PAGE SIX

THE DETROIT JEWISH CHRONICLE

THE LAUGHTER OF THE JEW

BY FANNIE LESSING

Ernest Renan maintains in his
As the Jew in European countries
i i des Langues Semitiques ' w as excluded from every profession
Hstore
that the Semitic races, and, conse- and also from agricultural pursuits,
quently, also the Jews, are lacking in I t was only natural that he had to
humor, in the capacity for laughter. depend upon commercial activities to
Strange as this reproach might make a living, and, consequently,
sound to us, another great man. many Jewish witticisms are of the
Carlyle, held the same opinion, as his market and the exchange. So the
biographer Fronde, reports, and in- story goes, that on a cold winter
deed, in the whole Bible laughing is morning a stock exchange man ac-
mentioned only twice. Sarah laughs costed oen of the big speculators and
when the angelic visitor promises her asked him what to buy. "Buy ther-
a child, and this is rather a bitter mometers," was the answer. "They
laugh, the laugh of a lonely, childless are very low and sure to rise."
woman whose youth is gone and who
Far more than a mere witticism is
is so disillusioned and disappointed he story of the rich Russian Jew
that she has lost the precious pre- who goes to Leipsic to buy goods
rogative of youth to believe in a here and whom his German friends
wonder. And a second time laughing reproached about his neglected ap-
is mentioned in the story of Samson, pearance. "A rich man,' they said;
who used foxes tails to beat the foes, "ought not to wear so shabby a coat.
and there also the laughter is not gay It is really a shame. Why are you
and merry and carefree.
wearing it?"
But even if we grant that the Jew-
"Why not?" says the Russian.
ish race, as a whole, lacks, perhaps, "Nobody knows here who I am."
in humor, it certainly does not lack in Later the Leipzic merchants see the
wit, and if the Jew does not laugh he same man in Odessa going just as
most assuredly smiles, only that the shabbily and meanly dressed, and
smile is rather wistful and sad, if not they express their surprise. "What,"
even grim and bitter, and that every the ysay, "at home you still have the
Jewish smile ends, somehow, in a same old coat?"
sigh.
"Why not?" smiles the Russian.
And how could it be otherwise?
"Everyone here knows who I am."
Israel, the tragic stranger in the
There are many little anecdotes like
streets of the peoples; mocked, de- his one, showing a natural, shrewd
spised, crowned with thorns, every- philosophy of life and a peculiar in-
where misunderstood, everywhere sight into human character and not
hunted, everywhere tortured. *hat absolutely tinged with that sadness
weapon had he against the ills of this a lid melancholy which usually is so
world and its manifold evils but the ypical for the Jewish wit. Perhaps
resigned, sad and somewhat bitter Zangwill is right when he says that
smile of one who has tasted the cup the Jews who work have no.time for
of life and found it salt, Perhaps sadness. They leave pessimism to
nothing is so typical of the Jewish their philanthropists. From the phi-
wit that was formed not only by the lanthropists, the alms-giver, there is
genius of the race but also by the only one step to the alms-taker, the
tremendous pressure of adverse cir- Schnorrer, and anecdotes of Schnor-
cumstances as the story of the poor rers are innumerable. The Jewish
peddler who, after a day of hardship with, that smiles at his own sufferings
and misery, in the evening, when he and his own shortcomings, smiles also
puts his heavy pack down aid rests at his own want and his own priva-
his weary limbs, says, "In this world tions, ad, as far as wit is concerned,
I have had nothing. I should only every Jewish schnorrer is a master of
laugh if °tom habo, if the other the trade. One of them came to a
world were also a fake." Can any- Rothschild of Frankfort and de-
one express more poignantly and at manded rather peremptorily a gift.
the same time more comically the
"My dear man," reprimanded the
absolute hopelessness of a tired heart rich baron, "that is not the proper
and a saddened mind, that finds its way to ask for help."
only mirth in the possible eternal
'Herr Baron," replied the suppli-
prolongation of its earthly misery? cant unabashed, "schnorren I under-
And yet, tired as the heart and sad- stand better than you."
dened as the mind needs must be to
The Rothschilds are quite legen-
speak like this, the soul that could dary figures in the witticism of the
find even this bitter and acrid smile Jewish people. The poor peddler, the
is absolutely invincible. It is the soul harrassed little merchant, the hungry
of Isreal that cannot be crushed and melatned, and the work-burdened
that, despite all persecutions and mis- housewife—they all saw something
fortunes, lives and will live forever.
magical and supernatural in the
Not less sharp and bitter is the wit- glamour and the riches, the nobleness
ticism of the Russian Jew, who, see- and the grandeur of their Rothschilds.
ing a marble figure before the court The latter were more to them than
building, acosts a stranger and asks kings and emperors, and when they
him:
could relate how one of the Roth-
"Kind sir, pray, what is this fig- schilds had slighted sonic proud aris-
ure?"
tocrat—the oppressors of the poor
"Why, Justice, of course," answers Jews, they felt a satisfaction as if
the stranger.
their own wrongs were thus some-
"Unhappy country," the Jew ex- what righted and adjusted. The eld-
claims, "where Justice is to be found est of the Rothschilds, so goes one of
only outside the court."
the stories beloved of the poor, sat
Whatever Jewish wit does and gentleman was admitted. "Take a
says, it is never unjust as the non- in his office busily writing, when a
Jewish, and especially the anti-Jewish chair," said the great banker with-
wit very often is. More than that— out interrupting his work, and he con-
Jewish wit is as relentless toward tinued to write, taking no notice of
Jewish weakness as toward the faults the visitor who, at last, impatiently
of others. The habit of the eastern exclaimed:
Jew to evade, to prevaricate, to
"Sir, I am the Duke of Gramontr
choose the labrynthic rather than the
Where upon old Rothschild calmly
straight path, a habit formed by the said: "Well, take another chair."
persecutions to which he was always
How innocently, how childishly,
the prey, is pitilessly ridiculed by the the poor Jew looked upon power and
Jewish wit. Two Jews are riding in riches, how little he could visualize
a train. "Where are you traveling to himself an estate more happy than
to?" asks one.
the precarious life he was leading, is
"To Buscasz," the other answers. touchingly shown in the story of the
Thereupon, the first one, indignant, poor man who sold latkes and who
says: If you say you go to Buscasz quite seriously said: "If I were king.
you think that I will think you go to I should he richer than the king."
Kolomea; but you are really going "How so?" he was asked. "Well,
to Buscasz. So why do you lie?"
latkes 1 could sell, anyhow," he re-
Or the not less ironic story of the plied.
merchant who visits the store of a
More even than the oppressor the
commercial friend, surreptitiously eastern Jew hated and feared the
pockets a dozen silk handkerchiefs, missionary who, with honeyed words,
and hides them in his pockets. After- would come to tempt him to leave the
ward he buys his goods and gets hits faith of his people, who brought into
bill. At the end of the bill he finds families, troubled enough by the cares
an item: "One dozen silk handker- of the day, spiritual trouble and war-
chiefs, $6," and calls out, "Oh, you fare. Many are the stories which tell
ganef!"
what witty and clever answers were

