Book Description

Excerpt from The Immigrant Jew in America The study of the immigrant Jew in America undertaken in this work has been subdivided designedly to assure a competence and accuracy of report beyond the possible attainment of any single investigator. Absolutely no restriction beyond the necessary limitation of space was imposed on any contributor, for none were engaged whose reliability and special knowledge of the assigned field of inquiry were open to question. The consequent independence of view gives exceptional weight to the substantial concurrence of the reports in each division of the field in their exhibit of the characteristics, conditions, and advance of the Jewish emigration to this country from Russia. Our work begins with a clear marking of the distinct elements of the Jewish population in the United States. This is followed by an informing exhibit of the Jew and his environment in Russia and of the oppression which has fettered his progress and denied him even a bare pittance and right to life, irresistibly forcing him to seek a refuge and home in other lands. This general introduction closes with a comprehensive survey of the entry of the persecuted immigrant into the United States and the progress of his adaptation to the novel conditions of life in this land of the free. In the following divisions of the work the studies of characteristics and condition are pursued in detail. The chief seats of Jewish settlement in this country, in New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago, are selected for the range of their exhibits, presenting the struggles and progress of the Jew under the most exacting conditions of living and competition in this country. These settlements are first surveyed broadly with graphic presentations of the general aspect. Then in succession the social conditions and life are presented under the headings of philanthropy, covering the organizations of relief and the promotion of self-help, economic and industrial conditions, religious activity, educational influences, amusements and social life, politics, health and sanitation, law and litigation. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.