Author of First Yiddish Geometry Dies

Moses Merker, author of the first Yiddish geometry, died here yesterday. He was 45 years old.

He was born in Mlawa, Poland and was well-known as a mathematician.

SEVERAL CHANGES IN CONSTITUTION AND PERSONNEL; INVOKE U. S. INTEREST IN RUSSIAN ZIONIST PERSECUTIONS

For the first time in many years a unanimous vote marked the election of officers of the Zionist Organization of America at the thirty-second annual convention which closed its sessions here yesterday afternoon. Louis Lipsky was re-elected president amid the singing of the Hatikvah. The election was greeted with an ovation by the audience.

A change in the new administration was the election of Rabbi James G. Heller of Cincinnati as chairman of the National Executive Committee to succeed Elihu D. Stone of Boston. By the vote of the convention earlier in the day the number of national vice-presidents was increased from three to six and the following were elected: Morris Rothenberg, Judge William M. Lewis, Max Shulman, Mrs. Archibald Silverman, Elihu D. Stone and Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver. Meyer W. Weisgal was elected secretary, Morris Weinberg, treasurer, and Harry P. Fierst, associate treasurer, of the Organization.

An administrative committee of forty-five members was elected consisting of the following: Oscar Berman, Cincinnati; Herman Bernstein, New York; Rabbi Barnett Brickner, Cleveland; Jacob H. Cohen, Brooklyn; Morris Cohen, New Britain; Dr. A. Coralnik. New York; Mrs. Benjamin Davis. Chicago; Max Engelberg, Pittsburgh; Mrs. Judith Epstein, New York; Judge Harry Fisher, Chicago; Jacob Fishman, New York; Harry Friedberg, Kansas City; David Freiberger. New York; Jacob Ginsburg, Philadelphia; Abraham Goldberg, New York; I. E. Goldberg, Hartford; Dr. Israel Goldstein, New York; Jonah J. Goldstein, New York; Jonah J. Goldstein, New York; Nathan Goldstein, Springfield; Bernard Norwich, Chicago; Dr. David J. Kaliski, New York; Judge Gustave Hartman, New York; Dr. Mordecai M. Kaplan, New York; Prof. Gustav Klausner, St. Louis; George Klein, Cleveland; Mrs. Alexander Lamport, Mt. Vernon; William B. Leaf, Philadelphia; Louis E. Levinthal, Philadelphia; Abraham Liebovitz, Dr. S. Margoshes, Isaac Meister, Isadore D. Morrison, Max Perlman, Dr. Nathan Ratnoff, Herman C. Robbins, Bernard A. Rosenblatt, Nelson Ruttenberg, all of New York; Philip Schottland, Newark; Louis Shapiro, Portsmouth; Max Schoolman, Boston; Louis Topkis, Wilmington; Philip Wattenberg and Joseph Weiss, New York.

Emanuel Neumann, president of the. (Continued on Page 3)

At its morning session the convention adopted a resolution directing the organization Department to create a cultural branch for “the dissemination of more Zionist information and the stimulation of the study of the Hebrew language and culture.” The adopted resolution urges Zionists to offer an Hebrew education to their children and calls for the organization by districts of an exhibit of Palestine products and the organization of study groups in Hebrew and Jewish history and Palestine problems.

The convention decided to take over the Young Judaea deficit of $16,000 as of January 1, 1930, and to decrease the subvention to Young Judaea from $10,000 to $6,000. A subsidy of $6,500 a year was voted the Hadoar and, following considerable discussion on the question of the Avukah, with James Waterman Wise, Ezra Shapiro, Morris Rothenberg and others participating, it was finally decided to grant the Avukah $5,000 annually beginning January 1, 1930, after the newly elected treasurer, Morris Weinberg, promised to see that the sum will be secured.

The question of an increase in dues was solved at the close of the last session on Monday which lasted until past two o’clock Tuesday morning, when the delegates voted that the districts remit the entire $6.00 to the organization and raise their own expenses separately.

