The Spanish Fork press. [volume] (Spanish Fork, Utah) 1902-current, 1905-12-14
A GHETTO STORY.

We u uhSth Ouh way thiOuSh thC
row Ghetto streets on the afternoon of
a sultry day until We reached our Che
der, which was dngy apartment in a
tenement house. We were very rest
less and boisterous, but our Rabbi
Joseph did not check our noise as he
generally did. His thoughts seemed
very far away. l looked at him close
ly, for his preoccupied air always made
me wonder what his past life had been.
He was about sixty years of age.
Poverty must have been his constant
companion, because burrows Of care
were on his broad, wrinkled forehead.
His eyes peered out of their sockets as
If they implored pity, and were now
and then raised In prayer to the Heav.
emily Father. On the side Of his ears
hung two earlocks, according 10 the
Oriental fashion. His beard was long
and hoary. His shoulders were 80 bent
and curved that he seemed to have
borne the yoke of persecution of mis-
race for centuries. A large Hebrew
very leaves spoke to him and revealed
the powers and splendors Of the AL
mighty. Although he was poor, we
boys always revered him for his age
and ancient learning.
Then we seated ourselves upon a
large wooden bench, which creaked I'M
der us. Moses, who sat next to me,
pricked my feet with pin under the
table. This made me howl, and l
vowed that when we were dismissed
would repay him with interest.
"Shaw said rabbi, in his deep gov
erning voice, "if you promise to be
good will tell you story afterward."
This made us quiet soon enough, for
we always delighted in the stories of
our past glories. Yet must say that
perhaps we thought more of the COM
ing story than of our prayer. Then, In
the Hebrew we began to recite psalm
with real vigor. Our heads shook, our
feet swung, and, to complet the noise
the bench creaked terribly. When we
had finished Rabbi Joseph began as fol
| lows:
| "You know 1t is sometimes a relief tC
tell all that lies upon ones heart" HI
| cleared his voice and gathered courage
| II had wealthy parents and received
good education. My youth passet
away happily, for I knew no cares
When 1 was twenty-five years old
married Esther, good and beautiful
maiden. She was the daughter OF
Rabbi Ben Ezra. AS pure as lily wa
her soul. o Father, keep it, keep /
within Thy care" Here he lifted III
his hands and his voice was full of pas
sion. while two tears ran down hi
cheeks and lost themselves within tn
ringlets of his beard.
We boys put our arms upon one an
others shoulders and seemed to nestl,
closer to the speaker.
mot long" he concluded, twas IN.
home to be the source of comfort TO
the poor and homeless, for the Car is
sued an edlct expelling the Hebrews o
the villages. | had to go where all m.
brethren went, into the gloomy Ghet
tos of few large nvercrnwGed cities
rs wilma l suffered the woes of my PEG
pie. / gave myself up to teaching b.
day and / studied by night.
"One evening when l was Mt my stu
dies in my humble dwelling felt com
forted that the Russians could not, a
least, take my Esther from me. Then
with q tremendous crash, the door
were suddenly thrown open and tw
drunken officers entered. They thrus
my wife away, and selling me by tn
collar they dragged me into the cold
snowy streets. l heard the scream
and shrleks of Esther oh! can hea
them yet. They echo dry and hOlloy
within my heart.
81 was placed upon a wagon, o.
which l found many of my mlserabl
brethren. We afterward found on
that the army wanted soldiers, and thi
is how it got them. After few days
Journey we arrived at village inhaL