|
When we reach the nineties, we get a whole literature of
popular
science. We have Bernstein's 'Natural Science,' Brehm's 'Essays
on
Animals,' and a large number of other similar adaptations for
this
period. The most systematic distribution of such books was carried on
by
A. Kotik and Bressler, who published a series of text-books on
the
useful sciences. Among these are several on anthropology, on
political
economy, and even on Darwinism. But none of these can compare
in
literary value with the excellent essays of Perez, or even with some
of
the articles in the various periodicals. Within the last few years
the
popular stories of Tannenbaum in New York have become very popular
in
Russia, where nearly all of his works are being reprinted as soon
as
they have appeared in America. One of the most persistent kinds of
this
class of literature has been the one that gives instruction in
popular
medicine. We find such information teaching what to do in case
of
cholera in the first half of the century, and later for nearly
forty
years many such useful essays have been written by Dr. Tscherny.
This
exhausts the scanty collection of a scientific nature that has
been
produced for the masses.
Conditions have not been favorable in
Russia for the development of a
periodical literature such as the leaders of
the people have always had
in mind, and such as the writers now would like to
see inaugurated. The
Government has put so many obstacles in the way of their
publications
that they have nearly all been of an ephemeral nature, and have
had
successively to give place to new and just as short-lived
periodicals.
The earliest use of Judeo-German, at least of German written
with Hebrew
letters, we find in a gazette published in Prague in the
beginning of
the century; the next was a similar paper that was published in
Warsaw
in 1824. After that there ensued a long silence until the year
1848,
when a constitution and the freedom of the press were announced
in
Austria. The happy news was brought to the Jews of Galicia by
a
Judeo-German proclamation issued by Jizchok Jehuda Ben Awraham
in
Lemberg. In a simple language the author tells his co-religionists
of
the change that has come over them, of the formation of a
National
Guard, of the Freedom of the Press, and of the Constitution. It
proceeds
to give the late occurrences in Lemberg, and expresses the hope of
a
close union with the Gentile population. "And to-day when the
Gentiles
cast away their hatred against us, we Jews who have always had
good
hearts shall certainly be one body and one soul with the Christians."
A
month later A. M. Mohr started a political gazette under the name
of
_Zeitung_, in which a corrupt German, rather than Judeo-German,
was
employed. This paper has subsisted, with some interruptions and
various
changes of form, up to the present time. The following year there
was
issued a rival paper, _Die judische Post_, which added a
commercial
column to the political news.
In Russia no periodical
appeared until Zederbaum issued his supplement,
_Kol-mewasser_, to the
_Hameliz_ in 1863. This weekly was not only a
gazette of political news, but
also a literary magazine which, as we
have seen, has fostered the
Judeo-German literature and has made it
possible for Abramowitsch and
Linetzki to develop themselves. In 1871
its life was cut short. In 1867 a
short-lived attempt was made in Warsaw
to issue a weekly, _Die Warschauer
judische Zeitung_, which followed
closely the precedent set by the
_Kol-mewasser_. Many of the
contributors to the older magazine have written
articles for the same.
For some reason, emanating mainly from the censor, no
periodical in
Judeo-German was published in Russia during the seventies. The
Jews
were, however, not entirely without reading matter of that class, for
at
different times magazines and gazettes were issued for them abroad.
The
first of the kind was the _Jisrulik_, which appeared in Lemberg in
1875
under the joint editorship of Linetzki and Goldfaden. This differed
from
its predecessors in so far as it made the literary part the
most
important division in its columns. Most of the matter was furnished
by
the editors themselves, or rather by Linetzki alone, for
Goldfaden's
name does not figure upon it after the first few numbers. In less
than
half a year, the _Jisrulik_ was discontinued. From 1877 up to 1881
Brull
issued in Mainz a weekly, _Hajisroeli_, devoted to the interests of
the
Russian Jews. Upon its pages one may now and then find the names of
some
of the older writers, but on the whole it seems to have been only
in
distant contact with its countrymen at home. Another weekly of the
same
character was started in 1880 under the name of _Kol-leom_
in
Konigsberg. Only the next year Zederbaum succeeded in obtaining
the
Government's permission for his _Volksblatt_, which
appeared
uninterruptedly until 1889, some time after its chief
contributors,
Spektor and Rabinowitsch had discontinued their connection with
it and
had started annuals of their own. Since then, several new ones, all
of
them of very short duration, have seen daylight. At the moment
of
writing this, permission has been granted by the Russian government to
a
Zionistic society, in Warsaw, to publish a magazine under the name
of
_Bas-kol_.
