"They face the death penalty" for arson
"Today, testimony was heard at the Haifa Military Court in the trial of two Arabs accused of possessing incendiary materials with the intent to cause death and injury to people and damage to property. "The defendants are: M. Masoud Muhammad and J. Mustafa Biruti from Wadi Rushamiya in Haifa, accused of setting fire to the Blumenstein shoe store on Jaffa Street in the new commercial center. They face the death penalty."
The news – some may consider it current – was published by a Lebanese newspaper called "HaCarmel" in its first issue, and the date is November 1938, XNUMX. The tribunal was that of the British army.
"The shouting of the newsagents disturbs my peace"
Spring 1956. Avraham Kravitz writes to Mayor Abba Khushi: "I am a resident of Nordau Street, where life is bustling and bustling throughout the day and night. For a long time, my rest and studies have been disturbed,
And certainly not just my rest – the loud and frequent shouts of the newspaper vendors throughout the afternoon and early evening, in addition to the noise that is not small anyway.
"These days, when events are imposed on us every morning, special editions of newspapers are multiplying, and with them the shouting of the newsagents is increasing and reaching a level of real enthusiasm." Mr. Kravitz noted that he is not concerned about the livelihood of the newsagents, but he is also certain that these piercing shouts are not contributing to calm.
The winds, and they certainly detract from the peace of mind of the citizen, as he puts it.
And he added and wrote to the mayor: "I am aware of your efforts to maintain peace in the city, such as the ban on honking car horns and the like. I hope that you will be kind enough to give your attention to my request and correct the injustice that requires it."
"A correction, and for that I thank you."
On the same day, Abba Khushi ordered City Secretary Moshe Rofe to act in the spirit of the letter. The City Secretary wrote to the complainant: "I met with those responsible for distributing the two evening newspapers, 'Ma'ariv' and 'Yediot Aharonot,' and I reiterated to them our previous warnings, because you are not the first complainant, and this is not the first time we have dealt with this painful problem.
"The press tonight solemnly assured me that they will gather the newspaper sellers today and demand that they not raise their voices, and not advertise the newspaper excessively, especially during the afternoon break."
Incidentally, it was said in the past that when Mayor Abba Khushi would arrive for a lunch break at his home on Jerusalem Street, a city inspector would make sure that the quiet on the street was not disturbed.
"No reaching out!"
Begging is strictly forbidden! This was the opinion of the Haifa Municipality, headed by Hassan Shukri. On July 1929, 62, the municipality published a by-law in Arabic and Hebrew, which stated: "In accordance with Article XNUMX of the Ottoman Municipalities Law, the Haifa Municipality declares that begging within the area of the city of Haifa is one of the prohibited things.
"It is forbidden for any person to beg or order, or to adopt any child under the age of 16 to beg or beg from the public in public places. "Anyone who violates the provisions of this regulation may be punished according to the sections mentioned in the third chapter of the Ottoman Penal Code in accordance with Article 65 of the Municipalities Law. This regulation will take effect 15 days after its publication. Signed: Hassan Shukry, Mayor of Haifa."
Trick: How to avoid paying a radio fee
A well-known bank clerk in Jerusalem in a letter to his colleague at the bank in Haifa, who is among the well-known public figures in the city of Carmel, September 2, 1955.
The subject: How to avoid paying the radio fee (television did not yet exist in Israel at that time). And this is the text of the letter: "I contacted more than one postal worker, until I finally ended up with their legal advisor (he happened to be my brother), and these are his words: 'According to the law, you can be exempted from paying the radio fee only if the receiver is broken and cannot be repaired. Apart from that, no instance is authorized to exempt from paying the fee even if the radio is not only in a box, but even in a safe deposit box at the bank.
"He suggests something else. A person can own as many radios as he wants, and he is not obligated to pay more than eight pounds a year, provided that all the radios are registered in his name. He suggests that your son and daughter write a letter to the post office saying that they are transferring the license in your name, and then you will only have to pay eight pounds a year for all three of them." And the Jerusalemite concludes his letter in English: "Think it over."
If today they gave death sentences to patronage tax collectors and business arsonists like in 1938, crime would not be so rampant.