24 Friday, November 10, 1918

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

A Biographical Tribute to Dr. Max Nordau Tribune of Zionism

(Editor's note: This is
the concluding article in
a series which began Oct.
13 on Zionist leader Dr!
Max Nordau. The articles
were written by his
daughter, Maxa, and
were published in coop-
eration with the Jewish
National Fund of
America.)

By MAXA NORDAU

On May 5, 1920 Weiz-
mann and Sokolow re-
turned from Palestine and
San Remo, where the Bal-
four Declaration was con-
firmed and the British
Mandate over Palestine sol-
emnly proclaimed. The oc-
casion was celebrated. Nor-
dau--was asked to speak,- in
the presence of Baron

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James de Rothschild, Lord
Samuel, Sir Stuart and
Ahad Ha'am. Audiences
were frightened to hear him
declare what none dared to
admit: that the Mandate
had been so whittled down
that the great historic mo-
ment was as good as lost to
the Jewish people.
An .American delegation
came to the first post-war
Zionist reunion. Nordau
was asked to address it. He
early realized the important
part that American Jewry
was destined to play. Hence
it was to the Americans that
he explained his program of
immediate settlement on a
scale great enough to do jus-
tice to the existing circum-
stances. He said to them:
"It is imperative to
send to Palestine at least
half a million young men
and w omen determined
to make it their
fatherland." The Ameri-
cans made objections:
"How are these people to
be housed?"
"In that climate, they can
live in tents."
"And who is going to sup-
ply the funds for this mass
immigration?"
"You are!"
"And if they perish?"
"Perhaps some will. But
far fewer than if later on we
expose small groups to even
graver perils." The course of
events confirmed Nordau's
prognostication.
The conference served as

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MAXA NORDAU

a congress. It opened on
July 5. Almost every day
Nordau was asked to speak.
At one meeting, he was par-
ticularly moved and in-
spired by the Poale Zion. He
was no more affiliated with
the workers' party than
with any other. But from
the very first he had placed
his faith in the Jewish
working classes. He had al-
ways aided in the task of
educating them; now he sa-
luted their efforts on behalf
of Palestine.
On July 12, the great Al-
bert Hall meeting took
place. Twelve thousand
people attended and
acclaimed Nordau. He
spoke after Balfour, Lord
Robert Cecil, Colonel
Wedgewood and also Dr.
Weizmann, Sokolow, Us-
sishkin, Chief Rabbi Herz.
What he said was under-
stood by the members of the
British government, not by
the others.
". . England . . . could
not disdain having a trustee
. . . (at the Suez Canal) .. .
The Jews desired nothing
better than to be her sen-
tries . . . The only thing that
they begged of her was that
she might allow them to
achieve their possibilities.
For this only two conces-
sions were necessary:
"First, to allow them to
become a numerical
entity in Palestine. Sec-
ondly, not to oppose their
honest and legal
endeavors to organize
themselves. They were
not free of the Arabs.
They came with the
purest motives and they
were sure the Arabs
would understand them
when they saw them at
work.
"But it is well to impress
the idea that the best
neighbor, though a good fel-
low, ought not to be pro-
voked . ."
And he concluded: "He
that blesseth thee, shall be
blessed and he that curses
thee, shall be cursed."
Nordau hardly partici-
pated in the further ses-
sions. He had said what he
had to say.
Shortly before the end,
he had received Dr.
Rubinow, the head of the
American medical dele-
gation. So he was cogniz-
ant of the beginnings of
Hadassah and of the
magnificent achieve-
ments of Miss Henrietta
Szold. As a physician, he
had long advocated the
necessity of sanitary
work in a land so utterly
ruined and neglected as
Palestine, and the need to
ontrol the endemic dis-

