PIEDETRIOITJEWISII O RO N ICLIF,
leeimmeas
statelme
'"
PEI9LTR011;JEWISII efRON
Published Weekly by The Jewielt Chronicle Publishing Co, Ina.
Catered a• Second-class matter March 3, 1916, at the Post-
ottIce at Detroit, Minh.. under the At of March 6, 1879.
General Offices and Publication Building
525 Woodward Avenue
Telephone: Cadillac 1040 Cable Address: Chronicle
Lontlon Office:
14 Stratford Place, London, W. 1, England
Subscription, in Advance
$3.00 Per Year
To Insure publication, alleorreepondence and new. matter
must reach this office by Tue4day evening of each week.
When mailing notices, kindly use one side of the paper only.
principles of all religious faiths—the right
to worship freely and undisturbed, the
right to one's convictions as holiest men see
them, The Nazis of Germany have had
their counterparts among non-Jews who
attacked not only the Old Testament but
the New as well, for the only reason that
Jesus and his disciples were Jews. The
creed of the Nazis and the Fascists of Ger-
many is one of hate, anti the action of the
Catholic bishops is to help condemn such
hate.
The Detroit Jewish Chronicle Invite.correepondence on pub-
foots of Int eeee t tc the Jewish people, but diaclaime reeponal-
MIR, for an indorsemtnt of the view. eap eeeee d by the writer.
Sabbath Readings of the Law.
Pentateuchal portion—Ex. 27:20-30:10.
Prophetical portion—I Samuel I 5:2-34.
Fut of Esther Readings of the Law, Monday,
March 2.
Pentateuchal portion—Ex. 32 :11-14 :34 ; 1:10.
Prophetical portion—Is, 55:6-50:8.
Portion of the Law for Purim, Tuesday, March 3
Ex. 17:8.16.
February 27, 1931
Adar 10, 5691
Rejoicing on Purim.
Again we celebrate Purim. and again
we rejoice that Israel has survived all per-
secutions and calamities, and our enemies
have perished with their deeds.
Purim is an occasion for recounting the
trials and tribulations of the Jew, and to
make merry over the fact that he has tri-
umphed in spite of all the obstacles. Tor-
quemada and Pobedonostzev have been rel-
egated to the position of 'Taman in the story
of Purim, and our modern Hamans and op-
pressors are on this day subjected to the
scorn of the people, and they are reminded
that Jewry is undying and its oppressors
doomed in the eyes of history.
To the long list of the Hamans in Jew-
ish history we add this year some dis-
tinguished names. Lord Passfield heads
the list of these notables, and on the Purim
gallows we hang in effigy his deeds togeth-
er with the hate-inspiring activities of Prof.
Alexander Cuza, Adolf Hitler, the Nazis of
Germany and the anti-Semites of all the
world.
In the spiritual sense, the spirit of Purim
was best expressed in a Purim hymn writ-
ten by the great Hebrew poet Yehudi Ha-
levi. With the permission of the New York
Jewish Tribune, we reproduce here the ex-
cellent translation of this poem by Milton
Feist :
All that hated us rejoiced
When the longed-for day of slaughter neared.
Had not the Rock in whom we trusted
Delivered us from them wo feared,
We had been with Sodom's brimstone-rain
With Gomorrah'a fire charred and seared.
But when the Thorn pricked Israel's side
The son of Jair in his might
Arose to save the Bore oppressed,
A radiant orb in darkest night.
For this we sing unto Thy name—
May our song be pleasing in Thy sight.
For the brightest of eters is a righteous man.
His might gave strength to our right hand.
The Nettle's sting didst Thou remove,
The myrtle raised in Sharon's land.
And all that has raged at Israel
His glory came to understand.
Lord, hearken to my bitter cry!
Turn to my sackcloth long.
Cause the star of Thy righteous ones
In the (lark to gleam with a radiance strong.
Speed the day when our longings are answered.
Again we'll fill our mouths with song.
A Much-Needed Project.
A bureau to aid Palestinian institutions
and to help the general Jewish public in
ascertaining the authenticity of these in-
stitutions is being formed by the Union of
Orthodox Jewish Congregations of Amer-
ica, according to an announcement by Dr.
