Below are excerpts from the Meeting Minutes of several World Zionist Congresses on the Rothschilds. Original documents are in German and the translations are below.
In my opinion, Congress should send a letter of thanks to Baron Eduard Rothschild in recognition of his contributions to colonization. After all, since the destruction of our state, he has been the first Jew to undertake such a great endeavor, to place many millions at its service, and to remain willing to make further sacrifices. The first Zionist assembly of all nations should express its gratitude and recognition to such a man.
Dr. Armand Kaminka (Prague), First Zionist Congress, Basel, 1897, Page 111 of Meeting Minutes
I’d just like to make a brief comment. It struck me yesterday that there was no mention of the great deeds Edmund von Rothschild accomplished through his colonization efforts. I believe that it is only through his successes that the Jewish community as a whole has been encouraged to continue what he has done as an individual. I think it would have been nice if this achievement had been mentioned at the very beginning of the meeting, and I now believe it would be appropriate to propose a toast in his honor.
Dr. S Mandlkern (Leipzig), First Zionist Congress, Basel, 1897, Page 113 of Meeting Minutes
One involved the establishment of colonies at the expense of a single individual (the Rothschild colonies), the other at the expense of colonization societies (the Odessa Committee, the “Esra” Association in Berlin, “Zion” in Austria, etc.). Many Zionists oppose both approaches. They oppose the first because it can lead to the enslavement of the colonists by individual capitalists. A small class of wealthy capitalist landowners could emerge, alongside a large number of landless farmers and poor workers who have no security whatsoever. The objection to the second approach is that it is merely a matter of charity, not a matter of the people. The people would become dependent on the charity of the rich. Let us examine each of these two approaches more closely. There is no doubt that Baron von Rothschild, as a capitalist, was very useful to the current colonization of Palestine, having taken several Jewish colonies under his patronage and continually supplying them with funds.
And yet it is a mistake to believe that the benevolent Jewish baron thereby saved the colonization of Palestine. He certainly saved a few Jewish colonies—and with them a few hundred Jewish families—but the colonization of Palestine would not have failed even without the baron and his vast capital; it would merely have been postponed for a certain number of years. The pioneers of colonization did not count on von Rothschild when they first drove their bloodied nails into the soil of their homeland, and their courage and enthusiasm would have lasted long enough to purify the holy soil, through their own sweat and blood, of the great sin of abandonment and barrenness. If we had not just one, but many benevolent, Palestine-minded, very wealthy people, such as Baron von Rothschild, we might perhaps be able to point with pride not only to 10–20, but to hundreds of thriving colonies in Palestine.
Dr. Jacob Bernstein-Kohan (Kischinew),First Zionist Congress, Basel, 1897, Page 145 of Meeting Minutes
Esteemed Assembly! I will be brief; I would not have spoken a single word—nor would my colleagues from Romania—had yesterday’s report by Dr. Mozkin not called me to order and, indeed, provoked me. His lecture on the Holy Land was excellent, but what he said about the colonies is incorrect in many respects because he was misinformed. He happened to come across (I won’t say “seek out”) people who are dissatisfied with the administration of the Rothschild colonies. Now we know, as Korach’s saying goes, that opposition will always exist; it cannot be otherwise and should not be otherwise! But to make a big deal out of matters, to criticize people who are not there to defend themselves—that is unworthy of this Congress. We have no right to criticize Palestine or Argentina—at least not as long as we are unable to offer a better alternative in their place.
Del. Pineles, Second Zionist Congress, Basel, 1898, Page 186 of Meeting Minutes
When will the people in the Rothschild colonies pay off what they owe? Never!—— but then again, they don’t owe anything. The system there is set up so that while the products (wines) are delivered to the administration, the colonists also have access to a portion of the funds; for I know for a fact that some possess 60,000 francs, , while others have 5, 6, or 20,000 francs—where did they get all this money? They all came from home with nothing but the clothes on their backs and a large brood of children.
To give you just one example of this, please note that when, a few years ago, a troublemaker had to be removed from the Sichron-Jacob colony, he was paid 1,000 Napoleons—equivalent to 120,000 francs—in cash, his property was sold to another colonist, and he settled elsewhere. These are therefore not the “dangerously grim matters” that the informants sought to make Dr. Mozkin believe.
The fact that the administration in the Rothschild colonies squanders funds, has cronies, etc.—this happens in many countries and under many governments in the Orient; these are conditions that cannot be changed and are none of our business; how provincial and moralistic!
Incidentally, this seems to suit the baron just fine, and—le baron est assez riche pour fayer sa gloire! [the baron is wealthy enough to build his own reputation!]
The administration is not Zionist! When, pray tell, has it had time to become Zionist in the sense that Dr. Mozkin means? I take the liberty of asking: for how long have many of the delegates here been Zionists? And is the intention to use such means to influence the administration to become Zionist, as has been done here?
It would have been far more appropriate to present Baron Rothschild with a memorandum, to initiate an investigation on behalf of the unfortunate colonists (if there are any at all) to determine whether the conditions were truly as described, and if that did not help, then one could intervene under public law—but to proceed in such a blatantly unjust manner was not the task of the Congress.
Del. Pineles, Second Zionist Congress, Basel, 1898, Pages 186-187 of Meeting Minutes
I already pointed out yesterday that I am making a clear distinction between the Rothschilds and the administration, (applause) not for the sake of diplomatic maneuvering, but because that is a fact and because I did not want to speak any differently than what I had actually come to believe.
Del. Mozkin, Second Zionist Congress, Basel, 1898, Page 192 of Meeting Minutes