It is only a few minutes ago. I have cabled to New York what I hope is expressive and joyous, "Perfect Unity." I passed that cable from hand to hand, and every man agreed, before the messenger took it away to give good tidings over
the seas, that it expressed the result of our work and the situation exactly. They are still talking and debating, there are a hundred petty details I could mention; but enough, there is in Zionism—peace and unity.
The First Proposal of a Jewish Chartered Company
From a Brochure by Sir Charles Warren, published in 1875
A VERY early reference to a guaranteed Jewish State in Palestine may be found in a brochure published in 1875 by Sir Charles Warren, a noted engineer interested in Palestinian exploration. The author of this brochure proposed, probably for the first time, that Palestine be exploited by a company similar to the old East India Company. While he did not directly connect his scheme with the revival of the Jewish nation, yet he made the re-establishment of the Jewish nation an incident in his plan.
As a preliminary to his principal argument, Sir Charles declared that under the domination of Turkey, Palestine is governed by laws which are not its own, by a people of a different race and type, and by officials who do not even take the trouble to speak its language; in short, that the Turkish Government has not even the belief in affinity of race or language in asserting its right over Palestine.
The author of the brochure wrote as one interested mainly in the rehabilitation of the Holy Land, which, as a Christian, reinforced by personal explorations in Palestine, he had learned to appreciate. His proposal was an arrange-
ment by which, while leaving Turkey with dominion generally over Palestine, that country might be placed in a less unhappy position than she then occupied, a position which might enable her again to take her place among the kingdoms of the earth, without causing Turkey to be the sufferer thereby. To quote:
"My proposal is to allow a company, similar to the old East India Company, to govern and farm Palestine for twenty years, paying to Turkey its present revenue, to the creditors of Turkey a proportion of the interest due, taking for itself six per cent. on its capital, and expending the remaining revenue in improving the country. Let this be done with the avowed intention of gradually introducing the Jew, pure and simple, who is eventually to occupy and govern this country. Let the Jew find his way into its army, its law, its diplomatic service. Let him superintend the farming operations, and work himself on the farms. I do not say let him find his way into the mercantile community, into the trades, for he is there already. Let this continue until, at the end of twenty years, the Jewish Principality may stand by itself, either under the suzerainty of