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given to this one or that one who
spoke depreciatively of the old faith,
and these answers are not only witty
and clever, but they have even a cer-
tain dignity which is usually found in
Jewish wit. One of the famous
Rabbis was present at a banquet in
company with men of other denomi-
nations, and next to him sat a Catho-
lic priest. Pork was served, and the
rabbi, naturally, refrained from eat-
ing. "When," exclaimed the priest,
"will I ever be permitted to serve
you with this excellent dish?"
"On the day," replied the rabbi,
smsiling, "when I shall have the
gratification of assisting at your rev-
erence's wedding."
But not always is the rabbi the one
who scores in the Jewish wit, and es-
pecially the so-called Zadik, the
wonder-rabbi, who was supposed to
possess mystical and even magical
powers, was often than not made the
object of merciless ridicule. A
father, walking with the wonder-
rabbi, found to his dismay his son
sitting at a garden wall and smoking,
although it was Sabbath. "The wall
shall fall and crush you," screamed
the enraged parent. "The wall will
not fall and not crush him," said the
rabbi, and—wonder upon wonder—
the wall really stood still, and the
sinner was not crushed, just as the
rabbi had willed it!
The Jew, then, smiles at his own
hardships and privations, smiles at
his material and ntellectual shortcom-
ings, smiles, in fact, at everything and
everybody, and his wit has a pungent
and caustic flavor all of its own.
Of course, as Renan and Carly!, per-
haps justly said, the Jew does not
lauhg, he does not know the happy,
care-free gaiety of untroubled hearts.
But Mat is hardly surprising. There
was nothing in his life to 'create a
tnnteal atmosphere in which a jolly,
good-natured, happy-go-lucky humor
could grow and develop. Perhaps the
new time, which now slowly is form-
ing itself out of the ruins of the war-
scarred world, will bring to the Jew
also a new life and new possibilities,
and to his lips not the resigned smile
of the sufferer but the strong and
happy laughter of a free and proud
and prosperous people. Perhaps the
moment is near when the Jewish wit
whose peculiarity it is that it always
returns to its tragic source, will be
supplanted by a true Jewish humor,
and when the word of the Maccabean
shall become true, the word that
promises: "When the Lord bringeth
I back again the captivity of Zion, then
shall we lie like dreamers, then shall
our mouth be filled with laughter and
our tongue with singing."—American
Jewish News.
—The American Jewish News.

dignity of manhood denied him ere
the sun of true liberty had risen, and
he had already congratulated himself
upon the attainment of the inalienable
right of living as man amongst men.
He was not altogether mistaken,
though now and then, here and there,
both bigoted priests and heartless,
senseless, and brutal fanatics, de-
ceived deceivers who never came near
the love of their Master, are storining
heaven and hell to rstore to the world
the centuries of sorrow, the era of
universal suffering, the period of end-
less human misery.
Look to Poland and thereaboutsl-
The Jewish Voice.

