A South African Jew whose name is not yet revealed, has bequeathed between £60,000 and £70,000 for the “poor of Palestine”, the J.T.A. here learns. Although it appears reasonably certain that the testator meant Jews, he failed to make this stipulation in his will, and in consequence the fund will be allocated by the Government in strict proportion to the population, so that the share falling to the Jewish poor will be only about 20 per cent.
A similar confusion occurred in the case of the bequest of the late Sir Ellis Kadoorie, who left a third of his estate to the British Government to be spent by it on the provision of schools in Palestine or Mesopotamia, without specifying that he intended it to be used for the benefit of Jews.
Although several of the bequests of the will were for institutions for the benefit of Jews, the official statement issued by the Government explained, no such provision was made with respect to this particular gift. The British Government, the statement continued, has accepted the bequent and has decided that the funds which are in the neighbourhood of £100,000, are to be spent in Palestine.
In view of the terms of the will, the Government statement said, the Government has not felt itself Justified in limiting the expenditure to schools for the Jewish population.
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.
