Yet, as all the world knows, the Jews resolutely overcame whatever
suggestion of revenge came to them and, with marvelous solidarity,
responded to Russia's call without hesitation and without political
intrigue or bargaining. As a whole, they were as loyal as any of the
Czar's subjects. How shall we explain this phenomenon?
The explanation is that the leaders of the Jewish people, and practically
the whole body of Jewish Intellectuals, recognized from the first that the
war was more than a war of conflicting dynasties; that it was a war of
conflicting ideals. They recognized that the Entente, as a whole,
notwithstanding that it included the autocracy of Russia, represented the
generous, democratic ideals and principles vital to every Jew in that they
must be securely established before the emancipation of the Jew could be
realized. Their hatred of Czarism was not engulfed by any maudlin
sentiment; they knew that they had no "fatherland" to defend. They were not
swept on a tide of jingoism to forget their tragic history and proclaim
their loyalty to the infamous oppressor. No. Their loyalty was to the
Entente, not to the Czar. They were guided by enlightened self-interest, by
an intelligent understanding of the meaning to them of the great struggle
against Teutonic militarist-imperialism.
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