The Southern Israelite. (Augusta, Ga.) 1925-1986, July 19, 1929, Image 3

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

The Southern Israelite Page 3 THE JEW WHO WILL STUDY THE NATION’S LAWS A Character Sketch of Monte Leinann When President Hoover announced I -he list of members of the National law Enforcement Commission, the m „st important act of his administra- I tive career, the name of Monte Le- Miann was included in the list of the I mnst important legal minds in the country who were entrusted with the I task of studying the machinery of justice and of formulating remedies I f,,r defects that might be discovered n the machinery. It is generally ad mitted that on the findings of the I l aw Commission depends the future t law observance and law enforce ment in the United States. The Com mission is, in other words, of out standing significance for the country’s welfa re. The name of Monte Lemann evoked no responsive chord in the minds of most American Jews. In fact, it was not known until some days after the announcement that Monte Lemann was a Jew at all. When the fact became known it was taken for grant ed by some people that Hoover had wished to recognize the Jewish ele ment of the population and had ac cordingly selected Monte Lemann. Hut who was Monte Lemann? What had he accomplished to entitle him to so distinguished an honor? If he was chosen as representative of the .lews, what part had he played in the •Jewish community of his native city, New Orleans? The answers to all these questions help to reveal one of the finest figures American Jewry has produced, a man who was un known to the country at large not be cause he had not achieved many things, but because he did not care to emphasize them. Monte Lemann, born in Donaldson, I.ouisiana some forty-four years ago, has by his own power of personality and abundance of ability become a dominant factor in the life of the South. He comes of an old Southern Jewish family, which was rather [ wealthy, but he was not catapulted " his position by his family’s wealth. He imbibed the culture of the South (, n the plantation where he was raised, and which he still owns. He re- ceived his education at Tulane Uni- uusity and then went to Harvard, from where he returned to New Or gans and began practising law. bemann’s career cannot be describ ed on the background of anti-Semit- i>!n. For, those who are acquainted Hth conditions say that New Orleans as ^ ss °f what is known as anti semitism than any other city in the ountry. It is the only large com- munity in the country where Jews ar \ welcome in the most exclusive ml circles. This must be kept in mind for an understanding of-Le- n.ann. Otherwise one might be tempt- a lachrymose picture of a '] gating against heavy odds of ua antipathy and economic dis crimination. iw-h T esS * n S a brilliant mind, gifted -n analytical powers and the ‘ k * 0r sympathetic understand- * mann rapidly forged ahead By ROBERT STONE Monte Lemann, a member of that limited and powerful body known as the Hoover Law Enforcement Commission, is unknown in national politics,, but he is, nevertheless, one of the finest Jews America has produced, as Mr. Stone describes him. This character sketch of the man is important for an understanding of what Lemann will contribute to a study of the nation’s laws. —The Editor. MONTE M. LEMANN New Orleans, La., Attorney, Professor of Law at Tulane University, and President of the State Par Association. in the legal profession of New Or leans. His sheer merit won him the position of President of the State Bar Association, a high honor for one of such comparative youth. The most important fact to remem ber about Monte Lemann is that he has always shown the vision of the statesman; he has never been known as a political ward-heeler. What ever honors have been awarded to him have never come of his own seek ing; they were inevitable rewards for outstanding service. That President Hoover selected him as a member of the Law Enforcement Commission is evidence that the former has ignored political considerations in order to find men who could genuinely con tribute something to a study of the nation’s law. Incidentally, Lemann has always been a Democrat, and is today thoroughly Democratic in all his ideas and views. He did, how ever, vote for Hoover in the last elec tions, but he was not identified with that large body of Southern fanatics that rejected Smith either on the grounds of religion or prohibition. Rabbi Louis Bienstock, of Temple Sinai, of New Orleans, of which Monte Lemann is an extremely active member, has characterized Lemann as “the type best symbolizing the aims and culture of our American environment, and also retaining the finest and noblest in the Jewish cul tural outlook.” Lemann has taken an interest in the community not be cause of political rewards, which he has neither sought nor received, but because of a compelling humanitarian interest. During the Mississippi flood, Lemann was one of the limited group in direct control of the situ ation, who helped to arrange the re parations, who aided in the engineer ing plans for the exploding of levees, etc. But he has not been among that large and growing number of Ameri can Jews who find ample opportunity for communal work among non-Jews, but who are always absent in purely Jewish communal endeavors. Temple Sinai has known him as one of the devoted members of the congregation. There is not a single Jewish philan thropy in New Orleans, whatever its nature, that has not had Lemann as a contributor or helpful counsellor. Endowed with a strong Jewish sense of duty, Lemann has taken every available moment from his extensive law practise to interest himself in the problems of his Jewish community, whether it be in the raising of funds for Palestine or for relief. A liberal of the highest type, Le mann has never permitted differences of opinion to separate him from the Jewish community. His spirit is well typified in his relations to the late Rabbi Max Heller, who was head of Temple Sinai. Heller was one of the greatest Zionist leaders ever pro duced in this country, a man who carried his Zionism into his congre gation though he well knew that the members of the congregation were in different to it. Lemann differed with Heller in respect to his Zionism but he always remained his most loyal friend, co-operating with him in every communal effort. What type of man is Monte Le mann ? What will be his particular contribution in a study of the laws of the United States? What will be his attitude? For Lemann there is only one viewpoint in considering a mat ter: is it just, is it honest, is it equit able? His loyalties come afterward. In many respects he may be compared to Justice Brandeis, any of whose liberal views he holds. If Lemann has not been more widely known na tionally, it is because he does not hold the demagogic views that single out some of his notorious Southern compatriots, men like Senator Heflin and Governor Bilbo. Liberals in the North who are fond of painting the South as a community of benighted, intolerant and bigoted citizens need to meet Monte Lemann to find one of the greatest liberals the United States owns. There are two sides to Monte Le mann, one of which is revealed to his friends, the other to his acquaint ances. In a large group he is shy, different, entirely unassuming. But in an intimate group he is what might be called “the life of the party,” gay, jocular. He has a remarkable sense of humor, which, psychologically speaking, is another symbol of his liberalism. Those who know the deep, serious phase, and those who have the privilege of observing the lighter vein see in Monte Lemann a well-rounded, harmonious character to whom every experience is welcome, and to whom partiality and prejudice are alien. If all the members of the Hoover Law Enforcement Commission have the insight, the sympathy, the judg ment and the background possessed by the Jew Monte Lemann, there is hope that its finding will be sane^zed salutary. ..cm both and Copyright 1929 by J ween thcm ture Syndicate. ^ ^ ^ graphic Agency, Inc.