P. Churgin, chairman of the Union's com-
mitteee on Palestine. The announcement
states that "This committee will be in close
contact with Palestinian central institutions,
such as, the Chief Rabbinate, the Jewish
Agency, the Agudas Israel and the Miz-
rachi Central Bureau, in order to keep its
affiliated synagogues informed of the situ-
ation of charitable, educational and relig-
ious institutions of Palestine. The Union
will urge its affiliates to increase their ac-
tivities of fund raising for the institutions
in Palestine."
We doubt whether there is a Jewish com-
munity of importance in this country that
will not appreciate the formation of such
a bureau. One of our worst evils is the
large number of pleas for funds by "mesh-
ulochim" and rabbis who claim to repre-
sent a multitude of institutions in Palestine
and Eastern Europe. If only the authen-
ticity of many of these claims could be as-
certained, as Dr. Churgin's committee aims
to do, it might be possible to pool the var-
ious appeals and eventually to eliminate
duplication of effort and expense. The ef-
fort is certainly a commendable one and
well worth trying.
Catholic Defense of Old Testament.
sr
-4
A Jewish Telegraphic Agency cable
from Berlin brings the following interest-
ing information:
"Because Adolf Hitler's National Social-
ists (Fascists) do not recognize the Ten
Commandments and the Old Testament.
the conference of all eight Catholic bishops
of Bavaria issued a ruling prohibiting Ba-
varian Catholics from joining or belonging
to the Hitlerite party. Bavaria is a strong-
hold of the Hitlerites."
This action by the Catholic bishops
should receive the commendation not only
of Jews but of Protestants as well. It is,
after all, a defense of the fundamental
By DAVID SCHWARTZ
IS SHE COMMUNIST OR
ALTRUIST?
is the daughter of a man, now
dead, who in his day was one of
the Titan figures of American
Jewry. As a scholar, combining
ancient Jewish lore and modern
scientific erudition, he has never
had his equal in America. I think
I have said enough about hint to
identify him to those who have any
knowledge of the inner circles of
Jewry. Well' I'll say more--and
this will make it a complete give-
away—he was for many years the
president of a great rabbinical
seminary in New York,
X is his daughter—and some ac-
quaintance of hers was talking to
me about her the other day, "X,
you know, is a Communist,"
"Yes, so I have heard."
"Her father," her friend con-
tinued, "left her many valuable
antiques, but as a Communist, she
has given them away."
"That's not Communism," re-
torted I, "that's altruism, or at
best, that's only 50 per cent Com-
munism. For a Communist be-
lieves not only what is mine in
thine, but what is thine is mine.
Therefore, if X is sincere in her
principles, she should not only give
away her antiques, but should steal
somebody else's.
"I respect X's altruism, but as
a Communist, she has not proved
her sincerity," I concluded.
And there are a lot of people
who say they are Communists,
when they are only altruists.
But maybe, I am too much of a
Babbit to understand.
—.—
A "TREIFENEH BEIN"
Carbon Copy or Stencil?
This Jewishness is something that worries
us. Writers like Lewisohn delve into it. I do
not believe that, unless provoked by outside
compulsion, it becomes an issue with the
young. We can view the world only with our
own eyes, much as we would like to look at the
spectacle through the eyes of others—of the
young, let us say. Intellectually I am a cos-
mopolitan. Creed, race mean nothing to me.
We are human beings—this is my creed. But
there is that deathless quality in Jewish racial-
ism—perhaps that is why we are surviving—
that pulls and gnaws at me. It is something I
cannot control by reason. But it is much
weaker in me than it was in my parents. We
are perhaps the last carbon copy of that Jew-
ishness. Rituals, ceremonials, dogmas have no
hold on us. I was reared in a milieu where
going against the wishes and concepts of par-
ents was the greatest crime children could
commit. This was not due to rigid rules or
discipline. It was in me. Only gradually I
liberated myself of this oppression. The ra-
cial affiliation with its invisible taboos, invisi-
ble and intellectually unjustified, remained.
To me intermarriage would have meant--emo-
tionally, of course—plunging into an abyss.
