History of the Jews in Russia and Poland Volume I Part 12

[133] See p. 130.

[134] ["Scroll of Darkness" (comp. Amos iv. 13), with a clever allusion to the similarly sounding words in Zech. v. 1.]

[135] [In Polish _Szczebrzeszyn_, a town in the region of Lublin.]

[136] ["Troublous Times," allusion to Dan. ix. 25.]

[137] ["Door of Repentance."]

[138] [See p. 98, n. 1.]

[139] [_I. e._ son of Mark, or Mordecai. On "syndics" see p. 111, n. 2.]

[140] [Twenty per cent was the legalized rate of interest in Italy at the end of the fifteenth century. See Israel Abrahams, Jewish Life in the Middle Ages, p. 242.]

[141] We quote the following in abbreviated form. [For the complete text see the article cited in the next note.]

[142] From the Hebrew text it is not clear whether they offered themselves voluntarily as victims, or whether they were picked out by others. According to the local tradition in Ruzhany, the former was the case. [See Dubnow in the Russian Jewish monthly _Voskhod_, July, 1903, p. 19, n. 1.]

[143] The corresponding word in Hebrew (??????), which is marked with dots in the original, represents the year of the event: [5]420 _aera mundi_, which equals 1659 C. E.

[144] _I. e._ they tried to convert the martyrs to Catholicism.

[145] [Allusion to Judges ix. 9, where the English version translates differently. The Hebrew word for "tree" also signifies "wood," and is used in polemic literature for "cross."]

[146] [See p. 91, n. 1.]

[147] [See p. 96, n. 1.]

[148] [The Senate formed the upper chamber of the Polish parliament.]

[149] In the "Political Catechism of the Polish Republic," published in 1735, we read the following: "Who is it in this vast country that engages in commerce, in handicrafts, in keeping inns and taverns?"--"The Jews." ... "What may be the reason for it?"--"Because all commerce and handicrafts are prohibited to the Shlakhta on account of the importance of this estate, just as sins are prohibited by the commandments of G.o.d and by the law of nature."--"Who imposes and who pays the taxes?"--"The taxes are imposed by the n.o.bility, and they are paid by the peasant, the burgher, and the Jew."

[150] [See above, p. 46, n. 1, and p. 60, n. 1.]

[151] [More exactly, _faktor_, Polish designation for broker, agent, and general utility man.]

[152] [Popular Polish form of the Jewish name _Baer_.]

[153] The last order was subsequently repealed.

[154] [See p. 55.]

[155] [See pp. 164 and 165.]

[156] According to another version, he expressed his willingness to embrace Christianity in order to escape death, but afterwards repented.

[157] [In Podolia.]

[158] [In the province of Kiev.]

[159] [In Volhynia.]

[160] [Near Lublin.]

[161] Another variant of the name is _Jelek_. [The latter form is declared to be incorrect by A. Berliner, _Gutachten Ganganelli's_ (Berlin, 1888), p. 41.]

[162] Of all the accusations of this kind, the Cardinal recognizes the correctness of only two, the murder of Simon of Trent in 1475 and of Andreas of Brixen in 1462, adding, however, that even their death was not caused by the legendary Jewish ritual, but simply by Jewish "hatred against the Christians."

[163] [See p. 78.]

[164] [See p. 143, n. 2.]

[165] [A word of uncertain origin meaning "rebel" or "rioter." See p.

149.]

[166] [A town in Podolia.]

[167] [See p. 142, n. 1.]

[168] [See p. 320, n. 2.]

[169] [p.r.o.nounced _Ooman_, with a soft sound at the end. In Polish the name is spelled _Human_.]

[170] According to the Polish census of 1764-1766 the number of Jews in Poland and Lithuania amounted during those years, on the eve of the part.i.tions, to 621,000 souls.

CHAPTER VI

THE INNER LIFE OF POLISH JEWRY DURING THE PERIOD OF DECLINE

1. JEWISH SELF-GOVERNMENT

The fact that the Jews of Poland, despite the general disintegration of the country, where right was supplanted by privilege and liberty by license, were yet able to hold their own as an organized social unit, was princ.i.p.ally due to that vast scheme of communal self-government which had become an integral part of Polish-Jewish life during the preceding period. Surrounded by enemies, ostracized by all other estates and social groups, Polish Jewry, guided by the instinct of self-preservation, endeavored to close its ranks and gather sufficient inner strength to offer effective resistance to the hostile non-Jewish world. One of the appeals issued in 1676 by the central organ of Polish Jewry, the "Council of the Four Lands," begins with these characteristic words:

Gravely have we sinned before the Lord. The unrest grows from day to day. It becomes more and more difficult to live. Our people has no standing whatsoever among the nations. Indeed, it is a miracle that in spite of all misfortunes we are still alive. The only thing left for us to do is to unite ourselves in one league, held together by the spirit of strict obedience to the commandments of G.o.d and to the precepts of our pious teachers and leaders.