There has been a steady progress in the periodical
press, such as could
be expected under the tantalizing restrictions attendant
on a
Judeo-German press in Russia. The _Volksblatt_ is both
quantitatively
and qualitatively an improvement over the _Kol-mewasser_,
which in its
turn is far superior to the gazettes preceding it. The
_Hausfreund_ and
the _Volksbibliothēk_, _Dās hēilige Land_, and _Die Judische
Bibliothēk_
are all more systematic, more in accord with the modern form
of
periodicals, than the _Volksblatt_.
There has been and still is
another potent factor in the dissemination
of useful knowledge and even of
good literature, that is furnished by
the almanacs, of which a large number
have been issued at various times.
The best of these were started in the
seventies, just at the time when
the periodical press was discontinued. One
of the earliest of the kind
was _The Useful Calendar_, the first of which was
issued in Wilna in
1875 by Abramowitsch. In addition to the usual information
given in
publications of this sort, there are in it tabular data on
geography,
history, statistics, and similar sciences, all gotten together
from the
best and most reliable sources. It is a close reproduction of
similar
almanacs in the Russian language. Soon after a similar series was
begun
by Linetzki, who added a column of anecdotes to those of a more
serious
nature. In the nineties, when there was again a lull in the
publication
of the annuals and magazines, the almanac was revived, but in a
still
more improved form than before. In fact, it now differs little from
the
annuals, for the calendar is the minor part in it, while the
literary
division is worked out with great care. The first of this new kind
was
edited by J. Bernas under the name of _The Jewish Commercial
Calendar_
for the years 1891-1896. Among the contributors to the
literary
department we find the familiar names of Perez, Dienesohn,
Goldfaden,
Frischmann. Since 1893 Spektor has been issuing an annual almanac,
_The
Warsaw Jewish Family Calendar_, which is constructed after the manner
of
Bernas's publication. Another similar series is that issued by
Eppelberg
of Warsaw. The most perfect of the almanacs is the one which was
started
in 1894 by G. Bader in Lemberg under the name of the _Jewish
Popular
Calendar_, of which not less than two-thirds is occupied by
literature.
As contributing editors are mentioned Abramowitsch, Frug, Perez,
J. M.
Rabinowitsch, and a few others who have not appeared before
in
Judeo-German literature. These almanacs are calculated to do a
great
deal of good among the masses, as they are circulated in much
larger
editions than any other books, and as they generally escape
destruction
at least for the period of one year, whereas the people have not
learned
to preserve printed works longer than during the time they are
perusing
them. The rapidity with which books disappear from the market and
from
the possession of private individuals is something astounding. Of
books
printed in the sixties one need hardly hope to be able to find more
than
one in ten asked for, while even those that have been
printed
comparatively late, in the eighties, have frequently become a
rarity.
This is partly due to their being sold in uncut, unstitched sheets
which
easily fall to pieces. But much more often it is the result
of
indifference to the printed word which, to a certain extent, is
also
shared by the corresponding classes of their Gentile countrymen.
The
works that have been published in the last twenty years stand a
better
chance of being preserved, as they are well stitched and not seldom
even
bound. They are also printed on much better paper than the majority
of
books of the older time.
What few Judeo-German books were issued in
Russia before the sixties
were printed mostly in the printing offices of
Wilna and Warsaw. Up to
the forties, the books that proceeded from the first
place bear the
names of the printers Manes and Simel, after which begins the
activity
of the firm Romm, which is still in existence; but Romm is not the
only
firm there now as it has been for nearly fifty years. In Warsaw we
find
in the beginning of our century the office of Levinsohn; in the
forties
many works were also printed at Orgelbrand's. In the sixties and
the
seventies, most of the better works were published in the South.
The
firms of Nitsche, and Beilinsohn in Odessa and of Schadow, and Bakst
in
Zhitomir printed nearly all the Judeo-German books of the Southern
group
of writers. The books of the Odessa firms are particularly well
printed,
and put together in an attractive form. In the last twenty
years
Berdichev, Kiev, Wilna, Warsaw, have been the leading cities to
print
such books, while Lublin in Poland, and Lemberg in Galicia,
have
brought out a mass of religious and legendary literature. The
Lemberg
chapbooks can hardly be equalled for the miserable way in which they
are
gotten up and printed.
