The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-05-13
THE BARONESS DE H1RscH.
A London Papers Special Memoir by
One Who Knew Her Life Intimate

| A London Papers Special Memoir by
One Who Knew Her Life Intimate
ly.
The Jewish race has been tainted
with the lack of great women recorded
in it's annals. 1t is true that few of the
daughters of Israel have sought or OBJ
tanned notoriety, but this is no evidence
that moral and intellectual distinction
is rarer with them than with their Gen
| tile sisters-it only proves that women
may live great lives in secret and not be
| known to fame. In Glare, Baroness de
Hirsch and Gereuth, who died on Sat
urday at the age of sixty-tive, great
personality has passed away. The
world has lost one Of its greatest bene-
factors; one who let not her right hand
know what her left hand wrought, a
pure and lofty soul. who simply worked
for her fellow creatures without thought
OF self.
Living for the greater part of her life
in Paris the daily life and example of
Baroness de Hrschs was silent re-
proach to anti-Semitism. "Out of Zion,
the perfection of beauty. God hath
shined," wrote the Psalmist If Zion in
this passage means the Hebrew nation,
the perfection of beautiful character
has just passed away from the earth;
and the Jews have lost their best friend.
Englishmen whose conception of the
Jewish race is framed by La France
Juive," or La Derniere Bataile," by the
money-lending fraternity, or by the ma
terialistc German-Jews, who, in their
struggle for cash, renounce Germany
without becoming English shirk all civ
ic, patriotic and communal duties, would
readjust their views of the possibilities
of Jewish destiny and character had
they known-even as | knew her--the
late baroness One could not be in her
society for day without seeing that
she was absolutely free from that desire
to shine, to be in evidence, which is a
distinctive note of our time-and not
least in average Jewish character. One
recognized that her atmosphere was
outside the sphere of struggling and
competitive humanity. Her enormous
riches left no evil mark; she was I'M
touched. While abhoring the display Of
wealth for its own sake, the simplicity
of her life suggested neither ostenta-
tious asceticism nor parsimony, and
whether at Bath House-which was
given up when the baron died--or in the
magnificent hotel in the Rue de IElysee, |
or at the picturesque old castle at Eich-
horn, among the wooded hills of Mora |
VIA or in modest villa with one hired
carriage at Pau, the baroness impressed
all who knew her with the fact that her
interests In life were too deep 40 be sat
isfied with the knowledge that she was
the richest woman in Europe. She had |
in full, the qualities of sincerity and sim
plicity with a heart as tender to hui
man suffering and as true to those she
loved as though her intellectual abili-
ties and soundness of judgment We're
these of the ordinary woman. They
were nothing of the kind. Bred up in
the midst of great affairs, and practiced
in the control and expenditure of reve-
nues exceeding the budgets of some |
states, the Baroness de Hirsch Joined /
singular business capacities to devoted
in relieving the sufferings of
the saddest people OH Gods earth. With
all the weight of care and responsibility.
and the requisite GOODNESS of tempera
ment for wise as well as generous adj
of her affairs, she had from
her girlhood the power of inspiring af
lection and respect.
The Baron de Hirsch once told me the
dyll of his courtship--the way in which
he won his wife. He loved her, and she
loved him. But the ladys father-the
Belgian banker ana senator Blschotf-
sheim-was not prepared to sanction the
match, and refused his consent On one
occasion, however young Hirsch, who
remained on friendly terms, happened to
be in the room where the banker was
discussing with his business advisers an
extremely knotty point of high finance.
The discussion was prolonged without
finding a solution. AT last the senator
.urned to the young man, who had 81
entity followed the deliberations, and In
1ited him to express his opinion. Hirsch
Bisehoffsheim listened atten-
lively, but uttered not a word. When
1irsch had finished, he rose from his
;eat, led his would-b e-son- in-law to an
,ther room where his daughter Glare
vas sitting alone. Still silent, he placed