The New York herald., 1921-05-01
JEW WINS HIS FIGHT
TO HELP PALESTINE
Youth Twice Imprisoned by
Turks Before Regaining
His Home.

Ills HOulc.
Special Correspondence to THE New York
HERALD.
JERUSALEM March 27.--In the up
building of Palestine under the British
mandate as a homeland for the Jewish
people much interest is displayed in the
type of young man that is helping to
make the country land once
again Flowing with milk and honey"
The record of Ehud Ben-Yehudah is
characteristic Of those Of the young
Palestinians who are now giving Of their
best energies and talents in regenerating
the soil under the security of a stable
government.
A native Of Palestine. son Of famous
Hebraist. Eliazer Ben-Yehudah. whose
fearless nationalism on behalf Of the
Jewish homeland, caused him twice to
be imprisoned under the Turkish regime.
young Ben-Yehudah was studying agri-
culture in Germany when the war broke
out. In 1915 his father was compelled
to start for America with the rest of
his family, and for several years was in
the Semitics Department of the New
York Public Library. where he became
known for his work on the Lexicon OF
the Hebrew language
When in 1917 young Ben-Yehudah
learned that he would be liable for SER
vice in tho Turkish army he enlisted in
the German army in the hope that he
ha mfr hxy 10 IN vIi ch nd
was sent to the front in Belgium and
France After several months without
succeeding in being captured Ben-Yehu-
dah announced that he was q Turkish
subject and asked to be sent back to
fight with his so-called compatriots, hop
ing meanwhile that he might fall into
the hands Of the British who were adj
vancing into Mesopotamia-
Caught by Military Police.
On his way to Constantinople~ie man
aged to miss his train at Belgrade. and
after observing for three days the plight
of the oppressed Serbians similar to that
of his fellow Jews in Palestine. he was
captured by the military police. He was
released. however. by posing as a Ger
man and assuming the name Of Jordan.
His knowledge of German, French. Eng
for him the position Of interpreter and
confidential clerk attached to Turkish
headquarters.
-Yehudah's fiuency in German and
Turkish enabled him a4s,ong Germans to
pose as a Turk, and among the Turkish
soldiery he was regarded as one of the
much to be feared Germans. 1t also
gave him the freedom of Constantinople
and he gained much valuable informa-
ton which he was able to transmit to
his Jewish friends who were acting as
British spies.
Through the aid of Gen. Won Falken-
heyn on whose farm he had worked In
Hanover, he was made station master
at Amman. a few miles across the Jor-
dan from Jericho. He was thrown into
prison on the charge of having snug
gled 700 rifles over to the Arab tribes.
who were allied with the British. Know
ing there was no chance Of escape from
the German prison, he again asserted
himself as a Turkish subject and was
transferred to the Turkish prison.
Word came that the British were ad-
vancing, and rather than be killed like
a rat In a hole he pleaded that he might
be released to shoulder a rife in defence
of the Star Crescent As soon as he
was out he threw away the rife and
made for the camp of a Bedouin friend,
who, in all probability. could be induced
to turn him over to the British. especial
Iy as there was a reward offered for
every German brought in. But the
Turkish Circassians with whom they met
were suspicious and Ben Yehudah re-
mained uncaptured.
Saved by the British.
At last the British came. With a
bayonet against his breast he tried to
make known his Identity. You're a
bloody Circassian," insisted the English
Tommy. Il am not he answered. I'm
Palestinian and a Jew. Take me to
headquarters and you can find out all
about me-" Headquarters telephoned TO
Rischon-le-Zion, the nearest Jewish coll
ony, where everybody knew Of the Ben
Yehudah family. He was set free and
because of his linguistic ability got on
interpreters post and accompanied the
Anzacs and the Jewish Battalion as far
as Damascus.
Ben Yehudah is now an agriculturist.
serving the Government as subinspector
of Palestine In the entire Southern dis
trict Of Palestine. riding from farm to
farm giving advice as to the breedinh
of cattle, teaching the Jewish farmer
how to get more crops each year. and
assisting the veterinary surgeons.
His ideas as to the needs and future
of the New Palestine are definite. He
says:
What we want is sound economic
basis for the homeland. We are done
with having the Holy Land place
peuperizcd by unintelligcnt charity. The
land is rich. the country can be made
productive Of great things: what is
needed is investment on a large scale
that. without doubt, will yield splendid
returns.
Specialists in various fields and
skilled workers are constantly coming
here and we need even more of this type
OF immigration. With the finances to
back the high type of labor that we