78
NOTES AND QUERIES. [9* s. XIL JULY 25, woa.
were three possible sources for these : Lettish,
modern N. Prussian, and thirteenth-century
Prussian. It is interesting to learn that most
of my instances, if not all, can be paralleled
in different parts of Germany. I suggested
that tichmand or Sckmant came from Czech,
which I believe is equivalent to saying " of
Slav origin." He upholds my statement that
" Ich werde spazieren heute " is Yiddish.
Probably the Kurish vocabulary is in no way due to Lettish, though, as I stated, the circumstances of the history of Kurland make it possible. There can be no doubt that German words form a not inconsiderable portion of the Lettish vocabulary. On the other hand, the Kurland g has not yet reached the "jut jebratene Jans " condition. Berlin German and Cockney English deserve an Inferno of their own, where the German (save the mark !) of my Lettish servant might bear them company.
Since writing the above I have made care- ful inquiries, and find that my statement that Kurish German is tainted with Lettish syntax is as incorrect as your correspondent claims. I beg to withdraw the remark. I am, however, not quite satisfied about the German spoken by the country nobility. Can it be that Yiddish influence produced the " Ich habe sie gesehen heute Morgen " which fell from the lips of an educated lady a few days ago 1 FEED. G. ACKERLEY.
Care of British Vice-Consul, Libau, Russia.
NOTES ON BOOKS, &c.
The Jewish Encyclopedia. Isidore Singer, Ph.D., Editor. Vol. IV. Chazars Dreyfus Case. (Funk & Wagualls.)
THE fourth volume of this important and erudite publication reaches us. Each succeeding volume has been noticed on its appearance (see 9 th IS. viii. 174 ; x. 198 ; xi. 299). While the rate of progression is accelerated, the character and merit of the work, whether as a means of conveying special informa- tion to those of Hebrew birth or for purposes of general enlightenment, remain unchanged. Vol. iv. opens with an account of the kingdom and race of the Chazars, Chozars, or Khazers, a people of Turkish descent, said to have embraced the Jewish faith in the seventh or eighth century. Much curious information is contained under 'Cherub,' and a plate is supplied giving South Arabian, Phoe- nician, Egyptian, and Assyrian forms of cherubim. ' Chess ' is accompanied by portraits of many Jewish masters and the view of a contest between Zucker- tort and Steinitz. The game is said to have been popular with Jewish women. Biblical and Tal- mudic beliefs and customs concerning childbirth form an interesting subject of study, the cradle being said to have been first used in the time of Isaac. Many of these things belong to some extent to the domain of folk-lore, and their influence is
still observable among Christians. A child must
not be held before a mirror, or a second will come
within the year ; if its hair is cut it will get an elf-
lock. An unknown chapter of Jewish history is
opened out under ' China,' where a synagogue seems
to have existed from the twelfth century. 'J'he
title 'Chosen People' suggests less a claim to
superiority than an exceptional burden of respon-
sibility. The consideration of 'Christ' is deferred
until ' Jesus ' is reached. ' Christianity ' is, however,
treated, and there is, naturally, an all-important
article on the relations between ' Christianity and
Judaism.' This may and will be closely studied,
but may not, of course, be discussed here. The
chronological system of the Jews is, like most of
their science, derived from the Greeks. No exact
knowledge of the period between the Exodus and
the accession of David is possessed ; from that
period to the destruction of the Temple a full list
of the kings of Judah is furnished. The list of
kings of Israel ends with the destruction of
Samaria, 721 B.C. A long list of events from
the fall of Jerusalem to March, 1902, follows.
Under ' Church Fathers ' the influence of Hebrew
teaching upon the Fathers of the Church, and
especially upon Jerome, is exhibited. The alle-
gorical exegesis developed by the Jewish Hellenes
is dismissed, but in simple exegesis Jerome and
other Church Fathers " did excellent work."
Much important information as to the employment
of the methods of circumcision in ancient and modern
times is given, and must be studied in the volume.
The first among "classical writers" to mention
Jews is Theophrastus in the fourth century B.C.,
who speaks of them as a nation of philosophers and
astronomers. So early as the following century
unfriendly feeling was manifested to them, princi-
pally in Egypt. The first recorded coat of arms
belonging to a Jew was granted by the German
Emperor Ferdinand II., 18 Jan., 1622. A coloured
plate of the arms of Sassoons, Rothschilds, Monte-
fiores, &c., serves as a frontispiece. Many other
coats are embodied in the text : several of them are
naturally English. ' Colophon ' supplies many curious
facts which may be studied by bibliographers.
Passing by such important subjects as 'Command-
ment,' 'Commerce,' and ' Community,' all of them
sufficiently tempting, we find that the term con-
cordance is in Jewish literature confined to con-
cordances of the Bible and the Talmud. Jewish
converts to Christianity were numerous in the last
century. In a list of such we find the names familiar
in England of John Braham, Benjamin Disraeli,
Rachel Felix (Rachel the actress), Benedict, Lopez,
Palgrave, Ricardo, Rubinstein, and Ximenes.
A propos of ' Cookery and Cooking Vessels,' it may
be said that the reason why meat may not be
cooked in butter or milk is, we fancy, found in
the injunction that " thou shalt not seethe the kid
in its mother's milk," which is responsible also for
other Jewish observances. A valuable article on
'Costumes' is fully illustrated. A large coloured
plate exhibits many conspicuous and picturesque
dresses of periods from the twelfth century onwards.
Pp. 339-42 have in the copy sent us been badly
injured. 'Crucifixion' and the 'Cross' cover to
some extent the same ground. "A Jewish court
could not have passed a sentence of death by cruci-
fixion without violating Jewish law." Most of the
information on this subject is drawn from such
familiar authorities as Tacitus and Tertullian. In
respect of cruelty to animals, Jews seem to have
