The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-05-06
I. O. B. B.

From the report Of President Julius Bien of
the executive committee of the order made to
the Constitutional Grand Lodge at Cincinnati,
Ohio, April %, the following excerpts are
taken:
We number to-day ten Grand lodges, having
jurisdiction over 383 lodges and nine lodges in
the Orient under the jurisdiction of the execu-
tive committee. The territory covered by US is
the United States, Canada, the German empire,
the Austrian empire, Roumania, Egypt, Pales-
tine and Turkey. The membership approx
mates 5000.
The want of unity of action and purpose
among the Jews of the world in their social
ana political condition leaves them at the
mercy Of the rabble of every country; jealous
of the virtues which they practice, of the sue
cess which they achieve in their pursuits, they
are attacked for reasons purely mercenary,
even without the excuse OF religious fanaticism
which no longer in1ames the heart of the pop
ulace. Hence the anti-Semitic outrages which
are making the lives of our co-religionists in
European countries unhappy and miserable,
and which crop out here and there, even in
this land of liberty and religious freedom.
Only recently the absurd assertion was made
and given great publicity in prominent jour
nails that the Jew cannot be patriot or a SOL
der. A debt of gratitude is due to our brother,
Simon Wolf, who, to refute this SANDER, under
took and accomplished the arduous task of
compiling Jewish roll OF honor; voluminous
lives and their fortunes to save their country.
indulge in the hope that at no distant day
we will be able 10 secure the sanction of the
Government OF Russia for the establishment of
our lodges among its Jewish population, and it
may not be too sanguine to anticipate from
such union with these people, through me-
dunn of the B'nai Birth, with civilization in
its wake, a solution OF the disturbing question
of the Jews existence in Russia.
With President Bien's report are submitted
those OF the various Grand lodges throughout
he fafo In hot of lnh torn
of the Roumanian jurisdiction occurs the fol-
lowing graphic account of the terrible perse-
cutions to which the Jews are still subjected in
that country:
The question of general nature which in
the past year occupied the order is above all
the repetition Of the expulsion of the Jews
from the villages. These occur periodically in
one district or the other, and are caused, as
has been established to a certainty, by secret
circular of Oscar Catargi, Minister of the In
terror and President OF the Cabinet. The IN
fortunate victims, driven from house and
home, applied to US for relief, and in most in
stances we succeeded in obtaining permission
for the return of the eXiles. However, the
Project OF the district OF Jassay district con-
tanning the largest number of Jews, ordered
the expulsion of the Jews, and the order
was executed with extraordinary severity.
The Jews were ordered by the various chief
magistrates to leave within a few days their
respective localities on the penalty of sub
jecting themselves to the use of force. And
force was used. The poor victims who had not
complied with the order and voluntarily va
Gated their premises, were torn from their
homes by the military, and they and their
wives and their children were thrust into the
road at nighttime, and with no protection
against the frost. The most revolving part is
the fact that many who were thus subjected to
inhuman cruelty had served in the Roumanian
army; nay, some of them had their notices ia
report for the fall maneuvers at the respective
headquarters of their regiment. Those who
were thus driven away rushed to the city OF
Jassy, and men, women and children, the old
the weak and the sick, lay helpless in the
streets ofJassy without roof over their heads
famished and destitute, and dependent upon
the charity of their co-religionists, who, in the
great majority, were extremely poor them
selves. Our presentations to the Minister had
no effect, and we only succeeded by persistent
of the exiles to return temporarily to their ole