THE CONGRESS ADDRESSES 
 
 of 
 
 THEODOR HERZL 
 
 TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN 
 kl 
 
 NELLIE STRAUS 
 
 Price 15 Cents 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 EDERATION OF AMERICAN ZIONISTS 
 1917

 
 FIRST CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 
 Delivered at Basle, August 29th, 1897 
 
 FELLOW DELEGATES: As one of those who called this Congress 
 into being I have been granted the privilege of welcoming you. This I 
 shall do briefly, for if we wish to serve the cause we should economize 
 the valuable moments of the Congress. There is much to be accom- 
 plished within the space of three days. We want to lay the cornerstone 
 of the edifice which is one day to house the Jewish nation. The task 
 is so great that we may treat of it in none but the simplest terms. So 
 far as we can now foresee, a summary of the present status of the 
 Jewish question will be submitted within the coming three days. The 
 tremendous bulk of material on hand is being classified by the chairmen 
 of our committees. 
 
 We shall hear reports of the Jewish situation in the various coun- 
 tries. You all know, even if only in a vague way, that with few excep- 
 tions the situation is not cheering. Were it otherwise we should 
 probably not have convened. The homogeneity of our destiny has suf- 
 fered a long interruption, although the scattered fragments of the Jewish 
 people have everywhere undergone similar ills. It is only in our days 
 that the marvels of communication have served to bring about mutual 
 understanding and union between isolated groups. And in these times, 
 so progressive in most respects, we know ourselves to be surrounded 
 by the old, old hatred. Anti-Semitism you know it, alas, too well! 
 is the up-to-date designation of the movement. The first impression 
 which it made upon the Jews of today was one of astonishment, which 
 gave way to pain and resentment. Perhaps our enemies are quite 
 unaware how deeply they wounded the sensibilities of just those of us 
 who were possibly not the primary objects of their attack. That very 
 part of Jewry which is modern and cultured, which has outgrown the 
 Ghetto and lost the habit of petty trading, was pierced to the heart. 
 We can assert it calmly, without laying ourselves open to the sus- 
 picion of wanting to appeal to the sentimental pity of our opponents. 
 We have faced the situation squarely. 
 
 From times immemorial the world has been misinformed about us. 
 The sentiment of solidarity with which we have been reproached so 
 frequently and so acrimoniously was in process of disintegration at the 
 period when we were attacked by anti-Semitism. And anti-Semitism 
 served to strengthen it anew. We returned home, as it were. For Zion- 
 ism is a home-coming to the Jewish fold even before it becomes a home- 
 coming to the Jewish land. We, the children who have returned, find 
 much to redress under the ancestral roof, for some of our brothers have 
 
 5
 
 6 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 sunk deep into misery. We are made welcome in the ancient house, 
 for it is universally known that we are not actuated by an arrogant 
 desire to undermine that which should be revered. This will be clearly 
 demonstrated by the Zionist platform. 
 
 Zionism has already brought about something remarkable, here- 
 tofore regarded as impossible: a close union between the ultra-modern 
 and the ultra-conservative elements of Jewry. The fact that this has 
 come to pass without undignified concessions on the part of either side, 
 without intellectual sacrifices, is further proof, if such proof be neces- 
 sary, of the national entity of the Jews. A union of this kind is 
 possible only on a national basis. 
 
 Doubtless there will be discussions on the subject of an organization 
 the need for which is recognized by all. Organization is an evidence of 
 the reasonableness of a movement. But there is one point which should 
 be clearly and energetically emphasized in order to further the solution 
 of the Jewish question. We Zionists desire not an international league 
 but international discussion. 1 Needless to say this distinction is of the 
 first importance in our eyes. It is this distinction which justifies the 
 convening of our Congress. There will be no question of intrigues, 
 secret interventions, and devious methods in our ranks, but only of 
 unhampered utterances under the constant and complete supervision of 
 public opinion. One of the first results of our movement, even now to 
 be perceived in its larger outlines, will be the transformation of the 
 Jewish question into a question of Zion. 
 
 A popular movement of such vast dimensions will necessarily be 
 attacked from many sides. Therefore the Congress will concern itself 
 with the spiritual means to be employed for reviving and fostering 
 the national consciousness of the Jews. Here, too, we must struggle 
 against misconceptions. We have not the least intention of yielding 
 a jot of the culture we have acquired. On the contrary, we are aiming 
 toward a broader culture, such as an increase of knowledge brings 
 with it. As a matter of fact, the Jews have always been more active 
 mentally than physically. 
 
 It was because the practical forerunners of Zionism realized this 
 that they inaugurated agricultural work for the Jews. We shall never 
 be able, nor shall we desire, to speak of these attempts at colonization 
 in Palestine and in Argentine otherwise than with genuine gratitude. 2 
 But they spoke the first, not the last, word of the Zionist movement. 
 For the Zionist movement must be greater in scope if it is to be at all. 
 A people can be helped only by its own efforts, and if it cannot help 
 itself it is beyond succor. But we Zionists want to rouse the people 
 to self-help. No premature, unwholesome hopes should be awakened 
 in this direction. This is another reason why publicity of procedure, 
 as it is planned by our Congress, is so valuable.
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 7 
 
 Those who give the matter careful consideration must surely 
 admit that Zionism cannot gain its ends otherwise than through an 
 unreserved understanding with the political units involved. It is 
 generally known that the difficulties of obtaining colonization rights 
 were not created by Zionism in its present form. One wonders what 
 motives actuate the narrators of these fables. The confidence of the 
 government with which we want to negotiate regarding the settlement 
 of Jewish masses on a large scale can be gained by frank language 
 and upright dealing. The advantages which an entire people is able 
 to offer in return for benefits received are so considerable that the 
 negotiations are vested with sufficient importance a priori. It would 
 be an idle beginning to engage in lengthy discussions today regarding 
 the legal form which the agreement will finally assume. But one 
 thing is to be adhered to inviolably: the agreement must be based 
 on rights, and not on toleration. Truly we have had enough 'expe- 
 rience of toleration and of "protection" which could be revoked at 
 any time. 
 
 Consequently the only reasonable course of action which our 
 movement can pursue is to work for publicly legalized guarantees. 
 The results of colonization as it has been carried on hitherto was as 
 satisfactory as its scope permitted. It confirmed the much-disputed 
 fitness of the Jews for agricultural work. It established this proof for 
 all time, as the legal phrase has it. But colonization in its present 
 form is not, and cannot be the solution of the Jewish question. And 
 we must admit unreservedly that it has failed to evoke much sym- 
 pathy. Why? Because the Jews know how to calculate; in fact, it 
 has been asserted that they calculate too well. Thus if we assume 
 that there are nine million Jews in the world, and that it would be pos- 
 sible to colonize ten thousand Jews in Palestine every year, the Jewish 
 question would require nine hundred years for its solution. 3 This 
 would seem to be impracticable. 
 
 On the other hand, you know that to count on ten thousand settlers 
 a year under existing circumstances is nothing short of fantastic. The 
 Turkish government would doubtless unearth the old immigration 
 restrictions immediately, and to that we would have little objection.* 
 For if anyone thinks that the Jews can steal into the land of their 
 fathers, he is deceiving either himself or others. Nowhere is the 
 coming of the Jews so promptly noted as in the historic home of the 
 race, for the very reason that it is the historic home. And it would not 
 have been by any means to our interest to go there prematurely. The 
 immigration of Jews signifies an unhoped-for accession of strength for 
 the land which is now so poor ; in fact, for the whole Ottoman Empire. 
 Besides his Majesty the Sultan has had excellent experiences with 
 his Jewish subjects, and he has been an indulgent monarch to them
 
 8 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 in turn. Thus existing conditions point to a successful issue, pro- 
 vided the whole matter is cleverly and felicitiously treated. The finan- 
 cial help which the Jews can give to Turkey is by no means incon- 
 siderable, and would serve to obviate many an internal ill from which 
 the country is now suffering. If the Near East question is partially 
 solved together with the Jewish question, it will surely be of advan- 
 tage to all civilized peoples. The advent of Jews would bring about 
 an improvement in the situation of the Christians in the Orient. 
 
 But it is not solely from this point of view that Zionism may 
 reckon upon the sympathy of the nations. You know that in some 
 lands the Jewish problem has come to mean calamity for the govern- 
 ment. If it sides with the Jews, it is confronted by the ire of the 
 masses ; if it sides against the Jews, it may call disagreeable economic 
 consequences down upon its head because of the peculiar influence of 
 the Jews upon the business affairs of the world. Examples of the 
 latter may be met with in Russia. But if the government maintains 
 a neutral attitude, the Jews find themselves unprotected by the estab- 
 lished regime and rush into the arms of the revolutionaries. Zionism, 
 or self-help for the Jews, points to a way out of these numerous and 
 extraordinary difficulties. Zionism is simply a peacemaker. And it 
 suffers the usual fate of peacemakers, in being forced to fight more 
 than anyone else. But should the accusation that we are not patriotic 
 figure among the more or less sincere arguments directed against our 
 movement, this equivocal objection carries its own condemnation with 
 it. Nowhere can there be a question of an exodus of all the Jews. 
 Those who are able or who wish to be assimilated will remain behind 
 and be absorbed. When once a satisfactory agreement is concluded 
 with the various political units involved and a systematic Jewish 
 migration begins, it will last only so long in each country as that 
 country desires to be rid of its Jews. How will the current be 
 stopped? Simply by the gradual decrease and the final cessation of 
 anti-Semitism. Thus it is that we understand and anticipate the 
 solution of the Jewish problem. 
 
 All this has been said time and time again by my friends and by 
 myself. We shall spare no pains to repeat it again and again until 
 we are understood. On this solemn occasion, when Jews have come 
 together from so many lands at the age-long summons of nationality, 
 let our profession of faith be solemnly repeated. Should we not be 
 stirred by a premonition of great events when we remember that at 
 this moment the hopes of thousands upon thousands of our people 
 depend upon our assemblage? In the coming hour the news of our 
 deliberations and decisions will fly to distant lands, over the seven 
 seas. Therefore enlightenment and comfort should go forth from this 
 Congress. Let everyone find out what Zionism really is, Zionism,
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 9 
 
 which was rumored to be a sort of thousand years' wonder that it 
 is a moral, lawful, humanitarian movement, directed toward the long- 
 yearned-for goal of our people. It was possible and permissible to 
 ignore the spoken or written utterances of individuals within our 
 ranks. Not so with the actions of the Congress. Thus the Congress, 
 which is henceforth to be ruler of its discussions, must govern as a 
 wise ruler. 
 
 Finally, the Congress will provide for its own continuance, so 
 that we may not disperse once more ineffectual and ephemeral. 
 Through this Congress we are creating an agency for the Jewish 
 people, such as it has not possessed heretofore, an agency of which 
 it has stood in urgent need. Our cause is too great to be left to the 
 ambition or the discretion of individuals. It must be elevated to the 
 realm of the impersonal if it is to succeed. And our Congress shall 
 live forever, not only until the redemption from age-long suffering is 
 effected, but afterwards as well. Today we are here in the hospitable 
 limits of this free city where shall we be next year? 
 
