St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1885-08-08
GATHERED TO HIS FATHERS.


slowed His Fellow Men," Taken TO fAis
Reward--A sketch of His Life and Noble
Deeds.
LONDON, July, 28-sir Moses Monte
fore died at his home at Ramsgate al
4:30 this afternoon. He WIS born octo-
Der oath, 1884.
HIS LIFE.
Sir Moses Monteffore was born OCTOBER ~
1874, at Leghorn, Italy, and not IN L onuUu'
as that usually accurate authority
the american oyGIop ofnda sir s Noses
is descended from long me %
Italian ancestors celebrated as LONDON
bankers for more than two hundred years.
Moses was the first born son OF Joseph hLa'
MOntet1ore and his wife Rachel Mocatta, i al1S
his native city made special preparations
for the celebration OF his centenafy-iudeSur
an album containing addresses Yotea oy
nearly all the towns in Italy was presentgu
to him on that day, and at Rome IL ta ns
hinical seminary bearing. his name WaS
founded. The Montefores is one OF the otd-
est and most honorable families in ltaly;
But Sir Moses was brought up and educateq
in the home of his parents In London! anu
after a careful commercial training
Ire was admitted to membership IN an, the
daughter OF Mr.. L. b. Cohen and sister, in
law of Nathan Meyer Rothschild, the
founder of the London branch of that house.
Judith Monte1iore, who lived happily Win
unhappiIy chtdless), was his unwearied as
sistant in all his good works. she was Il
lady of great mental endowment, charm
ing character, of fine literary tastes. and
she wrote an interesting account OF one OF
her numerous phtlanthropic Journeys WIN
her husband, published in 1871, under Ene
title, "Notes of q Private Journal OF Nislt
to Egypt and Palestine" She died Septem
Der %, 1862, and Sir Moses embodied at once
his love and bereavement in his noble, DE
clared determination to embalm her men,
DRY by ''redoubling his benevolence toward
the living" This he has done by ms an,
nual gift in her name to Belle Lane Jews,
Free School for Girls and in countless other
ways. The Convalescent Home at south
N0EwoQd was built Py ay the Mon Engsn
ish h College in Ramsgate in her name.
HE WAS A SHERIFF.
1t is q fact well worthy of note amid what
ever record of court ceremonial anu OF
political change, that few days after the
accession of Victoria, MIR. MonteiOre was
elected Sheriff of London, the first jew who
had ever been chosen for that office; ana
that he received knightho God at the hands or
Her Majesty when she visited the city on the
following Lord Mayors Day. The expansion
of the principles of religious liberty anu
equality, which has been one OF the most
remarkable characteristics of the reign OF
Queen Victoria, could hardly nave been
| more becomingly inaugurated than by me
compliment which sovereign and city paid
to Sir Moses Montefiore The compliment
was merted, for Sir Moses already had
L
| wear before he went through Syria, which
had been racked by earthquakes and raVag- Z
ed by plague. and in nearly every town gave
| large sums of money TOR the relief OF the
starving sufferers He made his second
| journey to the East with his Wlfes
and in company with the famous French
lawyer, NJ. Crenieux for the relief of the
prosecuted Jews at Damascus, carrying with
him a fund of G7,000 one half OF which was
his own contribution In personal inter
view with Mehemet Ali he made such an I'M
preston upon that Pasha of Egypt that he
| at once relea sed the jews who had been I'M
| prisoned, granted the free return of fugitiyes
and guaranteed such future protection as
| Sir Moses demanded. The Pasha's personal
regard for him was such that when he sent
his son to England to be educated ne ne ,niaeed
turn from this successful expedition, Queen
| Victoria showed her pleasure by granting to
him the high distinction of bearing sup
ceded only to peers of the realm and to
knights of the various orders" at the same
| time q magnificent memorial, scuIptured by
BaiIie in 200 ounces of solid silver, was pre-
scented to him by a deputation of citizens
Hebrew and Christan-who joined in this
testimonial to his worth and work.
HIS NOBLE DEEDS.
In 1912, in q time of epidemic, he estab.
out physician to take charge of it, paying
the entire expenses and pledging himself to
sustain the institution till a regular hospital
could be built. In 1916, when the Cars
| ukase removed thousands of Hebrew fani-
| lies from Poland to Russia, Sir Moses and
! Lady Judith went to St Petersburg, and. by
personal intercession, induced Nicholas first
| to suspend and then to abandon the nkase.
| He then made tour to visit his own people
| in Russia and Western Poland, scattering
profuse largesSeS in every town. The favor
| and protection of the Gar made this trt-
umphal journey, and on his return to En-.
| gland, at the instance of Premier Sir Robert
| Peel, Queen Victoria created Sir Moses @
| baronet. 1t would require columns to re-
count in detail all the public benefactions
of Sir Moses and volumes to record his pri-
| waite charities. In 1854, when the famine
| broke out in Palestine, he collected
| 100000, went again to the East and
| obtained from the sultan OF turkey
| tirman permitting him to hold real estate in
| Jerusalem, to establish poor houses, and to
| devise means for the promotion OF industries
| visits to Constantinople, each time securing
| from the Sultan some concession Tor the re-
| lief of his suffering people. In 1868, Dy the
| assistance of the British Government, Louis
Napoleon and Isabella of Spain, all strongly
| 'fbacking' him, he secured from the sultan
| of Morocco a firman guaranteeing to the
| prosecuted Jews the same protection ac-
| corded to the Christians On his return to
London congratuIatorytaddres came to
| him from every civilized country in the
world, and the Lord Mayor, Aldermen and
| other city authorities celebrated the return
| of the philanthropic octogenartan by q ban
| quet in Guildhall. His last visit-the seventh
to his proteges In Palestine was in 1865, in his
eighty second year, when the country was
| suffering from drought and the people from
i cholera. He expended vast sums for the re-
| lief of the sufferers, and suggested and Sc
i cured greatly improved facilities for supply
| ing the city of Jerusalem with water As
memorial of his successful journey, on his
| return he sent sums of money from his own
means to each of the syna gogues, colleges,
| schools and various charitable Jewish insti.
| buttons in Great Britain. The successive
birthdays of Sir Moses have been celebrated
/ in London and elsewhere, and the occasion
| in 1873 was specially marked by his receipt of
| 'Fthe freedom of the city of London" with a
valuable present, in token of his universal
i beneYolence, which had been confined to no
class or creed, but was as unbounded as it
was constant. On the oath of October last
| Sir Moses attained his hun0redth birthday.