Introduction

I publish here an item of interest to students of Judaic Studies and American Studies. It is the Constitution of the Jewish congregation known as Kaal Kadosh Mickve Israel (The Holy Congregation Hope of Israel) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania published in the year 1824. It was the successor of earlier printed constitutions in 1813 and 1823. Details of the early history of this congregation, now located on Fourth Street just north of Market Street, may be found in the History of the Jews of Philadelphia: From Colonial Times to the Age of Jackson by Edwin Wolf and Maxwell Whiteman, (Philadelphia, 1956). The congregation is active to this day. You may wish to visit their website: http://www.mikvehisrael.org. The spelling has changed, but the congregation has been in continuous existence since the early eighteenth century. Its current location is just three city squares away from the place where this document was printed.

This copy of the constitution and bye-laws was given to me by D. Hays Solis-Cohen Esq. of the law firm of Wolf, Block, Schorr and Solis-Cohen, formerly located at Fifteenth and Walnut Streets in Philadelphia. It had belonged to his father, Solomon Solis-Cohen, Professor of Clinical Medicine at Jefferson Medical College, and a poet of distinction who created some beautiful English verse renderings of Hebrew poetry. An article on the history of this distinguished family, which dates back in America to 1803, may be found in Encyclopædia Judaica volume 15, columns 95-96.

It may be noted on the title page that the fifth Hebrew letter from the right is smaller than the others. This could possibly be to avoid printing two letters of the tetragrammaton in succession, but I think it likely that the printer was simply missing the appropriate font size. I have added brief explanatory notes between square brackets [ ]. I have preferred to transcribe the text rather than scan it, in order to avoid damage to its fragile pages; I have tried to reproduce to a degree the appearance of the text, although it is not possible to represent, for example, the unusual, backward-sloping font that is occasionally used. The habit of leaving a space between a word and a semi-colon or colon (still followed in Palgrave's Golden Treasury) is observed, but not consistently. Similarly, Hebrew words when they occur in transliteration are inconsistently italicized. I have reproduced these inconsistencies.

It will be observed that many of the laws enacted here are quite harsh. In one case a penalty of one hundred dollars is proposed, which was an enormous sum in the early nineteenth century. Such rigorous enactments occurred in other Portuguese synagogues in the early days, perhaps reflecting the rigor of the experience on the peninsula. The baptism of Benjamin Disraeli is said to have been prompted by his father's being fined for refusing a synagogal office at the Portuguese congregation of London. And the father of the artist Camille Pissarro had substantial conflicts with the managing board of the congregation of St. Thomas. It appears however that most fines were remitted. Unlike in Disraeli’s England or Pissarro’s case, Jews in Philadelphia could go to other congregations if unhappy.

I should like to make one final point. The Portuguese Inquisition was abolished on March 31, 1821. The Spanish Inquisition continued its bloody activities for several more years. On May 14, 1824, the Justices of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, meeting in Lancaster, a city that for one day in September, 1777 was capital of the nascent United States of America, "carefully perused and examined" this document which decrees that services in the Philadelphia synagogue shall always be according to the custom of the Portuguese Jews. The finding of Justices Tilghman, Gibson and Duncan was that this, and everything else in their proposed constitution, was lawful. It was a beautiful example of the novus ordo seclorum "the new order of the times" promised on the Great Seal of the United States. Let us strive to remember this in our day when this new order is under constant attack, both at home and abroad.

Index of Names of Members mentioned in the Document

Andrews, Joseph

b. Strasbourg 1753, d. 1824. m. Sarah (Sallie) the daughter of Haym Salomon. Teacher and merchant. Joined Mikveh Israel 1816.

Andrews, Joseph J.

b. 1801, d. 1875. Third child and oldest son of Joseph.

Cohen, Abraham Myers

b. 1787, d. 1859. Apothecary, brother and business partner of Eleazar.

Cohen, Eleazar L.

d. 1872. Apothecary. In 1821 one of the founders of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy.

Cohen, J[oseph] Simon

b. 1791, d. 1858. Another brother of the above. Lawyer and prothonotary of the Pennsylvania Superior Court. Studied at the University of Pennsylvania.

Cohen, M[ichael]. E.

d. 1835. Merchant. The shofar blower at Mikveh Israel. He was from a rabbinic family of Cohanim from Amsterdam. The family name was Israel, but he was known as Cohen.

de Cordova, Raphael

Came to Philadelphia from Jamaica in 1816. Was Parnass in 1820. He presented a silver basin for the Kohanim to wash their hands on the holidays. This is still put out, although the ceremony has ceased. Purveyor of rum.

de Lange, Jacob

Jacob de Lange appears as a contributor to the Ashkenazi synagogue Rodeph Shalom in 1812, but later moved to Mikveh Israel.

