Blame U.S. Jew for Delay

The delay in the resumption of the sessions of the conference between the Jewish Agency and the British government was laid to the desire of the Jewish leaders to postpone the negotiations for a few days until a representative of the American Jewish leaders arrived here for participation. This statement was made by Michael Marcus, Jewish Labor M. P., in addressing a Labor Campaign meeting in Whitechapel.

Asked by some member of the audience why the government was holding up the negotiations, Marcus replied that the negotiations had not been resumed because Dr. Chaim Weizmann himself had submitted a request to delay the negotiations for a few days until an American Jewish leader could arrive here. He also revealed that the British government’s representatives at the conference had already sent to Dr. Weizmann a document which Marcus believed would satisfy the Jews. Marcus assured the audience that he himself had seen the document.

The meeting was the stormiest ever held in Whitechapel. Monikendem Hall, with a capacity of 1500, was overcrowded while a thousand more sought admission in vain. The meeting was called by the Poale Zion to support James Hall, the Labor candidate in the by-election. Although Chaim Arlosoroff, Joseph Sprinzak, and S. Kaplansky were announced in posters and the press as speakers, none of them appeared because of the indefinite situation surrounding the negotiations with the British government.

MEETING OPENED TUMULTUOUSLY

The meeting opened tumultuously with hundreds from the audience shouting “we shall not listen to speeches for the Labor candidate. Whitechapel shall never elect a Labor candidate. The Labor government has betrayed us.” For more than an hour no speaker could pacify the audience. Every effort to speak was interrupted with shouts “get off, we do not believe the Labor party any more.” Finally, Harry Snell, who was scheduled to be the first speaker, appeared and pleaded with the crowd to listen to him as a friend of the Jews. The audience agreed, saying that it respects him personally but not the Labor government. After a few remarks regarding the government’s present Palestine policy, Snell was also interrupted. The meeting finally reached the point where chairs began to fly and the police had to intervene. Snell eventually left the hall without resuming his speech.

The meeting was later quieted by Marcus who was given an opportunity to deliver his speech after he declared he condemned the White Paper. Marcus was followed by M. Bevin, general secretary of the Labor party who said he thought the issuance of the White Paper was an error. Outside in the street, opponents of the White Paper and the Labor party utilized the overflow crowd for an open-air meeting. Speakers condemned the British government and urged the audience to vote against the Labor party or to abstain from voting at all.