Page Eight
JEWISH  WESTERN BULLETIN
Friday, June 12, 1970
COLLECTING
I
with JULIUS SHORE
WE HAVE LONG BECOME
accustomed to hearing Russian claims of having invented first and better, most of the mechani cal contrivances which during the last 200 years have accounted for Anglo-Saxon industrial leadership. So I am sure that you wil understand my surprise when discovered that the assumption made by philatelists that the time-honored British Mulready Letter Sheet of 1840 had been the first Letter Sheet is completely erroneous. (A Letter Sheet is the equivalent of an aerogramme before the days of Air Mail). The fact is that the Letter Sheet of the Secret Jewish Post of East
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Europe preceded it by almost fifty years.
SECRET JEWISH POST? ! ? !
And this is how I came to learn about it.
A few days ago I got a cal from the W. C. Thome Archives The query was: — in my search for the Origin of the Jewish Association with the Magen David did I remember that the Magen David was the insignia of the Secret Jeiwish Post of East Europe?
Secret Jewish Post? ! ?! ? Did I remember? ! ? ! ? !
The voice at the other end of the line sounded deadly, earnest. One just does not spend a life-time compiling a private archive and then take liberties with historical facts! Of course, one of the most fascinating
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facets of historical research is that there are, no positives. Yesterday's fantasies may turn out to be today's facts; and today's facts very often turn out to be tomorrow's "bahbah mises."
But secret Jewi* Post? ! ? ! ?
That was almost as if I had called him and had been irreverent enough to say: "Have you le-read your Scriptures lately? I'm gradually getting the impression that some commemorations' are being held on the wrong days. My latest interpretation is that because of unexplainable storms on the Sea of Gallilee, the recovery site, the Descent was postponed three days."
WHAT A SITUATION! Here is local "Mr. Know-it-all of Ju-daica", and did he remember? He hadn't even heard!
Secret Jewish Post? ! ? !.?
Sure enough!—-Next day there arrived at my home a photo-copy of the insignia of the Secret Jew-
ever, luck was with me. My philatelic library soon disclosed that a Mr. A. Tolkowsky, one of the world's outstanding Judaica collectors, had one of its Letter Sheets in his collection and had revealed the fascinating story of the Secret Jewish Post.
This is a photo-copy of Mr. Tolk-owsky's Letter Sheet of the Secret Jewish Post of Eastern Europe. And thanks to It, I can continue to unabashedly write my column! This letter, addressed to Mr. ZaslawskI In Riga Is very old and could possibly date back to the time of Napoleon I. The address, written In ink in Hebrew, Is almost faded out but the printed part of the Letter Sheet Is still perfect.
This Post is called "Secret" because It operated In contravention of the monopoly of Postal Services held by the Czar's Imperial Russian Post. But It was so well-known that during Napoleon's Invasion of
letters and parcels was also maintained.
THE SECRET JEWISH POST
was a bold undertaking. At a timfe when the Imperial Russian Postal Service had 700 different postal rates, it was remarkable that the Jews could operate with a unified delivery rate in the vast territory that their service covered. This postal service, too, with its meagre fees, which were paid by recipients, not senders, was self-sustaining. This is
(Continued on Page 10) See SHORE
Chug Aliya
:lsh Post together with detailed information about a pair of this Post's Lietter Sheets having been sold at a New York Philatelic Auction in June i|>62 ai^^a^^^ proximate price of $1,250.00.
Secret Jewish Post? How could I continue to pose as an authority on Judaica and not know about the Secret Jewish Post? How-
Russia in 1812, the Russian Army sent its most secret official messages via this postal service because It was the most reliable and efficient organiza-
tion in the country.
Inside the Magen David insig- [ th^ seek to create ^ envirc^in
"WHERE  THERE   IS NO VISION — the people perish." Fortunately,  there  is  lots of vision in Israel. In an essay published in the journal "Dispersion and Unity" two Israeli thinkers —Mordiechai Nissiyahu and Zvi Bisk, a recent arrivar from the U.S. — put their heads together for a long range look at Israel. The study concerns itself with aliya, absorption and the future directions of the country. They quote from a speech delivered by Baron Edmond de Rothschild to the Israel Economic Conference: "We have many fields and many opportunities for the investment of our money but I do not think that we have another opportunity    not one—- where we can prove that the Jewish peopte, the people^that received the Bible, is a people that understands that it has a special mission in the world and that the great connection between Israel and the Diaspora is a spiritual one,  aimed at improving the world." Starting from the fact that the new crop of inunigrants . and  potential inimi^a^ know-how, capital and idealism.
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nia is, in Hebrew: "Shaliach"— Messenger. In the points/three times repeated, is "Heh" for 5 and "Kof' for Kopecks. Between circles of the cancellations, again in Hebrew, is, at the top: -Transmission Fee*'; at the bottom: "Prutor*. What this meant at that time is not Imowii. In Israel ft-om 1949 to 1960 it mesoit one one-thousandth of a Pound; but here I provide a challenge for Western we are dealing with tilie period I Jews whb largely suiter from from the end of the 18th century lack of purpose and inability to to the end of the 19th century, operate within a preferr In the centre is again repeated ideological frmnework. To m '5 Kopecks*\ The printed Hebrew | Israel's needs and the needs o
ment in Israel which would per- i mit these young people to ply their specialties in such a man-ner as to prof it not only Israel, but all of humanity. Israel's^ status as a developed and developing nation makes her ideally suited for the task . . The authors seek to expand Israel'-present policy of aid and also to
line at the bottom of the Letter Sheet reads: "I secured the letter in the hand of aV trustworthy person".
It is interesting to note that the Letter Sheets were simply
these people and of the world the authors seek te combine o-manpower,  capital, capabiliti and idealian in a series of need projects. Here are some: esta^ lishment of a University for th;
sufficient academics imd educa tors to get such a badly need educational facility started now. It would be a welcome al temative to Lumumba Unive
folded and not sealed, but com- Developing Nations-—• we hav plete privacy was maintained.  - -Under a ban of Rabbi Gerhom^ no Jew would dare read mail not intended for him; and the entire
operation of this Post was car- ___ __
ried out by Jews. They were the I gity in Moscow . . . Other id post-men, handlers, waggon-driv- an International Trade fostitu ers and keepers of the inns where to teach developing countries the post offices were located. A do their own buying and sellL Special Delivery Service for both [ thereby reducing their dep^
eiice on developed countries; International Medtea 1 Cen that cbuld:be the ''Mayo Clini of Asia and A^ca; and a Cen for Alarket Besearch that wb teach .the nations, to use pre tional techniques — hot to g people to buy things they do need, but to get them to ui essential goods and services.; suggestted are Research and velopment Centres to teach a celerated educational techniqu food production, urban and dustrial development and sec" services ... For Israel itself th poiiit out the need for faciliti to house tourists on extend visits, for retirement villages for new types of social comm' nities other than the pre: kibbutzim, moshavim and co ventional communities . . . D: in for a shmoose next Tuesd night, June 16 at 4749 Oak Aliya  info   anytime: 733-845 Jz Olin.
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This week ond every week -—Pick up any extra copies ] you may wont!