Elegance, Part IV

Archibald San Vincent was an incredibly wealthy man. He owned an extremely large mansion in downtown Manhattan, complete with a lush garden,  incredible statuary and at least fifty servants to keep it all in order.

                Archibald had a very successful business, so imagine the surprise of Manhattan to see a guy in filthy clothes (a.k.a. Frank Harlin) trudging to the gate of the mansion.

                Frank had had a hard night. He had walked all the way from the Bronx (where he lived) to Manhattan to see Mr. San Vincent, because trains and hacks were too expensive. His clothes were covered with dust and dirt, and the soles of his shoes were about gone. He nearly collapsed when he reached the gate, but managed to stay standing up.

When a servant approached him, he weakly asked to see Mr. Archie Sags, more commonly known as Archibald San Vincent. When the servant asked why, Frank replied that he needed a favor and Mr. San Vincent owed him.

                Of course, the servant didn’t believe that at all, but at that moment, Mr. San Vincent came out and saw Frank.

                “Frank, is that you?” he asked in surprise.

                “Yes, Archie, and we need to talk.”

                Frank’s friendship with Archie Sags came about by very odd means. Archie had once been a street urchin, and Frank, who could be very generous on occasion, would give him a little money every day. They soon became friends, but one day, Archie was gone. The next day, the newspaper told of a man named Archibald San Vincent who had found buried gold using the money a kind citizen had given him. Of course, it didn’t mention the kind citizen’s name, so Frank watched as hid friend climbed the ladder of success, never giving Frank a second glance.

                But now that was going to change. Frank and Archie walked into a very stylish parlor and sat on expensive couches.

                “What can I do for you, Frank?” asked Archie amiably.

                “I have two questions. Number one: When did you change form Archie Sags to Archibald San Vincent?” asked Frank.

                “Well,” replied Archie nervously. “You can’t become one of the richest men in New York with a name like Archie Sags.”

Frank wasn’t impressed. Archie cleared his throat and asked,  “Question two?”

 “Archie, do you have some money to spare?” asked Frank with a hopeful smile.