1882.
THE REIGN OF TERROR IN RUSSIA--INDIGNATION MEETING IN
LONDON--THE LORD MAYOR'S FUND--THE TISZA-ESZLAR
TRIAL--ANTI-JEWISH CONGRESS AT DRESDEN--A PRETENDED
SPEECH OF SIR MOSES--DEATH OF ARCHBISHOP TAIT.
The Anti-Jewish Riots in Russia continued to excite the greatest
indignation. All the daily papers had leading articles on the subject.
Relief committees were formed in the principal towns and cities of
Europe. The Governor-General, A. von Drentlen, sent Sir Moses full
accounts of the work done by the Committee under him, reporting that
contributions from all sources had amounted to 218,482 roubles, and
that upwards of five thousand sufferers had already been relieved. By
January 20th, Messrs Louis Cohen & Sons had collected £16,658, and on
the following day the subjoined requisition was made to the Lord Mayor,
Sir J. Whittaker Ellis, to call a public meeting at the Mansion House.
_Requisition._
"_January 21st, 1882._
"To the Right Hon. the LORD MAYOR OF THE CITY OF LONDON.
"MY LORD,--We, the undersigned, consider that there should be a
public expression of opinion respecting the persecution which the
Jews of Russia have recently and for some time past suffered. We
therefore ask your Lordship to be so good as to call, at your
earliest possible convenience, a public meeting for that purpose at
the Mansion House, and that you will be good enough to take the chair
on that occasion.--We are, your Lordship's faithful servants,
"A. C. CANTUAR. SHAFTESBURY. J., LONDON C.J., GLOUCESTER AND BRISTOL.
J., MANCHESTER. F. LEVESON-GOWER. ARTHUR OTWAY. JAMES MARTINEAU.
SAMUEL MORLEY. M. BIDDULPH. B. JOWETT. H.D.M. SPENCE.
"CHARLES MAGNIAC. W.J. COTTON. JAMES CLARKE LAWRENCE. JOHN TYNDALL.
MATHEW ARNOLD. F.A. INDERWICK. JOHN LUBBOCK. HENRY EDWARD, CARDINAL
MANNING. SCARSDALE. MOUNT-TEMPLE. J.F., OXON. EDMUND FITZMAURICE.
ELCHO. DONALD CURRIE. HENRY RICHARD. W. ST JOHN BRODRICK. H.R.
HAWEIS. J.J. STEWART PEROWNE. F.W. FARRAR. W. PAGE ROBERTS. J.G.
HUBBARD. W. LAWRENCE. ERASMUS WILSON. CHARLES DARWIN. A. M'ARTHUR. C.
M'LAREN."
The Lord Mayor complied with the requisition, and on Wednesday,
February the 1st, at three o'clock, his Lordship presided over a large
and most enthusiastic meeting. The Egyptian Hall was crowded in every
available part, and the reserved seats on the platform were altogether
inadequate to accommodate those who were invited to take part in the
proceedings.
The representatives of the churches of England and Rome, together
with Dissenters and Unitarians, leaders of thought in science and
philosophy, representatives of the aristocracy and finance, trade and
commerce, all, with equal eagerness, stood up for the cause of the
suffering Jews.
It was resolved, "that a fund be raised at the Mansion House for
the purpose of contributing to the relief of the distress among the
Jewish population of Russia, and among the refugees therefrom, which
distress has been caused by the recent outrages of which they have
been the victims, and also for the purpose of effecting some permanent
amelioration in their condition, in such manner as the committee may
deem expedient, whether by emigration or otherwise;" and, "that the
Right Hon. the Lord Mayor be requested to receive contributions on
behalf of such fund."
The total amount collected through this fund was £108,759. On the
day following, Sir Moses, in token of deep gratitude to the citizens
of London for the sympathy they had manifested with his unfortunate
brethren, addressed the Lord Mayor, sending £500 as a contribution
towards the building fund of the City of London College.
His Lordship, much pleased with Sir Moses' attention, replied to his
letter in the following terms:
"THE MANSION HOUSE, LONDON. "_February 8th,_ 1882.
"MY DEAR SIR MOSES MONTEFIORE,--It is with a sense of great
satisfaction that I received your considerate letter and generous
contribution to the building fund of the City of London College,
and I feel assured that the whole of the citizens of London will
appreciate the nobility of sentiment which has dictated this liberal
gift.
