initial commit of ebook 16865HEADmain

55 files changed, 20727 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6833f05
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitattributes
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+* text=auto
+*.txt text
+*.md text
diff --git a/16865-8.txt b/16865-8.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e0c7970
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-8.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,6557 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Pinocchio, by C. Collodi
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Pinocchio
+       The Tale of a Puppet
+
+Author: C. Collodi
+
+Illustrator: Alice Carsey
+
+Release Date: October 13, 2005 [EBook #16865]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PINOCCHIO ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Mark C. Orton, Melissa Er-Raqabi and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net.
+
+
+
+
+
+PINOCCHIO
+
+THE TALE OF A
+PUPPET
+
+By C COLLODI
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: "HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO GO IN?"]
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+
+
+PINOCCHIO
+
+THE TALE OF A
+PUPPET
+
+By C COLLODI
+
+Illustrated By
+ALICE CARSEY
+
+
+WHITMAN PUBLISHING CO.
+RACINE, WISCONSIN
+
+
+
+
+COPYRIGHT 1916 BY
+WHITMAN PUBLISHING CO.
+RACINE, WISCONSIN
+PRINTED IN U.S.A.
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note:
+
+The untitled illustration on page 26 was not listed in the List of
+Illustrations of the source book.
+
+In several cases, missing punctuation was added or wrong punctuation
+removed.
+
+The following typos were fixed:
+    thouand to thousand
+    Harelquin to Harlequin
+    pretrified to petrified
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+  Chap.                                                           Page
+     I  THE PIECE OF WOOD THAT LAUGHED AND CRIED LIKE A CHILD        9
+    II  MASTER CHERRY GIVES THE WOOD AWAY                           12
+   III  GEPPETTO NAMES HIS PUPPET PINOCCHIO                         16
+    IV  THE TALKING-CRICKET SCOLDS PINOCCHIO                        23
+     V  THE FLYING EGG                                              26
+    VI  PINOCCHIO'S FEET BURN TO CINDERS                            29
+   VII  GEPPETTO GIVES HIS OWN BREAKFAST TO PINOCCHIO               31
+  VIII  GEPPETTO MAKES PINOCCHIO NEW FEET                           35
+    IX  PINOCCHIO GOES TO SEE A PUPPET-SHOW                         39
+     X  THE PUPPETS RECOGNIZE THEIR BROTHER PINOCCHIO               42
+    XI  FIRE-EATER SNEEZES AND PARDONS PINOCCHIO                    45
+   XII  PINOCCHIO RECEIVES A PRESENT OF FIVE GOLD PIECES            49
+  XIII  THE INN OF THE RED CRAW-FISH                                57
+   XIV  PINOCCHIO FALLS AMONG ASSASSINS                             61
+    XV  THE ASSASSINS HANG PINOCCHIO TO THE BIG OAK                 65
+   XVI  THE BEAUTIFUL CHILD RESCUES THE PUPPET                      71
+  XVII  PINOCCHIO WILL NOT TAKE HIS MEDICINE                        75
+ XVIII  PINOCCHIO AGAIN MEETS THE FOX AND THE CAT                   81
+   XIX  PINOCCHIO IS ROBBED OF HIS MONEY                            87
+    XX  PINOCCHIO STARTS BACK TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE                  91
+   XXI  PINOCCHIO ACTS AS WATCH-DOG                                 94
+  XXII  PINOCCHIO DISCOVERS THE ROBBERS                             97
+ XXIII  PINOCCHIO FLIES TO THE SEASHORE                            101
+  XXIV  PINOCCHIO FINDS THE FAIRY AGAIN                            109
+   XXV  PINOCCHIO PROMISES THE FAIRY TO BE GOOD                    116
+  XXVI  THE TERRIBLE DOG-FISH                                      120
+ XXVII  PINOCCHIO IS ARRESTED BY THE GENDARMES                     126
+XXVIII  PINOCCHIO ESCAPES BEING FRIED LIKE A FISH                  133
+  XXIX  HE RETURNS TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE                            139
+   XXX  THE "LAND OF BOOBIES"                                      147
+  XXXI  PINOCCHIO ENJOYS FIVE MONTHS OF HAPPINESS                  153
+ XXXII  PINOCCHIO TURNS INTO A DONKEY                              160
+XXXIII  PINOCCHIO IS TRAINED FOR THE CIRCUS                        167
+ XXXIV  PINOCCHIO IS SWALLOWED BY THE DOG-FISH                     178
+  XXXV  A HAPPY SURPRISE FOR PINOCCHIO                             186
+ XXXVI  PINOCCHIO AT LAST CEASES TO BE A PUPPET AND BECOMES A BOY  194
+
+
+
+
+LINE ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+DECORATIVE TITLE PAGE                                       1
+THE RUNAWAY PUPPET                                          9
+GEPPETTO CARRIED OFF HIS FINE PIECE OF WOOD                12
+HE SET TO WORK TO CUT OUT HIS PUPPET                       16
+A LITTLE CHICKEN POPPED OUT                                17
+PINOCCHIO THREW HIS HAMMER AT THE TALKING-CRICKET          23
+UNTITLED                                                   26
+POOR PINOCCHIO'S FEET BURN TO CINDERS                      29
+GEPPETTO MAKES HIS PUPPET SOME CLOTHES                     35
+THE PUPPETS BEGAN TO DANCE MERRILY                         45
+PINOCCHIO MEETS THE CAT AND THE FOX                        49
+SPLASH! SPLASH! THEY FELL INTO THE DITCH                   52
+DINNER AT THE RED CRAW-FISH INN                            57
+PINOCCHIO ESCAPES FROM HIS ASSASSINS                       61
+THEY HUNG PINOCCHIO TO THE BIG OAK TREE                    65
+FOUR RABBITS AS BLACK AS INK ENTERED                       69
+THE FALCON SAVES PINOCCHIO                                 71
+PINOCCHIO REFUSES TO TAKE HIS MEDICINE                     75
+TREACHEROUS COMPANIONS                                     81
+THE JUDGE WAS A BIG APE                                    87
+PINOCCHIO GETS HIS FOOT CAUGHT IN A TRAP                   94
+THE NEW WATCH-DOG                                          97
+PINOCCHIO'S WILD RIDE ON THE PIGEON'S BACK                101
+AN IMMENSE SERPENT STRETCHED ACROSS THE ROAD              104
+PINOCCHIO BRAVES THE SEA TO SAVE HIS FATHER               109
+"SCHOOL GIVES ME PAIN ALL OVER THE BODY"                  116
+PINOCCHIO STARTS OFF HAPPILY FOR SCHOOL                   120
+"OH, I AM SICK OF BEING A PUPPET!"                        121
+THE BOYS THREW THEIR BOOKS AT POOR PINOCCHIO              126
+THE FISHERMAN PUT HIS HAND INTO THE NET                   133
+THE DOG SEIZES PINOCCHIO AND ESCAPES                      139
+"HERE IS THE COACH!" SHOUTED CANDLEWICK                   147
+THEY ARRIVE IN THE "LAND OF THE BOOBIES"                  153
+THE BOYS ARE TURNED INTO DONKEYS                          160
+THE LITTLE DONKEYS ARE SOLD                               167
+ALL HIS FRIENDS WERE INVITED                              172
+THE PUPPET WAS WRIGGLING LIKE AN EEL                      178
+SWALLOWED BY THE DOG-FISH                                 186
+IT WOULD BE MORE COMFORTABLE ON THE TUNNY'S BACK          189
+THE BLIND CAT AND THE TAILLESS FOX                        194
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+PINOCCHIO
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+THE PIECE OF WOOD THAT LAUGHED AND CRIED LIKE A CHILD
+
+
+There was once upon a time a piece of wood in the shop of an old
+carpenter named Master Antonio. Everybody, however, called him Master
+Cherry, on account of the end of his nose, which was always as red and
+polished as a ripe cherry.
