The Denver Jewish news., 1920-12-01
LUCIEN WOLF ON THE JEW IN
POLAND.
English Publicist Differs With Polish
Ambassador.

|
itaffords us of the views on the Jewish
question which prevail in official cir
cles in Warsaw. and more especially
Of the ignorance of certain essential
stinately cultivated by statesmen. who,
In their own interest, ought to know
better. l am referring especially to
what Professor Askenazy said about
the Minority Treaty.
was less surprised than might
have been expected by Professor AS.
kenazy's grotesque misrepresentation
of the Treaty, for 1 have very good
reason for believing that, until he ar.
rived in this country, he had never
seen its text, and he was certainly en-
tirely in the dark as to what hap
pened last year In Paris in connection
with it. The treaty has never been
published in Poland, althO it has been
| duly ratified, and all the jingo ele
ments in the country have been led
to believe that 1t is, us Professor As
kenazy said, Statute for Safeguard
ing the Rights of Minorities' adopted
| by the Peace Conference and imposed
upon Poland in order to promote the
National separatism of the Jews. 1t
would be difficult to state more pre-
cisely what the Peace Conference alb
| stained from doing and what it actu-
| ally did not do. Let me take tho
points one by one.
| 1. The Treaty is not Statute but
Treaty. 1t cannot become a sta
| tute until Poland carries out her
pledge to make it one.
2. 1t was never adopted by the
Peace Conference In the sense mean,
by Professor Askenazy.
3. 1t was never imposed upon Pol
and, but was submitted to her for her
voluntary adoption.
4. The suggestion tlnt 1t was in
some way a. insult to Poland, to her
sovereign rights and her sense af her
moral duties is best answered by the
following extract from the preamble
Of the Treaty:
Poland, desiring to conform her In
stitutions to the principles Of liberty
and justice and to give n sure guar-
Gntee to the inhabitants of the terri
tory over which she has assumed SOW
ereignty. undertakes etc.
There is no hint of constraint here,
and surely Poland has more reason
| to be proud of this statement than TO
be ashamed of it.
| 5. The idea that 1t is chiefly con-
cerned with Jews is inaccurate. 1t
deals with all racial, religious. and
linguistic minorities, and is Charter
| of Rights for the Lithuanians, the
White Russians, the Ruthenians. the
| Prottestants, the Greek Orthodox. and
all other siniar Minorities as much
as for the Jews.
q. There is no deliberate widening
! Of the gulf between Jews and Poles.
The only clauses In which Jews are
mentioned assure to them privileges
which they enjoy in common with all
other Religious Minorities In Great
Britain and thruout Western Europe
Z. As for National Separatism, not
only does the Treaty studiously alb
stain from recognizing National Min
critics but it actually describes all
these Minorities, including the Jews
as Polish Nationals, who belong to
racial, religious, or linguistic minori-
ties.' Moreover, I'm NJ. Clemenceaus
famous letter to NJ. Paderewski Of
June oath, 1919, 1t was expressly stat
ed that the stipulatlons Of the Trea-
ty do not constitute any recognition
of the Jews as separate political
community within the Polish State
And further: Ample safeguards
! against any use OF nOn-Polish Ian
! guages to encourage a spirit of Ma
tionyal Separation have beenprovided.
How, in these circumstances, anyone
can describe the Treaty as creating
new Ghetto or as in any other way
placing obstacles in the way of the
Patriotic Polonization Of Jews passes
my comprehension. should add that
Professor Askenazy's statement in re
gard to the guarantee Of the League
of Nations bears not even a distant
resemblance to the provisions Of the
Treaty. The Minorities have no di-
rect right of appeal. and the safe
guards against hhgiousness are of
the most effective kind. Be it noted
also that the Labor Convention places
the rights of Trade Unions under thu
same guarantee of the League Of M
tions. but I have not heard that Pol.
ish working men have beea thereby