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Forms to be Filled out for Eacn Interview
FORM 1
Circumstances of Interview
STATE New York
M. B. Versehleiser
NAME OF v,ORKEr.
ADDRESS 1419 Jesup Ave.
DATE Nov. 23, 1938
FOLKLORE.. YIDDISH
SUBjECT
1. Date and time o' interview
9 Place of interview
Nov. 19
Hester Park, Bast Broadway
3. Name and address of informant
Mr. Goldfarb
FOLKLORE
NEW YORK
4. Name and address of person, if any, WhO put you in
touch with informant.
5. Name and address of person, if any, accoLTanying you
6. Description of room, house, surroundings, etc.
or vim= the waiter engaged in oonversatien an a park bench. An
ilagri4lookIng Tow With speetaeles, well dressed, seemingly retired.
(Use as many additional sheets as necessary, fur any of the forms, cacti
bearing the proper heading and the number to which the material refers.)
FORM C
of 1-.terv.li.,,,o (rr..00;.c,"_%)
STATE Now York
NAVE OF wonKER 96 S. Versohleiser
ADDRESS
DATE
SUBJECT
1419 Jesup Ave.
RIM 4,rd
FOLKLORIC YIDDISH
THE MESSIAH
In our to there was a man mho everybody Galled, "the Messiah". He,
himself, called himself the Messiah.
He was a tall lanky man with a bland beard and he liked to drink. He used
to talk about himself that he is the real Messiah, the grandson of King David and
that he would soon release all the Jews and bring them bask to Palestine. He had
this habit. Before the Day of Atonement the Jewish custom was that the Jewish man
bowed down and the beadle of the synagogue would strike him with a leather strap.
Of course it was never done very seriously. So this Messiah, or his real name was,
Jacob, liked to take over the role of the beadle and stand before the synagogue and
deal out the lashes. The Jews of the town took the matter jokingly and would say
"The Messiah is punishing us for our sins." The rich people would be the ones to
evade his beatings but the poor people would really lio down and iilbm the prescribed
number, thirty-nine lashes.
14 used to ask hies "Why don't you beat tho rich man like you boat the poor
man?"
To this he would answer, 11011, you know, rich Jews don't like to be hit.
They are rich."
-2
"And the poor people like it?", he was asked.
"The poor have no choice," he answered. "They get beatings all year, 80
it doesn't make any difference to them."
14 would ask, "But don't the rich deserve to get a lashing even more than
the poor? Don't they sin more?"
He would answer in this way. !Naturally, you are right. They should be hit.
They deserve it. But what can you do. That's the way the world goes. when Messiah
will clams, and he would point to himself," and bring the Jews back to Palestine,
the world will be different."
Comment: This story seems to be too literary and most likely the man read it
or heard it and gives it as having happened in his awn town.