PiBgeritonjaisnetRONICLE and THE LEGAL CHRONICLE TROIT JEWRY'S RESPONSIBILITY THE fore unaffected persons; that a copy of this resolu- tion be sent to Mr. Weis- We make this statement in order to emphasize gal and communicated to that this is not a private commercial enterprise , th at the press." which is the central agency for the gathering of funds for Palestine's reconstruction and for the settlement of refugees in Palestine. "Romance of a People" Challenges Detroit Jewry To Make of the Local Performances of the Pageant Out- standing Moral and Financial Successes. An Editorial. • it is a matter demanding the concern of the American I It is clear that the respon- URING THE PAST YEAR, an unusual spec ee l sibility now lies with the De- tale captured the imagination of Jews and Jewish comm unity; that in addition to its great cational value it is an important fund-raising enter- troit Jewish community to non-Jews in Chicago, New York, Philadel phia and Cleveland, with the result that it is brough t prise for one of the most pressing appeals made to make a success of this im- in many years. for presentation in Detroit, at the Olympia, beginning Jews Furthermore, "The Romance of a People" is I Portant project. with Monday evening, April 16. in Detroit by the Jewish Welfare Federa- In order to assist in assur- "The Romance of a People" is without question sponsored ton and by more than a hundred responsible and ling the success of this enter- one of the most unusual productions. honored movements. It is, therefore, a solemn com- The letters reproduced on this page speak for munal obligation to make the spectacle a great prise, THE DETROIT JEW- 1 ISH CHRONICLE makes this themselves. Outstanding Jews and non-Jews, leaders appeal to Detroit Jewry not in their respective fields, hail this great artistic pa- triumph. At the meeting of the board of directors of the to fail in the present hour. geant as a most unusual production. American Palestine Campaign, held two weeks ago, One of the letters is from Roland S. Morris, for- "The Romance of a Peo-( resolution was adopted: mer United States Ambassador to Japan, president of the following "Resolved, that the meeting has received pie" is an important project the Philosophical Society of America, president of with great satisfaction the report of Price, for an important American the Wilson Foundation and a leader of unquestioned Waterhouse and Company, and notes with Jewish cause. ability. Mr. Morris was the chairman of the Phila- pleasure the successful termination of the pro- delphia pageant committee. duction of 'The Romance of a People,' in New The letter from Bishop Francis M. Taitt also York City; that it heartily congratulates Meyer speaks for itself. W. Weisgal on his successful efforts which re- Dr. Cyrus Adler, great Jewish scholar, president sulted not only in a substantial sum of money of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, for American Palestine Campaign, but an president of the American Jewish Committee, presi- equal sum of money going to the organizations dent of Dropsie College, seldom exaggerates. His affiliated with the other Zionist groups, not to letter is a great tribute to Meyer W. Weisgal, general speak of the moral and spiritual effect of the director of the pageant, and his fellow associates in performances upon large numbers of hereto- the presentation of this spectac le. John C. Martin, presiden t and publisher of the Itiortst # VenitoIlvania Public Ledger of Philadelphia, under whose sponsor- hip the spectacle was shown in that city, not only i pays great tribute to the pageant's producers, but has p.nnounced that next Sunday, six weeks after the ms.aa xbutuntil At. staging of the "Romance" in Philadelphia, his paper will print a ' 16-page rotogravure section containing the pageant's photographs as a permanent memento ths Will If of. %song s rbilttbitiphia of the remarkable artistic interpretation of Jewish March fourteenth 3 4 9 1 history. Similarly, the letter from Rabbi Harry S. Davido- Mr. Meyer W. - Weisgal, The Romance of a People, witz of Cleveland speaks in glowing terms of the spec- Cleveland, Ohio. tacle which Detroit will be privileged to see next Dear Sir: iveek. But these are far from being the most impor- I want to toll you what a pleasure it was for me tant recommendations for the pageant. to have the privilege of being present on two occasions PHILADELPHIA !larch 13, 1934 Dear Mr. Weisgal: I hear that you have gone to Cleveland and are preparing to present there the "Romance of a People". I want to *mm IT MUST SUCCEED ■ t Aside from the fact that the spectacle in ' itself is such a remarkable artistic triumph, it must be emphasized that the original purpose which motivated the sponsors of the pageant was the raising of funds for the settlement of German-Jewish refugees in Palestine. From the proceeds of the performances in Chicago and New York alone, $100,000 was remitted for the Weizmann Refugee Relief Fund, and an additional $50,000 was earned by Zionist groups in these two cities, this addi- , 1 tional fund also being used for the upbuilding I of Palestine and therefore for the relief of the ( German refugees. These twd sums do not include an additional sum of $150,000 real- ized in Chicago and New York, from the pa- geant, for local philanthropic causes. . This, briefly, is the story which should move eery Detroiter, Jew or non-Jew—but particularly eery Jew—to exert every effort to guarantee the suc- cess of this great spectacle. I. During the week that remains before the initial pefformance of "The Romance of a People" in De. troit, much can be done by every Jewish organiza- ' ton, and - by every individual, to make the importance of this cause known in this community. say to you in writing, what I expressed to you personally, that I extremely worth- think you and your associates have done something while from the eduoational point of view, and I also believe that it has resulted in bringing the picture of some of the important episodes in Jewish history to the attention the Museum, or at least deal with it as though it were of a people that have passi and have left no survival. I