I become an object of contention, get two wives at once, and am
kidnapped at last.
Meanwhile the domestic circumstances of my father became every day
worse. He saw himself, therefore, compelled to make a journey to the
town of Nesvij, and apply for a position as teacher there, whither I
also had to follow him. Here he opened under favourable conditions a
school of his own, in which he could employ me as assistant.
A widow, celebrated for her superior talents, as well as for her
Xanthippe-like character, kept a public-house at the extremity of one of
the suburbs. She had a daughter who yielded to her in none of the
above-mentioned qualities, and who was indispensable to her in the
management of the house. Madam Rissia, (this was the widow's name),
excited by my constantly increasing reputation, fixed on me as a husband
for her daughter Sarah. Her family represented to her the impossibility
of carrying out this plan; first, my father's pride, and the demands
which he would therefore make, and which she could never satisfy; then
my fame, which had already excited the attention of the most prominent
and wealthy people of the town; and finally, the moderate character of
her own fortune, which was far from sufficient to carry out such a
proposal. All these representations, however, were of no avail with her.
She had once for all taken it into her head, to have me for a
son-in-law, let it cost her what it might; and she thought, the devil
would needs be in it, if she could not get the young man.
She sent a proposal to my father, let him have no rest the whole time he
was in the town, discussed the matter with him herself on various
occasions, and promised to satisfy all his demands. My father, however,
sought to gain time for deliberation, and to put off the question for a
while. But the time came when we were to return home. My father went
with me to the widow's house, which was the last on our road, in order
to wait for a conveyance which started from that place. Madam Rissia
made use of the opportunity, began to caress me, introduced my bride,
and asked me how I was pleased with her. At last she pressed for a
decisive answer from my father. He was still always holding back,
however, and sought in every possible way to represent the difficulties
connected with the subject.
While they were thus treating with one another, suddenly there burst
into the room the chief rabbi, the preacher, and the elders of the
place, with many of the most respectable people. This sudden appearance
was brought about without any magic in the following way. These
gentlemen had been invited to a circumcision at the house of a prominent
man in this very suburb. Madam Rissia, who knew this very well, sent her
son at once to the house with an invitation to the whole company to
come, immediately after rising from table, to a betrothal at her house.
They came therefore half intoxicated; and as they believed nothing else
than that all the preliminaries of the marriage-contract had been
settled, and that nothing was awanting but to write out and subscribe
the contract, they sat down to table, set my father in the midst, and
the chief rabbi began to dictate the contract to the scribe of the
community.
My father assured them that on the main point nothing had yet been
decided, and that still less had the preliminary articles been settled.
The chief rabbi fell into a passion at this, for he supposed that it was
only a quibble, and that his sacred person and the whole honourable
company were being made sport of. He turned therefore to the company,
and said with a haughty air, "Who is this Rabbi Joshua, who makes
himself of so much consequence?" My father replied, "The Rabbi is here
superfluous. I am, 'tis true, a common man; but I believe, no man can
dispute my right to care for the welfare of my son, and to place his
future happiness on a firm footing."
The chief rabbi was greatly offended with the ambiguity of the
expression, "The Rabbi is here superfluous." He saw clearly that he had
no right to lay down laws to my father in the matter, and that it was a
piece of rashness on the part of Madam Rissia to invite a company to a
betrothal before the parties were agreed on the preliminary articles. He
began therefore to strike a lower tone. He represented to my father the
advantages of this match, the high ancestry of the bride, (her
grandfather, father, and uncle, having been learned men, and chief
rabbis), her personal attractions, and the willingness and ability of
Madam Rissia to satisfy all his demands.
My father, who in fact had nothing to say against all this, was
compelled to yield. The marriage-contract was made out, and in it Madam
Rissia made over to her daughter her public-house with all its
belongings as a bridal portion, and came under an obligation also to
board and clothe the newly-married couple for six years. Besides I
received as a present the entire work of the Talmud with its
appurtenances, together worth two or three hundred thalers,[23] and a
number of other gifts. My father came under no obligation at all, and in
addition received fifty thalers in cash. Very wisely he had refused to
accept a bill for this sum; it had to be paid to him before the
betrothal.
After all this had been arranged, there was a capital entertainment, and
the brandy bottle was vigorously plied. The very next day my father and
I went home. My mother-in-law promised to send after us as soon as
possible the so-called little presents and the articles of clothing for
me, which in the hurry she had not been able to get ready. Many weeks
however passed without our hearing or seeing anything of these. My
father was perplexed about this; and as the character of my
mother-in-law had long been suspicious to him, he could think nothing
else than that this intriguing woman was seeking some subterfuge to
escape from her burdensome contract. He resolved therefore to repay like
with like.
