I cannot tell, but we have scrambled up
More wealth by far than those that brag of faith.”
He mentions wealthy Jews in various lands, “wealthier far than any Christian,” and the opulence of the race consoles him for its political humiliation:
“Give us a peaceful rule, make Christian Kings,
That thirst so much for principality.”
Thus this practical idealist soliloquises, spiritualising the realities of filthy lucre, materialising spiritual prophecies, and, in the midst of national disgrace, retaining his racial pride intact—a living Jew. Nor is he devoid of human affections:
“I have no charge, nor many children,
But one sole daughter, whom I hold as dear
As Agamemnon did his Iphigen:
And all I have is hers.”