eve
they hold a similar position in Palestine to that of professors and
students who hold scholarships in the various universities in Great
Britain and Europe. The Jews in certain countries send more money for
the support of their fellow-countrymen who are teachers and scholars
than the Jews of some of the Eastern European countries, and that is why
some appear to be better off than many of their fellow-teachers and
scholars.

"This chat with Father helped me to understand other things as well
which had puzzled me before. About this I will write more in another
letter.

"Now I must return to Lag B'Omer, and tell you what struck me as very
strange on that day. As I went with a few of my girl-friends from group
to group to see and hear all I could about what was going on, we came to
a group of women, girls, and youngsters, and in the centre of them all a
lovely little child about three years of age sitting dressed in silk,
and a plate near by with some lovely black curls lying on it. I, of
course, asked what it all meant, and was told that those people who had
only one boy, or who had lost some by death, never cut the hair of their
children till they were between three and four years of age. Then, when
it was cut, they put all they had cut off upon a scale, and upon the
other side of the scale copper, silver, or gold money, according to
their means. If poor, they put copper coins upon the scales to test the
weight of the hair, and then distributed these copper coins among the
poor. In fact, it just looks as if those who receive charity take it
in one hand and distribute it with the other.

[Illustration: YEUSHIVA (TALMUDICAL SCHOOL)]

"Nowhere have I ever seen so much almsgiving as here. Alms-boxes are
hung up in various places, where in Europe you would see only ornaments.
For every joy or blessing and for those who have relatives or friends
ill or in danger, money is freely dropped into the box. This money is
given towards the up-keep of the hospital for the very poor, and so on.
Really, it must be very hard for those people who have little to spare,
but Father says this is one of the means by which every Jew in Palestine
is trained to love his neighbour as himself. I feel he is right, for I
never saw so much kindness and thoughtfulness for others as I have seen
since we arrived here. Everyone naturally does what the others do, and
it has proved to me how true it is that example is far more powerful
than preaching