ORCHESTRA HALL—Monday Evening, NOV. 24th

Fifth Concert Philharmonic Course

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l•RiihIn Woman's Song" from "Shanewls" and Sehalltt's "Ell!, Elli"
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Medal Awarded to Col.
Lehman of New York

Washington:—Secretary Baker has
awarded the Distinguished Service
Medal to Colonel Herbert N. Leh-
man, General Staff, United States
Army, discharged, a partner in the
firm of Lehman Brothers, bankers, of
New York. The citation of Colonel
Lehman follows:
"For exceptionally distinguished
and meritorious service to the gov-
ernment in duties of great responsibil-
ity in the Purchase, Storage and Traf-
fic Division of the General Staff. As
chief of the purchase branch, member
of the Board of Contract Adjustment,
chairman of the Advisory Board on
Saels and Contract Termination, mem-
ber of the War Department Claims
Board, and Assistant Director of P ur-
chase, Storage and Traffic, General
Staff, his large business experience,
breadth of vision and sound judgment
have been of inestimable value in
formulating and supervising the ex-
ecution of the methods and policies
followed in the cancellation of war
contracts and obligations and in the
settlement and adjustment of termin
ated obligations.
Before his connection with the army
Colonel Lehman was a director for
many years in the Studebaker Corpor
ation, the Kelsey Wheel, Alabama
Mineral Land, Anniston City Land
StOfford, and Continental Can compa
nies. His services for the govern
ment began with his volunteering in
the navy, where he was placed in
charge of the procurement of textiles
in which he is an expert. Later he
was transferred to the army and ap
pointed Captain of Ordnance and later
Major or Ordnance and placed in
charge of the equipment section. Upon
the organization of the l'urchase,
Storage and Traffic Division of the
General Staff lie was detailed to work
there and became assistant director of
that division, serving until his dis-
charge on June 2 last.

RELIGIOUS FALSEHOOD. I GIVE $250,000 TO SINAI
HOSPITAL IN N. Y.

Jews have learned one great lesson
during all the dreary centuries of New York—George Blumenthal,
"Christian" hatred and persecution, President of Mount Sinai Hospital,
the lesson of patience and submis- announced last week the gift to that
sion. Meekly and silently they ex- institution by the Guggenheim
emplified in their lives that message brothers, Daniel, Murray, Isaac. Solo-
of sorrow which commands: "Be ye man, and Simon. of $250.000 whereby
of the persecuted and not of the per- the hospital will be enabled to start
secutors!" Which, strange as it may the construction of a pavilion for pa-
sound, has been given out as an ex- tients which is to be a memorial to
clusively "Christian" maxim.—But the donors parents. The brothers
not in that abject humility which is have given a total of $600,000 for the
attained at the expense of self-re- purpose in the last three years and,
spect and dignity, did the Jews of 'all the announcement says, their contri-
ages allow the wrath of blind bigotry bution is the largest ever made for a
and fierce fanaticism to pass over single Jewish philanthropic purpose in
city.
their heads; for With the innate, God- this
The pavilion will cover the entire
given right of manhood they often block on Fifth avenue from Ninety-
resented inhumanity bearing the ninth to 100th streets and will repre-
name of religion, until a better day sent a total outlay of $1,000,000. It
seemed to have dawned on them, the had been projected on a smaller scale
day of a widespread gospel of love before the war, but the embargo on
and tolerance, as also of justice and building materials led to delay in its
truth, when they felt as though they construction and, because of the ad-
could now draw nearer to their fellow- ditional Guggenheim gift, when
men and clasp hands with those of ground is broken early next spring,
another faith. From every modern the structure will be far more ample,
synagogue the joyful message has providing private rooms for 130 pa-
been heard of the fraternal union of tients with sun exposure for all. Half
men; from every Jewish pulpit the of the rooms will face Central Park
advent has been hailed of the era of a and the other half a wide court run-
purified, merciful, broad "Christian" ning through front Ninety-ninth to
ministry.
100th streets.
The new pavilion will be complete-
After storms.
the like
of which the
equipped.
including
an the
electro-car-
Prophet
Elijah once
experienced,
but ly
digraph
system
whereby
heart ac-

in which
"the Lord
not!" earth-
after tion of patients may be studied and
social,
religious
and was
political
quakes which did threaten to destroy recorded.
human kind, the "still, small voice",
of peace of human love. of the recog-' Eleven Jews have been elected
infirm of the universal brotherhood of members of the Municipality of
man came, and with it the Jew, too, Kalish. At Plotzk, seven Jews were
the martyr of the ages arose to the elected.

LORD DUNSANY

Irish Peer, Celebrated Playwright and Novelist, In a Lecture on the
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January 10th

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