+
+No sooner had Master Cherry set eyes on the piece of wood than his face
+beamed with delight, and, rubbing his hands together with satisfaction,
+he said softly to himself:
+
+"This wood has come at the right moment; it will just do to make the leg
+of a little table."
+
+He immediately took a sharp axe with which to remove the bark and the
+rough surface, but just as he was going to give the first stroke he
+heard a very small voice say imploringly, "Do not strike me so hard!"
+
+He turned his terrified eyes all around the room to try and discover
+where the little voice could possibly have come from, but he saw nobody!
+He looked under the bench--nobody; he looked into a cupboard that was
+always shut--nobody; he looked into a basket of shavings and
+sawdust--nobody; he even opened the door of the shop and gave a glance
+into the street--and still nobody. Who, then, could it be?
+
+"I see how it is," he said, laughing and scratching his wig, "evidently
+that little voice was all my imagination. Let us set to work again."
+
+And, taking up the axe, he struck a tremendous blow on the piece of
+wood.
+
+"Oh! oh! you have hurt me!" cried the same little voice dolefully.
+
+This time Master Cherry was petrified. His eyes started out of his head
+with fright, his mouth remained open, and his tongue hung out almost to
+the end of his chin, like a mask on a fountain. As soon as he had
+recovered the use of his speech he began to say, stuttering and
+trembling with fear:
+
+"But where on earth can that little voice have come from that said 'Oh!
+oh!'? Is it possible that this piece of wood can have learned to cry and
+to lament like a child? I cannot believe it. This piece of wood is
+nothing but a log for fuel like all the others, and thrown on the fire
+it would about suffice to boil a saucepan of beans. How then? Can anyone
+be hidden inside it? If anyone is hidden inside, so much the worse for
+him. I will settle him at once."
+
+So saying, he seized the poor piece of wood and commenced beating it
+without mercy against the walls of the room.
+
+Then he stopped to listen if he could hear any little voice lamenting.
+He waited two minutes--nothing; five minutes--nothing; ten
+minutes--still nothing!
+
+"I see how it is," he then said, forcing himself to laugh, and pushing
+up his wig; "evidently the little voice that said 'Oh! oh!' was all my
+imagination! Let us set to work again."
+
+Putting the axe aside, he took his plane, to plane and polish the bit of
+wood; but whilst he was running it up and down he heard the same little
+voice say, laughing:
+
+"Stop! you are tickling me all over!"
+
+This time poor Master Cherry fell down as if he had been struck by
+lightning. When he at last opened his eyes he found himself seated on
+the floor.
+
+His face was changed, even the end of his nose, instead of being
+crimson, as it was nearly always, had become blue from fright.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+MASTER CHERRY GIVES THE WOOD AWAY
+
+
+At that moment some one knocked at the door.
+
+"Come in," said the carpenter, without having the strength to rise to
+his feet.
+
+A lively little old man immediately walked into the shop. His name was
+Geppetto, but when the boys of the neighborhood wished to make him angry
+they called him Pudding, because his yellow wig greatly resembled a
+pudding made of Indian corn.
+
+Geppetto was very fiery. Woe to him who called him Pudding! He became
+furious and there was no holding him.
+
+"Good-day, Master Antonio," said Geppetto; "what are you doing there on
+the floor?"
+
+"I am teaching the alphabet to the ants."
+
+"Much good may that do you."
+
+"What has brought you to me, neighbor Geppetto?"
+
+"My legs. But to tell the truth. Master Antonio, I came to ask a favor
+of you."
+
+"Here I am, ready to serve you," replied the carpenter, getting on his
+knees.
+
+"This morning an idea came into my head."
+
+"Let us hear it."
+
+"I thought I would make a beautiful wooden puppet; one that could dance,
+fence, and leap like an acrobat. With this puppet I would travel about
+the world to earn a piece of bread and a glass of wine. What do you
+think of it?"
+
+"Bravo, Pudding!" exclaimed the same little voice, and it was impossible
+to say where it came from.
+
+Hearing himself called Pudding, Geppetto became as red as a turkey-cock
+from rage and, turning to the carpenter, he said in a fury:
+
+"Why do you insult me?"
+
+"Who insults you?"
+
+"You called me Pudding!"
+
+"It was not I!"
+
+"Do you think I called myself Pudding? It was you, I say!"
+
+"No!"
+
+"Yes!"
+
+"No!"
+
+"Yes!"
+
+And, becoming more and more angry, from words they came to blows, and,
+flying at each other, they bit and fought, and scratched.
+
+When the fight was over Master Antonio was in possession of Geppetto's
+yellow wig, and Geppetto discovered that the grey wig belonging to the
+carpenter remained between his teeth.
+
+"Give me back my wig," screamed Master Antonio.
+
+"And you, return me mine, and let us be friends again."
+
+The two old men having each recovered his own wig, shook hands and swore
+that they would remain friends to the end of their lives.
+
+"Well, then, neighbor Geppetto," said the carpenter, to prove that peace
+was made, "what is the favor that you wish of me?"
+
+"I want a little wood to make my puppet; will you give me some?"
+
+Master Antonio was delighted, and he immediately went to the bench and
+fetched the piece of wood that had caused him so much fear. But just as
+he was going to give it to his friend the piece of wood gave a shake
+and, wriggling violently out of his hands, struck with all of its force
+against the dried-up shins of poor Geppetto.
+
+"Ah! is that the courteous way in which you make your presents, Master
+Antonio? You have almost lamed me!"
+
+"I swear to you that it was not I!"
+
+"Then you would have it that it was I?"
+
+"The wood is entirely to blame!"
+
+"I know that it was the wood; but it was you that hit my legs with it!"
+
+"I did not hit you with it!"
+
+"Liar!"
+
+"Geppetto, don't insult me or I will call you Pudding!"
+
+"Knave!"
+
+"Pudding!"
+
+"Donkey!"
+
+"Pudding!"
+
+"Baboon!"
+
+"Pudding!"
+
+On hearing himself called Pudding for the third time Geppetto, mad with
+rage, fell upon the carpenter and they fought desperately.
+
+When the battle was over, Master Antonio had two more scratches on his
+nose, and his adversary had lost two buttons off his waistcoat. Their
+accounts being thus squared, they shook hands and swore to remain good
+friends for the rest of their lives.
+
+Geppetto carried off his fine piece of wood and, thanking Master
+Antonio, returned limping to his house.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+GEPPETTO NAMES HIS PUPPET PINOCCHIO
+
+
+Geppetto lived in a small ground-floor room that was only lighted from
+the staircase. The furniture could not have been simpler--a rickety
+chair, a poor bed, and a broken-down table. At the end of the room there
+was a fireplace with a lighted fire; but the fire was painted, and by
+the fire was a painted saucepan that was boiling cheerfully and sending
+out a cloud of smoke that looked exactly like real smoke.
+
+As soon as he reached home Geppetto took his tools and set to work to
+cut out and model his puppet.
+
+[Illustration: A Little Chicken Popped Out, Very Gay and Polite]
+
+"What name shall I give him?" he said to himself; "I think I will call
+him Pinocchio. It is a name that will bring him luck. I once knew a
+whole family so called. There was Pinocchio the father, Pinocchia the
+mother, and Pinocchi the children, and all of them did well. The
+richest of them was a beggar."
