Purely Commentary

By Philip SIOMOVitZ

Compromises Gain Foothold . . . Peace Not Impossible
It is obligatory upon all—the nations of the world jointly with
Israel and the Arab states—to lend validity to every effort to attain
a lasting cease fire in the Middle East and eventually to assure peace.
There are difficulties — it is not easy to abandon OUR Shehem
(Nablus), the spot of OUR Patriarchs (Hebron). or to discuss even-
tualities in the Golan Heights. (Jerusalem is not in question—the city
must remain united under the just rule of Israel and with assurances
that are never in doubt to the religions that are imbedded in sacred

places there).
If compromises are to be made, they must be made, and there
must be every possible approach to confidence that peace can be

'Curacao Ritual Bath DatingBack 300 Years
Discovered Behind Plaster of Historic Buildings

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao — A
centuries-old Jewish ritual bath,
"lost" for generations behind the '
plaster-covered facade of one of
this Caribbean island's historic'
buildings, has been discovered.
The find was made while work-
men were restoring the structure,
known as Kuiperstraat 28. The
building had been used more re-
cently' as a Chinese laundry, but
now appears to have played an
important role in Curacao's reli-
gious heritage.
The rectangular brick bath.
called a mikva, is believed to be
at least 300 years old. About 4
feet by 7 feet and 21/2 feet deep.
with interior steps leading down
into the water, it was used by
early Jewish women settlers as
part of a pre-nuptial purification
ritual.
According to historians, bathing
itself in those days was not a
common practice.
"There was great excitement
when we first spotted a line of
red bricks along the wall at
floor level," said Dr. Jessy Jes-
urun, a Curacao dentist who
made the discovery while su-
pervising restoration of Kuiper-
straat 28.
As more and more of the de-
bris of centuries was meticulously
removed, the ritual bath was re-
vealed, exactly as it had been
during ancient religious ceremo-
nies. Dr. Jesurun quickly noted
the significance of the discovery.
"Oldtirners in Curacao have
long insisted the Kuiperstraat was
the 'Street of the Bath' (hanchi
di banio)," he said, "but it was an
old wives' tale. Now we know dif-
ferently . . . a mystery has been
solved."
Jewish symbols on Kuiperstraat
28 (palm of life, pomegranate,
jug, • crown) originally identified

