Please Get Off the Marked Trail!
THE JEWISH NEWS
Incorporating the Detroit Jewish Chronicle commencing with issue of July 20, 1951
Member American Association 'of English-Jewish Newspapers, Michigan Press Association, National Editorial Asso-
ciation
Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publishing Co., 17100 West Seven Mile Road, Detroit 35, Mich., VE.
8-9364. Subscription $5 a year, Foreign $6.
Entered as second class matter Aug. 6. 1942, at Post Office, Detroit, Mich., under Act of March 3, 1879
PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
Editor and Publisher
SIDNEY SHMARAK
A dvertising Manager
FRANK SIMONS
City Editor
Sabbath Scriptural Selections
This. Sabbath, the ninth day of Tebet, 5716, the following Scriptural selections will be read in
our synagogues:
Pentateuchal portion, Gen, 44:18-47:27. Prophetical portion, Ezek, .37:15 2g.
-
Fast of Tebet Readings of the Torah, Sunday
Pentateuchal portion, Es. 32:11-14:34:1-10. Prophetical portion, Is. 55:6-56:8.
Licht Benshen, Friday, Dec. 23, 4:47 p.m.
VOL. XXVIH. No. 16
Page Four
December -23, 1955
Arab-British Alliance: A Tragic Comedy
The British position in the Middle
Eastern crisis and the attitude of the Arab
states on the question of Israel's existing
territorial boundaries appear to be related.
Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden, in his
proposal for - compromises and concessions,
is clearly implying territorial rearrange-
ments. At the same 'time, the Arab states, by
making an about-face on the out-dated parti-
tion plan of 1947, similarly are seeking to
take from Israel territory that is now gen-
erally considered a logical part of the Jewish
State.
An important point to remember is that
ALL of the Arab states had defied the au-
thority of the United Nations when the
original partition proposal first was adopted;
and that Great Britain had abstained from
voting on the partition plan after opposing
it vigorously in the debates preceding the
final vote. These two partners in the move
to prevent the creation of an independent
Jewish homeland now again are allied in an
effort to reduce the very small Israeli state
into an area that could no longer accept
additional Jewish settlers. In view of the
fact that the chief Jewish sufferers from
persecutions today are to be found in Moslem
countries, whence a quarter of a million
more Jews must be rescued before they
are destroyed, the political comedy , now
being enacted, with the Arabs and Great
Britain as the chief actors, becomes a seri-
ous tragedy.
*. * *
The facts in the Middle East situation
should be made known for a proper knowl-
edge of true conditions. On Nov. 13, 1955,
Gen. Nasser, the Egyptian Premier. made this
statement: "Israel has so far shown only
disrespect for the United Nations resolu-
tions. What Egypt wants before anything
else is for Israel to change this attitude and
to show more respect for these resolutions."
"A documented history of the partition
resokition," compiled by Jon Kimche, an
authority on Middle East affairs, published
in the current issue of the Jewish Observer
and Middle East Review of London, exposes
the misrepresentations in this statement. At
the outset. Mr. Kimche declares that a
"tragedy of errors" is being repeated: As-
serting that Prime Minister Eden, in his
Guildhall speech, "gave hostages to fortune
which he will never be able to ransom," Mr.
Kimche writes:
"This is 1948 all over again. Then the
Arabs THOUGHT that it was British pol-
icy that they should go to war against
Palestine Jewry; they really BELIEVED
that the British would back them to the
hilt. When the British government failed
to do so, or confined itself to diplomatic
or just half-hearted support, the Arab
leaders and peoples turned on the British
with even greater bitterness than even on
either the Americans or the Russians who
had supported the Zionist cause.
"For in the Arab eyes, it seemed that
while the U. S. and the Soviet Union had
openly opposed them, the British had mis-
led and betrayed the Arabs. At the Guild-
hall Sir Anthony went through all the
motions of a repeat performance of this
tragedy of errors."
What was the attitude of the Arabs
towards the 1947 UN Partition Resolution as
contrasted with their current statements
and the above quotation from Gen. Nasser's
November 'declaration? Mr. Kimche has
compiled excerpts from assertions by Arabs,
at the 124th plenary meeting of the UN
General Assembly at Flushing Meadows,
New York, on Nov. 24, 1947. We quote some
of them:
For the Yemen—H.R.H. Prince Self El Islam
Abdullah said: "We have made it clear that the
partition plan is illegal. . . . The plan is unwork-
able. Because of this injustice and illegality the
Arabs do not agree to it."