Elkin, Abraham

d. 1867. Came to Philadelphia from the West Indies. Was helpful to Simon and Hyman Gratz at the time of their bankruptcy.

Etting, Gratz

b. 1795 d. 1849. Gave a commencement address at the University of Pennsylvania at the time of the war of 1812, wherein he defended the actions of the United States. Moved later to Baltimore.

Goldsmit(h), Levi M.

b. 1781, d. 1849. He married Rosetta, the sister of Michael E. Cohen. Elected a member of Mikveh Israel 1813. Was given the honor of lighting one of the candles before the Ark at the dedication of the Cherry Street synagogue of Mikveh Israel. Took part in the modification of the constitution of the Society for the Visitation of the Sick in 1830.

Gratz, Hyman

b. 1776, d. 1857. Brother of Rebecca Gratz. Never married. Wholesale grocer and merchant. He was president of the Pennsylvania Company for Insurance. He bequeathed $150,000 to Mikveh Israel, whereby in 1895 a college for Jewish learning was established, and named for its benefactor. Mikveh Israel still appoints the trustees of Gratz College, now located in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, but the college is funded as a constituent agency of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia.

Gratz, Jacob

b. 1789, d. 1856. Brother of Hyman and Rebecca. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, was elected to the legislature of the Commonwealth. Dealt in dry goods.

Gratz, Simon

b. 1773, d. 1839. Brother of the above. Worked in the family trading and shipping business. He served in the war of 1812.

Hays, Isaac

b. 1796, d. 1879. Received the degree of M.D. in 1820 from the University of Pennsylvania. An ophthalmologist, he was a founding member of the American Medical Association in 1847.

Hays, Samuel

b. 1764, d. 1838. A broker who had worked with Haym Salomon. He manumitted his slaves. He married Richea Gratz, the sister of Hyman, 1793.

Hyman, Elijah

No information.

Israel, Abraham Eleazar

b. 1776, d. 1852. He landed in Philadelphia, 1806. Scribe and shamash (beadle) in the Cherry Street synagogue.

Levy, Isaac Jacob

b. 1763, d. 1854. Son of Hayman Levy.

Lyons, Samuel

b. 1791, Baltimore, d. 1858, Philadelphia. He was the brother-in-law of John Moss.

Marks, Hyman

b. 1772, d. 1825. Parnas of Mikveh Israel. Member of the building committee of its second synagogue.

Moses, Solomon

b. 1774, d. 1857. An auctioneer, he acted as such at the sale of the the honors to be bestowed at the dedication of the Cherry Street synagogue. He also dealt in various commodities, such as indigo, tobacco and cotton. In 1806 he married Rachel Gratz, the sister of Rebecca. She died at the age of 40, leaving nine children whom Rebecca helped to raise.

Moss, Jacob

Born 1793, London, d. 1830. Brother of John Moss, he was the first Jewish bookseller in Philadelphia, also selling water-coloring supplies, needed at that time for the education of young ladies.

Moss, J[ohn]

b. 1771, London, d. 1847, Philadelphia. He arrived in Philadelphia in 1796, and became the most successful Jewish importer in the city. Later on he became a shipping magnate, having a ship the Moss specially built for his trade. In 1797 he married Rebecca, the sister of Samuel Lyons. His silhouette, made by the artist Wm. Henry Brown, is extant. His portrait may be seen in:
Abraham Ritter, Philadelphia and her Merchants, (1860) p. 162. (Enter the page number in the oblong box.)

Nathans, David

b. 1793, d. 1878. Brother of Jacob. A contributor to the building of the Cherry Street synagogue.

Nathans, Isaiah

A cousin of David and Jacob. He had a business in West Indian staples. Originally a member of Congregation Rodeph Shalom, he later joined Mikveh Israel. Contributed to the building of the Cherry Street synagogue.

Nathans, Jacob

b. 1796, d. 1866. Brother of David, he was a broker.

