The B'nai B'rith magazine · 1927-07-01 · 10 (7.1927) · p. Seite 419

In the Public Eye Felix M. Warburg Felix M. Warburg ^THOUSANDS may come and go between Europe and America unnoticed, but the return of Felix M. Warburg to New York last month from a half year's tour of the world was the occasion for many gatherings to welcome him; and the attention of the nation's Jewry was centered on what he would have to say about the needs of our people abroad. His visit to Palestine, it is said, will bring forth a ten-year program for the rehabilitation of the Holy Land, and his observations in Russia will greatly effect American Jewish relief in that country. Mr. Warburg has become the leader of leaders in matters relating to the good of his people through many years of varied efforts in their behalf. He is chairman of the Joint Distribution Committee which has saved the lives of thousands of Jews in Eastern Europe. He has been chairman also of the New York Federation of Jewish Philanthropic Societies, and serves as an executive or director of numerous hospitals, welfare and educational institutions. Born in Hamburg, Germany, in 1871, Mr. Warburg came to this country as a young man. He is a member of the banking firm of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. Judge Irving Lehman T N 1898 Columbia University graduated Irving Lehman as a lawyer. Last month the Univ e r s i t y called him back to confer upon him the Degree of Doctor of Law in recognition of the Judge Irving distinction that Lehman he had gained for himself as a jurist. Judge Lehman occupied the bench of the Supreme Court of New York State from 1908 to 1924. In the latter year he was elected Associate Judge of the New York Court of Appeals on the nomination of both parties, and in this capacity he still serves. His devotion to Jewish causes may be seen in his activities; he has been president of the New York Y. M. H. A., and now is president of the Jewish Welfare Board, honorary chairman of the Intercollegiate Menorah Society, a trustee of the Jewish Theological Seminary and a prominent Ben B'rith. Otto H. Kahn T ONG recognized as America's leading patron of arts, Otto H. Kahn now has identified himself with Jewish cultural movements. He heads a committee whose aim is to construct a theater in Palestine for the Habima, the Hebrew players of Moscow. Banker and friend of artists; organizer of railroads and sponsor of musical undertakings; industrial leader and champion of education — between these extremes ranges the rich personality of Mr. Kahn. Mr. Kahn was still in his twenties when he became a partner of the banking firm of Kuhn, Loeb and Co. Soon the country began to hear of a very young man who was the financial genius behind many of the largest railroad transactions. Then Otto H. Kahn was heard of in connection with cultural endeavors, which under his patronage, have placed America in a creditable position in the world of art. Besides innumerable business associations, he is president of the Metropolitan Opera Co.; honorary director of the Royal Opera, London; vice-president of the New York Philharmonic Society; director of the American Federation of Arts; Chairman of the National Music Week Committee; trustee of the Museum of French Art; trustee of Rutgers College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Carnegie Institute. Otto H. Kahn Abram I. Elkus Abram I. Elkus '"TO MENTION only the better known distinctions of Abram I. Elkus —that he is a great lawyer and a great diplomat —would be to omit an honor of which he is most proud. For ten years he was the president of the Free Synagogue, and last month he was unanimously elected its Honorary President. Many times Mr. Elkus has been called to serve in public affairs. . He is seen as a champion of labor; he was a member of a State commission that brought about an improvement of labor conditions and he was largely responsible for the code of Labor Laws in New York. In 1926 the late President Wilson appointed him ambassador to Turkey. He is honorary chairman of the B'nai B'rith Wider Scope Committee, a Grand Officer in the French Legion of Honor and has been decorated with the Grand Cross of the British Empire, but for all his honors and his interests in public affairs, he is seen with the humblest of his people, serving and leading them. Dr. E. R. A. Seligman '"PHE FIRST American ever to re- *• ceive the noted Emile de Laveleye prize of the Royal Academy of Sciences, Letters and Fine Arts, Belgium, is Dr. Edwin R. A. Seligman, professor of political economy at Columbia University. Besides being associated as an officer or a member with more than two score of national and inter n atio n a 1 learned societies, Dr. Seligman has served as the advisor in economics to numerous public commissions, among them the President's Committee on Unemployment in 1912, the New York Legislative Committee, and the League of Nations. Dr. E.R. A.Seligman 419