U.S. No Longer Chief Country of Jewish Immigration, Jewish Social Service Parley Hears; Questions Pr

The United States is no longer the chief country of Jewish immigration although it continues to be one of several countries in this field, according to Dr. H. D. Linfield, director of the statistical department of the American Jewish Committee, who read a paper in the general symposium on “Post-War Changes in the Migration of Jews” at the National Conference of Jewish Social Service. Dr. Linfield submitted figures showing that during the last five years the first country of Jewish immigration had been Palestine, with the United States dropping to second place, and followed by the Argentine, Canada and Brazil in the order named.

JEWISH IMMIGRATION TO U. S.

Dr. Linfield pointed out that the volume of Jewish immigration has decreased more than that of other groups. In the five years preceding the war 525,000 Jews came to the United States, Canada, the Argentine, South Africa and other places. This was an average of 105,000 a year. The war gave rise to a new country of Jewish immigration, Palestine.

Jewish immigration since the war must be divided into two periods, that from 1920 to 1924 preceding the American quota system and that from 1925 to 1929. In the first period 395,000 Jews came to the United States, Palestine, Argentine and Canada, a yearly average of 79,000 a year, while in the second period these countries absorbed only 213,000 Jews, an annual average of 42,600. For the past five years Jewish immigration has been but 53 percent of that of the period from 1920 to 1924 and but 40 per cent of that in the period from 1909 to 1913, he stated.

QUESTIONS PROMISE TO STUYVESANT

The traditional tale that the Jews of New Amsterdam in 1652 promised Governor Peter Stuyvesant that they would take care of their own poor was questioned as to its authenticity and criticized in its sociological implications by Dr. I. M. Rubinow, grand secretary of the Constitution Lodge of the B’nai B’rith. Mrs. Cecelia Rosowsky, Jewish social worker from South America, proposed that American Jewish social leaders invite those from Latin America to participate in the next convention.

PROBLEMS OF HOMES FOR AGED

Problems of homes for the aged, attitudes of members of boards of directors toward their jobs, the need for separate Jewish hospitals in cities with large Jewish populations and the treatment of the child problem in the home were other subjects discussed. Judge A. K. Cohen of Boston said that the community should look with disfavor on the acceptance of voluntary positions in social work without the definite understanding that the same application which directors show in commercial affairs be exercised by these individuals in communal endeavors.

Arthur J. Cohen, superintendent of the Home for the Aged and Infirm Hebrews of New York, discussed methods of business administration in a home for the aged. Recreation is an essential element in a program for wards in a home for the aged, declared Mrs. Switton, superintendent of the San Francisco Hebrew Home for the Aged and Disabled, in describing the spontaneous play, recreational and cultural program in vogue at her institution.

PARTICIPANTS IN DISCUSSION

Others who participated in this discussion were Dr. Solomon Lowenstein, executive director of the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies in New York; Armin Berger of Cleveland, Max Schapiro of Pittsburgh and Edith Mozorosky of New York. Dr. Lowenstein described the San Francisco home program as a model for such institutions and Miss Mozorosky of the Bureau of Jewish Social Research pointed out that the individual background of the inmates must be considered before determining on the type of recreation suitable.

SEPARATE JEWISH HOSPITALS

The need of separate Jewish hospitals in large centers of Jewish population was considered at the Health section of the Conference. Those who took part in this discussion were Samuel A. Goldsmith, director of the Bureau of Jewish Social Research; Dr. John Slawson of the Jewish Welfare Federation, Ethel Cohen of the Beth Israel Hospital, Boston, and Boris Fingerhood of the United Israel Zion Hospital in Brooklyn.