Simplicity Marks the Seventieth Birthday Celebration of Louis Marshall

Simplicity marked the gathering of representative Jews of the United States at the home of Mr. Louis Marshall on Sunday afternoon, when the address signed by 8,112 persons was presented to the leader of American Jewry by a committee headed by Dr. Cyrus Adler. The ceremony lasted thirty minutes.

The monthly meeting of the Executive Committee of the American Jewish Committee was held earlier in the day at Mr. Marshall’s home. When the proceedings were over and Mr. Marshall left the room where the conference was held, he found to his surprise many of his friends assembled in the drawing room where the presentation was made. The address was read by Dr. Cyrus Adler. In response to the presentation, Mr. Marshall delivered a short address in which he declared:

MR. MARSHALL RESPONDS TO ADDRESS

“I am surprised by this expression of appreciation. I cannot say I am displeased because this would not be true. I am both pleased and grateful for the expression of your confidence and for the faithful cooperation you, Cyrus Adler, have given me in the days of the peace conference and in every undertaking during many years of common work. The cooperation I have received from everyone who is assembled here and those who are not here has enabled me to go on with the work. I do not believe that any one deserves special thanks for doing his duty. What I did was merely my duty. If it has been given to me to be able to do things, it is not to my credit alone. In fact. I have often received credit for things others have done. I am grateful to the Board of Trustees of Temple Emanu-El for whom I was merely the spokesman. The work has been done by the Board.

“There have, perhaps, been deeds for which I have deserved credit and actions which, perhaps, should not have been done, or words which I should not have spoken and which I later regretted. But a man is what he is, one cannot change one’s nature.

“I do not think that anyone deserves special credit for attaining the age of seventy. One grows old without knowing. So I have become seventy without feeling it. I hope to continue my work. I want to wear out, not rust away.”

Urging his friends and colleagues to a continuation of the work, Mr. Marshall drew attention to the fact that the situation in which the Jews of Eastern Europe find themselves today is worse than ever and requires vigilance over their fate and the protection of their rights.

“I am grateful to you for the expression of your appreciation,” Mr. Marshall concluded among the applause of those present.

Among those present were Dr. Cyrus Adler, A. C. Ratschesky of Boston, James H. Becker and Julius Rosenwald of Chicago, David A. Brown of Detroit, Felix Fuld of Newark, Judge Horace Stern of Philadelphia, and David M. Bressler, Daniel Guggenheim, Judge Samson Lachman, S. C. Lamport, Colonel Herbert H. Lehman, Judge Irving Lehman, Sol M. Stroock, Cyrus L. Sulzberger, Israel Unterberg, Ludwig Vogelstein and Felix M. Warburg.

Judge Benjamin N. Cardozo, Judge Abram L. Elkus, Nathan Straus, Jacob Landau, Adolph Lewisohn, Adolph S. Ochs, Herman Bernstein, Jacob Billikopf, William Z. Spiegelman, Mr. Marshall’s son, James Marshall, and Harry Schneiderman.

WARBURG PAYS TRIBUTE TO MARSHALL

I heartily join the many thousands of Jews and non-Jews who extend their felicitations and greetings to Louis Marshall, my friend and colleague, on the occasion of his seventieth birthday, Mr. Warburg stated in an interview with the reprsentative of the “Jewish Daily Bulletin.” It is a joyful feeling to remark his vigor, his readiness and his great capacity to work on behalf of the best interests of Jewry and humanity whenever the need presents itself. He has served the Jewish cause in our times and the best ideals of the human race faithfully and well. It is my heartiest wish that he be enabled to crown his long record of service with greater successes.

No Jew in the United States has as generous and as large a heart as Louis Marshall. Responsive to every justified call, he has, in the course of his active life, taken a leading part in providing the solutions to the manifold problems in which the period was so rife.

He brought to his task, in addition to his heart, the keenest of minds, which has enabled him to see further than is the usual view. He easily can place himself in the position of his suffering brethren in Eastern Europe and with an unprecedented insight into human motives and human sensibilities, he brings out a forceful appeal and an irresistible call which is bound to assure, and in fact has assured. the response of American Jewry, stirring it to quick action in hours of mergency and putting into effect its inherent impulses for doing good.

At no time willing to repeat the slogan which happens to be popular at the time, a way considered by many certain to procure favor, Marshall has always fearlessly fought for what he thought to be right, regardless of opposition, however powerful. Once convinced, after consideration on the basis of the facts in the given situation, once the course outlined, the task has to be pursued to a successful end. This has been the policy of Louis Marshall. To this is due the record of his manifold achievements both in the field of the legal battle and the field of human endeavor.

I am confident that other men than myself, experienced in the intricacies of the law, will give a proper appreciation of his achievements in the profession of his achievements in the profession in which he stands as an authority, Mr. Warburg said.

Louis Marshall’s interests have not been confined to one particular branch of activity. Outside of his work in the legal profession, he has embraced in his leadership diversified fields of Jewish endeavor. Not only in bringing relief to the Jewish war victims in their economic distress was his interest centered. He has a compelling understanding for the needs of the Jewish community in our prosperous America. Mr. Marshall cannot be considered a representative of only one type of Jew. He understands them all. He appreciates the Orthodox as well as the Reform Jew. Being president of the Jewish Theological Seminary, an Orthodox institution, he is also president of the Temple Emanu-El, a Reform congregation. Urging economic relief, he never overlooked the importance of cultural development. Engaged in his work for a liberal interpretation of the immigration policy he never lost view of the necessity of a Jewish education for the young. His interests are indeed diverse. A student of the law, he is interested also in history, in botany and geology. He has kept his interest in baseball, which he enjoys together with his sons. The distinguished feature of Mr. Marshall’s interests in all these fields impels one to draw a parallel with the paintings of Rembrandt. As in the Rembrandt portraits, the light breaks through the darkest background, so does Mr. Marshall’s mind see the light among the many shadows in the perplexing problems of our days.

