The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-02-24
IN AND ABOUT THE CITY.
STOLEN MONEY GIVEN BACK

$500 Taken From a Drunken Man
Years go Returned With Interest.
A pretty story Of the return, after eight
years, Of a sum of stolen money to its
owner last week was old day or two ago
In the fall Of 1852 there came a stranger to
5 va nah whose means of living and sup
| port flr himself AID family wa ork on
| the wharves. He was idic.ed 70 drink, and
sometimes he barely made both ends meet
VIII his earnings. His wife. by tne most
| rlsld economy, saved 800 out of the hus-
| bands wages. At the end of a long and
hard season e callei him into their little
parior one day and presented him W tn the
money. Nobody will know his unspe4kable
emotion.
The husband resolved to make himself
more worthy of his wife. He started down
town with the mo icy 10 put 1t in bank.
he determined to live hard and 90 in rags
IL need be, to make that precious gift
precious, because it was his wife's-in-
c ease, and make them something for her
SAKE. Before ne got 10 the ba k he met a
army oil longshoremen. They insis ed upon
MS accompanying them to see sick mem
Der OF The union. 1t was but a
snort distance, and he consented
TO 60 Before they got to the men,
oer's house all hands had drink.
Coming back they had another drink, and
before the bank was reached the
husband and father was DRINK. But he
would not spend a cent of that $500.
toward night he went into a barroom in
tue western part Of the city and fell asleep.
When he was put out on the street at mid
night his pockets were riaed, and his wife's
nal earnings we're taken away from hims
The longshoreman quit his family for days
de went about as if he were on the verge
OF insanity. He would not tell his wife
what horN nd ,r,A hN al,,x.
MS companions. Starvation stared him in
the face. He never made an effort to find
out who to TX the money. When he found
himself the morning after the night he was
robbed, he was. struggling about on the
sidewalk. A hundred people had passed
him probably during the night and he
could not accuse anybody.
BY hard work the family lived through
the year, and we're better able to get
through the next year. By economy they
pulled through the following year, and
through the half dozen succeeding years
Since then the husband has become a de-
vout christian, and was a co lstant attend
ant at the mission services which have Just
closed.
One day last week, as the man was on his
way nome from work, merchant APP
preached him and said: Il have something
for you. l have used it eight years, and
You shall have the interest on it." He pro-
duced the $500 and the interest on
it at 8 per cent for the eight years
The merchant said that he was the bar
keeper where the longshoreman came in the
night he lost the money. The money
dropped out of the longshoremans pocket
and the barkeeper picked it up and put it
in lis pocket, aud the longshoreman was
thro y II into the street. Since then the bar
keeper has become prosperous grocery
merchant.
II stole it from from you" he said, "but
you shall have it back with good return"
Both gentlemen attended the mission
service at the cathedral last week. aud the
mere hant confessed what he had done. In
some instances, when sius of this sort are
confessed the priest acts as a medium of
communication, to save the family from
opprobium, but the merchant preferred to
return the stolen money himself