h. • Paga Two
Purely
Commentary
THE JEWISH NEWS
The Jewish Heritage of Culture
and Moral Restraint
By STUART CHEVALIER
Goering Was A
Disappointment
In "War's End and After"
By PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
THE "NADIV HA-YADUAH"
• Few names in history have been blessed
with as much glory as has been accorded
that of Baron Edmond de Rothschild, the
"father" of Jewish colonization in Pales-
tine, who became fa-
mous under the title -
"N a.d i v Ha-Yaduah"—
the "well-known bene-
factor."
In more than one sense,
he was more than just
the "father" of Jewish
colonization in Palestine.
He_was the great pioneer
who ventured into many
fields in order to en-
courage the industrial
Rothschild
upbuilding of Palestine. He undertook to
sponsor glass manufacturing and the
making of perfumes, and hardly a phase
of Jewish effort in Eretz Israel was with-
out his participation.
The story of this great philanthropist,
who was referred to in the Yishuv of
Palestine simply as "der Baron," is told
in a very small but highly interesting
book—Isaac Naiditch's "Edmond de Roths-
child: Palestine Pioneer," published by
the Zionist Organization of America, 1720
. 16th St., N. W., Washington,. D. C.
*
*
* . .
A REMARKABLE MAN.
Biographer Isaac Naiditch—whose name
has figured prominently for many years
in Zionist leadership—emerges in this
biography as Rothschild's Boswell. This
book of. 114 pages is a report of the
Baron's views on Zionism, Palestine and
the Jewish problem—and many of his
attitudes are pertinent today.
The ZOA volume is not a biography. It
is, as just indicated, a report on his
Zionist attitudes. But as much as is said
in the book reveals that the Baron was
a most remarkable man, a great humani-
tarian and a genuinely dignified Jewish
leader.
It is to be hoped that Mr. Naiditch's
small book will prove an incentive for an
able Jewish writer to prepare a complete
biography of Baron Edmond, who was
undoubtedly the greatest of all the
Rothschild.s.
•
*
*
THE BARON AND PARTITION
The "Nadiv Ha-Yaduah" \vas opposed
to Palestine's partition. As far back as
1923, - the pro-Arab St. John Philby was
intermediary in offering a plan for the
division of the land into Arab and Jew-
ish territories. Mr. Naiditch reports that
Rothschild condemned partition as "the
most dangerous thing imaginable." He
liked to quote his father, Baron James,
and in this connection repeated this
story:
"My father used to say: 'If you have
one object, you may hope to have two,
three, four and so on. But you'll be out
of luck if you should start dividing the
one thing you have. You will then break
up into little pieces and will have only a
small fragment left.' "
When the official offer of partition was
made by the Lord Peel Commission in
1937, Baron Edmond was dead for three
years. But his views were prophetic. Mr.
Naiditch then favored partition, and
many more are willing to accept such a
plan today. Nevertheless, the Baron's
views stand out among the most import-
ant ever uttered on the question; and
those who desire to oppose partition will
be able to use his arguments to good ad-
vantage.
*
*
*
HIS POLITICAL ATTITUDES .
While it was generally believed that
Baron Edmond was opposed to political
Zionism, his activities during the latter
years of his life proved that he was deep-
ly concerned that the Jewish position in
Palestine should be protected through
political means.
Mr. Naiditch's work is especially im-
portant as a revelation of the Baron's de-
votion to Zionism in all its aspects.
When he accepted the honorary presi-
dency of the Jewish Agency for Pales-
titne, in 1929, he made it a condition that
Palestine should be rebuilt according to
traditional lines, and he emphasized his
deep religious feelings at all times:
On one occasion, when the late M. M.
Ussishkin, in a conversation with him,
stressed the importance of land redemp-
tion in Palestine, the Baron replied:
"Vous cherchez 1'Eretz, moi je
cherche Israel" ,("your concern is
with the Land, mine is with Israel").
But when the time came for action, .
Baron Edmond broke a Rothschild tradi-
tion. Against the wishes and advice of his
family and associates, he acted contrary
to the strong rules that were adhered to
by the Rothschilds never to allow their
names to be associated with protests
Friday, July 27, I94S
"The great contribution of the Hebrew teachers to the modern world, as
I see it, was restraint in the realm of morals, which we call virtue, as the
great contribution of the Greeks was restraint in the realm of art, which
we call culture. These two great heritages from these -oast civilizations,
culture and moral restraint, when combined in proper balance, • make our
modern life, on the moral side, decent and orderly and, on the cultural,
balanced, beautiful and fine.
"The Germans attained a considerable degree of culture, • but with no
moral restraint. They were entirely devoid of character, in our old-fashioned
Anglo-Saxon sense of the word, because they had no moral restraint, or even
a moral code as we understand the term."
Heard in
The Lobbies
By ARNOLD LEVIN
(Copyright, 1945, Independent JewEsh
Press Service, Inc.)
