Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-01-22
A PECULIAR PEOPLE.

the country of the Chaldeans and
travelled westward. He visited Egypt
and saw with wonder its colossal mon
uments and high civilization and
finally settled in the plains of Meso.
potamia or the Tigro Uphrates Basin
Lis business was stock raiser. He
was a highly cultured person and
taught the people of this plain the
philosophy of right and wrong besides
he had a fixed and tenacious belief
that there is one God. For these
thingsthis Jew was calledby his neigh
bors (righteous man) 1000 years
ago His son Isaac and grand son
Jacob followed his footsteps and pros
pered in wealth and influence. One
day rowing band of Gypsies passed
through the plain and stole Joseph,
one of Jacobs sons, and carried him
into Egypt whereby the logical force
of peculiar circumstances, wisdom and
character, he became minister to the
King Of that then cultured land.
The prudence of Joseph garnered
the abundant, indigenous crops of
fruitful Egypt against times of want.
Famine came and its pangs brought
all Joseph's relatives to Egypt for
food. Reverses followed and this
people served in slavery along the
Nile for 450 years, but increased in
number SO fast that the King became
afraid of their power and ordered their
infants to be drowned in the Nile.
Now, Moses, the accidental survival Of
midwife's tact, delivered the Jews
again from bonds We next find this
distinct nation living about the Jordon
river for 400 years. Successes, rever-
ses, divisions and wars continually
arose but the real Jew never lost his
Jewishness Or tenacious stamp of his
race. Almost 1000 years more have
passed, but the j ew is Jew stilI-a
pure son of Abraham.
What means this persistent long
lived identity of a distinct people
What is their destiny? Is it not more
than mere human effort to preserve
the absolute sameness Of a people and
their customs through 40 centuries of
existence ? In almost every age and
land the Jew has been kicked and cuff
ed from pillar to post forsooth because
he was Jew, but this bufetting has
increased his power Of resistance as a
strong wind makes the roots of the
lone oak grow deeper. Plotters and
conspirators have sought to kill them
off, but, high headed, they wont die.
Pharaoh tried to drown them but the
tricks and pretexts of midwives foiled
his simple plan. Haaman wanted his
King to murder them in one day, but
love scene spoiled it all. Herod and
England shared in the philanthropic
deeds of murder, along with Germany,
but to-day England has $4,000 and
Germany $4,000 Jews as an example
of trying to kill off a few hundred
people.
The fires Of nations. have only in
creased their numbers. The sword
does rot cut off their growth nor does
exile lessen their hope Disease lays
it's hand lightly on them. Ever since
the Egyptian princess drew the Jewish
babe from the waters Of the Nile his
tory and fact demonstrate healthiness
and fecundity to Jewish women scarce
ly equaled by any other races. The
foe of civilization consumption
seems to exempt the lung Of Jew.
They have stood more ridicule and
hatred and scorn than any race that
ever lived on earth but are almost alb
solute proof against it, Against all
opposition the Jews wax stronger,
spread wider, and grow Weather every
year. Surely some unknown destiny
lies in the future for this race. The
physical qualities of the race are char
acterized in each individual. Strict
intermarriage for many thousand years,
has intensified every race popularity
in each individual-i.e. contour, size
and color. The size is medium. The
contour is round and plump, especially
notable in the skull. The skin is dark
with coarse, crisp and curly black hair.
The beauty of the Jewess is historic
When the old king Ahashuerus, in
his ftful drunken fever, dismissed his
good wife, he could not find any one