"It will be a source of great pleasure to me to be enabled to report
to the Committee to-morrow, that the fund raised here under their
auspices for your suffering co-religionists in Russia amounts to
nearly £40,000. Assuring you of my sincere esteem and respect,
believe me, my dear Sir Moses Montefiore, yours very truly, "J.
WHITTAKER ELLIS, Lord Major."
The late much-lamented Lionel Louis Cohen wrote to Sir Moses as follows:
"I know you are so deeply interested in the results of the great
demonstration of last Wednesday, that I think a few lines may be
agreeable to you, as to how it is judged by the world at large.
"It was undoubtedly the most imposing meeting which in modern times
has been held at the Mansion House. Its moral effect will be very
great; not only in Russia but in Germany, and even in France it is
already evident that it has thrown back for a time the rising tide of
prejudice against the Jews.
"I had the honour, on Wednesday evening, of being invited to the
Goldsmiths' Company, and met at dinner men of all parties, who
concurred in thinking the moral effect of the demonstration as
considerable.
"Probably ten thousand persons will speedily by its means (the
Mansion House Fund) be removed from Russia to American and British
possessions; they will be the advance guard of a host; and thus the
Almighty may turn what to us seems a calamity into an engine of
civilization and prosperity.
"Your name was received with enthusiasm at the Mansion House, none
the less genuine because, as became him in that place, the Lord Mayor
coupled it with your long connection with civic work, and especially
with the Merchant Taylors, of which, he said, you were the oldest
living member.
"I hope you continue in good health and spirits, and do not worry
yourself at your enforced seclusion at home. We all know how active
your sympathies are, and how imperfectly we can follow the excellent
example you set, but it is well to see a generation, even younger
than my own, striving, however inadequately, to do their little best
for their poor brethren."
The Archbishop of Canterbury wrote as follows:--
"ADDINGTON PARK, CROYDON,
"1882.
"MY DEAR SIR MOSES,--I cannot refrain from writing to you, knowing
how your heart must be torn by the distressing news from Russia. It
is as if the enemy of mankind was let loose to destroy the souls of
so many Christians, and the bodies of so many of your people.
"I cannot but hope that a united cry of indignation from England
will, by God's blessing, stop this mad wickedness.
"With my daughter's kindest regards and my own.--Ever yours,
(Signed) "A. C. CANTUAR."
His Grace expressed himself on that subject in a similar spirit in his
letter to the Lord Mayor, which his Lordship read to the meeting. It
ran as follows:
"MY DEAR LORD,--It is a distress to me that I am forbidden by my
medical attendant to take part in the meeting your Lordship has
undertaken to call together to enter an emphatic protest against the
recent outrages to which the Jewish people had been exposed. Unable
to attend myself, I have asked Canon Farrar to be present and express
the horror with which I contemplate the disgrace brought on the
Christian name by these shameful persecutions--Yours sincerely,
"A.C. CANTUAR."
The number of emigrants exceeded all expectation, and the committees
had to contend with the greatest difficulties in order to meet the
requirements of the various cases. Heavy contingents came from all
parts of Europe to London _en route_ for America, but soon the order
came from the United States only to forward working men and mechanics.
Others were dispatched to the Holy Land, and on May 4th, 1882, Sir
Moses received letters reporting the foundation of the first Colony,
"Rishon Lezion" ("The Pioneers of Zion"), 3550 doolams of land having
been purchased for the purpose near Jaffa for the sum of 42,900 francs.
In the course of time the London Committee was able to cope with
the distress by means of its admirable arrangements, and by a wise
distribution of the emigrants in different directions, with a view to
stemming the current, which at first threatened to resist the efforts
of the band of philanthropists who worked night and day to help their
unfortunate brethren.
The attention of the reader is now again directed to the records of
Sir Moses' Diary. Under date of March 2nd he expresses his sorrow at
an attempt on the life of Her Majesty the Queen, and on hearing that
she was mercifully spared, he immediately sent a telegram to Jerusalem,
requesting the Spiritual Heads of the several congregations in the
four Holy Cities--Jerusalem, Hebron, Tiberias, and Safed--to have
special services held in their Synagogues for the purpose of offering
their deep gratitude to heaven for the preservation of Her Majesty's
life. A few days later a reply reached him from Jerusalem, in which
he was informed that all congregations had cheerfully joined in their
attendance in the house of prayer, and that they were preparing special
letters of congratulation, which they asked Sir Moses to present to Her
Majesty.
