Zangwill, Israel
Israel (1864-), a British author. He was born in London. He received his education at the Jews' Free School and the University of London. He began writing at an early age and soon made a reputation by his novels, dramas, and essays. Zangwill has lectured in England, the United States, Holland, and Palestine. Among his works may be mentioned Ghetto Tragedies, They That Walk in Darkness, The Mantle of Elijah, The Melting Pot, and Blind Children, a collection of verses. The Children of the Ghetto, an exposition of the Jewish temperament, is Zangwill's best known book. He says it is "intended as a study of a race whose persistence is the most remarkable fact in the history of the world." The following stanza is from Imber's The Watch on the Jordan, translated into English by Zangwill:
Which splitteth asunder
The flame of the cloud,
On our ears ever falling,
A voice is heard calling
From Zion aloud:
"Let your spirits' desires
For the land of your sires
Eternally burn
From the foe to deliver
Our own holy river,
To Jordan return."
Where the soft flowing stream
Murmurs low as in dream,
There set we our watch.
Our watchword, "The sword
Of our land and our Lord,"
By the Jordan then set we our watch.