they were ever ready
most zealously to assist in the promotion of their mental
and social improvement, and they joyfully hailed every
opportunity presented to them of enriching their minds by
pure and wholesome knowledge. 'An Israelite,' they said,
'cannot underrate the value of knowledge. Every page in
our history proves the reverse. Our ancestors, from the
earliest period of that history, have been remarkable for
their zeal to uphold science and literature as the
greatest and holiest acquisitions. We refer the enquirer
to the works of Bartholocci, Wolf, De Rossi, Rodriguez de
Castro, by which it will be at once ascertained that
Israelites have always kept pace in useful learning with
their neighbours, and that all circumstances considered,
they possess in most instances fully as much general
knowledge as falls to the share of their non-Israelite
fellow-subjects in a corresponding grade of society.' And
in corroboration of this statement, I beg to inform your
Excellency that many of the Israelites in His Imperial
Majesty's dominions have distinguished themselves by their
writings in Hebrew theology and literature, and that their
works are very highly appreciated by the learned in
Germany. 'To improve the mind and promote every kind of
useful and sound information which tends to elevate a man
before God and his fellow-creatures, they deem to be an
important injunction of the sacred law.' I therefore had
no difficulty whatever in persuading them of the good
intentions which His Majesty's Government entertained with
respect to the organisation of schools for their benefit.
They overwhelmed me with quotations from the sacred
writings, tending to show that with the Israelite it is an
imperative duty to give the best effect to such
benevolence.

"Their notions of religion in general, and of the sacred
books which treat thereon, are not less correct, and I had
opportunities of hearing them frequently elucidate many
Scriptural texts, in a manner which proved to me that they
were possessed with the true spirit of their religion, and
that they derive from the perusal of the Oral Law such
beneficial instruction as must tend to make them faithful
to their God, loyal to the Government of the country in
which they live, and good men to all their fellow
creatures.

"Their arguments on this subject, and the excellent
quotations which they