Ture is a character which has appeared in many novels, that of the good wife who hoards money, with the amiable intention of presenting her accumula tions to her husband when he shall have fallen into the pecuniary difficulties which she foresees. An application of this wife's stratagem to politics has lately been attempted in Athens which, as related by the Correspondent of the Daily News in that city, is per-hips one of the most extraordinary ty devices ever employed. The story is briefly this, M. Tricoupis, the Greek prowler, had by his policy brought the finances of his country into an excellent condition compared with that to which his predecessor had reduced them. For the first time for many years the national -balance sheet bade fair to be on the right side. Nevertheless the public Treasury did not seem to benefit. "M. Tricoupis could not make it out. He asked the Chief Central Coshiier ' to lay before him every evening a balance-sheet of the cash in hand.
arly as clock-work, only the item ' Pay-The balance sheet was produced regal ments in Suspense' seemed to swell and the balance in hard cash to become less. Simultaneously with this dwindling of the cash balance in the public Treasury, the Opposition Press indulged in long articles lamenting the country's coming disappointment in the expectation of a balance. At the same time the militant part of the Opposition took the lead and there were threats ofa revolution. There was a procession in.the: streets, and in a central thoroughfare a volley of revolver an unlucky young tailor who was look-shots was fired, with the result of killing
ing on. The very next day the Chief Central Cashier brought in his daily balance-sheet, showing a balance of 25frs A suspicion then crossed M. Tricoupi mind. The activity of the Opposition and this mockery of a balance seemed connected, and he at once took measures to ascertain if this was the case. Going to the Treasury one morning at. seven o'clock, he sent for three of the highest officials, and gave them powers, appointing them 'a committee for examining and ascertaining the exact state of the Treasury,' or something of the sort. Shortly afterwards, the Correspondent on to say, this committee were standing at the door of the Treasury Department, and when the Chief Cen-Cashier made his appearance he was politely called upon to deliver his books and the keys of his strong rooms and safes. He ap tly sur prised, but there was no help for it, and the keys were delivered up. The examination began straightway. "The balance-sheet submitted to the Minister on the previous evening shewed a cash balance of 35,000fr., and you may judge the surprise of the committee when they laid hands on a large bundle of bank notes, and counted 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 100, 200 thousand francs. You can picture how they rubbed their hands with joy, and plunged them into the safes once more. Another bundle, another counting—a total of 400,000f. More plunges into the safes and strong rooms, more bundles of bank notes, more reels of napoleons, more bags of dol-jars and when the counting was over the sum total of the surplus reached six millions odd thousand francs! The news spread like wildfire, and the whole Ministry of Finance, from the Minister down to the clerks and commissionaires, were soon dancing about in glee. Passers-by looked in, were told the news, caught the epidemic, and rushed out into the street, also rubbing their hands at express speed. An hour later half Athens was excitedly walking the streets—talk, talk, talking about the news. After the first surprise everybody began wondering and speculating why Mr. Chief Central Cashier had laid that wonderful nest egg by." This Chief Central Cashier is known in Greece as a scrupulously honest ian, and nobody imputed to him any intention of annexing this money and when asked what he intended todo with it heis said te have replied that "he acted as he had done out of pure'loving kindness to M. Tricoupis, as he (the cashier) intended to increase the six millions into a dozen, and then, at the end of the financial year, to surprise his superior by enabling him to show off brilliantly in his Budget. The Athenians were incredulous, and suddenly it was remembered that the Opposition had predicted that the calculations of M. coups would prove wrong by 10 or 12 millions francs, just the amount Mr. ex-Chief Central Cashier was so desirous of saving up." In short, the whole affair seems to have been an application of a common enough incident in weak fiction to political intrigue,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.