A tribute to the memory of the late Dr. Max Heller was read by E. S. Lisitzky of New Orleans and the audience rose when Mr. Rothenberg read a list of names of Zionists who had died, including the name of Henry Sokolow, son of Nahum Sokolow, who was in the audience when the tribute was paid his son.

Among the resolutions adopted at the last session was one calling upon the World Zionist Congress to establish a bureau to which American Zionists wishing to make investments may direct themselves for information. Another resolution would make possible membership in the organization of young men of 18 to 23 years of age for $3.00 a year.

TEXT OF RESOLUTION ON ZIONIST PERSECUTIONS

Rabbi Barnett Brickner read to the convention the following resolution in protest against the persecutions in Russia:

“The thirty-second annual convention of American Zionists assembled in Detroit, Michigan, condemns the terror and inquisition instituted in Soviet Russia against Zionism, Judaism, the Hebrew language and Hebrew culture by the Yevscktzia (Jewish section of the Communist party) with the sanction of the Soviet government.

“Under the unwarranted pretext that ‘Zionism is a counter-revolutionary movement and a blind for British imperialism,’ and with a ruthlessness unparalleled in the darkest days of pogroms and inquisitions, the Russian government has, as a matter of deliberate and expressed policy, persecuted and suppressed the Zionist movement, hounded Zionists and exiled them to unspeakable Siberian dungeons. The teaching of our sacred tongue, the Hebrew language, is forbidden; the publication of Hebrew text books suppressed, our schools for the young have been proscribed, our religion ridiculed. In a word, everything which the Jewish people holds sacred, and for which it has lived and died through the ages, must, under the policy of the Soviet government, be deliberately uprooted and destroyed.

“The careful scrutiny of the O. G. P. U. (the Russian secret military police) coupled with rigid censorship, has made it impossible for our three million brethren in Russia to speak out and tell the world the truth about the conditions. The policy pursued by the Yevsektzia is proving in effect to be even more ruthless and destructive than the pogroms destroyed Jewish bodies-the Yevsektzia is strangling both the body and soul.

“In the name of elementary human justice, this convention of American Zionists places itself unanimously on record as condemning both this policy and the activities of the Soviet government and its constituted agents for Jewish affairs, the Yevsektzia.

“We lift our voices to expose these outrages against our people and especially against its most self-conscious members, our fellow Zionists. We want the world to know the truth.

“We therefore call upon the incoming administration to present the case of our people in Russia to our government in Washington and to urge it to use its good offices in any dealings that they may have, official or unofficial, with the Soviet powers, so that a stop may be put to the suppression of Zionism, Hebrew culture and the Jewish religion.

“We also call upon the incoming administration immediately to carry on negotiations with all other interested American Jewish organizations toward the same end.

“Lastly, we American Zionists, speaking not only in behalf of our own members, but also, we believe, in the name of the whole Jewish people of America, send our heartfelt greetings to our suffering and martyred Zionist brethren in Russia and say to them ‘Yours is a Kiddush Hashem. Your courage and your loyalty is an inspiration to us and we trust that the day of your liberation will soon be at hand’.”

The resolution was adopted unanimously by the acclamation of the delegates. The closing addresses of the convention were delivered by Nahum Sokolow and Rabbi Heller.

JUNIOR HADASSAH CONVENTION OPENS

The Junior Hadassah’s seventh convention opened at the Hotel Statler yesterday morning with 125 delegates, representing 50 chapters in 22 states, attending. The president’s message was delivered by Miss Flora Snyder of Pittsburgh. Greetings were heard from Mrs. Robert Szold, Emanuel Neumann, Dr. Joseph Silverman of New York and Mrs. J. H. Ehrlich and Miss Bessie Brenner of Detroit.

Miss Snyder’s report pointed to three Junior Hadassah projects, those of Meyer Shefaya, the nurses’ training school and the Jewish National Fund. Miss Judith Benjamin reported that $17,000 was appropriated this year for the nurses’ training school. Greetings were also read from Miss Henrietta Szold of Jerusalem, and a proposal was made by Mrs. Frieda Silbert Ullian that Junior Hadassah initiate a cultural sorority to train girls in leadership. The convention will continue until Thursday afternoon.