*
* *
DANGEROUS BILL
While attention was focused on Con-
gressional action on FEPC legislation and
the UNCIO charter, a bill of ominous po-
tentialities was passed by the House. It
is HR 386, permitting members of the
Immigration and Naturalization Service
to arrest aliens, suspected of being sub-
ject to deportation, without warrants. It
is the kind of bill to make Representative
Rankin happy. The bill can still be stop-
ped by writing Senator Richard Russell,
Chairman, Senate Committee on Immig-
ration, Washington, D. C., and urging
him to oppose it.
* * *
ANALOGY
Britain's. distinguished H.N. Brailsford
predicted some weeks ago what has since
come true, the failure of Britain's new
India proposals. He pointed out that the
proposals will fail because they contain
two unacceptable alternatives: Pakistan,
or the "vivisection of India," and parity,
giving equal representation to both major
creeds. This seems to be a traditional
pattern with British colonial officials.
Isn't it the pattern followed in Palestine,
where from time to time it is proposed
to establish a bi-national state, or parti-
tion?
*
*
SYMBOL?
The religious will regard this as sym-
bolic: In 1940, a fire caused by time
bombs swept the library of the College
Saint-Croix at Orleans, France, destroy-
ing thousands of volumes. The only vol-
ume found, undestroyed, among the ashes
of the others, was a Hebrew Bible. This
is revealed in The Sephardi, organ of the
Central Sephardic Jewish Community of
America.
*
*
The Jewish Case
Against Germany
By MURRAY FRANK
Copyright, 1945, Ind. Jewish Press Service, Nic.
Dr. Charles Irving Dwork, a quiet, am-
iable, scholarly young Jew, is the, nearest
to a "Government Expert on Jewish Af-
fairs" Washington has, although he may
not like to be termed as such. Dwork is
in charge of the research in assembling
the evidence of the crimes against Jews
in connection with the forthcoming war
crimes trials in Europe.
Dr. Dwork, a Ph. D., from the Uni-
versity of Southern California, is a native
New Yorker, although a resident of Cali
fornia for the past decade. Under his
direction, the whole docket of German
war crimes against the Jews is being
assembled, documented and annotated
for the Chief U. S. prosecutor at the war
crimes trials.
When Dwork will have completed sift-
ing the material—probably by the time
this appears in print—it will be review-
ed by the trial lawyers assisting Justice
Jackson, chief U. S. War Crimes prose-
cutor, with the preparation of the case
against the war criminals.
*_
There probably will be about a half
dozen or more different charges brought
against the German war criminals, and
the crimes committed against the Jews
will definitely be among the major points
in the case.
It is a known fact that Justice Jackson
is determined that it be impressed upon
the Germans that their extermination of
Europe's Jews is among their major war
crimes. He has said so publicly, and has
reiterated this position to a group of
Jewish leaders, which included Dr. Jacob
Robinson of the Institute of Jewish Af-
fairs and representatives of the Ameri-
can Jewish Conference and others with
whom he met recently before leaving for
London.
PERSONALITIES
Flora Rothenberg, able and energetic
Justice Jackson has, surrounded him-
executive director of the National Coun- self with a very able staff to assist him in
cil of Jewish Women, has submitted her preparing the charges which are to be
resignation effective July 31.
pressed against the following specific
groups: the German Government, the
against friendly powers, when he wrote a German High Command, and the Nazi
strongly-worded letter condemning the Party, including the Gestapo and the
SS (Schutz Staffel). As we understand it,
Passfield White Paper.
Mass trials will be held and consequently,
*
a
mass punishment be meted out, with
ROTHSCHILD AND WEIZMANN
penalties definitely set for each of these
Mr. Naiditch's book throws light on groups.
another important incident—and advice
This method seems to be the only
that was given to Dr. Chaim Weizmann
by Baron Edmond that he should resign logical solution under the circumstances,
in protest against the Passfield White because of the large number of war crim-
Paper. Dr. Weizmann replied that he inals involved. Taken individually, the
would not resign before that obnoxious trials would last for years, which none
paper was published, but that he would of the Allied nations desire. Where a
act when it was made public. It will be certain individual SS-man or GestapO
recalled that he did resign and that there agent will claim innocence, it will be up
was a revision of that paper in considera- to him to prove his„ innocence, otherwise
it will be impossible for him to escape
tion of the strong protests against it.
We wonder whether a series of resigna- the punishment decreed for the S.S. or
tions, submitted today, would prove as Gestapo as a group for their collective
effective against the present White Paper crimes.
* *
which seeks to destroy all Jewish hopes
Of particular interest is the fact that
in Palestine.
*
*
*
the Germans will be charged with deli-
berate conspiracy to wipe out the Jews;
THE NAIDITCH BOOK
this indictment is to be announced speci-
The Naiditch book has great value for fically against the Gestapo. The Germans
students of Jewish history, and it is a will also be tried for the discriminatory
MUST for Zionists.
legislation enacted against Jews and other
It has its faults which should be point- minorities whose misfortune it was to
ed out to the publishers, so that the come under the rule of the Nazi Third
ZOA may avoid similar mistakes in the Reich.
future.
