THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS — Friday, September 8, 1961

e

outhern wish Lawyer
Lincoln Imbued Sense of NorthernJus
First Novel by
t,' said he, 'as I always do
nt pro- 'int
, the rabid but el
York merchants having extensive
By HARRY SIMONHOFF
e eloquent speech of my
'Michael Rubin:
isi
slavery Senator
(Copyright, 1961,
and very profitable business
Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Inc.)
nd, the Senator from Louisi-
and Be •
lations with the merchants s
When Abraham Lincoln deliv- of the Mason and Dixon lin
na—an Israelite with Egyptian
free-soil
`Trip Into Town' ered
his fainous speech in 1859
principles.' "

Michael Rubin is 26, yet he
already has had an interesting
career—having studied in Aus-
tralia for 16 months on a Ful-
bright grant and later having
worked for an organization pro-
moting sports parachuting. He
earned his M.A. at Columbia
University Teachers College and
is now teaching at Gorton High
School, Yonkers, N. Y.
Apparently he is turning to
writing, and 'his first novel,
"A Trip Into Town," published
by Harper augurs well for his
future career. It is a well writ-
ten story and it reveals a fine
style and narrative skill.
The new novel's contents will,
however, perplex the reader who
will wonder why so much space
and time is devoted to a pecu-
liar girl.
The story is told in the first
person by Steven. It involves
a nice girl, Esther, who con-
forms to her parents' middle
class Jewish ways, and their
friend, Suki (Susan Goodman),'
who for a time was Esther's
college roommate a n d who
really is the major character
in the story: she is the story
itself.
• Steven loves Suki in spite of
her crazy ways, her many in-
volvements with men, her even-
tual pregnancy and her mar-
riage to some one else. Even
after Steven himself is married
he still thinks about Suki. He
remains intrigued by her ex-
citing, if abnormal, ways.
The characters are Jewish,
but in the author's treatment
of them it is difficult to avoid
believing that he tries to be
clever. For instance, he has
Suki say: "Mother likes you.
You're going to be fed. It's the
Jewish way of proclaiming that
your existence has met with
the approval of the tribe."
Or, when he describes one
of the men with whom Suki
becomes- involved, the teacher
and author Leon Kossoff, the
title of the latter's novel is
"The Fortunes of S h l o m o
O'Brien." Kossoff's mistress
Hannah — he later marries her
and disappoints Suki -- lets
off this type of steam: "Knishes.
He was knishes. He said he was
tired of cheap cheese spreads
among the gentiles. Knishes and
pigs-in-the-blankets, as though
it was my bar mitzvah or some-
thing . . ."
So—good writing is utilized
for a crazy theme and for some
mimicking that gets a bit bor-
ing. But "A Trip Into Town"
is certainly well written and
points to a good future for an
able author whose plots, we
hope, will be much more stimu-
lating in his forthcoming works.

Health checkups are becom-
ing more popular. According to
an American Cancer Society
survey, the number of Ameri-
can having checkups since 1948
has mare than doubled, helping
to improve the cancer cure
rate.

at Cooper Union in New York
and immediately became a' pres-
idential possibility he met a
young Jewish lawyer, one of the
few active Republicans in a city
dominated by the Democratic
Tammany Hall.
But Abram J. Dittenhoefer
did not become intimate with
the Great Emancipator until the
1864 campaign. A delegate from
New York at the National Re-
publican Convention, he cast his
vote for Lincoln. He had a long
talk with the President at the
White House several days before
the assassination.
In 1836 Abram Dittenhoefer
was born in Charleston. When
he was four years old, his par-
ents moved to New York and
took him along together with
their pro slavery sentiments.
How young Abram changed his
and their views is recorded
"Personal Recollections of
Coln and Men of His
of which the follow].
part:
"Born in Charle n, South
ratic pro-
Carolina, of De
as brought
slavery parents,
w the
York;
and
in early youth to th
senti-
although imbued
ments and anti thies of my
nt, I soon be-
Southern enviro
Southerner
,came known as
es. At that
with Northern prin
orthern
time there were ma
• les.
men with Southern p
"The City of New York,
discovered upon reaching the age
of observation, - was 'virtually an
annex of the South, the New

Mrs. .Kalat Appointed
Principal of Alma Mater

JERS E.Y CITY, • (JTA) —
Pupils returning to school at
P.S. 15 this week were greeted
by a principal 'who graduated
there.
Mrs. Molly Kalat, Mother of
three, has the proud distinction
of returning as principal to the
school from which she gradu-
ated. She was assistant princi-
pal of P.S. 23 for -the past four
years. She is now the only
Jewish woman principal of the
Jersey City elementary school
system.