Anciently Jewish bookstores could be found
only in the largest cities.
In the towns and villages the books were
disseminated by the itinerant
bookseller who carried with him a variety of
things which did not have
anything in common with the book trade, such as
candlesticks,
show-threads, prayer shawls, and other things necessary in
the
observance of the Mosaic Law. Even now this wandering bookseller has
not
gone out of existence. All the stories of Abramowitsch are told in
the
person of Mendele Mōcher Sforim, _i.e._ Mendel the Bookseller, of
whose
part played in the distribution of literature and as a newsmonger
many
interesting details will be found in his works. It is interesting
to
note that a few years ago several Russians who had undertaken to
spread
good books among the people resorted to the same means that for
a
hundred years, if not longer, had been in vogue among the Jews.
The
books were hawked about in a wagon from village to village, and
to
attract the peasants, many other useful things were sold by
these
itinerant bookstores.
Since the dispersion of the Russian Jews
in Europe and America, there
has arisen in the diaspora a large number of
periodical publications
which serve as the medium for the dissemination of
all kinds of
knowledge. In England there were issued in the eighties the
weeklies
_The Future_ and _The Polish Jew_, and in the nineties a monthly
_The
Free World_. Some good essays on sociological questions, mostly of
a
socialistic nature, were issued by the 'Socialistic Library' and
'The
People's Library' in London. In Paris there has appeared since 1896
a
weekly, _The Hatikwoh_, under the editorship of Bernas, the
former
compiler of a calendar. In that city Zuckermann is publishing also
a
'Library of Novels,' in which one may find translations of many of
the
popular French works. Roumania has had a gazette, the _Hajōez_,
ever
since the seventies, which has published a number of novels in
book
form. The most of these are translations; the few original ones
that
have appeared in that collection are of little value. A few other
papers
may be found in Jassy and other places. In 1896 H. L. Gottlieb started
a
monthly in M.-Sziget in Hungary, but it lived only two months. Most
of
the articles in prose and poetry are by the editor himself, whose
style
resembles that of Linetzki and Goldfaden. There have also been
published
a dozen books, mostly farces or parodies, in Judeo-German, but
with
German letters. Nearly all of these appeared in Austria and
Hungary.
They add nothing to the store of the Judeo-German
literature.
CHRESTOMATHY
As the main intention of the
present Chrestomathy is to give a
conception of the literary value of
Judeo-German literature, and not of
its linguistic development, the texts
have all been normalized to the
Lithuanian variety of speech. The
translations make no pretence to
literary form: they are as literal as is
consistent with the spirit of
the English language; only in the case of
Abramowitsch's writings it was
necessary frequently to depart considerably
from the text, in order to
give an adequate idea of the original meaning
which, in the
Judeo-German, on account of the allusions, is not always clear
to the
reader. The choice of the extracts has been such as to illustrate
the
various styles, and only incidentally to reproduce the story;
hence
their fragmentariness. Should the present work rouse any interest in
the
humble literature of the Russian Jews, the author will undertake a
more
complete Chrestomathy which will do justice to the
linguistic
requirements as well.
I. SSEEFER KOHELES
(Chap. I.
1-11)
1. Dās senen die Worter Koheles, Dāwids Suhn, Melech in
Jeruscholaim.
2. Hawel Hawolim, flegt Koheles zu sāgen, Hawel Hawolim,
All'sding is
Howel.
3. Wās kummt dem Menschen draus mit all' sein
Horewanie, wās er
derhorewet sich nor unter der Sunn'.
4. Ēin Dor gēht
varbei un' ein anderer Dor kummt wieder auf, nor die
Erd' bleibt asō ēbig
stēhn.
5. Gēht wieder auf die Sunn', vargēht wieder die Sunn', all's
wieder in
ihr Ruh' arein, sie scheint, sie schnappt nor ahin.
6. Er
gēht kein Dorem un' drēht sich aus kein Zoffen, arum un' arum
drēht sich aus
der Wind, un' asō kummt āber a Māl araus der ēigener
Wind.
7. Alle
Teichen gēhn in Jam arein un' der Jam gēht noch all's nischt
uber; wuhin die
Teichen gēhn, varstēh', dorten araus gēhn see take
wieder zuruck.
