EDINGER, MARKUS:
German deputy; born at Worms Jan. 14, 1808; died at Mannheim Feb. 9, 1879. He was the first Jew summoned by the government to act as juror, serving at Mayence in 1847. It was he who brought about at Mayence, in spite of the passionate opposition of the Orthodox, the holding of regular synagogue services in German. He took an active part in politics. In 1848 he was one of the leaders of the Democratic party, and his services were acknowledged in the following year when he was elected mayor, while in 1850 he was sent as deputy to the Upper House of Hesse—a distinction rarely enjoyed by a Jew in those days. The success of the reactionary party in 1853 obliged him to retire from his office for a time.
