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2nd English Edition (1st was 1876, Singerman 2550). Original printed gray wrappers, 8vo, xiv, [1], 16-53 pages. 23 cm. English translation of the Jewish Response to the First Anti-Shechitah Campaign in America, responding with an explanation of the necessity for Jews to maintain the laws of ritual slaughter.Aaron Zebi Friedman (1822-76), served as shochet, or ritual slaughterer, in his native Poland before immigrating to New York in 1848, where he found employment in one of the city s largest kosher slaughterhouses. In 1866 the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals launched the first anti-Shehitah campaign in America. The president of the Society, Henry Bergh, dispatched a letter to the proprietor of a kosher abattoir in New York accusing him of engaging in "barbarous, revolting, and wicked" practices the letter is reproduced in full in this work. Bergh further called on him to desist from violating the laws of New York and of God by "mangl[ing] and tortur[ing] his creatures." Interestingly, among the members listed in the letterhead of Bergh s letter were August Belmont (the Rothschilds' representative in America) and Charles P. Daly (a chief justice of New York). In 1875, Aaron Zebi Friedman, renowned for his piety, composed a sharp rejoinder entitled, Tub Taam, to refute Bergh's accusations. He not only succeeded in silencing Bergh, but even in convincing him: In 1885, Bergh defended shechitah against charges of cruelty leveled by the Philadelphia branch of his Society. (Goldman, 1092; JE, Vol. V, p. 518).Among those who supported the Jewish position on Shechitah in the struggle against the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was President Ulysses S. Grant. According to Joakim Isaacs, Grant "was moved [by this English translation].to eat only ritually slaughtered meat in the latter part of his life" (See J. Isaacs, "Candidate Grant and the Jews," American Jewish Archives 17. 1 (1965) p. 15, n. 31; I. H. Sharfman, The First Rabbi (1988) pp. 591-92). Apropos of the current culture wars, animal rights organizations and activists, within and outside of the Jewish world, continue to criticize kosher slaughtering practices on the grounds of animal cruelty. The 1st edition of the English translation, from 1876, sold at auction in 2015 for over $8,000 (with commissions); indeed, that 1876 edition (OCLC: 191279661) is rare, with only 5 copies listed between Singerman and OCLC (AJHS, HUC, Princeton, Bar Ilan, American Antiquarian). SUBJECT(S): Slaughtering and slaughter-houses. Jews -- Dietary laws. Juifs -- Lois alimentaires. Kashrut. OCLC: 11014499 (for this 1904 2nd English edition), listing 16 institutions with holdings. Tiny bit of wear at spine, Very Good Condition. Beautiful copy. (amr-67-55AXX-BLF- mex) (B). Seller Inventory # 42841
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