Nicholas II called Minister Von Plehve to attend a rabbinical conference in St. Petersburg concerning the condition of the Jews in Russia. Among the rabbis were Isaac Elhanan, Chaim Brisker and Eliah Chaim Lodzer. Von Plehve, who was an anti-Semite, attempted to show that the Jews were an inferior race and had inferior ethics.
“You will notice,” Von Plehve remarked, “that Russia is composed of many nationalities, such as Poles, Russians, Jews, and many others. Yet in no nationality will one snatch the piece of bread away from the other.
Tailors, shoemakers, storekeepers, all live at peace with one another, and all make a living. Not so with the Jews. One will do his utmost to destroy the other fellow as soon as he has the opportunity. When one Jew opens a bakery, the next fellow will open one directly across the street. Should one Jew open a restaurant, others will open restaurants in the same neighborhood, and they will become bitter enemies."
“Please allow me to say something, Your Honor,” Rabbi Eliah Chaim requested. “It is the nature of animals not to devour one of their own kind. A lion will not devour a lion, a wolf will not eat a wolf; only fish swallow one another. Why is this so? It is because all animals have access to the entire world, and they can use all avenues to obtain their food, to satisfy their wants, and to secure their other necessities. Fish, on the other hand, are imprisoned in their waters. They dare not attempt to leave their element for fear of death. What then is left for them to do? They must swallow one another, or else perish from hunger. The same is true of the Jews. For the gentiles all places are open, and they can go everywhere to earn their living. The Jews, unfortunately, cannot do that. The government has imprisoned them in a ghetto. They are not permitted to live, not to conduct business elsewhere. What can the poor souls do? They must devour one another.”
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