X Two

THE JEWISH NEWS

am.

Purely
Commentary

By PHILIP SLOMOVITZ

THE BRITISH ELECTIONS
Within a week, the results of the
British elections will become known to
. the world at large, and the charges and
countercharges . which were current
ing the recent
political cam-
paign. w I 1 1.
evaporate.
But certain
c o mments
will stick and
may not be
forgotten un-
til the battle
is resumed
again at . the.
next general
election.
The feud
Winston Churchill b e t w e en
Prime Minister Churchill and Prof. Harold
J. Laski was undoubtedly one of the
most upsetting of all the campaign in-
cidents. The latter, in 'his latest column,
released by Overseas News Agency,
charges that Churchill's "campaign was
tragic in its standard, when set along
those of the Liberal and Labor leaders
. . . He was willing, he who on V-E
Day had been the supreme figure in the
European scene, to rant in the style of
the Fuehrer."

This is a grave charge—and the coun-
ter-charges have been equally as provok-
ing.

They are typical of political battles,
and patient observers may remain un-
moved. The proof, however, is here—
that unity of all parties was possible
only when the British Isles were in dan-
ger, and that coalition ended the moment
danger shifted elsewhere.
Who will deny that such possibilities of
unity also are applicable to other •demo-
crate lands—including our own?
- *
*
*
DARK FOREBODINGS
Pierre Van Paassen's warnings - of im-
pending danger for Palestine in the years
to come are emphasized in numerous
articles, and are based on the charge that
the Arab League is British-sponsored.

Dark forebodings are contained in the
warnings of this eminent friend of the
Zionist cause. In his last article in the
Protestant Magazine, in which he dealt
with. the French-Levant problem, under
the title "The Road to the Pit," his ad-
monition takes• this form:

"Through the Arab League, Britain is
now supreme in the Near East. And the
Jewish people, whose official bodies
looked on silently, as usual, while Britain
double-crossed and eliininated a great
European poWer from the sphere - of em-
pire - in which Palestine is also. Iotated,
have seen the pattern and the procedure
by which Britain will destroy—yes de-
stroy! not merely freeze, but •destroy
Jewish endeavor in Palestine. It's through
the Arab League that Britain will oper-
ate in and on Palestine."

These are strong. words! Somehow,
however, we can not accept theni on
their face value. No one has yet de-
stroyed the .totality of Jewish accomplish-
ments, and we doubt whether Britain will
dare to undertake it. If Britain under-
takes- it, the United States government
will be obligated to step in and to 'pre-
vent it. If the worst—as pictured by Mr.
Van Paassen—were to happen, our gov-
ernment would be a party to vandalism—
and OUR government will neither dare
nor wish to become so involved in an
historical scandal.

What Mr. Van Paassen writes has value
only in this respect: that it causes our
people and our leaders to be on guard;
and this is important. But we can't shaue
his gloomy - outlook for the future. If we
did, we would be defeated in everything
we are sponsoring. Even pessimistic Mr.
Van Paassen. will admit that the Jewish
settlement in Palestine is not defeated so
easily.

Religion at Work

By DR. MEANNA CHES ERTON-MANGLE

.

"Greater love hath no man than this
that a man lay down his life for his
friends."
No atheists in foxholes? None in prac-
tice, but many in talk. Five lads: had
crouched together for hours. Five lads
of different cultures. A. few with creeds,
the other two boasting "freedom of
thought". It seemed as though the wait-
ing were to be eternal. Suddenly • one
burst forth--"God! I • wish, we would get..
going." With a sneer, one snapped back,

Friday, Jbne 20, 1945

Anti-Semitism Is Anti-Christian

By THE VERY REV. RAIMUND de OVIES

Dean, St. Philip's Episcopal Cathedral, Atlanta, Ga.

(Courtesy, The Alanta Journal)

Easily recognized, Jews can be distinguished by their physical appearance.
They are short or tall, fat or thin, curly or straight haired, "hook" or snub
nosed, dark or fair, and speak either with an accent or with none. One Jew I
know is a tail, well-built, blue-eyed, typical German "aryan"—in appearance;
and I once had a secretary, a young JeWess, who w,as a petite blond with a
, retrousse nose, whose nickname was "Tex." Of course, many Jews do look
like our popular conception of the Jew; but so do some Irishmen look Irish
and some Englishmen answer. the stage-delineation of an Englishman. How
many readers remember the hilarious comedy, "So This Is London?"
"Jews are riCh. They all make money," .we are told; yet all the Jews in
the United States probably could not inatch the fortune of Mr. Henry Ford;
• .and, in Georgia, it is obvious that the majority of bankers or other _financiers
are not Jews. Some Jews are wealthy and a few of them are very wealthy;
but when we read the roster of Americans who control oil, steel, railroads,
chemicals, telegraph and telephone facilities, shipping, coal, plane-manufac-
ture and other essential industries, we find very, very few top-ranking Jews.
The Jews do not have the same religious beliefs as orthodox Christians;
but neither do the Jehovah 'Witnesses or a dozen or more other ChriStian
groups; nor do orthodox religious bodies altogether agree among themselves.
One of my friends who---became an Episcopal minister, out in Texas, learned
his Christianity (which embraces all the arguments for the divinity of Christ)
from a rabbi, the • celebrated Henry Cohen, of Texas! I do not quite agree,
theologically, with my brethren' who are Presbyterians or Baptists; but I have
no quarrel with them on that score, nor have they with me. We hold each
other in affectionate esteem although each of 'us presents his 'own beliefs to
the best of his ability; so why quarrel with the Jews over their belief, if it
is sincere? God Himself established the Jewish religion, if my Bible means
anything at all. I•believe that the gospel is a' more full and complete revela-
tion of God's purpose; but I cannot prove it by "Jew-baiting," nor can any-
one else. Anti-Semitism is anti-Christian. Christians will, not be a party to it.
We leave that to. Hitler and his kind. -

