The Henson Journals

[170]

Friday, August 17th, 1923.

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A tempestuous day with rain at intervals. I remained indoors most of the morning, and wrote many letters. Kitty Inge came to lunch. In the afternoon we motored to the house of a coal–magnate from Newcastle, named Philipson. We were shown over the building, & marvelled at the taste, skill, & costliness of the furniture. I recalled the aspect of the mining villages in Durham, & pondered the sinister contrast. After tea we returned to Sandy Hatch. In spite of the rain mine host and I walked for an hour and a half before dinner. He told me that Liberal Judaism led by Claude Montefiori was dying out, being mainly supported by Jews who had really abandoned all sincere profession of their religion. Sir Herbert Cohen himself is an orthodox Jew. He said that the degree of observance given to the ritual law of Judaism varied greatly, being practically left to the private judgement of the individual Jew. Lady Cohen was far more liberal in this respect than he himself. He thought that quite excessive importance had been attached to the points with respect to which liberal & orthodox Jews were divided. Indeed his attitude might be expressed in Christ's words to the Pharisees, "These ought ye to have done, & not to have left the other undone". After dinner we had a considerable discussion about the alleged turpitude of the Germans. I expressed much scepticism on this point.

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