Praise of Jewish achievements in Palestine and the Zionist movement as responsible for Jewish enterprise was expressed here by the United States Ambassador, General Charles H. Sherill, in a conversation with Rabbi Israel Goldstein of Temple Bnai Jeshurun, New York, during the latter’s visit to this city.
There are 40,000 Jews, the majority of them Sephardic, residing here. General Sherill holds a post made prominent by three Jewish envoys from the United States, the late Oscar Straus, Henry Morgenthau and Abram I. Elkus.
General Sherill visited Palestine a year ago and stated that he was greatly impressed with the way in which Jewish enterprise has surmounted the obstacles of a dry and rocky soil and without the benefit of any special privileges such as might have been expected under the British mandate, and is building up the land both agriculturally and industrially, far out of proportion to his numbers.
He credited the Zionist movement for most of what has been accomplished in Palestine during the past 15 years, and stated that the country as a whole has benefited.
General Sherill said he was glad to observe the dominance of the Hebrew language among Palestine Jewry and that this was serving as stimulus for the revival of the Hebrew language among Jewry in other lands.
He expressed confidence in the Jews as a peace loving people and uttered the hope that Arabs and Jews may cooperate to the fruitfulness of the country.
Conversations Dr. Goldstein had with other leaders of the Jewish community disclosed that there is no anti-Semitism in official circles, but that it is felt to a degree in economic and industrial spheres.
Zionism is in disfavor among government circles and there is no public Zionist propaganda among the Jews.
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.
