12 Friday, November 3,19T3
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
A Biographical Tribute to Dr. Max Nordau
(Editor's note: The fol-
lowing is the fourth in a
series of articles which
began Oct. 13 highlight-
ing the career of Zionist
leader Dr. Max Nordau.
The biography is written
by Nordau's daughter,
Maxa.)
came to consult him in Mad-
rid about the creation of his
Legion.
Max Nordau of course ap-
proved the idea; but
Jabotinsky wanted to call it
the "Zionist Legion," to
which Nordau objected that
Zionists being by their birth
By MAXA NORDAU
and their dwelling places in
Spain was a haven to him. both camps of the belliger-
He settled in Madrid, in a ants, the name might cause
modest furnished flat, try- them great trouble. So they
ing to remain at a distance agreed that it should be
from events. This of course named "The Jewish
was impossible. Spanish Legion." It was later incor-
friends, literary and politi- porated into the British
cal men, arranged a ban- Army. The soldiers were
quet for him soon after his volunteers and fought with
arrival and requested him great courage.
On several occasions,
to deliver lectures, one in
the Ateneo, the highest Dr. Weizmann visited
literary club, another in the Nordau in Madrid. One
was in 1917, where he ar-
People's House.
As he had to earn his liv- rived with Levin Epstein
ing, he continued contribut- and Felix Frankfurter.
ing articles for some time to They were on their way to
the Italian press, and dur- meet Henry Morgenthau
ing all the war years to pap- Sr., then ambassador of
ers in Argentina and the the United States in Tur-
key, who was endeavor-
United States.
He had left France alone, ing to secure a separate
but could after some time peace with that country,
have his wife, daughter and but failed.
They asked Nordau to ac-
sister join him. Together,
they took a trip through company them and try to
Spain, where Max Nordau convert Morgenthau to
was hailed everywhere as a Zionism. Nordau thought
famous man and a friend. success in that direction
He wrote a book giving his absolutely unlikely.
Max Nordau's Jewish
"Spanish Impressions." The
German publisher Ullstein interest did not limit itself
asked him for a volume to meeting Zionist leaders.
about "French Statesmen of Soon after his arrival in
Madrid, when crossing one
the Third Republic."
For some time, he had day the famous Puerta del
nurtured in his mind a new Sol, someone called him. He
philosophical work, which stopped and a large man
he had not had leisure to came up to him. He was
achieve. He had more time Prof. Yahuda, who had rec-
in Madrid, where he could ognized him.
complete "Morals and the
Prof. Yahuda, later of
Evolution of Man." The first Cambridge, was a promi-
version was a Spanish nent Hebrew scholar, born
translation by Nicolas in Palestine. He had been
Salmeron, published in called to a chair of Hebrew
1917. The original German and Spanish-Jewish litera-
text came out in 1920.
ture at the University of
In the last year of his Madrid, the first Jew to hold
stay, he was asked by office in Spain since the
Prof. Yahuda to write an Jews were expelled by the
essay on Spanish art for a Catholic Ferdinand and
somewhat amateurish and Isabel in 1492.
publisher in Barcelona.
A great friendship
To that purpose, Max started from this chance
Nordau took a new trip meeting. Yahuda was in
through the art cities in contact with the small
Spain. The work, which Jewish colony residing in
was at once translated Madrid. Most of its mem-
into Spanish and ap- bers came from Gibraltar
peared, had an unfortu- and North Africa; some,
nate fate. The publishing from Salonica, as well as
firm ceased to exist, the later others who had
small edition was taken been able to leave Pales-
over in poor condition tine, were war. refugees.
and finally disappeared. Among them was the
The volume was called Bogratchow family. The
"The Grandees of Spanish Turkish rule over Pales-
Art." The brevity of its life tine had become very se-
was greatly regretted by vere on account of the
Spanish art lovers.
war.
It was not easy for Max
This small group formed a
Nordau to keep in contact friendly circle and, with
with the Zionist Organizzl- Yahuda, they celebrated
tion and Zionists in general. the Jewish holidays.
However, as early as No-
Then still others, also
vember 1914, Jabotinsky _refugees, came to Madrid
-
and Barcelona. Nordau and
Yahuda constantly had to
intervene in their favor,
plead to the ministry in
order to help them. Moroc-
can Jews arrived at the cap-
ital to implore protection
against some Spanish con-
sul who had bullied and in-
sulted them.
Another time, a group
who had fled from the Bal-
kan front was brought on a
ship in the harbor of Bar-
celona. They were refused
landing privileges. Yahu-
da's intervention proved
vain.
, The unhappy people
were shipped back to
Salonica or Constan-
tinople at the risk of
being torpedoed in the
Mediterranean. Fortu-
nately they reached the
coast in safety.
Yahuda and Nordau were
supported in their
endeavors by the vice
president of the Spanish
Tribune of Zionism
The small Jewish group of live among these tombs the
Madrid, encouraged by war has left."
Yahuda, decided to open a
The Keren Kayemet,
synagogue. It was no easy whose headquarters
matter, as Catholicism was were then in the Hague,
the only official religion in decided,, in conjunction
Spain. However, they were with the Zionist Organ-
permitted to rent a small ization, to found on this
apartment in a backyard date a garden-city in
and to establish a House of Palestine that was to
Prayer.
bear the name of Nordau.