8.
Alle Sachen mutschen sich, nor es kann kēin Mensch gār nischt all's
ausreden,
kēin Aug kann sich drān nit satt ānkucken, kēin Ōher kann sich
nit genug vull
ānhoren.
9. Wās a Māl is gewesen, dās Ēigene wet take wieder a Māl sein,
un' wās
es flegt sich zu thun, dās wet sich wieder alle Māl thun: es is'
gār
all's kēin Neues nischt unter der Sunn'.
10. Oftmāls wet sich a
Sach mit geben, wās me sāgt: "Owa, o dās is'
schōn jā spogel neu, es is lō
hojo!" Es is' schōn a Māl asō auch gewe'n,
far Zeiten, as mir senen noch
efscher auf der Welt nischt gewe'n.
I.
ECCLESIASTES
(Chap. I. 1-11)
1. The words of the Preacher, the
son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2. Vanity of vanities, saith the
Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is
vanity.
3. What profit has a man
of all his labour which he taketh under the
sun?
4. One generation
passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the
earth abideth
forever.
5. The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to
his
place where he arose.
* * * *
*
6. The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north;
it
whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according
to
his circuits.
7. All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is
not full; unto the
place from whence the rivers come, thither they return
again.
8. All things are full of labour; man cannot utter it; the eye is
not
satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
* * * * *
9. The thing that hath been, it is that
which shall be; and that which
is done is that which shall be done; and there
is no new thing under the
sun.
* * * *
*
10. Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it
hath
been already of old time, which was before us.
11. Es gedenkt
sich schōn azund nischt in dem, wās a Māl fruher is
gewe'n, āber in die
spatere Sachen, wās wollen sich erst thun, wet man
noch spater auch in see
vargessen.
M. M. LEFIN.
II. DIE
MALPE
('Mescholim,' etc., p. 106)
"Weis' mir chotsch ēine
zwischen die Chajes,
"Ich soll nischt nāchmachen ihre
Hawajes!"
Asō thut sich a Malpele beruhmen
Var a Fuchs, wās is' zu
ihr gekummen.
Dās Fuchsel entwert teekef zuruck:
"Sāg' nor du,
parschiwe Marschelik!
"Wemen wet āber dās einfallen a ganz
Jāhr,
"Er soll wollen dir nāchmachen auf a Hāar?"
* * * * *
Dās Moschel mag, chleben, ohn' a
Nimschel bleiben,
Itlicher wēisst es allēin, wemen
zuzuschreiben.
S. ETTINGER.
III. DAIGES NĀCH
DEM TŌDT
('Mescholim,' etc., p. 225)
Der karger Chaim
liegt begrāben oto dā!
Kēin Āremen flegt er zu geben a Dreier;
Er
hāt noch Daiges bis der itztiger Scho,
Wās sein Mazeewe hāt gekost' ihm
teuer.
S. ETTINGER.
IV. DER ELENDER SUCHT DIE
RUHE
('Makel Noam,' Vol. I. pp. 71-75)
Sāg' mir, ich bett'
dich, du Wind,
Du schwebst dich auf der ganzer Welt,
Wēisst
nischt, wu der Elender sich gefindt
Zu ruhen ein Gezelt,
11. There
is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any
remembrance of
things that are to come with those that shall come after.
KING JAMES
BIBLE.
II. THE MONKEY
"Show me but one among all the animals
whose grimaces I cannot imitate!"
Thus a little monkey boasted to a fox that
came to visit him. The fox
bluntly replied to him: "Tell me, you nasty
marshelik! To whom would it
ever occur in a year to want to imitate you a
whit?"
* * * * *
The parable, I am
sure, may remain without a moral, for each one knows
himself to whom to
ascribe it.
III. WORRY AFTER DEATH
Stingy Chaim lies buried in
this place! He never gave a penny to a poor
man; he is worried even at the
present hour because his tombstone has
cost him so much.
IV. THE
FORLORN MAN LOOKING FOR REST
Tell me, I pray you, O Wind, you who hover
over the whole world, do you
not know where the forlorn man may find a tent
in which to rest,--where
injustice has ceased, where there is never a
complaint, where no
Wu Reziches hāt aufgehort,
Me hāt kēinmal
nischt geklāgt,
Wu kēin Aug' hāt nischt getrahrt,
Der Gerechter
werd nischt geplāgt?
