Postcard sent by the couple Eliezer and Hemda Ben Yehuda (handwritten by Eliezer Ben Yehuda) to David and Zipporah Judilowitz in Rishon LeZion, on the occasion of the birth of the latter couple's sixth child. "Jerusalem, 24 Tishrei [Year] 1833 of our Exile" [October 1903].
"Our friends David and Zipporah, congratulations and mazal tov [on the occasion of] the sixth child born to you, hooray! If she gives birth to an additional four she will be eligible for a prize according to the laws of France, and seeing as we are an established people, we shall know how to recognize such a blessed mother […] Once again: Congratulations! E. and H. Ben Yehuda."
The letter's recipient, David Judilowitz (1863-1943), was Eliezer Ben Yehuda's protégé, an adherent of the "Bilu" movement, a teacher, and an author. He was one of the first educators in Rishon LeZion to conduct classroom studies in Hebrew, and accordingly he established a Hebrew-speaking kindergarten, the town's first. Among his other noteworthy accomplishments, he authored, edited, and translated books, and served as the editor of the very first Hebrew-language children's journal, "Olam Katan" ("Small World"). He and his wife Tzipporah would eventually raise a total of eight children.
9X14 cm. Good condition. Minor stains and ink smudges.