Nones, Benjamin

b. 1757, Bordeaux, d. 1826. He came to Philadelphia at the age of fifteen, and engaged in petty trading. He served in the army during the war of Independence, and received a citation for his bravery at the siege of Savannah. In 1813 Nones was elected second lieutenant of a military company for older persons.In 1793 he was parnass of Mikveh Israel. "Benjamin Nones, a highly respectable Hebrew, was favorably known as a dealer in dry goods, and celebrated for vending Madras handkerchiefs." Abraham Ritter, Philadelphia and her Merchants , (1860) p. 165. In 1800 he published a letter in defense of his Judaism, which was republished by Cyrus Adler in the first volume of American Jewish Historical Society Publication pp. 111-115. "In republics we have rights, in monarchies we live but to experience wrongs."

Nones, David B.

b. 1783, d. 1837. Son of Benjamin, brother of Joseph. He moved to the island of St. Croix on business, where he married a Spanish woman. Subsequent to his return to Philadelphia in 1818, his wife Anna was converted to Judaism, as were their three sons.

Pesoa, David

b. 1801, d. 1865. A saddler, he took part in the dedication of the Cherry Street synagogue. His mother, Phila, was a sister of Manuel and Zalegman Phillips.

Phillips, B[enjamin] J. (The second initial is sometimes given as I.)

b. 1776, d. 1830. He was a brother of Manuel and Zalegman. (See below.) They were the sons of Jonas Phillips, born in Germany, and Rebecca Machado of Reading, Pennsylvania, who had some nineteen children. In 1814 John Moss and he formed a committee to attend to the erection of a brick building on the grounds of the cemetary. (Known as the metaher-house, such a building was used to prepare deceased persons for burial.) He designed the uniforms for a guard unit in which he served.

Phillips, Isaac B.

b. 1791 (1794?) d. 1857. Of the Bohemian Phillips family, he and his brother Robert joined Mikveh Israel in 1813. He married the daughter of John Moss.

Phillips, Jacob

Jacob was a manager of the United Hebrew Beneficent Society.

Phillips, Levy

b. 1754, d. 1832, of the Phillips family of Bohemia. A shopkeeper, and parnass of Mikveh Israel 1818-1820. He participated in the dedication of the Cherry Street synagogue.

Phillips, Manuel

d. 1826. He attended the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, joined the U.S. navy in 1809 as an assistant surgeon. He was the first Jewish doctor in Philadelphia, volunteered his services to the Female Hebrew Benevolent Society, founded by Rebecca Gratz, which will celebrate its bicentenary in this decade. He also acted as a mohel (ritual circumciser).

Phillips, Zalegman

b. 1779, d. 1839. An outstanding criminal lawyer, he was president in 1829 of the Hebrew Beneficent Society of Philadelphia, which developed into the current Jewish Family and Children's Service. He also served as parnass of Mikveh Israel. Like his brother Manuel, he supported the Democrat party.

Solomon, Samuel M.

A supporter of the Democrat party, he served in the Pennsylvania Militia.

Index of Non-members mentioned in the Document

Duncan, Thomas

b. 1760, d. 1827. A prominent Carlisle attorney, who taught Law to John B. Gibson. Member of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. He wrote an important opinion on the question of freedom of speech, particularly as it concerned blasphemy. See also Updegraph v Commonwealth. His epitaph was written by John B. Gibson, and may be seen on p. 112 of Thomas P. Roberts, Memoirs of John Bannister Gibson (Pittsburgh: Jos. Eichenbaum, 1890.)

Gibson, John B[annister]

b. 1780, d. 1853. He was called to the Bar in 1803. Studied at Dickinson College, Carlisle. He served in the Pennsylvania Legislature 1810-1812, and became an associate justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in 1816. He became chief justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania on the death of Wm. Tilghman in 1827. He served in that capacity until 1851. He wrote more than 1200 legal opinions. See Memoirs of John Bannister Gibson mentioned above, in particular the essay on his life by Wm. A. Porter.

Rogers, Molton C[ropper]

He was admitted as an attorney in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1812 and became the law partner of James Buchanan who was admitted in 1811. Buchanan later became the fifteenth president of the United States. Rogers was a democrat member of the Pennsylvania Senate in 1820 representing Lancaster. He was secretary of the Commonwealth, 1823-1826. For a significant case in which Rogers was involved see Ashbel Green et al., The Case of the General assembly of the Presbyterian church in the United States (Philadelphia: A. M'Elroy, 1839.)

Shulze, J[ohn] Andrew

b. 1775, d. 1852. Sixth Governor of Pennsylvania (1823-1829). He was an ordained Lutheran minister, the son and nephew of Lutheran ministers. He opened a store in Myerstown, Lebanon County, which made him quite wealthy. He served in the Assembly and Senate, and later became governor. He was much interested in general public elementary education. In 1846 he moved to Lancaster, where the Supreme Court sat when it approved this constitution. Further details of his life, and his portrait, may be seen on Wikipedia.