+
+Having found a name for his puppet he began to work in good earnest, and
+he first made his hair, then his forehead, and then his eyes.
+
+The eyes being finished, imagine his astonishment when he perceived that
+they moved and looked fixedly at him.
+
+Geppetto, seeing himself stared at by those two wooden eyes, said in an
+angry voice:
+
+"Wicked wooden eyes, why do you look at me?"
+
+No one answered.
+
+He then proceeded to carve the nose, but no sooner had he made it than
+it began to grow. And it grew, and grew, and grew, until in a few
+minutes it had become an immense nose that seemed as if it would never
+end.
+
+Poor Geppetto tired himself out with cutting it off, but the more he cut
+and shortened it, the longer did that impertinent nose become!
+
+The mouth was not even completed when it began to laugh and deride him.
+
+"Stop laughing!" said Geppetto, provoked; but he might as well have
+spoken to the wall.
+
+"Stop laughing, I say!" he roared in a threatening tone.
+
+The mouth then ceased laughing, but put out its tongue as far as it
+would go.
+
+Geppetto, not to spoil his handiwork, pretended not to see and continued
+his labors. After the mouth he fashioned the chin, then the throat, then
+the shoulders, the stomach, the arms and the hands.
+
+The hands were scarcely finished when Geppetto felt his wig snatched
+from his head. He turned round, and what did he see? He saw his yellow
+wig in the puppet's hand.
+
+"Pinocchio! Give me back my wig instantly!"
+
+But Pinocchio, instead of returning it, put it on his own head and was
+in consequence nearly smothered.
+
+Geppetto at this insolent and derisive behavior felt sadder and more
+melancholy than he had ever been in his life before; and, turning to
+Pinocchio, he said to him:
+
+"You young rascal! You are not yet completed and you are already
+beginning to show want of respect to your father! That is bad, my boy,
+very bad!"
+
+And he dried a tear.
+
+The legs and the feet remained to be done.
+
+When Geppetto had finished the feet he received a kick on the point of
+his nose.
+
+"I deserve it!" he said to himself; "I should have thought of it sooner!
+Now it is too late!"
+
+He then took the puppet under the arms and placed him on the floor to
+teach him to walk.
+
+Pinocchio's legs were stiff and he could not move, but Geppetto led him
+by the hand and showed him how to put one foot before the other.
+
+When his legs became limber Pinocchio began to walk by himself and to
+run about the room, until, having gone out of the house door, he jumped
+into the street and escaped.
+
+Poor Geppetto rushed after him but was not able to overtake him, for
+that rascal Pinocchio leaped in front of him like a hare and knocking
+his wooden feet together against the pavement made as much clatter as
+twenty pairs of peasants' clogs.
+
+"Stop him! stop him!" shouted Geppetto; but the people in the street,
+seeing a wooden puppet running like a race-horse, stood still in
+astonishment to look at it, and laughed and laughed.
+
+At last, as good luck would have it, a soldier arrived who, hearing the
+uproar, imagined that a colt had escaped from his master. Planting
+himself courageously with his legs apart in the middle of the road, he
+waited with the determined purpose of stopping him and thus preventing
+the chance of worse disasters.
+
+When Pinocchio, still at some distance, saw the soldier barricading the
+whole street, he endeavored to take him by surprise and to pass between
+his legs. But he failed entirely.
+
+The soldier without disturbing himself in the least caught him cleverly
+by the nose and gave him to Geppetto. Wishing to punish him, Geppetto
+intended to pull his ears at once. But imagine his feelings when he
+could not succeed in finding them. And do you know the reason? In his
+hurry to model him he had forgotten to make any ears.
+
+He then took him by the collar and as he was leading him away he said to
+him, shaking his head threateningly:
+
+"We will go home at once, and as soon as we arrive we will settle our
+accounts, never doubt it."
+
+At this information Pinocchio threw himself on the ground and would not
+take another step. In the meanwhile a crowd of idlers and inquisitive
+people began to assemble and to make a ring around them.
+
+Some of them said one thing, some another.
+
+"Poor puppet!" said several, "he is right not to wish to return home!
+Who knows how Geppetto, that bad old man, will beat him!"
+
+And the others added maliciously:
+
+"Geppetto seems a good man! but with boys he is a regular tyrant! If
+that poor puppet is left in his hands he is quite capable of tearing him
+in pieces!"
+
+It ended in so much being said and done that the soldier at last set
+Pinocchio at liberty and led Geppetto to prison. The poor man, not being
+ready with words to defend himself, cried like a calf and as he was
+being led away to prison sobbed out:
+
+"Wretched boy! And to think how I labored to make him a well-conducted
+puppet! But it serves me right! I should have thought of it sooner!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+THE TALKING-CRICKET SCOLDS PINOCCHIO
+
+
+While poor Geppetto was being taken to prison for no fault of his, that
+imp Pinocchio, finding himself free from the clutches of the soldier,
+ran off as fast as his legs could carry him. That he might reach home
+the quicker he rushed across the fields, and in his mad hurry he jumped
+high banks, thorn hedges and ditches full of water.
+
+Arriving at the house he found the street door ajar. He pushed it open,
+went in, and having fastened the latch, threw himself on the floor and
+gave a great sigh of satisfaction.
+
+But soon he heard some one in the room who was saying:
+
+"Cri-cri-cri!"
+
+"Who calls me?" said Pinocchio in a fright.
+
+"It is I!"
+
+Pinocchio turned round and saw a big cricket crawling slowly up the
+wall.
+
+"Tell me, Cricket, who may you be?"
+
+"I am the Talking-Cricket, and I have lived in this room a hundred years
+or more."
+
+"Now, however, this room is mine," said the puppet, "and if you would do
+me a pleasure go away at once, without even turning round."
+
+"I will not go," answered the Cricket, "until I have told you a great
+truth."
+
+"Tell it me, then, and be quick about it."
+
+"Woe to those boys who rebel against their parents and run away from
+home. They will never come to any good in the world, and sooner or later
+they will repent bitterly."
+
+"Sing away, Cricket, as you please, and as long as you please. For me, I
+have made up my mind to run away tomorrow at daybreak, because if I
+remain I shall not escape the fate of all other boys; I shall be sent to
+school and shall be made to study either by love or by force. To tell
+you in confidence, I have no wish to learn; it is much more amusing to
+run after butterflies, or to climb trees and to take the young birds out
+of their nests."
+
+"Poor little goose! But do you not know that in that way you will grow
+up a perfect donkey, and that every one will make fun of you?"
+
+"Hold your tongue, you wicked, ill-omened croaker!" shouted Pinocchio.
+
+But the Cricket, who was patient and philosophical, instead of becoming
+angry at this impertinence, continued in the same tone:
+
+"But if you do not wish to go to school why not at least learn a trade,
+if only to enable you to earn honestly a piece of bread!"
+
+"Do you want me to tell you?" replied Pinocchio, who was beginning to
+lose patience. "Amongst all the trades in the world there is only one
+that really takes my fancy."
+
+"And that trade--what is it?"
+
+"It is to eat, drink, sleep and amuse myself, and to lead a vagabond
+life from morning to night."
+
+"As a rule," said the Talking-Cricket, "all those who follow that trade
+end almost always either in a hospital or in prison."
+
+"Take care, you wicked, ill-omened croaker! Woe to you if I fly into a
+passion!"
+
+"Poor Pinocchio! I really pity you!"