attained.
No, it won't be easy to get anything approaching unanimity in
support of steps to peace. But there are concessions that should
prove heartening. There are diehards in Israel who won't be easy
but even among them there are the more rational who
to live
will be helpful.
And there are encouragements from Arab quarters. While we
do not always agree with the conclusions of John K. Cooley in his
reports from Arab areas to the Christian Science Monitor, we find
much to enlighten us about the Arab position. Therefore we draw
upon this from one of his latest reports, this time from Cairo:
Many observers here—whence President Nasser has in effect
announced his willingness to compromise—say there are signs of
such weakening.
rft
They see against this background Algeria's request for with-
A 300-year-old Jewish ritual bath, used hundreds of years ago
drawal of its contingent of 2,000 troops from the Suez Canal
by
pioneer settlers in prenuptial purification ceremonies, has been
front. The request is not overly regretted here.
discovered at Curacao. The bath had been "lost" for generations
Algerian President Houari Boumedienne has received thanks
behind a walled-in portion of an historic building being restored by
for the contribution, as have the Algerian soldiers and officers.
the Curacao Foundation for Conservation of Monuments. The colonial-
Two new Egyptian battalions, the Cairo newspapers report, are
style structure, known as Kuiperstraat 28, Is shown at left. At right,
being formed to replace the Algerians.
Dr. Jessy Jesurun, director of Curacao's Jewish Museum, who made
Some diplomats here say they detect- a growing "silent
the discovery, examines the ritual bath for details of historical
majority" among the Palestinians not opposed to a political solu-
significance.
tion restoring some kind of Palestinian state, short of totally re-
•
making the Israeli state as the guerrilla leadership demands.
Foundation
for led
Conservation
of the site for a congregation that
its
origin and
the Curacao
One Egyptian source argues, "There are nearly one million
was formed originally in 1654.
Palestinian Arabs now living under Israeli military control. Some
"These symbols, and now dis-
Monuments to select and purchase
of the leftist guerrilla organizations hold out no hope for their
covery the
of the
mikva,
lead us be-
to
the building as part of an island- believe
building
probably
liberation until there has been total revolution in the Arab world
wide restoration program.
outside.
longed to the synagogue in past
The Dutch colonial building,
"But a political settlement could liberate those living on the
centuries, at least as far back as
West Bank of the Jordan River and in Gaza. We know many
typical
of Curacao
architecture,
is situated
adjacent
to Mikve the late 1600s," said Dr. Jesurun,
Palestinians would prefer this to continuing a fight which may
who also is director of Curacao's
Israel Synagogue, which was
last for generations."
Jewish Museum.
built in 1730 and is the oldest
Egyptian hopes for peace with Israel are linked with rising
The museum will be housed in
synagogue in the Western Hemi-
expectations of economic development in this country.
sphere. It is the third syna- the building when restoration is
President Nasser's government believes that arrival of real
gogue, actually, to be built on
completed.
h
Middle
East
would
also
open
the
way
to
wider
e
peace in t
prosperity in the entire zone.
We believe in an interesting period. and we are prepared for
the tensions that confront us. There will be charges and counter-
charges, speculations and doubts, condemnations and approbations,
but out of it all there must emerge a hope for Israel. the Arabs and
mankind. Out of it must grow hope for a better future. There is :
Program material intended forlist of functional Hebrew words. and other factual data assists in
everything to be gained and much—too much—to be lost if the present 1 Israel Yom Ha-Atzamaut—Inde- ' The story of the Israel flag is re- 1 providing a good understanding of
approach to a just solution to the Middle East problem is not pendence Day—and compiled in a lated, there is a chapter on stamps I Israel.
pursued properly.
336-page book contains so much
We must• indeed, he prepared for the worst, yet we must live , valuable material that it ceases to
in hope for the very bed results out of the present dilemmas.
, be just a collection of material for
a single day. It has merit for Is-
(From the Files of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
rael programs for the entire year.
The Diplomatic Roads — in All Directions
Where are diplomats headed? All too often they go in too
Published by the department of
40 Years Ago This Week: 1930
many directions, purportedly to find an eventual road towards their education and culture of the Jew-
aims but in reality there is a trend towards blundering. If they were ; ish Agency, this volume, edited by Germ Gen. Erich von Ludendorff ex-commander-in-chief of the Imperial
an armies, sued his wife for allegedly tricking him into agitating
to deal directly with matters of great importance to mankind without Shoshana Perla, Sam E. Bloch and
beating around the bus!:, perhaps we'd get somewhere.
Abraham P. Gannes, includes against Jews and Masons as plotters against German leaders.
Arab papers accused the Grand Mufti of nepotism.
Take, as an instance. the former attorney general of the United rays. songs, stories, etc., for I
States and also a former under secretary — Nicholas Katzenbach. family, school and assembly gath-
The Hungarian Jewish birthrate fell to 161, the first time under
Israel Ambassador to the United States Itzhak Rabin is quoted relat- erings.
1,000 in at least a decade.
ing a story about hi> visit with Katzenbach. After some formalities
