THEY JUST LEFT

First they expended great effort to get out of Telechan.  Next they had considerable difficulty entering the United States.  Both were initially denied entrance, appealed the judgment, and spent weeks confined at Ellis Island awaiting the decision that would either allow them into the United States or send them back to Telechan.  Then, after only 2-3 years after living in the United States, Dov Berel and Elka left forever. 

I was unable to find any record of their emigration from the US to Palestine.   Since a paper trail documenting their arrival existed in the U.S. I assumed there must be a comparable one regarding their exit. There is none.  There are no records of non-citizens leaving the country.  Only US citizens were issued passports for travel purposes.  Dov Berel and Elka were not in the US long enough to have applied for and received citizenship.  For resident aliens, such as my great-grandparents, it was a simple task to leave. They just purchased tickets and departed.  One bought a ticket, got on a ship and sailed (steamed) away. 

My sister Eadie’s memory is that Dov Berel and Elka never intended to permanently settle in the United States.  Their intent was to stay for a while and then go to Palestine.  That is what they did.  This leaves me with many unanswered questions.  Why did they first come to the US?  Was it to visit their children?  Was it easier to enter Palestine from US than from Telechan?  Were they unable to go directly to Palestine?  

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