The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-08-27
WHEN GREEK MET SPANIARD.
Tale. of the Sea That Became
Comedy I'm "a sfagistrnte's Court.

Tale of the Sea That Became n
Comedy I'm Magistrates Court.
When Greek met Greek the melee
was nothing to the contretemps that
occurred in Judge Naughtin's court
yesterday, when Greek met Spaniard.
For more than an hour there was the
liveliest kind of talking and it took all
the judges well known good humor
to keep his patience, so fast did each
talk and so strenuously did each strive
to get ahead of the other in the YER
bal ping-pong game.
1t started in this way: A runner"
as the cant term goes, for a sailor
boarding house had the luggage of
Juan Calvo Boscli and Manuelo Oro-
so Bueno attached for the non-pay-
ment of board. He was willing to let
them go if they would sign to ship
on Russian bark now in port and let
him take the indenture papers in lieu
of cash, but they were not willing to
do that, and as they had no money
he took what they had, the seamen's
chest and bags of wearing apparel typ
ical of the men before the mast.
These were piled UP in a heap in the
magistrates office, when Manuelo
Oroso Bueno and Juan Calvo y Boscli
appeared in the offing and bore down
upon the doughty officer of the law.
They knew between them perhaps
twenty English words, but they sailed
in with an air of insouciance to tell
what they were willing to do and what
they wouldn't do. Without any pause
for breath they said both talking ST.
simultaneously, that it was perfectly
agreeable to them to sign, but that
their board bill would not eat up the
whole $40 that would be advanced to
them, and that Manuelo would be left
81 and Juan $40 and if Olsen, the
complainant, would give them what
was due they would go ABOARD ship
whenever he wished.
This was their story. They felt that
an attempt was being made to swindle
them out of their money. But it was
long before anybody in the court knew
their tale of woe. They told it over
and over and vociferously, but while
the drift of the affair was indicated
nobody was sure of it. The judge gave
up the attempt to find it all
out without aid and sent for
an interpreter. He was soon on
and he did not like it that anybody
should even for an instant have dared
to accuse him of being a Dago, as he
expressed it. However, he knew some
little Italian, and so did the sailors
The consequence was disastrous. OIL
son. in English contaminated with
the roughness of the sea, tried to tell
his story and the Spaniards talking
Italian and the Greek trying to talk
Italian and Spanish and all of them
using what English they knew, made
medley that was far from harmo-
NOUS. Added to this was the fierce
gesticulation of the excited sailors.
who endeavored TO make up in earnest
ness what they lacked in linguistic
ability and to show in pantomime
what they could not tell in words
FINALLY, another sailor was obtained
who knew some English as well as
Spanish and the tangled path was
cleared and the devious way made
straight.
Judge Naughtin explained that the
defendants must sign or pay board or
lose their effects and gave the run
htr TO understand that the men of
the sea must not be beaten out OF
what was their due. The party LEFT
Tor the office OF the Russian consul To
sign the necessary papers. and the
Hreek remained behind 10 ten the
inase that though they had been
friends Y must BE understood he was
Greek and that to call him a Span
lara Was an insult.