Our Daily News Letter

(By Our Czernowitz Correspondent)

The failure of the Roumanian government to take measures for suppressing the venomous anti-Jewish agitation, openly calling for acts of violence against the Jews, has aroused grave fears on the part of Roumanian Jewry. The feeling prevalent among the Jews, both in Old Roumania and in the annexed provinces, is that the situation is very critical and the safety of Jewish life and property is menaced more than ever in the past as a result of the unhampered activities of the anti-Semites. This feeling is fully expressed in the Jewish press. In the “Curierul Israelit of Bucharest, in the issue of January 23rd, the following list of exhibits, regarding the propaganda of the anti-Semites, was enumerated; “1. An excerpt from a pamphlet published in the ‘Tipografia Geniului’, in which the Christian population of the country is called upon to wage war against the Jews. The Christian population is assured that no punishment will be meted out because the government has no power of control and is not in a position to hinder the 14 million Christians from attacking the two million Jews. 2. A postal card depicting an imaginary ritual murder. This card was distributed by the tens of thousands in villages and cities. 3. An appeal to the Christian population to attack the Jews as the deadly enemies of the nation.”

The “Curierul Israelit” writes:

“We directed an inquiry to his Eminence, the Patriarch of Roumania, and to the varjous ministers of the government asking them whether these activities of the anti-Semites are not in contradiction to the constitution and the laws of the country and whether they do not believe that it is their duty to confiscate such publications and to punish the agitators.

“Eight days have passed since we addressed our inquiry but so far no reply has been received.”

The paper adds a few more exhibits from the anti-Semitic sheet, “Svastica”, published in Galati, which in its issue of December 13, 1926, wrote: “Christian brothers be prepared, for the great day of reckoning is near. The hour of highest judgment will strike soon….Woe unto you Jews! At the moment when the hour of that judgment will strike you will drink your own blood.”

“We ask the government, what does this mean?” the “Curierul Israclit” continues. “What is the meaning of the threat: the hour of reckoning is near and the Jews will drink their own blood! We ask the government, where is there another country in any part of the world today where such language is permitted to go unpunished? We ask the government; does it or does it not intend to put an end to the expressions of hatred and to the threats of murder?”

The “Ostjuedische Zeitung”, Jewish organ of Czernowitz, reproducing the foregoing declaration of the “Curierul Israelit”, comments thus: “The purpose of our writing is to strengthen the appeal of our brothers in the Old Kingdom. No matter what fundamental differences there may be between our and their conception of Jews and Judaism, these differences cannot be so great as to destroy the feelings of our mutual interests and of the danger which faces both of us.

“The entire anti-Semitic press, with the ‘Universul’ at its head is working feverishly to incite race hatred against the Jews and the attitude of the government is unfortunately such that we do not feel that we could rely upon it in a moment of danger. Nor has there been heard a condemnation of the excesses from the Ministerial bench in Parliament, while not one case is known of any of the participants in the excesses being brought to justice. Here and there anti-Semitic excesses-not pogroms, as exaggerated reports abroad say-are still taking place, and in no case have the perpetrators been punished. Grave days are facing the country. When those days arrive bloody anti-Jewish orgies will take place…unless…unless…the government will immediately take energetic steps to put a stop to the agitation of hatred. Can the government do it? Yes. It can-if it only wishes to.”