The American Jewish world. [volume] (Minneapolis ;) 1915-current, 1922-06-02

folk, although they walked in the mar
row ways of the towns, still found it
possible to welcome the Festival of
Shabuoth as joyfully as bridegroom
greets his bride. They had forgotten
the clean smell of the open fields, but
when the days of the omer were over
and Shabuoth brought springtime and
hope, the exiled Jews greeted the holy
day with rejoicing and flowers and
song. True, they no longer journeyed
along the paths of Palestine, singing
as they went, their arms filled with
offerings from their own fields,
brought to lay upon the altar at Jeru-
salem; but now after centuries of
exile, the children of Israel spread
understanding grass upon the floors
of their synagogue and turned their
bare houses of prayer into bowers of
fresh spring blossoms.
In LIE Mans-where even today the
traveller sees the remains of the old
Street of the Jews, which still bears
it's ancient name although for many
years no Jew has dwelt within it's
boundaries the little city of LIE
Mans dwelt Reuben the merchant and
his only child Rachel. Rachel, being
motherless, had long since become the
mistress of her fathers home and was
wise beyond her years in all the mat
tiers of the house; her fathers wealth
was the envy of even Christian hearts
in LIE Mans; yet had she been heavy
of hand and slothful and without
dowry, still Rachel would never have
waited long for a sutton. Her face
was like a rose in it's fresh beauty and
more than one maiden in the Street of
the Jews had to confess that if the
Jews ever descended to the follies
of their Gentle neighbors and crown
ed one of their number Queen of
Beauty, the daughter of Reuben would
have surely worn that diadem. n
So it was little wonder that Zebu-
lun, the marriage broker, came often
to the house of Rachel's father, there
to sit and chat with Reuben over the
red wine and present the name of first
this sutton and then that for the rich
mans approval. And he named, one
after another, the most worthy young
men in the whole city, youths of proud
names and wealth, or scholars OF
promise, lads any man might have
been proud to choose for son-in-law.
But at every visit, Reuben the mer-
chant did thing so shocking that few
Jews believed Zebulun at first when
he sought to spread the scandal about
LIE Mans: instead of deciding upon a
husband for his daughter, he would
actually call her into the room and
discuss the matter with her. No Won
der Zebulun was heard to declare that
Reuben must either be in his dotage
or else he was bewitched by his own
daughters beauty!
"Nay, my father" Rachel would
declare at every interview, may, the
young man may be worthy of queen
but do not care to marry him." And
then she would run laughingly from
the room, leaving Reuben to chuckle
over his glass and Zebulun to declare
that the end of the world was surely
coming when Jewish maidens were al
lowed to pick and choose among their
suitors like the heather ladies who
actually gave their lovers favors to
wear before the eyes of all men even
before their betrothals.
"True, true" Reuben would nod,
smiling in his beard. "And it is right
for other fathers to choose husbands
for their daughters, and it is fitting