y appreciated the great blessing which that union brought
upon him. Henceforth, for every important act of his, where the choice
was left to him, whether it was the laying of a foundation stone for a
house of prayer, a charitable institution, or a business office, he
invariably fixed the date on the anniversary of his wedding day.
Setting out on an important mission in the month of June, he would,
when a short delay was immaterial, defer it to the anniversary of his
wedding. This was not, as some might suppose, from mere superstition,
for in all his doings he was anxious to trust to the will of God
alone; it was with the idea of uniting every important act in his life
with one which made his existence on earth, as he affirmed, a heavenly
paradise.

His own words, taken from the diary of 1844, will best express his
feelings on the subject.

"On this happy day, the 10th of June," he writes, "thirty-two years
have passed since the Almighty God of Israel, in His great goodness,
blessed me with my dear Judith, and for ever shall I be most truly
grateful for this blessing, the great cause of my happiness through
life. From the first day of our happy union to this hour I have had
every reason for increased love and esteem, and truly may I say, each
succeeding year has brought with it greater proofs of her admirable
character. A better and kinder wife never existed, one whose whole
study has been to render her husband good and happy. May the God of
our fathers bestow upon her His blessing, with life, health, and every
other felicity. Amen."

As a lasting remembrance of the day he treasured the prayer-shawl
which, according to the custom (in Spanish and Portuguese Hebrew
communities), had been held over his head and that of his bride during
the marriage ceremony and the offering up of the prayers.

In compliance with his wish the same shawl was again put over his head
when his brethren performed the melancholy duty of depositing his
mortal remains in their last resting-place.

But I will not further digress, and I resume my narrative of his happy
life after his union with his beloved wife.

Henceforth the reader may consider them as one person, and every act
of benevolence recorded further on in these Memoirs must be regarded
as an emanation of the generous and kindly impulses which so
abundantly filled the hearts of both.

In order to indicate the places to which the young couple would resort
after the duties of the da