+
+"Why do you pity me?"
+
+"Because you are a puppet and, what is worse, because you have a wooden
+head."
+
+At these last words Pinocchio jumped up in a rage and, snatching a
+wooden hammer from the bench, he threw it at the Talking-Cricket.
+
+Perhaps he never meant to hit him, but unfortunately it struck him
+exactly on the head, so that the poor Cricket had scarcely breath to cry
+"Cri-cri-cri!" and then he remained dried up and flattened against the
+wall.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE FLYING EGG
+
+
+Night was coming on and Pinocchio, remembering that he had eaten nothing
+all day, began to feel a gnawing in his stomach that very much resembled
+appetite.
+
+After a few minutes his appetite had become hunger and in no time his
+hunger became ravenous.
+
+Poor Pinocchio ran quickly to the fireplace, where a saucepan was
+boiling, and was going to take off the lid to see what was in it, but
+the saucepan was only painted on the wall. You can imagine his feelings.
+His nose, which was already long, became longer by at least three
+inches.
+
+He then began to run about the room, searching in the drawers and in
+every imaginable place, in hopes of finding a bit of bread. If it was
+only a bit of dry bread, a crust, a bone left by a dog, a little moldy
+pudding of Indian corn, a fish bone, a cherry stone--in fact, anything
+that he could gnaw. But he could find nothing, nothing at all,
+absolutely nothing.
+
+And in the meanwhile his hunger grew and grew. Poor Pinocchio had no
+other relief than yawning, and his yawns were so tremendous that
+sometimes his mouth almost reached his ears. And after he had yawned he
+spluttered and felt as if he were going to faint.
+
+Then he began to cry desperately, and he said:
+
+"The Talking-Cricket was right. I did wrong to rebel against my papa and
+to run away from home. If my papa were here I should not now be dying of
+yawning! Oh! what a dreadful illness hunger is!"
+
+Just then he thought he saw something in the dust-heap--something round
+and white that looked like a hen's egg. To give a spring and seize hold
+of it was the affair of a moment. It was indeed an egg.
+
+Pinocchio's joy was beyond description. Almost believing it must be a
+dream he kept turning the egg over in his hands, feeling it and kissing
+it. And as he kissed it he said:
+
+"And now, how shall I cook it? Shall I make an omelet? No, it would be
+better to cook it in a saucer! Or would it not be more savory to fry it
+in the frying-pan? Or shall I simply boil it? No, the quickest way of
+all is to cook it in a saucer: I am in such a hurry to eat it!"
+
+Without loss of time he placed an earthenware saucer on a brazier full
+of red-hot embers. Into the saucer instead of oil or butter he poured a
+little water; and when the water began to smoke, tac! he broke the
+egg-shell over it and let the contents drop in. But, instead of the
+white and the yolk a little chicken popped out very gay and polite.
+Making a beautiful courtesy it said to him:
+
+"A thousand thanks, Master Pinocchio, for saving me the trouble of
+breaking the shell. Adieu until we meet again. Keep well, and my best
+compliments to all at home!"
+
+Thus saying, it spread its wings, darted through the open window and,
+flying away, was lost to sight.
+
+The poor puppet stood as if he had been bewitched, with his eyes fixed,
+his mouth open, and the egg-shell in his hand. Recovering, however, from
+his first stupefaction, he began to cry and scream, and to stamp his
+feet on the floor in desperation, and amidst his sobs he said:
+
+"Ah, indeed, the Talking-Cricket was right. If I had not run away from
+home, and if my papa were here, I should not now be dying of hunger! Oh!
+what a dreadful illness hunger is!"
+
+And, as his stomach cried out more than ever and he did not know how to
+quiet it, he thought he would leave the house and make an excursion in
+the neighborhood in hopes of finding some charitable person who would
+give him a piece of bread.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+PINOCCHIO'S FEET BURN TO CINDERS
+
+
+It was a wild and stormy night. The thunder was tremendous and the
+lightning so vivid that the sky seemed on fire.
+
+Pinocchio had a great fear of thunder, but hunger was stronger than
+fear. He therefore closed the house door and made a rush for the
+village, which he reached in a hundred bounds, with his tongue hanging
+out and panting for breath like a dog after game.
+
+But he found it all dark and deserted. The shops were closed, the
+windows shut, and there was not so much as a dog in the street. It
+seemed the land of the dead.
+
+Pinocchio, urged by desperation and hunger, took hold of the bell of a
+house and began to ring it with all his might, saying to himself:
+
+"That will bring somebody."
+
+And so it did. A little old man appeared at a window with a night-cap on
+his head and called to him angrily:
+
+"What do you want at such an hour?"
+
+"Would you be kind enough to give me a little bread?"
+
+"Wait there, I will be back directly," said the little old man, thinking
+it was one of those rascally boys who amuse themselves at night by
+ringing the house-bells to rouse respectable people who are sleeping
+quietly.
+
+After half a minute the window was again opened and the voice of the
+same little old man shouted to Pinocchio:
+
+"Come underneath and hold out your cap."
+
+Pinocchio pulled off his cap; but, just as he held it out, an enormous
+basin of water was poured down on him, soaking him from head to foot as
+if he had been a pot of dried-up geraniums.
+
+He returned home like a wet chicken, quite exhausted with fatigue and
+hunger; and, having no longer strength to stand, he sat down and rested
+his damp and muddy feet on a brazier full of burning embers.
+
+And then he fell asleep, and whilst he slept his feet, which were
+wooden, took fire, and little by little they burnt away and became
+cinders.
+
+Pinocchio continued to sleep and to snore as if his feet belonged to
+some one else. At last about daybreak he awoke because some one was
+knocking at the door.
+
+"Who is there?" he asked, yawning and rubbing his eyes.
+
+"It is I!" answered a voice.
+
+And Pinocchio recognized Geppetto's voice.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+GEPPETTO GIVES HIS OWN BREAKFAST TO PINOCCHIO
+
+
+Poor Pinocchio, whose eyes were still half shut from sleep, had not as
+yet discovered that his feet were burnt off. The moment, therefore, that
+he heard his father's voice he slipped off his stool to run and open the
+door; but, after stumbling two or three times, he fell his whole length
+on the floor.
+
+And the noise he made in falling was as if a sack of wooden ladles had
+been thrown from a fifth story.
+
+"Open the door!" shouted Geppetto from the street.
+
+"Dear papa, I cannot," answered the puppet, crying and rolling about on
+the ground.
+
+"Why can't you?"
+
+"Because my feet have been eaten."
+
+"And who has eaten your feet?"
+
+"The cat," said Pinocchio, seeing the cat, who was amusing herself by
+making some shavings dance with her forepaws.
+
+"Open the door, I tell you!" repeated Geppetto. "If you don't, when I
+get into the house you shall have the cat from me!"
+
+"I cannot stand up, believe me. Oh, poor me! poor me! I shall have to
+walk on my knees for the rest of my life!"
+
+Geppetto, believing that all this lamentation was only another of the
+puppet's tricks, thought of a means of putting an end to it, and,
+climbing up the wall, he got in at the window.
+
+He was very angry and at first he did nothing but scold; but when he saw
+his Pinocchio lying on the ground and really without feet he was quite
+overcome. He took him in his arms and began to kiss and caress him, and
+to say a thousand endearing things to him, and as the big tears ran down
+his cheeks he said, sobbing:
+
+"My little Pinocchio! how did you manage to burn your feet?"
