The sun., 1908-02-02
LOYE AND rHE TORAR.
RaD Fyvish's WO0lnS Ended BY . Mistake
About = Handkerchief.

attentive ear 10 the recital Of an edifying
tale by the graybearded beadle.
I'VE were chanting in the house Of Rabbi
Avremele.' Baruch. the beadle, began In a
quaint singsonE. The rabbi himself was.
as usual. diligently poring over the Talmud
when in comes young Nathan Levy dressed
spick and span in a white collar and a new
suit Of clothes. He goes straight up 20 the
holy man and says;
rabbi. love your daughter Becky
"The rabbi says: .
love her too. She is a very nice girl
@'I want her. insists Levy.
"'Want her to do whatp' questions the
rabbi. inclining his ear forward as II he was
hard Of hearing.
-'I want to marry her. rejOins the young
blade.
"'Why herr Marry some one else. replies
the rabbi calmly. as II that settled It. and
turns over a page Of the treatise he was
perIsing.
'"Dear rabbi, begs Nathan. I love Becky
and not some one else. and therefore l wish
| to marry Becky. She loves me too
~Reb Avremele now first raised his head
| and gave him a glance that ought to have
turned him into skeleton on the spot; then
he smiled with closed lips In a discreet way
he has and muttered between his teeth:
Heres a love affair for you'll HOity toityl
Just as in Canticlesl'
Aloud he addressed the young chap thus:
My boy. far be it from mo to dissuado
you from matrimony. II is divine oom-
mandment, as is written: Therefore shall
man leave his father and his mother and
O.eave to his wife" TberO is no command
ment. you will notice. that he should cleave
to my daughter. You can discharge your
religious duties by wedding any one OF the
female persuasion
rabbi the young man appealed earn
estly. I love Becky. II you stand in our
way I will become desperate and don't
know what l may do. I'm not responsible
for myself. may go and sat ham sand
wich'
"'YOu would commit this heinous crime
against human nature,' the rabbi retOrted
angrilY, because forsooth. you prate of
loving my Becky? Fall in love with some
body elsel I'm an old man and a rabbi
and yet I'm not in love- and this whipper-
snapper is in lOvOi It's nonsensel How
do you feel when you're in lover
The feeling is Cognate to that which
a man may reasonably entertain for good
wine or money the youth tried to enlighten
the rabbi.
"'Preciseyl' Reb Avremele called out in
triumph Just as thought When you
love money must you have this dollar bill
and won't another dollar bill do Just as weIll
In like manner. you can fall IN love with
another girl. Look here. loveri have
pledged Becky to Rab Fyvish, the widower,
as everybody knows. You can't pretend
l. q Dol l.,
in age. Wherefore the less said the sooner
mended.'
THE holy rabbi began to sway himself
violently and read his book at the top Of
his voice, to the evident utter exclusion OF
all worldly matters Young Levy made his
exit in dudgeon.
IF only the matter had dropped there.
what blessed thing it would have beeni"
sighed deeply Baruch, the graybearded
6eadle. But Providence in its inscruta-
bleness had decreed otherwise.
The very next Sabbath Rab Fyvish
bounces breathlessly into this very syna-
gogue and up to Reb Avremele.
%, star of the west! o, marvellous
Reb Avromelev he shouts franticaTly
Better that l had become blind than that
l should have seen what have SEEN
Has the Messiah cofne? Reb Avremele
asks, pale and confused.
With these eyes l saw it, walled Rab
Fyvish, sticking his index fingers between
his eyelids. Then he swOoned away.
Il cashed pail Of cold water at his face
and he came to. He now rolled his eyes
and muttered incomprehensibly as il he
had seen a ghost. and at length composed
himself sufficiently 20 falter out with nu-
merous groans the following horriic fact:
1 saw your daughter Becky that was
to be my wife carry handkerchief on the
street on Sabbath
Everybody present started and grew pale
and Reb Avremele shivered fitfully. Rab
Fyvish proceeded to moan as follows:
L need not say that handkerchief |
is load. and carrying a load is equivalent |
to doing work. and one who works on Sab |
bath should be stoned to death according |
to the law
~Reb Avremele Immediately tore home |
like hurricane, and at his heels. He |
met Becky standing at the door of his
house with an embroidered little handker-
chief held jauntily in her hand.
20, wretched woman, sobbed the /
rabbi, what are you doing? Who will
marry yon now? Rab Fyvish has re-
nOunced you, and even that silly Nathan
Levy will never look on your face againl
You will remain a maiden till your hair is
gray
-Out OF the earth starts the scapeRrace
Levy and says:
Not at all I'll marry her.
The marvellous Reb Avremele saw that
It was a cOllusion, but under the circum-
stances he was too glad TO marry her off
10 anybody and he gave his consent with
lively alacrity.
THE saddest part OF the incident fell
10 the lot of Rab Fyvish. At first he was
30 mortified that ne abandoned all material
cares and devoted himself 10 the study Of
the Torah day and night.
A week after the wedding Of Nathan
and Becky he came across a passage in
an out OF the way tome composed by a
genius who lived more than a thousand 1
years ago, proving distinctly that 1t was
permissible 20 carry a handkerchief on the /
Sabbath Profoundly wounded at having /
needlessly los his betrothed, the lovely /
Becky, he pined away