 But wherever we shall be, and however distant the accomplish- 
 ment of our task, let our Congress be earnest and high-minded, a 
 source of welfare to the unhappy, of defiance to none, of honor to all 
 Jewry. Let it be worthy of our past, the renown of which, though 
 remote, is eternal ! 
 

 
 SECOND CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 
 Delivered at Basle, August 2&th, 1898 
 
 FELLOW DELEGATES : Zionism has grown a year older since we 
 were first gathered together. To-day we have convened here because 
 we could have found no better place and because a tie of gratitude 
 binds us to this city in which our once homeless movement was en- 
 abled to express the wishes and grievances of oppressed men. 
 
 The new Jewish movement came before the world as a strange 
 apparition, incomprehensible to many. Some considered it a ghost of 
 former times. Was not the Jewish people dead and forgotten? But 
 we had felt dimly, half consciously as it were, that this was not true. 
 Death is the end of all suffering whence came it that we suffered? 
 In us the words of the thinker 1 were paraphrased : "I suffer, therefore 
 I am !" And gradually, as wrong succeeded wrong, this realization 
 assumed more definite form, until the national consciousness stood 
 before us in its entirety, not as yet the common property of all, but 
 equipped with a mighty capacity to spread abroad. And in truth it 
 conquered, vanquishing heads and hearts, winning old and young, 
 and the first Congress of the Zionists was a manifestation of our 
 reanimated national consciousness. But there were a number of 
 objections, and weighty ones, against convening this assemblage of 
 citizens of various countries. Would not our enemies proffer the 
 accusation that we desired to form an international league against our 
 Christian fellow-citizens? Would it not have an adverse effect upon 
 our position in one country or another? In refutation we maintained 
 emphatically from the start, and proved by all our actions, that under 
 no circumstances did we desire an international league, but merely 
 international discussion. And let it be repeated here once more for 
 perpetual remembrance : We have nothing to do with intrigues, 
 secret interventions and devious methods, but only with open dis- 
 cussion of our present and future status, conducted under the con- 
 stant supervision of public opinion. 
 
 Our words must have rung true, for the Congress called forth 
 widespread sympathy even from those who were formerly indifferent 
 or antagonistic to the Jews. Every genuine nationality which does 
 not hide behind a strange mask has a fundamental right to respect 
 and toleration on the part of other nations, provided it does not 
 menace their existence. Even though our times are clouded by anti- 
 Semitism, we must not forget that they were preceded by more mag- 
 nanimous days, when all the civilized nations bestowed equal rights 
 upon us. Their intentions were good, but the results were inadequate. 
 
 10
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 11 
 
 Who was to blame we or the others? Perhaps both, or, rather con- 
 ditions of long standing which were not to be eradicated by laws and 
 ordinances. The laws were kindlier than the usages. We witnessed 
 the reaction, the tremendous welling-up of regret on the part of those 
 nations which had so recently shown us indulgence. From the eman- 
 cipation which cannot be rescinded and the anti-Semitism the exist- 
 ence of which cannot be denied, we have drawn new and important 
 conclusions. It could not have been the historic import of our eman- 
 cipation that we cease to be Jews, for we were repulsed whenever we 
 wanted to intermingle with the others. The historic import of our 
 emancipation was rather that we provide a home for our liberated 
 nationality. This we could not have done before. We can do it now 
 if we desire it with all our might. 
 
 It is not sufficient that we feel and recognize ourselves to be a 
 nation. Once the national consciousness is awakened the national will 
 must also be aroused. But this point was and still is fraught with 
 many difficulties. In the course of our prolonged sufferings we have 
 been weaned from the habit of consistent volition, and we did not 
 dare to give tongue to aspirations which every other nation not only 
 does not hide but vaunts as its greatest glory. Now that we have 
 finally taken this course we meet the passive resistance of those who 
 are opposed to every change, who remain in the most uncomfortable 
 situation through sheer indolence ; in fact, we encounter the enmity 
 of certain, so to speak, official circles of Jewry. The protests of 
 several rabbis were among the most striking of these manifestations. 
 That these gentlemen pray for Zion and at the same time agitate 
 against it, will forever remain a strange phenomenon. This incon- 
 sistency may be explained by the fact that they were in the beginning 
 uncertain as to whether their congregations sympathized with the new 
 call of Zion. However, an idea like ours cannot be left to the mercy 
 of those who have heretofore been presidents of Jewish communities 
 or to the opportunistic considerations of their spiritual advisers. 
 Almost everywhere the masses are with us. It is they who constitute 
 as well as support the communities. Consequently their wishes must 
 be carried out. Hitherto we have refrained from emphasizing this in- 
 consistency out of brotherly consideration, but finally it has become 
 necessary to make a change. That there should be agitations in 
 Jewish communities against Zion has become unbearable. The situa- 
 tion is absurd, impossible. We must end it. An election campaign 
 must be begun wherever the heads of the communities are not yet 
 with us. Men with convictions similar to ours, worthy and capable 
 of filling these distinguished positions, must be nominated and elected 
 in the name of the national idea. The prestige of the Jewish com- 
 munity, the means at its disposal, the people whom it supports, must
 
 12 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 not be used to oppose the will of our people. Therefore I think I voice 
 the sentiments of you all, fellow delegates, in proposing to make the 
 conquest of the Jewish communities one of our immediate aims. 
 
 Moreover, this is the fair and lawful way to make manifest the 
 Zionistic proclivities of our people, not only in the annual delibera- 
 tions which unite us here, but in daily actions as well, wherever Jews 
 are to be found. We must not content ourselves with knowing to 
 what extent the Zionist idea has laid hold of Jewry. The facts must 
 be demonstrated. The ballot is the only suitable, wholly unexcep- 
 tionable means to this end. 
 
 Our efforts have already aroused much valuable sympathy out- 
 side the ranks of Jewry, but it is still considered doubtful whether we 
 Zionists are not an isolated little band, whose assurances and inten- 
 tions are not to be taken seriously. The conquest of the communities 
 will show what our capabilities are. 
 
 There are those who find fault with us for desiring and seeking 
 out the sympathy of the non-Jewish world for our efforts. Yes, those 
 self-same individuals, who tell us reproachfully that Zionism erects 
 new barriers between people, cavil because we welcome the friendship 
 of Christian Zionists. But it is not through paltry considerations of 
 expediency that we clasp the hands so amicably held out to us, for 
 they show above all that there is a conciliatory force inherent in 
 Zionism. Thoughts free from hatred flourish in this soil. We hold 
 inviolably to our Jewishness, and nevertheless gain nobly disinter- 
 ested friends. Is that so bad? They say that we create new differ- 
 ences, and yet we bring people nearer to one another by a negligible 
 effort, without the use of artifices. We show ourselves as we are 
 we simply tell the truth ! 
 
 And there is no doubt that we need such friends. We want to 
 r accomplish the task which confronts us by our own efforts ; but in 
 order to be successful we must be surrounded by sympathy. Why 
 do we merit this sympathy? Because we are solving a problem which 
 weighs upon several countries, the solution of which is impossible 
 without our aid. The Jewish question afflicts many a land. The 
 discussion of the general situation prevailing during the last year will 
 show you that proofs of the necessity for Zionism are sadly 
 numerous. 
 
 Far and near, now in the South and now in the North, Jew- 
 hatred springs up. No civilized country lies so far to the West that 
 it has not echoed to this ancient hue and cry; no semi-civilization is 
 so backward that it has not acquired the newest forms and catch- 
 words. Suddenly a mob will rush through the streets and flames will 
 consume the property of the Jews, and sometimes its owners as well. 
 
 But that is not the worst. Neither bloodshed nor devastation 
 
 A
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 13 
 
 nor insults are the worst. These disturbances do grave damage to 
 the souls of our people. Ever and again they undermine our sense of 
 right and of honor, and they cause their victims to become enemies 
 of a social system which permits such things. Let us not be sur- 
 prised if these proletarians among proletarians, the most despairing of 
 human kind, are to be found in all the extreme revolutionary factions. 
 Let us not be surprised, but let us rather endeavor to bring about an 
 improvement. 
 
 It is perhaps to be expected of far-sighted statesmen that they 
 recognize the extent of the danger to society which lies in the un- 
 solved Jewish question. That the Jews constitute a disintegrating 
 element is habitually maintained. One faction and the other stagger 
 blindly from injustice to injustice. But since we wish to form the 
 Jews into a constructive element, we ought logically to have the sup- 
 port of all those who do not desire that the Jews disintegrate every- 
 thing. We are ready to bring about the constructive period of Jewry. 
 We have everything in abundance people, materials, plans. We need 
 nothing more than a site ! 
 
 Of course the site which is suited to use is of a peculiar nature. 
 No spot on earth has been so coveted as this, and many nations de- 
 sired it so intensely that the ardor of their longing dried it up. We, 
 however, believe that this desolate corner of the Orient has, like us, 
 not only a past but also a future. On that soil, where so little grows 
 at present, there grew ideas for all mankind. And for that very rea- 
 son nobody can deny that there is a deathless relation between our 
 people and that land. If there is such a thing as a legitimate claim 
 to a portion of the earth's surface, all peoples who believe in the Bible 
 must recognize the rights of the Jews. As a matter of fact, they may 
 do so without envy or anxiety, for the Jews are not, and will never- 
 more become, a political power. 
 
 What would happen in the event of its seizure by one of the ex- 
 isting powers? That is another question. Palestine is not only the 
 home of the loftiest of ideas and the unhappiest of peoples ; but it is 
 also of great importance to all Europe because of its geographical 
 situation. The time cannot be distant when it will be traversed by a 
 cultural and commercial highway to Asia. Asia is the diplomatic 
 problem of the coming decade. Let us recall in all modesty that we 
 Zionists, whom people readily declare to be lacking in practical 
 penetration, foresaw and proclaimed this development of the Euro- 
 pean contest several years ago. Already the trend of things is ap- 
 parent. You know how closely every step which any one power 
 takes in this direction is watched by the others. Now that the most 
 modern of princes 2 of the inhabited globe is about to undertake a 
 journey to the Holy Land, we detect anxiety and, in some cases, 
 
 :
 
 14 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 open hostility in the expressions of public opinion in all countries. 
 The land in question cannot and will not ever pass into the possession 
 of any one power, for it is guarded with extreme solicitude. Not only 
 its present owner but all the powers watch over it carefully. 
 
 Must it then remain in its present condition to the end of time? 
 This would surely be regrettable for all concerned, for the very reason 
 that a developed Palestine is indispensable from the point of view of 
 both culture and commerce. In the recent war the Ottoman Empire 
 has again demonstrated its indestructible vitality. The Turks have 
 excellent qualities. They are brave, magnanimous, capable of sacri- 
 fice; but they do not possess those qualities which are requisite for 
 industrialism and the cultivation of a country. This is a fact. There- 
 fore they would be both strengthened and enriched by the acquisition 
 of a peaceable, enterprising national element endowed with the very 
 qualities which they lack. 
 