Smith, Frederick

Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. A Frederick Smith graduated A.B. at the University of Pennsylvania in 1792.

Tilghman, William

b. 1756, Maryland, d. 1827. He was the great-grandson of Richard Tilghman, a surgeon in London, England, who emigrated to Maryland in 1660. William began to practise law in Philadelphia in 1793, and he was appointed chief judge of the U.S. circuit court in 1801. He was Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, 1805-1827, and President of the American Philosophical Society, 1824-27. See John Golder, Life of the Honourable William Tilghman, (Philadelphia, 1829)

Acknowledgment

I wish to express my sincere thanks to Professor Jonathan Sarna for his most valuable corrections and suggestions. Any remaining faults are my own, and further comments and corrections are welcome.

Milwaukee, December 31, 2009

Alan D. Corré

The Text

[Page 3]

CONSTITUTION.

WE, whose names are hereto subscribed, electors of the Hebrew Congregation of the City of Philadelphia, and citizens of the State of Pennsylvania, do hereby publish and declare, that we have formed ourselves into a body corporate by the name, style and title of קק מקוה ישראל Kaal, Kadosh, Mickve, Israel, [The Holy Congregation "The Hope of Israel" Jeremiah, 17:13] under the articles and conditions following, to wit:

The Officers of the Congregation shall consist of a פרנס, [President] four Adjunta, [board members] a גבאי [Treasurer] and a Secretary.

[Page 4]

SECTION II.

The Parnass [President] and Adjunta [board members] shall form a board of managers; they shall be entrusted with the management of the affairs of the congregation ; they shall see that the provisions of this constitution and such bye-laws as may hereafter be adopted by the congregation are properly observed and administered ; they shall have the control of the annual income of this corporation ; they shall hold their meetings as occasion requires, and keep regular and fair minutes of their proceedings, which shall at all times (upon request) be open to the inspection of the members of the congregations ; and all orders drawn on the Gabay shall be signed by the Parnass.

SECTION III.

The Parnass shall have custody of all title-deeds, books and papers of the corporation; he shall (if required) submit them to the inspections of the board of managers, or of the congregation, at their meetings, and shall, within thirty days after the expiration of his term, deliver them over to his successor in office.

SECTION IV.

The Parnass, Adjunta, Gabay and secretary shall be severally elected by ballot, by a majority of votes at the first stated meeting in each and every year, and shall at the time of their election be citizens of the United States.

SECTION V.

There shall always be a חזן [cantor] and a שוחט [ritual slaughterer] to be cho- [Page 5] sen as aforesaid by the congregation, whenever occasion requires ; all other officers to be chosen by the board of managers.

Any Jew desirous hereafter of becoming a member of this congregation, and having resided for three years within the state of Pennsylvania, and for one year last past in the county of Philadelphia, and having during the last two years thereof held a seat in the Synagogue, and paid the yearly assessment on the same, may apply in writing to the Parnass for the time being, stating his desire to become a member, which letter shall be by the Parnass laid before the congregation at the first meeting thereafter, when it shall lay over until the next stated meeting, at which time, or at a subsequent stated meeting, the applicant shall be ballotted for, and shall be considered as elected, provided he has two-thirds of the whole number of votes present ; the person thus elected shall subscribe the constitution and pay into the hands of the Gabay the sum of ten dollars, and if the same remains unpaid for the space of three months from the day of his election, he shall not be deemed a member without a new application and election as aforesaid.

[Page 6]

No person shall be elected a member until he has attained the full age of twenty-one years.

Any member leaving the state of Pennsylvania, and remaining absent for three years without paying the yearly assessment on his seat, shall forfeit his seat and membership.

The members of this congregation shall have power to pass all rules, regulations and bye-laws necessary for their government, provided the same be not repugnant to the constitution and laws of the United States, the constitution and laws of the state of Pennsylvania, the true spirit and meaning of this constitution, or the established principles and practice of the Jewish religion.

There shall be two stated meetings of the congregation to be held semi-annually, the first to be held on the Sunday preceding ערב ראש השנה (the evening of the new year,) the second to be held on the Sunday preceding ערב פסח (the evening of the passover.)

[Page 7]

The Parnass and Adjunta, or Parnass alone, may convene the congregation whenever special occasion requires.

It shall be the duty of the Parnass to convene the congregation whenever the Adjunta or any ten members of the congregation shall require it, provided such requisition be made to him in writing.

