Page:Jewish Encyclopedia Volume 2.pdf/680

630 Beer Beer,

THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

Benjamin

has been suggested that the appellations Beelzeare corrupt forms of what was originally " Baal Zebul " (Baal of the heavenly man-

It

bub and Baal Zebub

pnt, Clovers, in "Journal Asiatique," 1878, pp. " Baal of the nether world. (2) The word "Zebul" (from "zebel," dung) is a cacophonic corruption of "Zebub," in order to give the name the meaning of "god of the dung." It is more likely that the name " Beelzebul " is a dialectic variation of " Beelzebub, " as " Beliar " is of " Belial " Jerome read and translated the name as " dominus sion,

220-225), and afterward

muscarum

"

Bibliography

(lord of

flies).

Cneyne, Encyclopaedia Biblica, s.v. Hastings, Diet, of tlie Bible, s.v.; Ligntfoot, Horce Hebraicce on Matt. xii. 24; Movers, Die- Phoenizier, 1841, i. 2tili; Winer, Rcalwi'irterbueh, s.v. Beelzebub and Fliegen Riehm, RcalwOrterbuch; Baudissin, in Hauck-Herzog, Real-EneyklopdHoltzmann, Handeommentar zum Neuen Testadie, s.v. ment, Die Synoptiker, p. 13ti; Meyer, Commentary on Matt. x. 25.







K.

BEER

A

("well"); 1. halting-place of the Israelites near Arnon, in Moab, where they stopped during their wanderings in the desert (Num. xxi. On the finding of the well a song was com16). posed (Num. xxi. 17, 18) one of the earliest poetic pieces of the Bible. See an article by Budde in

"The New World," March,

A

place to which

1895.

fled from his brother Abimelech (Judges ix. 21). This place has not been identified, though so much appears probable, that it

2.

was within the j.

Jotham

territory assigned to Manasseh.

G. B. L.

jr.

BEER, AARON:

Chief cantor of the Jewish congregation of Berlin born 1738 died Jan. 3, 1821, in the fiftieth year of his official capacity as cantor. He possessed a well-trained tenor voice of extraordinary compass and rich and powerful quality and such was his fame, about 1770, that music-lovers gathered from far and near to hear him. The Royal Library at Berlin contains a fine picture which represents him as a young man, holding in his hand a title-page with the motto "limner Besing Ich des Ewigen Huld " (Ps. lxxxix. 2 [A. V. 1]).





Bibliography Mendel, MusikaHsches Konversations-Lexl:

kon. J.

s.

BEER, ADOLF

So.

Austrian historian and educator; born at Prossnitz, Moravia, Feb. 27, 1831. While still young he came under the influence of men like Gideon Bkbcher and Zebi Hirsch Fassel, and received a careful education in the high school of his native city. Thus prepared he went abroad in quest of a higher education and attended the universities of Berlin, Heidelberg, Prague, and Vienna,

training himself for a political career. To this ambition he sacrificed his Jewish religion and embraced

Having graduated as Ph.D., he was appointed teacher of history at the high schools of Czernowitz, Prague, and Vienna, then in 1857 assistant professor of Austrian history at the Law Academy of Grosswardein, Hungary. In the following year he was promoted to a professorship of history at the Commercial Academy of Vienna. In this position he remained for ten years, when, in 1868, he was transferred to the Teclmische HocliChristianity.

first

schule of that city.

630

that time his ambitions began to materialize. entered the Ministry of Public Instruction as councilor, doing yeoman service in the cause of popular and higher education and in 1873 he was elected member of Parliament, which election has His lucid since been renewed without interruption. parliamentary speeches, founded on a comprehensive and deep knowledge of educational, commercial, and financial affairs, won him the respect of his colleagues and opponents. In the political dealings between the conservative and liberal elements consequent upon the fall of the Taaffe ministry on Oct. 30, 1893, Beer was proposed as state secretary of education, but his Jewish descent thwarted all his hopes of entering the cabinet. Beer is of a conservative disposition, appealing rather to the reason than to the emotions of his audience. His numerous writings show the wide range of his knowledge. They embrace commerce, finance, foreign politics, education, and modern history. As far back as 1872 Leopold von Ranke praised Beer's facility of expression and wide sweep of historical view. Beer is the author of the following works "Geschichte des Welthandels," 1860; " Fortschritte des Unterrichtswesens," 1867; "Die Zweite Theilung Polen's," 1867; "Joseph II., Leopold II., und Kaunitz,"1873; "Leopold II, Franz II., und Katharina von Russland," 1873; "Finanzen Oesterreich's im 19. Jahrhundert, " 1877; "Zehn Jahre Oesterreichischer Politik 1801-10," 1877; " Staatshaushalt Oester.-Ungarns seit 1868," 1881; " Aus-Tegethofi's Nachlass," 1882; "Die Orientalische Politik Oesterreichs seit 1774," 1883; "Die Oesterreichische Han-

At

He





delspolitik

im

Bibliography:

19.

Jahrhundert," 1893.

Miinz, in Nation, Berlin,

Meyer, Konversations-Lexikon,

March

16,

1901;

s.v.

M. B.

S.

ADOLPH

BEER, Austrian colonel born 1833 in Prossnitz, Moravia; died Oct. 2,1888, at Leibach, Carniola. He entered a school for military cadets. On leaving it with the rank of lieutenant, he was appointed professor at the military academy in Weisskirchen, Moravia. Later Beer held a similar position in the military school of Cracow. During the Austro-Prussian war (1866) he greatly distinguished himself in the defense of the frontier fortress of Olmiltz and by preventing its surrender, when the Prussians unexpectedly appeared before it at night. Beer was one of the first Jews in the Austrian army to attain the grade of colonel. Bibliography Jewish Chronicle, Oct. 1888, p. 9. 8. B. B.





BEER, ALEXANDER:

Religious

and author in Munich, who wrote

in

teacher

1826, under

the direction of Abraham Bing, rabbi of Wiirzburg, and with the approbation of the " bet din " in Furth, and other rabbinical authorities of Bavaria, a

catechism in the German vernacular under the title "Lehrbuch der Mosaischen Religion" (Munich, 1826), and in an abridged form "Hauptlehren der Mosaischen Religion " (ib. 1826), for the use of the Jewish schools. The same was indorsed by a rescript of King Ludwig I. of Bavaria, and was published at the expense of the government, with the