(Unfortunately, it was not
For its consecration, done). He wrote in an-
Max Nordau, the unbe- swer to the news: "The
liever, clad in a talit and idea of seeing a garden
with covered head, so- city flourish in the land of
lemnly accepted the Israel has all the charm of
honor of carrying the an Oriental legend. The
Scrolls of the Law to the name it bears does not
Tabernacle. To those matter. It may be that,
who were surprised by when the city has come
his action, he merely an- into being, my shadow as
swered that the in a dream, will glide in
synagogue was the only silence through the
bond that attached these groves and its dwellers in
Jews to Judaism. Let us the city who have a faith-
add that the too famous ful memory and the gift of
edict of 1492 had recently vision will be aware of its
been abolished and that gentle rustling ..."
the Jewish faith was offi-
In spite of his affection for
and his gratitude to Spain,
Nordau felt that he should
leave and resume his active
Zionist work. For this he
needed an authentic
passport and that was no
easy matter at that mo-
ment.
Greenberg, Cowen, called
him to London. In Sep-
tember 1919, Dr. Weiimann
wrote him that the difficul-
ties he feared had been re-
moved and that he could de-
cide when he wanted to
come to London. He re-
ceived at the same time the
text of the proposals that
were to be submitted to the
Peace Conference; he was
asked to indicate any re-
visions he might suggest.
He formulated them and
dispatched them to London.
He protested above all
against the immigration re-
strictions and the closed
frontiers. No attention was
paid to his amendments.
He finally left Spain
with his wife and sister at
the beginning of De-
cember 1919. His daugh-
ter
had already returned
Mrs. Max (Anna) Nordau and her daughter
to Paris.
Maxa are shown during a 1942 visit to the U.S
He did not go back to the '
Senate Angel Pulido. That cially recognized in little house with a garden
which had been his home
Catholic Spaniard had Spain.
taken a trip around the
In 1917, the Russian before the war, but to a
Mediterranean and had met Revolution aroused in Nor- small fiat on the fifth floor of
Sephardic Jewish com- dau a great hope for a better a house without an elevator.
munities. He had been de- condition for those, of his The apartment was less ex-
eply moved by their at- people who belonged to that pensive.
Such was still the atmos-
tachment to Spain in spite country. The events that fol-
of the Inquisition and final lowed extinguished that phere of distrust that, not
without difficulties, he was
expulsion.
light.
allowed to spend only the
He had written a book
In 1918, at last, the war night there and had to pro-
which carried the title
"Stateless Spaniards" and and the horrors which ac- ceed to Britain the next
it came to an morning. Until he could
he had always pleaded for companied
end;
the
world
could take a find a suitable lodging, he
them. He had obtained for
breath.
Yahuda
gathered a accepted the cordial- hospi-
Moroccan Jews the Spanish
nationality and never few friends to celebrate the tality of the painter
ceased to take an efficient event and Nordau, perhaps Pilichowski and his wife. At
interest in the Jewish for the first time in his life, last, he got a room in a mod-
danced a czardas, the typi- est boarding house in
people.
cal Hungarian folk dance, a Bloomsbury Square, quite
memory from his youth.
near the headquarters of
He still remained in the Zionist Organization.
Spain for about a year. His
At the offices, a huge
70th birthday found him in room was put at his dis-
Granada. Telegrams came posal. But he felt unwanted.
from the entire world. "How He was a ghost of the past
did they find me?" wrote and unwelcome. Some
Nordau in a letter. "I did ev- friends did come to see him
erything to prevent people next day; but in the absence
from thinking of that date. of Weizmann and Sokolow,
One is almost ashamed to they didn't seem to know
what attitude to adopt. All
was melancholY. Later the
big room was changed for a
very small and uncomforta-
ble one.
The papers announced
the arrival of Max Nor-
dau to England with fit-
ting sympathy. The
Times carried a long arti-
cle. The London dailies,
important provincial
papers and the Jewish
press wanted Nordau's
opinion. He gave a press
conference, which
showed that he had not
changed and w6
same fighter for just_ as
ever.
Some time earlier he had,
on Louis Lipsky's request,
written a message for a con-
vention that was to meet in
America in December. In it
he wrote: -
"The integral geograph-
ical individuality of Pales-
tine with its traditional
frontiers should be re-
spected . . . The land
should be wide open to
Jewish immigration . . . It
is a mockery and an affront
to say to us solemnly:
`Palestine is yours,' and at
the same time seal hermeti
cally and rudely its fron-
tiers to our people . . . All
Palestinian land, formerly
: the property of the Turkish
government, should be
granted to the new inhabi-
tants and remain perma-
nently the inalienable
property of the Jewish
people . . . It is time that
the voice of Israel make it-
self heard . ."
To Dr. Weizmann he
wrote: "We pay court to the
Arabs who refuse to admit
our claims to Palestine. We
do not even react when a
handful of impudent Syrian
Christians . . . fill the
world press with their
clamor 'Syria, all of Syria, to
the Syrians!' We've never
made even the most timid
protest against that insol-
ent blow to us, nor did we
ever enlighten public opin-
ion on the manner in which
this propaganda is
fomented . . ."
During the sessions of
the Actions Committee,
although the forms of
courtesy were retained,
violent clashes on mat-
ters of principle broke
out between Max Nordau
and the then leaders.
However, he was again
offered to . enter the
organization formally,
perhaps in order to tie
him down. He again re-
fused indignantly.
In the spring of 1920, Max
Nordau undertook a 1401
-
tour to Scotland. Hi, fe
and daughter accomph.Aied
him. He was acclaimed as a
prophet. Halls were packed
and hearts were deeply
moved. When he finished
speaking there was a mo-
ment of total silence before
applause broke out. Every-
thing in Nordau contrib-
uted to his orator's power.
(To be concluded next
week ... Published in
cooperation with the
Jewish National Fund of
America.)