Page Four

T'HE JEWISH NEWS

As the Editor
Views the News ...

Friday, November 21, 1947

The Rough Sea

`Dreyfus to Petain'

Anti-Democratic Forces
Exposed by Herzog

Religion in the Schools

On a number of occasions in the past
two years, The Jewish News has taken a
stand against either "dismissed time" or "re-
leased time" plans for religious studies in
our public schools.
The Jewish Community Council has just
issued a statement analyzing the issue. The
Council's conclusion is:

"Released Time, if left unchecked,
may not only negate the whole concept of
separation of church and state, and un-
dermine the unity which is our democ=
racy's greatest strength, but it may make
further transgressions upon the privacy
and freedom of individual Americans,
whose right to think as they please and to
worship as they please is as precious and
sacred as their religious tenets.
"As one minister has said: 'The issue
is not whether we should keep religion
out of the schools, but that we should
keep democracy in them'."

The "released time" plan began in Gary,
Ind., in 1913 and spread to 2,200 communi-
ties in 46 states, affecting 2,000,000 children.
In 1941, according to the report of the U. S.
Office of Education, more than half of the
schools which released students for religious
studies in 1932 discontinued the program. The
plan recently was abandoned in San Diego,
Calif., where nine out of 10 school principals
objected to it, and in Burlingame, Calif.,
Great Britain's arbitrary stand on the question of Pal-
where objections were registered by parents. estine places her labor government in a very bad light. After
Abuses of "released time" are outlined many years of misrule in the Holy Land where she has in-
as 'follows: Violation of the principle of sep- stituted government by police and a large military force,
aration of church and state; children who her declaration that she will not assist in implementing the
leave the classrooms for such a program do partition proposal comes with ill grace.
not participate in it at all or are subjected to
The latest British declaration proves the wisdom of the
embarrassments and ostracism by classmates statement made by Dr. Frank Kingdon, in his syndicated
and teachers; pressure is exerted upon child- column in the New York Post and other newspapers, that—
ren to go to religious classes, contrary to
"There have been signs in Ernest Bevin's speeches
ideals of freedom of conscience.
recently that he is lacking in goodwill toward the Jews.
In the instance of "dismissed time" prac-
His personal antipathy may color British policy. It should
tices, attendance is voluntary and is a poor
not deter the United Nations. The United States has taken
substitute for present programs, such as
the lead. It should keep it and press for the policy it has
Hebrew school attendance.
announced until independence in Palestine is consum-
• It is regrettable that the issue should
mated."
have been forced into the American school
Nearly everything that has emanated from London and
system. It is clear from the experiences of Jerusalem in the past two years was tainted with the personal
communities which have tried either re- prejudices of the British Foreign Secretary. Prevailing senti-
leased or dismissed time proposals for re- ments are that an amicable solution of the Palestine problem
ligious studies that they are unworkable. But will prove the strength of the United Nations and will lead
the basic argument against them is that re- to greater amity among contending world powers. Great
ligion is injected into our school system. Such Britain alone stands in the way of understanding and inter-
plans should be fought in the interest of national good will. And the motivating reason appears to be
the fundamental ideals of American de- Mr. Bevin's personal antagonism to the Jewish people.
mocracy.
Dr. Kingdon made an important point when he wrote:

UN's Prestige and Palestine

Arab III Will

A Jewish Telegraphic Agency cable from
Jerusalem reveals that the Arab League's
plans for opposition to the implementation of
the UN proposals for the partition of Pales-
tine includes the intention of interning as
"enemy aliens" leaders of Jewish com-
munities in Arab lands who are suspected of
Zionist sympathies. While the position of
Egypt, which has 80,000 Jews, is not known,
it is assumed that Iraq, judging by frequently
expressed anti-Jewish statements of its Re-
gent, Emil Abdul Ilah, will oppress its 100,000
Jews, most of whom reside in Baghdad.
This report is a clear indication of the
"morality" of the Arab opposition. It is gen-
erally known that the Arabs of Palestine
are anxious to see the establishment of a
strong Jewish center in Palestine which
would be a boon to them. Only the Mufti-in-
spired group and the Arab potentates out-
side of Paelstine are in the opposition. Their
position is marked by Ai will. It can be over-
come—provided the stand taken by the UN
is sufficiently firm.

