giving also underlined the harmony between Jewish philanthropy and
American values. Several years later, at the dedication of Montefiore’s sani-
tarium, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt again applauded the good citi-
zenship of the Jews.^80 On Schiff’s scale of a proper Jewish image the home
had more than paid for itself.
Schiff marked his seventieth birthday with large charitable gifts. Hav-
ing reached the biblical age of three score and ten, he thought of curtailing
his close involvement in certain institutions, including Montefiore. In
1918 he yielded to pressures from the trustees to remain president, but
two years later he made his retirement official. The need, he said, was for
younger leaders who could better adapt to changing times. The Montefi-
ore family paid warm tribute to his years of service, and the reference by
his successor to the period of 1880–1920 as the “Schiff era in Jewish phi-
lanthropy” lived on.^81
Breaking the BarriersSchiff spread substantial sums of money among non-Jewish beneficiaries.
With respect to Christian enterprises, nonsectarian agencies, and public or
quasi-public institutions he acted according to self-made guidelines. Re-
flecting more than his interpretation of civic responsibility, the guidelines
testified to an ongoing concern for Jewish equality and for Jewish integra-
tion into society. On occasion personal motives, whether genuine compas-
sion or a desire to draw closer to non-Jewish leaders—as in the case of the
YMCA or the American Red Cross—also played a part. His choice of ben-
eficiaries influenced others in the Jewish community. To his satisfaction
and doubtless at least in part under his influence, the partners of Kuhn,
Loeb contributed individually to both Jewish and non-Jewish causes.^82
American Jews had donated money for the erection of churches as early as
the colonial period, but Schiff usually turned down appeals for Christian
religious needs. He saw no reason to curry favor with the churches, and
besides, he thought it equally inappropriate for Jews to seek Christian help
in matters like synagogue building. On occasion, however, he was inconsis-
tent. Once, when a circular letter to Catholics reached him by some error,
he answered: “I have the advantage of being a Jew,” but he sent a donation
nonetheless. Similarly, he supported the YMCA although it had been
founded for a religious purpose.^83
The banker was less ambiguous about two related matters. First, despite
Christian prejudices, he frequently defended the need to keep Jewish char-
ities open to Gentiles. Second, with regard to the public sector, equal treat-
Leadership and Philanthropy 69hyphenated last word of recto to avoid loose line