— THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA
471
to a decree of the baronial prefecture in 1801, absence from three sessions, without sullicient reason, was followed by aiTcst. Civil matters were decided by the judge and the Inner Coiincil without consultation Willi the bet din ^wIkjsc jurisdiction extended over religious iilTairs only and they were jiaid after every session, the rabbi receiving iiO krcutzcrs,* the
—
members or " dayyanim IT Ivreutzerseach. The written transactions of the community wen- in charge of a notary, wlio was required to know botli German and "
Hebrew, but the minutes had
to be kept in (Jernian.
The great power with which
the Jewisli judge
was
SvNAOooi'E (From B
Alt-Ofen
—
Dr. M. Oesterreicher who was the first Jew to be graduated from the University of Pest the Jewisli liospitul was estahlislied and placed under the management of the Hebrah. The still-existing "Bikljur Holim Association," which took care also of the }-ouiig with a view to the inculcation of religion among children, was established in that [leriod. Several private synagogues, in addition to the large congregational one, afforded ample religious facilities. The synagogue possessed more than thirteen scrolls of the Law in 1700, as is apparent from the appendi.x to the "Masoret" of Meir Todros; the "Buda" (the
IN
—
Alt-Open.
photo|rTa)>h.)
tlius invested gave hini considerable standing in the outer world as well as in the community; and this, after the fashion of the times, was c.v pressed by various iMsigniu of ollice. He carried a heavy statT eni-
Hungarian name for Ofen) mentioned there is most undoulitedly AltOfen. because at this tirae there were no Jews in Ofen proper. The greatest ac(|uisition was, however, the Jewish
an enormous silver knoh as a sign of rank, and in the street was always accompanied by a liveri<'d footman. The inner development of the conimunity kept ]>ace with its ever-growing iiilluence and standing, and a niunlier of religious, congregational.and benevolent institutions were Instituorganized in the second half of the tion8 Founded, eigliteenlh <(nliiry. One of thi' first WHS eertaiidy tiie Hel>nih Kaddisha, which was founded in lT7((at Die latest, as may be inferred from the fact that in 1780, at the instance of
public .school, which, in pursuance of a special edict of Kmperor Jo.si'ph II., was opened on May 17. 1784. Thisschool was the first Jewish public school in Hun('onsi<lerable opposition attended its foundagary. tion, as it was genenilly feared that it woidd birome a nursery of irreligion iiiilee<i, .so great was the fear of disturbance that public proclamation was made in all the synagoi;nes by ordir of the prefect, that, under penally of Hogging, nobody .should stand at till' doors or windows of the school during ses,sious. The attendance was at first very sparse, so that endeavors were diligently made to close up the opposing private scluM)ls, anil compel their pujiils to attend the cougregatioual one regularly. Slow ly, however.
lielllshed willi Ills
- TIk> value of n krt'Utzer to-day
o rartlilngtKiiK.).
In
about bait a cent (U.
8.)
or
