Letter (approx. 13 lines), handwritten and signed by R. Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor Rabbi of Kovno (Kaunas). Kovno, 10th Adar (1st March) 1882.
Addressed to Dr. Isaac Rülf of Memel (Klaipėda), who was one of the leaders of the diplomatic campaign directed by R. Yitzchak Elchanan, in order to raise international public awareness to the persecution and pogroms being perpetrated against Russian Jewry in that time. R. Yitzchak Elchanan thanks him for his help, and blesses him: "Many thanks and blessings from the depth of my heart to his honor, and may G-d assist him and his dear colleagues, may their names and memories be glorified forever, and may my few words suffice, and whatever will be in our power to do, may G-d help us… His friend, who seeks his wellbeing always, blesses him with much life and peace, Yitzchak Elchanan residing here".
Background of the letter: In 1881-1882, R. Yitzchak Elchanan initiated a secret diplomatic campaign for the rescue of Russian Jewry from the pogroms and persecutions they were enduring, known as Sufot BaNegev (Storms in the South), which were encouraged and backed by the authorities. Anonymous booklets were sent throughout the world, under the motto of "Heyeh im Pifiyot", which described the persecutions in fine detail. Dr. Isaac Rülf of Memel was selected as the main intermediary to relay these booklets to the free world. Rülf was a tireless communal worker who had been in touch with leading European activists and philanthropists in the framework of his activities as president of the Memel Committee for Aid to Russian Jews in previous years, and that is where he became acquainted with R. Yitzchak Elchanan. In their campaign against the pogroms, Rülf would receive the booklets, translate them to German, and send them to Prussia, France, Italy and America, together with a letter of recommendation from the committee he headed which was known to the recipients. In the framework of these activities, extensive correspondence was exchanged between Kovno and Memel. Kovno then became the main pipeline through which news of what was going on in Russia was relayed to the world. The letters were secretly smuggled over the border between Russia and Prussia. These efforts first bore fruit when two articles were published in the Times of London, on 11th and 13th January 1882, which described the state of Russian Jewry in great detail. These articles were based on the booklets sent by R. Yitzchak Elchanan and his assistants, and were translated to English. The publication of the articles aroused a worldwide wave of protests, throughout Europe and the United States. After the publication of the article in the Times, a large protest gathering assembled in the home of the mayor of London, attended by the clergy, politicians and diplomats, academic figures and members of other influential circles. This was followed by a large rally in London, in which a memorandum was drawn up and sent to the Tsar, signed by the mayor of London of behalf of London citizens, and expressing fierce opposition to the attitude of the Russian government towards its Jewish subjects. Protest rallies were arranged in other British towns, including Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham and Oxford. From England, the protests spread to other European cities. The articles from the Times were translated and published in other newspapers on the continent, and thus disapproval was heard from Germany, Austria and Italy. Even in the United States, demonstrations were arranged, one of which took place in New York, attended by the former president of the United States, Gen. Ulysses Grant, and other notables. At these gatherings, generous donations for the benefit of Russian Jewry were also raised. Concurrently, special prayer gatherings together with fasts were organized in Jewish communities of Germany, which were also publicized in the newspapers. These gatherings were initiated by R. Shimshon Refael Hirsch, who corresponded with R. Yitzchak Elchanan and Dr. Rülf. The international protests put pressure on the Russian government, and compelled it to respond with counterpropaganda in England, denying the facts, but R. Yitzchak Elchanan continued publicizing in England and in France (through his propaganda pipelines) certificates and documents which disclosed the extent of the Russian government's involvement in arranging and encouraging the pogroms (see: E. Stern, Toldot Rabbenu Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor, Machon Yerushalayim, 2010).
This letter was written in the middle of the campaign, after its success in arousing a wave of protests in England, in January-March 1882.
R. Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor (1817-1896), a leading rabbi of his times, was prominent for his Torah genius, diligence and great piety. He was considered the supreme halachic authority of his times, and lead Lithuanian and Russian Jewry for many years with wisdom and compassion. He served as rabbi from the young age of 20. In 1864, he was appointed rabbi of Kovno, and his fame spread throughout the world as a foremost halachic authority. His responsa and novellae are printed in his series of books: Be'er Yitzchak, Nachal Yitzchak and Ein Yitzchak.
[1] leaf. Approx. 19 cm. Good condition. Folding marks.