The times., 1898-04-03
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ture, existing mainly to boil The Ghetto's tea
Kettles and snuff its candles and was well re-
from every hearth as soon as might touch
money. For, when three stars appeared in the
sky the Fire-wOman sank back into her primitive
lnSlgniiicance, and the chiid's father made the
liabdalsh, or ceremony OF division between week
day and Sabbath thanking God who diyideth
holiday from working day and light from dark
ness. Over a brimming wine-cup he made the
blessing, holding his bent fingers to wax taper
10 make a symbolic appearance of shine and
shadow, and passing round box of sweet-smelling
spices. And when the chanting was over the
child was given 10 sip OF the wine. Many deli
cions mouthfuls were associated in his mind
Even the child's unborn soul had been present
and accepted the yoke of the Torah He often tried
/ 10 recall the episode but although he could picture
The scene quite well. and the souls curling
over the mountains like white clouds, he could
mol remember being among them.
No doubt he had forgotten it, with his other
prenatal eXperiences-like the two Angels who
had taught him Torah and shown him Paradise
OF a morning and Hell every evening-when at the
moment Of his birth the Angels finger had struck
him on the upper lip and sent him into the world
crying with the pam. and with that dent under
the nostriis which, in every human face, IS the
seal of Oblivion OF the celestial spheres But on
the anniversary of the great Day of the Decalogue
ON the Feast OF Pentecost-ihe synagogue was
dressed with flowers. Flowers not easy TO
get in Nenice-that city of stones and the sea-yet
every synagogue-and there were seven Of them in
that narrow Ghetto. some old and beautiful. some
poor and humble lad its pillars its balconies
twined with roses. narcissi, lilies and pansies.
The further development of this human
atom. and his experiences when he be-
came a man Cat the age of thirteen). are
as quantity interesting as these scraps of
thought
Joseph, the Dreamer" which follows
this Introductory sketch, is a tale of the
Roman Ghetto, and throws fearful light
on the prosecutions to which Jews Were
subjected in other days. 1t is the history
. -
tives. was led to become Il Dominican
monk, and was ground between Jew and
Christian as between two millstones. The
chara cterization of this story is some
thing marvellous, and the stern father,
the gentle Jewish maiden, the visionary
| hero, the brutality of a medieval popu-
lace the stubborn determination of the
Jew, and the whimsical go-between. born
Jew. catering to Christian folly-Shloumi,
the Droll-all these are live people. Here
and there are touches of grim humor, as
in that chapter in which Jews We're driven
by force into church and made to listen
TO sermons, and with devout faces listen
ed for the first time in their lives to the
| gospel, because. owing to the whimsical
device OF Shloumi, every sedate son of
| Israel had wadding stuffed deep in his
/ ears.
different tale which. in its concise,
| dramatic style. reminds one a little of the
! Hungarian Jokai. is THE Turkish Messi-
! ah, the story of Sabbath. the fanatic
! and mystic, who believed himself the
! Saviour foretold by the prophets Other
stories treat of Spinoza. Lassalle, Heine
and Maimon, the Fool. The sketch of
/ Heine, entitled From Mattress Grave"
| Is one which will prove interesting TO all
who have known and admired that
strange, weird genius. Disiointed scraps
Of reminiscence, epigram OF sparkling
/ brilIance, raillery as light as the froth
/ on a champagne glass are TO be found in
this little sketch. Says the bedridden phil
| osopher in his garret:
''If | had known how much easier moral pain
| was TO bear than physical. | would have saved
| my curses for my enemies and put up with my
| learn from my anatomy books, only manifest
their existence when they injured. Happy are
the bones that have no history Ugh! how mine
I are coming through the SKIN, Ike ugly truth
/ through fair romance. shall have TO apologize
I 10 the worms for Offering them nothing but bones
But surely God counts the viii TO do, and
/ is more pleased with great-heartcd dreams than
! with the deeds Of the white-winged bUrghers of
I virtue, whose goodness Is essence OF gendarnerie
An, you know every word have written
I You must translate me. You shall be my apostle
! 10 the heathen You are good apostles, you Eng
lish You turned Jews under Cromwell, and now
doctrines in the South Seas, or among the josses
and pagodas of the East, and your young men are
1 coloniZing unknown continents on the basis OF
I
wide Palestine The law goes forth from Zion,
| but by way Of Liverpool and Southampton. Per
haps you are indeed the lost Ten Tribes.