Der Wind schweigt un' bleibt still
stēhn,
Sufzt un' entwert: "Nēin, nēin!"
Sāg' mir, du tiefes,
du grōsses Meer,
Du stromst asō weit
Bei deine Inslen hin un'
her,
Wēisst nischt ergez in a Seit',
Wu der Frummer gefindt a
Trōst,
Zu ruhen a sicher Ort?
Wēisst nischt, wie die Stādt
hēisst?
Sāg' dās gute Wort!
Der Jam stromt un' brummt:
"Nēin!
"Ich hāb' sō ein Ort nischt gesehn."
Du schoene Lewone
mit dein Pracht,
Du kuckst doch uberall
Wenn es is' still bei der
Nacht,
Verdeckt mit der schwarzer Schal.
Du gehst doch aus die
ganze Welt
Tomid durch die Nacht',--
Wēisst nischt ergez ein
Gezelt,
Wu dem Guten is' nischt schlecht?
Me seht sie in a Wolken
bald vergēhn,
Sufzt un' entwert: "Nēin, nēin!"
Sāg' že du mir,
mein Seele, fort,
Liebe un' Hoffnung derneben,
Wu die Sunn' gēht
auf jeden Ort,
Wu gefindt man a ruhig Leben,
Wu kēin Schlechts is'
nischt derbei,
Me lebt nor in Frēuden,
eye has ever been in tears,
and the just man is not vexed?--The Wind
remains mute and arrests its course,
sighs and answers: "No, no!"
* * * *
*
Tell me, you deep, you large Sea, you flow so far around your
islands
here and there,--know you not somewhere in some corner, where the
godly
man may find his consolation and a safe place of rest? Know you not
the
name of that city? Tell the good word!--The Ocean flows onward
and
murmurs: "No! I have not seen such a place."
*
* * * *
You beautiful Moon, in your glory! You look
everywhere when all is still
at night and covered with a black shroud. You
pass over the whole world
ever through the nights,--know you not somewhere a
tent, where the good
have no sorrow?--You may see the Moon disappear behind a
cloud, and sigh
and answer: "No, no!"
* * *
* *
Tell me, then, my Soul, and Love and Hope also,--wherever the
Sun passes
is there not to be found a quiet life, where no evil goes with it,
where
one may live but in joy, where one may be free of sins and sorrows,
of
troubles and of sufferings?--They all give the one answer: "They
live
quietly up there in heaven!"
Vun Sund' un' Sorgen is' man
frei,
Vun Zores un' vun Lēiden?
See geben Alle ēin
Antwort:
"Ruhig lebt man in Himmel dort!"
B. W.
EHRENKRANZ-ZBARZER.
V. DIWREE CHOCHMO
('Saeefer Musser
Haskel,' pp. 22, 23)
Der Mensch darf sein gut, un' klug, un'
frumm. Gut
allēin kann a Scharlatan auch sein; klug allēin kann
an
Apikōres auch sein; un' frumm allēin kann a Narr
auch
sein.
Die grosste Reichkeit is' as man is' gesund; dās
grosste
Vergenugen is' as man hāt a ruhig Harz; dās
grosste Gluck is' as man is'
frumm, wie man darf zu
sein.
A grōsser Mensch is' wie a Feuer:
sein mit ihm vun
weiten, leucht' er un' waremt; vun nāhnten, brennt
er.
* * * * *
Der Narr bei
an Ungluck beschuldigt dem Anderen;
der Frummer beschuldigt sich allēin;
der Kluger Kēinem
nit.
Vun zu viel Ahawo kann man auch viel
leiden, wie
vun zu viel Ssino: Jōssef hat zwēi Māl gelitten,
bēide
Māl vun zu viel Ahawo, ēin Māl vun Vāter's, dās andere
Māl
vun Potifar's Weib.
Nit alle Māl kann man glauben Trahren:
Jōssef's
Bruder hāben auch gewēint, beschas see hāben
gebracht
Jainkefn dās varblutigte Hemdel.
E. Z.
ZWEIFEL.
VI. DIE STIEFMUTTER
('Judische Lieder,' pp.
40-43)
Auf'n Bess-hakwores, unter a Mazeewe,
Hort sich
bitter a Kol vun a Nekeewe;
V. WORDS OF WISDOM
Man must be
good, and wise, and pious. Even a charlatan can be good
alone; an apostate
can be wise alone; a fool can be pious alone.
