London.
Lady Erleigh and Leonard G. Montefiore, joint chairmen of the third appeal which is to be launched by the Central British Fund for German Jewry at an inaugural meeting to be held on Sunday, March 10, addressed a press conference here, at which they explained why a third appeal is essential.
“The position is that the money from the second appeal has been allocated although not all expended,” Mr. Montefiore said. “We are obliged to find more money for the refugees, and it is appeal.
“The first charge is for the refugees in England, in respect of whom a pledge was given to the Home Office in the Spring of 1933 that no Jewish refugee shall become a public charge. We have been reminded of this pledge by the Home Office and it must be honored, not only for the sake of the refugees, but also for the honor of the Jewish Community.
“We still have in the United Kingdom about 3,000 refugees. Most of them are registered at Woburn House, but there are some who are not registered at Woburn House, but have been supporting themselves with funds they were able to bring over with them from Germany. As these resources become exhausted, they will register with the Refuge Committee at Woburn House.
A certain number have received permission to start in business, and they are considerably contributing to the prosperity of the country. Many things are manufactured by them which have not been manufactured here before, and they have given employment to British workers. When it is considered that they have to use food, materials, etc., in this country, it is seen that they put fresh money into circulation and are thereby helping industrial development.
“Many Jews in England may feel when they hear that there is to be a third appeal, that they are tired of the subject. But I would like them to read and hear what is being circulated in Germany about the Jews, all the calumnies and insults. Then they must feel that they must do something. If Hitler goes on persecuting the Jews, we must do our best. If the Nazi hatred is strong, our desire to bring out the truth must be stronger still.
Lady Erleigh said: “We could not put our feeling for Palestine before that which we owe to German Jewry. We may perhaps be misunderstood in some quarters. But we must put our work on a solid basis. We cannot tell what is going to happen in Germany during the next year.
“If we launch a third appeal, we do our duty to the German Jews. People here, who have children, especially those who have children at the universities, must think of the children in Germany without hope.
“For the young people, Palestine is the refuge in the first place. What will be the effect on young people who cannot work? They will become rebels or crooks. It does not do Jewry any good if a great number of them are turned from the path. We must give them the hope of a good place in Palestine and in other countries. The largest number of them have gone to Palestine, and there they feel at home, they are settling down, and feel happy. We need an organization in Palestine to put the right peg in the right hole. I think if it works, we shall have stopped a great chaos.
“We have decided to make one big effort for a certain period of time. We will make March the month for German Jewry. I want to stress this very much. Much preliminary work has already been done. I hope everybody will help. We have no guarantee that there might not be a fourth appeal. But the German community had its worst shock in the beginning. We hope to liquidate the position of the 30,000 refugees all over Europe.”
At the same conference, Rev. M. L. Perlzweig said that the principal upon which the money is spent is constructive work. An amount for sheer relief in England and abroad has been necessary. But so far as possible the Allocation Committee has used the money for solving the problem.
“There is a matter of interest to Zionists,” he went on. “When the preliminary list is published, it will be found that the Keren Hayesod for the coming year, in England, will receive—on acount of a donation of one contributor—a larger allocation than previously. So far England is the only country where the income of the Keren Hayesod has remained stationary. But it is to be pointed out that the influx of German refugees into Palestine has added a greater stress.
“I would like to emphasize,” he said, “that this is a united appeal in every respect of the word. Zionists feel to the fullest extent their duty together with non-Zionists f## fully carrying out the pledge. Every Jew must feel that it is not only a duty to himself, but that he must also induce his friends to give.
“The information we have received from Dr. Weizmann’s Bureau is that since the beginning of the trouble in Germany about 20,000 German Jews have settled in Palestine. If we are supported enough in England, in the course of the coming year, we hope to settle 15,000 more—as a result of the work done all over the world.”
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.