| Don't take your ideas OF Judaism from the
! Jews. II is only apostolic succession OF great
souls that understands anything in this world.
The Jewish mission will never be over till the
Christians converted to the religion of Christ
Lsssalle is a better pupil of the Master than the
( priests who denOunce socialism. You have met
-assalle! No? You shall meet him here day.
I 4 marvel. Ne plus Will He knows everything,
feels everything, yet Is a sledge-hammeT 10 act.
All! when every man is a Spinoza. and
! does good for the love OF good when the world is
4 ruled by justice and brotherhood reason and hui
NOR, then the Jews may shut up shop, for il will
. be the Holy Sabbath Did you mark, Lucy, /
said reason and humor2 Nothing will survive in
the long run but what satisfies the sense OF logic
| and the sense of humor Logic and laughter-the
| two trumps OF doom! Put not your trust in
/ princes-the really great of the earth are always
| You Pharisees do not understand great men,
you and your Wellington! Napoleon not OF
| the wood OF which kings arc made but Of the
| marble Of the gods. Let me tell you, the code
| Napoleon carried light not only into the Ghettos
| but into many another noisome spider-clot Of
/ feudalisn- The world wants earthquakes and
thunder-stoTns, or IL grows corrupt and stagnant
! This Paris needs scouTge Of God, and the mo-
| ment France gives Germany a pretext there will
, be sackcloth and ashes, Cr prophecy has died out
| Of Israel
LET the poor starve: I'll have potatoes on
! Panassus Ny socialism is not barracks and
| brown bread, but purple robes, music and com
edies. Yes ! was born for Paradox German
| Partisan, Jewish German, hated political eN-
lie who searns for dear homely old Germany, a
| skeptical sufferer with a Christian patience, a
| romantic poet expressing IN classic form the
| modern spirit, jew and poor-thlnk you do
not see myself as lucidly as | see the world? My
! mind 10 kingdom Is, sang your old poet.
| Mine is a republic and all moods free, equal
and fraternal. BELTS child of light. Or if
| there j. a despOt, It's the kings jester. who
laughs at the king as well as all his subjects.
Ach why ] not made four square
like Moses Mendelssohn sublimely one-sided
1 fEaA argtl hgNQ lai IN ClNa
! humanity. II ! did not at the same time suspect
humanity not worth saving To be Don
Quixote and Sancho Panzo in one, what a
tragedy"
This embodied lightning-1ash of
| spirit; this Kaleidoscope and myriad
sided intellect can never cease to be fas-
cinating to those who have once known
him The glimpse given of him by Zang-
will is very slight, but none the less
| Of interest To write the biography of
Heine, Heine himself would be required.
Some of the work in this volume is not
so good as other some. but the two
sketches which have been quoted are
| fairly characteristic of its quality. Book
lovers who wish to collect on their
shelves museum of books which shall
tell the reader of all nations and all
thought, cannot afford 10 be without this
one. With the possible exception of
"The Children of the Ghetto" ii is the
best book of Jewish fiction which has
yet appeared. IL may not be amiss to
quote in closing the strange bit of
thought which appears in sonnet form
at the beginning of the book
MOSES AND JESUS.
In dream saw two Jews that met by chance.
one old. stern-eyed. deepbrowed, yet garlanded
With living light OF love around his head
| The other young, with sweet, seTaphic glance.
Around went on the Towns satanic dance