Between
You and Me

Hungry Jewish
Flight Officer

By BORIS SMOLAR

By BEN SAMUEL

(Copyright, 1945, Jewish Telegraphic
Agency, Inc.) ,

INTERNATIONAL NOTES

Now that the Charter of the new
League of Nations is definitely going to
be approved by the Senate, by the British
Government and by Moscow, the question
•-•
of establishing a United
Nations Commission on
Human Rights is no
longer merely theoretical
. • . In this connection a
very important book has
just been published. by
Columbia University
Press . . . It is Prof. H.
Lauterpacht's "An Inter-
national Bill of the.
Rights • of Man" . . . This
Boris Smolar study, written by an
eminent professor of international law,
will no doubt serve as a basis for the
work which the contemplated .Commis-
sion on Human rights is to start . . . It is
the kind of a book that no person in-
terested in the problem of human rights
can afford to miss ... It formulates ex-
tremely well, and from every angle, the
International Bill of Rights. of Man in
which Jews throughout the world are so
interested, and makes definite proposals
as to how this. Bill of Rights can be
enforced nationally and internationally.

Prof. Lauterpacht believes that every
nation' must, by apprtpriate constitutional
means, adept certain sections of the Inter_
national Bill of Rights of Man as part_
of its domestic law and constitution . .
The effect of such legislation would be
abrogation of any existing regulations
inconsistent with equal , treatment of all
by the state . . . It would - also auto-
matically eliminate any possible diacrim-
ination on account of religion, race; lan-
guage or political creed . . . As to inter-
national enforcement, the author believes
that this can be achieved through the•
establishment by the United Nations of
a high commission for the supervision of
the observance of - the Bill of Rights of
Man . . . This high commission would
receive petitions from individuals • and
organizations and would - act,, also, as an
agency fog. removing any violations of the
Bill of Rights . . . Prof. Lauterpacht pays
tribute to the American Jewish Commit-
tee which. 'assisted -ill, the 'publication of
the volume.

.

'

"God? What God? No Gad would get us
into this mess." . "Stop gripin'! It's only
an expression." Then, almost derisively—

"Abe, over there, 'is the only one who's
got a God, and he left him back in the
synagogue in Brooklyn." 'Their laughter
was broken- by a roar overhead. It was
time for action. Just then a hand grenade
fell in their •midst. There was no time
to think. Aghast, the boys stared. Quicker
than one can tell it: Abe threw- himself
on the deadly 'missile. A - muffled ex-
plosion, and it was over. Four boys faced
each other, white with emotion. Abe's
God was not , back in the synagogue. He
was with him. For this reason four other
boys lived on.

"When I get_home to Brooklyn," says
Flight Officer Stern, "I'll see my -wife
and mother and dad—and I'll eat my-
self sick."
Sid, who is 20, worked up a ferocious
appetite during an enforced stay In Ger-
many. He was captured after a crash
landing, but the German war effort was
falling - apart at the time, - and he was a
prisoner less than three weeks. He had
the pleasure of capturing his own guard
at the end and turning him over, .as a
prisoner, to a U. S. Army patrol.
"One of the most beautiful sights I
ever saw in my life," he recalls, "was
the face of the tough-looking, sergeant in
charge of that patrol when he first came
into view."
Stern wasn't a prisoner long but, he
commented, "it was enough."
When he climbed out of his burning
plane after making a forced landing, he
saw the ship, a P-41 Mustang, explode
on the ground. He was unhurt, though,
and he struck out for the nearest woods.
His idea was to hide out until dark.
German soldiers had spotted him, how-
ever, and they combed the woods. They
set bloodhounds On his trail. He was able
to evade the searchers for almost four
hours. He kept praying for the dark to
cover these woods, but it was still light
when two Nazis seized him.

