Harvest in the Desert by Maurice Samuel 1944 220pg

18/9/18  A story that ends with  British Mandatory Palestine.

Born in Romania became a well known English and American writer. He visited mandate Palestine in 1924 and discovered and primitive desolate, diseased country that looked as if it had been cursed. Only the Jews knew the significant of the land and why they were there, not the other natives. The Zionist ideal was part of Judaism but needed the messiah.  Historically it goes back to the Exodus but could never succeed. Under Roman Emperor Julian he attempted a Zionist return in the 4C for his anti Christian purposes but died without influencing the Jews. Yavneh was allowed away from Jerusalem as a Jewish education centre and outlived the empire. The Persian Empire held the land for 14 years and there was hope of another Jewish return. Then the Ottoman Empire was only interested in taxing with corrupt system and were not interested in the provinces developing because Egypt developed and became independent. In Judaism people were Zionist in religion but were waiting for the messiah while the secular wanted to integrate into their native country. In the age of enlightenment unfortunately the leaders like Gibbons, Voltaire,Catherine Queen of Russia or Thomas Paine did not include Jews in their outlook.

 From about 1840 the discussion of waiting for the messiah was felt unnecessary and democratic ideas threated the Jewish leaders. You had the Damascus blood libel then. Adolphe Crémieux in 1860 started Allience Israelite Universalle which sent Charles Netter to set up Mikve Israel in 1871 that taught agriculture in French. In 1862 Moses Hess wrote "Rome and Jerusalem" on the Zionist concept. The Bilus arrived in 1882 and set up Gadara in 1884 Herzl succeeded in getting the project going but he spent his time meeting world leaders and trying to negotiate a charter from the Sultan only after his death was his achievement realized. 

1903 Kishinev Pogroms sent another wave. It was now realized that setting up colonies of individuals whose purpose was to make a living as a planter. Provided work for Arabs and only setting up socialist type settlement could bring a Jewish state. AD Gordon arrived at the age of 50 and said you have to change the individual in order to create a Jewish State. Manya Shochat set up the co-op in Segera and a kitchen where they ate together and discussed management and solutions, after a year the settlement was showing a profit. Hashomer (the guards)was set up to guard Jewish farmers as hiring mercenaries (Arabs ) didn't give you freedom. The Hebrew language was by consensus the common tongue even though most spoke Yiddish yet children learned Hebrew and when the mandate started it was accepted with English  Arabic, and Hebrew  as official languages. The arrival of the British brought about he inauguration of the Hebrew University in 1918. Most of the money of the yishuv went to education. In 1919 the 3rd wave of Aliyah arrived. They were the ones who drained the Emek The 4th wave from 1924 and many left because the infrastructure was not ready to absorb that many. 

The 1929 Arab riots took place while the governor Sir John  Chancellor was out the country. The Arab ruling classes felt threated by the Jewish establishment while Arab workers benefited from the economic development and they used the religious lie that Jews were destroying the Moslem holy places. The people worst hit were the Hevron Yeshiva which was anti Zionist the settlement were more able to protect themselves. This failed as it did not lead to a popular uprising. The best years of the Yishuv were after this as the economic investment was starting to pay and waves of immigrants found work as well as waves of Arabs who crossed the border. 

The German Aliyah (immigration) many of whom were not Jewish or had converted or saw themselves becoming Palestinians of the Jewish faith. Doctors, dentist, lawyers were amongst those who started the chicken farms in Ramat Hashavim. There was a Youth Aliyah first from Germany and then from other places and middle class kids adapted to their new circumstances. From 1936 the Arabs went on strike and it lasted 6 months and this made them so poor that the strike ended. This was a period where anti- Semitic atmosphere felt world wide and the willingness of appeasement for the wishful thinking of keeping the peace also resulting in the White Paper, this gave encouragement to the Arabs countries who saw a weak Britain and the Axis taking over. During the war years immigrant ships that sunk or got to Haifa and the people were then sent away. This killed more Jews than all the Arab riots.

Maurice Samuel visited Palestine during the violent 1929 riots and documented the attacks against the Jewish population as a special correspondent for the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. What Happened in Palestine.1929 analysis of the Riots

Sir Herbert Samuel (1920–1925): The first High Commissioner and only Jewish administrator of the mandate.

Field Marshal Lord Herbert Plumer (1925–1928): A military commander who focused on maintaining regional security.

Sir John Chancellor (1928–1931): Administrator during the 1929 riots and subsequent policy reassessments.

Sir Arthur Wauchope (1931–1938): Oversaw the early stages of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt.

Sir Harold MacMichael (1938–1944): Led the administration during World War II and the implementation of the 1939 White Paper.

John Vereker, 6th Viscount Gort (1944–1945): Former governor of Malta who served a brief term before resigning due to illness.

Sir Alan Cunningham (1945–1948): The final High Commissioner who oversaw the end of the British Mandate and departure on May 14, 1948