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descendants, and was an annual event, some were meeting for the first time.
    The older guests spoke of the dreams that had motivated men like Ephraim; of the cherished legacies that had been handed down to them.
    They showed their children the daguerrotypes which were on display in the pavilion at the far end of the garden: dark, grainy images of unsmiling men and women in formal poses.
     
    Among that assembly were Martin’s mother and father. Julian Roth (the -en berger having been dropped by Julian’s parents) had married Bess Unger, a cousin three times removed. They stood facing the image of Ephraim with a heavy heart. What would he have thought today had he known that his great-grandson, Martin, had been rejected by Yale? It was painful to contemplate in view of the fact that Ephraim thought that he had left discrimination behind in the old World. He had forgotten that much of the East struggled to duplicate European society right down to its faults. It was quite clear to Julian that Martin had been turned away only because Yale’s 10 per cent Jewish quota had been filled.
    For the first time the Roths realized that San Francisco was freer of prejudice than the rest of the country. Like many Western Jews, they had a very secular outlook. They gave large sums of money to non-Jewish causes, not because they felt Jewish ones were less worthy than others, but because they considered themselves part of a larger world where the needs of the underprivileged should not be categorized according to religion. For this very reason they were particularly shocked that Martin, a straight-A student, should be rejected. Martin had been in a state of shock when he handed the letter to his father.
    ‘ . It is with regret that, by the time your application was processed, our Freshman class had been filled. “
    The next morning Julian was on the telephone with his attorney.
    “Martin’s going to Yale. Do you hear what I say?”
    “You do remember, Julian? I told you about the quota.”
    “I would have certainly not believed that it would apply to Martin.
    Not with his grades. “
    “I don’t want you to think that I’m underestimating Martin’s abilities or his qualifications, but all students, Jew or gentile, have got to be damn good.”
    “Well, I don’t give a damn about that. Martin’s going to Yale.”
    Later, in then” bedroom, Bess said to Julian, ” I still don’t
    understand any of this, Julian. I find it impossible to believe that Yale could be anti-Semitic. “
    “Not overtly. But they are all the same.”
    “I had no idea that anything like this went on.”
    “Oh, my dear-there is much worse than this happening. There are hotels in America with signs that say: no jews, NO DOGS. There are business concerns that make no apologies for not hiring Jews.”
    Bess shook her head.
    “I just can’t believe this. My God where have we been?”
    “Cloistered and insulated. Now, however, we have a choice. We can either fight or turn aside and have Martin apply to a school with lower standards or fewer Jewish applicants. I say we have to fight it.”
    “I don’t like the sound of that.” Bess had tears in her eyes.
    “Maybe he’d be happier with his own kind. Maybe pushing in where we’re not wanted is dangerous. Maybe it’s even more dangerous if he is eventually accepted. I mean, we wouldn’t want him to give up his Judaism.” She felt a cold premonition of disaster.
    “You may be right,” Julian said.
    “But with the slogans currently being shouted by the Nazis maybe we have to fight. We haven’t seen that kind of antiSemitism since the dark ages. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to speak to Martin.”
    Julian found his son in his room, lying on the bed and staring up at the ceiling.
    “I think we should talk.”
    “There really isn’t anything to talk about. Dad. They’ve turned me down.”
    “We’ll fight their decision!” Julian answered, smashing his fist into his palm.
    “We have to