My parents, a whole line of invisible ancestors,
were clutching at my freedom. But if I had a
(laughter, how would she regard it? She would
know that she would not meet with any objec-
tion on my part—intellectually I have none.
She, my daughter, would be so pale a carbon
copy, Jewishly speaking, the impression would
be so weak that she would be unconscious of
any taboos. To her the writings of a Lewisohn
would appear artificial, forced. Don't misun-
derstand me. I recognize the lasting value
that lies in the Jewish—let us say—creed. I
respect Lewisohn and his contemporary search-
ers. Yet I realize that they speak for a gen-
eration that is confused about its Jewishness,
that is trying to reconcile, through some for-
mula, humanity with sectarianism. That gen-
eration is going. I call it the last carbon copy
of a sturdy original. To our parents the se-
quence was: first Jew, then man. To us, the
last carbon copies it is: first man, then Jew.
To those who follow us it will be—what? I
don't know. I hope that there will be nothing
beside humanity—that is, humanity, will be
all-embracing.
Hilda Kassel], the sprightly J.
T. A. scribe, who is now in London,
cheerios me the following anec-
dote relative to a debate in Par-
liament at one time between Sir
Isaac Isaacs, the present gover-
nor-general of Australia, and the
late Sir George Reid.
It appears that Reid had made
some statement which Isaacs bit-
terly resented, Sir Isaac's fea-
tures in the course of his reply
took on such a devouring counte-
nance that Sir George arose, and
interrupted.
"The honorable member looks
as if he would eat me."
"My religion forbids," replied
Sir Isaac.
That's not so bad, Hilda, and,
by the way, will you do me a
favor? Years ago, when I was a
young man of three or four, I used
to play with a lot of other people of
the same age, and we used to sing a
song which ran "London bridge is
falling down." Now, I had my
doubts then about the song, for I
couldn't believe that if London
bridge was actually falling down,
that in the face of such a catastro-
phe we would romp about the fact.
So what I want to know is—is it
or is it not true? Let me know
about that bridge, will you?
If this were true, the Jewish people
would long ago have been dead. The pres-
ent is not the first crisis in our history.
Time and again, following periods of eman-
cipation and of prosperity, the Jewish
youth was known to forget its people, only
to return when adversity struck them. And
if the generation immediately struck did
not come to show loyalty to the Jewish
camp, the second or third generation did.
German Jewry, turned nationalist, as a re-
sult of post-war anti-Semitism, is witness
to this fact.
In the fourth chapter of "The Sayings of
the Fathers" (Pirke Abot), Elisha ben
Abuyah, a notorious Talmudic character,
is quoted, "If one learns as a child, what is
it like? Like ink written on clean paper.
If one learns as an old man, what is it like?
Like ink written on used paper." Mean-
ing that what one learns in youth one re-
tains, the opposite being true of old age.
And elsewhere the Rabbis liken learning
in youth to engraving upon a stone, and
learning in old age to writing on the sand.
Fannie Hurst tells us of having liberated
herself from the "oppression" of dogmas
and ceremonials, but we have no way of
knowing from her statement whether she
had liberated herself from an inculcated
Jewish culture which might have taken
root and might have produced a Jewess
championing her people's traditions.
While it is true that the present genera-
tion of Jews is acting like a last carbon
copy and like a poor specimen of a group
that has been called "the people of the
book" and "a nation of priests and a holy
people," to us the Jewish people remains
a stencil which can be used again and
again, like an indestructible vessel. The
present generation is a copy from this sten-
cil which has not been inked, which, in the
words of Elisha ben Abuyah, has not re-
ceived a Jewish education in its youth and
therefore had nothing to retain. But let
this stencil be inked once again, and the
next generation will again be a tower of
strength and a symbol of the undying peo-
ple Israel.
Even though we are experiencing a cris-
is, spiritually as well as economically, we
have faith that the Jewish people survives
on the strength of its inexhaustible store-
house of culture values. Let the stencil be
inked with these values, and the next gen-
eration will usher in another golden period
in our history.
THIS AND THAT
John Haynes Holmes is said to
be writing biography of Nathan
Straus.—That "chosen" of Her-
man Bernstein's daughter is the
son of the Rumanian attache to Al-
bania. — Eve Kohn, former
Washington Star scribe and Pulit-
zer graduate, has been translated
from newspapering to domesticity,
her spouse being a Stamford engi-
neer.—Gilbert Swann, who col-
umns far and wide for the N. E.
