Morning journal and courier., 1883-05-21
Old Jewish Family Life.
Six Intsresttng Pictares.
IFrom St. James. Gnzette.l

ago. -1u0 SuOloCb8 hE8 AUulrADly S0lGc66u
and their treatment is most happy. The
merest glance at them gives the Gentle a
clearer insight into the manners and customs
of old-fashioned Continental Jews than ever
SO elaborate an essay, or than even the nov
els of Auerbach, Bernstein, Sachermasoch,
Leopold Kompert, or Karl Emil FRANCIS.
The subjects OF these works re Passover
Evening" Commencement of Sabbath, -
ssThe Rabbits Blessing after Service, Sab
bath Afternoon" Sabbath Rest in the
Street. and '"The Marriage" The first of
these calls to mind scene which many a
Jewish home will present this evening-the
commencement of the Passover festival.
In bright room, made cheerful by an
abundance of light, Jewish family are sit
ting round the table with prayer-books be-
fore them, performing the Seder, as the
Passover service is called. The company
consist in this particular instance of an ell
derly father and mother, q daughter, three
sons and a guest who seems to be about thir-
ty years old The table is covered with
white cloth. In front of the head Of tho
family is placed unieavened bread covered
with white cloth, and upon that lie bitter
hsrbs lamb bone and othsr articles which
it is unnecessary to specify. Each person
has silver goblet of wine before him. A
larger goblet is placed in the center of the
table and remains undrunk the whole even
ing. For whom is it intended? Elijah the
one day revisit earth at this season of the
year, as the harbinger of Israers Messiah.
With religious reverence, cup of wine Is
reserved for this half expected guest. The
males are sitting in a reclining posture
propped up with pillows, thus typifying the
freedom which the Liberation OF their pro-
genitors from slavery has conferred on them.
For similar reason, the head of the family
is arrayed in a white surplice. Near the
table stand a jug and basin, with which the
company wash their hands before the meal
commences. Any stranger, however poor or
Insignificant, is welcome to participate in the
Passover festivities. The guest whom Op-
penheim has drawn seems to be a learned
student for the head of the family is eyi-
IDENTIFY engaged with him Ia arguing some
knotty point of Jewish law, or, maybe, list
Sning to the stranger es he peurs forth his
rich stores of Talmudic learning.
In ''The Rabbits Blessing" we are intro
duced to the interior of an old fashioned
synagogue. father is taking his young son,
at the conclusion of service, to be blessed by
the aged rabbi The good old man has Just
divested himself of his talith. Before him
he has a large folio of the Talmud, which he
is studying now that divine service is over.
The father holds his pEayer-book in one hand
and bag containing his scarf in the other.
He is standing respectfully behind his son,
waiting until the old man has given his bless.
ing. Attached to the wall is charity box.
The usual formula is inscribed over the ark,
ssKnow before whom thou standest" Tho
veil before the ark has this motto worked
upon it, Remember the Sabbath day to keep
it holy" Saturday Afternoon" shows us
Jewish family sitting round the table read
ing. Dinner is over and cleared away, but
the white table-cloth remains on throughout
the Sabbath, and so does the goblet of wine
and twist of bread. The venerable father,
his book open before him, has fallen asleep
in his comfortable arm chair, to enjoy the
Sabbath rest which the Jewish preverb de-
clares to be sweet. The two daughters are
looking over book, while the eldest son is !
studying some huge folio. The old mother
has fallen asleep in the recess which forms
the bedroom. The companion picture de-
picts the rest iu the street, perhaps the Ju-
dcngasse of Frankfort. All the shops are
closed by heavy cross-bars secured with pad
locks. Some members of the family are
lounging on chairs outside their shop-half
asleep, half awake. However, the old moth
er, her feet resting on a wooden stool, Is
banding over book of Jewish legends and
stories written in a dialect called Fudisch-
Deutsch. Just inside the doorway a servant
is sitting asleep, her hands tucked up under
her apron In a room within may be seen
Fraulen sitting at an open window attentive
ly reading book. There is an air of sleepi-
ness about the whole seems The very cat,
seems to participate in the Sabbath rest.
Last in the series We place the "Hoehzeit,"
or marriage. The ceremony is not being
held inside the synagogue. but outside in the
streets, the synagogue being situated in the
Jewish quarter. The bridal pair stand under
the marriage canopy, the poles of which are
held by little boys, perhaps the brothers of
the couple. Bride and bridegroom are in
vested in the talith, which is thrown over
their heads. The bride wears a wig. On
the Gay of her marriage her own hair has
been cut off-a custom originating in medie
val necessities and henoeforth her head will
alwa, be disfgured by false covering in
front of the bridal pair stands the rabbi, who
has just finished reading the marriage con-
tract. Next to the bride stands her mother,
and next to the bridegroom his father A
lad holds decanters of wine, ready for the
rabbi to pronounce benediction over them.
The beadle stands beside, in his three-cor-
nered hat; his 'sscarf'' is thrown loosely
round his neck, and he has copy of the SER
vice in his hand, which he is following; his
other hand is in his pocket. from which heavy
seals dangle and he has free and easy air.
Some tall, pale students, who are there to at
test the marriage, are in the background.
The bridegroom is in the act of putting a
ring on the forefnger of his brides left hand,
saying to her Behold, thou art sanctifed
unto me by this ring. according to the law
of Moses and Israeli Behind, standing on
the steps of house, are a jester and fid-
dIer they are waiting until the glass is
broken and the rabbi has wished the couple
'good luck, when they will commence the
merriment of the day. Against the wall at
the back of the canopy hangs a tablet con
tanning peculiarly Jewish device; it is
called a s'shield of David" and consists of
two equilateral triangles crossing one another
so that the apex of the one is at the top of
the picture and of the other at the bottom.
The impression which a study of these
pictures leaves behind it is a feeling that the
pious Jews of half century ago, who faith
fully observed all the minute of rabbinical
derived a profound happiness
from the performance of their duty. There
is air of sweet serenity about these pic
tures. Tempora mutantur- The average
English Hebrew or the cultivated '.Berliner"
of to day has preserved few of these distinc-
tive customs. They are too Jewish for him.
What few he has retained are fast becoming
obsolete. The western Jew more and more
sssimilates his manners and customs to those
of his Christian fellow citizens.