The Mistaken Deposit

Rav Dov Berish once checked the bank account of his coal business and found that, through a clerical error, five thousand zloty had been credited to it. There was no question that he would return the money at once.

What troubled him for several hours was how to return it without causing pain, anguish or trouble to the clerk who had made the mistake. The thought that anyone might suffer a loss or embarrassment because of his actions, even justified ones, worried him greatly. In the end he devised a way to return the funds so that no one would be blamed or lose anything, and his face filled with relief and satisfaction.