It has been said of King Solomon that he knew even the language of trees and birds. Louis Marshall, botanist, when shown a leaf can by looking at the unidentified leaf, draw on his botanical knowledge and reconstruct in his mind the appearance of the trees with exactness. This principle has been applied by him successfully in other branches of his activity. Given a leaf, or the smallest clue, he will reach out to the branch and from the branch to the trunk and to the root.

With his keen mind he has coped with all the Jewish problems of our time, with a clue given, he has reached the solution and given us a guiding principle and has inspired us to greater and greater work. We pray that his inspiration continues to serve us for a long time to come, Mr. Warburg concluded.

ROSENWALD TERMS MARSHALL “GIANT”

Louis Marshall’s achievements were extolled in a statement by Julius Rosenwald, who declared:

“Louis Marshall looms as a giant above any other Jew who has devoted himself to voluntary public service, although by no means are his great achievements in this field limited to his own people. He has been lavish beyond anything possible to imagine in his devotion to causes affecting politically and civilly persecuted peoples, regardless of race or creed, of this country, as well as those of foreign lands. No one I ever have known has even measurably approached him in this respect.

“Mr. Marshall, first of all, is a most patriotic American, not only as evidenced by his untiring service to his country during the war, but by even greater devotion to causes affecting the welfare of the nation in times of peace. He has been an indefatigable worker in behalf of the immigrant. He has devoted effort without stint for the rights of the Negro. No human need is foreign to this great soul.

“Not alone is he prodigally generous with his time. He is equally generous with his pocketbook. He never attempts to make one compensate for the other. He delights in giving of his time, his talents, and his money.

“Mr. Marshall’s dear, lamented wife referred to him as “The E. J.”-“The Enthusiastic Jew.” His devotion to Jewish education, and Jewish causes of every kind, knows no bounds. No efforts are too great when calls come, and they come from every direction.

“To those who know him intimately, the most puzzling question is: How does he find the time to do it all? Even if he never slept, or never devoted time to his personal affairs, one still would be at a loss to understand how he can accomplish one half of what he does.

“It is a privilege to provide this parsimonious tribute to my friend, but, in writing as above, I realize it would require a great historian to adequately describe even the most outstanding of Mr. Marshall’s accomplishments.”

TRIBUTE FROM SYNAGOGUE COUNCIL

The Synagogue Council of America issued the following statement:

“Imbued with the highest ideals of humanity, the divine word “God made man in His image” finds in him a noble expression.

“The conservation of life, the education of the people, the uplift of the downtrodden constitute the highest constructive citizenship and the Council rejoices in the consciousness of an association with one whose strivings and achievements so richly express these virtues. An honored leader in his profession, an inspiring force in the preservation of our ancient religion, a veritable tribune of the people, his life may be summed up in the words of the prophet of old: “Ivri Onochi, I am a Hebrew.”

“Blessed of God and man, may his days be many in the land, for the good of Judaism and mankind.”

The statement was signed by Ben Altheimer, Captain N. Taylor Phillips and Rabbi Max Drob, comprising a committee representing the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the Rabbinical Assembly of the United Synagogue of America, the Rabbinical Council of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, the Union of American Hebrew Congregations and the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America.

Ludwig Vogelstein, chairman of the Executive Board of the Union of American Hebrew Congregation, isued a statement lauding the career of Jewish service of Louis Marshall.

Mr. Vogelstein said: “The seventieth anniversary of Louis Marshall’s birthday is being celebrated by Jews all over the world. As American Reform Jews we are particularly happy to honor Louis Marshall who for many year, has been the President of the foremost liberal Synagogue of this country. Mr. Marshall’s career has demonstrated that a liberal Jew when familiar with the history and the traditions of his people understands the point of view of his more orthodox brethren and respects all men who are imbued by a true religious spirit no matter how it expresses itself.

“Broad and liberal as Mr. Marshall has been in showing respect toward religious beliefs and practices of others regardless of how they deviated from his own, so uncompromising and unyielding was he towards those who under the cloak of religion or under the pretence of national necessity were intolerant towards minorities persecuting men and women because they differed from the majority in their religion. No one who has had the privilege of hearing or reading Mr. Marshall’s eloquent pleas in behalf of his suffering and persecuted brethren, his arraigement of the oppressors, his stirring appeals to his coreligionists can ever forget the impression which these utterances produced coming from a heart filled with sympathy and compassion. As a loyal Jew he felt that an injustice dealt to one of his brethren, no matter in what part of the world, was a personal injury to himself; and as a true American he fought for personal and religious liberty.

“The Jews of America and particularly the Union of American Hebrew Congregations representing 280 liberal congregations in this country are happy to place a laurel wreath of recognition on the head of the valiant fighter for the cause of Judaism, the liberal and modern Jew and the American patriot. The Hebrew Union College has conferred upon Mr. Marshall the degree of Doctor of Hebrew Law, an honor well and richly deserved.

“At its biennial council in January the Union of American Hebrew Congregations will honor itself by bestowing a tribute of its respect upon the man who for so many years has been a tower of strength in the midst of Israel.”

Albert Z. Halperin of Chicago was appointed Lincoln Park Commissioner by Governor Len Small.