Knowing the great interest the Archbishop of Canterbury took in
the Holy Land, he informed his Grace of the result of his recent
communication with Jerusalem, and the Archbishop, in reply, promised to
report the circumstance to Her Majesty.
On the 1st of April an event took place at Tisza-Eszlar, in Hungary,
which gave rise to one of these most extraordinary trials ever recorded
in the annals of modern administration of justice. "A series of
sensational incidents," says A. Hartleben in his "Chronik der Zeit,"
"forcibly brought together in order to lend to the proceedings the
imprint of something unusual, an apparently inextricable coil of
intrigues and machinations awaiting a strong hand ready to loosen
it. Personal malice, religious hatred, national prejudice, ignorant
superstition--these, and many other circumstances, unite to make the
whole of the trial a most extraordinary one.
"We are not exaggerating," he continues, "in saying that for years no
trial has kept the whole of the civilised world in such breathless
suspense as that of Nyiregyhaza."
The press of all nations followed the proceedings of the court with the
utmost attention, and even before sentence was given, the _Journal des
Debats_ considered it necessary to protest against the proceedings of
the court, describing them as a horrible result of the then prevailing
Anti-Semitic agitation in Germany--a raging fire devouring thousands of
innocent lives, which even a number of intelligent and enlightened men
in that country did not hesitate to stir up and fan.
I am alluding to the Tisza-Eszlar trial, instituted to discover and
punish the murderer of a girl, fourteen years old, named Esther
Solymossi. She was a native of Tisza-Eszlar, in service with one of her
relatives, the wife of Audreas Hury, who was living at Nyiregyhaza.
This girl was sent by her mistress to make some purchases from a
shopkeeper in Ofalu, the old part of the town. She was seen at his
house in the middle of the day, and made her purchases there, but never
returned to her mistress, although later her own sister, who was in
service in the neighbourhood, and other people saw her running fast,
as if returning in great haste. The Jews were subsequently accused
of having killed the girl, in order to make use of her blood for the
approaching feast of the Passover. Sir Moses naturally took a deep
interest in this trial, and the revival of the old familiar blood
accusation. The trial was not instituted until the following year, but
soon after the disappearance of the girl a fearful agitation arose
against the Jews. A large number of them, said to be implicated in the
murder, were put into prison, and the outcry against them generally was
so great that Christian girls serving in Jewish families left their
situations, and could not be persuaded to remain, although previously
they were perfectly happy and contented.
In many parts of the country violent disturbances took place.
Jewish houses were plundered, and the Jews themselves ill-treated.
These occurrences were the cause of stormy debates in the Hungarian
Parliament, where some of the Anti-Semitic Deputies tried to fix the
guilt of the murder upon the Jews, and by way of confirmation again
brought forward the exploded story about the Jews of Damascus having,
in 1840, murdered a priest to use his blood for Passover. When Sir
Moses received a report of these debates, he immediately addressed the
following letter to the Minister President:--
"EAST CLIFF LODGE, "RAMSGATE, _9th June 1882_.
"To His Excellency COUNT TISZA, Minister President of the Imperial
and Royal House of Representatives in Buda-Pesth.
"May it please your Excellency,--My attention having been drawn
by the perusal of a paper, entitled _Neues Pester Journal_, to a
debate held on the 25th of May, in the Imperial Royal House of
Representatives in your city, referring to an interpellation made by
one of the honourable deputies, in which that gentleman introduces
the subject of an accusation brought against the Jews of Damascus in
the year 1840, to the effect that the Jews of Europe on that occasion
had offered large sums of money to the members of the Austrian and
French Consulates in Damascus to gain their favourable services; that
the accused had been subsequently liberated by an act of grace from
Mohhamed Ali, and that notwithstanding his firman all the people in
the East were convinced of the truth of the accusation. I deem it my
sacred duty to entreat your Excellency's permission for bringing the
following statement to your knowledge, trusting that, for the sake of
truth, justice, and humanity, which so pre-eminently distinguish your
noble career, you will forgive the intrusion.
