The Denver Jewish news., 1924-10-02
MARGARET II HARRISO
NOTED FOREIGN COR
RESPONDENT. THRILLED
BY JEWISH ACHIEV E.
MENTS IN PALESTINE.
Famous Journalist Visits Palestine and
In Interview Tells Of Her Impression
Of the Country.

women, and has visited all parts Of the |
world for leading American newspapers /
md magazines. Twice In Russia she was |
arrcstcdby the Soviet aud kept in jai for |
iunny months. her Imprisonment causing a |
world wide sensation.
New Yori-"Thrilled and greatly i'm
pressed" by the striking achievements |
wasted and rundown Pal |
estine into growing and modern coun- |
try, Mrs. Margaret Harrison, celebrated |
newspaper correspondent. told in an in |
tcrview here of her visit to Palestine, !
where she went to investigate the de-
vclopment of the Jewish Homeland dur |
ing the course of years travels thru |
out the Near East.
Mrs. Harrison, who is going to tell
about her travels In magazine articles
and lectures this year, explained that
she has long been interested in Jewish
problems and In Zionism as solution
of many of the present acute ills of the
Jewish people, because her foreign
newspaper work had given her vivid
and intimate pictures of the terrible
condition of Jewish refugees, shunted
from one country to another. innocent
victims of the cruclties of after-war
conditions in Eastern and Central
Europe.
1t will be remembered that on previ-
Gus visits to Russia. Mrs. Harrison was
arrested by the Soviets and spent many
months in a Soviet prison. Some of
my fellow-prisoners were Iionists,"
Mrs. Harrison said, "who hadn't the
least idea why they We're thrown into
persecuie Zionists most ruthlcssly. The
Bolsheviki look on Zionismras another
manifestation of reaction and the jew
ish conimissars, who seem TO lead the
prosecutions. are probably inspired by
the same reason that makes "A person
who owes II lot of money. hate his
creditors. Rcnegades from lhcir race
and their religion. these Jewish com
missars take great delight in persecut-
ing every manifestation of Jewish life.
while in prison with these young
and old Zionists, / learned much more
| about the movement which has always
Interested me. Then when l saw the
trudging from one place to another,
| crow,ling the ports, knowing not whith-
er to go, or where the vagaries of n
government would send them next, l
| realized that tremendous problem this
| was and how urgent was the need of a
| quick solution. And when America
the problem assumed such critical pro-
portions, that Palestine seemed the one
and only solution for this colossal tras-
cdy Of a people.
80 l viewed Zionism as a great phil
anthropic movement which would save
millions of race, with no place else
to 90. And now that | have been to
Palestine, have seen what the Jews
have accomplished there in so short "A
time, under such terrific obstacles, am
more convinced than ever, that Pal
estine is the one hope of the Jewish
people 1t is to me tremendous phil
nnthropic movement with vast cultural
possibilities which should grip the
imagination of the world"
| Mrs. Harrison visited Jewish col
onies, Tel-Aviv and other cities during
her stay in Palestine which took her
from one end of the country to the
other She said that Dilh, Keren
IIayesod cooperative colony, that she
visited, left n lasting impression upon
her. Here was remarkable achieve
ment which seems to be typical of
many Of the Jewish colonies" she con
tinued. "Dilb was established by Tx
rainiun Jews who had little farming
experience They selected barren,
rocky hilly place for their colony, prob
ably because they could get no better
site. Here on one side were rocks and
hills. absolutely barren ground. There
next to IT. in the colony We're flourish
ing gardens and fruit plantations. Just
one striking example of the marycls Of
these Woodworking practical idenlists
The Jews of America certainly have
II right to he proud of what Jewish cf
fort has accomplished in Palestine"
Mrs. Harrison went on. "One sees on
every hand evidence Of Jewish labor
aud Jewish enterprise thriving col
onics, suburbs, modern cities. Tcl-Aviv
is an extraordinary achievement. Here
Is modern city, imbued with typical
American enterprise, and fifteen years
ago. it was sand waste.
"Aud, too. it must he remembered
that the possibilities of Palestine have