* *
* * *
The greatest riches is to be well; the greatest
pleasure is to have a
peaceful heart; the greatest happiness is to be pious
as one ought to
be.
* * * * *
A
great man is like fire: approach it from a distance, and it shines and
warms
you; come close to it, and it burns you.
The fool, in misfortune, accuses
another of it; the pious man accuses
himself; the wise man no
one.
* * * * *
One may suffer from
too much love even as from too much hatred: Joseph
had suffered twice, both
times from too much love, once from his
father's love, a second time from
that of Potiphar's wife.
You cannot always believe tears: even Joseph's
brothers wept as they
brought to Jacob the bloodstained shirt.
VI.
THE STEPMOTHER
In the cemetery, under a tombstone the bitter words of a
woman are
heard; it is a mother that cries: "Oh,
Dās schreit a
Mutter: "Oi wēh mir, oi wund!
Wās thut a Stiefmutter mein teueren
Kind?
"Mein ganzes Leben, wās ich hāb' verbracht,
Is' dās nor
gewe'n a finstere Nacht;
Mein Kind is' mir gewe'n mein Licht, mein
Schein,--
Itzt leidet es nebech grōss Zores un' Pein.
"Mit
Blut vun Harzen hāb' ich ihm erzōgen,
'Ch hāb' ihm gewaschen mit Trahren
vun meine Augen;--
Itzt zappt man sein Blut, man brecht seine
Bēiner;
Er schreit, er wēint,--es helft ihm nit Kēiner.
"Es
stēhen Menschen vun arum un' arum;
Wās schweigt ihr Alle? Zu seid ihr
stumm?
Wenn euer Harz is' vun Eisen un' Stēin,
Vun Kind's hēisse
Trahren darf es zugēhn.
"Ot seht! Die Stiefmutter schlāgt ihm in
Kopp,
Sie drapet sein Ponim,--Blut rinnt arāb;
Sie schlāgt ihm,
warft ihm auf die Erd' anieder;
Sie beisst ihm, reisst ihm, brecht seine
Glieder.
"Er schreit:--O Mutter, O Mutter, helf' mir!
Wenn
kannst nit helfen, to nemm mich zu dir!--
Stēht auf, alle Tōte, stēht auf
geschwind!
Stēht auf, alle Tōte, ratewet mein Kind!
"Alle Tōte
liegen ruhig in sejer Ruh';
Zu Gott's Kisse-kowed flieh' ich bald
zu.
Vun Gott's Kisse-kowed well ich nit ābtreten,
Bis Er wet
derhoren mein Schreien, mein Beten."
* * *
* *
"Ribōne-schel-ōlem, wu senen Deine Rachmones?
Der
Vāter bist Du vun Jessōmim un' Almones,
Wie kannst Du sehen, wie die
Marschas
Giesst aus auf mein Jossem ihr giftigen Kas?
woe to me!
What does the stepmother do to my beloved child?
"My whole life that I
have passed was nothing but a dark night; my child
had been my light, my
lustre,--and now he suffers both sorrow and pain.
* *
* * *
"With the blood of my heart I have reared him, I have
washed him with
the tears of my eyes;--now they tap his blood, they break his
bones; he
weeps, he cries,--but no one helps him.
*
* * * *
"People stand all round about; why are you
silent? Are you dumb? Even if
your heart is of iron and stone, it ought to
melt from the child's hot
tears.
* * *
* *
"Now look! The stepmother strikes him upon his head, she
scratches his
face,--blood trickles down; she beats him, throws him down on
the
ground; she bites him, tears him, breaks his limbs.
"He cries:--O
mother, O mother, help me! If you cannot help me take me
to you!--Arise, all
you dead, arise quickly! Arise, all you dead, and
save my
child!
* * * * *
"All the dead lie
quietly in their rest; to God's own throne I shall
soon fly. From God's own
throne I shall not depart, ere He will hear my
cries, my
entreaty."
* * * * *
"Lord of the
World, where are Your mercies? You are the father of
orphans and widows,--how
can You look at the evil woman pouring forth
her venomous anger upon my
orphan?
"Meine junge Jāhren hāst Du mir ābgeschnitten,
Bist Du
mechujew mein Jossem zu huten;
Vun dein Welt hāb' ich nit geha't
Vergenugen,
To lās mich chotsch ruhig in Keewer
einliegen!
