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The landlord, seeing how the tide was turning, added, ‘Brazen Marshallik (buffoon)!’

‘I will appoint a day of fasting and prayer,’ concluded the Rabbi solemnly.

A breath of reassurance wafted through the room. ‘And I, Rabbi,’ said Guetels the grocer, ‘will supply the synagogue with candles to equal in length the graves of all your predecessors.’

‘May thy strength increase, Guetels!’ came the universal gratitude, and the landlord at the window-curtain drew a great sigh of relief.

‘Still, gentlemen,’ he said, ‘if I may intrude my humble opinion–Reb Mendel’s advice is also good. God is, of course, our only protection. But there can be no harm in getting, lehavdil (not to compare them), the Governor’s protection too.’

‘True, true.’ And the faces grew still cheerier.

‘In God’s name, wake up!’ David burst forth. ‘In Samooborona lies your only salvation. Give the money to us, not to the Governor. We can meet and practise in your Talmud-Torah Hall!’

‘The holy hall of study!’ gasped the Rabbi. ‘Given over to unlawful meetings!’

‘The hooligans will meet there, if you don’t,’ said David grimly. ‘Don’t you see it is the safest place for us? The police associate it only with learned weaklings.’

‘Hush, Haman!’ said the timber-merchant, and rose to go. David’s voice changed to passion; memories of things he had seen came over him as in a red mist: an old man scalped with a sharp ladle; a white-hot poker driven through a woman’s eye; a baby’s skull ground under a True Russian’s heel. ‘Bourgeois!’ he thundered, ‘I will save you despite yourselves.’ The landlord signalled in a frenzy, but David continued recklessly, ‘Will you never learn manli—-‘

They flung themselves upon him in a panic, and held him hand-gagged and struggling upon the bed.

Suddenly a new figure burst into the room. There was a blood-freezing instant in which all gave themselves up for lost. Their grip on David relaxed. Then the mist cleared, and they saw it was only Ezekiel Leven.

‘Blessed art thou who comest!’ cried David, jumping to his feet. ‘You and I, Ezekiel, will save Milovka.’

‘Alas!’ Ezekiel groaned. ‘I drew a low number–I go to fight for Russia.’

V

Fifteen thousand roubles were soon collected for the Governor, but even before they were presented to him the Rabbi, in mortal terror of that firebrand of a David, had rushed to inquire whether Self-Defence was legal, and might the Talmud-Torah Hall be legitimately used for drilling. Sharp came an order that Jews found with firearms or in conclave for non-religious purposes should be summarily shot. And so, when the Shtadlonim arrived with the fifteen thousand roubles, the Governor was able to point out severely that if a pogrom did occur they would have only themselves to blame. The Jews of Milovka had begun to carry pistols like revolutionaries; they planned illegal assemblies in halls; was it to be wondered at if the League of True Russians grew restive? However, he would do his best with these inadequate roubles to have extra precautions taken, but let them root out the evil weeds that had sprung up in their midst, else even his authority might be overborne by the righteous indignation of the loyal children of the Little Father. Tremblingly the Ambassadors crept back with their empty money-bags.

Poor David now found it impossible to get anybody to a meeting. His landlord had forbidden any more gatherings in the inn, and his original audience would have called as a deputation upon David to beg him to withdraw from the town, but that might have been considered a conspirative meeting. So one of the Ambassadors was sent to inform the landlord instead.

‘Don’t you think I’ve already ordered him off my premises?’

‘But he is still here!’

‘Alas! He threatens to shoot me–or anybody who massers (informs),’ said the poor landlord.

The Ambassador shivered.

‘As if I would betray a brother-in-Israel!’ added the landlord reproachfully.

‘No, no–of course not,’ said the Ambassador. ‘These fellows are best left alone; they wear fuses under their waistcoats instead of Tsitsith (ritual fringes). Let us hope, however, a sudden death may rid us of him.’