A. feature service, is really Gene
Cohen.—Jewish Tribune $2,000
novel prize won by Elma Ehrlich
Levinger. — Miss Brody of New
York Public Library Jewish di-
vision all smiles the other day.
'What's the matter," we quizzed.
'Frances Oppenheimer, author,
just came in, and writing novel,
and asked me to translate for fic-
Mita! purposes Yiddish expression,
A gesunt in dein pupick a-rein.'
Ho, ha, ha—it is funny." How
would you translate it," we said.
"Hail to the navy.' Ha! ha! ha."
—Arthur Goodman has written
Clay on Abraham Lincoln.—It's
a secret, but Sidney Wallach and
Bernard Postal are at work on an
'pus dealing with a certain de
ightful phase of newspapering.
—Strange how the Talmud
ranslation by Rodkinson sells at
Stacy's, although scholars gener.
lly think translation feh-feh.—
Another prominent figure who has
een angel for several years at
everal leading Jewish organize.
ions now pressed against the wall
—won't be seen by anybody and
hysical shadow of his former
elf. Four months ago we talked
• him and he was all optimistic.
Really too bad, for he was one of
he decentest fellows.—Look
out for George Z. Medalie, the new
Inited Slates district attorney of
New York—he's not only an
'izzer," but a corner, unless our
ape is all wrong.
BETTY ROSS AND JOHN
DEWEY
When Betty Ross came bac
ram Russia, we suggested as th
tie of her book "Rushing Abou
n Russia," or else "Romance i
he Red Realms." Instead sh
arced is "Bread and Love." An d
ow she is lecturing on love and
ife in Russia. Now that wa
!together wrong. It should hay
een "Love and Life in Latvia."
But nevertheless, atisa Rosa
flows how to get a scoop and
'hen she tells about them. it ion'
iffirult to keep interested.
Thus, when nobody in Moscow
ould get John Dewey, then on a
uaaian visit, to talk, Betty scored
"I can't give you this inter-
iew," said Dewey to her in Mos-
ow. "You know, I really have
my enough material for the series
f articles I have contracted to do,
nd it wouldn't be fair to myself
• give away any of this scanty
aterial."
"I'll give you a sporting propos
tion." said Miss Ross.
"What is it?" queried Dewey.
"If I think of some phase of the
The recent report that Leon Trotsky has
turned Zionist has not yet been denied. If
true, this conversion from extreme radical-
ism to Jewish nationalism will be neither
the first nor the last occurrence of its kind.
Anti-Semitism has long ago wrought simi-
lar miracles.
Wrsre rSraP a
Cr
•
.
f,ri\:"1'4
(Ton to
r
RI
Next Page)
.
o
(r-
Charles H. Joseph
A
READER from Philadelphia sends along this
suggestion:
It is being rumored that Zionism's most
astute diplomat, Dr. Chaim Weizmann, may
refuse re-election to the presidency of the
Zionist Organization of the World. If this is
true the Zionists may as well start working out
a new all-star Zionist team. Here's mine:
Ussishkin for president-50 years of Zionist
leadership behind him; in my opinion, the most
practical of Zionists.
Brandeis fur vice-president—most respected
Zionist in the United States, Zionism's most
important stronghold.
Lord Rothschild for treasurer—representa-
tive of Jewry's most distinguished financial
Sokolow for secretary—foremost historian
of Zionist movement.
Weizmann for ambassador extraordinary—
has been referred to by Lloyd George as one of
the world's greatest statesmen.
Einstein for minister of education—univer-
sal idol of educators.
Miss Szold for minister of health—has done
more to make Palestine a healthy place to live
in than any other living person.
Ruppin for minister of agriculture—Pales-
tine's foremost agricultural expert; idol of
Chalutzim.
Ruttenberg for minister of industries—his
massive Palestine electrification project will
make Palestine a great industrial country.
Jabotinsky for minister of Jewish National
Fund—most dynamic figure in Zionist move-
ment—has power to inspire followers.
tih
ietih hed
7;in
hlhi-oa-.
