The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-09-25

Neither the epidernics OF war. nor
he ever-presrrt fear of pogrorns, nor
n pancs OF hunger have so far been
able to break the Jewish spirit. or to
c~xftnEtiish the light Of Jewish faith.
A great feeling OF reverence possesses
ls whom we come face to face with
this eternal secret. OF Jewish history.
which may now b. seen IN the Jewish
ltfe Of Lithuanla.
How this Jewry. physically broken
and downtrodden. gathers its spiritual
forces and strives TO rise again. to
rebuild it's ruined congregations, to
reopen schools for the hungry and
naked children, and To repair the
moral and physical network of its
ltfet The Jews of Litfrra MIA remind
us Of tina worm which has such
vitality IN every part uf it's hodv that.
though severed in twain, each half yet
}ives on"
Jewish history. as wen az the his
tory of all the rest or the human race,
ever repeats itself. Today, Just as
In the middle ages. at the fal of
Jerusalem. during the Babylonian cap
ttvlty, even thousands of years ago
whom the Children of Israel embarked
on the forty years wandering in the
wilderness. 1t is the old, old story Of
persecution, unbelievable suffering,
misery of the sou as well as of the
body-but always that logged, per-
ststcnt clinging to the faith of Abra-
ham and Of Isaac and of Jacob.
And today, inst as in ancient times.
"A Jewish singer. or poet. arises in
Israel TO recount in majestic IAN
Puage the tribulations of his peonlo.
and to preserve for poRterity the han
ncninrs of stilf another era whnrcin
Loyalty TO age-old religious teachings
land traditions triumphed over suffer
ing. disease starvation and death a.
self. This author of the modern
Lamentations of the Jewish peonle
Is found In the pcrson If sh olom
lAsch, Yiddish writer and poet Of no
little note and with a rreat following
a~rponrst NOT nrrv the Jews n, America
but also thu ourhov the world
Eorn in Warsaw. he anne Ia this
ccuntr, some five Years ago and now
resides IN BROOKLYN. N. Y. Speaking
very little English. although under
standing il perfectly. he writes er--
cinsivefy in Yfddiah and rs Recognized
IT'S the leading Jewish writer in Amer
lea today. The two quoted
at the opening Of this article. which
have been translated from the Yid-
dish. arc taken from n remarkable
account of his trim to Eastern Fu-
rope AS an investigator for American
Jews who are vorinp tn save The
remnants Of their race from destruc-
tior. These men have organized tho
American Jewish Relief committee,
with Louis Marshall as chairman,
and il was under the a,ysnices of this
and, ro-oneratfne organizations that
Mr.. A~ch went to Ellrone.
Further extracts from Mr-Asch.=
story wsasss .rrintsd below. Notable
alfke for beauty of dlrtion ard their
lofty spiriraaIity. they tell a story OF
~unninching loyalty and allegiance 10
an IDEAL that may we'll inspire ad-
herents Of ali aects and creeds. After
paying the above ribute to Lithuania
Jews for their religious ~tenacity. the
Yfddisr poet recounts the events that
the past i've years.
THE period Of the terrible exrul-
sions from Lithuania will long live
IN our memory writes Mr.. Asch.
at the beginning OF the war all
the Jews In the province of Kovno
and Suwalkf were deported by the
Rus~tan military authorities. The
Lithuanian Jews indeed assert with
Justice that their deportation was
oven more terrible than the expulsion
from Spain several centuries ago.
Hundreds of thousands OF Jews
were forced to leave their homes,
where they had dewitt for many. many
years. upon t~wenty-four hours notice.
In the SPACE OF one day and ono night
The venerable Jewry of Lithuania. that
iilustrious Jewry. which had dis
7 tinguished itself In both ancient and
modern learning apd wisdom, was
torn ont by the roots. The Jews
abandoned all their goods and homes:
women carried the little children in
their arms, and the men bore away
the scrolls of the law from the syna-
CoEues. Thus, were they driven from
, their native land.
"%Slobodki IL a typical Jewish Lithu-
anian town. built entirely of wood.
Before The war there was a Jewish
population of 1000 souls, living in
about 500 houses. When the Jews
were driven out of Slobodki, all the
houses were entered and robbed.
About 1000 of the refugees have since
returned to Slobodki. hut not all OF