The Westminster Budget from London, Greater London, England • Page 45

OCTOBER WESTMINSTER BUDQET. 643 THE JEWISH NEW YEAR. you be inscribed for a Happy New Year!" is the greeting which was heard on many Jewish lips on Saturday evening; when the year 5655 A.M. commenced. Jewish tradition regards Rosk Hmhandk (as Hebrew New Year is called) as the: anniversary of the day on whiqh the world was created, though there is no warranty, Scriptural or other, for the belie': But' such being its place in the calendar, it has been invested with a solemnity second only to that of the Day of Atonement the great White falls nine days later, and will be observed this time on October 10.

In fact, the two celebrations are closely connected. The entire ten days of the opening year are observed as a period of prayer and penitential reflection. In the Jewish ritual, coming events cast their shadow before them." For the whole of the past month the ram's horn has been sounded in the synagogue every day, to call the faithful to devotion, and remind them to hold themselves in readiness for the solemnities of the penitential period. There is a great deal about the ritual of the New Year and the Ten Days of Penitence which is and exaggerated, but, stripped of its legendary accretions, the underlying idea is excellent. The great bulk of the Jews are what is known as that is to say, their religion is moulded by Rabbinical tradition.

Now, the Rabbinical conception is that from the New Year to the Day of Atonement the Almighty judges His creatures for the acts of the past year, and decides their fate in accordance with their merits or demerits. It is, the time of the spiritual assizes, and hence the New Year is also known as "the Day of JudgmentYet the Rabbins also taught that "man is judged every day." It would seem that they did not intend their teaching about the New Year to be taken too literally. Be this as it may, the day has come to be regarded by the majority of Jews with a reverence which borders on the superstitious. The synagogues are all crowded to excess. So great, indeed, is the demand for accommodation that those who are not regular members of a congregation engage temporary seats either in a synago-ue or in halls which" are improvised for the occasion as places of worship.

In the East End of London the Great Assembly Hall of Mr. Charrington, which holds some 6,000 or 7,000 persons, had been requisitioned for the large colony of foreign Jews who reside in that locality, and it was filled to overflowing. Of course Jewish places of business were closed everywhere. In Tuesday's financial dailies we read that there was a restricted business on the Stock Exchange in consequence ot the absence of Jewish operators. The Jewish religion is nothing if not domestic.

The chosen people still preserve the quaint custom of eating apple and honey at the New Year meal, previously pronouncing a prayer that the incoming year may be "sweet as honey." But the centre of gravity of the festival, so to speak, is in the synagogue, which presents an impressive appearance. The officiating clergy are clad in white, white symbolising the purity of heart appropriate to this season. The principal feature of the service is the blowing of the ram's horn to arouse the congregation to repentance. Three different notes are sounded on this Tekiali, a simple note Shevarim, a broken note and Ternah, a quivering note. Altogether the trumpet is sounded a hundred times during the service.

It is made of ram's horn to commemorate the offering up of Isaac by Abraham on Mount Moriah, the idea being that the judgment of the Israelite may be favourably influenced by the merit of that deed. Another very quaint ceremony connected with the observance of New Year is known as Tashlich. It does not obtain to any extent among modern English Jews, but it is very commonly practised by the Polish Jews in the East End, who retain many antique customs which Western civilisation has discarded. It consists in assembling at the water-side to offer prayers for the remission of sin. On Monday and Tuesday afternoon hundreds of foreign Jews might be seen going in the direction of Tower Hill and the Customs House Quay with large prayer-books under their arms, from which they will recite the following verses at the water's edge: "Who is omnipotent like unto Thee, pardoning iniquity, and forgiving transgression to the, residue of his heritage He retaineth not His anger for ever.

He will again have compassion on us, He will suppress our iniquities. Yea, Thou wilt cast all our sins, and all the ns ot Thy people, the house of Israel, into the depths of the seaj Thou wilt cast them into a place where they shall not be remembered, nor visited, nor thought of for ever. Thou wilt show faithfulness to Jacob, and mercy unto Abraham, which Thou didst swear unto our fathers from the days of old." The significance of the ceremony is explained by the passage printed in italics. There is nothing so untidy as frayed cuffs, or so uncomfortable as frayed collars. For these the laundress is often to blame.

She will use all soi-ts of horrid chemicals to bleach and to finish," as she calls it, whereby I fancy if Mr. R. S. name is a household word, for where is the woman that has not heard of Hudson's Soap were followed there would be much less "burning of the candles" over such matters. Anybody by writing to Bank Hall, Liverpool, may have sent, post free, a set of these simple and easy directions for preserving collars and cuffs from destruction, and also for making linen beautifully clean, white, and sweet; and it goes without saying that the housewife who studies economy will accept our hint Now Ready, Price 3s.

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6d, NOW READY, PRICE ONE SHILLING, SGRIBNER'S NUMBER. Contents. RAILWAY TRAVEL IN ENGLAND AND AMERICA. (Illustrated.) H. G.

PROUT. AN AUTUMN SUNSET. EDITH WHARTON. LENOX. (Illustrated.) GEORGE A.

HIBBARD. THREE WAIFS IN AN ALMSHOUSE. Painted by ADRIEN HENRI TANOUX. With Frontispiece. PHILIP GILBERT HAMERTON.

TARAHUMARI DANCES AND PLANT WORSHIP. (Illustrated.) CARL LUM- HOLTZ. LITTLE DARBY. II. (Concluded) THOMAS NELSON PAGE.

RED LEAVES. HENRY TYRRELL. IN THE HOSPITAL. (Illustrated.) J. WEST ROOSEVELT, M.D.

JACQUES AND SUZETTE. JULIA C. R. DORR. JOHN MARCH, SOUTHERNER.

Chaps. 62-69. GEORGE W. CABLE. FROM MACEDONIA.

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