GOOD SAMARITANS

Greymouth Evening Star, 12 February 1929, Page 6

GOOD SAMARITANS

RUN FOR MEDICINE. SYDNEY, January 31. • The gloomy, grey facade of Sydney Hospital looks down upon many sad sights in Macquarie Street; tears coursing down a mother’s cheeks, an ambulance with drawn blinds, somebody who has received a dread medical verdict. Mothers, ambulances, patients, drift into the traffic whirlpool of the great street. Yesterday provided another sad sight. Two illiterate Italians stood clutching a bottle of medicine that they had rushed to secure as an act of kindness. They were too late; the medicine was not needed. The incident happened in a curious way. The two Italians, who are on their way to Italy, met another old Italian outside the hospital. He was sick and poor, and he asked them to run ami get him a bottle of medicine. He told them what he wanted, and handed them £l. Sorry for the sick old man, they hurried to a chemist’s shop.

They were returning with the physic when they met a young Italian, who said that the old Italian had sent him to tell them to hurry. They hurried. The three were panting—for it was very hot yesterday—when they reached the old man and gave him his medicine and his change. He unwrapped the bottle cheerfully. Then his face fell. “Ah,” he said, “you’ve brought the wrong medicine.” It seemed that he would collapse under the blow of this disappointment. “Medicine, medicine,” lie said. “Get me some more, get me

sonic more.” He told them what he wanted, and handed them another £l. “Ah,” he said sadly, as they turned to go on this fresh errand, “you don’t care for old You will keep

his £l.” “No, no, old Guiseppe,” said the young Italian. “See here; I will give you al the money I have to prove that 1 will'bring your medicine.” .... “You give him your money, too. He does not trust us,” he added, turning to the other two. They handed Guiseppe £45, and hurried off to the chemist’s shop again. They were returning when the young Italian left them to buy some cigarettes. They arrived at Sydney Hospital, and waited and waited, but neither old

Guiseppe nor the young Italian appeared. “Now, that’s a tuny thing,” they said, or words to that effect, in Italian. Inspector Pattinson has directed Detectives Barrett and McDermott to search for an old Italian and a young Italian, who will be asked to produce £45 in exchange for a bottle of . medi-

cine and the change for a one pound banknote. “An old confidence trick in a different disguise,” said the inspector philosophically.