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(83 -84) THE Savannah, Ga... 6... ee eee Feb. 16 ALC. L. oe... eee Jaeksonville, Fla... 02.0. 0... "17 eae Looe Tampa, Fla.......... cee eee “ 18 S. ALL... oe... eee. WATCH TOWER Brooxiyn, N.Y, Arrive 9:30 a.m. Feb. 17 A. OC. ...... Depart 2:35 a.m. “7:16am “ i Ss. AOL... WO 9:30 p.m. “6:30 a.m. “ 21 ee “ p.m 9:00 Vou. XAXT ZIONISTS ON TO CANAAN News from all parts of the civilized world interested in Zionism have come face to face with the kingdom question. The reform government of Turkey has treated the Jews very favorably and proffered them full privileges in Palestine, reminding them that Turkey 1s one of the few nations that have not persecuted the Jews. This liberal offer would have been seized with avidity a short time ago, but, with the improvement of prospect, some of the leading Zionists are insisting that Palestine shall be made a Jewish State with a government of its own, but subject to Turkey, after the manner of the Balkan States. Seripturally we have reason to believe that such a concession will not be granted nor attained before 1915—toNowing the close of “the times of the Gentiles.”— luke 21:24. The Zionist Congress, which closed its session in Hamburg, Germany, on the last day of 1909, had this Kingdom question as its principal issue, Its President, Dr. Max Nordau, threw all the weight of his great influence against undertaking any special work in Palestine, until Turkey should grant the Jews an autonomous government. We quote a portion of his address. He said:— “What we desire is to form a nationality within the Ottoman State like all the other nationalities in the empire. True, we demand the recognition of our nationality; there must be no doubt about that. It will be our ambition to earn the reputation of being the most loyal, the most reliable, the most. useful of the Turkish nationalities, to contribute the most zealously to the weal, the progress and the power of the empire. “But let it be understood that we will do all this solely as a nationality, as a Jewish nationality. That is our frank reply to certain Turkish utterances. We have been told: ‘Come to Turkey as much as you like, You shall be welcome. You will find everything you desire, fertile, cheap, possibly free land, security against persecution, all the liberties accorded to every citizen of the Ottoman Empire. But you must become Turkish subjects, adopt the Turkish language, merge with the Turkish people so that you cannot be distinguished from other Turks,’ “In the face of such views we are impelled by pride and self-respect to refer to our original programme. On this point concessions are impossible. If the Jews want to assimilate they can do it nearer home and more cheaply; they can do it where they are and save the fare. You are Zionists, however, just because you do not wish to disappear as Jews. You wish to go to Palestine, the land of your fathers, to live and develop there as national Jews. “Our ideal is to sce a Jewish people in the land of its fathers, ennobled hy a 2.000-year-old firmness of character, respected on account of its honest, cultural work, an instrument of wise progress, a champion of justice, an apostle and personifier of brotherly love. Of this idea] I will not surrender an iota. On this point there can be no concession. “This ideal I would not exchange for all the treasure in the world, lef alone for a dividend. If Turkey today opposes the realization of my ideal, I must wait. To wait long is a misfortune, but no disgrace. Vacillation is a disgrace. My ideal is eternal. It embraces every hope. To abandon hope is to commit suicide. Therefore, IT exclaim as loudly as I can: Back to the Basle programme! Let us never forget that we aspire to the creation of a publicly recognized, legally assured home for our people. Let us never forget that we have to cleanse the shield of the Jewish people from all the mire with which a hatred that has lasted for 2,000 years has begrimed it.” The Work Not to be Delayed Notwithstanding their great respect for their President, the Zionist delegates took an opposite view. claiming that further delay in the realization of their hopes must not be considered— that they must go up at once to possess the promised land, availing themselves of the “door” which Providence had opened before them, A correspondent pictures the sentiment of the Congress as a whole in the following graphic language: “Long hefore the Zionist Congress convened there seemed to he a feeling pervading every activity connected with the Congress that the Zionist movement had reached a decided BROOKLYN, N. Y, MARCH 1, 1910 VIEWS FROM THE WATCH TOWER turning point in its progress. Every delegate, no matter where he hailed from, appeared to carry with him the subconscious conviction that unless all the stored-up energy and accumulated substance of Zionism is at once turned to practical uses in Palestine something might be missed. “If any single word could aptly characterize the mental attitude of the majority of the delegates in that respect that word would have been ‘impatience.’ An irresistible desire was noticeable to do things, and to do them at once. There seemed to exist the apprehension that with the signs of Palestine’s awakening betore the eyes of the world the Zionist movement was not quick enough to take advantage of the situation.” The Deciding Vote The test of the question—whether the Zionists would accept the dictum of their leader and President and abstain from further efforts to reoecupy the land of Canaan, perhaps for years, perhaps forever—was decided against him by a majority vote. At the close of an all-night session it was resolved that all Zionist capital should be gradually transferred to Palestine, making it the only center of its financial and industrial operations. Jn a word, the rank and file of the Zionists have outrun their leader, Otherwise stated, God’s time having come for the rehabilitation of Palestine, even the most influential man amongst the Jews today was unable to hinder it. Within another year great things may be expected in Palestine. When six months ago the Turkish reformation threw open the door of Palestine, we wondered that there was no apparent haste made to enter. Now we see that Dr. Nordau for a time was the influential hindrance. We shall expect that so broad-minded a man, so able a leader, will join heartily with his co-religionists in a movement which is fulfilling prophecy and which will proceed and prosper with or without his assistance. WHAT A WONDERFUL DAY IS OURS! Prophecies thousands of years old are fulfilling before our eyes. The wilderness is being made to blossom as the rose, not only in the arid regions of our far Western States, but in the supposed cradle of the human family in the land of Mesopotamia, where Abranam lived. Tae power which is accomplishing these things, in fulfillment of God’s Word, is human. The force behind the energy is not spiritual, but financial. The motive is not the fulfillment of the Scriptures, but selfishness—the desire for wealth. The project of the Turkish Government to revive Mesopotamia has already been referred to; nevertheless the following account, which is going the rounds of the newspapers, will be read with interest: To Restore the Garden of Eden “To restore the Garden of Eden sounds like a hold enterprise, yet a plan suggested by Sir William Wilcox, the English engineer, who built the Assouan dam. makes the project sound entirely feasible. It is Mesopotamia, ‘the land between the rivers’ Tigris and Euphrates, with which he is dealing, and he purposes to turn the surplus waters of the Euphrates into the River Pishon, and to carry down the delta a great canal which wonld not only bring back the productiveness of several million acres of land, but would guard the region from the overflows of the Tigris, It marks a definite step in the world’s progress that the work of recon struction should now be taken up by the Turkish government, which thereby demonstrates its real reform to broader views and more intelligent ambitions. “To build this canal, which will double the cultivable area along the Euphrates, will take three years and cost $2,000,000 or less. Supplementing it, Sir William proposes a railroad from Bagdad to Damascus, costing $11.000,000, which would open the way to the Mediterranean, the natural commercial outlet of Mesopotamia. Such a road seems to be demanded because the irrigation scheme will impair the navigability of the river. And even before the increased wheat harvests are ready for transport there will he freight to carry and passengers to convey—Mohammedan pilgrims visiting holy places and tourists who will feel, probably. more interest in ‘Arabian Nights country’ than in the ‘cradle of the race.’ “There may be some question that the railroad is indispensable, though Asiatic enterprises of this kind have generally met with astonishing success, and have been profitable [4572]