The Maccabaean

TO give an account of the Federation of American Zionists—in other words, a history of American Zionism—involves tracing the development of American Jewry during the past twenty years. It is not only the story of the progress of Zionism, but the history of a revolution in Jewish life, in which the protagonist was the Zionist movement.

Zionism has not only captured the attention of American Jewry, pointing the way to a renascence in Palestine, bringing Palestine into the center of Jewish life, but it has evoked the revolutionary democratic forces of that life and turned them into the service of the Jewish people.

Take a photograph of American Jewry before 1895, and you will see a picture which is totally unlike what it is today. It then presented a flat surface, without color or animation. There were parochial organizations, unattached to general Jewish causes; there were no issues that aroused enthusiasm or interest. There were no people, but just individuals. The obvious and the commonplace, both in thought and deed, were in control. Hospitals were built, orphan asylums were established, chedorim were maintained. The interest was wholly local. The reform movement was busily engaged in adjusting itself to the new conditions, preaching the obvious and employing such means to fortify its position only as circumstances made necessary. The Hebrew Union College was not a first-class theological seminary; it was busily engaged in graduating rabbis to take the positions that were waiting for them. The Jewish Theological Seminary was leading a precarious life, not yet the object of philanthropic attention. The Jewish Publication Society had exhausted itself with its translation of Graetz's history, and was indifferent to that stream of life emanating from Russia, which was subsequently to overwhelm it and bring about a change in policy. The Jews were not involved in struggle or conflict. Meetings were perfunctory. There were no events. The Jewish "street" was not audible.

The Anglo-Jewish press was placid, pliable and provincial, lending its support to the routine affairs of life, chronicling the births, marriages and deaths of the community, mainly concerned with the problem of the bread and butter of its publishers and editors. Most of them were the personal organs of rabbis, utilized by them to spread their own reputations, and there were no writers whose utterances were read or commanded attention. For the Yiddish press there was a sullen contempt. With Jewish life vociferously Americanizing itself, the Yiddish newspapers, then rather feeble enterprises, were regarded as the organs of alienism, introducing a discordant note which was disturbing. The Yiddish theatre was also exotic, to which pilgrimages were made as to one of the landmarks of a bizarre existence, which had as its western boundary the Chinese quarter, with its josses, restaurants and theatres. Downtown was the place to get away from. Yiddish was the language of the alien, to be rid of as soon as possible. The East Side was the chrysalis, which every Americanized Jew sloughed off at his graduation. Under such conditions the East Side had no part in Jewish life beyond local interest in a few institutions.

The parochial side of American Jewish life was thus a fair reflection of the poverty of resources and influence of the period. But, at the same time, there were national or international aspects to Jewish life, and these had to be dealt with as occasion demanded. These aspects of Jewish life, however, were treated as in other days. To the volunteer, free play was given. Whoever desired had a license to concern himself in such matters as were above and beyond the parochial interests of American Jewry. It was the era of the self-appointed leader, the unrepresentative spokesman. Out of this freedom and license, certain elements in American Jewry took possession of the political life of the Jewish people, deciding what should be and what should not be the position of the Jewish people in relation to other peoples. In effect, there was a Jewish Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Some one had to speak, some one had to act, at a time when most Jews were busy with their local affairs. This Ministry was at first composed of appointees of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, which, through its Board of Delegates, established an Ambassadorship in Washington, which acted for the Jewish people on immigration and other political affairs that arose from time to time. Subsequently, the Union was given the support of the Independent Order Benai Berith, whose leading member had been appointed the Jewish Ambassador.

For thirty years and more our Ambassador at Washington was the Hon. Simon Wolf, who is now publishing a book entitled "Presidents I Have Known." He came to know these Presidents by reason of his position. It was he who informed the United States government what the Jews of this country wanted and what they were opposed to. In his opinion—and in the opinion of his colleagues—the Jews were not a nationality, but a religious sect; the Jews insisted upon being regarded solely as Americans; Jewish immigration was due to religious persecution; every trace of individual Jewish life was discord and not Jewish. In short, Mr. Wolf spoke unchallenged in the name of assimilation on behalf of the Jews of America.

The Jewish people had not elected Mr. Wolf to do this. He had no mandate from them. He acted for the few men who had appointed him, who, in lieu of an organization of all Jews, acted for all Jews in such matters. In default of a government, they were the government.

The group controlling Mr. Wolf had its center in the Middle West. About the time of the Kishineff programs, a new and more powerful group of influential Jews entered the field and disputed the position of the Western Jews. They felt that Mr. Wolf had outlived his usefulness, and that new blood should be infused into the Jewish government, or Ministry for Foreign Affairs. They represented the same policies. They were of the same element. But they had unbounded faith in their superior ability. This new group, entrusted with the distribution of the Kishineff relief fund, decided to organize. Five gentlemen took the lead. These five added twenty or twenty-five additional members. The twenty-five or thirty thus named selected forty or forty-five other men, and the enlarged