A- Shocking Blow

As the Editor
Views the News ...

'Aristeas to Philocrates'

WO.

Leniency for Nazis

A bill for the admission of persons who
were "nominal" Nazis or Fascists if they
• joined their parties at an early age, or if
they became members of groups, whose ac-
tions caused a world war, to obtain employ-
ment, or for similar reasons, passed the
U. S. House of Representatives last week and
was sent for action to the U. S. Senate.

Thus, a new era begins in this great land:
a period of leniency for the beasts who were
responsible for the murder of six million Jews
and many millions of Christians.

In Germany, American administrators
recently commuted the sentences of Nazi
criminals and one of the chief munitions
manufacturers for the Nazis, Alfred Krupp,
was given his freedom.

Thus, the world's arch-criminals now are
free to resume their dastardly activities.

In Munich last week, cries of "hang the
Jews" and "oust the Jews" were heard at
a meeting of the "Protective Association of
German , Soldiers," a pro-Nazi organization
led by a member of Adolph Hitler's old
guard, ex-Col. Ludwig Guembel. At Schwerte
on the Ruhr, a Jewish cemetery was dese-
crated, 21 tombstones were overturned, two
monuments were smashed and all floral dec-
orations were destroyed.

Thus, the Nazis are back in action with
their old, destructive, inhuman tricks.

A Frankfurt court has sentenced George
Englemann, who headed a German office in
Poland during the war for sale of confis-
cated Jewish property and who now is a
merchant in Eschwege near Frankfurt, to
. five years' imprisonment for fomenting anti-
Semitism and for declaring that "too few
of the (Jewish) race were gassed."

Thus, a Nazi must commit outrageous crimes
before being imprisoned.

In London, Lord Pakenham, Minister for
Civil Aviation and former Minister respon-
sible for German affairs, declared that "any
Allied policy not based on friendship with
Western Germany would be disastrous po-
litically" and expressed regret that "anti-
German feeling is being promoted in .cer-
tain quarters." Could he have meant the
Board of Deputies of British Jews who
joined with other groups not affiliated with
any single political party in a campaign to
inform the British public of the dangers
of German rearmament?

Thus, in England, too, the danger of re-
vivified Nazism is apparent.

Did we, indeed, fight the last war in vain ?

Liberal Givers

Detroit's Allied Jewish Campaign is off
to a good start—thanks to the generosity
of a group of contributors who have set the
drive into motion with liberal gifts, at the
United Jewish Appeal meetings held in
-
_It is encouraging to know that the men
who gave the campaign such an excellent
push have either matched their previous
gifts or have increased them.
By working together, by covering the
field in proper fashion, by working prompt-
ly for the causes represented in our drive—
the UJA local needs—it is possible to com-
plete the great effort to raise $6,000,000
in Detroit before May 1.

Help the Red Cross

In the all-out effort for peace, security
and freedom, it is vitally necessary that all
Americans should stand ready to back up
our Government and at the same time to be
helpful in humanitarian efforts to alleviate
suffering.
The Red Cross, as one of the chief in-
struments in serving our armed forces—by
providing blood plasma for urgent use—as
well as in training first aiders and nurses'
_aides and by helping in the civil de-
fense program at home — should be given
our wholehearted support.

THE JEWISH NEWS

Member: American Association of English-Jewish News-
papers. Michigan Press Association.
Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publishing
Co. 708-10 David Stott Bldg., Detroit 26, Mich., WO. 5-1155.
Subscription $3 a year; foreign $4.
Entered as second class matter Aug. 6, 1942 at Post Office,
Detroit. Mich., under Act of March 8, 1879.

PHILIP SLOMOVITZ, Editor
SIDNEY SHMARAK, Advertising Manager

Vol. XVIII—No. 25

Page 4

March 2, 1951

Sabbath Scriptural Selections

This Sabbath, the twenty-fifth 'day of Adar
1, 5711, the following Scriptural selections will
be read in. our synagogues:
Pentateuchal portion—Ex. 35:1-38:20;30:11-16.
Prophetical portion—II Kings 12:1-17.
On Thursday and Friday, Rosh Hodesh Adar
Sheni, Num. 28:1-15 will be read during morning
services.

