Produced by David Edwards, Jeannie Howse and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) * * * * * +-----------------------------------------------------------+ | Transcriber's Note: | | | | Inconsistent hyphenation in the original document has | | been preserved. | | | | Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. For | | a complete list, please see the end of this document. | | | +-----------------------------------------------------------+ * * * * * GHETTO TRAGEDIES The MM Co. Ghetto Tragedies BY I. ZANGWILL AUTHOR OF "CHILDREN OF THE GHETTO," "THE KING OF SCHNORRERS," ETC. PHILADELPHIA THE JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA COPYRIGHT, 1899, BY I. ZANGWILL Norwood Press J.S. Cushing & Co.--Berwick & Smith Norwood Mass. U.S.A. PREFACE The "Ghetto Tragedies" collected in a little volume in 1893 have been so submerged in the present collection that I have relegated the original name to the sub-title. "Satan Mekatrig" was written in 1889, "Bethulah" this year. Anyone who should wish to measure the progress or decay of my imagination during the ten years has therefore materials to hand. "Noah's Ark" stands on the firmer Ararat of history, my invention being confined to the figure of Peloni (the Hebrew for "nobody"). The other stories have also a basis in life. But neither in pathos nor heroic stimulation can they vie with the literal tragedy with which the whole book is in a sense involved. Mrs. N.S. Joseph, the great-hearted lady to whom "Ghetto Tragedies" was inscribed, herself walked in darkness, yet was not dismayed: in the prime of life she went down into the valley of the shadow, with no word save of consideration for others. I trust the new stories would not have been disapproved by my friend, to whose memory they must now, alas! be dedicated. I.Z. OCTOBER, 1899. CONTENTS I PAGE "THEY THAT WALK IN DARKNESS" 1 II TRANSITIONAL 41 III NOAH'S ARK 79 IV THE LAND OF PROMISE 127 V TO DIE IN JERUSALEM 159 VI BETHULAH 185 VII THE KEEPER OF CONSCIENCE 249 VIII