Letter handwritten and signed by R. Moshe Betzalel Alter of Ger. [Otwock?, undated].
Addressed to the philanthropist R. Leibel Epstein, recommendation to assist R. Itche Meir Alter (brother-in-law of R. Moshe Betzalel), who was in need of financial support, since he used to be wealthy and later lost his money. R. Moshe Betzalel concludes the letter: "The words of one who respects and admires him, and blesses him with a happy festival, Moshe Betzalel son of the rabbi of Ger".
R. Moshe Betzalel Alter (1869-perished in the Holocaust 1943), second son of the Sefat Emet, rebbe of Ger, and son-in-law of his uncle R. Shimon Chaim Alter brother of the Sefat Emet. He was renowned as a holy, ascetic and G-d fearing man, who worshipped G-d with exceptional devotion. He only slept for two hours every night, and would rise at two o'clock in the morning, delving into Torah study and worship of G-d with great diligence throughout the day and evening, until midnight. He was amongst the foremost leaders of the Ger dynasty. He totally accepted the authority of his brother, the Imrei Emet, and led the Chassidim on his behalf. He was involved in communal matters, and letters he wrote against reading secular newspapers and literature are well known. His brother the rebbe relied on him and wished to appoint him as his successor, as he wrote in his will: "…and behold, the community needs a leader, and I have decided to hand over the leadership to my brother R. Moshe Betzalel, he is attached to me wholeheartedly, and he will draw your hearts to our Father in Heaven… and he will bring down kindness, blessing and success from Heaven, to do good for you always" (ultimately, R. Moshe Betzalel perished in the Holocaust, and his brother changed his will to appoint his son R. Yisrael, the Beit Yisrael as his successor). With the outbreak of WWII, he was exiled together with his brother to Warsaw, where his son R. Yitzchak Meir (son-in-law of the Imrei Emet) was killed in bombardments. In the Warsaw ghetto, R. Moshe Betzalel survived thanks to his enrollment in a workshop. Most of the time, he sat in a corner of the shoe factory, while the Chassidim concealed his engagement in Torah and worship of G-d from the supervisors. Eventually, he was taken to the Treblinka extermination camp. Most of his descendants, including his sons, daughters and their numerous family members, perished in the Holocaust (apart from several descendants who survived and immigrated to Eretz Israel, including his son R. Avraham Mordechai Alter, father-in-law of the Penei Menachem, rebbe of Ger).
For a certain time, R. Moshe Betzalel changed his last name to Format, due to a Polish law exempting an only child from conscription. R. Moshe Betzalel succeeded in obtaining a new "identity", of an only child of the Format family. Even once he was able to return to his original name, he continued using the name Format, or both names together, as in the heading of this stationery which states: "Moshe Betzalel Alter-Format - Gora Kalwaria - presently in Otwock".
[1] leaf, official stationery. 14 cm. Approx. 13 autograph lines and signature. Very good condition. Folding marks.