I
AM SORRY that I
the space to publish
the address of Rabbi
p S. Bernstein of
Rochester, N. Y., dealing
his impressions of
the Passion Play which
witnessed
Oberammer-
gau last summer. It was delivered before the City
Club of Rochester and was discussed by some of
the ministers of that city the following Sunday. I
feel sure that the Jewish press would find it inter-
esting, material for its readers and undoubtedly
copies could be procured from Dr. Bernstein. One
statement attracted me, which confirms my long-
held opinion that the play must be prejudicial to
the Jew. Dr. Bernstein met Guido Mayer, who is
s t eh ye ebest actor and who plays the part of Judas. He
Following the performance I met the actor
and haul a long talk with him. He explained to
me his conception of the character Judos. Then
after having told him nip profession I asked
him to tell me frankly if he believed that Judas
typified the Jewish people. For a while he hesi-
tated because he was a gentleman and did not
wish to offend me. Finally he admitted in
essence that Judas is the eternal Jewish type;
that Judas typified the crafty, greedy, murder-
ous Christ-killers, Christ-rejecting Jewish peo-
ple. Isn't that horrible? Isn't it dreadful to
learn that the half million people who saw the
Passion Play last summer were given such an
impression of the Jewish people? Isn't it ter-
rible to learn that not only Judas of the play,
but all the villagers of Oberammergau and
probably all of the 340 million members of
their religious faith, have been taught to asso-
ciate this horrible person with the Jewish
people?
By RABBI LEON SPITZ
Is:mows MITE:—The rapid distil, -
martin, of the onee popular Purim cos-
Nilo raises the pertinent question of
• h ether Purim is disappearing.
While
deploring the desntitie into which the
jolly Purim practices have fallen, Hahhi
Spitz offers • umber
n
of practical sug-
gestions for rev iving them in the spirit
or modernity).
American Jewry should now
celebrate the Jurist festival more
than ever before. As Dr. Cyrus
Adler recently said, "The world is
closing upon us," and to with-
stand this attack on all fronts,
Jewry can muster no army and no
navy. But the weapon that
always availed as was an irresist-
ible optimism and of this
l'urim, the Cinderella of Jewish
festivals, has been the symbol for
the past 25 centuries or more. It
is significant that the very holiday
was born out of the tribulations of
the first Jewish Galuth, a product
of its first ghetto.
When times were sad and the
horizon was clouded, the Jewish
masses found a measure of com-
fort in this tragic-comedy holiday
and simply let themselves go in its
revelry. In showering curses upon
the head of the hapless !lam a n,
they vented their scorn of the
contemporary Hamans.
It was particularly in the :Mid-
dle Ages, when Jewish ghetto life
spelled darkest, that Purim was
surrounded with the most hilari-
ous and spectacular performances
—even publicly and on the open
street. Thus in the sunnier cli-
mates of Italy and Southern
France, Purim street-parades were
in vogue, which usually terminated
with the hanging of a wax figure
of Haman or with his effigy being
burnt at a bonfire.
In more modern times in the
German communities, even in such
orthodox kehillahs as, for exam-
ple, Frankfort-on-Main, Purim
shows were staged in the public
theaters for mixed audiences of
Jews and Gentiles, and while Chris-
tian clergy set the gendarmerie
against these performances, some
very worthy rabbis even per-
mitted the yeshivah students to
portray roles on the stage.
Is Purim Losing Popularity?
It is a pity that even Purim is
losing its popularity in American
Jewry. The custom of Shalach
Mones, or the exchanging of pres-
THE White Paper most look blue to Lord Pass-
field since Ramsay MacDonald has "interpreted"
it. Probably only more interesting and contradic-
tory than interpreting a state paper is interpreting
a passage in the Bible. I imagine that Einstein's
theory of relativity must be directly applicable to
such a situation. It depends where we stem!, and
when we stand, and near whom we stand that we
are able to interpret a public document such as
the British White Paper or the American Wicker.
sham Report. It seems that Dr. Weizmann simply
read the wrong meaning into Passfield's document.
