The Sun.
London, England, 1840-05-11 00:00:00

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EVI'NI NG ED I'l (i4ie-;

THE JEWS OF DAMASCUS.

PETITION PRESENTED TO THE PACHA or EGYIT ar
HIS JEWISH SUBJECTS, ON BEHALF 01' THErICOP-.
PRESSED BRETHREN.
" The nation of Israel hath not a prince, hath not
state ; her glories arc buried by antiquity—her nation-
ality is extinct.
" Religion, your Highness, gorerneth :Ire conscience,
but doth not divide nations. The Israelites of llamas-
cus are your children, for God bath intrusted them to
your government. They are slanderc.l by malice, Lad
oppressed by cruelty, and to whom could they turn for
justice if not to their lawful master ?
" The name of Mehemet Ali is high-sounding through
the universe, for in one hand he bcareth glory, and in
the other justice.
" The Hebrews of Damascus are accused of an atro-
cious crime—a crime which is contrary to reason, c 0.,.
trary to their religious principles, contrary to truth, and
still more so to history.
" The Hebrews were the first who were corn:nen:led
by God to abstain from blood, the first who banished
human blood from the altars of God Thu people of
Israel have been unfortuaate, it is true, but their cha-
racter in adversity bath been stupendous, and men like
your Highness, whom God bath endowed with genius,
pity them, but despise them not.
"Of what arc they accused ? Of having killed a
man, and taken his blood to make unleavened brrand.
This institution bath endured 4,000 years and more ;
for 4,000 years have the religious institutions of tha
Jews offered a field for research to the learned of
the world, and could such infamy remain undetected?
Shame to him who could think it !
" The Hebrews, your Highness, avoid blood, and
carry even to a prejudice this precept of their religion.
They pour away that of animals, and do all they can
to remove such a fluid from flesh before they taste it.
Now, does it accord with reason that they would semi-
five a man and taste his blood ?
" This is false on the very face of it ; but the old
enmity of a person, too powerful in Syria, against every
indivieual of our faith, gives credit to such a falsehood.
Hence, your Highness, the most respectable people of
that country are tortured ; blows without number are
inflicted on their persons ; newly-invented and most
severe tortures afflict the unhappy race, and these are
the means to induce them to confess. Surely such
great suffering might extort a false confession from some
of them, for, though there arc many men, who can
face immediate death, there are but few who can en-
dure torture, and in Damascus the tortures are greater
than they have ever been in the world. Already have
Israelites been known to confess themselves guilty, and
afterwards their innocence bath been proved. Above
100 children are perishing in prison for want of food,
and this is the way in which justice is administered to
your people in Damascus.
We have frequently heard, your Highness, that
many letters have been received, not from the Hebrews
of Damascus, but from honest followers of Christ, whose
conscience is afflicted by such cruelty. These letters
declare the Hebrews innocent, and the Ministers of your
Highness unjust.
" The Consuls of Austria and Denmark have re-
ceived such notices. But we will not mention all the
sympathising narratives possessed by those of our faith.
" Your Highness, we do not ask pity for those of our
persuasion—we ark for justice, but let that be done by
your Highness, their just and severe father. T. you
alone hath God intrusted his power over these unfortu-
nate people, and you alone have the right to govern
them. Let them be brought before your Highness,
heard and punished if they be guilty, or, it they be
innocent, let their innocence be proclaimed aloud.
" The question is of an ancient religion, that they
wish to defile, and it seems that. God hath destined for
you an additional glory—that of freeing an oppressed
nation."