Great exertions will hardly be necessary to spur on the movement.
Anti-Semites provide the requisite impetus. They need only do what
they did before, and then they will create a desire to emigrate where
it did not previously exist, and strengthen it where it existed
before. Jews who now remain in Anti-Semitic countries do so chiefly
because even those among them who are most ignorant of history know
that numerous changes of residence in bygone centuries never brought
them any permanent good. Any land which welcomed the Jews today, and
offered them even fewer advantages than that which the Jewish State
would guarantee them, would immediately attract a great influx of our
people. The poorest, who have nothing to lose would drag themselves
there. But I maintain, and every man may ask himself whether I am not
right, that the pressure weighing on us arouses a desire to emigrate
even among prosperous strata of society. Now our poorest strata alone
would suffice to found a State; these form the strongest human
material for acquiring a land, because a little despair is
indispensable to the formation of a great undertaking.
But when our "desperados" increase the value of the land by their
presence and by the labor they expend on it, they make it at the same
time increasingly attractive as a place of settlement to people who
are better off.
Higher and yet higher strata will feel tempted to go over. The
expedition of the first and poorest settlers will be conducted by
Company and Society conjointly, and will probably be additionally
supported by existing emigration and Zionist societies.
How may a number of people be directed to a particular spot without
being given express orders to go there? There are certain Jewish
benefactors on a large scale who try to alleviate the sufferings of
the Jews by Zionist experiments. To them this problem also presented
itself, and they thought to solve it by giving the emigrants money or
means of employment. Thus the philanthropists said: "We pay these
people to go there."
Such a procedure is utterly wrong, and all the money in the world will
not achieve its purpose.
On the other hand, the Company will say: "We shall not pay them, we
shall let them pay us. We shall merely offer them some inducements to
go."
A fanciful illustration will make my meaning more explicit: One of
those philanthropists (whom we will call "The Baron") and myself both
wish to get a crowd of people on to the plain of Longchamps near
Paris, on a hot Sunday afternoon. The Baron, by promising them 10
francs each, will, for 200,000 francs, bring out 20,000 perspiring and
miserable people, who will curse him for having given them so much
annoyance. Whereas I will offer these 200,000 francs as a prize for
the swiftest racehorse--and then I shall have to put up barriers to
keep the people off Longchamps. They will pay to go in: 1 franc, 5
francs, 20 francs.
The consequence will be that I shall get the half-a-million of people
out there; the President of the Republic will drive up "a la Daumont";
and the crowds will enjoy and amuse themselves. Most of them will
think it an agreeable walk in the open air in spite of heat and dust;
and I shall have made by my 200,000 francs about a million in entrance
money and taxes on gaming. I shall get the same people out there
whenever I like but the Baron will not--not on any account.
I will give a more serious illustration of the phenomenon of
multitudes where they are earning a livelihood. Let any man attempt to
cry through the streets of a town: "Whoever is willing to stand all
day long through a winter's terrible cold, through a summer's
tormenting heat, in an iron hall exposed on all sides, there to
address every passer-by, and to offer him fancy wares, or fish, or
fruit, will receive two florins, or four francs or something similar."
How many people would go to the hall? How many days would they hold
out when hunger drove them there? And if they held out, what energy
would they display in trying to persuade passers-by to buy fish, fruit
and fancy wares?
We shall set about it in a different way. In places where trade is
active, and these places we shall the more easily discover, since we
ourselves direct trade withersoever we wish, in these places we shall
build large halls, and call them markets. These halls might be worse
built and more unwholesome than those above mentioned, and yet people
would stream towards them. But we shall use our best efforts, and we
shall build them better, and make them more beautiful than the first.
And the people, to whom we had promised nothing, because we cannot
promise anything without deceiving them, these excellent, keen
business men will gaily create most active commercial intercourse.
They will harangue the buyers unweariedly; they will stand on their
feet, and scarcely think of fatigue. They will hurry off at dawn, so
as to be first on the spot; they will form unions, cartels, anything
to continue bread-winning undisturbed. And if they find at the end of
the day that all their hard work has produced only 1 florin, 50
kreutzer, or 3 francs, or something similar, they will yet look
forward hopefully to the next day, which may, perhaps, bring them
better luck.
We have given them hope.
Would any one ask whence the demand comes which creates the market? Is
it really necessary to tell them again?
I pointed out that by means of the system "Assistance par le Travail"
the return could be increased fifteenfold. One million would produce
fifteen millions; and one thousand millions, fifteen thousand
millions.
This may be the case on a small scale; is it so on a large one?
Capital surely yields a return diminishing in inverse ratio to its own
growth. Inactive and inert capital yields this diminishing return, but
active capital brings in a marvellously increasing return. Herein lies
the social question.
Am I stating a fact? I call on the richest Jews as witnesses of my
veracity. Why do they carry on so many different industries? Why do
they send men to work underground and to raise coal amid terrible
dangers for meagre pay? I cannot imagine this to be pleasant, even for
the owners of the mines. For I do not believe that capitalists are
heartless, and I do not pretend that I believe it. My desire is not to
accentuate, but to smooth differences.
Is it necessary to illustrate the phenomenon of multitudes, and their
concentration on a particular spot by references to pious pilgrimages?
I do not want to hurt anyone's religious sensibility by words which
might be wrongly interpreted.
I shall merely refer quite briefly to the Mohammedan pilgrimages to
Mecca, the Catholic pilgrimages to Lourdes, and to many other spots
whence men return comforted by their faith, and to the holy Hock at
Trier. Thus we shall also create a center for the deep religious needs
of our people. Our ministers will understand us first, and will be
with us in this.
We shall let every man find salvation "over there" in his own
particular way. Above and before all we shall make room for the
immortal band of our Freethinkers, who are continually making new
conquests for humanity.
No more force will be exercised on any one than is necessary for the
preservation of the State and order; and the requisite force will not
be arbitrarily defined by one or more shifting authorities; it will be
fixed by iron laws.
Now, if the illustrations I gave make people draw the inference that a
multitude can be only temporarily attracted to centers of faith, of
business, or of amusement, the reply to their objection is simple.
Whereas one of these objects by itself would certainly only attract
the masses, all these centers of attraction combined would be
calculated permanently to hold and satisfy them. For all these centers
together form a single, great, long-sought object, which our people
has always longed to attain, for which it has kept itself alive, for
which it has been kept alive by external pressure--a free home! When
the movement commences, we shall draw some men after us and let others
follow; others again will be swept into the current, and the last will
be thrust after us.
These last hesitating settlers will be the worst off, both here and
there.
But the first, who go over with faith, enthusiasm, and courage will
have the best positions.