Characteristically enough, Buchner had been recommended by the ferocious Jew-baitor Abbe Chiarini, a member of the “Committee of Old Testament Believers,” which, one might almost suspect, was charged with the supervision of Jewish education for no other reason, than that to spite the Jews.  Chiarini was professor of Oriental Languages at the University of Warsaw.  As such he considered himself an expert in Hebrew literature, and cherished the plan of translating the Talmud into French to unveil the secrets of Judaism before the Christian world.  In 1828 Chiarini suggested to the “Committee of Old Testament Believers” to arrange a course in Hebrew Archaeology at the Warsaw University for the purpose of acquainting Christian students with rabbinic literature and thus equipping prospective Polish officials with a knowledge of things Jewish.  The plan having been approved by the Government, Chiarini began to deliver a course of lectures on Judaism.  The fruit of these lectures was a French publication, issued in 1829 under the title Theorie du Judaisme.  It was an ignorant libel upon the Talmud and rabbinism, a worthy counterpart of Eisenmenger’s “Judaism Exposed.” [1] Chiarini did not even shrink from repeating the hideous lie about the use of Christian blood by the Jews.  He was taken to task by Jacob Tugenhold in Warsaw and by Jost and Zunz in Germany.  Yet the evil seed had sunk into the soil.  Polish society, which had long harbored unfriendly sentiments against the Jews, became more and more permeated with anti-Semitic bias, and this bias found tangible expression during the insurrection of 1830-1831.

[Footnote 1:  The book of a famous anti-Semitic writer who lived in Germany in the seventeenth century. Entdecktes Judentum, the book referred to in the text, appeared in 1700.]

4.  THE JEWS AND THE POLISH INSURRECTION OF 1831

When, under the effect of the July revolution in Paris, the “November insurrection” of 1830 broke out in Warsaw, it put on its mettle that section of Polish Jewry who hoped to improve the Jewish lot by their patriotic ardor.  In the month of December one of the “Old Testament believers,” Stanislav Hernish, [1] addressed himself to the Polish dictator, Khlopitzki, in the name of a group of Jewish youths, assuring him of their eagerness to form a special detachment of volunteers to help in the common task of liberating their fatherland.  The dictator replied that, inasmuch as the Jews had no civil rights, they could not be permitted to serve in the army.  The Minister of War Moravski delivered himself on this occasion of the following characteristic utterance:  “We cannot allow that Jewish blood should mingle with the noble blood of the Poles.  What will Europe say when she learns that in fighting for our liberty we have not been able to get along without Jewish help?”

[Footnote 1:  Polish patriot and publicist.  He subsequently fled to France.  See later, p. 109.]