 Consequently, the task before us, for the accomplishment of 
 which we are continually working, is to create conditions favorable to 
 an adjustment of this nature. We may state that the Turkish gov- 
 ernment is well aware of the thorough uprightness of our efforts. 
 We neither want to smuggle in settlers nor to engage in any creative 
 work whatsoever without a previous agreement. In fact, we should 
 have no interest at all in helping to strengthen Turkey economically 
 if we were to receive nothing in return. The whole thing is to be 
 done according to the simplest formula in the world: Do ut des (I 
 give in order that you may give). 
 
 Now the question is, how we shall proceed further. Already at 
 the first Congress we recognized the necessity of creating a financial 
 medium for the purposes of our movement. The Jewish Colonial 
 Trust is to fill this need. 3 It is thoroughly characteristic of our Jewish 
 opponents that they insist upon considering us incapable of perform- 
 ing a task of this sort. But we have in our ranks not only artists and 
 philosophers, scholars and journalists, lawyers, physicians and engi- 
 neers, but also a goodly array of bankers and merchants hailing from 
 all countries. This was the first time a doubt had been expressed as 
 to whether Jews could found a bank, and here again the doubters 
 were mistaken. 
 
 The Jewish Colonial Trust will soon come into being, in accord- 
 ance with our program. To judge by the results of the bank con- 
 ference, we may assume that the Jewish Colonial Trust will enter 
 upon its business activities in the course of this very year. But I do 
 not want to anticipate the report prepared by experts, which you will 
 hear in good time. 
 
 A number of other reports are to be presented to you. You will, 
 I hope, gather from them that this year has not slipped by fruitlessly, 
 
 L
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 15 
 
 and that we are working toward our goal in patient and hopeful love. 
 Even outside this hall it will be seen that we are not possessed by an 
 extravagant dream, that we desire nothing silly or unjust. What 
 we want is to make it possible for our unfortunate people to live a life 
 of industry, for it is by steady work alone that we hope for their 
 physical and moral rehabilitation. For this reason above all we have 
 undertaken to rally our people around an ideal. 
 
 It is impossible that our attitude should displease other nations. 
 This was first proven in this free city, which is extending its hospi- 
 tality to us. The day before yesterday was St. Jacob's Day. Toward 
 evening the crowds returned from their holiday outing. They re- 
 minded one of the beautiful story of "The Squad of the Seven Up- 
 right Men" by Gottfried Keller, the delightful Swiss author. There 
 were squads upon squads of upright people who aim to cultivate a 
 valiant spirit in a sound body. They drew past our Congress head- 
 quarters. A lady waved her handkerchief to them in greeting. Her 
 action was the signal for a demonstration which we shall certainly 
 never forget. As the squads marched by they saluted our people, 
 and a strange and unexpected shout rose from the street : "Hurrah 
 for the Jews !" Perhaps hot tears welled up in the eyes of many of 
 us. At such moments we lose the self-possession which we have 
 learned to maintain in the face of all sorts of oppression and of the 
 most unjust accusations. 
 
 Does this shout of Basle signify the beginning of kindlier times? 
 That we cannot tell. But we can resolve to become worthy of such 
 acclamations. As we were steadfast in the darkest days so let us be 
 thankful and modest if better days should come. And how shall we 
 conjure up those better days, which still lie beyond our field of 
 vision? Will they bring us no more than the possession of land, in- 
 creased consideration, untroubled rest? No! Those of us who are 
 today prepared to hazard our lives for the cause would regret having 
 raised a finger, if we were able to organize only a new social system 
 and not a more righteous one. 
 
 Better days for us, but also for the others in whose behalf we 
 want to set out once more on unbeaten paths as self-sacrificing 
 pioneers. To attain our ends our cultural status need be no more elevated, 
 no more marvelous, than it is at present. But our culture should be 
 utilized for the furtherance of humane ends. And we believe that our 
 people will understand this, because it has passed through so many 
 schools, has lived among so many peoples. If it has suffered among 
 them all, it knows the sufferings of all. We see in a vision of better 
 days an assemblage of men of all cultures, such as this hall contains 
 today a universal citizenship, not limited to a single language; a 
 permanent attempt to vanquish misery by harmonious co-operation ;
 
 16 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 and growing out of all this a higher type of civilization. And then 
 our attempts to adapt ourselves, the failure of which brought us to- 
 gether anew, will yet stand us in good stead. Perhaps the efficiency 
 of the Germanic peoples, the versatility of the Latin peoples, the 
 great patience of the Slavs, have not passed over us without leaving 
 an impression. Is our meaning clear? Jewish artists, philosophers 
 and scholars of all lands united in a common work and under a 
 tolerant social system ! It is true that we aspire to our ancient land. 
 But what we want in the ancient land is a new blossoming of the 
 Jewish spirit. 
 
 
 L
 
 THIRD CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 
 Delivered at Basle, August 15th, 1899 
 
 FELLOW DELEGATES: At this solemn hour, when the delegates of 
 the Jewish people, coming from afar, convene here, let our first word 
 be one of thanks to the free and beautiful city which has once more 
 extended its hospitality to us. Not only those present are grateful, 
 but also their constituents in many remote parts of the world. Basle, 
 the Basle Congress, the Basle Platform, these words have already/ 
 become familiar to our people, and signify consolation and hope. 
 
 We are here for the third time to discuss the grievances and the 
 wishes of a nation which seeks to reawaken to life. It seemed in the 
 beginning, perhaps it still seems to some people, as if little were 
 accomplished by our coming here and delivering speeches, speeches 
 interspersed with sighs. These doubters overlook the fact that even 
 other representative bodies do no more than talk. Who will deny that 
 speeches delivered under such circumstances have a tremendous in- 
 fluence on the present and future destiny of a nation? Knowing this, 
 we have taken pains to create a platform whence our words will be 
 heard ; that is to say, a Jewish forum. 
 
 As our people is not to return to the life of a former age, but is 
 to awaken to the life of present times, it has had to be provided first 
 of all with a modern medium of this sort, so that it may be enabled 
 to voice its desire for continued existence. Therefore, this forum 
 which we have gained is a precious possession. Let us guard it well ! 
 Through the earnestness and calm of our deliberations we can in- 
 crease the respect shown to our Congress. This respect we should 
 speedily forfeit through want of discretion and through quarrels. Our 
 rostrum will be as lofty as the speeches delivered. There is no ma- 
 terial power to lend weight to our words, consequently if they are to 
 have any significance whatsoever it can proceed only from the spiritual 
 power of the idea and from the nobility of the sentiments which we 
 proclaim. Everyone of us must keep this fact in mind constantly if 
 he wishes to speak here for the Jewish people and to the Jewish 
 people. 
 
 There is another thing: we are not here to occupy ourselves 
 with the internal affairs of the individual countries of which we 
 happen to be citizens. Any such attempt would only serve to pro- 
 duce a false impression of our Congress. We are here for the sole 
 purpose of taking counsel on the situation of our people and of work- 
 ing out, under the supervision of public opinion, a solution which 
 shall be lawful as well as humane. That we have no other end in 
 
 17
 
 18 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 view has been demonstrated by all our previous actions. Thus we 
 ourselves draw incontestable boundaries about our activities. We 
 want to occupy ourselves with the welfare of the Jewish people. 
 That is our right. It is also our duty. 
 
 At the time when the peace proposal 1 of His Majesty the Em- 
 peror of Russia rejoiced the world, it was to be remarked that this 
 means of getting at international difficulties through a frank ex- 
 change of thoughts on the part of those involved has come to satisfy 
 the ethical consciousness of present-day civilization. You will recall 
 that we were assembled here when this noble proposal became 
 known and that the Zionist Congress was the first body that could 
 express its enthusiasm. Now a year has elapsed. The peace idea is 
 on the way to becoming a reality, and that is a great deal, even if it 
 has not yet reached its goal. But this example should serve us as 
 a lesson in patience. If the great ones of this earth content them- 
 selves with the slow progress of their loftiest ideas, how satisfied 
 must we poor folks be if we can affirm that things are going forward 
 a little. Thus we should continue with our work cheerfully even if 
 there had been no outward evidence of progress during the past year. 
 Even if nothing had occurred which could be taken to signify a 
 strengthening of our movement or an increase of the esteem it com- 
 mands and the means at its disposal, we should have had to proceed 
 cheerfully with our task. 
 
 But this year was by no means a bad one for our movement. It 
 was a good year. We achieved a number of things ; we made distinct 
 progress. 
 
 An important event, which was, as usual, partly suppressed and 
 partly advertised in distorted form by our opponents, was the re- 
 r ception accorded to the Zionist delegation in Jerusalem by His 
 Majesty the German Emperor. The very fact that the gifted em- 
 peror has given his attention to the national idea would suffice to 
 inspire us with a certain amount of confidence. Insignificant move- 
 ments are not perceived from such heights. But what took place 
 was more than a mere recognition. It was not as a Jewish deputation 
 nor as members of a "practical" colonization association that they 
 were received, but as a delegation of the Zionist Actions Committee. 
 The principles and the aims of our movement were fully known be- 
 forehand, and it was a memorable day for all Jewry when, with this 
 knowledge, the German Emperor assured us of his sympathetic in- 
 terest. All true Jews ought to be grateful to him in consequence. 
 
 Fellow Delegates, you will understand that decorum forbids us 
 to utilize the Jerusalem reception for publicity in view of the circum- 
 stances under which it took place, fortunate and significant occur-
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 19 
 
 rence as it is. We shall therefore refrain from discussing it here in 
 any connection whatsoever. But one point must be brought out in 
 the fulness of our gratitude. As a result of this event nobody will 
 henceforth question the lawfulness and uprightness of our movement, 
 which has been so highly honored. 
 
 Naturally we lay great stress on emphasizing and proving the 
 uprightness of our attitude to the Turkish government. We shall 
 take no step which could begin to arouse the just suspicion of the 
 owner of Palestine. We want to and are able to bring great benefits 
 to the Ottoman Empire and consequently we can proceed openly. Those 
 who come in furtively do not intend to bring gifts. This reasoning, 
 as is readily understood, led to the present immigration difficulties in 
 Palestine. 2 We did not bring them to pass, and it is generally known 
 that they antedate the movement here represented. But although we 
 cannot be accused of having caused the interdiction against immigra- 
 tion, nevertheless we shall clearly state our position in this matter. 
 
 What? An attempt was made to introduce an army of settlers 
 into a country without first making a public statement of the scope 
 of the plan? If anyone arrives secretly in the night and the fog he 
 must not be surprised to be accosted by a cry of "Halt ! Who goes 
 there?" And so much the worse for him if he cannot give a valid 
 answer! Besides, in such a situation no answer is above suspicion. 
 Therefore we do otherwise. We announce our intentions in the light 
 of day, from which, God be thanked, we need not shrink, and we 
 want to gain permission before undertaking a task which would 
 otherwise be the most unjustifiable of all experiments. For the ques- 
 tion is not only to get the people there, but also to keep them there, 
 and that in complete security. 
 
