Moscow's Chief Rabbi Follows Soviet Line on Judais
(Continued from Page 1)
Are there any Yiddish
books?
"No."
Is there a state Yiddish or
Hebrew publishing house?
"No."
Why not?
"There is no need for one."
Why was there a need in the
1930s and none now?
Rabbi: "I do not know."
The visitor recalled the gold-
en period of three decades ago.
Yiddish books were published
in editions of 100,000 copies. In
1930 there were 178 titles total-
ing 750,000 copies. A year later,
the Yiddish State Publishing
House in Kharkov published
746 titles totaling 5,000,000
copies. Yiddish book publishing
increased five-fold from 1913 to
1939.
Yet today, with the number
of Jews in the Soviet Union ap-
proximately what it was then,
the amount has fallen to zero.
Arab Nations Criticized for
Refugees' Non-Cooperation
UNITED NATIONS, N. Y.,
(JTA)--After nearly ten years
of operation the United Nations
'Relief and Works Agency for
Palestine refugees in the Mid-
dle East is still unable to obtain
the full cooperation of the Arab
"host" governments in whose
countries the refugees are main-
tained. the UN General Assem-
bly was officially informed.
The charge was made in the
report to the Assembly of the
agency's activities during the
year ending June 30. It was
filed by Dr. John H. Davis,
UNWRA director. The Davis
report, plus one by UN Secre-
tary General Dag Hammarskjold
recommending the integration
of the Arab refugees into the
economies of Arab countries,
will be debated by the Assem-
Gen. Sarnoff Gets
Bnai Brith Medal
bly's special Political Commit-
tee.
Dr. Davis reminded the As-
sembly that the mandate of
UNWRA expires next June 30.
He also stated that thus far
UNWRA has received only $23,-
000,000 of the funds pledged to
it by member states for 1959.
He said that even if the pledged
total of $37,300,000 was paid
in full, the agency would still
have a 1959 deficit of $1,600,000.
On the assumption that oper-
ations would not be forced to
halt next June 30, he submitted
a budget for 1960 calling for
expenditures of $38,700,000.
Engel Among U.S.
Leaders to Attend
German Parley
NEW YORK, (JTA)—Irving
M. Engel, honorary president
of the American Jewish Com-
mittee, left this week for West
Germany to participate in a
conference in Bad Godesberg,
near Bonn, which . will take up
—among other issues =- the
question of education of. Ger-
man youth.
The question • was discussed
several months ago by Dr. John
Slawson. AJC executive . yice
president, with a number of
_West. German- -government: ed u-
.Cationat and:714:01itient:4-4.-elders
during a visit to Germany.
. Engel _ . is a member of a
delegation of 24 leading .Amer-
icans who will take part in the
fourday—conference with ..West
.German leaders on• the future
of American-German relations.
Included in the delegation
are John J. MCCloy, former
U. S. -High Commissioner of
Germany; _Gov. Robert D. Mey-
ner of New - -Jersey; former
:U. S. Secretary of State Dean
Acheson; Dr. James, Conant,
former -U. S. Ambassador to
Great Britain: a number of
rifenibers. of - both houses and
•of the U. S. CongresS, and other
prominent: Americans. •
Gen. DAVID SARNOFF will
receive - the Bnai Brith. Presi-
dent's Medal , for "creative
genius in higher .commtinica-
tions—that of advancing_ knewl-
edge _ and understanding
tween men and nations." Label
A. Katz, Bnai Brith president,
will make the 'presentation
Nov: 10 at a - $100-a-pers'on diii
'nor in New - York for support
of. Bnai -Brith's: varied . national
yoUth programs.
Classified ads bring fast results!
1
•
"Not exactly zero," the rap
corrected. "The works of Sh
lem Aleichem and a siddur wer
recently published."
Nothing else?
"There is no need."
