JEWS 258 JEZEBEL over the earth. When Christianity be- came the religion of the Romans, their condition became very miserable. In 418, military service was interdicted them; in 610 the Emperor Heraclius per- secuted them with many cruel enact- ments. Islamism treated them less rigorously. Under the reign of the Caliphs, the Jews of Asia, of Africa, and of Spain, were permitted to live in peace, and to cultivate commerce, letters, and the sciences. In Christian Europe, especially during the period of the Crusades, the Jews had to undergo every form of persecution. They were driven from England in 1290, from Central France in 1395, and from Spain and Sicily in 1492. In Germany, they be- longed, like serfs, to the emperors and the nobles, who bought and sold them at their pleasure. The Inquisition was a particularly bitter foe to the Jews, especially in the Spanish dominions. In the 16th century, their condition became much improved. In France they were allowed to settle at Bayonne and Bor- deaux in 1550; in 1784 they were re- lieved from the poll tax which had hitherto been imposed on them. Shortly afterward the other European States, following the example of France, treated them in a more liberal spirit. The Jews are spread over every quarter of the globe, being exceedingly numerous in Russia, Germany, Poland, and the N. of Africa. There are over 8,000,000 in the United States. One estimate is 11,000,000 throughout the world. Though inter-mixed for 1,800 years with so many diverse nations, the Jews have not only preserved their re- ligion, as already said, but a certain national type of feature, of which the most salient points are a dark skin, thick lips, and an aquiline nose. The Jews belong to the Semitic race, as is proved by their language, which is allied with the Arabic, the Syriac, and the Chaldean, Their primitive life was pat- riarchal, pastoral, nomadic, perhaps — certainly so in the desert between their departure from Egypt and entrance into the Land of Promise. In addition to the Old Testament they possess a literature which chiefly consists of legends, songs, proverbs, and genealogies. After their return from captivity in Babylon, philo- sophy and theology began to take their rise among the Jews, and a number of sects sprang up, such as the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes. During the Middle Ages the Jews were instrumental, like the Arabs, in handing down the learning of antiquity. In our own day and in almost every country they have illustrious representa- tives in all departments of business ac- tivity, and in the professions. Their religion is founded entirely on the Old Testament; it denies the divinity of Jesus Christ; but nevertheless teaches its fol- lowers to believe in the coming of the Messiah, who will collect the scattered Jewish people and found a great empire. The Jews admit no other revelation than that of Moses and the prophets; they observe at the present time the same ceremonies which the ancient Hebrews practiced — the celebration of the Sab- bath, the Passover, the abstinence from certain viands which are termed unclean. With the ancient Jews all the priests were of the tribe of Levi; they thus bore the name of Levites, which, at the pres- ent time, is changed to rabbis. After the dispersion of the Jews, during the reign of Adrian, the principal doctors of religion assembled at Tiberias, where they formed a grand council, or Sanhe- drim, and founded a school which became the nursery of their rabbis. These last composed, under the title of the Talmud, a work designed to contain the oral law and traditions of the Jews. This work was completed in the year 500 of the Christian era; and, with the greatest portion of the Jews, it became the basis of their faith; some, however, refused to accept it. Hence arose the division of the Jews into two rival sects — the Tal- mudists, or Rabbinists, who follow the Talmud; and the Caraites, who follow the strict letter of the Old Testament. See Anti-Semites. JEW'S EAR, a fungus, one of the Hymenomycetes, which grows on decay- ing parts of living trees, particularly elders. It is a native of Great Britain. In size and form it bears some resem- blance to a human ear. Jew's ear was formerly in repute as a tropical dis- cutient and astringent. It is still sold, but Polyporus versicolor is often sub- stituted for it. The genuine Jew's ear, after being dried, swells when immersed in water; the Polyporus does not. JEZEBEL, a Jewish queen, celebrated for her impious life. She was daughter of Ethbaal, King of Sidon, and wife of Ahab, King of Israel. She turned her husband from the worship of the true God, established temples to the idol Baal, and caused a large number of prophets and holy persons to be put to death. Jehu, on gaining the throne, flung her from the windows of her own palace, which killed her, the dogs devouring her, as had been foretold. Her name, given by St. John to a certain female of Thyatira, in his day holding a like bad pre-eminence in profligacy of life, is commonly applied to a rapacious, or vile woman.
