Marquis of Reading and Sir Herbert Samuel Concur in British Jewry’s Agency Decision

The Marquis of Reading and Sir Herbert Samuel, two of the most outstanding British Jews active in the affairs of the British Empire, expressed their concurrence in the resolution of the Anglo-Jewish community to join the extended Jewish Agency for Palestine in messages they addressed to O. E. d’Avigdor Goldsmid, president of the Board of Jewish Deputies, who presided at the conference Sunday.

Both expressed their regret at their inability to attend. Sir Herbert is now in Wales, where he is campaigning for the Liberal party on the eve of the parliamentary elections, delivering five speeches a day. “I am in entire agreement with the objects of the conference,” declared Sir Herbert in his message. “I always regarded it as a matter of the first importance that the efforts of the whole Jewish people and not one section be focussed upon the upbuilding of the Jewish national home in Palestine. There will always be differences of opinion concerning matters of the speed of the work and the shape it may take in the future. Those differences are natural and their expression is healthy. They need not cause perturbation. But underlying them there is a large common measure of agreement which the Jewish Agency is intended to evoke and to express.

“It is necessary to remember,” Sir Herbert continues, “that the Palestine Mandate forms the foundation on which the whole movement rests. The Mandate, while recognizing the Zionist Organization as the Jewish Agency, required it to take steps to secure wider Jewish cooperation.

“The Zionist Organization has borne the chief burden for many long years past. The Zionist Organization, under the wise and farseeing leadership of Dr. Chaim Weizmann, accomplished great results. Acting in this matter in a broad and self-sacrificing spirit, it is now proposing a half of the seats on the new authority to be filled by organizations which are now for the first time definitely participating in the work. I trust definitely that the present opportunity will be seized for creating a fully representative body, powerful in personnel and resources, which will be a visible embodiment and effective instrument of all that Judaism stands for in relation to Palestine,” Sir Herbert wrote.

Quoting Edmund Burke that “the state includes the past, the present and the future generations,” Sir Herbert concludes by saying: “We have the responsibility to all those who have gone and all who are yet to come. Let us rise to the height of our duty.”

The Marquis of Reading in his message to the chairman stated that he was in full sympathy with the proposed resolutions, which he would support if he were able to attend. “It is obviously the duty of the Anglo-Jewish community to give assistance to the Agency to the best of its powers in discharge of the duties of the Mandate intrusted to the British Government,” the Marquis wrote.