"Wie kann ich in Keewer einliegen beruht,
Wenn 's
rinnt mir arein mein Jossem's Blut?
Wie kann ich zum Grub zuruck sich
umkehren,
Wenn mein Grub is' vull mit mein Jossem's
Trahren?"
* * * * *
"Nu,
schweig schōn, mein Kind, sei ruhig mein Neschome!
Ich hāb' schōn gehort
vun Gott a Nechome:
Gott sāgt, 's wet sein zu deine Zores an
End',
Er wet ausloesen dich vun der Stiefmutter's Hand'.
"Die
Reschas, die Stiefmutter wet Gott bestrāfen,
Un' du, mein Kind, schweig!
Zu Gott sollst nor hoffen!
Far alle deine Zores, far alle deine
Lēid,
Wet Gott dir bezāhlen mit Nechomes un' Frēud'.
"Nu,
schweig schōn, mein Kind, wisch' āb deine Trahren!
Du sollst mich nit
mehr vun mein Ruh' storen!
Gott wet erfullen sein hēiliges
Wort;
Nu kann ich schōn liegen ruhig in mein Ort."
M.
GORDON.
VII. DIE MUME SOSJE
('Die Judene,' pp.
65-67)
VIERTE SCENE
(_Chanzi-Ginendel kummt arein; Sosje un'
Silberseid hēben sich auf vun
die Plaze._)
SOSJE. Awade, awade! Seht
ihr? O dās is' mein Schwesterl!
SILBERSEID. (_Nemmt bei ihr die Hand un'
nēigt sich hoeflich._) Es freut
mich Ihre Kanntschaft.
"You have cut
off my young years, You ought at least to watch over my
child; I have not
enjoyed much pleasure in Your world,--at least let me
lie in peace in my
grave!
"How can I lie in peace in my grave, when my orphan's blood flows
into
it? How can I return to my grave, when my grave is full of the tears
of
my orphaned child?"
* * * *
*
"Now, be silent, my child, be quiet, my own soul! I have had good
news
from the Lord! God says there will be an end to your troubles, He
will
save you from your stepmother's hands.
* *
* * *
"God will punish the evil woman, and you, my child, be
quiet and hope in
God! For all your sorrows, for all your suffering, God will
pay you with
pleasures and joys.
"Now, be silent, my child, wipe off
your tears! You must not disturb me
in my rest! God will fulfil His holy
word; and now I may lie quietly in
my place!"
VII. AUNT
SOSIE
FOURTH SCENE
(_Chanzi-Ginendel enters; Sosie and Silberseid
rise from their seats._)
SOSIE. Certainly, certainly! Do you see? Here is
my sister!
SILBERSEID. (_Takes her hand and greets her politely._) I am
glad to
make your acquaintance.
SOSJE. No, meine liebe Kinderlech!
Sitzt euch dā a Bissele! Plaudert
euch a Bissel! Un' ich mus gēhn--ihr sent
junge Leut', un' mir senen
schōn, chleben, altere. Uns is' schōn der Kopp
verschlāgen mit andere
Sachen. Man darf balebosten in Stub'. Sitzt euch dā!
Ich kumm' bald.
(_Sie lāst sicht aweggēhn un' leben der Thur' thut sie a
Ruf._)
Chanzi-Ginendenju, mein Leben! Auf ēin Minut! (_Chanzi-Ginendel gēht
zu
zu-n ihr._)
SOSJE. (_Ihr in Ōher._) Vergess' nor nit, wu du bist in
der Welt! Wēiss
nor mit ihm wie asō zu rēden,--der Iker, wās wēniger rēden!
(_Sie gēht
araus un' kuckt sich unter durch der Thur'._)
FUNFTE
SCENE
(_Silberseid un' Chanzi-Ginendel nehmen Stuhlen un' setzen sich
Ēins
leben's Andere._)
SILBERSEID. (_Auf der Seit._) Ich wēiss? Soll
mich asō wissen Boes', wie
ich wēiss, vun wās-er a Sprache mit ihr ānzuhēben
rēden! Ta, lā-mir
pruwen! (_Zu Chanzi-Ginendeln, hōch._) Et comment vous
portez-vous,
mademoiselle?
CHANZI-GINENDEL. (_Thut a Schmēichel._) Hm!
