The Lakeland evening telegram., 1917-07-21
Antonio S Job
By 2. A. mitchell

Antonio was very poor man, who
lived In the outskirts Of Madrid. Spain.
antonio was a mason, but unfortu-
nately was out Of work He was usual
" out Of work, for he was in poor
health and could not do as much as
other men. The truth Is, he had be-
come so poor that he could not buy
sufficient food to put strength into him.
de also had wife and several chill
dren to provide for.
One evening Antonio was sitting be-
side his door, trying to alleviate his
despondency with his pipe, when a
man came along and, seeing Antonio's
sign mason" asked him IL he would
IKE Job. The stranger was neither
well dressed nor we'll favored, and the
poor man feared that he would not be
paid Tor his work, but he asked the
nature or the work, whether it reQuir-
cd much strength and what would be
the pay. The stranger replied that an
nour would be required to 60 and come
70 ana from the work, half hour to
DO the Job, and the pay would be what
ne held In his hand. Opening the hand,
he displayed large gold piece.
Antonio agreed to do the work and
received his pay in advance. The
stranger blindfolded him and led him
away. 1t happened that Antonio's son.
Jose, twelve years Of age, who had
been apprenticed to a shopkeeper, was
coming home and was astOnished to
see his father led along blindfold.
ed by stranger. The boy followed
the two for awhile, but finally lost
them In the crowds Of people on the
streets.
j Jose went home and told his mother
what he had seen. She knew that her
husband had gone to do some work for
q stranger. but nothing more. She was
very much worried. but could only
await AntoniO's coming home. Jose
ate his supper and went to bed. In
less than two hours after the mason
started to his work he came back and
told this story:
He had been led by his employer to
a place he knew not where and heard
door close behind him. Then he de-
scended flight of steps into a cold
atmosphere. The bandage was taken
, on his eyes, and he found himself In
the basement Of large building. He
was before brick wall, and ON the
fioor were mason's tools and brick and
mortar There was niche In the
wall and a box In the niche Antonio
. was ordered to close the niche with
brick. He did so, leaving the space
. closed as a part Of the wall When
the work was done Antonio was again
blindfolded, led up a flight Of stairs,
a conducted by tortuous route to a
d point near his home and left standing
: there. Taking Off the bandage, the
/ stranger had disappeared. and Antonio
V went home.
e Some months after this adventure
n Antonio's wife, hearing knock at her
(. door, went to see who was there and
d found two nuns, who asked contribu-
5. ton to aid in buying a communion
IS service for church. The good woman
% produced few copper coins, which she
o gave the nuns. She asked what church
o they were soliciting for, and when told
. she said that SHE supposed 1t possessed
communion service, since 1t was a
- very old building To this they replied
that 1t had possessed a fine service, but
1t had disappeared. Every effort had
been made to find it, but had failed
u and now the church authorities had or
10 dered that money be raised for a new
= one
IT, WheL Antonio returned to his home
IL that evening and asked his wife for
at money to buy loaf Of bread-there
n was none in the house-she told him
that she had given the only money
at they possessed for new communion
H. service for a church. Antonio asked
some questions about the matter, and
h abe told him what the nuns had told
= her.
An idea popped into Antonio's head
Might not the box he had walled uI
w In the niche have contained the los
"A service? He remembered that the base
:, ment in which he had done the wOrl
81 was very large. Straightway 1t occur
:, red to him that IL might have been th'
- basement OF church. The box wal
N large enough to hold number o.
ne neces. The air was that Of an under
- ground place.
he Antonio called Jose and told the bo!
n lead him over the route be had gon'
as on the night he had done the work 81
far as Jose had kept him In sight
he lose led him a winding route, but tn
trend was toward the church that ha'
iss lost the communion service.
ed The next day Antonio went to tn
ar niest who was pastor Of the churcl
IN and told him bis story. The priest tool
TO him down into the basement OF th
for church and Antonio found the plac
.ed be had walled up. 1t was In darl
nd corner where the difference betweeI
NV new and old brick would not be nc
ID - t,ced without artificial light The
,nd M mason's tools were brought, the wal
l ,bot Antonio had put IN was demoiisn
~ "a and the communion service wa
"a found In the box.
hn