The following circumstance strengthened him in this resolve. A rich
arendant, who used to bring spirits to Nesvij for sale, and to lodge in
our house on his journey through Mohilna, likewise cast his eye upon me.
He had an only daughter, for whom he fixed on me in his thoughts as a
husband. He knew however what difficulties he would have to overcome, if
he were to treat on the subject directly with my father. He chose
therefore an indirect way. His plan was to make my father his debtor;
and as his critical circumstances would make it impossible for him to
clear off the debt, he expected to force him, as it were, to consent to
this union with the view of wiping out the debt by means of the amount
stipulated for the son. He offered my father therefore some barrels of
spirits on credit, and the offer was accepted with delight.
As the date of payment approached, Hersch Dukor (this was the name of
the arendant) came and reminded my father. The latter assured him, that
at the moment he was not in a position to clear off the debt, and begged
him to have patience with him for some time yet. "Herr Joshua," said the
arendant, "I will speak with you quite frankly on this matter. Your
circumstances are growing daily worse; and if no fortunate accident
occurs, I do not see any possibility of your being able to clear off
your debt. The best thing for us both therefore is this. You have a son,
and I have a daughter who is the sole heiress of all my property. Let us
enter into an alliance. By this means not only will your debt be wiped
out, but a sum to be fixed by yourself will be paid in addition, and I
shall take a general care to improve your circumstances so far as lies
in my power."
No one could be more joyous over this proposal than my father.
Immediately a contract was closed, in which the bride's dowry, as well
as the required presents, was decided in accordance with my father's
suggestion. The bill for the debt, which amounted to fifty thalers in
Polish money, was returned to my father, and torn on the spot, while
fifty thalers in addition were paid to him.
Thereupon my new father-in-law went on to Nesvij to collect some debts
there. Unfortunately he had to lodge at my former mother-in-law's. She,
being a great prattler, told him of her own accord about the good match
which her daughter had made. "The father of the bridegroom," said she,
"is himself a great scholar, and the bridegroom is a young man of eleven
years, who has scarcely his equal."
"I also," replied the arendant, "have, thank God, made a good choice for
my daughter. You have perhaps heard of the celebrated scholar, Rabbi
Joshua, in Mohilna, and of his young son, Solomon: he is my daughter's
bridegroom."
Scarcely had these words been spoken, when she cried out, "That is a
confounded lie. Solomon is my daughter's bridegroom; and here, sir, is
the marriage-contract."
The arendant then showed her his contract too; and they fell into a
dispute, the result of which was that Madam Rissia had my father
summoned before the court to give a categorical explanation. My father,
however, did not put in an appearance, although she had him summoned
twice.
Meanwhile my mother died, and was brought to Nesvij for burial. My
mother-in-law obtained from the court an attachment on the dead body, by
which its interment was interdicted till the termination of the suit. My
father therefore saw himself compelled to appear in court, my
mother-in-law of course gained the suit, and I became again the
bridegroom of my former bride. And now to prevent any similar reversal
of her plans in the future, and to take from my father all occasion for
it, my mother-in-law endeavoured to satisfy all his demands in
accordance with her promise, clothed me from top to toe, and even paid
my father for my board from the date of the betrothal to the marriage.
My mother also was now buried, and we returned home again.
My second father-in-law came too, and called upon my father for the
ratification of his contract. He however pointed out that it was null
and void, as it contravened a previous contract, and had been made by
him merely in the supposition that my mother-in-law had no intention of
fulfilling hers. The arendant seemed to give an ear to these
representations, to yield to necessity, and reconcile himself to his
loss; but in reality he was thinking of some means to get me into his
hands. Accordingly he rose by night, yoked his horses, took me in
silence from the table on which I was sleeping, packed me with all
despatch into his carriage, and made off with his booty out at the gate.
But as this could not be accomplished without some noise, the people in
the house awoke, discovered the theft, pursued the kidnapper, and
snatched me out of his hand. To me the whole incident appeared at the
time like a dream.
In this way my father was released from his debt, and got fifty thalers
besides as a gratuity; but I was immediately afterwards carried off by
my legal mother-in-law, and made the husband of my legal bride. I must
of course confess that this transaction of my father's cannot be quite
justified in a moral point of view. Only his great need at the time can
in some measure serve as an excuse.