us, whose charitable contributions to our public institutions, &c., may
bear comparison with those of their Christian brethren. An instance of
this was given so far back as December 5th, 1805, the day of general
thanksgiving for the glorious victory of Trafalgar. On that day
collections were made in all places of worship in aid of the patriotic
fund for the relief of those wounded, and of the relatives of those
killed in the war. It is worthy of remark that the parish church, St.
Martin's, then raised the sum of £37 7s., and the "Jews' Synagogue" £3
3s. At the yearly collections in aid of the medical charities, now
annually held on Hospital Sunday, St. Martin's gives between three and
four hundred pounds; the Jewish congregation contributes about one
hundred and fifty. If, then, the church has thus increased ten-fold in
wealth and benevolence in the last seventy years, the synagogue has
increased fifty-fold.

~Jews' Board of Guardians.~ A committee of resident Jews was appointed
in 1869, to look after and relieve poor and destitute families among the
Israelites; and though they pay their due quota to the poor rates of
their parish, it is much to the credit of the Jewish community that no
poor member is, permitted to go to the Workhouse or want for food and
clothing. The yearly amount expended in relief by this Hebrew Board of
Guardians is more than £500, mostly given in cash in comparatively large
sums, so as to enable the recipients to become self-supporting, rather
than continue them as paupers receiving a small weekly dole. There is an
increase in the number of poor latterly, owing to the depression of
trade and to the influx of poor families from Poland during the last few
years. Another cause of poverty among the Jews is the paucity of
artisans among them, very few of them even at the present time choosing
to follow any of the staple trades outside those connected with clothing
and jewellery.