Exciting Archaelog'
r
Find at Caesare
t e name of
A stone
e, Roman Gov-
Pontius
dea from 26-35 A.D.,
ernor of
vered at Caesarea
was d .
an Italian archa
rael,
m headed by Pr
cal
io Frova, dire
A
rnment Sery
ies for North
ally d
ge
lthough
es of
ree
e stone s
message right side.
) "Tiberieum' which is un-
rstood to be dedication to
e Roman E eror of the
iad; (2) "tius Pilate", P-0-
issing, as well as the G
's first name; (3)
e
be
rocurator" appear
tar
indicated,
hough
the
much
• de

Paris Bomb Hits Rabbi's Home;
Son Injured in Terrorist Blast

PARIS, (JTA) = A plastic
bomb, believed to have been
planted by extreme right-wing
French terrorists opposed to
President Charles de Gaulle's
Algerian policy, badly damaged
the home of Chief Rabbi Jacob
Kaplan here. Benjamin Kaplan,
the Chief Rabbi's eldest son,
was injured slightly by flying
glass. The Chief Rabbi and the
rest of his family were absent.
The bomb caused heavy dam-
age to the apartment house
where the Chief Rabbi main-
tains his home. Three auto-

mobiles parked near the build-
ing were also damaged.
It was pointed out here that
the bombing of Rabbi Kaplan's
home was not an anti-Semitic
act but another of the terror-
istic policy carried out here by
the opponents of President de
Gaulle's Algerian policy. Last
week the home of Rev. Marc
Bergnere ; former president of
the French Protestant Associa-
tion, was also bombed. Rabbi
Kaplan and the Rev. Bergnere
have collaborated in the move-
ment backing President de
Gaulle's Algerian policy.

tracted
"The South was the
a
in Fiad
"Be
customer of New York. I
se
of
dress
in
strop
said in those days, 'our
rose and
slaver when W
chants have for sale on th
an his reply
replied. H
shelves their principles, t
itter and memor-
gether with their merchan-
able
words,
words
which com-
dise. . .
pletely changed my political
"At nineteen I was wavering
views.
in my fidelity to the principles
"I have listened with intense
of the Democratic party, which,
in the city of New York, was
largely in favor of slavery.
"Sitting one day at my desk,
I took up a newspaper, and the
debate between Judah P. Benja-

Israel Regions P

views in
One of the f .
posing JNF
Israel is the
r of Massua in
Fire Watcht
Ur-
ea.
the Ad
the 2,000,000
rou
pend hce Forest planted by
ritish Jewry and other wood-
lands. The Abullam area, de-
veloped through the initiative
ational Fund,
of the Jewish
dunams
stretches over 00
along th eep , vines,
ar
fruit, be cat
occupatio
th' . lai
e
area was
ere
's regions
first
ut ac-
ment was earri
de
ehensive
g to a co
over 30
anal plan.
round "rural,
vi ages groupe
connected with
centers" a
an center of Qiryat
the new
s achieved great effi-
Gat •
ncy in its farming and indus-
trial activity. In this region are
several JNF `nahloat' such as
Hevel Simon Marks and others
bearing the names of Anglo-
Jewish leaders.

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O l e

JEWISH NATIONAL FUND

GREETS THE ENTIRE
JEWISH COMMUNITY
WITH BEST WISHES
FOR A

HAPPY
NEW YEAR

MORRIS J. BRANDWINE

PERCY KAPLAN

President

Executive Director

WILLIAM HORDES

MRS. EDWARD WISHNETSKY

Chairman of Foundation

President Ladies' Auxiliary

Want ads bring fast results!

••

"The years have no limit;

thy life has no end; in-

conceivable is thy celes-
tial glory; none can ex-
plain thy mysterious
essence."
—From the Rosh
Hashanah Liturgy

In welcoming the year 5722, we join
in prayer for the welfare of our
friends, for the security of our
country, for the peace of the world.
May -the New Year bring fulfillment
of the highest ideals of mankind.

Officers and Agents

Detroit Center Agency

of the

CROWN LIFE INSURANCE CO.

TORONTO, CANADA

1172 FIRST NATIONAL BUILDING