Page 86 - big friday
P. 86
The ceremony at the museum
Y . M. Neiman, Davar
S ecrecy enveloped the city, and its citizens did not know of the venue where the state
would be declared. There was growing tension. People felt that some one-time, fateful
event was about to take place. Only the invitees knew that at 4pm, at the museum, the sign
would be given (the invitation asked that the time and place be kept confidential).
A t 3pm we entered the museum. But someone was already there, in the museum,
having arrived earlier even than the eager journalists: a rabbi, a member of the People's
Council, his hair white.
And also the elders, who had participated in the First Zionist Congress: Dr. Shalit,
Herzl's secretary; Dr. Meir Avner, and Sammy Gronemann, had all rushed to get there
early. Who knows what goes on in the hearts of these elderly people who witnessed the
first event on the way to the founding and establishment of the state while it was no more
than a vision – and have lived to see it realized.
E ven the mayor, Mr. Rokah, who is always late, arrived a quarter of an hour early this
time – bowing to the authority of the state.
The members of the People's Council and the People's Administration file in. The Chief
Rabbis appear. The only one wearing a top hat was the rabbi of Tel Aviv.
O nly a few smoking jackets were in evidence; most people were in evening attire. A
few of the kibbutz members came with their blue shirts, in work clothes – which is the
pinnacle of glory for manual laborers.
A few men and women guests from overseas.
A few seats in the area reserved for the media had been taken by women. The military
police intervened, most politely, to vacate the places for the reporters. The "evacuation"
was carried out quietly.
Ben-Gurion entered, in a dark blue suit, with a large folder in his hand. He glanced at
the clock occasionally, wanting to be precisely on time.
The ministers of the Provisional Government ascended to the dignitaries' table, and
took their places. As in any parliament, the representatives of the workers sat on the
left side (on this occasion they were sitting close together and truly united, smiling at
one another), while the civic parties sat on the right, and amongst them, too, there were
no signs of divisiveness. With our own eyes we saw how the Minister of Industry, Mr.
Bernstein, applauded Kaplan, the Minister of Finance, representing Mapai, at the signing
of the Scroll.
84 The Friday That Changed Destiny
Y . M. Neiman, Davar
S ecrecy enveloped the city, and its citizens did not know of the venue where the state
would be declared. There was growing tension. People felt that some one-time, fateful
event was about to take place. Only the invitees knew that at 4pm, at the museum, the sign
would be given (the invitation asked that the time and place be kept confidential).
A t 3pm we entered the museum. But someone was already there, in the museum,
having arrived earlier even than the eager journalists: a rabbi, a member of the People's
Council, his hair white.
And also the elders, who had participated in the First Zionist Congress: Dr. Shalit,
Herzl's secretary; Dr. Meir Avner, and Sammy Gronemann, had all rushed to get there
early. Who knows what goes on in the hearts of these elderly people who witnessed the
first event on the way to the founding and establishment of the state while it was no more
than a vision – and have lived to see it realized.
E ven the mayor, Mr. Rokah, who is always late, arrived a quarter of an hour early this
time – bowing to the authority of the state.
The members of the People's Council and the People's Administration file in. The Chief
Rabbis appear. The only one wearing a top hat was the rabbi of Tel Aviv.
O nly a few smoking jackets were in evidence; most people were in evening attire. A
few of the kibbutz members came with their blue shirts, in work clothes – which is the
pinnacle of glory for manual laborers.
A few men and women guests from overseas.
A few seats in the area reserved for the media had been taken by women. The military
police intervened, most politely, to vacate the places for the reporters. The "evacuation"
was carried out quietly.
Ben-Gurion entered, in a dark blue suit, with a large folder in his hand. He glanced at
the clock occasionally, wanting to be precisely on time.
The ministers of the Provisional Government ascended to the dignitaries' table, and
took their places. As in any parliament, the representatives of the workers sat on the
left side (on this occasion they were sitting close together and truly united, smiling at
one another), while the civic parties sat on the right, and amongst them, too, there were
no signs of divisiveness. With our own eyes we saw how the Minister of Industry, Mr.
Bernstein, applauded Kaplan, the Minister of Finance, representing Mapai, at the signing
of the Scroll.
84 The Friday That Changed Destiny
