$15,000,000 in Orders for British Army Produced in Palestine During 1941

A total of $15,000,000 worth of army orders were completed in Palestine during 1941, it was announced here today by Dr. Abba Hillel Silver, National Chairman of the United Palestine Appeal. The announcement was made in connection with the preparations for the celebration of the 60th anniversary of Jewish colonization in Palestine, which will be held by leaders of the American Zionist movement at the National Conference for Palestine opening in Cleveland on Jan. ?.

“Jewish colonization in Palestine began in 1882 with six tiny villages and a few hundred settlers who had fled from the Czarist pogroms of the year before,” Dr. Silver said, “Today there are 266 Jewish agricultural settlements in Palestine with a population of 143,000 out of a total Jewish population of 550,000, the highest farm ratio of any Jewish community in the world. Eleven of these settlements were founded in 1941, with the aid of American Jews through the United Palestine Appeal. This expansion was necessitated by the large quantities of foodstuffs provided to the armies in the Near East.

“Palestine is not only the granary of the British forces in the Near East, but it is fast becoming one of the chief arsenals. $15,000,000 worth of army orders were completed in 1941, three times as much as was produced for the army the year before. At the National Conference for Palestine, leaders of Jewish communities throughout the country and delegates from all leading national Jewish organizations will have an opportunity to obtain a realistic appraisal of the tasks and possibilities confronting Palestine in the crucial war year of 1942,” Dr. Silver stated.