat when I think of the heroism that she exhibited."

They sailed from Bremen Dec 14 on board the North-German-Lloyd ship Rhein and arrived in Baltimore in 1913. Although Maer's naturalization papers indicate the same details except arriving on Jan 2 1914. If they left in late December 1912 they would have arrived in January 1913. Could have been a memory glitch.

Ethel's memoir says that they sailed second class on the huge and beautiful "liner" the Rotterdam, from Bremen, Holland (sic). p.27