The Maccabaean

vol. II

If the world be likened to a sea and historic movements to the tide, than we would say that the tide of our history rises and sinks more irregularly than that of the non-Jewish people. For if among other nations the rise and development of ideas is evolutionary, among us it is almost revolutionary. Our nation, "the overhasty people" (עַמָּא פְּזִיזָא), is apt to catch at an idea, but is as apt to abandon it as hastily. Such has been the case with many a historic movement among us, and such is also the case with Zionism.

It was in the ninth decade of the last centuryat American Jews were carried away by themovement which was preparatory to the presentpolitical Zionism and similar to it in rapidity ofgrowth, namely, the so-called "Love of Zion"(חבת ציון) movement. The Ghettos were alltir. It was a tempest in a tea-pot; big talk, finephrases, much wasted energy, and then a sudden hush. That is the history of the so-called"Love of Zion" in America.

The collapse of the movement in America may be attributed to two great faults: the commercial aspect the movement took on and the absence of organization. On the one hand, societies were organized for the purpose of purchasing land in Palestine for their own members; this scheme having failed, is naturally served as a great discouragement to the movement. On the other hand, societies whose purpose was merely to support the colonies already existing in Palestine, were working without any system, and had no central body to direct their work. All

this could lead to nothing but failure. Consequently we find that, in Russia, where the "Lovers of Zion" had succeeded in organizing very opportunely a central executive body, there was merely a reaction,—but in America, after the last bit of energy had spent itself, the entire movement collapsed. And for years afterwards there was no movement worthy of any name; there remained merely wrecks of societies and many individuals were discouraged.

This was the state of affairs everywhere in America; and also in Boston. Yet the cause was not altogether lost. There were yet some individuals, ex-members of the defunct Zionist societies, who were heart and soul with the movement, and only waited for some opportunity to renew their activities. Besides, a new element was arriving from Russia, fresh in feelings of love for Zion, and enthusiastic. And soon the amalgamation of these two elements began to tell upon the movement in Boston; for on the feast of Chanuka of 1896 a new society, the Hebrew National Association, was organized by young men, partly recruited from the ex-members of the old societies and partly from the new Russian element. The purpose of this society was to “assist the colonies in Palestine and contribute towards the revival of Hebrew.”

This new society, the pioneer of our movement in Boston, developed under many difficulties. The discouraging memories bequeathed to the public by the preceding societies; the rebuffs it met with from some so-called “Lovers of Zion,” who looked with jealousy at this new society, characterized