The Jews are to he given all that was promised them
in the Balfour Declaration. Immigration is to be
continued along the same lines and acquiring of
land is on a different basis than indicated in the
White Paper. So the Zionists are again feeling
happy while the Arabs are correspondingly unhappy.
By the very nature of things when the Jew in Pales-
tine feels that he is getting something the Arab
feels that somebody is taking something away from
him that is his; and when the Arab seems to be get-
ting an advantage then the Jew complains.
T HERE
seems to be a lot of discussion and con-
siderable unnecessary advertising of a certain
book called "The American Rich." The executive
director of the American Jewish Congress has
taken the author to task for his alleged anti-
Semitic attitude. The author attempts to give in
his book the reason for friction existing between
Jew and Christian. Any man in the world who can
give THE reason for such a condition is no ordi-
nary mortal. All through the ages Jews and Chris-
tians have attempted, and to my mind unsuccess-
fully, to give a reason for anti-Semitism. There
are any number of reasons, but no ONE reason.
The trouble with those who essay the task is that
they attempt to discover the cause through the eyes
of present conditions, when in truth, friction has
existed long before there were large stores owned
by Jews, before there were Bolshevists, before there
were moving picture theaters owned by Jews. Even
before Jesus ever lived. Some day maybe a group
of our best minds when they have the leisur
e may
set themselves to the job of trying to make a sur-
vey of the whole history of anti-Semitism and per-
haps evolve som e theory that may give us some
intelligent understanding of the cause. Even well-
informed Jews when they discuss anti-Semitism are
as hopelessly bogged as their neighbors. Dr. Cad-
man the other (lay tried to give an answer to a
Jewish inquirer, but the best that could be said of
it, he answered the question but it wasn't much of
an answer.
H ERE
• •
is a significant criticism of the lack of or-
ganization in American Jewry which is con-
tained in a casual statement made by that clever
news magazine, Time. It is discussing the us e of
the radio by religious groups:
Jews got on the chained air very early.
Rabbis and laymen gave talks, which were not,
strictly speaking, sermons. They used 15 Na-
tional Broadcasting stations. But their inter-
est was irregular. Jews lack a strong co-oper-
ating representative organization in the United
States. That lack is the presumptive explana-
tion of Jewry's abandonment since last Sep-
tember of broadcasting nationally.
Time is right. The Jews of the United States
cannot be compared either to the Catholic or the
Protestant group for solidarity of action. About
the only time there is a semblance of an organized
front is when there has been a particularly flagrant
evidence of anti-semitism. But even then not one
but 50 organization s clamor to b e
recognized as our
spokesmen.
r
•
• • •
.:IS
1-
5.
4
sls
Ss+
:se:
-3
.3
.1
;1;
(Turn to Next Page.)
;1+
-3
Wisdom and Idealism of Noted Scientist and Zionist
Embodied in Two Collections of His
Addresses and Opinions.
By
PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
▪
ABOUT ZIONISM. Hy Albert Einstein.
Published by The Macmillan Company,
New York and Chicago (61.161.
COS M IC RELIGION.
Its Albert Ein-
stein.
Published by Covici-Friede,
art Fourth avenue. New York 1811.150).
World Jewry has learned to love
and admire its greatest living son,
Albert Einstein, who, in spite of
the world-wide recognition of his
scientific achievements, has not
forgotten his Jewish people. On
every occasion, in the past decade,
he has demonstrated his loyalty to
his people and his readiness to
serve them when called upon. On
his present tour of this country,
he hiss stated again and again that
among the few causes which he
would permit to capitalize on his
name, Zionism occupies the fore-
most position.
The two small volumes under
review are a combination of proof
that Jews have not showered ad-
miration and affection on an unde-
serving man. On the contrary,
they contain expressions from the
mouth and pen of Professor Ein-
stein which will help to increase
admiration for the great man and
to inspire even greater affection.
His Philosophy of Zionism.
Both volumes contain interest.
ing quotations from the great
scientist's speeches and writings on
Zionism, although the Macmillan
volume is exclusively a work deal-
ing with Professor Einstein's Zion-
ist philosophy and the Covici-
Friede collection is primarily de-
voted to his views on religion and
science. Of the two, the Macmil-
lan book is of considerably greater
interest to Jews not alone because
its contents are entirely Jewish,
but also for the fine introductory
essay on Zionism by Leon Simon,
who edited and translated the
speeches and letters of Einstein.