For Egypt—Mahmoud Bey Fawzi said: "The
General Assembly is not competent to impose any
solution in this matter. We will not adopt and we
will not implement the proposed recommendation
by the General Assembly."
For Syria—Emir Arslan said: "No plan has
ever been more contrary to logic or to social,
political and 'economic laws; as for us, we will
never recognize this proposed partition and we
reserve the right to act accordingly."
For the Lebanon—Kamil Charmoun said: "This
plan . . . unjust and inequitable . .. a precedent
fraught witth very serious consequences."
For Iraq—Dr. Fadhil Jamali said: "A report
which is totally unacceptable to the Arabs, which
needs force for its implementation. . . . This plan
is most partial and unjust. The plan is unwork-
able from an economic, administrative and politi-
cal point of view."
[Today Fawzi is Egypt's Foreign Minister,
Charmoun is President of the Lebanon, and
Jamali is Iraq's representative at the U.N.]
The vote: Three days later, on Saturday, Nov.
29, 1947, the General Assembly proceeded to vote
by roll call on the Resolution on the future Gov-
ernment of Palestine. Thirty-three votes were
cast in favor and 13 against. Among those who
opposed were India and Pakistan, and the six
Arab States. Ten countries abstained from voting.
Among them were Great.Britain and Yugoslavia.
After the vote had been announced, the Arab
delegations again mounted the rostrum to make
formal declarations.
For Saudi Arabia — H.R.H. Emir Faisal said:
"The Government of Saudi Arabia registers, on
this historic occasion, the fact that it does not
consider itself bound by the resolution adopted
today by the General Assembly. Furthermore, it
reserves to itself the full right to act freely in
whatever way it deems fit."
For Iraq—Fadhil Jamali said: "The decision
Which we have now taken undermines peace, jus-
tice and democracy. . . . Iraq does not recognize
the validity of this decision and will reserve her
freedom of action towards its implementation, and
holds those who were influential in passing it
against the free conscience of mankind respon-
sible for the consequences."
* * *
The Noted Swing Musicians
N•
Pictorial History of Jazz
Crown Publishers (419 4th, N.Y. 16) are to be congratulated
for the production of another exceptionally fine book—"A Pictorial
History of Jazz, People and Places from New Orleans to Modern
Jazz," by Orrin Keepnews and Bill Grauer, Jr.
This is a real treasure. It is a _thorough review of Jazz and
Jazz-men and a splendid evaluation of this art, in stories and pic-
tures, in which Negroes have especially excelled.
There are to be found also the names of some very distin-
guished Jewish musicians who share in the development of the art
of Jazz. Notable among them is Benny Goodman to whom the
authors devote a considerable amount of space. As a 14-year-old
clarinetist in Chicago, Goodman's career is traced in the many
fields in which he excels. He went to New York, at 19, with Ben
Pollack's band, and soon his star began to shine.
The "official opening of the Swing Era" began with Goodman's
Orchestra in 1936. Harry Goodman was on bass with him.
The saga of the "incredible early popularity" of Benny
Goodman is told in many pages of pictures and stories. Ziggy
Elman was one of the stars who arose from this group of mush
cians. The Goodman Trio, Quartet and Sextet became as famous
as the Goodman Orchestra.
In the Goodman story, the authors state: "Swing itself, as a
feverish, all-pervading fad, is of course gone. It might have burned
itself out in time, but actually its end
was hastened by World War II: the draft,
travel restrictions and the like made the
big, traveling bands unfeasible. By the
time the war ended, the music business
was emphasizing individual vocalists
(representing less of an investment risk)
and jazz had turned in other directions.