*

*

They took him-to a Nazi interrogation
center. And it was there that he was
asked one of the strangest questions that
had even been put to him.
"Are you a member of 'Murder, In-
corporated?" his captors demanded.
Then the German interrogator asked,
"Are you Jewish? Because it goes very
hard on the Jews in Germany."
Sid admitted that he was Jewish. As a
reward for his honesty, he was held in
solitary confinement for four days. Then
he was transferred to another prison.
There he was kept by himself for five
more days. Once. again he was trans-
ferred.; Two German guards did him the
honor of accompanying him, that time,
to Moesberg Camp in Munich. This
journey was made on foot.
"As we got into the city," Stern said,
"the RAF was borribing Munich and they
really flattened that town out.":
Just as they entered Munich, one of his
guards decided that he'd had enough. He .
signed his own discharge, 'stamped it with
an offitial stamp he carried, and disap-
peared.
That left Flight. Officer. Stern and one
guard. Three- miles outside the camp,
'Stern turned on him, took his gun away,
.and made him a prisoner.
"He didn't object very hard," says Sid.
« «
With his prisoner in town, Stern pro-
ceeded to the house of a German civilian
who was persuaded that it was to his
best interests to help an American flier.
The German fed him, and Stern can still
remember the meals.
When the area • was pocketed by ad-
vancing Americans, Stern 'made contact
with the liberating patrol.
He was brought directly - from the
' continent to the Ex PW -•Casual Detach-
ment in London, which happens to be

Heard in
The Lobbies

.

By ARNOLD LEVIN

(Copyright, 1945, Independent Jewish
• Press Service, Inc.)

GERMAN INVASION
High government authorities and re-
liable new spapermen have warned re-
peatedly, and in recent months—very,
vociferously,. against German- infiltration* .
into LatinAmerica-. The JeWish
turists in Latin-America are most keenly
aware of the effects of German infiltra-
tion. German Settlers have been buying
up, for some :time now, foreclosed Jewish
properties, and some wealthier Jewish
farmers are selling their property voluri.
tarily because they find it extremely un-
pleasant to continue living in an environ-
ment whose hostility towards the Jews
increases in proportion to German 'infil-
tration into the area . . . The Jews of
Buenos Aires are now considering plans
fOr saving the Jewish farms from fore-,
closure and from "invasion" by the Ger,
mans . . . In Santa Fe, Argentina, there
is a growing anti-Jewish movement gen- .
erated by Father Proprotsky, a Polish
priest and recent settler; the movement
is counteracted by Father Alfonso Rudan;
also a Catholic and highly revered in
democratic ' circles.
*
«_
REPORT FROM EUROPE
Histadruth, Jewish Palestine's Federa-
tion of Labor, has received a disturbing
report on anti-Semitism among recently
liberated Russian and Ukrainian PWs.
The Nazis "worked" on them thoroughly,
appears
it/
• The report was submitted by
a liberated Jewish PW who has just ar-
rived in Palestine. A Soviet JewiSh of ,
ficer told him: "I attended a Yeshivah
(Jewish theological seminary) in my
youth, but have been unaware of my
Jewishness for many years now. I was
jolted back to Jew-consciousness when
I learned that my family in Dniepro-
petrovsk was killed by our nextdoor
neighbor."

* * *

NEW BOOK .
The trade predicts good sales for "The
Journey Home" by Zelda Popkin (J. B.
Lippincott, $2.50), to be .placed on the
bookmarket July 25. It deals with a
serviceman's readjustment to .civilian life,
and the action takes place on a train en
route from Miami to New York. Anti-
Semitism is also dealt with. Mrs. Popkin,
long connected with the. public relations
activities of national Jewish organiza-
tions, is the author of •six mysteries. This
is her first "straight."

How Can I Sing?

By DR. NOAH E. ARONSTAM

My muse is' stilled . .
It has been 'vanquished
By a maelstrom" of confusion,
By a web of self delusion,
Which- like an avalanche descended
n my wounded bleeding heart.

I' vainly sought to draw nepenthe
From the Past, from the annals -
Of my people; I 'vainly sought
To assuage my burning thirst
From the living waters of fhe fountain
Of all muses: from the sweet impassioned
lyric
Of the 'Song of Songs; from the epic of a
Job,
From the idyl of a Ruth,
From the solace of Isaiah .. .

Then there came a rude awakening:
The Inevitable now comforts me
With its turbulence and turmoil,
With its 'holocausts and sorrows,
Witki its grief and heartaches.
Oh, God, how can I sing?

My lute lies shattered
Broken hi , a math of fragments, .
Dust and shambles in . a world gone mad: •
HOW can I sing, when every. note
Breathes with grim and gruesome shadows
Indelibly escoutchened on my mind.
_Past forgetting? -

ItoW can I sing? I must forego this solace
Until the time when my people
Rise redeemed and free again,
Free from fetters, free from chains—
Then my muse shall sing again!

under the command-of .Major William W.
Serra—a fellow Brooklynite.
One of the reasons he has such high
hopes for eating well *hen he gets home
is that his father owns a restaurant in
Brooklyn.-L-Stern's On Stern Avenue, as
it happens: • .
,(Copyright, 1945, JTA): • •