The Parnass shall preside at all meetings, and in case of his absence a charman shall be chosen by the members present.

The Congregation may hold any lands, rents, annuities, or other hereditaments, provided the clear yearly value or income of the same, and the interest of monies by them loaned, shall not exceed the sum of five hundred pounds Pennsylvania currency. [Note: this section originally included a provision forbidding the sale, mortgaging or closing up of the synagogue or burial ground. The Supreme Court required the excision of this provision. See Wolf and Whiteman, p. 448.]

The income of the Congregation shall be derived from free-will offerings, donations, and the sale and assessment of seats in the synagogue.

[Page 8]

The yearly assessment on all seats shall be regulated by the board of managers once in every three years.

Previous to the dedication of the Synagogue now building, [on Cherry Street] the seats thereof shall be offered for sale, the purchasers thereof shall possess them for life ; and the subscriptions which have been paid towards the erection by each individual, shall be esteemed to their amount as a payment for such seat as he or she may purchase ; the assessments on the seats shall be paid yearly in advance, and shall in no case be deducted from the free-will offerings.

The sum of Thirty Dollars shall in all cases be paid for a yearly השכבה. [i.e. the name of the individual will be added to a list of the names of those for whom a memorial prayer is recited at the service of the Eve of the Day of Atonement. This custom is continued till the present day.]

The board of managers shall have the power to delay or abate the payment of any debt due to the congregation, whenever in their opinion the debtor shall be unable to pay.

The board of managers shall reserve a sufficient number of free seats for the use of strangers and the poor of this congregation.

[Page 9]

The fixed prayers, the תורה [the weekly Pentateuchal reading] and הפטרה [the weekly reading from the Prophets] shall always be read in the original Hebrew language, according to the custom of the Portuguese Jews.

The Parnass may on special occasion direct the Hazan [cantor] or any other suitable person to deliver an address or moral lecture in English.

This Constitution shall never be altered or amended except by the votes of three-fourths of the members present at the meeting to be called for that purpose as hereinafter provided for.

Whenever one-third of the whole number of members of the Congregation shall deem it expedient to alter or amend this Constitution, they shall address a letter to the Parnass, stating therein particularly the alterations or amendments required; and it shall be his duty forthwith to convene the Congregation, giving four weeks notice of the time and place of meeting [Page 10] and stating the purpose for which the meeting was called, and shall thereat lay before them the alterations or amendments proposed ; the same shall then or at any subsequent meeting be considered and discussed, and if adopted as before-mentioned shall become part of this Constitution.

Three-fourths of the whole number of members of this Congregation shall be to form a quorum for the purpose of alteration or amendment of this Constitution.

In all other cases seventeen members shall be sufficient to form a quorum.

In case there should be no election of officers a the first stated meeting as provided for by the fourth section of the first article of this Constitution, the Corporation shall not therefore be dissolved, but the officers in office shall continue to hold their offices until new ones are duly elected.

Zalegman Phillips, Parnass.
Levy Phillips )
Samuel Hays )
Simon Gratz ) Adjunta.
Aaron Levy )
Hyman Marks, Gabay,
Abraham Myers Cohen, Secretary.

Benjamin Nones,	Isaiah Nathans,
B.J. Phillips,	Hyman Gratz,
[Page 11]
J. Moss,	Joseph Phillips,
Manuel Phillips,	Gratz Etting,
Isaac Jacob Levy,	M. E. Cohen,
Samuel M. Solomon,	J. Simon Cohen,
David B. Nones,	Jac: Gratz,
Hyman Polock,	Jacob A. Jacobs,
David G. Seixas,	Samuel M. Cohen,
Isaac B. Phillips,	Jacob De Lange,
Levi M. Goldsmit,	Solomon Moses,
Abm: E. Israel,	Eleazar L. Cohen,
Samuel Lyons,	Isaac Hays,
Raphael de Cordova,	Joseph Andrews,
David Nathans,	Jacob Moss,
El: Hyman,	Abraham Elkin,
David Pesoa,	Jacob Nathans,
Joseph J. Andrews,	Jacob Phillips.

I Frederick Smith, attorney general of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, do hereby certify that I have carefully perused the within written instrument, and declare that the objects, articles, and conditions therein set forth, and contained, are lawful.
FREDERICK SMITH.
Reading, April 7, 1824.

We, the Judges of the Supreme court of the State of Pennsylvania, certify that we have carefully perused and examined the within written instrument, and con- [Page 12] cur in opinion with the Attorney General, that the objects, articles and conditions therein set forth are lawful.

