Text of Rabbi Niemirover’s Address in Roumanian Senate Contradicts Roumanian Press Bureau’s Version

A contradiction between what was reported as Rabbi Niemirover’s address in the Senate by the Roumanian government news agency and the press bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bucharest and released to the American press by the Roumanian Press Bureau in Washington is apparent from the text of Rabbi Niemirover’s address in the Senate made public by the Roumanian Jewish news paper, “Curierul Israelit”, which arrived in this country yesterday.

The press bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bucharest quoted Rabbi Niemirover as saying:

“We Israelites living in this country, know how pacific and goodhearted the Roumanian people are. We know that we cannot make the Roumanian people responsible for the excesses of an isolated anti-Semitic party.

“There is a difference between the Israelites of the old kingdom, who are happy to have become entirely Roumanian citizens, and the Israelites of the reunited provinces, who are not all yet in the frame of this country. I can testify that I protested and still protest categorically against the exaggerations and the intrigues of foreigners against Roumania.”

From the “Curierul Israelit.” it appears, however, that the address was delivered by Rabbi Niemirover on the 27th of January and not on the 30th. The occasion was the discussion in connection with the contest for the seat in the Senate to which a representative of the Jewish religion in Old Roumania is entitled according to the constitution. The provision in the constitution is that every religious sect is entitled to one representative in the Senate for every 200,000 adherents. Rabbi Niemirover had already been seated, as the Government had recognized the action taken a month before at a convention of representatives of all the Jewish congregations in Roumania. The right of Rabbi Niemirower to the seat was challenged by Rabbi Schorr, who insisted that Rabbi Niemirover represented only the Reform and Spaniolish Jews, whereas he, Schorr, represented the Orthodox, who are the bulk of the Jews of Roumania. The contest was further complicated by the attempt on the part of the anti-Semites to present the claim that neither Niemirover nor Schorr was entitled to sit because, they alleged, the constitution provided that representation was to be based upon the number of electors of a given faith and not upon the number of its adherents. This contention, however, was not long permitted to stand, a number of the senators coming to the aid of Rabbi Niemirover and demonstrating its invalidity. The result of the contest was that Rabbi Niemirover’s election was confirmed. Thereupon Rabbi Niemirover delivered the address from which the following extract is quoted verbatim. It should be noted that the occasion for the address was the electoral contest, and that nothing in Dr. Niemirover’s address bore any relation to the question of anti-Jewish uprisings in Roumania.

“Gentlemen of the Senate: Until recently our friends on the other side calling themselves the Christian League, were charging that the Jews in Roumania numbered 600,000; later, they insisted that we numbered 400,000; now they say that we are only 200,000 strong. However that may be, the truth of the matter is that we are at least 200,000 strong, as the Constitution requires. If you wish me to submit statistics to you, I shall no doubt be able to do so (Cries of “No,No.”)

“Gentlemen of the Senate, a very honorable senator, who spoke before me most logically, said that in Bessarabia not all the Jews are Roumanian citizens and he also showed that the same situation exists in Transylvania where a large number of Jews have not yet entered into the frame of the Roumanian State. The situation is greatly different, however, in the case of the Jews of the Old Kingdom, who have lived here for hundreds of years, have participated in the economic development of the country, and have shed their blood on the battlcfield for the independence of the State and for the enlargement of the Great Roumania. These hundreds of thousands of Jews considered themselves very happy when they were able to become Roumanian citizens and we cannot admit that their number is less than 200,000. I feel certain that the honorable Senate does not expect me to answer also the political side of the question. We, who have been living in this land, know that the Roumanian people is a kind and good people, and know that we cannot hold responsible the whole Roumanian people for the anti-Semitic party. I regret that this question has been put to me.

“Honorable Senators, if you do pay heed to what is being said abroad, then think a moment that abroad where all these questions are not understood, the invalidation of my mandate could produce a bad impression. (Murmurs). Gentlemen of the Sentate, I thank you for your continuation (support?) of the second part of my proposition; what I wanted to say; you have said. I wanted to say that if there will be found abroad anyone who would pretend that the invalidation of my Mandate is merely a pretext, we need not take notice of it. The situation is the following: We can not be responsible, and I can declare that wherever it was possible, I have protested against some exaggerations and untruths against my country. I believe that the electoral law is in conformity with the Constitution and that I was elected according to the provisions of the law.”

Dr. Niemirover concluded his address with a profession of loyalty to the country, and the expression of the hope that as a Senator he would be able actively to promote the highest interests of the country.