hope you will have better weather in Cleveland and the other cities to which you are in Philadelphia, where you found, I believe, the going than you had circumstances the atten- worst weather of the season, and under tte dance was really remarkable. I also think you did something of importance to the young people who took part in this performance. They gave theft services as a labor of love but I believe many of them will carry it along as an experience in their lives and that it will deepen their Jewish consciousness. Believe me, with best wishes for the future success of the pageant, Very sincerely yours, Mr. Meyer weisgal YIAA1 1\14( Terminal Tower Building- Suite 511 CTRUS ADLER Cleveland, Ohio They seem to have boon a people marked out for suffering, and yet they have always come out victorious. The present persecution in Germany is singularly unjust. Because of the blood that flows in one's veins and entirely irrespective of the blessings these people have brought to the nation they are being expatriated and cruelly treated. I trust that soon those troubles will be over and that tie spirit of justice and gentleness will prevail. a. The pageant itself was extremely impressive. I enjoyed its second production even more than the first. I am sure no one can see it without experiencing pleasure and deep appreciation for the beautiful pageant itself and also have a higher regard for these people who have been such a bless- ing to mankind. Sincerely yours, 1 1A Bishop of Ponnsylv 4ania "The Romance of a People" is the prop- erty of the American Palestine Campaign, PUBLIC Ogleto LEDGER RABBI HARRY S. DAVIDOWITZ MORNING IIVMDAY EVENING CLEVELAND. OHIO INDEPENDENCE SQUARE Jolts C. MARTIN '.`.arch 19, 19:4. AND !REWIRE II PHILADELPHIA TEIAMEt• larch 5, 1934 orricul or ota. PHJLADELPWA Ct.I.Cew , m C &&&&& C. • .1, ■ •• •.••• ■ .ows.s 5 !Larch 1934 Mr. Meyer W. Weisgal, General Director The Romance of a People 656 Ledger Building Philadelphia MY dear Yr. Weisgal: I am so sorry I could not be with you at the closing performance on Saturday and I have just learned from my secretary, Miss Jones, that you are leaving the city this evening. I cannot let this occasion pass without telling you how much I have enjoyed my association with you and your staff during the preparation and presentation of duction itself far surpassed my expectation when I first consented to act as Ohairman of the Philadelphia Advisory . olifel asgPa e l fiple" er eY man "TieMRo lir Philadelphia. My dear Ur. ITeisp..1: I S AW DUANC.MORRIB & HECKSCHER The Romance of a People here in Philadelphia. The pro- CURLER A.TYLER Ur. L:eyer 7leisgal, Director, 'The Romance of a People", Terminal Toner, Cleveland, Ohio. of a very large number of people who are used to relegate the Bible or Jewish history to of tho presentation of"The Romance of a People". My interest in the Jewish people has always been intense. I feel that the Christian world owes so much to them in that in the olden times they carried the knowledge of the true God through idolatrous nations into the present time. FPT/FEG DROPSIE COLLEGE FOR HEBREW AND COGNATE LEARNING Permit me to express to you ray sincerest per- sonal gratification at havin„- witnessed the performance of "The Romance of a People". To tell you that I have beer. touched and t':_rilled might only be revealing a personal reaction of no moment to anyone but myself. I have however, been interested in learning the reactions of many people in the con-aunity and I therefore have no hesitation in saying to you that among a11 the efforts that are put forward nowadays to insure Good will and co-operation between Jews and Gentiles in this country, the contirroed presentation. of "The Romance of a People" is bound to be by far the most effective in its results. The thousands of young pen anl women who participated actively in the nroduction, in the praying, and tiedancing, will the sinin „ be the best leaven for spiritual fellows:ip in far-reaching and I am only sorry that the extraordinary Dear Yr. Weisgal: weather conditions made It so difficult for our suburban I wish to thank you for your letter of March 3rd, and I really feel you are giving us a great deal more credit than we deserve. population to get to the city during most of the nights Now that the last performance of "The Romance of a People" has been given in Philadelphia I want to tell you how happy we are in having bad the opportunity to sponsor it. the splendid audiences and their enthusiasm. I think While, because of the unusually bad weather, it was not the financial success it should have been, I feel that, from an artistic and educational standpoint, this pageant more than met our expectations. America. U7 hope therefore is that you will find your way marvelous spectacle in every clear to present this important city in the Union. If somehow, you e_uld such evolve the idea of making the presentation of bi- ratter of annual or a spectacle a permanent really believe you will have annual occurrence. I succeeded in maldng a lastin,; contribution to the of American liberalim and Jewish self-res- CMSAR pect. Very cordially yews. 4,0 Committee. Its influence in this community has been -5- 64A4 May I say that never before in my experience have we cooperated in any undertaking that when it was all over we had not one single misunderstanding of any kind, and I wish to take this opportunity of thanking you and with which you ap- your staff for the absolute fairness proached every question that arose. great pleasure to us to have been It has been a associated with you in this project, and I wish you all success in your future presentations. Tours sincerely, that it was here. Nonetheless I congratulate you on that our non-Jewish population enjoyed the pageant just as much as the Jewish people themselves and I know that it has given to many of us trained in Christian tradition or a wider and finer outlook on the history and struggles Israel. I do hope you will have every success in future presentations. With kindest personal regards, very sincerely yours, /Ida. This Space Contributed by The Detroit Jewish Chronici Towards the Success of the "Romance of a People."