Witness our hands at Lancaster, this fourteenth day of May, A.D. eighteen hundred and twenty-four.

WILLIAM TILGHMAN.
JOHN B. GIBSON.
THOMAS DUNCAN.

Pennsylvania, ss.

In the name and by the authority of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

J. ANDREW SHULZE.

 ********
 *      *
 * Seal *      J. ANDREW SHULZE,
 *      *    Governor of the said Commonwealth,
 ********
 

WHEREAS, it has been duly certified to me by Frederick Smith, Esq. Attorney General of the said commonwealth, and by William Tilghman, esq. Chief Justice, and John B. Gibson and Thomas Duncan, Esqrs. Associate Judges of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, that they have respectively perused and examined the act or instrument for the incorporation of קק מקוה ישראל (Kaal Kadosh Mickve Israel) hereto annexed, and that they concur in opinion, that the objects, articles and conditions therein set forth and contained are lawful:

[Page 13]

Now Know You, That in pursuance of an act of the General Assembly, passed the sixth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety-one, entitled “An Act to confer on certain associations of the citizens of this commonwealth the “powers and immunities of corporation or bodies politic in law,” I have transmitted the said act, or instrument of incorporation unto you, the said Molton C. Rogers, secretary as aforesaid, hereby requiring you to enrol the same at the expense of the applicants, to the intent that according to the objects, articles and conditions therein set forth and contained, the parties may become and be a corporation and body politic in law and in fact, to have continuance by the name, style and title, in the said instrument provided and declared

Given under my hand and the Great Seal of the state, at Harrisburg, this thirty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-four, and of the commonwealth the forty-eighth.

By the Governor,

MOLTON C. ROGERS,

Secretary of the Commonwealth.

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania:
Enrolled in the office of the secretary of the commonwealth in charter book No. 3, page 509, &c. containing a record of acts incorporating sundry literary, charitable and religious institutions.

Witness my hand and the Lesser Seal of the state, at Harrisburg, this thirty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-four, and of the commonwealth the forty-eighth.

 ********
 *      *
 * Seal *      MOLTON C. ROGERS,
 *      *    Secretary of the Commonwealth.
 ********
 

[Page 14]

Within thirty minutes after the time appointed for meeting, the Parnass, or in his absence a chairman shall take the chair, the members present shall come to order, and the secretary shall proceed to call the roll ; if a quorum be present, the meeting may then proceed to business ; no member shall leave the meeting when organized, without permission from the chair, and any member who shall be absent from an entire meeting shall be fined twenty-five cents.

A majority of members present may transact any business not otherwise provided for.

As stated, special and adjourned meetings, the business shall be proceeded to according to the following order:
1st. The secretary shall read the minutes of the preceding meeting.
2d. Officers or members may be elected (if at a stated meeting.)
3d. Reports of officers or committees shall be read.

[Page 15]

4th. Communications addressed to the Parnass or congregation shall be read.
5th. Other business shall be proceeded to on motion.
6th. No motion shall be received unless seconded, nor unless the mover, if required by the chair or a member shall commit it to writing.

All votes shall be given viva voce, except in elections, which shall be by ballot : at the request of any four members the yeas and nays shall be entered on the minutes.

No motion to reconsider shall be received unless moved and seconded by two members who voted with the majority on the original question ; nor shall any reconsideration be had after the meeting next following that in which the business may have been finally acted upon, unless by unanimous consent of the members present.

No proxies shall be allowed in any case whatever.

At special meetings of the congregation, no other business shall be transacted, except that for which the meeting was called, unless by the consent of three-fourths of the members present, which shall be determined without debate.

[Page 16]

No member shall speak more than twice on any one subject, without leave from the chair.

No persons but members of the congregation and their sons, over thirteen years of age, shall be admitted to the meetings of the congregation.

1st. The Parnass may vote at the meetings of the congregation on following subjects, viz. upon alterations of the constitution or bye-laws, or upon the election, suspension or expulsion of a member, but in no other case except when the meeting is equally divided, when he shall have the casting vote.
2d. He shall have the power to remit the fines for absence of members upon sufficient excuse.
3d. He shall have the power to fine any member who behaves unbecomingly at a meeting of the congregation in any sum not exceeding twenty-five dollars ; an appeal however may in all such cases be made to the meeting, whose decision shall be final ; he may, with the consent of the majority of the members present, cause a disorderly member to be removed from the meeting.
4th. He may at his discretion cause to be given for any person professing Judaism, who is an object of charity, any sum not exceeding ten dollars by an order drawn on the Gabay.
5th. He shall maintain silence and good order du-