THE JEWISH NEWS

Member Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Independent Jewish
Press Service, Seven Arts Feature Syndicate, Religious
?News Service, Pakor Agency, King Features, Central
Press Association.
Member American Association of English-Jewish News-
papers and Michigan Press Association.
Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publish-
ing Co., 2114 Penobscot Bldg., Detroit 26, Mich., RA. 7956.
Subscription, $3 a year; foreign, $4. Club subscription,
every fourth Friday of the month , to all subscrfbers to
#Itied Jewish Campaign of Jewish Welfare Federation of
Detroit, 40 cents per year.
Entered as second-class matter Aug. 6, 2942. at Post Of-
fice, Detroit, Mich., under Act of March 3, 1879.

BOARD. OF DIRECTORS
Maurice Aronsson
Philip Slomovitz
Fred M. Butzel
Isidore Sobeloff
Judge Theodore Levin Abraham Srere
Maurice H. Schwartz Henry Wineman

SLOMOVITZ, Editor

VOL. XII—NO. 10

NOVEMBER 21, 1947

Sabbath Scriptural Selections
This Sabbath, the ninth day of Kislev, the
following scriptural selections will be read in our
synagogues:
Pentateuchal section—Gen. 28:10-32:3
Prophetical section—Hos. 12:13-14;10

"I find it difficult to understand British reluctance
to join with the United States and Russia for the Palestine
report. Britain has a lot to gain from any , settlement by
United Nations authority. It will be relieved of sole re-
sponsibility for what happen. It will be able to do business
with the Arabs for oil within a situation approved by
world opinion. Its security will be strengthened by a state
created for Jews who proved themselves loyal to the
Allied cause during the war. I should have supposed that
the British government would have breathed a sigh of
relief that so acceptable a compromise has been found."
Dr. Kingdon could have added that Great Britain was the

first to suggest partition as a solution to the problem as far
back as 1937. The Peel Commission's report established the
background for the present "acceptable compromise" which,
in reality, is a very poor offer to Jews who are placed in the
position of taking very little in the face of tragedy. But
even this small offering is begrudged us by the great British
Empire!
* * *
There are other enemies of Palestine Jewry who are bor-
ing from within in frantic efforts to interfere with the pro-
gress of the UN in arriving at a Palestine solution and in
meting out justice to Jewry. A JTA report from London
reveals that Palestine's information officer, Richard Stubbs,
an antagonist of the Jewish cause, said at a private meeting
at which his equally pro-Arab predeseccor, Chritsopher
Holme, presided, that a Jewish state "could not survive for
24 hours."
We are not frightened by such prophets of doom. In
their instance, it will definitely be proven that "prophets
are fools" and their auguries will fail in the future as they
have failed in the past.
Meanwhile, there is one practical conclusion to the en-
tire debate, which has been marked by unwarranted bit-
terness emanating from British quarters. It is incorporated
in the following statement with which the Christian Science
Monitor concluded a recent editorial:

"It has been asserted that Britain is morally bound
to implement the UN decision. This is questionable,
American interests, and to some lesser extent Russian also,
are served by the solution now proposed by the UN.
"The least these countries could do would be to send
token forces as a warning to any groups threatening
trouble over Palestine. These groups should know that
they will be engaging not only the hard-pressed British
troops but the virtually endless resources also of the
United States and Russia. The UN is gaining prestige
through its progress with the Palestine question. Ability
to carry out its solution—with collective force would

raise it another notch in public esteem."

