Bala Cynwyd

Pete Seeger sat back in his front-row seat and tried to do some passive listening for a change. But it wasn't easy. The singer fidgeted, laughed and spontaneously sang out words to songs he recognized, many of which he had helped to popularize. Seeger and his wife, Toshi, were among four couples, hailed as "national treasures," who were honored Thursday night by a kind of Who's Who of the national folk music scene. The tribute, sponsored by the folk group Swords Into Plowshares, was at the Bala Theater in Bala Cynwyd.

The controller of a local company stands accused of embezzling more than $48,000 - some of which went to pay his electric bills, police said. Michael Worster of the 300 block of Catherine Street, Philadelphia, was arraigned Friday before District Justice Caroline Stine on 300 counts of forgery, theft, passing bad checks, receiving stolen property, unlawful use of a computer and tampering with records. He was released after posting 10 percent of $5,000 bail. According to a police affidavit, a routine audit at Hearing Conservation Noise Control Inc. showed suspicious expenses.

Philadelphians were clearly tired of the Civil War in the days leading up to the invasion. They read regular newspaper accounts of Union setbacks and horrific battlefield losses while wounded soldiers filled their hospitals and fresh military units clogged the streets. To escape, some attended the stage adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin at the Continental Theatre; others took in the play Peep O'Day at the New Chestnut Street Theatre or caught a concert by Birgfeld's popular German military band in Fairmount Park.

Fire from a cooking stove heavily damaged the Houlihan's restaurant in Bala Cynwyd during the dinner hour Wednesday. Fire officials said one person was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation. Flames got into the ceiling and heavy smoke spread as far as an 11-story office building next door. Both the restaurant and the office building were evacuated. The fire was reported at 5:45 p.m. Lower Merion Fire Chief Chas McGarvey said the restaurant, 555 E. City Ave., was likely to be closed for "some time" because of the damage.

Montgomery County lawyer has been charged with insurance fraud in connection with an injury claim he filed after a 2006 traffic accident, authorities said Friday. Attorney General Linda Kelly said that Edward T. Feierstein, 73, of Rock Hill Road in Bala Cynwyd, falsely claimed that injuries sustained in the accident prevented him from exercising at a gym and playing tennis. He filed a $125,000 claim with a Philadelphia insurance firm. Videotape surveillance after the accident showed Feierstein playing tennis, and using weights and other workout equipment, according to court papers.

Three men were arrested in a parking lot off City Avenue in Bala Cynwyd on Tuesday night after Lower Merion police said the men sold four pounds of marijuana to an undercover officer. The officer, posing as a buyer, purchased the marijuana from the men for $6,000 about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, police said. After the transaction, the men were arrested by Lower Merion detectives, Montgomery County narcotics officers and state police officers who were nearby, police said. Arrested were: Pedro Jose Torres, 35, of the 600 block of East Allegheny Avenue; Michael Berstecher, 26, of the 3600 block of Jasper Street, and Gary Edwards, 23, of the 1200 block of East Venago Street, all of Philadelphia.

A large Japanese bank has purchased Master Lease Corp. of Bala Cynwyd for $120 million and plans to expand the company's operations. Tokai Bank Ltd. of Nagoya, Japan, the ninth-largest bank in the world, completed the acquisition of the closely held leasing firm on Wednesday. The purchase was announced yesterday. Master Lease was owned by the Robert Morgan family of Gladwyne and Palm Beach, Fla. "It represents a tremendous leap for us in terms of having the resources of the ninth-largest bank behind us," said Abraham Bernstein, chief executive officer of Master Lease.

Cynthia L. Hostetter of Ardmore was recently appointed community banking manager of the Firstrust Bank branch at 19th and Walnut Streets, Philadelphia. She will be responsible for daily operations at the branch, including the development of new business and the administration of sales and service. Formerly, Hostetter was community banking manager for Firstrust's Mayfair branch. Joseph W. Mahoney Jr. of Bala Cynwyd has been promoted to senior vice president-government affairs for the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.

Allegresse (French for "gaiety") was opened eight years ago by by the Brothers Wakim - Joseph, George and Michel. Business must have been good because they started another restaurant in 1984 called Evviva, just up the road. Allegresse has an elegant, turn-of-the-century French look with floral wallpaper, gilded mirrors and a rosewood wine cabinet that separates the two main dining rooms. Brass chandeliers and bonneted sconces provide soft lighting. Tables have attractive flower arrangements and chairs are very comfortable.

Two food-knowledgeable friends get credit for sniffing out Tartufo for me. The couple lives in Narberth but said that they rarely dined in the area until tiny Tartufo, Italian for truffle, arrived in nearby Bala Cynwyd and lured them away from their favorite Center City restaurants. Tartufo's owner is French/Italian, young and a talented chef. This is his first restaurant, and in less than two years he has made many friends. On a recent weekday, for example, we were earliest to arrive - before the place opened, actually - so there was ample opportunity to study the steady stream of patrons who followed us in the door.