LIEDER FUN A VOLONTIR ליעדער פון א װאלאנטיר פערפאסט פון ישראל לעװין
No Place [Malden, MA]: Maldener Relief Komite, 1919? Item #42896
No Date [1919?]. 1st Edition. Original printed paper wrappers, 8vo, [14] pages. 21 cm. In Yiddish. Title translates as, “Verses of a Volunteer.” No city or date listed, but clearly published during or immediately after WW I, with the Leksikon suggesting Malden (MA), 1919 (OCLC suggests Boston, the location of the printer, and a clearly incorrect date of 1900, perhaps intending "1900s"). Malden, the poet’s home town (just outside of Boston) and clearly the home of the "Maldener Relief Komite" makes much more sense, making this is the first documented yiddish publication in Malden, MA, north of Boston.
"The poet dedicated the entire income of 5 thousand copies to the brothers suffering from hunger in the countries at war” (Translated from the front cover). Includes 4 poems: Der Volontir; Ikh Zukh a Vort; Nach der Milhome; Hazkharot Neshimot. The final poem is “in memory of the fallen Jewish heroes in all the war-torn lands.”
Israel Levine (1878-1970?) “was born in a village in Minsk district, Byelorussia. In 1895 he arrived in the United States, lived in various cities, worked as a teacher in Talmud Torahs, and was secretary for Mizrachi in the town in which he lived, Malden, Massachusetts.
He debuted in print in 1904 in Fraye arbeter-shtime (Free voice of labor) in New York with a poem entitled ‘Funken shpritsn’ (Sparks fly), and from that point he went on to contribute poetry and translations from Tanakh and from ethical books to: Yidishes tageblat (Jewish daily newspaper), Forverts (Forward), Dos yudishe folk (The Jewish people), Di varheyt (The truth), and Idisher kemfer (Jewish fighter)—in New York; Idishe shtime (Jewish voice) in Boston; and more. He published in book form: Lider fun a volontir (Poems of a volunteer) (Malden, 1919), 16 pp.; Sefer naim zemirot, tehilim (Naim Zemirot on Psalms), translated into a poetic form, with short prefaces by Dr. Meir Vaksman and Aharon Kaminska (Jerusalem, 1934), 19 pp” (Khayim Leyb Fuks in Leksikon Fun Der Nayer Yidisher Literatur)
OCLC: 19307496. OCLC lists 4 copies worldwide (YIVO, Brandeis Harvard, NYBC), none outside the northeast. A few stains & discoloring, Very Good Condition, an excellent copy. Scarce. (YID-45-9*-XX-’+).
Price: $225.00