Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1901-11-21
LUXURIOUS DYING FOR SIS.
How an Italian Street Vendor Played II
on His Compatriots.

Z
on His Compatriots.
The italian colony of New York sup
plies this anecdote to paper in the
Century, entitled "Humor and Pathos
Of the Savings Bank"
An old Italian street vender, a con-
sumptive, feeling that his end was
drawing near, prepared a scheme for
ending his days in comfort. Observe
the originality and delicacy of the
scheme that he successfully worked on
Little Italy. He had only SIS in the
bank and of this he drew $40 and re-
deposited it in few days. He drew
it again and again redeposited it, con-
tinuing the operation at brief inter-
walls, until on the credit of his pass
book he had entries of all those vari-
Gus sums footing up $500, and on the
opposite page drafts to the amount OF
about $7S5-balance SIS. After care
fully cutting out the page showing
the amounts drawn and leaving the
long line Of deposits, he took to his
bed and called in his friends. He was
dying; they could see that, the old
man told them. They were good fell
lows, and he loved them all, and he
wished Pedro the banana peddler, and
good Giovanni the boot black, and Ar
turo the wine seller, to know how af-
fectionately he regarded them. What
he had to leave them was not much
would Edgardo, good old Edgardo,
kindly find, between the mattress and
what used to be the springs, his bank
book? Yes; that was it. Take it to
rne window and tell him how much
was there. Eight hundred? All, we'll
thanks to God that it was so much;
but oh that it were more, for such good
fellows as they.
Dottore Bartollo had told him that
he might live three months, till spring;
would his good friends put back his
book under the mattress, and when
he was gone-no, they mustn't cry
would they take it up to the bank,
draw the amount and divide it be-
tween them? Meanwhile, as his low
ing friends of the present, his heirs
in the future, would they kindly at
tend to his little wants?
Would they? Did they? That old
fellow was fed on the fat of the land
while he lay there in bed. He drank
more Chianti in a week than he had
swallowed in five years. 1t was even
limited by some that Arturo the wine
seller was fastening the end by the
vile Chianti that he constantly pro-
duced from his stock, while the push
cart man was so generous of unripe
bananas for the sick room that there
was division of opinion in Mulberry
street as to whether he was cheering
his friends finale with fruit, or en-
deavoring to complicate consumption
with other ills
At last he swallowed his last flagon
of Chianti and through Little Italy made
decent pretense of sorrow, it was
really en- fete-at last the $500 was to
be drawn. l was in the bank when
the principals in their holiday clothes
and with few chosen friends, arrived
They stated the case, and asked for the
amount from which the push cart man
was to receive some $40 for fruit, the
wine seller 500, and the others vari-
GUS sums invested for the invalid and
his funeral, leaving some $3.50 as the
dividend" ! need not describe the
small sized riot that followed when the
abstraction of the pages from one side
of the book was explained to the swear
ing laourners, and q tender was made
to them of the SIS. al, that the de-
ceased had in bauk.