The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-11-27
JEWISH GENIUS.
1t Has Been Shown in Modern Poll
tics and Science.
Naturen og Mennesket. Copenhagen.

Naturen og Mennesket, Copenhagen
Is there Jewish national spirit? Is there
anything peculiar, IsycDologically and pbysl-
ologIcally, in The Semitic race which gives 1t a
decided advantage over the Aryan? For tif
teen years these problems have excited my Gu
riosity. As a subject OF comparative national
psychology ii has its interest. Here are some
of the data have collected:
The Jews Of Old were as remarkable as the
Greeks and Romans. The Bible Is an evil
dence of This. Genisls is a piece Of poetry as
weighty as Homer Isaiah Is as original as
Pindar. The Hebrew spirit is as intense as
the Greek, though less apt to enlarge In
breadth However, viii not talk about the
Lion of the tribe of Judah" but OF the Jew of
the Talmud and as found in the Ghetto.
1t has been charged against the Jews that
they are Orentals. But how is Ii that they
have thoroughly acquired the spirit OF tile
Occtdent. that everywhere they dispute every
inch of ground with the Aryans? This is GER
tainly phenomenon. Let us remember that
they have conquer ed tl.er place as Jews, and
not as those unfaithful TO their paternal tracI-
lions
An English jew. Joseph Jacobs. has COM
pared Jewish genius TO that OF non Jewish
EngIshmen, and collected facts 10 prove that
in The last century the 100000 or 100000
OF Jews in Europe have produced proportion
ally more eminent men than the 100000. 600
Christians He has not counted the Jews OF
Turkey or Russia, because they are not free.
The case would be still more In favor of Jewish
viz, the outcomes of marriages between poor
noblemen and rich bankers daughters; mar
riages which are quite common.
According 10 Joseph Jacobs the Jews have
eXeelled in music, dramatic art. poetry, medi-
cine, mathematics and philOlOgy. The Jewish
musicians are well known, so We pass by them.
Among pnll0lOgiStS and archa0logsiS we men
ton the names of Nuns, Oppert, BraeI, Well,
DesembOurg. Halevy, Loeb. Renacb. these
names are those OF the most prominent savants
of our day. For long time IL has been said
that painting and Music were foreign ID the
Jews. But nowadays Jewish artists appear
everywhere. The Frenehmen, Levy and
selves HI:' and also The German Liebermann
and the American Mosier. The Dutch
painter Joseph Israel has gained European
fame, and so has Russia's test sculptor, Ana
tOsky. What a magnificent anthology OF jew
ish poetry could be collected from Jehuda Hal
evy, Helne, Minsky aud Mason! How strange
marked lyric vein. And what have not the
Jewish women done on the stage? Was it not
a girl from the despsed people who gave the
most noble REPRESENTATIONS OF the tragic master
works? The Jew is mas ef of passionate scenic
representation. Even though his enemy says
that he is a born comedian. used 10 wearing any
mask that circumstances demand.
That the Jew is a natural accountant nobody
Will dispute The sciences OF mathematics and
astronomy show many prominent Jewish
names from HerscbeI 10 Meyerbeer's brother.
Several of the best chess-players OF the world
Were Jewish. NJ. &. Lombroso, himself a Jew,
has in "GeniO e FOllia" given list Of those
Jews who have gained pane In medicine and
physiology. Others have become prominent in
Jurisprudence, and no wonder. for rabbi is a
lawyer aud the Talmud is Corpus juris. Though
excluded from politics Tor centuries, the last
century . has produced Benjamin Disraell,
Ferdinand LaSSelle aud Leon Gambetta the
first AN English Tory, the second i German
socialist, and the last a French Republican,.
The three most civilized nations of Europe
have bowed down before Semiie These
three have shown the Jew in new aspects-the
royal word. the master of parliaments and the
idol OF the masses. Wagner may SDeeriDgly
say that Mendelssohn, Meyerbeer ard Halevy
could produce German symphony or a French
opera, but never new form OF art. The Jews
have shown originality III all The sciences ana
arts we have enumerated. And can we not
add Spinoza 10 The original men? Is George
Brandes as critic not original ana unique?