The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-07-02


starving until he could send them away on the next
steamer that into port and his actual outlay in
buying steamer tickets and in boarding the tramps
must have amounted to at least half his salary He
couldn't complain to the government forsif he did
he would have been accused Of unwilngness to help
Americans in distress, the only thing he could do
was to write abusive letters. The more letters
he wrote the tramps L sent him. Word got
round among all the tramps in Europe that by calling
on me they could get Introduction to the consul
Of AVilas, which would be worth having and conse-
quently before / had been six months in, office nv
average weekly shipment Of tramps was about
trebIed
do you remember the wreck Of the steamer
Morning Light off Avilas, in the year 1857 Well it
don't matter whether you do not The fact is that
the steamer wrecked, though only four men
were drowned. Among the passengers was per
sonaly conducted party of thrty-two American fe-
male school teachers all of whom unmarried
and forty years of age The conductor of the
party Of the who drowned, and as
the steamer went down in the middle of the night in
the biggest kind of hurry the school teachers hadn't
time to anything except the clothes they stood
in 1 don't suppose there $40 in the whole party
and of course the moment they got ashore they went
to the consul for assistance.
when those thirty-two old maids marched into
the consuls office and told him that they hadn't any
money. and that they wanted him to send them to
Paris, he saw his way. The women afterwards told
me that he was smiling and pleasant as a man
could possibly be- and l don't doubt it. He under
stood that his chance to get with me had come
at last and he lost time in improving it. The next
day, about II O'clock in the morning the whole gang
of women came into my office and demanded second
class railroad tickets Paris and money enough to
feed them the way. One Of the women, who act
ed spokeswoman for the rest at such times they
TO hal mo Iattar
from the consul at Avilas in which he said that he
had great pleasure in turning over to me his dis
ressed fellow countrywOmen, knowing that~I always
helped Americans in difficulty, and that would be
only too happy to help these deserving ladies' He
went on to say that the had been shipwrecked
and had lost all their money, but that he assured
them that would furnish them with everything they
might want When l read the letter knew thar
there big trouble ahead for me, and didn't need
to read the postscript which read: ';Who's ahead
on the tramp game now?" He was a coarse sort Of a
chap. but he had fair idea of a joke. et.+
well after l had read the letter asked in my
coolest and most dignifed way, Ladies' what
have the pleasure of doing for you? ~.
what want said the spokeswoman lis lodg-
ing for the night and secondclass railroad tickets to
Paris The consul at Avas said that it would be
your pleasure well your duty to do this for us.
When get to Paris can get money from home,
and we shan't want but a couple of dollars or so
for each of u.s. just for our necessary expenses on
the road
" But my dear madam" said l. tickets to Paris
for all of you would cost about $780, and my salary is
only $3.50 year. You must see that can't possibly
incur any such expense matter how anxious 1
to help you. s.f.
'''We know WELL said the woman, that you are
millionaire and Just stopping here to amuse
youself. The consul at Avilas told all about you,
nearly every day in the year ,,5f
The consul joking replied. I have no
income except my salary. and 1 could no more send
you to Paris than 1 could buy up the Spanish
archy. L am ready to take any amount of trouble
to assist you, but as for supplying you with railroad
tickets and money, the thing is clean impossible
Every we'll sir said the spokeswoman, we have
been sent to you by American consul, who may be
supposed to know his duty, and who is gentleman.
if others that l could name are not He
assured us that it your bounden duty to help
us, and tell you that we don't intend to allow
you to shirk that duty on any pretense whatever.
What else you here for except to help Americans
who need help? Do you mean to say that the gov
pays you to stay here and enjoy yOurselve?
We shall go to the best hotel in this town and take
rooms telling the landlord to send the bill to you.
We shall stay there till you give railroad tick
cts, matter how long it may be. More than that,
you to the president when get back to america,
and you will be properly punished for refusing to
help American ladies' Then she turned to the other
women and asked if they approved of what she had
said They all did approve Of it with such enthusi
that they kissed her then and there and scowed
at me if 1 had been the worst criminal in Spain
eff they had been men should have ordered them
out of my office and should have sent for the police il
they refused to go. But being women what could
do? told them and again that 1 could not
pay either hotel bills railroad fares but 1T made
sort of impression them. They talked to until
they tired, and then they filed out of the room
and watched them from my window their way
to the hotel which the same street my
Office. l them go ill., and they did not
out again knew that they must have found rooms
OF did not believe that they could compel
by law to pay their bills but all the the hotel
keeper would be to look to for payment, and
would make ntOlerant lot of trouble when he
found that L would not pay.
''When my Office hours over I went to the
hotel and found the landlord in happest possible
frame of mind. Before l could say word he
who Inpd mo with for i'm