Page 234 - The Legacy of Abraham Rothstein - text

Letters

intellectual with a name, and no man is recognized as patriotic who is
an escapist, who hides his descent, a descent and a culture like our
people’s, who have existed longer than any nation through fire and
sword. I am not asking you to do anything to satisfy my pride or
pleasure. My time here on this earth is short now. I am only saying
this to you as man to man.
Your grandfather,
Abraham Rothstein

Nov 2 61
Greetings, grandson Jonathan,

Go out and see the country near Riverside and Redlands. There
are large orange groves around Colton, and a large stone quarry
where they make cement. You can pick up a piece of granite stone
eight by eight or so, good for a head.
When you meet the rabbi, ask him if he subscribes to a Hebrew
paper, which he should, providing he knows the aleph bet.
These modern pens are good for nothing, hard to make them
work—or maybe I do not know how to handle them. I have three on
the desk and I have to change them often.
The marble I made is the story of King Belshazzar of Babylon,
who when drunk saw a hand writing on the wall of the palace, “mene
mene tekel upharsin.” Daniel, a Jew, explained the meaning to him:
he was weighed and found wanting; his kingdom would be
conquered and the Persians would rule them. If you have a Bible at
hand, read the story in Daniel. Heinrich Heine the poet wrote a nice
short poem about that, and so did Goethe. You should read the Bible
so you will be able to criticize it. Do not criticize anything until you
read the book or essay, so you will know if the material has some
gold in it or is all dross.
Gesund und shtark. Learn good, and exercise your body, and keep
company with good people. Environment is important.

With love,
Abraham ben Israel David Rothstein

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