It was a wise move on the part of U. S.
In the first place, there are too many authorities to call in a Jewsh expert to
typographical errors in the book:
assemble the "Jewish evidence" for the
Secondly—there are too many pre- coming trials. Dr. Dwork, who was given
fatory statements. There is a statement a doctorate for his work in the field of
by Judge Louis E. Levinthal, chairman Jewish history, has achieved an enviable
of the ZOA publications committee; a reputation as a member of the faculty of
foreword by Dr. Israel Goldstein, presi- the University of Southern California and
dent of the ZOA; an introduction by M. for his work more recently for the U. S.
Z. Frank, the able translator, and a pre- Government, and those who know him
face by the author. A bit too much! But well feel certain that through him the
the book itself—and the translation—are Jewish case at the war crimes trials will
worthy of high praise.
, be presented ably and authoritatively.
By BEN SAMUEL
,
Copyright, 1945, Jewish Telegraphic Agency,
Inc.)
The last job Lee Felder ever expected
to fill, when he fled his native town of
Nurnberg in 1934, was that of giving or-
ders to Reichmarshal Herman Goering.
When he left Germany, as a matter of
fact, Lee never expected to revisit the
place. But he was destined to revisit it
in a captain's uniform with the United
States Army.
When Lee arrived in Germany, he not
only was assigned to act as interpreter
for Goering, but to take charge of Dr.
Gross, the former governor of the "gov-
ernment generale" in Poland where, it
is said, more Jews were put to death than
any place else in the entire world. Lee
guarded Dr. Gross on his way to impris-
onment and almost certain trial as a war
criminal.
* * *
The young captain hasn't found revenge
particularly sweet, however. To him, it
was something of an anti-climax.
"They are so disappointing," Lee says.
He found Goering a completely dis-
graceful spectacle, turning pale and red
by turns, sweating what seemed to be
a guilty sweat, and wringing his pudgy
hands. Lee noticed that Goering's own
adjutant, Colonel Brauchitsch, could
scarcely conceal his contempt for the
man.
Dr. Gross cut an equally dismal figure,
Lee observed. The doctor had already
slashed his wrists and throat—unsucces-
fully—in jail, and when Capt. Felder
drove him to the airplane that was to
take him to his permanent prison, Gross
tried to get a pistol away from an MP
sitting beside him.
Then Dr. Gross and Capt. Felder were
alone on the plane, which was a C-47
hospital ship. The captain tucked Gross
onto a stretcher four feet off the floor.
The rest of the time he sat opposite him
so that he couldn't fall out.
▪ * *
Captain Felder was called in by Gen-
eral White to act as Goering's interpreter
when the former Reichmarshal was
brought to Seventh Army headquarters.
According to Lee, both General Patch
and General White treated him like the
prisoner and criminal he was.
The Goering "incident," where Goering
had lunch and "talked over the war" with
army officers, didn't happen there but at
a higher headquarters later.
When General White interviewed him,
Goering stood in front of the general's
desk, Lee, said, until he was told to sit
down.
"It was a straight-back chair," Lee re-
lated, "not very well suited. for a man
of Goering's bulk. I stood right behind
Goering. Col. Brauchitsch was standing
near the door.
"Gen. White asked if he believed Hit-
ler was dead. Goering said he was. firm-
ly convinced of it, saying: 'It is my belief
that Hitler died before the date of his an-
nounced death.' Goering told how he last
saw Hitler April 20 in Berlin, when Goer-
ing left for Bavaria.
"When the interview ended Goering
rose, clicked his heels, raised his baton
and didn't wait very long for the return
salute, which didn't come. I went in la-
ter to thank General White for the cool
reception he gave Goering.
"Gen. White throughout the -interview
was watching Col. Brauchitsch. From
his appearance he had the feeling Brau-
chitsch regarded Goering as an unworthy
imposter.
"Similarly, Gen. Patch, at the press
conference arranged for the correspon-
dents to talk to Goering, remained seated
throughout and did not even look at
Goering as he went out."
Inter-Racial Facts
From the Interracial News Service bul-
letin of the Department of Race Rela-
tions, Federal Council of Churches, we
cull the information that "in one large
eastern Civilian Public Service camp
(camp for conscientious objectors) draw-
ing assignees from both North and South,
two out of every three men declared that
the principle of racial equality was for
them as much a matter of conscience as
opposition to war . . . One of the C.P.S.
administrative agencies, backed by its
men, refused to assign dairy testers to a
state which said, 'Please, no Jews.' " .. .
On the other hand, and from other
sources, there has been talk of discern-
ible minority tensions among some Mer-
chant seamen although many of them are
active unionists (and the labor move-
ment is on record against anti-Semitism)
and a considerable number of -them are
conscientious objectors.