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The Southern Israelite
The
Star Laundry
SERVICE
SATISFACTION
Phone 5113-5114
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA
RICHAR DSON
The FLORIST
BELL A INI) LIBERTY STS.
PHONES:
Store 2065—Nursery 2H72
SAVANNAH, GA.
MARCUS S. BAKER
Receiver of Tax Returns
Chatham County
'•••(
SAVANNAH, GA.
R. J. STEWART
Chatham County Treasurer
ringing in my ears, I make my way
wearily to my hotel, a luxury here on
Purim, and retire at an early hour,
dreaming of grotesque and impossible
fantasias, where rainbows of fire
works exist in a dazzling splendour
of color.
I am awakened early in the morn
ing by the dancing reflections of the
sun’s rays as they toy playfully with
the crystal bowl of gold-fish, throw
ing ludicrous figures on the ceiling.
The spirit of a Palestinian spring
is infectious. It insinuates itself into
your veins, insidiously, irresistibly.
I “He that hath not beheld the joy of
! the drawing of water (Simchath Beth
I Hashoeva) hath seen no joy in his
t life,” the Mishnah tells us. He that
i hath not beheld the glory of a Pales
tinian spring hath seen no beauty of
j nature. The lark singing its morning
| love song, the showily dressed butter
fly on the wing, the queen bee chased
by thousands of suitors, all too eager
to assume royalty. In the distance,
over sandy wastes, clumps of palm
trees are swaying and sighing in the
breeze, and overhead, Heaven’s shin-
! ing canopy beams down on Mother
| Earth. The humming drone of a Brit-
| ish airplane is heard, its propellors
cutting and whirling through the
| pure air musically and rhythmically,
j purring like a contented cat, as it
! takes a morning trip over the Harden
City.
The time for the parade has been
set for two o’clock p. m., and the
morning passes intense expectancy.
For in this procession, Her Majesty,
the Queen of the Garden City, will
I make her debut in a horse-drawn car-
I riage, heading the parade. Long be-
! fore the scheduled time, huge crowds
are lined up alongside all the main
thoroughfares of the city, kept in
regular formation by squads of
mounted police. A golden opportunity
is afforded to enterprising commer
cialism on this day, vast sums of
money being spent on advertising
novelties. At precisely two o’clock the
procession is sighted, wending its
I way from the seashore along the
| Allenby Road. A bodyguard of several
I mounted police astride their prancing
I Arabian mares, herald the approach
I of the Queen. A mighty roar bursts
forth from the spirited populace as
the carriage bearing Her Majesty
rolls up into view. “Teehi Hamalka,”
j long live the queen; the cry is taken
| up by thousands of lusty voices, and
resounds throughout the city, from
, the banks of the Yarkon river to the
fields of cactus stumps on the city’s
borders. The queen, verily a type of
j Oriental royalty, smiles back radiant
ly at her subjects, tilling their hearts
with appreciative sympathy. Follow
ing the royal carriage, come a-trailing
a medley of quaint and mirth-pro
voking vehicles.
At least three hundred vehicles of
every conceivable construction must
have passed through Tel-Aviv, provid
ing a two hour program of novel and '
original amusement for nearly eighty
thousand Jews. The parade over, the
populace wends its way to the sea
shore, and enthusiastic bathers sur
render themselves to the refreshing
waves, a delicious cooler after the j
sultry heat of the day.
Near the Casino, a popular cafe
teria built on the very edge of the
sea, I throw myself down on the
sandy bed, and am soon in the arms
of Morpheus. The sun had veered 1
round, and was slowly descending to
the horizon; the shadows of night
fall had enveloped that sandy coast
ere I awoke. Ah: what exquisite beau
ty. The moon, a glory of pale silver
had given that romantic tint to na- |
ture. The phosphoresence, like dead
ivory flushing into life, was dancing
and sparkling on the tossing waters.
I gaze up at the bestarred heavens, .
alive with myriads of constellations,
a gentle reminder to man of his puny
place in nature. Truly a congruous
ending to a prfect day. The steamers j
have weighed their ponderous an
chors, and are gliding noiselessly
along the silvered waters en route
for the next port. Suddenly a pistol
shot rings out, wieldly piercing the
stillness of the night. Amused at my
own sensitiveness, I realise that I am
in Tel-Aviv, and Purim night is to be
celebrated as well as the day. The
shot, probably a mere joke on the
part of some bold youngsters, sends
my mind back to my first Purim in
Palestine. I had stationed myself in
the Jewish quarters of Jaffa, and
standing nonchalantly on the balcony
of my hotel, was watching with keen
interest the Purim procession down
below. In the midst of the joyous pro
ceedings, a pistol shot rang out, fol
lowed almost simultaneously by a
girl’s blood-curdling shrieks. A sud
den commotion arose and the Arab
storekeepers hurriedly shut up show
and made for home. A Jewish youth
of seventeen had been shot down in
cold blood by an arrogant Arab, who,
resenting the interference of the Jew
while making advances to his sister,
a pretty maid of sixteen, had drawn
his gun and fired, fatally wounding
the unfortunate youth. Five years had
elapsed since that memorable episode,
but the pitiful screams of the ill-
fated youth’s sister still ring in my
ears. We celebrate Purim, the feast
of Lots, year in year out, we offer
thanksgiving for the fall of the Amal-
ekite, we repeat the story of the
emancipation of the Jew. But the
spirit of Amalek still smoulders in the
ashes of fiery scorn, is yet alive with
passion for the destruction of all that
is pure, holy, and godly.
William L. Grayson
SAVANNAH. GA.
HENRY McALPIN
ORDINARY
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA
THOS. S. RUSSELL
V
SAVANNAH. GA.
JOHN L. CABELL
Tax Collector
Chatham County
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA
Clerk
City Court
SAVANNAH. GEORG1 V
STREET SCENE IN TEL-AVIV, PALESTINE