Norwich bulletin., 1922-02-17


 paign for the relief of the unfortunate Jews in Europe, in which an organiza- ton has already been formed in this city in order that Norwich may do it's part towards the grand total to be raised in the state, the part that the Jew has played in the making of Amer lea history has enlisted the attention of the Norwich committed
 The following historical sketch from Justice to the Jew, by the late Rev. Madison C. Peters or the Unitarian church, gives something of the part the Jew has played. in American history:
 Discovery of America.
 Jews were instrumental in making the l voyage of Columbus possible. Nego- tiations between the navigator and Fer dinand and Isabella, the king and queen of Spain. had been suspended when the Jewish favorita of Ferdinand. Louis de Santangel. chancellor of the royal household of Aragon, induced them to lend favorable consideration once again to the appeal of Columbus. He himself advanced 17,000 ducats out of his own fortune. for which he would not accept interest, toward fitting out Columbus first expedition. The dis covery of this fact has destroyed the century-od legend that Queen Isabella pawned her jewels to secure the money for the equipment of the expedition of Columbus. and led the late Prof. Her bert B. Adams. of the Johns Hopkins l University, to coin the epgram, Not jewels. but Jews" were the real fnan- cial basis for the first expedition of Co., lumbus. It was undoubtedly because of the assistance given him by San tangel that Columbus wrote him the first detailed account nf his voyage. This was in the form of letter writ- ten by Columbus on February Is, 1493, from the Azores, where the navigator stopped on his homeward voyage.
 The first European who set foot on American soil was a Jew by birth. Louis de Torres. the interpreter of the 9I expedition of Columbus. He settled in | Cuba and lived there the remainder of , his life. He was the first European to discover the use of tobacco.
 : Dr. NJ. Kayserling, who pointed out , these facts in his book. Christopher Co., 2 lumhus and the Participation of the Jews in the Spanish and Portuguese Discoveries. mentions a number of oth- or persons of Jewish descent among those who sailed with Columbus on his o enoch-making voyage, viz: Alonzo de g la Caile. Rodrigo Sanchez, and Maestro - Bernal, the ships surgeon.
 g The Revolutionary Period.
 In all the wars of the country, Jews 5 have taken prominent and honorable , part. How great this participation was has been made clear by MT. Simor Wolf of Washington, in his book The ;, ! Amreican Jew as Patriot, Citizen, am 5 Soldier. the immediate occasion of s whose compilation was the slanderou! - charge made by a writer in the Nortl k American Review of December, 1891 - that no Jews had served in the Civi ? war.
 e Beginning with the Revolutionar! 1t struggle Jews have fought on all bat tlefelds where patriots gave their live e that the country might live. A brief re J. sume of this record will prove of in 1t terest.
 n The first step. which led eventual, 2 to the War of the Revolution, was tn re signing of the Non-Importation Resolu " tons in 1765 by merchants of the Colo h nies. Among these signers were min st Jews. Citizens of the Colony of Geor r. gia issued a protest against the block is ale Of Boston Harbor and taxatio d without representation this was sign cd by the prominent citizens of the col
 
 re thames of two Jews.
 y Among the foremost citizens of Sout y Carolina at this period was Jew
 Francis Salvador. He was a membe ir of the provincial congress of the colon l- which assembled at Charleston, Januar 7d II, 1775. He signed, on the part ( us the patriots of South Carolina, a con
 ract between the Tories and the ps is triots. He was also e member of tt as second provincial congress which as ad sembled in Charleston in Novembe e. 1775. He was killed on an expedite |. asainst the tories and Indians on Aul us ust l, 1776.
 ;e- The records of the Revolutionary a in my are incomplete; there is no way ad discovering how many fought In tf 7i- colonial armies Of the list of lewis 'g soldiers whose names have been pr en served a large proportion are officer H. Tua names Of twenty-seven of these 0
 icers are given. It is more than like '' that the names of many Jewish pr ts yates are unknown, for the number -S officers is disproportionately larg
 Among these officers special mentic we may be made of Col David s. Frank
 Col. Solomon Bush. Col Isaac Frank
 Major Benjamin Nones Capt Jacob
 h M0tta Lieut.. Abraham Seixas. al Lieut.. David Sarzedas.
 -i Esther Hays was a Jewish heroiI al- Of the Revolution. Her husband. Day HIS Hays, was in the patriot army; s
 was left with her children in the hor as in Bedford, Westchester county, Ne WI York. In July, 1779, tories entered h oi home while she was lying ill, and -. handed of her information concerni ,I. the patriot plans which she was su !Le posed to possess. When she refuse v" her home was fired; she and her oh ,I,a dren were saved by a faithful neg sLe servant.
 .sIi The Jewish congregation of N
 York, led by its patriot rabbi Gersht -r. Mendes Seixas, disbanded when
 British approached the city. MT. Sc
 as lefr New York, and after a brief for journ at Stratford, Conn.,, removed o Philadelphia taking with him the -7- cred Belongings of the synagogue Gu
 a number of the patriot Jews who h . left New York. on the approach of
 British lad settled in Philadelphia, 3
 desiring to organize a congregation, .lR duced MT. Seixas to come to Philad
 phia for this purpose. He did so, a
 organized with them the Mickve Isr aye congregation. In 17s4 he returned New York where he continued ta La