One day, as the Rashash sat immersed in his Torah studies, a local tailor by the name of Reb Zalman came to borrow some money.
The Rashash was not only a noted scholar, but in addition to his job as a banker, he administered the free-loan fund.
When he explained his needs, Reb Zalman was given three hundred rubles which were to be paid within one year. The Rashash duly recorded the transaction in his ledger book and went back to his studies.
When Reb Zalman appeared before the Rashash exactly one year to the day later with the entire three hundred rubles in his hand, the Rashash was deeply involved in a difficult problem in the Talmud. He took the money, but since he didn't want to interrupt his studies, he inserted the money into the back of his large tome. So preoccupied was he with his learning that he completely forgot that Reb Zalman had ever been there that day.
Two months later, when the Rashash was checking over his ledger, he spotted the name of Reb Zalman, the tailor, who had borrowed three hundred rubles from the fund, and had not yet repaid the debt. He summoned Reb Zalman to his office, but when he asked that the money be repaid, as it was already overdue, Reb Zalman turned pale, and replied, "But I paid it exactly on the due date!"
The Rashash had no memory of the incident, and according to his records, the money was still outstanding. There was nothing to do but go to a rabbinical court to decide the matter. When the simple tailor and the great scholar went together to a Jewish court, the whole city was ablaze. How could Reb Zalman have the chutzpa to try to pull one over on one of the greatest scholars in Vilna! Imagine him contradicting the great Rashash, respected guardian of the city's free-loan fund!
The court ruled that since there had been a debt incurred and it was only the word of one man against another, Reb Zalman would have to solemnly swear that he had repaid the money, and then he would be absolved of the debt. Swearing, however, is no light matter. The Rashash was not willing to subject a fellow Jew to the possibility of swearing falsely, and so he decided to drop the entire matter.
But the case was not closed. In fact, it never really closed, for the townspeople were filled with disdain toward the unfortunate tailor. They stopped patronizing his shop, and wouldn't even look his way in the street. Eventually he had to close his business and move to a small village outside the city. He and his family were completely broken by the whole episode.
The following year, the Rashash was again studying the same subject he had been engrossed in when Reb Zalman had repaid the debt. Fingering the pages, he was astonished to find a pile of bills stuck in the back cover of the book. Then it all came back to him in a rush. He pictured in his mind the figure of Reb Zalman, proudly handing over every last penny of the loan, and saying, "Here is all the money I owe, and today is exactly one year to the day."
The Rashash was overcome with emotion. How much misery he had caused by his carelessness. He rushed to the home of the tailor, but he no longer lived there; then he went to his shop, but there were different occupants. After asking around, the Rashash discovered the extent of the damage that had ensued. He made his way to the small village and there, in a broken down shack he found Reb Zalman.
"Reb Zalman, please forgive me! I have just found the money you repaid! You were right all the time, and I was wrong!"
"So, I forgive you, but what does that help me? I have lost everything, my livelihood, my home, my reputation. I am a broken man."
"I will do everything humanly possible to help you regain your position. I will return your money, but that is not all. I will stand on the bima of the synagogue and announce that I have wronged you."
"That won't help. Everyone will just think, 'The Rashash is truly a great man. In his compassion for the poor tailor, he is trying to help cover up for him.'" When he heard that, the Rashash knew that the tailor was speaking the truth, for people would, indeed, think that way. What could he do that would really make amends for all the suffering Reb Zalman had endured?
"Reb Zalman, I have a daughter who is almost of marriageable age. You, I believe, have a son. If I betroth my daughter to your son, no one will be able to doubt that you are an honest and upright man, for I certainly wouldn't align our families forever if it were not so.
Reb Zalman agreed. Here was a solution that would work. The two young people agreed to the match, and the betrothal was celebrated in a fitting manner.
Reb Zalman was restored in the estimation of the community, and the Rashash had corrected the effects of his mistake. The young couple, who would never have come together except for the incident between their fathers, was blessed with great happiness. And that is how difficult it sometimes is to make a shidduch, harder even than splitting the Red Sea.
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