These sentences are followed by a set of paragraphs calling upon the Jews of Poland to obey without murmuring the mandates of their Kahals, to refrain from farming state taxes, from accepting the stewards.h.i.+p of Shlakhta estates, and entering into business partners.h.i.+p with non-Jews without the permission of the Kahals, for the reason that such enterprises are bound to result in conflicts with the Christian population and in complaints on their part about the Jews. The Council also forbids "intrusting Jewish goods to strange hands," resorting to the intervention of the Polish authorities for purposes injurious to the interests of the community, generating schisms and party strife among Jews, and similar actions.

The rabbinical Kahal administration endeavored to impose its will upon every single member of the community by regulating his economic and spiritual life, and to prevent as far as possible his coming in contact with the outside world. The greatest a.s.sistance in this endeavor came from the Polish Government. Attaching great value to the Kahal as a convenient tool for the collection of Jewish taxes, the Government bestowed upon it vast administrative and judicial powers. The Government found it to its interest to deal with the Jewish communities rather than with individual Jews. The Kahal was held responsible by the Government for the action of every one of its members or for any inaccuracy of the latter in the payment of taxes. The Kahal extended its influence in proportion to its responsibility. This tutelage of the Kahal resulted in strengthening the social organization of the Jews, while it curbed at the same time the personal liberty of its members to a greater extent than was demanded even by the strictest social discipline.

As far as the Polish Government was concerned, the Kahal was particularly valued as a responsible collecting agency among the Jews on behalf of the exchequer. At the sessions of the Waads, the wholesale amount of the Jewish head-tax (designated as _gulgoleth_ in the Jewish sources) was periodically fixed and apportioned among the Kahal districts. Within these Kahal districts as well as in the individual communities the apportionment of the taxes was the function of the local Kahal elders, who were in charge of the tax collection, and were held responsible for its being accurately remitted to the exchequer. In 1672 the King bestowed upon the Kahal elders of Lithuania the right of excluding from the community or of punis.h.i.+ng by other measures those recalcitrant members of their Kahals who by their acts were likely to arouse the resentment of the Christian population against the Jews. Ten years later the Starosta of Brest issued a rescript forbidding the pans to lend money to private persons among the Jews without the knowledge of the Kahal elders. This was done in compliance with the request of these elders themselves, since they were held responsible for the insolvent debtors of their respective districts. On a previous occasion, at a conference of the representatives of the Lithuanian communities held in 1670, it was decided to prosecute every Jew who borrowed money from the pans or priests without the knowledge of their Kahal. The Voyevoda of Lemberg in 1692 forbade letting the collection of various state imposts, such as the excise on distilleries and retail sale of spirits, to Jews unless they produced a certificate of the Kahal elders testifying to their good conduct. The right of owning real estate or exploiting articles of revenue (leases and land-rent) was granted to private persons only with the permission of the Kahal (_hazaka_). Without this license and the payment of a special tax (_hezkath yishub_) no Jew was allowed to settle in a given locality or to enroll his name in the community.

The limits of Jewish communal autonomy were not precisely laid down by the law of the state. They were enlarged or contracted in accordance with the will of the provincial administration, the voyevodas and starostas,[171] and the agreements between these officials and the Kahals concerning their respective spheres of influence. The model of a free communal const.i.tution may be found in the statute granted by the Voyevoda of Red Russia (Galicia) in 1692 to the central Kahal of Lemberg. This statute authorizes the Jewish community to hold periodic elections, to choose its elders "in accordance with its customs and rights," without the slightest interference on the part of the local administration. The chosen elders are recognized as the lawful officials and judges of their coreligionists in a given locality. Disputes and litigation between Jew and Jew are in the first instance to be settled exclusively by the Kahal court (_beth-din_), consisting of rabbis and elders, the latter acting as a jury. Cases between Jews and non-Jews as well as appeals from the decisions of the Beth-Din are to be tried by the voyevoda court and the special "Jewish judge" attached to it, the latter being a Christian official especially appointed for such cases.

This judge is to be selected by the voyevoda from two candidates nominated by the Jewish elders. His function is to settle disputes and complaints "in a definite place near the synagogue" (in the "Kahal chamber"), in the presence of the Kahal elders. In his verdicts the "Jewish judge" is to be guided not only by the general laws of the state, but also by the Jewish common law. The regular sessions of the court are to take place twice a week. In special cases extra sessions may be arranged for on any day with the exception of the Jewish holidays. Subpoenas are issued through the synagogue beadle, or _shamash_.[172] The protocols of the court are to be kept in the Kahal chamber near the synagogue. The appeals from the judgments of this court are to be submitted to the voyevoda himself.