Carlsbad (for the time being)
August 31, 1931.
Doctor Cyrus Adler.
Dear Sir:
The purpose of my letter is to call your attention to the situation of Tarbut and its educational institutions in Lithuania. While I was there last year, I observed how great and how important is the educational work which is being accomplished there through the Tarbut Association at a great sacrifice, and how great is the blessing which this educational effort brings to the Jewish masses there. I saw the teachers during their work, I spoke with many pupils of the People’s Schools there, I conversed with the parents of the pupils, and the impression I gained was that the Hebrew training in Lithuania is producing a new generation, upright in body and upright in soul, who have hope to find their way in life and at the same time remain faithful to their people. My visit to Lithuania, therefore, has given me great pleasure, but when I saw the miserable life of the teachers and directors of the schools and the great struggle that these institutions have in fighting for their existence, I was grieved very much, I felt it my duty to inform you of this, knowing that in a certain measure the fate of these educational institutions of Tarbut depend on the help of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, and I naturally wish to believe that the Joint, when it takes up a discussion on this matter, will know to appreciate the great work of the Tarbut according to its true value, and will not curtail its support so as to endanger the very existence of these institutions.
With regards and blessings to you and your holy work, I remain
Respectfully yours,
Ch. N. Bialik.
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