יומנים > יומן - מלא 14/12/1948
Tuesday, December 14, 1948
Major Sohor [sp.], a Czech, who handles the training of the Brigade in Czechoslovakia, visited me - an excellent soldier and a dear man, who without being requested gives preference to Israel [the Jewish people] as a warrior [nation] and seeks to help it. Tomorrow he returns to his own country.
- I visited [Chaim] Weizmann at his office in the Kirya [government compound]. He spoke with me about "science" and mentioned 4 things: 1) The importance of planting castor oil [the castor-oil plant], which grows in sand dunes as well as all types of earth - for the plastics and nylon industry. He has an assistant who's "crazy about castor oil" - [agricultural engineer Yitzhak] De Leon [sp.]. 2) The production of precision instruments, especially clocks, initially alarm clocks. There are Jewish factories in Switzerland that are prepared to transfer some of their industry here. 3) The production of synthetic precious stones [gemstones] - diamonds, sapphires, etc., for both decoration and industrial purposes. He's already sent someone to Paris for a furnace to create "precious" stones. 4) Pharmaceutical and chemical production - his workshop lost P£ 20,000, but he sold it to a private citizen in Ramat Gan, who is making a profit. Right now there's no market for our medicines in neighboring countries, but this will change.
I told him about the government decision to reestablish the scientific council and towards what end. He recommends [Prof. Yoel] Rakach - an important physicist; [Prof. Shmuel] Sambursky as secretary; [Prof. Haim] Hyman [sp.] - an important chemist at the Technion in Haifa; [Prof. Franz] Olendorf [sp.] - A physicist; [Prof. Andor] [Fodor] [sp.] - [biochemist,] already old, but should be included; [Prof. David Ernst] Bergmann. In agriculture - [Prof. Yitzhak Elazari] Volcani, though according to him he's past his prime and talks a lot and is confused; Dr. Shmuel Zondek [physician]; Dr. [Yishayahu] Leibowitz; [Prof. Laszlo] Farkas [sp.] - physical chemistry, an important scholar but eager for profit [?]; [Prof. Chaim] Wertheimer and [Prof. Saul] Adler in biology. He also recommends [Dr. Ya'akov] Baved [sp.] - an expert in milk and cheese at the experimental center, from Holland.
Weizmann objects to opening the Constituent Assembly in Jerusalem - so as "not to anger the geese" [strashen net de genz - a Yiddish saying] and also for fear of an Arab attack. I told him that I'm not concerned about the latter. He advises meeting and discussing this with the French consul [Albert] Ventier [sp.] as well as McMahon [the papal representative]. He's very concerned about the Vatican. He also advises inviting David [Dave] Ginzburg [sp.] on his and my behalf to come here.
I told him about the contacts with Abdallah and our plans to expel the Egyptians from the country.
He asked to see the minutes from government meetings - despite everything [even though he has no official position] he already sees himself as president of the state, and he does not want to intervene - just to know and express an opinion.
- I finally received the distribution of immigrants in the immigrant homes (13 December 1948) up to [age] 17 - 158 m. [men/boys] 195 w. [women/girls], up to 20 - 22 m. 29 w., up to 25 - 108 m., 157 w., 148 families without children, 142 with one child, 2 with 2 children up to 30 - 282 m., 343 w., 325 FWC [families without children], 375 FWOC [families with one child], 126 FWTC [families with two children], 23 families with three children, up to age 35 - 66 m., 65 w., 159 FWC, 280 FWOC, 171 FWTC, 42 [with] three children, up to 40 - 86 m., 85 w., 225 FWC, 396 FWOC, 297 FWTC, 28 [with] three c., up to 50 - 175 m., 174 w., 475 FWC, 555 FWOC, 432 FWTC, 155 - three c., up to 60 - 65 m., 71 w., 117 FWC, 105 FWOC, 51 FWTC, 25 three c., sixty and older - 19 m., 21 w., 29 FWC, 22 FWOC, 9 FWTC, 2 three c., disabled - 119 men, 48 FWC, 29 FWOC, 26 FWTC - total [number of] families 1,520 FWC, 1,904 FWOC, 1,113 FWTC, 345 families with three children [?], 341 widows and widowers. Total [number of] persons: 1,100 unmarried males, 1,140 unmarried females, FWC 3,052, FWOC 5,712, FWTC 4,452, families with three children [?] 1,768, widowers and widows 725, total 17,989.
- At 4 Hayim Greenberg telephoned me [from the US]: both men (i.e., [Emanuel] Neumann and [Abba Hillel] Silver) will resign if we do not appease them - and there's a danger of division and war etc., of course stemming from [Berl] Locker's cable (I knew nothing about a telegram from Locker). I asked him to send his comments by telegraph and I would respond.
- Agudas Israel, Po'alei Agudas Israel, HaPo'el HaMizrachi: They're completing that the rank of the head of the religious service wasn't raised, as the ranks of the other services were raised. I asked them whether external political pressure on army rankings is justified. They have the right to exert pressure regarding kashrut and religion, but not rank - if it was done according to the army's current regulations.
- A reception for the American [Jews] at [James] McDonald's place.
- In the evening [Charles] Zimmerman visited me. He wants, along with [David] Dubinsky, to meet with [President] Truman; Zimmerman will give him a report on what he saw and Dubinsky will ask him to expedite the loan [from the international bank] before the elections. According to him, the prestige of workers in America has risen; they defeated all the workers' enemies in the Senate and got their own supporters elected. The workers are starting to recognize their own power. Workers' parties won't be established, but it's possible that they'll take over the Democratic Party.