THE WANDERING JEW

Evening Star, Issue 19318, 3 August 1926, Page 8

THE WANDERING JEW

Among the odd impostors of the world is’ one who styled himself the Wandering Jew, and who appeared in the city of Munich, July ‘ 22, 1721. Some account of him may he found in the second volume of Calmet’a ‘ Diotionnaire do la Bible,' page 472. Then, as now, men were curious and credulous, and the rich were eager to ba entertained. So things went well for tho stranger, who was one able to adapt himself and to get into the swing of conversation with ease; and soon ha was taken seriously. Ho told how he had been an officer of the Sanhedrin, how ho had struck Christ as He left Pilate, what ho had said to this apostle’ and that. With a sympathetic audience to hearten him, he went on to relieve his artistic soul, telling of the dress and the manners and the amusing "eccentricities of this character and that. He gave a picture of life in Home, and told of the burning by Nero. There were tales of others he said ho had met and lived with, of the fiery Saladin, of Tamerlane, of Bajazeth. He had, he said, been on familiar conversational terms with tho leaders of the different crusades. Doubtless he was a novelist born out of time. At least beseems to have been gifted with admirable powers of observation and a retentive memory, and the scenes be depicted were passably accurate. Professors from Oxford and Cambridge questioned. him narrowly without detecting serious anachronisms, and linguists asserted that he spoke many languages with ease. After some months in Munich be went to Denmark, then took ship for Sweden, and thereafter disappeared.— 'Dearborn Independent.’