[Page 17]

ring worship, and may impose a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars, upon such persons as disturb the tranquillity of the congregation at that time, and from a fine thus imposed, an appeal may be had to the board of managers.
6th. All orders which the Parnass may draw on treasurer, shall be from a printed order-book, having a marginal reference which shall state the sum drawn, the name of the person in whose favour it was drawn, and the date.
7th. Whenever the Adjunta cannot be conveniently assembled, and the exigency of the case requires it, the Parnass may act at discretion, provided that in such cases he shall not draw orders on the Gabay to an amount exceeding twenty-five dollars, except for the payment of salaries which may be due to the Hazan, Shohet, or Shamas. [The Shamas is the beadle, a paid employee who is a general facilitator.]
8th. The Parnass [or in his absence the Adjunta] shall designate the particular spot where any Jew shall be interred except in such cases where reservations of the ground have been made for any family, which shall never be appropriated to the use of others than members of such families.

1st. The Gabay before he enters upon the duties of his office shall give a bond for the faithful discharge of the same, in such sum or sums as the board of managers may deem sufficient, with one or more sureties

[Page18]

to be approved by the board, which bond shall be kept by the Parnass.
2nd. He shall open a regular set of books, and make therein the necessary entries, and keep a true account of all offerings, donations, assessments and fines. He shall collect all debts due to the congregation, and have the custody of all money belonging to it, which he shall deposit in one of the incorporated banks of the city or county of Philadelphia, in a distinct and separate account as Treasurer, retaining in his own hands a sum of money not exceeding twenty dollars for the payment of small debts.
3rd. He shall at all times, when required by the board of managers, give them a statement of money in his hands, and a list of debtors to the congregation.
4th. At the first stated meeting of the congregation in every year, i. e. on the Sunday preceeding [sic] ערב ראש השנה [the last two of these Hebrew words meaning "the eve of the New Year" are printed backwards, probably on account of confusion caused by the line break] he shall exhibit his account current of the receipts and expenditures made during the preceeding [sic] year, and a list of the persons who remain indebted to the congregation, with the respective amounts which report shall have been audited by a committee of the board of managers for approbation previously to its being presented.
5th. He shall not pay any sum unless on an order of the Parnass.

1st. The Secretary shall keep correct and fair minutes of the proceedings of every meeting ; he shall keep

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the roll and note thereon a true account of the absence of members from the meetings of the congregation, and shall furnish to the treasurer an account of the fines incurred for absence or other causes ; he shall issue notices to members of stated, special and adjourned meetings, giving three days notice previous to each meeting.
2nd. There shall be a book procured, under the direction of the Parnass, in which the secretary shall register the number of the seats in the new Synagogue, placing opposite to the numbers, the names of the purchasers of the seats respectively, and the annual rents which are chargeable on the same : the reserved seats, and those rented by the congregation, shall be properly designated, as well as such seats as revert to the congregation by death or forfeiture.

The Parnass, Gabay and Secretary, upon delivering over to their respective successors in office, the money, books and papers belonging to the congregation, shall take receipts for the same in the receipt-book of the congregation.

1st. The board of managers shall hold at least four stated meetings in every year, and in case of a vacancy in their body, or of the Gabay or Secretary, they may supply such vacancy by an appointment to last until the next annual election.
2nd. They may demand such reasonable sum as

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they may think proper for the interment of any Israelite, other than members or seat holders of this congregation and their families.
3rd. No person deceased shall be entitled to an השכבה [memorial prayer] without the approbation of the board of managers, nor shall any such person's name be registered by the Hazan until the sum required by the Constitution be paid to the Gabay.
4th. The board of managers shall appoint a Shamas [beadle] whenever occasion requires, and allow him such salary as they may deem proper ; his duties shall be, to provide, under their direction, fuel, candles and other necessary articles for the use of the synagogue, to keep it in proper order, to serve notices of meetings upon the members, and when required by the Gabay, to collect all debts due to the congregation and pay them over to him.

Any member wishing to resign, must address a note to the Parnass, stating his desire, and enclosing a certificate from the Gabay that he is not in arrears to the congregation ; which shall be laid before the congregation at their next meeting.

Any member insulting an Officer in the discharge of his duties, or violating the Constitution or Laws of this congregation, or creating any disturbance at the meetings of business or during public worship, or behaving in any other way improperly or disorderly at the same places, will subject himself to an impeachment in addition to the fines which may be imposed for such misdemeanour.

