Tribune Excerpts
The following article appeared in the February 2008 Edition of the Macedonian Tribune
DETSI of ’09
By Mitch Pedroff
Two weeks passed, and it was Friday and payday; the detsi were paid in cash - $4.50 for the week. A newly befriended co-worker, named Patsie, said to father, “If you have a nickel to spare, you are invited to join us for a beer; we go every Friday, and I will show you something.”
The detsi felt honored to be included and agreed. At the café, Patsie ordered, “Give the bartender your nickel.” A large glass of beer cost a nickel, but it also included food. At the end of the bar was a table with different kinds of cheese, meats, bread, mustard and peppers.
Patsie led the way to the food table and started to cut the bread; sliced bread had not been invented yet. As the group prepared their meals, Patsie very quickly without the bartender looking placed a napkin wrapped sandwich into father’s coat pocket and quickly put one into his own. For a five-cent meal and beer, there were no carry outs. The workers went to a table, ate their meal, drank their beer, socialized and left. The detsi had been introduced to an American tradition – TGIF.
On the way home, Patsie grabbed father’s arm, giving him the sandwich from his coat and saying, “Take my sandwich; now you have two, one for tonight and one for tomorrow’s breakfast. Take it.” The Macedonians led a very simple life. They worked, slept, ate and were very frugal with their money. They were all single men – no mothers, fathers, wives, brothers or sisters were living with the detsi in St. Louis. Patsie must have sensed their plight and felt an empathy toward these poor immigrants. In his own way, he wanted to help.
In Konomladi, the men of the selo worked cooperatively and harmoniously at their tasks. Certainly, differences of opinion arose as with any group of working men, but conflicts were settled in a civilized manner. There were family and clan feuds, and father’s clan was no exception.
This clan was composed of four families – Dinovi, Lakovi, Michovi and Shanovi. After the fall of Constantinople, the Turks marched into Bulgaria. To escape from the Turks, father’s clan, as well as many others, fled westward and settled in the mountains of Macedonia, circa late 1400’s. In time, they became the established families of the selo, and they viewed newcomers and interlopers with suspicion.
The tsigani (Rom) Armenians, Anatolians, Avrae, Greeks and other interlopers were considered to be of a lower class. They exchanged unpleasantries often; social association was limited, but toleration was the rule. Quoting father, “We did not have the Hatfield and McCoy feud in our selo.”
In St. Louis, however, the detsi were in for a rude awakening. Violent behavior was a way of life that was completely unexpected. In the workplace, the Etalyansee and cherni (blacks) could not get along with each other and often resorted to physical confrontation. When cherni entered the work area, profanities were exchanged and within seconds, the Italian men rushed to the scene to do battle.
The first rumble made a lasting impression on father. During a lunch break cherni entered into the forbidden area; a few loud shouts and the Etalyansee ran to the area. The detsi thought it was their duty to help, but a few of the Italian men said, “Stay back, get back, this is none of your business, we will take care of this thing.”
Father quickly climbed a ladder to a ledge to see the fight. As father described the confrontation, “These Italian boys were organized; they were smart fighters. They lined up eight to ten abreast with a second line behind the first. If a breech occurred in the first line, it was filled by someone in the reserve line. They had someone shouting orders and commands. Their tactic was to move forward. Then, a group of reserves attacked from the sides, forming a pincher around the cherni.”
When the Etalyansee bested their combatants, the cherni fled. Certainly, as in any hostile struggle, men were bruised on both sides and this formed the grudge as the basis for the next rumble. If the battered Etaliano could identify the assailant who bested him, the chern chovek (black man) became a marked man. The beating would be avenged.
Later in life father said, “I was
fortunate to have been assigned to the
Italian work group. I was never beaten,
and I never missed a day of work because
of a beating. I was a small boy, only five
foot, seven inches and could not take that
kind of punishment. Many of our boys
came home beaten and bruised. One of
our roommates was severely beaten, and
he missed several days of work, resulting
in lost pay. We had to tend to his injuries,
buy salve for the cuts and cover some of his
expenses.”
