I late had a fascinating book. possibly any people will be surprised... These are the memoirs of Fr Walery Pogorzelski entitled “43 years in the priesthood”, published in 1935 by his own author in Sieradz. Priest Pogorzelski began his priestly ministry in the late 19th century, and his way of life led him through various parishes in 3 partitions, up to independent Poland, to Sierod, where he became a parish priest in the 1920s.
There is much in the book of described matters concerning the problems of spiritual life under occupations, coexistence of the Church and power, relations between the possessors and the clergy, but besides regular matters concerning average people, parish life, evil and good seated in man. There is besides quite a few humor, many descriptions of everyday life of a priest, e.g. in a agrarian parish, a relation with hierarchy and with faithful... In fact – the mine of cognition and Polish history. And this is written vividly, with a fly, so that it is hard to break distant from the book, even in those threads in which the subject may seem seemingly not interesting (because what can be interesting about the problems that the priest had to contend with in the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries? And yet!)) ...
But there are besides themes in this book (which is most likely hard to get today) about economical and social phenomena that can be learned from. any of them can be useful in times of crisis – whether it be coronavirus, war or the collapse of the financial system, or possibly all of it at once.
In order not to get bored, I give the voice to Fr Pogorzelski, quoting any passages from his memories (original spelling).
‘(...) As the front of the war moves distant from us to the east, the C.K. Austryackian authorities are increasingly moving in and include administration of occupied areas: judiciary, politics, education, etc. full board with own coin, crowns. So far, the Austryans have brought to us the power of sugar, candles, kerosene, etc., but we have not known and have not bought enough. In a couple of weeks, things have changed, the card strategy has started. And our Austrians, but mostly German, zealously drew gold coins from the people, then silver rubles in a variety of ways: this tree in the forests was sold only for gold, this defective military horses were disposed of cheaply, but only for gold, any punishment was imposed only in gold. They were pushing paper money for themselves. Germany mainly Russian rubles, which they frequently fabricated themselves. It was memorable to say 1 man. He pays with this forced gold, but says: >> Santa beats it beats you; but they respect you (allusya to the image of Santa II on the five-rubs of gold)".
‘(...) The flour for the church wafers had the following procedure. The Dean calculated the amount needed on the host and communication for each church. By presenting Kreiskomando in Radomsk, the Dean was given the right to acquisition wheat and to feed. All the flour was brought to me and the priests took the parish priests distant for a year. I bought 26-28 corks for my 16 parishes, assigned to the priests b. large, so that the grandmothers were adequate for everyone. –>Holy Easter During the war, by force, things were erased, that after a common agreement, we did not go around villages, but the population after any of the saints in baskets brought to churches and it was holy here. – The taking of church bells was held in both occupiers. The Austrians saved old historical bells. In turn the general order left 1 medium-sized telephone at the church. There were 3 fresh bells in the Spider Room. I managed to convince the gendarme that the word >>mittel<< means not mediate but middle. any honest soul laughed and left me >>centered, and this 1 was the largest, about 800 pounds of weight he had, while 2 taken together about 600 f. They reached. – Only gold money they retained their value permanently and these only belonged (and should be kept in the future) during the war. The inflation of kronor caused them to decrease their value, all paper money: crowns, brands, rubles, paper fixed values were losing. But our people, as well as others, grew so with rubles, and especially with sturublins, called >> >Kaski from the image of Catherine II of the Tsarica, (it was money of large importance), that more was believed in them than in others. No 1 at last thought that Rossya would be overthrown in this war. Miljard losses suffered the population on inflation and on the paper money of Rossya, Austria and Germany. – All the savings and funds that single people and collective institutions made to the Russian savings banks and banks, all the funds and capitals of churches and others, all the papers, and excises, and loans – are gone! War is simply a large hurter.”
‘(...) Money Dewey At that time, it made it impossible to account. I'm going to take an example. A large stove of tiles made of beautiful large tiles in July 1923 cost me 1.5 million marks, and already in November I paid 2 million for 1 tile. Restoring the full plebanja cost me 30 million, and already in March of the following year I paid 36 million for making 1 shutter. In the end, it was absurd that 1 box of matches cost 1.5 million. We were desperate. In Germany, it was much worse, there was a multi-miljard bitro, and even billable banknotes. It is easy to realize how much this inactive falling money produced difficulties, with the reconciliation and payment of craftsmen, matter, and any cost-benefit combination, the parish agenda after a week were already completely out of date. The power of men lost all its assets then. Yesterday taken for selling a house, a square, farms, etc. were already worthless tomorrow. It was a disaster for many.”
Finally, 1 more passage from Fr Pogorzelski's book, showing how hard and complex the times of war were...
“I note the following from individual matters. My brother-in-law Dr. Zygmunt Witkowski was a doctor in Krzepicy (pow. Częstochowa). A man of the right, a immense paterita, as a student of the Warsaw University respective times for Hurki imprisoned in the citadel, yet expelled from the university. erstwhile the war broke out through the city, he was appointed as city manager to watch over the safety and tranquility of the general public. In this position, he exposed himself to the Jews who were fertilizing vodka to drink the population. Since the Germans stepped in a fewer days later, the Jews accused the brother-in-law of being a Russian spy. On this charge Dr. Witkowski was arrested and taken to a prisoner of war camp in Germany. It was only after a fewer months that German - applicable efforts brought him out. – The Jews besides accused me of being in constant contact with my brother-in-law and that we were giving interviews to each another to harm the Germans (and that was where the Moscals stood). So it was a terrible coincidence that I was straight afraid to go to my sister’s home so as not to get into German hands. I only left erstwhile my brother-in-law was released and erstwhile the German authorities changed. - She had this case of hers. Namely, erstwhile the legionaries (polates) entered Krzepic, our people charged them with a Jew-informer who falsely accused his brother-in-law. The Jews were imprisoned and shot in the neighboring forest. They left him anyway, but the Jewry was inactive alive despite the dense wounds, and he was expected to be licking himself. In general, during the war Jews were many spies and dennunciators of Poles."
PSz