But Goodman himself has retained his
personal prestige and drawing power,
Subsequent history is well known. On
and has made more than one successful
Dec. 8, 1947, the Arab premiers met in Cairo
return to action."
and resolved "to do everything possible to
There are many more whose names
bring about the. collapse of the UN partition
are known widely, whose great contri-
plan and to encourage opposition to the
butions to jazz must be recorded as
establishment of the Jewish State." On Jan.
having been among the phenomenal
19,_ 1948, "the Palestine Arab Higher Com-
gifts to American music. Roger Wolfe
mittee rejected an invitation of the UN
Kahn, trumpeter, Max Kaminsky, Mar-
Secretary-General to take its part, together
gie Hyams, Artie Shapiro, Joe Bush-
-, kin, Izzy Friedman, Al Cohn, Artie
with Great Britain and the Jewish Agency,
Benny Goodman Bernstein, Harry Mordecai, and many,
in participating in the UN Palestine Com-
mission in acordance with the Partition many more figure in this fascinating story.
Students of music will find this book indispensable for an
Resolution of November, 1947."
of knowledge about jazz, and all who are interested in
The Arabs not only launched a war acquisition
the history of an American art will be well informed and enchanted
against Israel, but informed the UN of their
by this story.
' '
Wilson s
intention to "persist in refusal to recognize
the UN resolution."
Dead
On Feb. 16, 1948, the UN Palestine Com-
"The Scrolls From the Dead Sea" by Edmund Wilson, published
mission established by the partition resolu-
tion presented a special report to the UN by Oxford University Press (.114 5th, NY11) is the extended form
of the author's famous article in the New Yorker magazine. It is
Security Council in which it stated:
"The Commission now finds itself
confronted with an attempt to defy its
purposes, and to nullify the Resolution of
the General Assembly . .. Powerful Arab
interests, both inside and outside Pales-
tine, are defying the Resolution of the
General Assembly and are engaged in a
deliberate effort to alter by force the set-
tlement envisaged therein."
The British were then directly involved
in the fight against the Jewish State, Jor-
danian forces having been directed, as they
are to this very day, at an annual subsidy
of $26,000,000, by British generals, headed by
General (Pasha) John Bagot Glubb.
But charges of failure to implement the
UN Partition Resolution now are directed
not against the Arabs, who started a war
and who repudiated the United Nations, but
against Israel!
The historical facts read like a comedy,
but they have developed, in reality, into a
major tragedy.
The tragedy can be averted, provided
the United States and Great Britain act
firmly to dispel the misrepresentations that
may have taken root among the uninformed.
Let the facts be known, so that truth
and justice should not be sacrificed on the
altar of unwise international political moves,
on a chessboard that is loaded with false
figures.
Sea Scrolls'
the report of the able author and critic on the recent discoveries,
and the purchase of the Scrolls for the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem.
Mr. Wilson's report precipitated, in part, the worldwide dis-
cussion of the signficance of the Scrolls. Some question their
authenticity.
Dr. Solomon Zeitlin's repudiation of the Scrolls as belonging
to the first century of the Christian era are disputed by Mr.
Wilson. He refers to a Jewish viewpoint that the Scrolls may
impair the authority of the. Masoretic text of the Bible and to "a
resistance to admitting that the religion of Jesus could have
grown in an organic way."
Mr. Wilson then proceeds: "Do these prejudices and precon-
ceptions play some role in certain stubborn attempts—apparently,
against all the evidence—of such scholars as Solomon Zeitlin of
Dropsie College in Philadelphia and G. C. Driver of Oxford to date
the scrolls very late? Dr. Zeitlin, who believes that the Karaites
did not derive their doctrine from the Zadokites but wrote the
Zadokite documents themselves, wants to put them in the eighth
century; Dr. Driver inclines toward the sixth. In either case, their
teachings could have played no role in the early development of
Cristianity. Do such considerations have anything to do with the
persistence—not untinged, one fears, with acrimony—with which
Dr. Joseph Reider, also of Dropsie College, has attempted to explain
away the text of the Dead Sea Isaiah, in which Brownlee has found
evidence of the Messianism either of Second Isaiah himself or of
the scribe who made the Dead Sea copy."
Thus, the debate continues, with overwhelming support, thus
far, going to Mr. Wilson. Those who have studied the Zeitlin-
Driver opinions retain the view that not sufficient consideration
has been given to their arguments.
Meanwhile, the Wilson text is being widely read and enjoyed for
its brilliant writing and fascinating narrative. Only time will
solve the problem of authenticity—Dr. Zeitlin being given the full
chance to prove his points.