for its object the
moral and intellectual improvement of the future citizens of the Jewish
Republic; the Bilu (initials of Bet Ya'akob leku we-nelekah, "O House of
Jacob, come and let us go"), formed by Israel Belkind, who went to
Palestine with his fellow-students of the University of Kharkov, and
founded the colony of Gederah; and the Hillul (Hereb la-Adonai
u-le-Arzenu, "A sword for God and our land"), the members of which
pledged themselves to remove any obstacle to the cause of nationalism,
even at the cost of their lives. The Bone Zion (Builders of Zion), a
sort of Masonic fraternity, was a very potent secret society, which
undertook to constitute itself a provisional Jewish Government, and
assiduously watched the Zionistic societies and their leaders in every
portion of the globe.[10]

These dreamy youths, however, heartbroken and disgusted with a
civilization which had failed to redeem its promises, proved but poor
material for laying the foundations for a future nation. It was as with
the Darien Company organized by William Paterson when Scotland was
sorely distressed, and the Champ d'Asile, by the remnant of Napoleon's
grand army--a fine idea, but the men and the means were wanting to
execute it. The colonies in Palestine fared no better than those in
America. They were opposed by the Government from without and by many of
the orthodox Jews from within. The former, though claiming to be glad to
see the Jews emigrate, though declaring to the Jewish delegation that
pleaded for mercy, _Zapadnaya graniza dlya vas otkrita_ ("the Western
frontier is open to you"), was still, Pharaoh-like, reluctant to see so
many "undesirable citizens" leave, and prohibited the formation of
organizations to accomplish the end. The orthodox were against the
movement on religious grounds, because it was "forcing the end" of
Israel's trouble before the destined day of God arrived.[11] But with
the "nineties" the movement received a strong impetus. Alexander
Zederbaum, the publisher of Ha-Meliz, succeeded in obtaining a charter
(February 9, 1890) for the Association for the Aid of Colonization in
Palestine and Syria. Such eminent rabbis as Mordecai Eliasberg, his son
Jonathan, Samuel Mohilever, N.Z.Y. Berlin, and Mordecai Joffe espoused
the cause, and set the example for their less prominent colleagues. When
the question arose whether Jewish agriculturists in Palestine are
obliged to observe the Biblical injunction not to till the grou