 Unfortunately there are many of our brothers who could not be 
 worse off than they are, and who are consequently ready for anything. 
 But in order to do no more than turn -a sick man from one side 
 to the other it would be unnecessary to expend so much sagacity, 
 trouble, and money. Let us rather try to cure him. That is so great 
 an aim, so sensible and self evident, that henceforth nobody will seek 
 for hidden motives. Why should we not proclaim it outright? Then 
 all our intentions become comprehensible and suspicion vanishes at 
 once. We are now entering upon negotiations which will sooner or 
 later lead to results if we proceed unitedly and keep our forces 
 together. 
 
 For this reason above all we have generated the electric current 
 of our unity and desire to strengthen it more and more. Nobody 
 has a right to divert or draw off part of this current. It would be 
 treason to the whole. 
 
 We know that not all Zionists are represented at this Congress.
 
 20 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 Our movement is much larger than it would appear here. One im- 
 portant group of excellent Zionists 3 of a more conservative trend is 
 not yet in accord with the methods adopted by us. We do not lose 
 hope of converting those brothers to our way of thinking. In theory 
 we are at one. We must combine in seeking the best way of realizing 
 our ideal. 
 
 Then there are other Zionists, in fact, those most powerful as 
 regards material means, who would be in perfect sympathy with us 
 had we not chosen to proceed by way of public discussion. They 
 will be with us if once we are successful. Before that we do not need 
 them, and then we shall have their support. There is no longer any 
 doubt on that head. 
 
 What will be the nature of this success? Let us say it in one 
 word : A charter ! Our efforts are directed toward obtaining a 
 charter from the Turkish Government a charter under the suze- 
 rainty of his Majesty the Sultan. Only then, when we shall be 
 in possession of this charter which must contain the necessary pub- 
 licly legalized guarantees can we begin practical colonization on a 
 large scale. In return for the granting of this charter we shall bring 
 great benefits to the Turkish Government. 
 
 But this could not and cannot be brought to pass through the 
 medium of the Congress, which does not possess the requisite legal 
 power. A special contracting party had to be created in order to con- 
 clude this agreement ; and that is the Jewish Colonial Trust. If any- 
 one should still raise the question whether the Zionist movement was 
 to be taken seriously the hundred thousand subscribers to the Jew- 
 ish Colonial Trust have answered him. The answer came from 
 Siberia, from the frontiers of China, from Southern Argentina, 
 from Canada, and from the Transvaal. Today the Colonial Trust 
 is a fact. Those of us who serve our ideal with ever increasing en- 
 thusiasm are not in the habit of vaunting the sacrifices we have made. 
 But now that we are presenting to the Congress this accomplished 
 part of our task we may relieve our hearts and confess that this 
 was the greatest sacrifice which we have hitherto been called upon to 
 bring. People who never had anything to do with business to agitate 
 for the establishment of a bank and to lay themselves open to the most 
 insulting suspicions ! It had to be done, and we did it. Today we pre- 
 sent our achievement to the Congress, to which we have assured complete 
 jurisdiction over the administration of the Trust, an administration which 
 t honorably serves the ends of the Zionist movement. The Congress will 
 administer the institution through representatives, who are to be elected 
 annually. Needless to say the capital stock shall not be used for the 
 acquisition of land. The Trust is only an intermediary. A land com- 
 pany, properly speaking, will be organized on the basis of the charter
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 21 
 
 which we intend to obtain and with a correspondingly larger capital. 
 However, even to-day we have definitely ascertained that the requisite 
 sum can be secured, and at the proper time we shall announce facts to 
 you which cannot be made known at present. 
 
 All this would seem to be in the nature of preparations, of pros- 
 pective enterprises. But in reality it is as practical and as present a 
 thing as a seed entrusted to the soil. First it was a seed of thought, 
 now it is a seed of projects. Today it is not yet bread it is only the 
 bread of tomorrow. It is true that the oversatiated, whose imagi- 
 nation is weakened by good living, do not yet want to understand us. 
 So much the better are we understood by the poor and wretched. 
 Their imagination is born of poverty. Today and yesterday have 
 taught them how painful hunger will be tomorrow. And hundreds 
 of thousands of our people are thus situated. They are the most 
 reliable of our associates, though they are not able to give us even a 
 small annual contribution. They are the best Zionists, because among 
 them the old national traditions still persist unforgotten, because 
 they have a strong religious sentiment, and because they suffer dire 
 need. Fearful indeed are the reports from many regions. Jewry 
 is a tremendous tenement of misery, with branches all over the world.* 
 This, too, you will hear from our forum, as it is the sad truth. And 
 these conditions cry for a remedy. Deep misery is the cause of dis- 
 ease and moral neglect, and heavy hearts are fertile soil for the most 
 extreme revolutionary thoughts. These are the things we want to 
 change for the better. We believe that salvation is to be found in 
 wholesome work in a beloved land. Work will provide our people 
 with the bread of the morrow and, moreover, with the honor of the 
 morrow, the freedom of the morrow. 
 
 Our appeal for assistance is directed to the men of all creeds 
 and of all nations. We need none other than moral support from 
 without. There are numbers of Jews who agree with us in their 
 hearts ; but some hesitate to say so for fear of its being held up against 
 them. Those who want to afford us their moral support because they 
 believe in the equitableness of our undertaking should see to it that 
 our movement is not misunderstood in their sphere of activity, for 
 such misunderstandings would only lead to renewed false accusations, 
 such as have so often been directed against us. Otherwise this salutory 
 movement would be intimidated and might possibly come to a stand- 
 still. Surely no fair-minded man desires such a consummation. 
 
 Here then is a people striving for existence, for honor, and for 
 liberty. It seeks to abandon a suffocating atmosphere and to go forth 
 into the sunshine. Under present conditions the Jews have three 
 roads before them : One is apathetic submission to insult and poverty ; 
 another is revolt, outspoken hostility to an unjust social system. 

 
 22 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 Ours is the third road. We want to mount to a higher grade of 
 civilization, to spread well-being abroad, to build new highways for 
 the intercourse of peoples, and to forge an opening for the coming of 
 social justice. And just as our beloved poet 5 transformed his sorrows 
 into songs, so upon the loom of our sufferings we shall weave progress 
 for mankind whom we serve.
 
 FOURTH CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 
 Delivered at London, August \2>th, 1900 
 
 FELLOW DELEGATES: The convening of the fourth Zionist Con- 
 gress in London justifies itself. England is one of the few sanctuaries 
 where Jew hatred has not yet taken root. This incontestable fact in 
 itself reveals the sad plight of the Jewish people at the present time. 
 We must roam the whole of the earth's surface to find a spot where 
 God's ancient people is not cursed and persecuted. 
 
 But let us draw no false conclusions from the fact that in glorious 
 England the Jews enjoy complete freedom and full human rights. He 
 were a poor friend of the Jews of this land as well as of those of other 
 lands who advised the persecuted to flee to England. Our English 
 brethren could not enjoy their fortunate situation otherwise than in 
 fear and trembling if it proved an attraction for the despairing ones of 
 our people. An immigration of this sort would constitute a danger 
 not only to those who are living here but to the newcomers as well. 
 For these latter would unwittingly import in their wretched bundles 
 the very thing from which they were fleeing, namely, anti-Semitism. 1 
 We, however, pitch our tents here for a few days as we propose to 
 treat of the solution of the Jewish question in public discussion. 
 
 In the interval between Congresses our opponents take great 
 pains to cover our intentions with an entanglement of untruths, and 
 as a result our first task, whenever we come together, must be to re- 
 move this overgrowth with the blow of an axe, as it were, and to lay 
 bare the tree. Thus we have the pleasure of seeing that our tree is 
 healthy and flourishing. 
 
 Zionism demands a publicly recognized and legally secured home 
 in Palestine for the Jewish people. This platform, which we drew up 
 three years ago, is unchangeable. It must have responded to a very 
 deep necessity, a very old longing of our people, otherwise its effects 
 would be inexplicable. There is no need of my enumerating these 
 effects at the present day. Everyone knows them, everyone sees and 
 hears them. Four years ago in speaking of a Jewish nation one ran 
 the risk of being thought ridiculous. Today he makes himself ridicu- 
 lous who denies the existence of a Jewish nation. A glance at this 
 hall, where our people is represented by delegates from all over the 
 world, suffices to prove this. 
 
 This fact is of significance not only to us but to others as well. 
 It affords the individual countries an humane and equitable solution 
 of the perplexing Jewish question, and at the same time it opens up 
 new vistas in the Near East. 
 
 23
 
 24 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 Our return to the land of our fathers, foretold by Holy Writ, 
 sung by poets, desired with tears by the poor of our people, and 
 derided by pitiable mockers, is an event of the greatest political in- 
 terest to all the powers concerned in the affairs of Asia. 
 
 Permit me to quote a few words from the opening address deliv- 
 ered at the Second Congress. In the year 1898 the following words 
 were spoken in Basle : "Palestine is not only the home of the loftiest 
 ideas and the unhappiest of peoples, but it is also of great importance 
 to Europe because of its geographical situation. The time cannot be 
 distant when it will be traversed by a cultural and commercial high- 
 way to Asia. Asia is the diplomatic problem of the coming decade." 
 
 These words, dating back to 1898, actually give an impression of 
 triteness to-day, so completely have they been borne out by the events 
 of the last few months. The Asiatic problem grows more serious day 
 by day, and threatens to become a bloody problem for a time. For 
 this reason it is more and more to the interest of the civilized 
 nations and of civilization in general that a cultural station be estab- 
 lished on the shortest road to Asia. Palestine is this station, and we 
 Jews are the bearers of culture who are ready to give our property and 
 our lives to bring about its creation. Those who concern themselves 
 with politics will perceive in the twinkling of an eye that a valuable 
 opportunity to draw nearer to Asia is thus presented. No one of the 
 powers would need to look with anxiety upon the cultural station 
 which the impotent Jewish people would speedily erect under the 
 suzerainty of his Majesty the Sultan. The Jews would be benefited, 
 together with the others, and Turkey would reap the greatest ad- 
 vantages of all. 
 
 England, mighty England, free England, with its world-embrac- 
 ing outlook, will understand us and our aspirations. With England 
 as a starting point we may be sure that the Zionist idea will soar 
 further and higher than ever before. 
 
