The Maccabaean

The balance will be spent in the United States and even outside of it for Zionist Organization purposes. We are spending $60,000 on our Education Department this year; $12,000 on Hebrew Education and probably a third of that. sum on propaganda in favor of the Hebrew language. We are in touch with 1,800 to 2,000 places in the United States alone; by letter and cable we reach to every country in the world; it takes over 200 persons to carry on our work ae RE שורלםרר 4 - בח and בשנרוה/ טי יב עב a >thancand: Anllara oa

day to keep all this complex human machinery going, building up, developing, systematizing, planning for over there. It's worth while.

He who understands, will help whole heartedly for this is the budget of a nation —perhaps the prelude of a national budget. Towards it Mr. Sigmund Eisner has taxed himself $50,000. Towards it Mrs. Joseph Fels has taxed herself $50,000. Report your self-taxation to the Palestine Restoration Fund, 55 Fifth Avenue, New York City —at once.

Maurice Gordon came to America from Russia seven years ago, and at the time of his enlisting lived in New Britain, Connecticut, where he had an excellent position in the submarine base offices. When the call for volunteers for the Jewish Legion came, he insisted on enlisting in spite of his youth, saying to his father, “One of us must fight for Palestine. You are too old to go, so I must.” These letters to his sister are of interest not only because of the glimpse that the writer gives of the American Legioneers in Palestine, but because of his delighted and very boyish description of his leave spent in the colonies. It is good to see the immediate appeal the life of the colonies makes to a boy, the most important years of whose life have been spent in this country, and his determination to settle down in the land. /

Well, here I am, safe and sound, after six months knocking about, traveling about 8,000 miles, encamped on the slope of one of the mountains of Judaea "Somewhere in Palestine." And oh, what a wonderful time it has been! Why, the ordinary man, living the ordinary life, does not experience as much in a lifetime.

We left Egypt three weeks ago and arrived in Palestine last week. Since then, we've been hiking around the Judaean Hills, stopping here and there, sort of looking the place over. Now we've encamped for good.

Of course it was no picnic hiking around with full packs, up hill and down dale, but we stuck to it like Trojans, only a few men falling out, and when we arrived our battalion was given special mention by the general, which is a great honor.

During these seven days 1 have seen most of Judaea, which is the southern part of Palestine, though I have not seen Jerusalem or Jaffa yet. I was a number of miles from Jaffa last Sunday and the two G——— girls came out to see me. One is 17 and the other is 19, and as I expect to visit them on my leave during the holidays, I guess I'll have some time. The day before that I visited Rishon Letzion, the first Jewish colony in Palestine, and I spent the whole day with a Jewish family for whom I had a letter from their son who is amongst the Palestinian Battalion, and there amongst the grapevines and orange. groves I saw a vision of what the future Palestine wil)

be. Truly a land of milk and honey. It was Saturday, and everything in and around the colony seemed to doze peacefully in the sunlight. It was exactly the sort of scene you would see in a small American village on a Sunday. I went to Shule in the morning and found it to be almost the same as the American Shule. At the dinner table there was an abundance of grapes, figs, almonds and pomegranates picked from their own fruit grove. We also had home-made wine which tasted wonderfully. In the afternoon we went out to

the fruit groves for sampling purposes and I discovered myself to be a first-class sampler. At least my friends claimed so. We also visited the Baron’s wine cellar, but could not go inside for they were closed for the day. At nightfall the town became a bit livelier. Lights were lit; a few grocery stores opened and groups of girls and boys went strolling up and down the streets. We ate a fine supper and conversed till about 9 o’clock, when good-

byes were said and we unwillingly began our three-mile hike back to camp. It had been a wonderful day and I was filled with a new love for Zion.

1091 “:1U011. The next day, Dr. Weizmann, who is England’s chief representative in Palestine, arrived at our camp to say good-bye to us before sailing for England. Also a few doctors and nurses from the American Medical Unit stationed at Jaffa, came down to see us and we had a lively day.

Tonight is New Year's night and the services will be held under the blue Palestinian skies at the top of one of the mountains of Judaea. I wish you a happy, peaceful year.

Now about me, Til, you needn't worry one bit. Turkey; on this front especially, is licked to a frazzle, and it is hoped that with one clean sweep the whole of Palestine will be retaken. About my future and my plans for the future, I shall write you in my next letter. That I am remaining in Palestine is certain, but all that in my next mail.

Notice where I write this letter from? And the two Jewish Battalions, the 38th and 39th, had their bit to do in the retaking of Northern Palestine.

As I'm writing this letter you must already have read in the dailies about the successes and the retaking of all of Palestine.

We've not had one casualty in our battalion since the offensive began, two weeks ago. The fighting on this front is now practically over and the Holy Land now belongs to England to do with as she has promised. In other words, Palestine is ours.

Well now be stationed on garrison duty and we'll have a jolly time of it.

Have not received any mail for the last three weeks, for we've been chasing "Johnny" all that time and our transport couldn't catch up to us, but now we're settled down for quite a spell within two or three days.

Again 1 tell you, you must not worry one bit about my safety, for there’s absolutely no more fighting to 26 done on this front.

Within the hour that the offensive started, "Johnny" began retreating and he's been retreating ever since.

The prisoners we captured were nearly dead from starvation and they told us the whole Turkish army is in that same condition. As a German prisoner expressed it, "wir sind kaput!" That tells the whole story.