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Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions,
senses, affections, passions? Fed with the same food, hurt with
the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the
same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer, as
a Christian is?
--Merchant of Venice

Oswald, returning, whispered into the ear of his master, "It is a Jew,
who calls himself Isaac of York; is it fit I should marshall him into
the hall?"

"Let Gurth do thine office, Oswald," said Wamba with his usual
effrontery; "the swineherd will be a fit usher to the Jew."

"St Mary," said the Abbot, crossing himself, "an unbelieving Jew, and
admitted into this presence!"

"A dog Jew," echoed the Templar, "to approach a defender of the Holy
Sepulchre?"

"By my faith," said Wamba, "it would seem the Templars love the Jews'
inheritance better than they do their company."

"Peace, my worthy guests," said Cedric; "my hospitality must not be
bounded by your dislikes. If Heaven bore with the whole nation of
stiff-necked unbelievers for more years than a layman can number, we may
endure the presence of one Jew for a few hours. But I constrain no man
to converse or to feed with him.--Let him have a board and a morsel
apart,--unless," he said smiling, "these turban'd strangers will admit
his society."

"Sir Franklin," answered the Templar, "my Saracen slaves are true
Moslems, and scorn as much as any Christian to hold intercourse with a
Jew."

"Now, in faith," said Wamba, "I cannot see that the worshippers of
Mahound and Termagaunt have so greatly the advantage over the people
once chosen of Heaven."

"He shall sit with thee, Wamba," said Cedric; "the fool and the knave
will be well met."

"The fool," answered Wamba, raising the relics of a gammon of bacon,
"will take care to erect a bulwark against the knave."

"Hush," said Cedric, "for here he comes."

Introduced with little ceremony, and advancing with fear and hesitation,
and many a bow of deep humility, a tall thin old man, who, however, had
lost by the habit of stooping much of his actual height, approached the
lower end of the board. His features, keen and regular, with an aquiline
nose, and piercing black eyes; his high and wrinkled forehead, and long
grey hair and beard, would have been considered as handsome, had they
not been the marks of a physiognomy peculiar to a race, which, during
those dark ages, was alike detested by the credulous and prejudiced
vulgar, and persecuted by the greedy and rapacious nobility, and who,
perhaps, owing to that very hatred and persecution, had adopted a
national character, in which there was much, to say the least, mean and
unamiable.

The Jew's dress, which appeared to have suffered considerably from the
storm, was a plain russet cloak of many folds, covering a dark purple
tunic. He had large boots lined with fur, and a belt around his
waist, which sustained a small knife, together with a case for writing
materials, but no weapon. He wore a high square yellow cap of a peculiar
fashion, assigned to his nation to distinguish them from Christians, and
which he doffed with great humility at the door of the hall.

The reception of this person in the hall of Cedric the Saxon, was such
as might have satisfied the most prejudiced enemy of the tribes of
Israel. Cedric himself coldly nodded in answer to the Jew's repeated
salutations, and signed to him to take place at the lower end of the
table, where, however, no one offered to make room for him. On the
contrary, as he passed along the file, casting a timid supplicating
glance, and turning towards each of those who occupied the lower end of
the board, the Saxon domestics squared their shoulders, and continued
to devour their supper with great perseverance, paying not the least
attention to the wants of the new guest. The attendants of the Abbot
crossed themselves, with looks of pious horror, and the very heathen
Saracens, as Isaac drew near them, curled up their whiskers with
indignation, and laid their hands on their poniards, as if ready to
rid themselves by the most desperate means from the apprehended
contamination of his nearer approach.

Probably the same motives which induced Cedric to open his hall to this
son of a rejected people, would have made him insist on his attendants
receiving Isaac with more courtesy. But the Abbot had, at this moment,
engaged him in a most interesting discussion on the breed and character
of his favourite hounds, which he would not have interrupted for matters
of much greater importance than that of a Jew going to bed supperless.
While Isaac thus stood an outcast in the present society, like his
people among the nations, looking in vain for welcome or resting
place, the pilgrim who sat by the chimney took compassion upon him, and
resigned his seat, saying briefly, "Old man, my garments are dried,
my hunger is appeased, thou art both wet and fasting." So saying, he
gathered together, and brought to a flame, the decaying brands which
lay scattered on the ample hearth; took from the larger board a mess of

Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions,

senses, affections, passions? Fed with the same food, hurt with

the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the

same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer, as

a Christian is?