-

eases there. He trusted These articles may be said
the women's organized to constitute his political
testament.
efforts.
They were a complete
In September, through
the intervention of Ven- expose of Herzl's and his
izelos, the Greek Premier, a own Zionism in opposi-
ministerial decree had been tion to the purely cultural
issued authorizing Nordau Zionism, and he ex-
to return to Paris. Soon pounded the reasons for
after his arrival to London, the lack of land and
accompanied - by Sokolow, funds, which could be at-
he had gone to visit Ven- tributed to narrow
foresight of our states-
izelos.
He wrote: "Mr. Venizelos men and the little interest
received us at once . . . he of our financiers. The
welcomed me after a fashion words written in 1920
that almost embarrassed were a prophetic
me compared to the experi- foresight of the most bit
ences I've had to undergo ter days that followed.
In November two great
the last five years . ."
Max Nordau went back to meetings were held, one for
his residence in the little the benefit of the pogrom
victims. Whenever Nordau
apartment on the fifth floor.
Paris had changed. All had to speak on this subject,
life was in a state of it left him ill for days.
He continued his busy
spiritual as well as mate-
rial crisis. It was too late cxistence. Every morning at
for Nordau. He could not 6 he was up at his desk,
wait for a re-adjustment. completing his work which
He recognized the fact at was to be the last: "The Es-
once and did not count on sence of Civilization." He
a long stay in Paris. He was planning future writ-
just wanted to remain ings. "I have two novels and
long enough to finish a one Jewish book all ready in
book he had begun, put my head. But they'll have to
some order in his literary wait till I'm really settled."
Once more, he was called
affairs, contribute arti-
cles to the Neue Freie upon to attend a meeting of
Presse and LaNacion of workmen at Belleville, a
Buenos Aires, that im- suburb of Paris. He spoke of
portant newspaper that the staisfaction with which
was faithful to him to the the Zionists had greeted the
British Mandate and ex-
end.
plained the plans for the fu-
At this time he made the ture:
decision of going to Pales-
"We dream of trans-
tine. But first he accepted forming Palestine as
the proposal of a lecture quickly as possible into a
tour in the U.S. and Jewish land which, while
Canada. The lectures were not disturbing the Arab
to deal withZionismbut also population and assuring
with questions of literature it of m aterial prosperity,
and politics, on condition free democratic de-
that complete freedom of velopment and general
expression be permitted to progress, will grow into a
him. His booking agent was true Jewish republic,
the well-known William B. rich in economic re-
Beakins and the tour had sources, a model of mod-
been arranged at the insti- ern agriculture and in-
gation of his dear friend of dustry, the seat of the
many years Dr. Stephen S. most advanced educa-
Wise.
tion and culture, suffic-
The trip promised to be a ing to guarantee the as-
moral and material sured existence of those
triumph which could well eight or 10 millions of
re-establish the dignity of Jews who in their
his position, seeing that the pogrom-ridden countries
war had ruined him com- await the signal to set out
pletely.
on the march to Pales-
At Paris, many friends tine."
had at once gathered
As they drove home, he
around him, but he sadly spoke to his wife about the
felt the gaps, especially people who had attended
those due to the massacre of the meeting, about things to
the youth. To Zionism, Nor- come, but he added: "I'm not
dau's return meant a new sorry I went, but I feel tired
lease of life. In September, tonight . . ."
he presided over a meeting
Next morning he was at
and spoke. In November, work as usual. It was a fruit-
the society Mabassereth ful day. "The book is coming
-Zion arranged a banquet of along," he said. "Two more
welcome. Victor Basch, pro- days like this and it will be
fessor at the College de done. Only eight more pages
France and president of the
League of Human Rights,
The first of December was
was present. During the
cold
and grey. In the after-
Second World War, he was
assissinated with his wife noon Naiditch came to see
by the French militia. Dr. Nordau. Then by some acci-
Marmorek and Dr. Jacob- dent the light went off.
son also attended the ban- Candles had to be lit to re-
ceive Dr. Rothstein.
quet.
When he rose the next
Nordau contributed to
"Le Peuple Juif," a weekly morning, he staggered
publication of the French and put both hands to his
Zionist Organization, a head. During the day Drs.
series of 10 articles in which Marmorek and Jacobson
he gave an evaluation of the arrived and diagnosed a
plan and teaching of congestion. The physi-
(Continued on Page 25)
Zionism from its beginning.

_