"It was in the year 1840 that I had the honour of being entrusted by
my brethren in the British Empire with a Mission to Damascus, when I
pleaded the cause of the accused first before His Highness Mohhamed
Ali in Alexandria, and afterwards in Constantinople before His
Imperial Majesty the Sultan Abdel Mejid, from whom I obtained Khát
Shérif, in which the Sultan not only declared the innocence of the
accused, and that all charges made against them and their religion
were nothing but pure calumnies, but His Majesty, in conformity with
the Hatti Sherif which had been proclaimed on a former occasion at
Gulhane, repeated that the Jewish nation should possess the same
advantages, and enjoy the same privileges, as are granted to the
numerous other nations who submit to his authority. I am for this
reason in a position to assure your Excellency that no other means
were used to obtain the liberation of the Jews in Damascus than those
of justice and truth.
"Mohhamed Ali granted them freedom and rest (_Itlâk î tarwich_).
These are the words used by him in his firman: 'Every one shall
follow his former pursuits and enjoy the utmost protection.' This
was no act of grace but of justice, and it is with the feeling of
the greatest indignation that I reject the accusation brought by the
author of that interpellation against the Jews of Europe.
"I request the favour of your Excellency's kind acceptance and
perusal of the accompanying copy of the Sultan's Khát Shérif, also
of a book treating on the subject of the accusations, and beg to
subscribe myself with profound respect, your Excellency's most humble
and obedient servant,
(Signed) "MOSES MONTEFIORE."
Almost immediately on the receipt of the letter, the Prime Minister
Tisza issued a circular to the local authorities all over the
country, couched in the strongest possible language, appealing to
the patriotism, love of peace, and impartiality of the Hungarians,
impressing upon them the untruth of the accusation and the
impossibility of such proceedings, and calling upon the guardians
of the public peace to prevent the publication of such absurd
superstitions, and to forbid meetings being convened by the instigators.
The Anti-Semites, however, had set their mark upon Sir Moses; three
months later they introduced his name in one of their reports, in such
a manner that had the allegations been true it would have formed a
convenient weapon of attack on the Jews by their enemies in general.
On the 11th and 12th of September 1882, the first International
Anti-Jewish Congress met at Dresden, and by virtue of a resolution
published a manifesto, addressed to the "Governments and peoples of
Christian States endangered by Judaism" (subsequently printed at
Chemnitz, Saxony, by Ernst Schmeitzner).
Therein we read on p. 15:--"The Congress finally appointed a Committee,
whose next task will be to procure pecuniary assistance for the
establishment of an Anti-Semitic press. For bearing in mind the words
of the Jew 'Montefiore,' uttered by him in a Rabbinical Assembly at
Krakau in the year 1840, the Committee have come to the conclusion that
as long as the Christian Aryan natives do not reconquer the press in
order to enlighten the people and show them the true state of affairs,
they will not be able to effect any good."
Now, as I happen to have been with Sir Moses from the beginning of the
year 1840 to the end, I can positively declare that Sir Moses never was
at Krakau, never attended a Rabbinical Assembly in that city, nor in
any other part of the world, and never spoke the words attributed to
him.
As a matter of course, Anti-Semitic journals speedily copied the
statement made in the manifesto, but when a copy was sent to me by a
gentleman at Elberfeld, I immediately, with the sanction of Sir Moses,
contradicted the statement, and, to the credit of the editor of the
Elberfeld journal, on receiving our letter he published a paragraph in
his paper, to the effect that he had been mis-informed regarding the
presence of Sir Moses at Krakau, and the words said to have been spoken
by him.
At this time of public trouble, Sir Moses was also much pained to
hear that the health of the Archbishop of Canterbury had become such
as to give great anxiety to his friends. Sir Moses sent telegrams
or letters of inquiry almost daily. For many weeks the illustrious
patient bore his sufferings with the pious resignation which he had
shown under previous exceptionally severe trials, his even temper and
amiable disposition never forsaking him, until it pleased the Almighty
to release him from all earthly trouble. Sir Moses felt the loss most
acutely, and wrote a most touching letter to the family. He sent a
wreath to be placed on the Archbishop's coffin. Miss Tait, one of the
Archbishop's daughters, acknowledged its receipt in terms of gratitude.