--Merchant of Venice

Oswald, returning, whispered into the ear of his master, "It is a Jew,

who calls himself Isaac of York; is it fit I should marshall him into

the hall?"

"Let Gurth do thine office, Oswald," said Wamba with his usual

effrontery; "the swineherd will be a fit usher to the Jew."

"St Mary," said the Abbot, crossing himself, "an unbelieving Jew, and

admitted into this presence!"

"A dog Jew," echoed the Templar, "to approach a defender of the Holy

Sepulchre?"

"By my faith," said Wamba, "it would seem the Templars love the Jews'

inheritance better than they do their company."

"Peace, my worthy guests," said Cedric; "my hospitality must not be

bounded by your dislikes. If Heaven bore with the whole nation of

stiff-necked unbelievers for more years than a layman can number, we may

endure the presence of one Jew for a few hours. But I constrain no man

to converse or to feed with him.--Let him have a board and a morsel

apart,--unless," he said smiling, "these turban'd strangers will admit

his society."

"Sir Franklin," answered the Templar, "my Saracen slaves are true

Moslems, and scorn as much as any Christian to hold intercourse with a

Jew."

"Now, in faith," said Wamba, "I cannot see that the worshippers of

Mahound and Termagaunt have so greatly the advantage over the people

once chosen of Heaven."

"He shall sit with thee, Wamba," said Cedric; "the fool and the knave

will be well met."

"The fool," answered Wamba, raising the relics of a gammon of bacon,

"will take care to erect a bulwark against the knave."

"Hush," said Cedric, "for here he comes."

Introduced with little ceremony, and advancing with fear and hesitation,

and many a bow of deep humility, a tall thin old man, who, however, had

lost by the habit of stooping much of his actual height, approached the

lower end of the board. His features, keen and regular, with an aquiline

nose, and piercing black eyes; his high and wrinkled forehead, and long

grey hair and beard, would have been considered as handsome, had they

not been the marks of a physiognomy peculiar to a race, which, during

those dark ages, was alike detested by the credulous and prejudiced

vulgar, and persecuted by the greedy and rapacious nobility, and who,

perhaps, owing to that very hatred and persecution, had adopted a

national character, in which there was much, to say the least, mean and

unamiable.

The Jew's dress, which appeared to have suffered considerably from the

storm, was a plain russet cloak of many folds, covering a dark purple

tunic. He had large boots lined with fur, and a belt around his

waist, which sustained a small knife, together with a case for writing

materials, but no weapon. He wore a high square yellow cap of a peculiar

fashion, assigned to his nation to distinguish them from Christians, and

which he doffed with great humility at the door of the hall.

The reception of this person in the hall of Cedric the Saxon, was such

as might have satisfied the most prejudiced enemy of the tribes of

Israel. Cedric himself coldly nodded in answer to the Jew's repeated

salutations, and signed to him to take place at the lower end of the

table, where, however, no one offered to make room for him. On the

contrary, as he passed along the file, casting a timid supplicating

glance, and turning towards each of those who occupied the lower end of

the board, the Saxon domestics squared their shoulders, and continued

to devour their supper with great perseverance, paying not the least

attention to the wants of the new guest. The attendants of the Abbot

crossed themselves, with looks of pious horror, and the very heathen

Saracens, as Isaac drew near them, curled up their whiskers with

indignation, and laid their hands on their poniards, as if ready to

rid themselves by the most desperate means from the apprehended

contamination of his nearer approach.

Probably the same motives which induced Cedric to open his hall to this

son of a rejected people, would have made him insist on his attendants

receiving Isaac with more courtesy. But the Abbot had, at this moment,

engaged him in a most interesting discussion on the breed and character

of his favourite hounds, which he would not have interrupted for matters

of much greater importance than that of a Jew going to bed supperless.

While Isaac thus stood an outcast in the present society, like his

people among the nations, looking in vain for welcome or resting

place, the pilgrim who sat by the chimney took compassion upon him, and

resigned his seat, saying briefly, "Old man, my garments are dried,

my hunger is appeased, thou art both wet and fasting." So saying, he

gathered together, and brought to a flame, the decaying brands which

lay scattered on the ample hearth; took from the larger board a mess of