+
+"I don't know, papa, but it has been such a dreadful night that I shall
+remember it as long as I live. It thundered and lightened, and I was
+very hungry, and then the Talking-Cricket said to me: 'It serves you
+right; you have been wicked and you deserve it,' and I said to him:
+'Take care, Cricket!' and he said: 'You are a puppet and you have a
+wooden head,' and I threw the handle of a hammer at him, and he died,
+but the fault was his, for I didn't wish to kill him, and the proof of
+it is that I put an earthenware saucer on a brazier of burning embers,
+but a chicken flew out and said: 'Adieu until we meet again, and many
+compliments to all at home': and I got still more hungry, for which
+reason that little old man in a night-cap, opening the window, said to
+me: 'Come underneath and hold out your hat,' and poured a basinful of
+water on my head, because asking for a little bread isn't a disgrace, is
+it? and I returned home at once, and because I was always very hungry I
+put my feet on the brazier to dry them, and then you returned, and I
+found they were burnt off, and I am always hungry, but I have no longer
+any feet! Oh! oh! oh! oh!" And poor Pinocchio began to cry and to roar
+so loudly that he was heard five miles off.
+
+Geppetto, who from all this jumbled account had only understood one
+thing, which was that the puppet was dying of hunger, drew from his
+pocket three pears and, giving them to him, said:
+
+"These three pears were intended for my breakfast, but I will give them
+to you willingly. Eat them, and I hope they will do you good."
+
+"If you wish me to eat them, be kind enough to peel them for me."
+
+"Peel them?" said Geppetto, astonished. "I should never have thought, my
+boy, that you were so dainty and fastidious. That is bad! In this world
+we should accustom ourselves from childhood to like and to eat
+everything, for there is no saying to what we may be brought. There are
+so many chances!"
+
+"You are no doubt right," interrupted Pinocchio, "but I will never eat
+fruit that has not been peeled. I cannot bear rind."
+
+So good Geppetto peeled the three pears and put the rind on a corner of
+the table.
+
+Having eaten the first pear in two mouthfuls, Pinocchio was about to
+throw away the core, but Geppetto caught hold of his arm and said to
+him:
+
+"Do not throw it away; in this world everything may be of use."
+
+"But core I am determined I will not eat," shouted the puppet, turning
+upon him like a viper.
+
+"Who knows! there are so many chances!" repeated Geppetto, without
+losing his temper.
+
+And so the three cores, instead of being thrown out of the window, were
+placed on the corner of the table, together with the three rinds.
+
+Having eaten, or rather having devoured the three pears, Pinocchio
+yawned tremendously, and then said in a fretful tone:
+
+"I am as hungry as ever!"
+
+"But, my boy, I have nothing more to give you!"
+
+"Nothing, really nothing?"
+
+"I have only the rind and the cores of the three pears."
+
+"One must have patience!" said Pinocchio; "if there is nothing else I
+will eat a rind."
+
+And he began to chew it. At first he made a wry face, but then one after
+another he quickly disposed of the rinds: and after the rinds even the
+cores, and when he had eaten up everything he clapped his hands on his
+sides in his satisfaction and said joyfully:
+
+"Ah! now I feel comfortable."
+
+"You see, now," observed Geppetto, "that I was right when I said to you
+that it did not do to accustom ourselves to be too particular or too
+dainty in our tastes. We can never know, my dear boy, what may happen to
+us. There are so many chances!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+GEPPETTO MAKES PINOCCHIO NEW FEET
+
+
+No sooner had the puppet satisfied his hunger than he began to cry and
+to grumble because he wanted a pair of new feet.
+
+But Geppetto, to punish him for his naughtiness, allowed him to cry and
+to despair for half the day. He then said to him:
+
+"Why should I make you new feet? To enable you, perhaps, to escape again
+from home?"
+
+"I promise you," said the puppet, sobbing, "that for the future I will
+be good."
+
+"All boys," replied Geppetto, "when they are bent upon obtaining
+something, say the same thing."
+
+"I promise you that I will go to school and that I will study and bring
+home a good report."
+
+"All boys, when they are bent on obtaining something, repeat the same
+story."
+
+"But I am not like other boys! I am better than all of them and I always
+speak the truth. I promise you, papa, that I will learn a trade and that
+I will be the consolation and the staff of your old age."
+
+Geppetto's eyes filled with tears and his heart was sad at seeing his
+poor Pinocchio in such a pitiable state. He did not say another word,
+but, taking his tools and two small pieces of well-seasoned wood, he set
+to work with great diligence.
+
+In less than an hour the feet were finished: two little feet--swift,
+well-knit and nervous. They might have been modelled by an artist of
+genius.
+
+Geppetto then said to the puppet:
+
+"Shut your eyes and go to sleep!"
+
+And Pinocchio shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep.
+
+And whilst he pretended to sleep, Geppetto, with a little glue which he
+had melted in an egg-shell, fastened his feet in their place, and it was
+so well done that not even a trace could be seen of where they were
+joined.
+
+No sooner had the puppet discovered that he had feet than he jumped down
+from the table on which he was lying and began to spring and to cut a
+thousand capers about the room, as if he had gone mad with the greatness
+of his delight.
+
+"To reward you for what you have done for me," said Pinocchio to his
+father, "I will go to school at once."
+
+"Good boy."
+
+"But to go to school I shall want some clothes."
+
+Geppetto, who was poor and who had not so much as a penny in his pocket,
+then made him a little dress of flowered paper, a pair of shoes from the
+bark of a tree, and a cap of the crumb of bread.
+
+Pinocchio ran immediately to look at himself in a crock of water, and he
+was so pleased with his appearance that he said, strutting about like a
+peacock:
+
+"I look quite like a gentleman!"
+
+"Yes, indeed," answered Geppetto, "for bear in mind that it is not fine
+clothes that make the gentleman, but rather clean clothes."
+
+"By the bye," added the puppet, "to go to school I am still in
+want--indeed, I am without the best thing, and the most important."
+
+"And what is it?"
+
+"I have no spelling-book."
+
+"You are right: but what shall we do to get one?"
+
+"It is quite easy. We have only to go to the bookseller's and buy it."
+
+"And the money?"
+
+"I have got none."
+
+"Neither have I," added the good old man, very sadly.
+
+And Pinocchio, although he was a very merry boy, became sad also,
+because poverty, when it is real poverty, is understood by
+everybody--even by boys.
+
+"Well, patience!" exclaimed Geppetto, all at once rising to his feet,
+and putting on his old corduroy coat, all patched and darned, he ran out
+of the house.
+
+He returned shortly, holding in his hand a spelling-book for Pinocchio,
+but the old coat was gone. The poor man was in his shirt-sleeves and out
+of doors it was snowing.
+
+"And the coat, papa?"
+
+"I have sold it."
+
+"Why did you sell it?"
+
+"Because I found it too hot."
+
+Pinocchio understood this answer in an instant, and unable to restrain
+the impulse of his good heart he sprang up and, throwing his arms around
+Geppetto's neck, he began kissing him again and again.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+PINOCCHIO GOES TO SEE A PUPPET-SHOW
+
+
+As soon as it stopped snowing Pinocchio set out for school with his fine
+spelling-book under his arm. As he went along he began to imagine a
+thousand things in his little brain and to build a thousand castles in
+the air, one more beautiful than the other.