11/4\

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Genesis of Septuagint
Told in Notable Book

"Aristeas to Philocrates" (Letter of Aristeas-Y,
edited and translated by Dr. Moses Hadas, as-
sociate professor of Greek and Latin at Columbia
University, published by Harper in collaboration
with Dropsie College, is the type of work that
will retain its value as a great classic for gen-
erations to come.
Published as the second volume in the series
"Jewish Apocryphal Literature," under the ed-
itorship of Prof. Solomon Zeitlin, this book
throws light on Jewish history in the era when
the translation of the Hebrew Pentateuch into
Greek commenced under the sponsorship of
Ptolemy II Philadelphus who reigni.d in 285-247
'
BCE, and in whose court Ar-
isteas was an official. It is
not a book for popular con-
sumption; it requires deep
study and careful reading.
But for the scholar and the
student of the Bible and Jew-
ish history, its publication is
a momentous event in Jew-
ish life.
"Aristeas to Philocrates"

—the letter which explains
the genesis of the Septua-
gint—is replete with inter-
Dr. Hadas
esting comments on Jew-
ish life, on the Land of Israel, on the City of
Jerusalem, on many Jewish attitudes.
Its rich contents are supplemented by schol-
arly notes by the able editor and translator. Dr.
Hadas explains at great lengh the intricate de-
Speaking before the Institute for Israel and the Middle tails ' of the book. In a lengthy and most in-

Israel's Wise Spending

East, at Dropsie College, on the economic problems of the
Middle East, Sidney Sherwood, secretary of the Export-
Import Bank, of Washington, expressed the view that "Is-
rael will succeed in her economic program" and declared
that few of the 40 countries in the world that have borrowed
funds from the United States "have used their loan dollars
more wisely or meticulously" than Israel.
Mr. Sherwood made some reservations and offered
sound advice. He pointed to "one basic fact" that continues
to challenge Israel, emphasizing that "even with the phe-
nomenal progress made thus far in increasing the output of
farm and factory, the increase in Israel's productive ca-
pacity is not keeping pace with the increase in her popula-
tion." He added : "Until this gap is closed, Israel will con-
tinue to maintain her balance of payments only in precarious
equilibrium through foreign contributions and investments."
Here is how the $135,000,000 loaned to Israel by the
Export-Import Bank has been used for the establishment
of new farms, equipping and expanding old settlements and
construction of fertilizer plants, according to Mr. Sherwood:
$20,000,000 for industrial expansion, $20,000,000 for trans-
portation and telecommunication,. $25,000,000 for housing.
Since she was given the first credit of $35,000,000 for ag-
ricultural development, Israel has invested twice that
amount—$70,000,000—in this field, the Export-Import Bank
official said, adding: "These funds have been used for the
development or expansion of 20,000 farms and Israel's food
supply has increased 50 percent in the two years since the
beginning of the Export-Import Bank program."

Mr. Sherwood revealed that more than 300 separate Israeli
firms have received loans under the $20,000,000 allocated from
the credit, for industry, the total invested capital of these firms
being four times the amount of the loans. He stated : "Out of
the Export-Import Bank funds, the port of Haifa has been en-
larged and equipped with cranes and other handling equipment
which increased its capacity by reducing the turn-around time
of ships which formerly had to lie at anchor for long periods
awaiting a berth at the pier."
The Export-Import Bank official, who is considered one of
the foremost American experts on the Middle East, said that the
existence of a large number of Arab refugees is a bar to per-
manent security for both Israel and the Arab countries. "Their
integration into the life of the area is as essential for the secur-
ity and economic development in Israel as it is for the sur-
rounding Arab countries," he said, and emphasized that the
Arabs are economically dependent on the Israelis and the Israelis
on the Arabs.
Mr. Sherwood said that the embargo on trade with Israel is
hurting and holding back the economies of the Arab countries as
much as it is harming Israel. He cited a number of cases indi-
cating how Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq are affected by the
economic boycott which they maintain against Israel, pointing
out that "nowhere is the adverse effect of the embargo more
striking than in the case of potash from the Dead Sea," and
declared:
"Here lies a great potential resource which, with the coming
of real peace in the Middle East, can become one of the prin-
cipal sources of foreign exchange for both Jordan and Israel.
Until these arbitrary restrictions on normal commercial inter-
course between the countries of the area are removed by agree-
ment, economic development will be restricted in the Middle
East."

