He was like Colonel Goldsmid, one of the first English Jews to join the new movement for establishing agricultural colonies of Jews in the Holy Land. Such an idea was unwelcome to the prosperous and assimilated Jews, for the idea of assimilation had by now made some progress even in English Jewry. The impression left on the minds of many who heard of the idea was that there was a large number of Jews desirous of forestalling the promised advent of the _Messiah_. They had grown accustomed to the notion that Palestine was a thorny desert, infested by hordes of marauding Bedouins, and only fit for beggars and pious pilgrims. They were ignorant of all that had been written to the contrary by a number of authors, particularly by the indefatigable workers of the Palestine Exploration Fund. They had learned to discredit the sacred promises as to the future of the country. They felt themselves secure in the positions they had gained for themselves, and ridiculed the thought of renouncing them at the bidding of a few enthusiasts and dreamers, as if anyone had ever thought of placing such an alternative before them. They considered this idea _mauvais ton_, and thought that it might endanger their newly acquired social position, such as it was. These motives, and others like them, induced most of the prominent Jews to turn away from a movement with which they could have no sympathy. Illustration: ELIM H. _d’_AVIGDOR _Col._ ALBERT E. W. GOLDSMID JEAN HENRI DUNANT _Father_ IGNATIUS _Dr._ E. W. TSCHLENOW _Dr._ MAX MANDELSTAMM Not so _d’_Avigdor. His intuitive mind showed him the futility of such fears and the possibility of attaining the grand results hoped for and partly achieved already by kindred societies, if only the efforts made were kept within the bounds of prudence. He took up the cause of the Jewish colonization of Palestine with ardour and energy. When he began work the “Lovers of _Zion_” Association did not yet exist, but numerous meetings had already been held in support of the movement for colonizing Palestine by Jews, though no steps had until then been taken to give the agitation a practical turn. It was necessary first of all that a proper organization should be established, not only for the purpose of utilizing the energies of the more practical promoters of the scheme, but also to prevent rash measures, which would have had the effect of destroying the undertaking at its very birth.