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June 11, 1920 - Image 9

Resource type:
Text
Publication:
The Detroit Jewish Chronicle, 1920-06-11

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PAGE NINE

HE DETROIT JEWISH CHRONICLE

persecutions of his people operated,
as It so often dues with many gifted
ones who naturlly drift to more
ample literary milieus, to bring him
The recent beginning of a inf-volume back to the humble told and make its
dennitive edition of the complete cantle his own. lie was, !Ike many an-
works of Isaac Leibunh Perez, perhaps other consitioua of the sacrifice he
the greatest name in Yiddish Meru--; thus made. but he was none the less
tuN, is an event worthy of notice out • proud.
aide of Jewish literary circles. The
among his masterpieces stand out
editor Intrusted with thief difficult and Stitt a poem as "The Sewing of the
honorable task is the noted Yiddish Wedding Gown" and such a snort
dramatist. David Maki. Phiski was allegory as "Pontsche the Silent." Of
early associated with Perez in Russia: tile first It has been said that "if
in the young man's work, at that time. !limas Flood's 'Song of the Shirt' is
Perez illacerned those talents that to be compared to a tine instrament,
have since produced such masterly. then this poem is a whole orchitutra,
playa as "Isaac Shafted,' "The Lam from the sounds of which the walla
Jew," "The Treasure," not to apeak of I of Jericho would fall.' The poem,
a large number of short tales in which largely an allegorical treatment of
the humble class of Jews stands re. the theme of man's inhumanity to
vtialed with its peculiar mental traits. man, represents the shop of a anise-
ha grubbing and its lofty aspirations. , maker, where a wedding gown is be-
Perez has been recognized both in ing sewed for a fortunate woman. The
America and Europe as being one of • contrast between the humble sewers
the moat Important figures in any litH and the !tangelo" for whom the gown
eraturek toward the end of the nine-I Is being made gives rise to a chock
teenth century. "If he had written. discussion, depicting the nnhappiness
nothing else but The Sewing of the ! of the seamstress and her assistants.
Wedding Gown,'" said Wiener, over Notable in the poem is the tale told
2.0 years ago, in his pioneer work on by the first dressmaker, of mankind
"Yiddish Literature in the Nineteenth and Labor The poet shows the rise
Century," "his name would live as long! of inhuman exploitation of man by
33 there could be found people to ' man, picturing the contending forces
terpret the language in which he as being in reality brothers, and
sings." That noble composition. how- brings the story tip to the point
ever. Is but a small part of the man's where, Influenced by evil, They fall
labors.
to blows. For artistic reasons, per-
haps, and not wishing to pose ad a
Largely Self-Educated.
Ho was a native of a city whose prophet, he allows the tale to be cut
name Is intimately associated with short at this point.
more than one famous figure in the
Prose Attainments Highest.
annals of Yiddish and Hebrew litera-
It is as a prime artist that Perez
ture—Zamiizez, He was largely !self attained to his highest worth. To be
educated, having av an early age had truthful, he is perhaps far out of the
access to the library of a surgeon's reach of his people; only the most
assistant. The library. by the way, cultured among the Jewish readers
had been collected as the result of can follow him in his more character-
the assistant's growing wealthy, and I istic 'abort. Yet it is easy to discover
numbered nearly 3000 books. Meeting his tine humanism, his exemplary, all-
with reverses the man stored his embracing tolerance, his vast social
books away In a loft, and Perez got affection and deep sympathies. No
hold of the key to the storeroom. preacher of this letter that killeth is
That key literally proved his key to he; rather is he always ready to feel
literature. It is said that the young the power that elvish vitality. He
fellow read through the entire collec- knows his people as few writers have
tion, In haphazard fashion. wading in- known theirs; he is steeped in their
differently through art, poetry. and sadness. their tenderness. the tine sub-
what not. A profound effect was stance of a tribe that has difficulty
work upon him by the reading of )(ten in understanding itself. let alone
Heine and Shelley; the first be being understood by others. He is the
learned by heart. This history of his avowed enemy of all that is false in
education." says Wiener. "is also the the social structure, in religious con-
history of his genius. There is re- , vention, and no doubt his great use of
flected In it all the subtelnesa of the the allegorical form was conditioned
Talmud, the wisdom of the ancients, by the same fact that accounts for the
the vparkle of Heine, the transcend- Peculiar development of the Russian
ency of Shelley, the mysticism of novel; the restrictions upon free
Ilauptmann. He has treated master- speech In the Russia of his day.
fully the Talmudic legend. has com-
His "Bontsche the Silent." to which
posed in the style of the Romancero.
and has carried allegory to the hIgheat reference has been made, is a simple
Jew who, on reaching heaven, can
degree of perfection.
Perez, Indeed, might have achieved a and no greater boon to ask than the
great reputation In Russian or one of certainty of receiving his hot roll and
several other languages, had not the fresh butter every day. What an un-

A DEFINITIVE EDITION
OF PEREZ

suspected depth lies beneath this min
future masterpiece of allegory, social
satire and human foibles: And it Is
but one out of a numerous, famous
company_
With Perez, Yiddish literature really
acquired a position of dignity and im-
portance in world-Ilterature. As it
writer and thinker and human In-
dividual he Is superior to many an
author whose volumes have long been
known in English, and trumpeted
forth with all the orchestral preludes
known to contemporary pUbliabing.
The few pieces of his at present
available in this language, by no
^Roane ,i0 him Justice, and surely give
no adequate conception of the man be-
hind the words. In the near future
it is expected that a version of his
- The Song of the Weeding Gown" will
appear in English, as well as a spe-
cially selected collection of prose
works with adequate interpretation
and illustrative comment. 'This may,
perhaps, help to secure for Isaac Lei-
butm Perez an appreciation on the
part of the Englialtropeuking public,
it recognition which, through no fault
or this public. has up to date been
sadly lacking. There is, in his hest
work. that note of lasting human im-
port which perpetuates a man's
labors beyond the horizon of his own
day. —The Christian Science Monitor.

rr

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POGROM IN ZLOTZOW

Zlotzow, Galicia—Friday evening
when the Jews were all congregated
in the synagogue for the Sabbath
service, soldiers suddenly appeared
and surrounded the whole building.
While the rest stood guard on the

outside to catch all who might try to
escape, a part of the soldiers entered
the synagogue and brutally beat all
the worshipers, men, women and
children. The long flowing beards of
the old men were torn out with the

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roots, and the aged hurled to the
ground to be trampled under foot.

After the carnage in the Jewish
house of God, the soldiery marched
to the prison, which held several
peasants and soldiers, found guilty of
taking part in the pogrom of two
weeks ago and freed the prisoners.
The police observed the whole
ghastly spectacle without a single
word of protest against the outrage
of the law.
During the savage repast, the
leader of the community, Dr. Hirsh-
born, attempted to pacify the loosed
brutes, and to induce them to cease
from their inhuman conduct. He,
also, was murderously beaten mid
wounded by the uniformed hoodlums.

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