Mr. Simon has succeeded in
cramming into less than a hundred
pages not only his own essay on
Zionism and an excellent select
bibliography on Jewish national-
ism, but has included in them Dr.
Einstein's exceedingly interesting
views on Zionism and assimilation,
the Jewish effort in Palestine and
the conflict between Jew and
Arab.
Einstein's Jewishness.
In his discussion of assimilation
and nationalism, Dr. Einstein se-
verely attacks the unfaithful to
Jewry and expressos his own pride
in being a Jew. Speaking of the
conditions of German Jewry he
states that anti-Semitism helps "to
preserve Jewish separateness." De-
scribing his own experiences in
Switzerland and in Germany, he
tells how he came to the aid of the
persecuted Eastern European
Jewish university students in Ger-
many, and in this connection acts
down the following as his creed as
a Jew:
am • national Jew in the 'en•
, that
I demand the p eeeeeeeeeeee
of the Jewi•h
nationality •• • fart. and I think that
every Jr. ought to COMO in
definite
conclusions on Je
Jewish nuestions on the
heti. his fact. I regard the growth
of J• s
o.h self. eeeee tint, a. being in
the
intere•t• of non-Jewit •• well
at of Jew,.
That was the min moti, of my joining
the 7.ionist movement. For me. Zionism
not merely a oue•tion of
...Ann Ration.
The Jewish nation is a living thine, and
the !sentiment of Jewish nationalkm
must he developed both in Palestine and
everywhere else. To deny the
na-
tionality in the
Dia•pora is. indeed. de-
plorable. If one adopt. the point of
view of mmfining Jewish ethnic national.
mrn to Pmes tine. then to .II intent• and
porpo•e• one
denies the e•istenre of •
Jew'.
Jewish people. In that ease one should
hal, the courage to ettrry
•••
Rj.j111 t ion ••
quickly and •• completely
ae prISPillif. •
Tel e.I ' LT L -IY
ents, seems to have somehow bee I
relegated to Chanukah, in a
probability as a reaction again.:
the Christmas custom which
chronologically usually parallel.
it.
The spirit of charity whits
could actually be felt in the Ea.'
European townlets as the pauper-.
lined the gates of the synagogis
or wended their way all day lona
from home to home—is now van-
inshed. We hardly ever hear nowa-
days of Purim presents or of
Purim charity. Even the Houten-
tashen, Jewish bakers complain,
are not as much in demand as they
used to be. The l'urim
"Seudah," or banquet, is a rare
thing compared with the still quite
general seder. In the synagogue
the congregational officials have
the feeling that it is not proper
for the children to make too much
noise with their klappers when the
Stegillah is read. So what has re-
inained to give vitality to this
gayest of Jewish festivals? The
answer is Sunday school plays, and
just that.
The fact of the matter is that
there are even very few Sunday
school plays that really express
the inherent jollity of the Purim
spirit, not half a dozen, all told.
There is too much of the goody-
goody spirit, and too little of the
burlesque and fun, and of pranks,
and of mischief in those quasi lit-
erary outputs. Why not have
someone write a play for older
children on say, "The Trial of Ilia-
limn," or a genuine little l'urim
comedy, invent l'urim games, cha-
rades, write some Purim verses
that will not prattle of self-sacri-
fice and all that, but that would
rather voice the genuine Purim
tomfoolery in simple and childish
lines. More and more happier
Purim songs ought to be written,
like "A Wicked, Wicked Man," or
"Shu Shu Shushan."
Suggests Popularity Contests.
