The Irish standard., 1906-01-27
THE JEWS.
Have Always Found Shelter Under
Shadow of Vatican.

To those who recall how during the
centuries when the Jews were the VIC
Tins Of dreadful prosecutions at the
hands Of the inquisitions throughout
the Spanish dominions, they dwelt in
safety under the shadow of the Vati-
can. there is nothing surprising in
the tenor of the encyclical addressed
the other day by Plus x. to the Bish-
ment the Pope denounces as unworthy
Of civilized people the massacres of
Jews which have taken place IN
Southwestern Russia. and reminds his
Polish co-religionists that such out
RACES are condemned and regarded
with adherence by the law of the
gospel, which prescribes love for all
mankind without racial discrimtna-
ton. The truth is that the Spanish
1nquisition was an engine of despot
ism rather than Of bigotry. and that
the expulsion Of Jews from many
countries at time when the whole
of Central and Western Europe was
Catholic was prompted by racial and
predatory motives rather than by
theological rancor. OF all the forms
Of Christianity. it is only the Greek
Church, which in Russia Is the state
church, that shows itself an inn
placable enemy of Judaism. How,
then, does 1t happen, 1t may be asked,
that there are nearly as many Jews
In the Russian empire as in all the
rest Of the world put together? We
answer that almost all the Jewish
subjects of the czar are concentrated
in the region which used to be known
as Poland and Lithuania. and at the
time when their forefathers found a
refuge there, the Independent king
dom of Poland, with which the grant
j, duchy of Lithuania had been fused
was Catholic, as, indeed, a majority
of the Christian inhabitants are to.
day, says Harpers Weekly.
, From the viewpoint of the rcla.
| tions of Jews to the various MN
Judaic religions of the world, it is in.
, compiled by DR.. Isadore Singer, man
! aging editor of the Jewish Encj,.o
r pedia, and published in the Decembe
t number of the North American Re
t view. DR.. Singers estimate, based OF
what he deems the most trustworth,
] source of information, places the tota
3 number of Jews at the present day a
( 11,11S,224. By enumeration made b.
. Russian officials in 1879 there wer
! 5,1S9,401 Hebrews in the so-calle'
e Pale Of Settlement, which comprise
i a part of the former kingdom of Po
|. land. In 1900 Austria Hungary ha
!. 2,Q76.277. largely massed in Galicia
s Germany in 1901 had 5S6,94S, a larg
o proportion Of whom were in Posen
:. Roumania in 's9 was credited wit
9 269,015; European Turkey, including
e Of course. Constantinople, with 1873.
n 90; Holland in 1899 had 103,9SS, an
e France, S6,ss5. The remaining Euro
9 pean countries had. collectively.
= Jew1h population of about 1sO.ool
9 The Jewish population of the Unite
Il States is computed by DR.. Singer 9
: 100000 in round numbers. at leas
: half of whom are residents of the cit
a Of New York. The rest Of the Ameri
can continent contains some 74,0o|
d In Asia there are about $4,000 Jew
q and 100000 in Africa. Jews are pei
e mitted to live everywhere except
!s that large part Of European Russi
e which lies outside the pale Of settle
i ment; that part, in other words. with
s in which the Greek Church is doml
II nant.