 Of course, the practical people, the overwise, will come and ask 
 us what is to be gained by all this. We know these people. We re- 
 member all the stones they hurled in our path, all the annoyances 
 they wished to cause us, and succeeded in causing us. It is these same 
 people who are never done with asking what we have accomplished, 
 how far we have progressed, when we will finally reach our goal. If 
 they had helped us with all their strength instead of hampering us 
 with all their strength, they could not question us more eagerly. Not 
 one of those who are working in the construction of this edifice, from 
 the greatest to the least, from the architects and their assistants to 
 the humble, loyal, hod-carriers, has questioned us so persistently. We 
 are content with the knowledge that we must work, and we do it 
 cheerfully, courageously and enthusiastically. We build on and on,
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 25 
 
 and our edifice grows. It is not given to everyone to understand that 
 which is not yet finished. But I am convinced that those Jews who 
 stand aside to-day with a malicious smile and with their hands in 
 their trousers' pockets, will also want to dwell in our beautiful house. 
 
 There is, however, a definite question which we have no intention 
 of evading. Have we already obtained a charter, giving us the right 
 of settlement in Palestine? We answer clearly and distinctly: No. 
 It is quite another question whether we still continue to hope, to 
 struggle, to work, in order to obtain it. To this question we answer 
 equally clearly and distinctly : Yes ! The likelihood of realizing our 
 demands and proposals grows with our numbers and with the increase 
 of our strength. For the present we have reason to be satisfied with 
 the spirit in which our aspirations were regarded by the mighty ones 
 of the earth. Do not demand more than this intimation from your 
 Actions Committee. In this respect you must have implicit confidence 
 in it. You may freely question it regarding all other matters. 
 
 Our activities and the progress we have made can be summed up 
 in a single sentence : We are organizing Jewry for its coming destiny. 
 
 But for once we, too, shall ask a question. We shall ask our 
 Jewish opponents what they have done in all these years to relieve 
 the frightful distress of our brothers. Where are the results of their 
 work? What have they achieved? Have they created anything prac- 
 tical ? We are continually told of committees, of collections, of insti- 
 tutions. Out with the results ! Out with the effects ! We should like 
 to admire these people, and to thank them in the name of the poor. 
 
 This is no petulant question, but a fearfully serious one. You all 
 know what horrible event provokes it, how the Roumanian Jews made 
 their way through Europe, leaving as it were, a track of blood in 
 their wake. 2 Where was "official Jewry" ? Where were the great ones 
 of Israel, the pillars of the communities? By their fruits shall ye know 
 them ! They made much ado about hurrying a few thousand fugi- 
 tives along, and then declared that they were unable to do anything 
 further. Groups of fugitives who came later were driven together by 
 means of armed force, and were put in special trains to be thrust back 
 to the frontiers which they had succeeded in crossing with frightful 
 hardships. These special trains represented the supreme effort of the 
 charitably inclined. Up to now, among the arguments in favor of 
 Zionism, one of the best was the bankruptcy of assimilation. Now 
 we have a new one : the insolvency of philanthropy. And what an 
 insolvency! For when the wealthy become bankrupt the losses are 
 enormous. 
 
 The philanthropic societies insist that they were not prepared for 
 a calamity of this nature. That is their fault. They should have been 
 gracious enough to acquaint themselves with the deliberations of our
 
 26 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 Congresses. At the first Basle Congress in 1897 the petitions of fifty 
 thousand Roumanian Jews were submitted. They implored help from 
 the depth of their misery. They could not endure their plight for an- 
 other hour, and they endured it three years longer. Three years of 
 misery, the horror of which we can begin to grasp only now when we 
 see them on their wanderings. You will hear more of this in the 
 course of our deliberations. 
 
 It would seem as if all this, the shameful misery, the impossibility 
 of providing a shelter for the fugitives, the wreck of the relief 
 agencies, ought to convince our most obstinate opponents that the 
 Zionists alone are in possession of the one true panacea. No ! Under 
 no circumstances must we be put in the right. On the contrary, we 
 are accused of having instigated these lamentable wanderings of the 
 Jews in order to provide ourselves with propaganda material. 
 
 We herewith declare this to be a falsehood. Never, never did we 
 incite or favor so aimless a pilgrimage. We have answered the in- 
 numerable inquiries of eager would-be travelers with admonitions to 
 be patient. Foreseeing events as we did, we warned the people who 
 wanted to leave their homes without plans, without a goal, and without 
 money, of the calamity which was bound to overtake them. When, 
 having ignored our dissuasions, these victims of misery started out on 
 their wanderings, we nevertheless helped them as best we could. 
 
 Unfortunately we could not do much, as we had made no pro- 
 vision for charitable undertakings. But this disaster, which is prob- 
 ably not the last of its kind, and which is, as a matter of fact, not yet 
 of the past, should be a serious warning to us Zionists as well as to" 
 others. We must not content ourselves with using it as evidence that 
 our theories are justified. We must draw practical conclusions there- 
 from. No longer shall despairing emigrants depend upon the ca- 
 pricious favor of philanthropists. Let it be one of the duties of this 
 Congress to establish financial agencies by means of which our 
 Zionists will in future attempt to guarantee reciprocal aid to one an- 
 other in cases of necessity. By bringing small sacrifices each indi- 
 vidual can increase the strength of the whole, which may perhaps 
 come to his aid some day. Thus we may earn a right to assistance and 
 require no more favors. 
 
 Our progress is laborious, yes, and full of affliction. But it will 
 prove our courage and our faithfulness. Let those who crave imme- 
 diate results withdraw from our ranks. And if the final victory takes 
 its time in coming to us we shall at least be able to point to a moral 
 gain growing out of the material need of our people. We shall have 
 shown that Jewry is still capable of an idealism which defies danger, 
 endures privation, and possesses the infinite patience through which 
 great ends are achieved.
 
 FIFTH CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 
 Delivered at Basle, December 26th, 1901 
 
 FELLOW DELEGATES: This year we come together for the fifth 
 time, for the fourth time in Basle, where our movement is regarded 
 with a kindliness for which we are sincerely grateful. Indeed, it may be 
 said that the hospitality shown by this city to a movement which aims 
 to alleviate misery has but served to increase its long-standing renown. 
 
 Already many things that seemed difficult of achievement are 
 completed and have been left behind us, and others are on the way 
 to accomplishment. But let me signalize one fact above all others : 
 we are met together again in faithfulness, and the years have failed 
 to cool our enthusiasm for a noble cause. Death has robbed us of 
 numbers of staunch adherents; physical ills and professional duties 
 have kept away many a one who is nevertheless present in spirit. It 
 was not easy for dwellers in distant parts of the world to travel at this 
 time of the year, but some of them have appeared notwithstanding, 
 and new co-workers, not only Jews, have joined us in gratifying num- 
 bers. Without party bias I can safely assert that the helpers who 
 have come to us from the ranks of other creeds and nationalities are 
 of the best and noblest types of mankind. 
 
 Allow me to quote from an address delivered by the English 
 author, Hall Caine, at a recent meeting in London : "If I were a Jew 
 I should be mightily proud of the fact proud to belong to an ancient 
 race which has produced some of the greatest men in history ; proud 
 of a nation which still takes an active part in the affairs of the world, 
 although it can call neither throne nor king nor army nor a square inch 
 of the earth's surface its own; proud of a literature which in Holy 
 Writ has soared to a height not attained by other masterpieces of the 
 human spirit ; I should be proud of the opportunity of taking part in 
 an effort to transform Palestine from a poverty-stricken desert to a 
 land of rich fertility and prosperity ; but I should be proudest of all of 
 the great possibility which now lies before the Jews, namely, to be 
 able to work for the poor and oppressed of their people, in order to 
 realize the tremendous religious hope which has sustained them for 
 three thousand hideous years." 
 
 Thus speaks a Christian ! But these words, which do him honor, 
 would not be becoming to us. We have a duty to perform. The 
 weak are entitled to the assistance of those who are stronger than 
 they. Our former Congresses have shown what form we think this 
 assistance should take, and it is to be hoped that this Congress too 
 will spread abroad enlightenment as to the lawfulness of our wishes 
 
 27
 
 28 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 and the uprightness of our proceedings. It is our opinion that the 
 Jewish question can be solved only by the Jews themselves. 
 
 Starting from this basic principle, all the rest follows in logical 
 sequence. That is why we have abandoned previous methods. We 
 have not tried to prove through invective that we were the better 
 people. We have not alluded in vague sermons to the imminent fra- 
 ternization of all mankind. We no longer want to wear the mask of 
 any other nationality. And finally we are not working for the over- 
 throw of all things. These matters do not concern us. On the con- 
 trary, we believe that the means of solving the Jewish question are to 
 be found in the existing order of law and society. 
 
 The first attributes to be demanded of people who take upon 
 themselves the solution of a great question are a sufficient measure 
 of earnestness and a calm judgment of given conditions. The condi- 
 tions are sad, but nothing can be accomplished by lamentations. If 
 we show that we are capable of action we shall not lack the co-opera- 
 tion of honest men. There are many indications of this. The impar- 
 tial must admit that we are proposing a decisive solution. At the present 
 time the masses of the Jewish proletariat are not only the poorest and 
 unhappiest, but the most unquiet and the most disquieting as well. They 
 are constantly wandering out of one state of wretchedness into an- 
 other, and how great must their suffering be if they are ready to 
 brave the hopelessness of these wanderings merely in order to seek 
 out a new kind of misery ! To render this proletariat steady and in- 
 dustrious were a noble task in itself, apart from any national or re- 
 ligious motive. You know that many have tried their hand at this 
 task which confronts us, animated by good intentions and moreover 
 with great material means at their disposal. 1 But you also know that 
 these attempts came to nothing. Why? Because they all set out from 
 a false premise. They said: "In the beginning is money." No! In 
 the beginning is the idea! Money will secure hirelings, but it will 
 not arouse a people. Only an idea will bring this to pass. And it has 
 brought it to pass. 
 
 But in criticizing former efforts we must guard against arro- 
 gance. As a matter of fact, our position to the earlier Zionists is 
 simply that of people who make modern improvements on an unserv- 
 iceable old machine. Doubtless the old machine deserves veneration, 
 but it belongs to a museum. Respect for our forerunners and for 
 those who held views similar to ours would prevent us from dwelling 
 so emphatically on this contrast, were it not that the inadequate re- 
 sults of their efforts are used as arguments against us. Philanthropic 
 colonization is a failure. National colonization will succeed. 
 
 Moreover, the question as to what we shall do with the settlers 
 causes us no embarrassment. We want to attach them to the earth,
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 29 
 
 to make them permanent dwellers on the land. They shall live near 
 the soil and by the soil, not keep an anxious eye upon the fluctuations 
 of prices as impotent tradesmen do. Their concern with barter shall 
 be limited to the disposition of the products which they raise in ex- 
 cess of their needs. Each settlement shall administer its own affairs 
 as an agricultural productive association, in accordance with the prin- 
 ciples which experience and science have taught us. We must hold 
 to these principles if by the grace of God we obtain the publicly legal- 
 ized guarantees mentioned in our platform. Thus the foundation can 
 be laid for the permanent peace which the Jewish people long for so 
 intensely. 
 