A New York Yiddish daily has
for several years been arranging
for a l'urim beauty contest with
the coronation of Esther as the
feature, this, undoubtedly,-in imi-
tation of the Palestinian event
originated in Tel Aviv. But,
whereas, there the custom has
spread to Jerusalem and to the
Jewish colonies, in America not a
EINSTEINIANA
A
READER sends me a clipping from the "Drug-
gists' Circular," and unconsciously recalls to me
my boyhood acquaintance with John Uri Lloyd's
famous volume, "Stringtown on the Pike." Pro-
fessor Lloyd was an author and a druggist. Now
at 82 years he has just issued a new book called
"Felix Moses, the Beloved Jew." Moses was an
actual character who figured in an earlier book of
Lloyd's. lie was an immigrant, huckster and Con-
federate soldier. After the war he returned to
Kentucky, penniless, and his old neighbors thought
so much of him that they set him up in business
again. Professor Lloyd, as a boy, knew and ad-
mired Moses and years after the death of the huck-
ster the younger stun gathered facts about his life
and has put them in a most interesting story. The
book is published by Caxton Press of Cincinnati.
1 1
IS PURIM DISAPPEARING?
•
jt•!
Tidbits and News of Jew-
ish Personalities.
'Fannie Hurst was being interviewed.
She was questioned on intermarriage and
Jewish tradition on the occasion of the pub-
lication of her "Back Street" and she ex-
pressed an opinion which strikes at the very
root of Jewish existence and which is a
challenge to the present generation of
Jews. Stating the belief that the present
generation may be the last carbon copy of
a sturdy Jewry, the noted authoress told
her interviewer:
RI:1W
.lit.*17.3FWAV.78:t.iT.:.:477.71.41..7:66 .C. P7 rtgor:
6
,
BY•THE-WAY
::
Staunch Zionist.
Space does not permit quotation
of or reference to all his interest.
ing expressions on Zionism, but a
perusal of this volume leaves no
doubt that Dr. Einstein is a very
staunch Zionist indeed, So em-
phatic is he in his advocacy of
spiritual Zionism that he may
safely be called the outstanding
world leader in this branch of Jew-
ish nationalism. But even though
he is primarily a spiritual Zionist,
he emphasizes every time occasion
permits that "the rebuilding of
Palestine is for us Jews not a mere
matter of charity or emigration;
it is problem of paramount im-
portance for the Jewish people."
And in this connection he hurls
defiance at those who speak of
dual nationalism when he states:
"The German Jew who works
for the Jewish people and for the
Jewish home in Palatine no more
c eeeee to be a Certain than the
Jew who become. baptiaed and
changes his name c eeeee to be a
Jew.. The two utachments are
grounded in realities of different
kinds. The antithesis is not be.
tween Jew and German, but be-
tween honesty and lack of chasm.
ter. He who remains true to his
origin, race and tradition will also
remain loyal to the state of which
he is • subject. He who is faith.
less to the one will be faithless to
the other."
The chapter on "Jew and Arab"
in the MacMillan volume expressed
Dr. Einstein's well known views in
which he advocates co-operation
and friendship between the two
peoples in Palestine. It includes
the famous letter to the Manches-
ter Guardian of Oct. 12, 1929, fol-
lowing the riots, and the appeal
for friendship and reason con-
tained in his letter to the Pales-
tine Arab paper Falastin, written
Jan. 29, 1930.
"Cosmic Religion."
The Covici-Frierle volume, "Cos-
mic Religion," is an excellent
complementary volume to "About
Zionism" because of the additional
interesting material it contains
about Einstein's views on Zionism
and the Jewish problem, and be-
cause of the inclusion in it of the
noted scientist's views on religion
and pacifism.
Also of less than a hundred
pages, "Cosmic Religion" con-
tains a biographical note which
offers an explanation of the scien-
tist's theories and tells how he has
risen to his present position of
world leadership. It contains
George Bernard Shaw's address of
appreciation of Professor Einstein
at the important Ort-Oze dinner in
London on Oct. 27, 1930, as well
as Dr. Einstein's great address at
that dinner.
Other chapters in this volume in-
clude Dr. Einstein's article on
"Cosmic Religion," reprinted from
the New York Times; his views on
militant pacifism and disarmament,
on the Jews, Zionism and the
Jewish homeland; opinions and
aphorisms on the radio and science,
and miscellaneous interesting
paragraphs.
The two volumes form an excel-
lent set which will give the reader,
especially the Jewish one, a great
collection of philosophic views on
important problems of the day.
We do
not hesitate in recommend-
ing that both books be included in
every Jewish libtary, public as
well as private.
;4+
P-3
.1.
.;5S
: 3.