+
+And, talking to himself, he said:
+
+"Today at school I will learn to read at once; then tomorrow I will
+begin to write, and the day after tomorrow to figure. Then, with my
+acquirements, I will earn a great deal of money, and with the first
+money I have in my pocket I will immediately buy for my papa a beautiful
+new cloth coat. But what am I saying? Cloth, indeed! It shall be all
+made of gold and silver, and it shall have diamond buttons. That poor
+man really deserves it, for to buy me books and have me taught he has
+remained in his shirt-sleeves. And in this cold! It is only fathers who
+are capable of such sacrifices!"
+
+Whilst he was saying this with great emotion, he thought that he heard
+music in the distance that sounded like fifes and the beating of a big
+drum: Fi-fie-fi, fi-fi-fi; zum, zum, zum.
+
+He stopped and listened. The sounds came from the end of a cross street
+that led to a little village on the seashore.
+
+"What can that music be? What a pity that I have to go to school, or
+else--"
+
+And he remained irresolute. It was, however, necessary to come to a
+decision. Should he go to school? or should he go after the fifes?
+
+"Today I will go and hear the fifes, and tomorrow I will go to school,"
+finally decided the young scapegrace, shrugging his shoulders.
+
+The more he ran the nearer came the sounds of the fifes and the beating
+of the big drum: Fi-fi-fi; zum, zum, zum, zum.
+
+At last he found himself in the middle of a square quite full of people,
+who were all crowded round a building made of wood and canvas, and
+painted a thousand colors.
+
+"What is that building?" asked Pinocchio, turning to a little boy who
+belonged to the place.
+
+"Read the placard--it is all written--and then you will know."
+
+"I would read it willingly, but it so happens that today I don't know
+how to read."
+
+"Bravo, blockhead! Then I will read it to you. The writing on that
+placard in those letters red as fire is:
+
+     "THE GREAT PUPPET THEATER."
+
+"Has the play begun long?"
+
+"It is beginning now."
+
+"How much does it cost to go in?"
+
+"A dime."
+
+Pinocchio, who was in a fever of curiosity, lost all control of himself,
+and without any shame he said to the little boy to whom he was talking:
+
+"Would you lend me a dime until tomorrow?"
+
+"I would lend it to you willingly," said the other, "but it so happens
+that today I cannot give it to you."
+
+"I will sell you my jacket for a dime," the puppet then said to him.
+
+"What do you think that I could do with a jacket of flowered paper? If
+there were rain and it got wet, it would be impossible to get it off my
+back."
+
+"Will you buy my shoes?"
+
+"They would only be of use to light the fire."
+
+"How much will you give me for my cap?"
+
+"That would be a wonderful acquisition indeed! A cap of bread crumb!
+There would be a risk of the mice coming to eat it whilst it was on my
+head."
+
+Pinocchio was on thorns. He was on the point of making another offer,
+but he had not the courage. He hesitated, felt irresolute and
+remorseful. At last he said:
+
+"Will you give me a dime for this new spelling-book?"
+
+"I am a boy and I don't buy from boys," replied his little interlocutor,
+who had much more sense than he had.
+
+"I will buy the spelling-book for a dime," called out a hawker of old
+clothes, who had been listening to the conversation.
+
+And the book was sold there and then. And to think that poor Geppetto
+had remained at home trembling with cold in his shirt-sleeves in order
+that his son should have a spelling-book.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE PUPPETS RECOGNIZE THEIR BROTHER PINOCCHIO
+
+
+When Pinocchio came into the little puppet theater, an incident occurred
+that almost produced a revolution.
+
+The curtain had gone up and the play had already begun.
+
+On the stage Harlequin and Punch were as usual quarrelling with each
+other and threatening every moment to come to blows.
+
+All at once Harlequin stopped short and, turning to the public, he
+pointed with his hand to some one far down in the pit and exclaimed in a
+dramatic tone:
+
+"Gods of the firmament! Do I dream or am I awake? But surely that is
+Pinocchio!"
+
+"It is indeed Pinocchio!" cried Punch.
+
+"It is indeed himself!" screamed Miss Rose, peeping from behind the
+scenes.
+
+"It is Pinocchio! it is Pinocchio!" shouted all the puppets in chorus,
+leaping from all sides on to the stage. "It is Pinocchio! It is our
+brother Pinocchio! Long live Pinocchio!"
+
+"Pinocchio, come up here to me," cried Harlequin, "and throw yourself
+into the arms of your wooden brothers!"
+
+At this affectionate invitation Pinocchio made a leap from the end of
+the pit into the reserved seats; another leap landed him on the head of
+the leader of the orchestra, and he then sprang upon the stage.
+
+The embraces, the friendly pinches, and the demonstrations of warm
+brotherly affection that Pinocchio received from the excited crowd of
+actors and actresses of the puppet dramatic company are beyond
+description.
+
+The sight was doubtless a moving one, but the public in the pit, finding
+that the play was stopped, became impatient and began to shout: "We will
+have the play--go on with the play!"
+
+It was all breath thrown away. The puppets, instead of continuing the
+recital, redoubled their noise and outcries, and, putting Pinocchio on
+their shoulders, they carried him in triumph before the footlights.
+
+At that moment out came the showman. He was very big, and so ugly that
+the sight of him was enough to frighten anyone. His beard was as black
+as ink, and so long that it reached from his chin to the ground. I need
+only say that he trod upon it when he walked. His mouth was as big as an
+oven, and his eyes were like two lanterns of red glass with lights
+burning inside them. He carried a large whip made of snakes and foxes'
+tails twisted together, which he cracked constantly.
+
+At his unexpected appearance there was a profound silence: no one dared
+to breathe. A fly might have been heard in the stillness. The poor
+puppets of both sexes trembled like so many leaves.
+
+"Why have you come to raise a disturbance in my theater?" asked the
+showman of Pinocchio, in the gruff voice of a hobgoblin suffering from a
+severe cold in the head.
+
+"Believe me, honored sir, it was not my fault!"
+
+"That is enough! Tonight we will settle our accounts."
+
+As soon as the play was over the showman went into the kitchen, where a
+fine sheep, preparing for his supper, was turning slowly on the spit in
+front of the fire. As there was not enough wood to finish roasting and
+browning it, he called Harlequin and Punch, and said to them:
+
+"Bring that puppet here: you will find him hanging on a nail. It seems
+to me that he is made of very dry wood and I am sure that if he were
+thrown on the fire he would make a beautiful blaze for the roast."
+
+At first Harlequin and Punch hesitated; but, appalled by a severe glance
+from their master, they obeyed. In a short time they returned to the
+kitchen carrying poor Pinocchio, who was wriggling like an eel taken out
+of water and screaming desperately: "Papa! papa! save me! I will not
+die, I will not die!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+FIRE-EATER SNEEZES AND PARDONS PINOCCHIO
+
+
+The showman, Fire-Eater--for that was his name--looked like a wicked
+man, especially with his black beard that covered his chest and legs
+like an apron. On the whole, however, he had not a bad heart. In proof
+of this, when he saw poor Pinocchio brought before him, struggling and
+screaming "I will not die, I will not die!" he was quite moved and felt
+very sorry for him. He tried to hold out, but after a little he could
+stand it no longer and he sneezed violently. When he heard the sneeze,
+Harlequin, who up to that moment had been in the deepest affliction and
+bowed down like a weeping willow, became quite cheerful and, leaning
+towards Pinocchio, he whispered to him softly:
+
+"Good news, brother. The showman has sneezed and that is a sign that he
+pities you, and consequently you are saved."
+
+Most men, when they feel compassion for somebody, either weep or at
+least pretend to dry their eyes. Fire-Eater, on the contrary, whenever
+he was really overcome, had the habit of sneezing.