There is an important purpose in these extensive quo-
tations from a. public address. Mr. Sherwood has indicated
that the United. States has faith in Israel and in her po-
tential strength. Our Government, as President Truman and
many important officials have reiterated time and again,•
trust Israel's integrity and wise administrative ability. The
question we pose, therefore, is whether Jews have similar
faith in their kinsmen who are struggling to make their
young state prosper economically; whether Jewish com-
munities throughout the world, but especially the prosper-
ous Jewry of America, will uphold the hands of the builders
of Medinat Israel?
The test is at hand. The United Jewish Appeal is con-
ducting its annual campaign. The Israel Government bond
drive will start on May 1. Are we preparing to give positive
answers to both ? Mr. Sherwood's statements imply that we
should; the first answers to the UJA and the Israel bond
appeals assert that we will.

formative introduction, he reviews the authorship
of the letter, date of its writing and the evidence
for dating, the political situation of that time,
linguistic usage, the affinity between Aristeas
and the Maccabees.
Then there is the evidence on Aristeas' work
by Josephus and Philo, and other scholars; the
story of the Greek translation of the Bible as
recorded by rabbinic and patristic writers. The
author also comments at length on Aristeas' im-
pressions of Jews and Judaism. Dr. Hadas' corn-
ments are, with reference to the experiences Oi
Aristeas:

"When he receives the company of trans-
lators and entertains them, the king is not
lionizing exotic freaks or prudentially showing
consideration out of political expediency. The
men merit his esteem by reason of their own
worth, and they are careful to say that it is
his worth as well as his position which elicits
their esteem. The peculiarities of their dining
habits are neither made conspicuous nor
brushed aside. Many nations have like peculi-
arities, and the royal menage is fully organ-
ized to meet various requirements. There is no _
need for Jews either to dissemble' or to take
the opposite course of calling attention to their
own usages. Indeed, in the social and official
intercourse as depicted in Aristeas there is not
even any question of tolerance : men of differ-
ing traditions understand one another and,
recognizing their differences, live together in
harmony."

The ideas reflected in the Aristeas letter are -
in themselves uniquely fascinating. As Dr. Hadas •

points out, "books are not written in a vacuum,
and Aristeas' views of Jews and Judaism cannot
have been merely his own but must reflect the
social, intellectual, and spiritual climate of the
Egyptian Jews in the second century BCE, when
their numbers and prestige had made them a
considerable element in the population and be-
fore anti-Semitism had raised its head. AristeaS
shows that the Egyptian Jews embraced the
dominant culture enthusiastically, and assim-
ilated their own to it to the extent of adopting
its' social usages, literary forms, and philosophical
beliefs insofar as they were not in direct opposi-
tion to central religious tenets of their own."
Exploding Septuagint legends after Aristeas,
Dr. Hadas reviews the ideas of the Greek author
of the letter on the Septuagint as intended "to
give official authority to the Greek version o
the Bible."
Dr. Hadas' work is intriguing and fascinating.
It adds great value to the "Jewish Apocryphal
Literature" series, whose first volume, "The First L
Book of Maccabees," appeared six months ago.

'Ye Shall Live'

"And 1 will lay sinews upon you and bring
up flesh upon you . . and ye shall live."
—Ezekiel, 37.3.

By NOAH E. ARONSTAM
I thought that my lyre lie shatter'd in dust,

Forever forgotten—it never would rise
To distill in sweet accents the throbs of my heart,
Of hopes and of visions far subtler than price.
Then the burden of the Prophet awoke in m
mind:
"Tell me, oh mortal, think ye, will these bones

e'er live,

And be vested with garments of sinews anew,
With strength to forge forward, with love t

attain,

With trust in the future that never again
Shall they cease from their toil to cleave to the
soil?
Aye, spake the Lord, ye dry bones shall breathe
and live as of yore."
And as I mused, my lyre grew suddenly strong
And burst forth in a jubilant paean of song

.

