Appendix To Part I - Documents from the Tsarist Archives about the Volozhin Yeshiva

Summary

DOCUMENT A

The Third Department of His Majesty's Private Chancellery

Department 3

7 September 1879,

no. 5685

To the Acting Minister of the Interior

The Minister of Justice has passed on for my consideration the results of the inquiry into the rabbi of the town Volozhin, Oshmyany district, Vilna province, Naftali Hirsch [Tsevi] Yehudah Berlin. An accusation was made against him that up to 250 Jews of undesirable character are living in the above-mentioned town under his protection, forming a separate society, denigrating the authorities and harbouring various criminal plans. This accusation was found to have no basis, and in accordance with the opinion of State Secretary Nabokov [the Minister of Justice], I think that the investigation into Berlin's file should be halted.

However, when I looked through this file, I could not help but notice that an institution for training learned rabbis (a yeshiva) is operating in Volozhin; it was founded about a century ago. In 1824 it was officially closed, but in fact it is still functioning and enjoys great fame; there are about 200 to 250 students there, from various places in Russia and even from abroad.

If the authorities’ order to close the Volozhin yeshiva was based on [the yeshiva’s] harmful nature, then it should not be permitted to exist in an unofficialmanner. [Therefore] it seems tome that it is my duty to point this out for Your Excellency's consideration, and I hereby request that you inform me as to the outcome.

Adjutant General Drenteln

DOCUMENT B

Ministry of the Interior

Governor General of Vilna,Kovno, and Grodno

10 April 1890

no. 431

Vilna

To the Minister of the Interior

At the end of last year the General Administration for Press Affairs forwarded to the inspector of printing houses and the book trade in Vilna an appeal, in the Jewish language, allegedly printed in one of the printing shops of Vilna and signed by several spiritual rabbis living in the Vilna province, in which Jews were invited to contribute to the Jewish colonies in Palestine.

During the investigation that was undertaken onmy orders, it was discovered that the appeal had been printed at an unknown location; that the main figure active in its distribution in the North-Western Region was the rector of the Volozhin yeshiva, R. Berlin; and [that] the collector of the contributions was the learned Jew at the directorate of the Vilna educational district, Fin.