OCR Text |
Show I ''Suggested That Sultan Is Not Proof Against Power ofGoJd. iMIGHT STRENGTHEN HIS HOLD ON OTHER LANDS 'Great JBritain's Offer Rejecteil by.Tews on Sentimental Grounds. v j Special Cable to Tlio Tribune. ; LONDON, Aug. 19. The chief result ;of the recent Zionist congress at Basle has been Uhe keeping of the proposl-i proposl-i tlon before the nations of the world. The rejection of Ihn offer of the British (Government of the land necessary for a. Zionist settlement in British East Af-, Af-, rlca haa had the effect of preventing janythlng specific being accomplished in , the near future. r, Hebrews Want Palestine. To those who have studied the subject, sub-ject, not from the point of view of the 2lonLst, but from the point of view of the statesman and the student of public I affairs, It appears as though the objections objec-tions to British East Africa were religious re-ligious and not climatic. 'J?he report oC the committee of Inquiry, composed of Maj. 11111 Gibbons, Prof. Kalaor and Dr: "Wilbuschewitch, the engineer who went to East Africa last year to make the Investigation locally, was unfavorable to that scheme. But there Is no doubt that the ift'e of the Zionist movement Is found In the deslro of the leading Hebrews He-brews of the world to once again acquire ac-quire Palestine. Sultan Might Succumb to Gold. It ha3 been suggested that the Sultan, who has held the Holy Land against Jew and Christians, might not bo proof against the power of gold. Palestine Is of no particular value to him from a religious and from a sentimental point of view. It might strengthen his hold upon Constantinople and Turkey In Europe Eu-rope to surrender Palestine to tho Zionists. Zion-ists. And it Is thought that enough money could be raised from the wealthy Hebrews of the world to accomplish what tho sword could not do wrest tho Holy Land from the Turk. Question, of Leader Open. Not even the question of a successor to Dr. ITerzl appears to have boon settled set-tled by the Basle conference. Israel Zangwlll, the well-known Jewish writer, writ-er, was prominent In the proceedings, but he became identified with the Eost African Zionists and they proved the losers In the contest with tho believers In Palestine ' and the disbelievers in British West Africa. The question of a loader of the Zionist movement has really been open ever since tho death of Dr. Herzl. For a long time the Zionists Zion-ists have been governed by tjie actions committee which Is the executive of the movement, and acted as a kind of a cabinet to Herzl before his death. At last Dr. Max Nordau was Invited to take up the post, but for various personal per-sonal reasons, including that of not having the necessary opportunities for its duties, he declined. Eventually, after much trouble, It was decided to have a committee of three to rule. Dr. Max Nordau, after considerable persuasion and pressure, consented to bo one1: llorr Dr. Wolfs-sohn Wolfs-sohn of Cologne, chairman of the Jewish Jew-ish Colonial trust and one of the closest friends of Dr. Herzl, wan another, and Prof. Otto Warburg of Berlin was tho third. This cabinet, however, was practically prac-tically upset by Dr. Max Nordau stating stat-ing that tho stale of his health was so unsatisfactory that he must withdraw his candidature as one of tho three. To accept, he declared, would be suicide, and not slow r.uiclde. Many there are who arc anxious to ,havo Sir Francis MonteTlorc, who was one of the vice-presidents vice-presidents of the congress, take an active ac-tive Interest in the leadership. Time Is Important. In this connection it Is worth while to call attention to the fact that It Is only two years since Dr. Theodore Herzl died, and In.a movement like the establishment estab-lishment of a colony In British East Africa Af-rica or the practical purchaso of Palestine Pales-tine from tho Turk's timo Is an Important Import-ant essential. It is still a debated question ques-tion whether the movement has In Itself the strength and power to survive tho staggering blow which It received when Dr. Herzl died. There wcro men In the movement of greater intellect than he; men more famed as llterateurs; men better known in tho countries where they were born, men who had occupied a high place In the various nations of which they were units. But In the combination com-bination of these qualities, together with an iron will, clear perception, accurate ac-curate judgment of his fellows and an Intuitive statesmanship, Theodore Herzl was a giant over them all. Ho was Just the figure to fire the Imagination of, the people, and when at the time of the Dreyfus agitation Jews saw that even a nation which had stood for all that was advanced In thought and liberal-minded In Idea had gone mad on racial and religious hatred; therefore, a large section of them commenced to think that the hand .of every ono was against them, and that the one solution solu-tion for the Jewish question was a land of their own. national and spiritual salvation. sal-vation. Herzl Supplied Hope. Of course, Zionism In theory the return re-turn to Zlon, had been a feature of the Hebrew prayer book for all time. But, whereas in most Western countries the Jews were prepared to pray, and that alone, for i)c return, there were few visionaries who even hoped for Its realization. re-alization. Herzl supplied that. ' Ho wrote his "Jewish State," which sketched the life of his people In Palestine Pal-estine Zlon under modern conditions. It was translated Into English, and the Zionist movement as It 13 known today was born and came Into being. Whllo the majority who took up the Idea wcro those living In Russia and Gallcia, there was a goodly following in England, and In almost every country, even to the Far East; and In the Far West of the world Zionist societies sprang up. Herzl, whose name previously was almost al-most unknown outside literary and artistic ar-tistic circles In Vienna, where he wan a member of the staff of the Neue Frel Presse and In a similar sphere in Paris where he acted as correspondent for his paper now became a personality. Becamo a Personality. Still people asked whether he was simply a dreamer and a clever writer. He proceeded to show that he had a practical turn of mind. He would not have his scheme the sport of debating societies. He commenced to fashion tho Instrument which he hoped would bo put Into being. Instead of the various Zionist societies remaining scattered and Impotent he summoned their elected representatives to the first congress at Basle. Sultan Received. Him. Though he met with many disappointments disap-pointments and difficulties, Herzl ad vanced the movement In a wonderful, a phenomenal degree. At least twice he was received by the Sultan of Tur-kuy Tur-kuy who discussed allowing tho Jews to become a Tecognized .people In Palestine Pal-estine under his suzerainty. Herzl was received by the King of Italy and by the Pope, as well as one or two minor rulers In Germany; while, when the Kaiser went for hl3 famous Eastern tour he met Herzl and some of his lieutenants In Jerusalem. Herzl kept his alms well before the attention of tho world, and sought help for the realization of his plans among tho grei ones of earth; and his success suc-cess in this he tho playwright and Journalist, was not the least wonderful of his achievements of his life. , "Would Destroy tho Dream. The offer of the British Government, brought before the Zionist congress two years ago. In a way may be said to have been responsible for the death of Dr. Herzl. At first tho movement took a new phase. The Hebrews, however, were about evenly divided at that time In their opinions as to whether It should be accepted or rejected. Those who took the latter view held that any turning aside from the one hope of Pal-cstino Pal-cstino would use up energy and means, and the beautiful dream of the return to Zlon would be postponed Indefinitely. Others were for acceptance as a refugo for those who found It Impossible to live In Russia and Gallcia. Serve as Training School. It was also held that a territory whero autonomy would bo given was capable of being used us a training for tho public life which could be developed devel-oped later when the Zionist aspirations were realized. Eventually It was decided de-cided as a kind of compromise that the question should remain open, and that In the meantime a commission of Inquiry In-quiry should examine the territory and the decision of acceptance be left for a future congress. There Is no doubt that the anxiety and trouble which followed this period put a great strain on the health of Dr. Herzl. He was even denounced as not proving true to his trust as a stnnuch Zionist. He felt this reproach keenly and within a year he died, two months af tor his forty-fourth birthday. Consternation Con-sternation came upon his followers, and since that time there has been a period of chaos among the Zionists, while the "pure Palestinians." as tho opponents of the offer in British East Africa were termed, and the "terrllorlallsts," as they dubbed the other side, fell to and fought fiercely. Something1 Practical Needed. It Is this condition of affairs which still confronts JLtic Zionists, and makes It appear to tho returning delegates of the British section, at least, that something some-thing practical In a world-wide forward movement like that of the reclamation of Palestine will be necessary to hold th attention rtthTK world. It may A.WR thins practical canTK lleelns from poiSJMl conditions of S", view of the lesiahiiXniiB retrlctlon3 W varous countries. h admitted, however, twK of the cstabllshtnentM! Refuge" lannt, daring enough to ctSsW hearts of the ZIontoBn the world, li jjjpj |