Historical selections, s t a t e-
The League of Nations Mandates Commission unanimously blamed
Katzenbach said to the former chief of staff of Israel's army: "You
menus by Presidents of the Unit- British police inadequacy as the main cause for the spread of the
are not a diplomat, I am not a diplomat—let's talk business."
ed States from John Adams to anti-Jewish Arab riots of 1929.
It would be just swell if such a policy could e pursued.
the present, quotations from most
The ruling against the entrance of rabbis under 50 years old into
Katzenbach was reported to have been a participant in a pro-Arab
eminent Jewish leaders — these Palestine was rescinded.
gathering in London where the chief figures were the extremists in
and scores of other material fill
the parliamentary anti-Israel ranks and Arab antagonists to Israel.
this valuable publication.
10 Years Ago This Week: 1960
One must never judge too harshly. Perhaps Katzenbach's pres-
Adolf Eichmann and other Nazi leaders were said to have buried
A number of good stories by-
ence at such a gathering was necessary. Perhaps he was helpful to
$280 million in stolen gold in the Austrian Alps and incriminating
Israeli
writers
are
in
the
contents
the cause of justice and rational thinking in support of an end to
of this work. There are quotes documents in Lake Toplitz.
hostilities. Yet it is apparent that too often even those who admit
Syria arronged for $300,000,000-plus worth of Soviet development
they are not diplomats yet insist upon playing the role -,of statesmen from the Bible and other sources
and the Hebrew texts are incor- projects to double her national income in 10 years. "The contracts,"
frequently add fuel to fires with doubletalk. We hope there won't
be any doubletalk in the Middle East deliberations, especially on porated where usable to provide JTA said, "will reinforce the position of the Soviet Union in the United
proper application of the programs Ara b R bl' ."
the part of Americans.
to the audiences for which they
New York Mayor Robert F. Wagner allowed two extra voter-
*
•
•
may be intended.
registration days to accommodate observant Jews after Gov. Nelson A.
The Right to Insist on Adherence to Agreements
Rockefeller chose not to act so as to avoid "confusion in the minds
The
reader
is
provided
with
a
There is one very serious obstacle to peace in the Middle East, and
of the public."
it stems from a regrettable attitude among some American officials
The Adenauer government said West Germany had accepted
who would deny Israel the right to protest against violations of agree- dews of absolute adherence to
liability for $5,000,000,000 in Jewish indemnification.
their
terms."
ments.
Israeli Attorney General Gideon Hausner charged the Chief Rab-
When some spokesmen for the Nixon administration began to
There is no doubt about the binate Council with falsifying documents in the dispute over elections
charge that the Israeli complaints against the planting of SAM's reality of this splendid description
of new chief rabbis.
within battle range of Israel's borders were mere political schemes of the new approach to a measure
Major American Jewish organizations asked the Supreme Court
they lost the right to speak for our government.
of amity in the Middle East. But to declare compulsory Sunday closing laws unconstitutional.
If Israel were to be silent in the face of dangers, the Middle East one man, whether it is Dr. Gunnar
President Eisenhower told Congress the U.S. supports the United
would be placed in such grave danger of a certain conflagration in the Jarring or Dr. Ralph Bunche, can Nations Emergency Force "because we firmly believe it constitutes
event of the collapse of the cease-fire agreements that the second not attain unity of purpose. That's a major bulwark of peace in the Middle East."
world war would sink into insignificance compared to the horror that an obligation for all parties. and
Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy told the Zionist Organiz-
would emerge on the world scene.
Russia is as responsible as the ation of America he would use "all the authority and prestige of the
There is no doubt about the urgency of adherence to the agree- United States, and Egypt must be White House" to effect a Mid East peace and ban "all discrimination
ments thus far tentatively arrived at by all parties involved in the as dutiful to agreements as Israel. at the Suez Canal for all times." He added: "Peace in the Middle
struggle for peace. But if all parties do not adhere to the regulatio is If not, then Abba Eban and Golda East is not one step nearer reality today than it was eight years ago,
there will be no hope for an eventual peace if only Israel will be I Meir and Moshe Dayan are justi- but Russian influence is immeasurably greater."
forced to abandon any preparatory defensive plans.
fled in whatever complaints they
Presidential candidate Richard M. Nixon said: "The Suez problem
The Christian Science Monitor had a very interesting definition for register—especially against U.S. is one that is high on the priority list of unsolved problems . . . The
failure to provide validity for question is how to bring it to a solution. We don't want to engage in
the current cease fire plans when it stated editorially:
"Both the cease fire and the peace negotiations are immensely pledges that have been addressed acts that might have an opposite effect."
fragile plans. They are subject to withering by any hot Middle in Israel when the cease-fire plan
Eastern wind of suspicion. They must be continually watered by the was broached.
2—Friday, August 21, 1970
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Valuable Israel Independence Day Program Material
Compiled in Volume From Jewish Agency Education Dept.

I

This Week in History