 What building is to rise upon the broad and steadfast basis of 
 an industrious agricultural population? What sort of modern and 
 habitable edifice? That will depend upon the people itself when once 
 we shall have secured for it the molding of its own destiny. There is 
 room in Palestine for all the forces of Jewry, for the untaught as well 
 as for the highly cultured. No longer will it be necessary to exclude 
 Jewish children from institutions of learning as is done in some places 
 at the present time. And perhaps it is not altogether to the discredit 
 of the Jews that they consider the cultural restrictions imposed upon 
 them as the greatest of present-day afflictions. We shall not even 
 touch upon other forms of oppression, lest our Congress become an- 
 other Wailing Wall. We must not complain, but we must work, all 
 the more because those who have hitherto represented Jewish in- 
 terests have shown themselves incapable of accomplishing anything 
 whatsoever. To give alms is not to help. Alms are merely the 
 tie which binds the lazy rich to the lazy poor. But these two cate- 
 gories do not represent the whole of the Jewish people. 
 
 In recent years, to be sure, they have devised a new method of 
 so-called assistance, namely, the exportation to the New World of 
 those uprooted from Europe. In other words, they have discovered 
 America. Unfortunately, this discovery was made a little too late. 
 America has no longer any use for poor immigrants, nor has England. 
 Even in America there is already great misery among the Jews. 
 Even in America it is generally acknowledged that the solution which 
 we propose is the correct one. As evidence, we have the increasing 
 number of Zionist societies, extending in a long chain from the north 
 of North America to the south of South America, from Canada to 
 Argentina. It is only in certain Jewish circles in Western Europe 
 that they admit anything rather than the fact that we are right. 
 
 Our opponents maintain that we are confronted by insurmount- 
 able political obstacles, but that may be said of the smallest obstacle 
 if one has no desire to surmount it. In the course of the last five 
 years, while we observed all signs open-mindedly, we were unable to
 
 30 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 perceive that the nations and governments were against us. On the 
 contrary, if the clouds have lifted here and there for the Jews, it is 
 thanks to Zionism. On the other hand, governments and nations 
 should be grateful to Zionism for having come as a liberator and a 
 conciliator to point to a remedy, a remedy through which the Jewish 
 question can be settled without barbarity, without medieval cruelty, 
 but rather in noble peace. 
 
 But above all, we must ask what Turkey and its sovereign think 
 of us. Last May I had the honor of being granted a lengthy audi- 
 ence by His Majesty the Sultan Abdul Hamid. The kindness and 
 cordiality of my reception filled me with the highest hopes. I was 
 convinced by the words and the manner of His Majesty that the Jewish 
 people has a friend and benefactor in the ruling Caliph. The Sultan 
 empowered me to declare this officially. Let the Jews of the whole 
 world hear, and let them undertsand what prospects this fact holds 
 out to them, and, finally, let them keep themselves in readiness for the 
 proceeding by means of which they can both help themselves and con- 
 tribute to a renewed blossoming of the Turkish Empire. 
 
 Fellow Delegates, we whom you have commissioned to execute 
 your wishes have completed our first task. We were, so to speak, 
 the mechanics who were to install an electric plant. We built the 
 machinery which could transform energy into current, we laid the 
 wires, frequently in places which previously seemed inaccessible, and 
 thus our modest task is accomplished. Survey it to-day ! 
 
 The main feature of our plant was this Congress, a body repre- 
 sentative of those who are dispersed all over the world, a Jewish 
 forum which has gained in respect from year to year, thanks to the 
 earnestness and the honorable intentions of the men whose words 
 were heard here. Even now watchwords go forth from here to the 
 entire Diaspora. In all the lands of Europe, in North and South 
 America, in North and South Africa, as far as Siberia, India, and Aus- 
 tralia, we find Zionist societies endorsing the Basle platform. This 
 year, for the first time, there is a simultaneous demonstration every- 
 where, the World Zionist Day, in which many hundreds of thousands 
 of Jews are participating. 
 
 Through our societies an unexpected vitality has surged through 
 Jewry. There are innumerable cases of individual effort which, taken 
 collectively, represent a mighty power. The spiritual and moral 
 benefits of Zionism are already considerable ; even our opponents 
 cannot deny it. A Pleiad of poets, artists and scholars have been 
 roused and inspired by our idea. Strangely enough they are not only 
 Jews, as we have seen. That proves that we are proclaiming and striving 
 for something that is common to all mankind. And already rays 
 of light have penetrated to many a dark corner in which the poor of 
 our people dwell. Toynbee Halls, 2 popular cultural centers, are flour-
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 31 
 
 ishing in a number of places. In the school and in the home an ideal 
 is present before the eyes of the young. The students in the universities 
 are animated by a new spirit. Workmen and tradesmen meet together 
 for intellectual discussions. Moreover, physical development is culti- 
 vated in athletic clubs, sociability in glee clubs. Mutual aid associa- 
 tions are springing up. And all this under the banner of Zionism ! 
 But we can do no more than to establish the institutions the nation 
 itself must support and nourish them. 
 
 This is true, above all, of the financial medium of our movement. 
 The Jewish Colonial Trust in London is now ready for business. Our 
 opponents spoke much ill of it in advance. But there were neither 
 founders' profits, shares, nor advantages of any kind for the board of 
 directors, and the administration has no aim but to assure the common 
 property against danger. 
 
 Furthermore, we must see to it that this possession of ours is 
 guarded with the greatest conscientiousness, economically and over- 
 cautiously rather than over-daringly. The Congress exercises super- 
 vision over the Trust through bodies elected by it; that is what con- 
 stitutes the value of this arrangement. An account of the administra- 
 tion must be given publicly. The means which are to be devoted to 
 our national aim cannot be utilized for other purposes through the ca- 
 price or the mistakes of individuals. This financial institution must be 
 directed according to the rules laid down by the Congress and with 
 the care of a good, scrupulous pater familias. And now that it is in 
 existence we can proceed to the execution of the plan which our late 
 friend, Professor Schapira, of the University of Heidelberg, presented 
 to the First Congress : the creation of a National Fund. 3 The money 
 will be deposited in the Jewish Colonial Trust in London. In the 
 course of our deliberations you will be informed of the new proposal 
 and enabled to come to a decision with regard to it. The people shall 
 be not only the founder of this fund, but its permanent administrator 
 as well. This will prevent an arbitrary disposition which might con- 
 flict with the founder's purposes. 
 
 Thus in a certain sense we can say that we have completed our 
 first task. To a great extent the institutions are merely indicated and 
 admit of improvement, but in any case they are extant. The Jewish 
 people can build them up, strengthen them, and utilize them if it so 
 wishes. We took all manner of pains to give our achievement an im- 
 personal character. That alone makes for permanence. Not one of us 
 is indispensable any longer. Neither the death nor the defection of 
 any one of us would impede the progress of our work. 
 
 How soon the machinery which we have prepared will begin to 
 operate we cannot determine. It does not depend upon us here. We 
 were able to establish the plant, but we cannot supply the energy. 
 The energy must be supplied by the whole Jewish people if it so 
 wills.
 
 SIXTH CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 
 Delivered at Basle, August 23rd, 1903 
 
 FELLOW DELEGATES: We are assembling for the Sixth Zionist 
 Congress in the good city of Basle, which has earned our gratitude 
 on former occasions. Again we come together in mingled hope and 
 anxiety. 
 
 In truth, the situation of the Jews throughout the whole world 
 is no more favorable at present than it was in the years of the earlier 
 Congresses. The statement we issued from this forum in former years 
 regarding the situation of our people holds good at the present mo- 
 ment. Here and there a change has doubtless taken place, but not a 
 change for the better. Many of us thought things could grow no 
 worse ; but they did grow worse. Misery has swept over Jewry like a 
 tidal wave. Those who lived in the depths have been submerged. If 
 the inhabitants of higher, more protected spots deny the truth of this 
 shocking fact they are not doing credit either to their insight or to 
 their hearts. Of course merely to admit that the Jews are in a pitiable 
 plight does not do much good. At best it leads to philanthropic en- 
 deavors, which, however praiseworthy they may be in individual cases, 
 are to be censured from a higher, more comprehensive point of view, 
 because notwithstanding their oft-proved futility they salve the con- 
 sciences of those who are conjointly responsible. It is easy to say: 
 "Well, well, we do what we can !" There are some people who pat 
 themselves on the back, if after having read in the morning paper of a 
 brutal Jewish massacre they send a paltry contribution to the news- 
 paper for acknowledgement. But even those who tax themselves 
 in proportion to their fortunes cannot fulfill their duty with money 
 alone. Money does not restore life to the dead, health to the maimed, 
 parents to the orphaned. And how can alms relieve the fear of those 
 who, although they themselves have not been the victims of assault, 
 continue to live in the selfsame circumstances? Their turn may come 
 at any moment. 
 
 As a matter of fact we Zionists have recourse to these arguments 
 against our will. It is distasteful to us to turn disasters to political 
 ends and to search for propaganda material in the anguish of the 
 unfortunate. But we must state from this platform how great was 
 our pain and our wrath when we learned of the hideous occurrences 
 of Kishinev, 1 and how overwhelming our grief to think that Jews must 
 live under such conditions. Poor, careworn existences that met their 
 end in martyrdom ! We shall cherish their memory and provide for 
 their survivors, and then lose no time in useless demonstrations, but 
 devote our living care to the living. 
 
 32
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 33 
 
 The bloody days of the Bessarabian city must not cause us to for- 
 get that there are yet other Kishinevs, not alone in Russia. Kishinev 
 exists wherever Jews undergo bodily or spiritual tortures, wherever 
 their self-respect is wounded and their possessions are damaged be- 
 cause they are Jews. Let us save those who can still be saved ! 
 
 It is high time. Whoever does not blind himself to visible signs 
 must perceive that the situation has undergone an ominous change 
 for the worse. We Zionists have predicted this change for years 
 and now that it has come we are none the less sorrowful. 
 
 In the last two decades of the nineteenth century the Jewish com- 
 mittees looked upon emigration as a panacea for all ills. But apart 
 from all considerations such as the suffering of the wanderers, the 
 cruelty of strange conditions into which they came unprepared, the 
 loss to the nation resulting from ever-repeated dispersions, emigra- 
 tion was -a feasible expedient only so long as the countries into which 
 the stream was directed did not rebel against the influx of a despair- 
 ing proletariat. 
 
 This is the new period into which we have entered. The coun- 
 tries are beginning to resist although or rather, because, the misery 
 of the Jews in Eastern Europe is increasing. And yet they are 
 countries whose high standard of morality it were folly to question. 
 These states consider it necessary to put a check to their wonted 
 humaneness I am not speaking ironically and to treat the Jewish 
 question, which in their case is a question of Jewish immigration, as 
 a matter of politics. It is only among us Jews that some people refuse 
 in fear and trembling to see the political significance of the Jewish 
 question. Their fear should arouse our pity rather than our anger, 
 if once we understand it aright. It is a fear of wide vistas, and it has 
 its source in the narrow "Judengasse." 
 
