The Penitent. By the same author^[70-1].
A rich, but not a holy man,
Grew old, and to repent began;
So, to perform a pious deed
That would procure him heaven's meed,
He thought, and thought, then bade at last
His _servants_ one whole day to fast.
A frequent charge preferred against Jewish literature by modern
critics^[70-2] is, that it is deficient of humour. The instances given in
this essay, as well as in some others forming part of the present volume
may, perhaps, contribute in some small degree to dissipate this fallacy.
Footnotes:
[60-1] There is also in existence a witty epigram composed by the same
author when a certain Jewish scribbler plagiarized one of his poems, and
circulated it as his own. In this epigram Gabirol compares himself to an
ever-flowing stream, which continues its course, and does not mind if some
poor mortal draws from it now and again a bucketful of water. Cp. Dukes,
_Shire Shelomo_, p. 50.
[61-1] Cp. Geiger's _Jüdische Dichtungen_, Leipzig, 1856, p. 21.
[61-2] Cp. _Orient_, 1843, Literaturblatt, p. 658.
[63-1] This translation is taken from Mr. Joseph Jacobs' article on
“Jehuda Halevi,” published among the _Papers read before the Jews' College
Literary Society_, 1886–7.
[63-2] Cp. the above article by Mr. Joseph Jacobs.
[63-3] This translation from the original Hebrew was done by Mr. Israel
Abrahams.
[67-1] Cp. Steinschneider, _Jewish Literature_, p. 171.
[67-2] Cp. Dukes, _Lit.-Blatt des Orients_, p. 709.
[67-3] Cp. the ninth Makāma in his _Tachkemoni_.
[67-4] Cp. the twentieth Makāma in his _Tachkemoni_.
[67-5] The latter phrase occurs in the Book of Judges ix. 54, and is here
wittily applied by Alcharizi to his own purpose.
[68-1] Cp. _Catalogue of the Hebrew MSS. of the Montefiore College
Library_, compiled by Dr. H. Hirschfeld.
[68-2] Cp. third Machberoth.
[68-3] Steinschneider, _Manna_, p. 84.
[68-4] Cp. His תלמוד לשון עברי, p. 190.
[69-1] Cp. Ben-Jacob, _Epigrammata ac Poemata varia_, p. 104.
[69-2] Cp. Schlesinger, _Meassef_, 1805.
[69-3] Cp. Ben-Jacob, _Epigrammata_, &c., p. 19.
[69-4] Ibid. p. 7.
[69-5] Ibid. p. 101.
[70-1] Cp. Ben-Jacob, _Epigrammata_, &c., p. 38.
[70-2] Cp. Froude, _Carlyle's Life in London_, II, p. 480; and also Renan,
_Histoire des langues sémitiques_ (I, 9, 11), wherein the following
curious remark occurs: “Les peuples sémitiques manquent presque
complètement de curiosité et de la faculté de rire.”