As a result of the new immigration law in the United States, from two and a half to three million Jews on the Western frontier of Russia will have to stay where they are, according to Dr. Paul Nathan in an address delivered by him on the future work of the Hilfsverein der Deutschen Juden. Any trouble there will bring a stream of immigration into the adjoining countries, including, of course, Germany, he stated. To guard against such a danger, an emigration movement into Russia must be organized, so that the Jewish masses can be distributed over the interior of the vast Russian Empire.
Palestine, he pointed out, can be considered as a land of immigration only to a very limited exten 1. Russia, both European and Asiatic holds tremendous possibilities for settlement. It would, therefore, be advisable to secure certain districts in Russia, where Jews could he successfuly colonized. The Russian Government has agreed in principle, to allow a small commission to enter Russia to investigate the conditions as regards colonization.
Concrete proposals on the subject before the Soviet Government and world Jewry should he made, he declared. There is a possibility, added Dr. Nathan, of Jewish colonies on a small scale being founded all over Russia. If these prosper, they will become a center of attraction for further Jewish settlement in the Russian interior. It will be necessary to form an international organization, he concluded, to deal effectively with the whole problem.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.