+
+After he had sneezed, the showman, still acting the ruffian, shouted to
+Pinocchio:
+
+"Have done crying! Your lamentations have given me a pain in my stomach.
+I feel a spasm that almost--Etchoo! etchoo!" and he sneezed again twice.
+
+"Bless you!" said Pinocchio.
+
+"Thank you! And your papa and your mamma, are they still alive?" asked
+Fire-Eater.
+
+"Papa, yes; my mamma I have never known."
+
+"Who can say what a sorrow it would be for your poor old father if I
+were to have you thrown amongst those burning coals! Poor old man! I
+pity him! Etchoo! etchoo! etchoo!" and he sneezed again three times.
+
+"Bless you" said Pinocchio.
+
+"Thank you! All the same, some compassion is due to me, for as you see I
+have no more wood with which to finish roasting my mutton, and, to tell
+you the truth, under the circumstances you would have been of great use
+to me! However, I have had pity on you, so I must have patience. Instead
+of you I will burn under the spit one of the puppets belonging to my
+company. Ho there, gendarmes!"
+
+At this call two wooden gendarmes immediately appeared. They were very
+long and very thin, and had on cocked hats, and held unsheathed swords
+in their hands.
+
+The showman said to them in a hoarse voice:
+
+"Take Harlequin, bind him securely, and then throw him on the fire to
+burn. I am determined that my mutton shall be well roasted."
+
+Only imagine that poor Harlequin! His terror was so great that his legs
+bent under him, and he fell with his face on the ground.
+
+At this agonizing sight Pinocchio, weeping bitterly, threw himself at
+the showman's feet and, bathing his long beard with his tears, he began
+to say, in a supplicating voice:
+
+"Have pity, Sir Fire-Eater!"
+
+"Here there are no sirs," the showman answered severely.
+
+"Have pity, Sir Knight!"
+
+"Here there are no knights!"
+
+"Have pity, Commander!"
+
+"Here there are no commanders!"
+
+"Have pity, Excellence!"
+
+Upon hearing himself called Excellence the showman began to smile and
+became at once kinder and more tractable. Turning to Pinocchio, he
+asked:
+
+"Well, what do you want from me?"
+
+"I implore you to pardon poor Harlequin."
+
+"For him there can be no pardon. As I have spared you he must be put on
+the fire, for I am determined that my mutton shall be well roasted."
+
+"In that case," cried Pinocchio proudly, rising and throwing away his
+cap of bread crumb--"in that case I know my duty. Come on, gendarmes!
+Bind me and throw me amongst the flames. No, it is not just that poor
+Harlequin, my true friend, should die for me!"
+
+These words, pronounced in a loud, heroic voice, made all the puppets
+who were present cry. Even the gendarmes, although they were made of
+wood, wept like two newly born lambs.
+
+Fire-Eater at first remained as hard and unmoved as ice, but little by
+little he began to melt and to sneeze. And, having sneezed four or five
+times, he opened his arms affectionately and said to Pinocchio:
+
+"You are a good, brave boy! Come here and give me a kiss."
+
+Pinocchio ran at once and, climbing like a squirrel up the showman's
+beard, he deposited a hearty kiss on the point of his nose.
+
+"Then the pardon is granted?" asked poor Harlequin in a faint voice that
+was scarcely audible.
+
+"The pardon is granted!" answered Fire-Eater; he then added, sighing and
+shaking his head:
+
+"I must have patience! Tonight I shall have to resign myself to eat the
+mutton half raw; but another time, woe to him who displeases me!"
+
+At the news of the pardon the puppets all ran to the stage and, having
+lighted the lamps and chandeliers as if for a full-dress performance,
+they began to leap and to dance merrily. At dawn they were still
+dancing.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+PINOCCHIO RECEIVES A PRESENT OF FIVE GOLD PIECES
+
+
+The following day Fire-Eater called Pinocchio to one side and asked him:
+
+"What is your father's name?"
+
+"Geppetto."
+
+"And what trade does he follow?"
+
+"He is a beggar."
+
+"Does he gain much?"
+
+"Gain much? Why, he has never a penny in his pocket. Only think, in
+order to buy a spelling-book so that I could go to school he was obliged
+to sell the only coat he had to wear--a coat that, between patches and
+darns, was not fit to be seen."
+
+"Poor devil! I feel almost sorry for him! Here are five gold pieces. Go
+at once and take them to him with my compliments."
+
+Pinocchio was overjoyed and thanked the showman a thousand times. He
+embraced all the puppets of the company one by one, even to the
+gendarmes, and set out to return home.
+
+But he had not gone far when he met on the road a Fox lame of one foot,
+and a Cat blind of both eyes, and they were going along helping each
+other like good companions in misfortune. The Fox, who was lame, walked
+leaning on the Cat; and the Cat, who was blind, was guided by the Fox.
+
+"Good-day, Pinocchio," said the Fox, greeting him politely.
+
+"How do you come to know my name?" asked the puppet.
+
+"I know your father well."
+
+"Where did you see him?"
+
+"I saw him yesterday at the door of his house."
+
+"And what was he doing?"
+
+"He was in his shirt-sleeves and shivering with cold."
+
+"Poor papa! But that is over; for the future he shall shiver no more!"
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because I have become a gentleman."
+
+"A gentleman--you!" said the Fox, and he began to laugh rudely and
+scornfully. The Cat also began to laugh, but to conceal it she combed
+her whiskers with her forepaws.
+
+[Illustration: Splash! Splash! They fell Into the Very Middle of the
+Ditch]
+
+"There is little to laugh at," cried Pinocchio angrily. "I am really
+sorry to make your mouth water, but if you know anything about it, you
+can see that these are five gold pieces."
+
+And he pulled out the money that Fire-Eater had given him.
+
+At the jingling of the money the Fox, with an involuntary movement,
+stretched out the paw that seemed crippled, and the Cat opened wide two
+eyes that looked like two green lanterns. It is true that she shut them
+again, and so quickly that Pinocchio observed nothing.
+
+"And now," asked the Fox, "what are you going to do with all that
+money?"
+
+"First of all," answered the puppet, "I intend to buy a new coat for my
+papa, made of gold and silver, and with diamond buttons; and then I will
+buy a spelling-book for myself."
+
+"For yourself?"
+
+"Yes indeed, for I wish to go to school to study in earnest."
+
+"Look at me!" said the Fox. "Through my foolish passion for study I have
+lost a leg."
+
+"Look at me!" said the Cat. "Through my foolish passion for study I have
+lost the sight of both my eyes."
+
+At that moment a white Blackbird, that was perched on the hedge by the
+road, began his usual song, and said:
+
+"Pinocchio, don't listen to the advice of bad companions; if you do you
+will repent it!"
+
+Poor Blackbird! If only he had not spoken! The Cat, with a great leap,
+sprang upon him, and without even giving him time to say "Oh!" ate him
+in a mouthful, feathers and all.
+
+Having eaten him and cleaned her mouth she shut her eyes again and
+feigned blindness as before.
+
+"Poor Blackbird!" said Pinocchio to the Cat, "why did you treat him so
+badly?"
+
+"I did it to give him a lesson. He will learn another time not to
+meddle in other people's conversation."
+
+They had gone almost half-way when the Fox, halting suddenly, said to
+the puppet:
+
+"Would you like to double your money?"
+
+"In what way?"
+
+"Would you like to make out of your five miserable sovereigns, a
+hundred, a thousand, two thousand?"
+
+"I should think so! but in what way?"
+
+"The way is easy enough. Instead of returning home you must go with us."
+
+"And where do you wish to take me?"
