All the gripers banded together as one, each one for a different reason, and composed a slanderous letter to the town’s officials accusing the rabbi of being a fanatic, an unenlightened zealot. The town officials and government bureaucrats, who knew the Rabbi, tore up the letter and rebuked the rabble-rousers. How did they react? The Hassidim amongst them said, “Because he studies the languages of the Gentiles, they side with him.” The Enlightenment followers among them said, “Because the Gentiles like him, he hastens to be strict even when there is room for leniency, in order to capture the hearts of the most religious.”
And yet the dispute had not progressed beyond being just an ordinary dispute, until Reb Fischel was widowed and remarried a woman from the Feivush family. This is the same Feivush family that was named after its leader Reb Uri Veibush the Provider, who used to rule the town with an iron fist, and the fruit of his loins had emulated his qualities and maintained a firm grip on the town. The head of the community, Reb Feivush the Great, was a member of the Feivush family. The congregational scribe, Feivush the Lesser, was his sister’s son. Reb Feivushel the Elder was the treasurer of the holy burial society. Feivush the Hoarse, the religious supervisor of the slaughterhouse, was from the family of Feivush. The Feivush who was nicknamed Fabius was in charge of the registry of births and deaths. Fabius, whom everyone called Feivki, and Feivki who called himself Febus, together controlled the tobacco market and its branches. The distillery was leased to the husband of Reb Feivush the Great’s sister. The fields belonging to the town’s Baron were leased to the father-in-law of the husband of Feivush the Great’s sister. And all of them together were partners in leasing the liquor authority. In short, there was not even one office of importance or monetary value that was not in the hands of the House of Feivush. Even the appraisers and tax assessors and the one in charge of the charitable consecrations were from this same family. Since Reb Fischel had married a woman from the family of the House of Feivush, the Feivushes said, “Why not nominate him for a judgeship? Surely he is entitled to it by rights of his first father-in-law and surely by his own right he is worthy to be a judge.” Those who were dependent on the Feivushes, tagged along behind them. Those who were not dependent on the Feivushes leaned at times in one direction and at times in the other. And so the peace was stripped away and the conflict had begun.
33.
From time to time wealthy people from our town from would visit Reb Shlomo’s town for trade and commerce or to conduct some other business. And when someone from our town would visit Reb Shlomo’s town, he would go to meet him and deliver tidings to the rabbi’s wife from her brothers and other relatives. On days that she received visitors from our town the rabbi’s wife would make it a holiday for them because she liked her hometown folk, the vast majority of whom were fine and well-mannered people, and needless to say she liked the town itself which was worthy of affection. As the conflict had intensified and Reb Moshe Pinchas had already passed on, the rabbi’s wife went back to her wishful thinking that her husband the rabbi would return to our town. And she used to prepare large feasts for the guests to avail them the opportunity to speak with the rabbi and hear about new developments in our town. While there were not terribly many new developments in our town, still there is no town without something new. One development, from which you can learn how much our town loves peace and distances itself from conflict, is worth mentioning. When a member of one the new Hassidic sects, Vovi Zeinvil Fleshkidrige, broke the rules and wore a festive fur hat on the Sabbath immediately preceding the mournful fast day of Tisha B’Av, the entire town ridiculed him but it did not deteriorate into a brawl.