 Meanwhile things are progressing continuously. In England, 
 hitherto the last refuge unconditionally open to us, a royal com- 
 mission was appointed 2 to investigate alien immigration "alien," to 
 avoid the use of the word "Jewish." The recommendations of the 
 report do not admit of a single doubt as to what kind of immigration 
 the commission had in mind. It is evident how hard a struggle free 
 and magnanimous England has waged within itself, how difficult it 
 finds the enactment of a drastic measure against unfortunate creatures, 
 and for what reason it has instituted a special protracted investiga- 
 tion before deciding to act. For there are age-old principles, glorious 
 as banners, which will not emerge untarnished if England no longer 
 affords a sanctuary to innocent unfortunates. And the same may be 
 said of America, which became a great country for the very reason 
 that it was a sanctuary. 
 
 As time goes on the governments involved in the question of
 
 34 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 Jewish immigration are gaining a fuller understanding of our project. 
 Our solution, which aims to provide a home for the Jewish people, 
 responds so perfectly to a universal need that it is bound to succeed 
 at last. To be sure it is not an easy task. There are difficulties 
 in the way which call for an extraordinary amount of patience and 
 loyalty. But this is part of the education which we gain as we pro- 
 ceed. There are dark days when the things we have toiled to obtain 
 vanish before our eyes ; there are auspicious beginnings which later 
 fall to pieces. As long as a movement is young and frail its leaders 
 have reason to fear that reverses of this sort may demoralize their 
 adherents, and their disappointment and weariness are intensified by 
 anxiety about the continuance of the work, the securing of means, 
 the perseverance of their comrades. But even this situation has its 
 redeeming features. Those people drop out whose loss is of no con- 
 sequence. One withdraws because of wounded vanity, another be- 
 cause he could not serve his own interests in the cause, another be- 
 cause he wanted to be associated only with a successful venture, and 
 yet others for various other reasons. But as to those who remain, 
 their love for the cause grows greater with each sacrifice. They are 
 faithful traveling companions to whom all things can be confided. 
 Thus it was our intention to confide everything to you at the time 
 when we convened this Congress, and thought that we should have 
 nothing to report but the ill-success of negotiations and the failure 
 of long-planned efforts. But matters have taken a somewhat dif- 
 ferent turn. 
 
 Since we assembled here for the fifth time I have again had 
 the honor of being summoned to Constantinople on two occasions 
 by His Majesty the Sultan. On both these occasions, however, in 
 February and in August, 1902, the pourparlers remained without 
 effect. Of course I could not venture upon a course of action which 
 would not have been compatible with our Basle Platform, and a 
 colonization plan calling for scattered, unrelated communities in dif- 
 ferent parts of the Turkish Empire could not have satisfied our 
 national aspirations. The only thing to be gathered from all these 
 troublesome negotiations was that His Majesty the Sultan continues 
 to be kindly disposed to the Jewish people. This fact is undoubtedly 
 cheering and valuable, but it offers us no practical advantages. Given 
 the kindly sentiments of the ruler and the indisputable benefits to 
 be gained by the Turkish Empire it would appear that the obstacle 
 in our path is to be sought in the attitude of the great powers which 
 are interested in the Near East, especially Russia. That we need 
 not look for resistance on the part of Germany, we know from the 
 German Emperor. In 1898 when, together with the Zionist dele- 
 gation, I had the honor of being accorded a reception in Jerusalem, His
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 35 
 
 Majesty assured us of his sympathetic attitude toward the movement. 
 The word of an Emperor must not be twisted or subtilized. Nor 
 was there any reason to apprehend opposition on the part of Eng- 
 land, as we can see from events which I shall now relate to you. 
 
 After the ill-success of the last negotiations with Constantinople, 
 and as a result of the steadily increasing misery prevailing among 
 the Jews, we found ourselves forced to take another course of action. 
 Therefore last October I entered into communication with several 
 members of the British Cabinet, and made them the proposition that 
 they grant our people a concession on the Sinai Peninsula for coloni- 
 zation purposes. Not only the secretaries, to whom I desire to ex- 
 press my warmest thanks on this occasion, but the higher officials 
 of the British government who are concerned with matters of this 
 kind, received me with the heartiest good will and met me more than 
 half way. I was informed that as the territory in question was under 
 Egyptian dominion it would be necessary to enter into direct negotia- 
 tions with the Egyptian government. However the English govern- 
 ment generously offered to give me its recommendation, and ex- 
 pressed the hope to its representative in Egypt, Lord Cromer, that 
 the project be taken into favorable consideration by him as well as 
 by the Counsellors of His Highness the Khedive. As a preliminary 
 measure the British government gave us permission to send a com- 
 mission composed of experts to the tract of land in question with a 
 view to examining its fitness for colonization purposes and its pos- 
 sibilities. In order to obtain the consent of the Egyptian author- 
 ities to the sending of the commission and their co-operation in our 
 project, our representative, Mr. Greenberg, set out for Egypt at the 
 end of October equipped with letters of recommendation from the 
 English Foreign Office to the Egyptian government. 
 
 Lord Cromer and the Egyptian Secretary for Foreign Affairs 
 received him with great affability, and after giving the matter due 
 consideration consented to the sending of the commission. In addi- 
 tion to this they agreed to allow a representative of the Egyptian 
 Survey Department to accompany the commission. Thereupon the 
 commission was organized with the following personnel: Messrs. 
 Kessler, Marmorek, Goldsmid, Stephens, Professor Laurent, Dr. 
 Soskin, Dr. Hillel Joffe, and Mr. Humphreys, the representative of 
 the Egyptian government. 
 
 The commission arrived in Egypt toward the end of January, 
 and set out for the Sinai Peninsula in the beginning of February. In 
 the meantime our representative, Mr. Greenberg, left England and 
 went to Egypt once more to submit to Lord Cromer and the Egyptian 
 government plans for a charter covering a tract of land in the Sinai 
 Peninsula. After protracted negotiations our agent received a note
 
 36 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 from the Egyptian government wherein it declared itself to be in 
 accord with the basic provisions of the projected charter; namely, 
 Jewish autonomy for the tract of land in question and municipal 
 rights for the whole of the ceded territory, under condition that the 
 report of the commiission be favorable, and that it convince the gov- 
 ernment of the feasibility of colonizing the Peninsula. 
 
 In the beginning of March the members of the commission re- 
 turned to Egypt, and in order to meet them I traveled there myself. 
 I laid various propositions before Lord Cromer and the Egyptian 
 government, but as I was compelled to go back to Europe I en- 
 trusted the further negotiations to a member of the commission. 
 
 Protracted discussions followed, which, I am sorry to say, re- 
 sulted in a statement by the Egyptian government to the effect that 
 it could proceed no further in the matter as expert opinion held that 
 it would be impossible to supply the Pelusian plain with a sufficient 
 amount of water, and that consequently it would be impossible to 
 colonize El-Arish or any other part of the Peninsula. 
 
 When the officials of the British government with whom I had 
 previously been in touch learned of the expert opinion which had 
 been expressed to the Egyptian government and of the decision which 
 had been necessary in consequence, they immediately made me the 
 proposition of ceding another tract of land for Jewish colonization 
 purposes. 
 
 This territory has not the historic, traditional and Zionist sig- 
 nificance of the Sinai Peninsula ; but I do not doubt that the Congress, 
 acting as the representative of the Jewish people as a whole, will 
 consider this new offer with the warmest gratitude. The proposi- 
 tion relates to an autonomous Jewish settlement in East Africa, with 
 a Jewish administration, Jewish local government and a Jewish official 
 at its head, under the suzerainty, I need not add, of Great Britain. 
 When this proposition was made I did not feel myself justified, con- 
 sidering the plight of Jewry and the immediate necessity of ameliorat- 
 ing this plight, in taking any steps other than obtaining permissioji 
 to submit the proposition to the Congress. However, in order that 
 the matter might be of sufficiently definite interest to all of us it 
 was necessary to formulate the proposition in such a way that it would 
 take into consideration the national aspirations so dear to us all. 
 Consequently our representative had a number of conferences with 
 the members of the British Cabinet and with the chiefs of Depart- 
 ments, in which the matter was thoroughly gone into. These con- 
 ferences were of a satisfactory nature. 
 
 I do not want to anticipate the views which the Congress will 
 express on the policy to be pursued with regard to the proposition. 
 It goes without saying that the Jewish people can have no other
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 37 
 
 goal than Palestine and that, whatever the fate of the proposition 
 may be, our attitude toward the land of our fathers is and shall remain 
 unchangeable. Nevertheless, the Congress will perceive that our 
 movement has been tremendously advanced as the result of our nego- 
 tiations with the British government. I may say that our attitude 
 towards Palestine was candidly and fully explained to the members 
 of the British Cabinet and to the high government officials who had 
 this matter in hand. I believe that the Congress will be able to 
 find means to make use of this offer. The spirit in which the offer 
 was made must of necessity contribute to improving and alleviating 
 the situation of the Jewish people, without our renouncing one iota 
 of the great principles upon which our movement is based. 
 
 It would not seem practicable to lay the details of the proposition, 
 to which I should particularly like to draw your close attention, before 
 the Congress as a whole. It would seem wiser to suggest that you 
 elect a small committee to take the whole matter in hand. 3 What- 
 ever decision will be reached I may state confidently that we all 
 harbor the deepest gratitude in our hearts for the gracious and 
 statesmanlike attitude maintained by Great Britain throughout the 
 course of its pourparlers with the Jewish people. 
 
 Zion it is not and can never be. It is merely an expedient for 
 colonization purposes, but, be it well understood, an expedient 
 founded upon a national and political basis. We shall not and cannot 
 give the Jewish masses the marching signal on the strength of this 
 arrangement. It is and must remain an emergency measure destined 
 to allay the perplexity prevailing in philanthropic undertakings at 
 the present time and to prevent our losing touch with the scattered 
 fragments of our people. 
 
 This was the situation up to a few days ago, when it developed 
 in such a way as to promise results of the utmost importance. Events 
 which are universally known 4 made it necessary for me to under- 
 take a journey to Russia in the interests of the Jewish people. I 
 had the welcome opportunity of coming in touch with the Russian 
 government, and I may say that I met with a fair understanding of 
 our Zionist aspirations and heard expressions of a benevolent desire 
 to be of real assistance to us. As a matter of fact I admit that on 
 this occasion I was not only a Zionist you will not blame me, I 
 know. I spoke not only in behalf of the Zionists but for all the Jews 
 in Russia. I took pains to recommend a number of improvements 
 in their sad situation, and received the assurance that these alleviatory 
 measures would be taken into consideration in the immediate future. 
 But more important were the assurances I received concerning the 
 Zionist movement. I am in a position to state that the Russian gov- 
 ernment will not impede the progress of the Zionist movement, pro-
 
 38 
 
 CONGRESS ADDRESSES OF THEODOR HERZL 
 
 vided it retains the quiet and lawful character which has hitherto 
 distinguished it. Moreover the Russian government is ready to co- 
 operate with the Zionists in an emigration undertaking on condition 
 that the expenses it incurs are covered. 
 
