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No. 19. | Vienna, 11 May 1900. | Fourth Year

The "Israelit" of Mainz.

Does anyone perhaps know who the Mainz "Israelit" is? — One may assume with some certainty that the overwhelming part of mankind has not the faintest notion of the existence of this "Israelit". Only to a few attentive citizens of Mainz, who have just consumed a frugal meal — cheese or sausage — will it possibly have occurred that the said comestibles were wrapped in a very modest little newspaper sheet, adorned with the title: "Israelit". The compass of the little sheet suffices barely to enshroud the cheese requirements of a not too hearty eater.

Particulars as to the compass and the customary use of a little sheet, however, afford no wholly exhaustive account of its literary tendency. What purposes does the Mainz "Israelit" serve besides its purposes of packing? The Mainz "Israelit" is "pious"! That is its chief calling. Not that it were truly pious and believing — against that there would be nothing to object; no, the "Israelit" of Mainz is a canting hypocrite. It makes as though it were devoutly raising its lids to heaven, but in reality it merely rolls its eyes hypocritically; it rolls its little eyes until the whites are seen, and mumbles unctuous little sayings the while.

But before we occupy ourselves further with this scarcely attractive subject, a small explanation, an apology! Why do we trouble the reader with a description of the "Israelit" of Mainz? Wherefore do we make him acquainted with this "Israelit", whose qualities are in no wise such as to make such an acquaintance appear desirable. If in private life I present to a friend some shabby fellow, my friend will thank me little for it; nay, he will perhaps take my proceeding for a downright insult. There are nevertheless situations which compel one to seize such a shabby patron by the scruff and to present him: "Mr. So-and-so of Such-and-such." Into such a predicament one is thrust, for example, when the said patron plies the trade of calumny. He trots, let us say, from house to house and spreads, with a barefaced impudence that wrings from one an unfeigned astonishment, the most infamous lies about your person. And the people, who do not look the liar over more closely, believe well enough one word or another. Then it is the wisest course to overcome as far as may be the disgust which the fellow inspires, to lay hold of him with a mild repugnance and to show him to the public by daylight: See, this is what the young gentleman really looks like! See how he pulls sanctimonious grimaces and rolls his eyes! — Afterwards one can always wash one's hands.

So then, this "Israelit" of Mainz is a Jewish-clerical little sheet. There are in Germany and elsewhere families into whose houses the "Israelit" trots twice a week and relates all manner of things. It is the type of a whole series of similarly employed Jewish little sheets. As a rule these papers are kept in a very tame tone; strife (if one leaves out of account the unsuccessful strife with the difficulties of the German language) lies rather far from them. They cultivate a mild, preacherly manner of expression and season their articles plentifully with theological citations. Citation in itself would assuredly be no fault; it is only a mark of good taste to draw upon the poetry-rich and thoughtful sayings of our Bible, the Bible to which we all look up in admiration as to a gigantically beautiful edifice. But in the sentence-zeal of these little sheets one perceives an impure ulterior purpose, and one is put quite out of humour. They put on a pious countenance in order to swindle themselves a little place upon the reading-table of Jewish families that set some store by belief. The wretched products of their own minds, brewed together in the editorial room, the independent achievements of the "israelitish" little sheets, would hardly be in a position to procure themselves entrance into a Jewish house where the decent and agreeable bearing of visitors and guests is regarded. In the correct recognition of this circumstance the little sheets have recourse to a very transparent stratagem; they calculate: "Bible sayings are gladly seen upon the reading-table of believing families; we will therefore fill half our paper with citations from the sacred writings, the reader will dwell with friendly glances upon these citations and will indulgently shut his eye to the nonsense which we ourselves produce in our editorial room." — No sooner said than done. The paper designates itself as an "Organ