The State. Publishing Corn -
pany, however, has announce
plans to publish a book of Yid
dish folk songs written by Zino .
vi Kompanieyetz, a Jewish corn
poser. A Russiari-Hebrew dic •
tionary is also believed to be i L
preparation by a Moscow scien
tific institution.
- Why is there no Yiddish
theater? Before the war there
were 10 Yiddish state theaters
and two theatrical_ schools.
Rabbi: "There is no need.
Besides, many today do not
speak Yiddish. They would
not understand any plays in
Yiddish, There is no audience
and therefore no demand."
Then virtually nothing Yid-
dish • is left? No Yiddish i
taught, none being published,
none being performed?
"Perhaps."
During the past four years
the jubilee issue of Sholem Alei
chem's works, 200 pages Ion g
and printed in 30,000 copies,
was the only book published in
Yiddish. During the same period
the SoViet Union published
1,700 titles totaling 70,000,000
copies in many languages.
In 1948, just before Stalin
banned Yiddish and began his
intensive drive against the Jews,
an official Soviet publication
listed 70 Yiddish-language nov-
elists and ranked the volume
of Yiddish literature third be-
hind that of Russia and the
Ukraine.
Rabbi: "Today our people
read Russian. There is little in-
terest in Yiddish. There is
enough to read. Yiddish is not
so important any more."
But there are believed to be
at least 100 Yiddish writers,
poets and dramatists remaining.
They have had no opportunity
to be published or produced in
recent years.
Rabbi: "There is no interest."
The visitor recalled the third
All-Union Congress of Soviet
Writers in June. Not once were
Yiddish writers or Yiddish lit-
erature mentioned.
Rabbi Levine remained -silent
for a moment. Then the re-
turned to his favorite theme.
How many books, he asked,
were being published in Yiddish
in America?
i
IF YOU TURN THE
Dock Workers Put Aside Strike
to Unload Esrogim for Sukkot
-
Direct JTA Teletype Wire to The Jewish News_
NEW YORK—Longshoremen of Local. 1814 in Brook
lyn, ,
- in the midst of an East Coast dock strike; • gave special
consideration Tuesday morning to a - cargo of eight cases
of Israel esrogim Tuesday aboard the SS Zion of the , Zim
lines and unloaded them in time for distribution among
American Jews who will use them during the forthcoming
•ukkot holiday.
_
-
:
- - •
The longshoremen!s action came -in response to -a plea
by Gregory Bardacke, executive - director of the - American •
Trade Union Council for Histadrut. -
. When Bardacke brought to-the attention of the: leader
of the striking longshoremen the fact that the perishable
goods are for religious use and • their delayed .unloading
would cause great financial losses to the Israel farm workers,
he responded readily and the esrogim were quickly unloaded
and sped to the retailers of Jewish religious articles
throughout the country.
Ike's New Year Message in Bnai Brith Archives
WASHINGTON — President hibil hall of the Bnai Brith
Eisenhower this week for- here, which has among its his-
warded to Bnai Brith the orig- torical display the originals
inal, signed copy of his mes- of other messages and .corres-
sage of greeting to American pondence that relate to Jewish
Jews on the High Holy Days. affairs and were signed by
It will be placed in the ex- American presidents.
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interpretation
INTERPRETATION is that creative quality which a per-
former brings to a work of art. It is this quality that marks
the genius of mezzo-soprano JENNIE TOUREL, one of the
most distiguished recitalists in the United States today.
Jennie Tourel will appear with Israeli violinist Shimon
Mishory at the 27th Balfour Concert on Saturday, 8:30
P.M., November 14 at the Ford Auditorium. It is through
your efforts that the important work of our Kfar Silver
Agricultural Institute and .Children's Village in Israel can
be continued.
SPONSORED BY: THE ZIONIST ORGANIZATION OF DETROIT
FORD AUDITORIUM, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 1959, AT 8:30 P.M.
TICKETS: ZIONIST HOUSE, DI 1-8540
•