It is a remarkable fact that the number of Jews elected for British constituencies in the present Parliament is exactly double that of the Roman Catholics. In Ireland, of course, the majority of members belong to the Roman Church, but in England, Scotland, and Wales, but seven Catholics have been returned, whereas from our much smaller community fourteen candidates have been successful, and as many unsuccessful. Yet the Catholic Emancipation Act came long before the Jewish, and it is not many years since we were proud of having "Mesumman" in the House of Commons. In the last Parliament, for the first time, we attained to a "Minyan." and now we are fairly on our way to a "Kehillah," and before long a Jewish chaplain may be needed in the House. So quickly do your people, even the immigrants of a few years' standing, take advantage of the highest civic privileges of Englishmen, and fit themselves for the most honorable positions in public life.
Seeing that the Liberals, with the aid of the Irish and Labor paries, outnumber the Conservatives by nearly three to one, it is but natural that the majority of Jewish members are on their side of the House. The Liberal party indeed has always attracted to itself the greater number of our people, for it is to them that we owe our complete political emancipation; and they have always stood for freedom and progress, whereas the Tories of late have moved backwards on the lines of retrogression. Their last important legislative measure, the Alien's Act, of which they had hoped much, did them no good as a party with the
constituencies, and singularly enough all the Jewish members, with one single and not very honorable exception, who had voted for it were unseated. It would be rash to say, post hoc, propter hoc, but it is certain that they would have served themselves as well if they had served their own people better. Among the rejected are Sir Benjamin Cohen, late President of the Board of Guardians, and Sir Harry Samuel, who represented an East End Constituency. Sir Evans Gordon, the main promoter of the Bill, did indeed hold his seat at Stepney, but the two other essentially Jewish London seats, Whitechapel and Mile End, are now represented by two Jewish Liberals, Mr. Stuart Samuel and Mr. Bertram Straus.
* This article of one of our English contributors displays a deep insight into the political conditions of England, and most happily completes the article of Mr. Hyamson in the present issue of the MACCABAEAN.
The most prominent of our fourteen members is Mr. Herbert Samuel, who is Under Secretary for Home Affairs, and will thus be second head of the department which has to administer the Aliens Act. He is the first Jewish minister since Baron de Worms who was Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs, and as he is still young, he should go very far before his political career is ended. The Samuel family is indeed strongly represented in the House, and may one day rival the Cecils in power. Mr. Stuart Samuel is a brother; Mr. Edwin Montagu son of Sir Samuel Montagu, and though one of the youngest of the M. P.'s, already marked out for advancement, a cousin, and Mr. Horatio Myer, who won a London seat, another cousin. After Mr. Herbert Samuel it will probably be admitted that the most notable Jewish member is Mr. Rufus Isaacs, who sits for Reading. He is perhaps the most brilliant advocate now at the English bar, and his Parliamentary career bids fair to equal his forensic career. He may rise, it is suggested, even to the Woolsack, the second position in the Kingdom, although it is