And here it must be said, as we’ve already said before, that all our townsfolk were scholars. And whenever they used to sit around at a feast anywhere, it seemed as if the Divine table was actually standing in our town due to the plethora of Torah discussions that could be heard around it. From Torah discussions they would arrive at matters close to the Torah and it goes without saying to the matter of the rabbinate in our town. Reb Shlomo showed no indication that he was leaning towards accepting the rabbinate in our town. To the contrary, in those days he was urging the visiting dignitaries to seek another rabbi for themselves, as it is not right to leave an important Jewish town without a leader. One time Reb Shimon Eliyah, Reb Shlomo’s brother-in-law arrived with three of the best of our town, amongst them the distinguished Reb Yehudah, the father-in-law of my grandfather Reb Yehudah. After the evening prayers, during the meal, conversation got around to the conflict with the Feibushes and their entire clan. Reb Shimon Eliyah said to his brother-in-law, “Flee this town of quarrelsome people and come to our town.” The distinguished Reb Yehudah, father-in-law of my grandfather Reb Yehudah, added, “It is brought forth in Maimonides’s ‘Laws of Temperaments’ that if a man resides in a country whose leadership is malevolent and whose people fail to follow the just path, it behooves him to move to a place whose people are righteous and conduct themselves in the ways of virtue.” Reb Shlomo shut his eyes like a man who was contemplating his advisor’s advice. When some time had passed and he had said nothing, all the dignitaries said as one, “Rabbi, what will you reply to us?” The rabbi opened his eyes and said, “You know that I am not a man of conflict and I am neither obstinate nor fond of polemics, neither am I dependent on rabbinical compensation. But what shall those rabbis do whose wives did not bring them a dowry and whose fathers-in-law did not bequeath them wealth and assets? Heaven forbid that they should make the Torah a doormat to be trampled by all. If a rabbi is poor and dependent on people, he is not given enough to make a living and not only that but he is also insulted and derided. And if he is rich, they come to him with complaints because of his wealth. The edges of the robe of the sage Rabbi Gabriel Reinush were worn out from age and he had to shorten it and the entire town raised a hue and cry that he was wearing short clothing, German-style. The sage Rabbi Abraham Teomim who was very wealthy and would allocate all of his earnings towards the needs of the town, was forced from his hometown because the town’s bigwigs claimed that he was depriving them of their livelihood because they were lending money to the local nobility at an interest rate of twenty percent, while he was satisfied with only eight percent. And did they not gripe about me that I was lending my money with interest and cutting into their livelihood? And surely you know that I entrusted the funds left to me by my father-in-law, may he rest in peace, to reliable people so that they would give loans from the earned interest to marketplace merchants, from whom the lenders take twenty to twenty-five percent from the principal and deduct the interest up front, then charging them as if they had loaned them the full amount. And I tell you further, my dear friends, that I have spent the majority of my days tranquilly; now that they have sent some troubles my way should I be more demanding and issue a challenge? I am a decent man and deserve to live my life in peace. I am reminded that there was a great scholar in your town who practically killed himself for the sake of Torah study and when he died he didn’t leave his wife and children even enough for one meal. And I, Blessed be God — my livelihood is assured and my burial clothes are ready for me. Therefore, what do I need to worry about? They will not carry me out in a garbage wagon like the people of Belz did to their rabbi, the Bach of blessed memory, who was ushered out of the town on the eve of the Sabbath after noon. I beseech you, my brothers, please do not wound me; rather take for yourselves a rabbi.” The dignitaries said to him, “We already have a rabbi.” “Who is it?” asked Reb Shlomo. The dignitaries smiled and answered coyly, “Why, of course, it is you Reb Shlomo, may you live long!” Reb Shlomo rose from his chair and said to them, “Take note, gentlemen, I have already told you that I will not accept the rabbinate in your town, and I am not changing what I have said.” Reb Shimon, his brother-in-law, said, “We’ve already been assured by your grandfather, the great Rabbi Pinchas — may his merit protect us— that one of his descendants is destined to reside in our town.” Reb Shlomo responded, “Rabbi Pinchas, my grandfather, was a great and righteous man. And when a righteous man says something, it is bound to come true. But after all, my grandfather, of blessed memory, left many children who also have borne children devoted to Torah. Since they are my kinsfolk, it is not proper for me to recommend them. And you, if it is your desire to fulfill my grandfather’s words, chose for yourselves from among his progeny one who is worthy of that responsibility.” All the dignitaries responded in unison, “That righteous man clearly said, ‘a singularly special one from among my seed.’ And there is no one in this generation greater than our rabbi, Rabbi Shlomo, may he live long.” Reb Shlomo responded, “Even though you are mistaken to think of me as being unique in this generation, my grandfather never said that I would sit in his chair; he said only that one of his seed would come to dwell among you. And who knows what that righteous one meant to infer?”