Hm! Ihr fragt, zi bin ich
noch a Mamzell! Jā! Glaubt mir, me hāt mir schōn
ubergeredt Schiduchim
ohn' an Eck. Die Schadchonim schlāgen āb die Thuren bei
mein Schwester.
Ēiner hāt mich gewollt nehmen, asō wie ich stēh' un' gēh'. Er
hāt mich
gewollt beklēiden vun Kopp bis Fuss, wāren er allēin is' sēhr reich,
un'
bei mir will er nit ēin Pitak; abi die Schwester soll nor
araussāgen
'Jā.' Nor ich hāb' sich betracht, wās hāb' ich sich dā zu eilen,
zi ich
bin dā schōn asa-n-alte Māid? Erst heuntigen Summer is' mir
gewor'en
fufzehn Jāhr. (_Sie tracht._) Sieben un' neun un' neun is
fufzehn.
SOSIE. Well, my dear children! Sit here a little while! Talk to
each
other! I must go away! You are young people, but we have grown to
be
old. Our head is filled with worries of all kind. I must look after
the
household. Sit down! I shall be back after a while. (_She starts
away,
but calls back from the door._) Darling Chanzi-Ginendel, my dear!
Just
for a minute! (_Chanzi-Ginendel goes to her._)
SOSIE. (_In a
whisper._) Do not lose your head and do not forget where
you are in the
world. Be sure you say the right thing to him,--above
all, don't talk too
much. (_She goes out, but peeps in through the
door._)
FIFTH
SCENE
(_Silberseid and Chanzi-Ginendel take their chairs and seat
themselves
near each other._)
SILBERSEID. (_Aside._) I declare! May I
know of something evil if ever I
know in what language to begin to speak to
her! Well, let us try. (_To
Chanzi-Ginendel, loud._) Et comment vous
portez-vous, mademoiselle?
* * * *
*
CHANZI-GINENDEL. (_Smiling._) Hm! Hm! You want to know if I am still
a
Miss! Yes, believe me, they have been making matches for me without
end.
The go-betweens have been tearing down the doors of my sister's
house.
There was one who wanted to take me just as I am. He wanted to dress
me
up from head to foot, for he is himself very rich, and he does not
ask
for a nickel of mine; he is only waiting for my sister to give
her
consent. But I have thought over the matter; I thought there was
no
hurry yet, that I was not yet an old maid. I am fifteen years
this
summer. (_She thinks._) Seven and nine and nine is
fifteen.
SILBERSEID. (_Die ganze Zeit verwundert, bei der Seit._) No, no!
A gut
Min Franzoesisch! Lā-mir pruwen weiter! (_Hōch._) Haben Sie nicht
ein
Bandchen Saphir?
CHANZI-GINENDEL. Wās taug' euch a safirn Bandele?
Awade auf a
Halstuchel! Wēiss ich, heunt is' der Kolir schōn araus vun der
Mode.
Heunt trāgt man Havana oder Bismarck. Ich hāb' erst nit lang
a
Jungermann geschenkt asōns! Willt ihr? Kann ich euch schenken.
A.
GOLDFADEN.
VIII. SEMER LE-SSIMCHAS TŌRE
('Ssichas
Chulin,' pp. 30-34)
1
Lechajim, Bruder, lechajim,
lechajim!
Heunt senen mir die Tōre messajim,
Heunt hēben mir sie
ān noch a Māl wieder;--
Drum lechajim ulescholem, liebe
Bruder!
Seid froehlich un' dankt dem Gott dem lieben
Far die
hēilige Tōre, auf Parmet geschrieben!
2
Die
hēilige Tōre, geschrieben auf Parmet,
Is' doch unser Trōst in unser
Armut!
All's auf der Welt hāben mir verloren:
Der Bees-hamikdesch
is' chorew gewor'en,
Chorew dās Land, wu mir senen gesessen,
Afile
unser Loschen hāben mir vergessen;
Nit dā unser Meluche, nit dā unser
Kehune,
Nor uns is' geblieben unser Emune.
Gott in Harzen, die
Tōre in der Hand,
Senen mir gegangen vun Land zu Land,
Viel Zores
gelitten, doch leben geblieben,
Durch die hēilige Tōre, auf Parmet
geschrieben.
SILBERSEID. (_Wondering all the time, aside._) Well, well!
That's a fine
kind of French! Let us try again! (_Loud._) Haben Sie nicht ein
Bandchen Saphir? |
|
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