The Jewish outlook., 1908-02-14
Oriein of Anti.Semitism
DIR. SAMUEL SALE.


ion cannot take deep root in the soil
of America. They are not compatible
with the nature and genius of our
people. and they cannot thrive under
government whose institutions are
founded on the principles embodied
in the Declaration of Independence.
This rank weed, wherever, it Is found
in our cline. is an exotic. 1t is com
monty believed that it was first in
troduced into our country from Ger
many. and while this is Il mere as
sumption. it cannot be denied that
Teutonic influence and agencies have
been instrumental in giving it a local
name and habitatiOn.
"While it is matter of mere con-
lecture that the sporadic prejudices
against us in this country are to be
traced to German sources, 1t does not
admit of a doubt that the organized
movement abroad. known as anti
Semitism. had its origin in Germany.
Through the advocacy of IA Treitschke.
Wagner and Duehring among the
teachers of the university, a Stoecker
in court circles and along the Chris
tian Socialists, and the Agrarlan rep
rescntatives in Parliament. the agita-
ton against the Jews soon assumed
threatening propositions. 1t seemed
almost as if the middles ages had come
back with all their horrid specter..
The poison infiltrated the very life OF
the people and spread like pcstilence
into the schools and homes. Anti
Semitism sent Auerbach to Il prema-
ture grave and drove Lasker from
public life in Germany. to seek repose
and. as if by the irony of fate. to find
eternal rest in this land of liberty.
.I.asker was of the opinion that the
outbursts of hatred against The jews
of Germany was species of popular
psychosis that would soon subside, but.
he might have changed his mind if he
had lived to see the plague spread
with increased virulence into Austria.
Russia and even France. and after
twenty-five years had not died out in
Germany The Jew-hater of Germany
grounds his opposition to cur CO.
religionists on the assumption tina,
they are aliens. and. therefore. natllr-
ally opposed to all that is character
istically German. The charge is
brought against them that some OF
them have found fault with Luther.
Goethe and Fichte. If this be proof
that the Jews are not Germans. | will
undertake to show by the same reas-
oning that the prophets of ancient Is
rael were not of the household of Is
rael. but Jew-haters of the worst type,
for they were nothing if not censor
ious. and the severest critics of the
shortcomings of the people. The
kings themselves did not escape their
condemnation.
''Were Nicolai. Kotzebue and the
Jew-hater, Wolfgang Menzel. together
with all those who sought to embitter
the life of the aged Goethe, long be-
fore Boerne-were these Jews
SchOpenhauer, the pessimist and jew
hater, was certainly not a Jew. ana
yet he poured out the vials of his
hatred and contempt upon Hcgel and
Fichte and what he styled the mutual
admiration societies of German pro-
fessors. Was Bishop Ketteler Jew
And yet he declared the German peo-
pie had been robbed of its conscience
by the reformation of Martin Luther.
Duehring, one of the most envenomed
.Jew-baiters that ever lived, was re-
moved from the University of Berlin
because he attempted to blacken the