Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-08-11
Tricks Upon Americans in Florence.

uaCks
And the nigger is too heity for you.
Chorus-Come home. etc.
Tricks Upon Americans in Florence.
A correspondent of the Boston Adler
tiser describes some of the swindles to
which Americans are subjected in Flor
ence:
Take the one article of wood, which is
very dear in Italy. When you buy load,
if some one does not watch it constantly
until the last moment, you will. in one
way or another, lose half oft You must
first see that the man who brings it TO your
door throws il all out, or he will carry
away part of it. Then, having seen the
wood fairly on the ground, it is necessary
10 keep one eye, at least, on the man who
saws and carries it into the house, for
these men have small boys commissioned
TO play about the door, who watch for an
opportunity and slip around the corner
and into open doorways with one or two
sticks at time, until they have accumu
lated'several armsfull for him. Or, as
happened to friend Of ours, the man
who threw off the wood, thinking him
self unseen, thrust large quantity down
the cellar of the adjoining house, having
already made an arrangement with the
man who occupied il to return in the
evening and divide with him.
Another lady friend having ordered q
load, the man who drove the cart stopped
a few doors of, and taking large num-
her of the sticks, laid them in the open
hall, then went on, deposited the rest at
her house, drove back and replacing that
he had stolen, made off with it.
We we're happily relieved from all this
ANNOYANCE. The same kind friend who
secured apartments for us in the house
where he has long resided, sent out into
the country in the autumn and engaged
sufficient wood for us all to burn through
the winter. Our good padrone, who
seems to have all of the best and none of
the worst traits of an Italian, and who
deserves to be an American, he is so Ion.
est and true, went to the station or, its ar
rival, followed it to the house, end had it
Immediately deposited in tie cellar and
locked in; then hired two men to "saw
and pile it" locking them in also; going
OF an hour agreed upon every noon and
night to let them out No chance for
,hieving there, and it did not occur to the
good padrone that he must look after any.
thing but the safety of the wood.
But as the winter advanced we began
to complain that the wood was too long,
wouldn't 90 into the stove, etc. The
padrone came in and looked at our has-
ketfull with round eyes, and said, Why,
this has only been sawed once. and Ipaid
the men for saving it twice Upon q
close examination he found that the men
had sawed the greater part of the wood
only once, land piled it up, then saving the
remainder in three pieces( each STICKY had
spread it carefully over the top of each
pile, and it was impossible to see that all
was not as it should be without pulling
the whole down.
One day o friend related to us little
incident which passed before his own
eyes in Rome. A physician recon-
mended an intimate acquaintance of his
to drink ass milk, common practice
here among feeble and debilitsted per.
sons. The patient knew how difficult it
is to obtain what you're willing to pay
for, not only exorbitantly, but all that
the vender asks-even then be will cheat
you and lament that he didn't charge
more, which, if you had given him, be
still would have grumbled and deceived
you if possible; SO this gentleman Or
dered that the animal should be driven
to his door every morning, and there
MIXED, congratulating himself on having
for once at lenst been smart enough
for an Italian" But, some little time
after, lady said to our narrator, while
chatting with him: "By the way, you
are a friend of the invalid gentleman
who lives opposite me, and | think /
should tell you of little scene which |
witnessed while looking from my win
dow, q day or two since Your friend
thinks that he obtains pure milB but the
man who drives the animal to the door
always stations himself on tae side next
the street, keeping the AMI NAL between
himself and the house When he had
half filled the dish into Which he miIks. /
saw him pour q quantity of water into it
from bottle which was concealed in his
bosom"
Of course Ibis little episode was i'm
mediRtely communicated to the invalid,
who WAS not so feeble but that be went
down to the door the next morning, when
the milking was going on, aud at III.
right moment, at given signal, pounced
upon the unsuspecting diluter, and
caught him with the bottle in his hand.
Fancy the tableau.
During q call which the wife of a well
known American gentleman made me
last week, she said that after few years
one became accustomed to this peculat.
ing propensity. II have had the same
cook" she continued, "for more than
ten years. She does the marketing. and
very well know that on her return she
stops at her own door and leaves suf
ficient for her husbands dinner from
what she has bought for us; but CO a.
slider that it is very fortunate for Us tina
she has only one TO support beside her
self. for if her family wers larger, i
would still be the same"
Advices from Washington indicatl
that there will not be any additiona
regular troops sent to Tennessee. A die