3715 —הרב ניימארק מקבל אשמה ומאסר עבור הרבי מוהר"ש

B"H, 14 Menachem Av, 5715. Brooklyn.

Shalom u'Vrachah!

In response to your letter from the 7th of Menachem Av with its enclosure, which is an answer to my suggestion to you ... Since those who possess oral tradition and know the events as they truly happened have diminished—especially regarding Chassidus, Chassidim, and their leaders—and very few actually recorded events at the time they occurred, all the more so regarding matters passed down as family tradition (many of which were unknown even to Chassidim except for those closest), it is my opinion that all family members who remember sayings or events from any period have a sacred duty and privilege to record them as precisely as possible, without embellishment or omission. ...

Regarding the informant incident in Strodov ^[1], I do not have material on this matter, though it may exist among the writings of my father-in-law, the Rebbe zatzal, in parts not yet organized. However, my father-in-law once related that in his youth he knew Rabbi Neimark from Strodov who sat in prison after taking upon himself the blame. He commented on this with a meaningful phrase: "Zayne a sha'ah..." (his one hour...). My father-in-law explained to me that his intent was that even one hour of confusion for the Rebbe Maharash was so precious to him that he took upon himself the blame...

With honor and blessing.

Summary

This letter teaches us both the importance of preserving family and Chassidic traditions accurately and selflessly valuing our leaders’ time—exemplified by Rabbi Neimark’s willingness to accept imprisonment for the sake of sparing even an hour of distress for the Rebbe Maharash.