To the Editor:
The 22 Sivan (June 11) English edition of the Yated included
an article "Oleinu Leshabeiach . . ." At its start there is a
story about Volozhin bochurim going to the Admor of
Lechovitz, which interests me greatly.
Could you provide me with the origins and provenance of this
story? R' Dov Eliach mentions Reb Chaim Volozhiner's other
son, Yosef, but claims to know nothing of his life. I have
heard that this R' Yosef (mentioned in the Hakdomoh to
Nefesh HaChaim) became a chossid of the Lechowitzer,
which might tie in with the your printed tale and would
explain a lot.
Incidentally, please tell Mrs. Samsonowitz (whose writing I
always enjoy) about her travel article in the same edition,
that the Rabbi Akiva Eiger buried near the Chasam Sofer in
Bratislava is not the former's father-in-law. It is the grave
of the "first" Rabbi Akiva Eger, the maternal grandfather of
the more famous one.
A few weeks ago I had a phone call from someone who writes in
your paper (M. Rosenzweig, who writes the "Parsha Points to
Ponder"). I was asked, as a veteran baal habayis in
Manchester, to verify a story about a goy in Manchester
leaving all his money to the largest family in town and so
providing a yeshuoh to a struggling ben Torah.
I said politely, perhaps too politely, that I gave the
tale no credence. Subsequent inquiries lead me to believe
that it is an urban myth. Nevertheless, the story did appear
later in your paper and elsewhere. Anybody with a knowledge
of English Law would immediately appreciate that the details
related do not accord with English legal practice, but this
is not the only reason why I dismiss it.
By the way I don't usually write such long letters about
fairly trivial matters, but my chavrusa for this
morning has called in to cancel. If I did not think your
paper a worthwhile read, I would not bother at all.
Yours etc.,
Elozor Reich
Manchester