Every Officer whatever will be liable to an impeachment for neglect of duties or misdemeanour in office.

The form of impeachment shall be as follows viz: Articles of Impeachment signed by at least four members shall be handed to the Parnass, who shall immediately convene the congregation and lay the charges before them, the person accused having been previously furnished with a copy and notified to attend the meeting in order to make his defence ; the congregation shall then take such order as they think proper, each member having the right to speak and vote.

The punishments on conviction shall be suspension from the privileges of membership, or honours of the Synagogue for a term not exceeding two years, fine not to exceed one hundred dollars, removal from office or expulsion ; but no person shall be expelled by any vote less than the vote of a majority of all the members of the congregation.

Any member elected to an office and refusing to serve, or accepting of any office and afterwards resigning, shall, unless liberated by the board of managers, be fined the following sums, viz. Parnass, twenty dollars, Adjunta fifteen dollars, Gabay or Secretary, ten dollars.

Any member not having paid his dues to the congregation for two years, and not having been liberated of the same, shall be reported to the congregation, his seat and membership shall be declared forfeited, and he shall be sued for the debts ; provided in all cases, the Gabay gives him four weeks previous notice.

No offering shall be made in the synagogue less than one shilling Pennsylvania currency.

All ספרים shall be under the direction of the Parnass and no one owning a deposited ספר or ספרים shall be entitled to any exclusive privilege of the same in the synagogue.

In the absence of the Parnass from prayers, the eldest of the Adjunta present shall act as סגן, [deputy] in the absence of the Adjunta, the Gabay, in his absence the Hatan Torah or Hatan Beresit ; [the Bridegroom of the Torah, the Bridegroom of the First Reading, titles given to readers of the last portion in Deuteronomy and the first portion in Genesis at the end of the High Holy Days.] and on failure of all, the Hazan shall appoint one.

The חתנים [the two just-mentioned honorees] shall be entitled to carry the ספרים [the Torah scrolls] on the first day of ראש השנה [the New Year] and attend the Hazan at מוסף [Musaf, the "additional service" for the New Year at which it is customary for two men to stand on either side of the Cantor to support him during this strenuous service.] ; they shall be entitled to carry the two first [Torah scrolls] on כיפר [Atonement—the word is misspelled] eve, הושענה רבה [Hoshana Rabba, the seventh day of the Tabernacles feast] and שמחת תורה [the last day of the High Holy Days, on which the weekly reading of the Torah is concluded, and immediately recommenced] and also the distribution of the מצות [here means synagogue honors] on their respective days.[i.e. the last day of the holidays for the one man, and the next following Sabbath for the other. It was customary for those honored to read the Torah themselves.]

Of the honours and privileges of Members.

1st. A member when married, or on the marriage of a daughter, or of a son under twenty-one years of age, shall have the distribution of the מצות [synagogue honors] on the Sabbath succeeding such marriage, provided that such Sabbath does not fall on a holy day or festival, in which case the חתן only shall be called to the ספר in his own right. [i.e. he is entitled for some other reason.]
2d. A member having a son or daughter born shall be entitled to be called to the ספר on the first Sabbath succeeding the birth, and also upon the first Sabbath of his wife's attending worship; holy days and festivals in both cases excepted.
3rd. A member having יאהר צייט [Yortsait, the Yiddish word for the anniversary of a death] for a parent, shall be entitled to be called to the ספר on that day, if on a Sabbath, but if not, he shall be called up on the succeeding Sabbath, holy days and festivals excepted.
4th. A member having a son בר מצוה [bar mitsvah, i.e. having reached the age of thirteen years, which is his religious majority.] he and his son shall be entitled to be called to the ספר provided the birth day does not fall on a holy day or festival, in which case the בר מצוה only, shall be called in his own right, Provided, that in all the above cases the Parnass, or in his absence, the Hazan receives twenty-four hours notice thereof; and should there be on the same day, two or more persons entitled to the same honours, the Parnass shall act as he thinks proper.

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The Hazan and Shohet shall enter into written contracts (under a penalty,) for the faithful performance of their respective duties, which shall be particularly expressed in each said contract.

The Hazan shall perform no marriage or funeral rites without the consent of the Parnass or Adjunta.

No child under three years of age shall be admitted into synagogue during worship.

No member elected to any one office and serving therein for one year, or paying his fine, shall be compelled to serve in that or any other office, for the space of three years from the first election.

No bye-law shall be enacted or repealed, unless the proposition shall have been made at the preceding meeting and finally agreed to by two thirds of the members present.