 Finally, and this is the most important fact of all, the Russian 
 government is willing to use its influence with His Majesty the Sultan 
 in furthering our efforts to obtain Palestine. The importance of this 
 statement, which I am empowered to make to the Zionist Congress, 
 is surely evident to you all. A promise of this nature from the Rus- 
 sian government signifies a diplomatic asset the value of which can- 
 not be overestimated. Not only is a tremendous obstacle removed, 
 but suddenly powerful aid is at hand. Its effects are yet to be seen ; 
 but we may continue to strive for Erez Israel with renewed courage 
 and with brighter prospects than ever before. 
 
 Of course some people will perceive none but the gloomy aspects 
 of these developments. The help of the powers, they will say, sig- 
 nifies nothing good. Either they want to be rid of us or they want to 
 deny us admission. So be it! If it portends injustice toward our 
 people we shall reply to it in the future. In our future, in our coun- 
 try! And our answer shall consist in the advancement of human 
 civilization. 
 
 University of California 
 
 SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 
 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024-1388 
 
 Return this material to the library 
 
 from which it was borrowed. 
 
 UL JAN 16 1996
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 The collected addresses of Dr. Theodor Herzl are presented to 
 readers of English for the first time. In these historic utterances will 
 be found not only a presentation of Zionism as a solution of the 
 Jewish problem, but much more than that, the lineaments of a beloved 
 personality who aroused the Jewish world. 
 
 Theodor Herzl was born in Austria in 1860. He studied law at 
 Vienna, but turned to journalism and literature, in which profession 
 he soon reached the front rank. A man of engaging appearance and 
 great personal magnetism, he attracted to himself a distinguished 
 circle of friends among whom he moved in Paris for a number of 
 years, until, coming in contact with the virulent anti-Semitism that 
 broke out in the lands of emancipation, he cast in his lot with his own 
 people, and in his book The Jewish State published in 1896, set forth 
 his conviction that a permanent and satisfactory solution of the 
 Jewish problem is to be found only in the establishment of a home- 
 land for the Jews. The first Congress was convened in the following 
 year, for the explicit purpose of lifting the Jewish problem out of 
 the darkness of the ghetto, and bringing it into the open light of inter- 
 national discussion. Delegates assembled from all parts of the world, 
 and included notables in commerce, science and art. The Jewish 
 question was placed on a lofty plane by the formulation of the his- 
 toric "Basle Program," declaring that "the aims of Zionism are to 
 obtain a publicly recognized and legally secured homeland for the Jewish 
 people in Palestine." Seven years later, Herzl was laid in his grave. 
 He was stricken while still in the prime years of his life. His per- 
 sonal fortune was spent and his worldly career sacrificed. He died 
 a martyr to the revolution which he sought to effect in the life of 
 the Jewish people. 
 
 Since that time ten further Congresses have been left behind. 
 Today Zionist members and societies are legion. More than twenty 
 Federations founded in different lands form a chain extending around 
 the globe. To record the current development of the blossoming- 
 idea, a hundred Zionist periodicals appear in various tongues. Hebrew 
 lives again on the lips of thousands of school children and students 
 in Palestine. The Jewish National Fund has attained the monu- 
 mental sum of over a million dollars, built up mainly from the pennies 
 of the poor. Forty-eight agricultural colonies have been established 
 in Palestine, and the annual trade of Jaffa grew from two million 
 dollars in 1886 to ten millions in 1912. Direction is given to the 
 financial flux of Jewish national affairs by two banks with seven 
 subsidiary branches. But far outdoing in importance these practical 
 
 2071431
 
 4 INTRODUCTION 
 
 achievements, are the significant changes that Zionism has effected in the 
 attitude of the Jewish people towards modern life and present-day prob- 
 lems, changes that have resulted in a stiffening of character to meet the 
 dangers from without, and the decay that is threatening from within. 
 
 In twenty years, but a moment of our corporate life, not only 
 has Zionism grown in material accomplishment and in spiritual influ- 
 ence but it has also developed in its fundamental motives and prin- 
 ciples. Yet the important state papers presented here, addressed 
 not merely to the Zionist delegates and to the rulers of the gentile 
 world, but also to the Jews of all time, still express the essential 
 thoughts -and breathe the true spirit of Zionism today, and he who 
 would know the aspirations of Zionism must drink deep at the clear 
 source. Not only will he then understand why the Zionist Movement 
 is the greatest of the dispersion, but he will also come under the spell 
 of a soul that seems yet to live, and is to grace our history for 
 all time. For today when the great powers are manifesting a sig- 
 nificant interest in Zionism, an interest that cannot but find some 
 concrete expression depending in character on the attitude of the Jews 
 themselves, the insight of Dr. Herzl into the international difficulties 
 of our own time is manifest, and events are tending to an imminent 
 realization of his statesmanlike solution of the Jewish problem. 
 
 SAUL J. COHEN 

 
 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL UBRARyjACIUTY^^ 
 
 NOTES 
 
 A 000111 958 5 .^CONGRESS 
 
 (PP. 5-9) 
 
 1. Herzl refers to the old anti-Semitic accusation that the Jews are banded 
 together in an international league for purposes disloyal to their respective 
 governments. 
 
 2. Agricultural colonization in Palestine began in 1882. So severe were the 
 difficulties encountered, and the hardships endured by the pioneers, that the under- 
 taking would have broken down but for the munificence of Baron Edmond de 
 Rothschild. 
 
 3. Herzl's plan was to secure by diplomatic negotiation a charter giving 
 colonization rights with local self-government. He looked forward with optimism 
 to the colonization of Palestine on a national scale (see Third Congress Address, 
 p. 20). But he clearly states later that a complete solution of the Jewish problem 
 does not imply that all Jews must go to Palestine. He wishes to emphasize here 
 the futility of colonization on a small scale, as against the larger plans he had 
 in mind. 
 
 4. Dr. Herzl viewed with disfavor the petty colonization of Palestine as a 
 complete solution of the Jewish problem. But he recognized that practical achieve- 
 ments in Palestine were of political value, and served at once as demonstration 
 and proof of Zionist theory. See his remarks in the preceding paragraph of 
 this address. 
 
 SECOND CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 (pp. 10-16) 
 
 1. Descartes, 1596-1650: "I think; therefore I am." 
 
 2. The Emperor of Germany. 
 
 3. The Jewish Colonial Trust was established March 20, 1899; the Paid-uo 
 Capital amounted to $1,300,000 in 1914. 
 
 THIRD CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 (pp. 17-22) 
 
 1. The proposals of Emperor Nicholas II of Russia, which led to the estab- 
 Kshment in 1899 of the International Court of Arbitration or Hague Tribunal. <i 
 
 2. In 1888, legislation directed against the colonization activities of the 
 Chovevi Zion, prohibited any mass-immigration into Palestine. No Jewish imrn^g 
 grant was admitted into the land without a red pass, and this permitted him iff 
 remain for a period of only three months. 
 
 3. Some of the Chovevi Zion, whose efforts were largely responsible for the 
 early colonization of Palestine. 
 
 4. Contrary to general belief, the Jewish masses are the poorest in the world. 
 See Fifth Congress Address, p. 28. See also, Israel Cohen, Jewish Life in 
 Modern Times, Bk. 4, Ch. 2. 
 
 5. Possibly Heine. 
 
 FOURTH CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 (pp. 23-26) 
 
 1. See Note 2, Sixth Congress Address. 
 
 2. 
 
 menace. ___ ._ o __ r o __ 
 
 legislation by Roumania in violation of the Berlin Treaty, a ^reat wave of destik. 
 Jews crossed the frontier. The correspondent of the London Jewish Chronicle 
 reported (July 6, 1900, p. 14), that had it not been for the presence of the Zionist 
 Bureau it would simply have been impossible to evolve order out of the confusion, 
 and he referred to the 'bankruptcy of philanthropy in dealing with national problems 
 of this kind. 
 
 39 
 
 In the year 1900, the mass emigration from Roumania became a groTJ. 
 . Unable to endure longer the privations and hunger that resulted fn
 
 4 NOTES 
 
 achievements, are the sitmiiTH CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 
 (PP. 27-31) 
 
 1. Baron Edmond de Rothschild gave of his millions unsparingly for the early 
 philanthropic settlements in Palestine, but they did not become self-supporting 
 until a much later date. Some of this money has been repaid by the new Yishub. 
 It may be added that Baron de Hirsch also donated over fifty million dollars to 
 found agricultural colonies in Argentina and other free countries, with discouraging 
 results. 
 
 2. The popular institute in the East-end of London, the home of the intel- 
 lectual Jewish youth of the great metropolis. 
 
 3. The Jewish National Fund was founded in 1901. It amounted in 1917 to 
 over a million dollars, about 75 per cent of which is invested in land and improve- 
 ments in Palestine. 
 
 SIXTH CONGRESS ADDRESS 
 (pp. 32-38) 
 
 1. Forty-seven Jews were killed, and hundreds seriously injured or perma- 
 nently maimed, in the unspeakable horrors of April 19th and 20, 1903, at Kishinev. 
 The property damage amounted to three million rubles. It was alleged that the 
 Jews had murdered a Christian child in order to use its blood for the Passover 
 ritual. The massacre was largely effected by imported hirelings, with the open 
 connivance of the government. From 1903 to 1906 Pogroms occurred in 284 
 towns in Russia. 
 
 2. The Royal Commission on Alien Immigration began its protracted inves- 
 tigations on April 24, 1902, and presented its report to the House of Commons on 
 August 11, 1903. The report was not unfavorable. Nevertheless drastic recom- 
 mendations were made against the influx of Jews and were embodied in a bill 
 which was passed, August 11, 1905. Lord Rothschild, who was a member of the 
 commission, protested that the exclusion of so-called "undesirables" would actually 
 work hardship to honest and industrious refugees. But the widespread agitation 
 '" favor of "England for the English" as against the foreigners who were "taking 
 the bread out of the mouths of the working-classes" was too strong, and in the 
 face of considerable protest, the provisions of the bill were put into force. 
 
 3. At the Sixth Congress a commission was appointed to investigate the pro- 
 posed settlement in East Africa, but the sentiment of the majoriy of the Congress 
 ^eems to have been opposed to the project. The report of the commis : ^n was 
 favorable. At the Seventh Congress, held in 1905, a large majority declaim 
 
 .p\mst "activity (in colonization) outside Palestine and its adjacent lands." 
 the elements seceded from the Congress, founded the Ito (Jewish Territorial 
 Jrgamzation), and with Israel Zangwill at the head, began unsuccessful negotiations 
 for any suitable territory on which to found an autonomous settlement of Jews. 
 
 4. Kishinev. See note 1 above. 
 
 S. J. C. 
 
 Unive 
 
 Soi 
 
 Li 
 
 STACf