—

William Herzog's "Dreyfus to Petain: The
Struggle of a Republic" (Creative Age Press, 11 E.
44th St., New York 17, N. Y.) is more than a re-
view of the Dreyfus Affair and its heroes. It is an
expose of reactionary forces which have conspired
to destroy democracy and which protected forgers
and bigots.
Alfred Dreyfus, the Jewish victim of the
plot perpetrated by the French army generals to-
gether with the Jesuits, emerges as a very weak
character. The heroes are his brother Mathieu,
Clemenceau and Col. Marie-Georges Picquart.
The chief villain is Count Maria Charles
Ferdinand Walsin-Esterhazy, the forger who was
protected by Col. Henry and other army officers,.
Marechal Philippe Petain, however, is the
chief target of the book. The author's aim is
to show that Petain not only betrayed his
country to the Nazis in World War 1t1 but that
he also was the anti-democratic pessimist in
World War I.
Thus, "Dreyfus to Petain" show the unbroken
chain of events from the latter decade of the 19th
century to our own time, with a set of villainous
elements, represented in our day by the Nazi-
Fascist groups, determined to destroy decency in
the world.
In the very beginning of the Dreyfus Affair,
Clemenceau referred to the generals as a pirate's
den, a sewer full of dangerous bandits. We learn
that the "Victor of Verdun" was exposed as a
fraud not only by Clemenceau but also by Mare-
chal Joffre. The book shows how Petain, without
condidence in France believed that the Germans
would win World War I, and Clemenceau re-
ferred to him as "exasperating."
Petain poisoned the French minds. "Only a
few believed in the France that would be able to
rise again out of these humiliations. Many pre-
ferred death to disgrace. Clen -ienceau's closest mil-
itary adviser. the Jewish General Mordacq. jump-
ed into the Seine." The dauntless action of fight-
ing France survived in the end to refute the lie
of the "decadent and dying-out France."
Mr. Herzog has no faith in Gen. Charles de
Gaulle. In view of latest occurrences in France,
this expose is of very great significance. We are
told that de Gaulle "is basically an outspoken anti-
pacifist and anti-democrat." Charging that de
Gaulle is "a war enthusiast trained in the aristo-
cratic school of the Jesuits" but that General
Pershing "is a true democrat," Mr. Herzog relates
the following:
"In the course of a conversation with
General Pershing, whom he visited in July,
1944, as reported by Mary Burnet in an ex-
planatory essay in Harper's Magazine, de
Gaulle said with noticeable honesty: 'With-
out a war, the world would be stagnate'
Whereupon the clever 84-year-old' Pershing,
who obviously thought that he could speak in
an unrestrained manner as one soldier to an-
other, gave him the excellent and pertinent
answer: 'We have never had peace long
enough to know whether the world would
stagnate'."
(A JTA report from Paris last week stated
that Gen. Charles de Gaulle, French People's
Party's right wing leader, declared that both
Arabs and Jews are "exaggerating their positions
in Palestine, but that there is a possibility for
the problem's settlement along the lines of the
American proposal).
The heroic roles played in the Dreyfus Affair
by Zola and Picquart are brilliantly reviewed in
Mr. Herzog's exceptionaly important volume. They
were brave men who defied the corrupt elements,
were fearless, did not permit personal sufferings
and humiliations to stand in the way of a battle
for justice and decency.
"Dreyfus to Petain" is a great document. If
it will lead Frenchmen and others who read it
to thinking and to bring on guard against the
anti-democratic forces in the world, it will prove' to
be a worthy successor to Zola's "J'Accuse."

Facts You Should Know

Answers to Readers'
Questions ...

What is Homiletics?
The branch of theology which deals with the art
and science of preaching. The word itself is a
trans-literation of a Greek word meaning "to be
in company with." Its secondary meaning was
"easy and companionable conversation."

* * *

What is the origin of the term "Schlemiel?"
A "schlemiel" is the Yiddish expression for the
"fall-guy" or, humorously, innocent victim of cir-
cumstances: This name is of Biblical origin. The
reader of the Bible will recall the famous story in
the Book of Numbers (Chapter 25) where the
gallant Phineous stabbed the prince of the tribe
of Simeon for committing a sin with a Mideariite
woman. The prince, referred to as "Zimri" is real-
ly named "Shlemiel Ben Zurishadai" (see Mid-
rash Tanchumah - Parshas Pinchos,) The Bible
mentions that many people committed such sins
(Numbers 25.1) and yet this man called "Shlemiel"
fell as the example and the scapegoat for all the
rest, thus eternalizing his name "Schlemiel" as
the classical "fall guy." It is generally believed
that some intolerant Prussian official used this
Biblical name in a vicious attempt to persecute
Jews. The Jewish people, however, have always
displayed their genius in transforming malice into
mirth and thus the "schlemiel" of . the Prussian
hate-monger turned out to be the basis of a great
deal of humor.
*
*
*
What is meant by an "Agunah?"
A wife deserted by her husband, or whose hus-
band is "missing." According to Jewish law,. an
Agunah may not remarry unless it has been, „as-
certained without the shred of a doubt. that the

husband is dead.