+
+"To the land of the Owls."
+
+Pinocchio reflected a moment, and then he said resolutely:
+
+"No, I will not go. I am already close to the house, and I will return
+home to my papa, who is waiting for me. Who can tell how often the poor
+old man must have sighed yesterday when I did not come back! I have
+indeed been a bad son, and the Talking-Cricket was right when he said:
+'Disobedient boys never come to any good in the world.' I have found it
+to be true, for many misfortunes have happened to me. Even yesterday in
+Fire-Eater's house I ran the risk--Oh! it makes me shudder only to think
+of it!"
+
+"Well, then," said the Fox, "you are quite decided to go home? Go, then,
+and so much the worse for you."
+
+"So much the worse for you!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"Think well of it, Pinocchio, for you are giving a kick to fortune."
+
+"To fortune!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"Between today and tomorrow your five sovereigns would have become two
+thousand."
+
+"Two thousand!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"But how is it possible that they could become so many?" asked
+Pinocchio, remaining with his mouth open from astonishment.
+
+"I will explain it to you at once," said the Fox. "You must know that in
+the land of the Owls there is a sacred field called by everybody the
+Field of Miracles. In this field you must dig a little hole, and you put
+into it, we will say, one gold sovereign. You then cover up the hole
+with a little earth; you must water it with two pails of water from the
+fountain, then sprinkle it with two pinches of salt, and when night
+comes you can go quietly to bed. In the meanwhile, during the night, the
+gold piece will grow and flower, and in the morning when you get up and
+return to the field, what do you find? You find a beautiful tree laden
+with as many gold sovereigns as a fine ear of corn has grains in the
+month of June."
+
+"So that," said Pinocchio, more and more bewildered, "supposing I buried
+my five sovereigns in that field, how many should I find there the
+following morning?"
+
+"That is an exceedingly easy calculation," replied the Fox, "a
+calculation that you can make on the ends of your fingers. Every
+sovereign will give you an increase of five hundred; multiply five
+hundred by five, and the following morning will find you with two
+thousand five hundred shining gold pieces in your pocket."
+
+"Oh! how delightful!" cried Pinocchio, dancing for joy. "As soon as ever
+I have obtained those sovereigns, I will keep two thousand for myself
+and the other five hundred I will make a present of to you two."
+
+"A present to us?" cried the Fox with indignation and appearing much
+offended. "What are you dreaming of?"
+
+"What are you dreaming of?" repeated the Cat.
+
+"We do not work," said the Fox, "for interest: we work solely to enrich
+others."
+
+"Others!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"What good people!" thought Pinocchio to himself, and, forgetting there
+and then his papa, the new coat, the spelling-book, and all his good
+resolutions, he said to the Fox and the Cat:
+
+"Let us be off at once. I will go with you."
+
+[Illustration: A LITTLE CHICKEN POPPED OUT, VERY GAY AND POLITE]
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+THE INN OF THE RED CRAW-FISH
+
+
+They walked, and walked, and walked, until at last, towards evening,
+they arrived, all tired out, at the inn of The Red Craw-Fish.
+
+"Let us stop here a little," said the Fox, "that we may have something
+to eat, and rest ourselves for an hour or two. We will start again at
+midnight, so as to arrive at the Field of Miracles by dawn tomorrow
+morning."
+
+Having gone into the inn they all three sat down to table, but none of
+them had any appetite.
+
+The Cat, who was suffering from indigestion and feeling seriously
+indisposed, could only eat thirty-five fish with tomato sauce and four
+portions of tripe with Parmesan cheese; and because she thought the
+tripe was not seasoned enough, she asked three times for the butter and
+grated cheese!
+
+The Fox would also willingly have picked a little, but as his doctor had
+ordered him a strict diet, he was forced to content himself simply with
+a hare dressed with a sweet and sour sauce, and garnished lightly with
+fat chickens and early pullets. After the hare he sent for a made dish
+of partridges, rabbits, frogs, lizards and other delicacies; he could
+not touch anything else. He cared so little for food, he said, that he
+could put nothing to his lips.
+
+The one who ate the least was Pinocchio. He asked for some walnuts and a
+hunch of bread, and left everything on his plate. The poor boy's
+thoughts were continually fixed on the Field of Miracles.
+
+When they had supped, the Fox said to the host:
+
+"Give us two good rooms, one for Mr. Pinocchio, and the other for me and
+my companion. We will snatch a little sleep before we leave. Remember,
+however, that at midnight we wish to be called to continue our journey."
+
+"Yes, gentlemen," answered the host, and he winked at the Fox and the
+Cat, as much as to say: "I know what you are up to. We understand one
+another!"
+
+No sooner had Pinocchio got into bed than he fell asleep at once and
+began to dream. And he dreamed that he was in the middle of a field, and
+the field was full of shrubs covered with clusters of gold sovereigns,
+and as they swung in the wind they went zin, zin, zin, almost as if they
+would say: "Let who will, come and take us." But just as Pinocchio was
+stretching out his hand to pick handfuls of those beautiful gold pieces
+and to put them in his pocket, he was suddenly awakened by three violent
+blows on the door of his room.
+
+It was the host who had come to tell him that midnight had struck.
+
+"Are my companions ready?" asked the puppet.
+
+"Ready! Why, they left two hours ago."
+
+"Why were they in such a hurry?"
+
+"Because the Cat had received a message to say that her eldest kitten
+was ill with chilblains on his feet and was in danger of death."
+
+"Did they pay for the supper?"
+
+"What are you thinking of? They are too well educated to dream of
+offering such an insult to a gentleman like you."
+
+"What a pity! It is an insult that would have given me so much
+pleasure!" said Pinocchio, scratching his head. He then asked:
+
+"And where did my good friends say they would wait for me?"
+
+"At the Field of Miracles, tomorrow morning at daybreak."
+
+Pinocchio paid a sovereign for his supper and that of his companions,
+and then left.
+
+Outside the inn it was so pitch dark that he had almost to grope his
+way, for it was impossible to see a hand's breadth in front of him. Some
+night-birds flying across the road from one hedge to the other brushed
+Pinocchio's nose with their wings as they passed, which caused him so
+much terror that, springing back, he shouted: "Who goes there?" and the
+echo in the surrounding hills repeated in the distance: "Who goes there?
+Who goes there?"
+
+As he was walking along he saw a little insect shining dimly on the
+trunk of a tree, like a night-light in a lamp of transparent china.
+
+"Who are you?" asked Pinocchio.
+
+"I am the ghost of the Talking-Cricket," answered the insect in a low
+voice, so weak and faint that it seemed to come from the other world.
+
+"What do you want with me?" said the puppet.
+
+"I want to give you some advice. Go back and take the four sovereigns
+that you have left to your poor father, who is weeping and in despair
+because you have not returned to him."
+
+"By tomorrow my papa will be a gentleman, for these four sovereigns will
+have become two thousand."
+
+"Don't trust to those who promise to make you rich in a day. Usually
+they are either mad or rogues! Give ear to me, and go back, my boy."
+
+"On the contrary, I am determined to go on."
+
+"The hour is late!"
+
+"I am determined to go on."
+
+"The night is dark!"
+
+"I am determined to go on."
+
+"The road is dangerous!"
+
+"I am determined to go on."
+
+"Remember that boys who are bent on following their caprices, and will
+have their own way, sooner or later repent it."
+
+"Always the same stories. Good-night, Cricket."
+
+"Good-night, Pinocchio, and may Heaven preserve you from dangers and
+from assassins."
+
+No sooner had he said these words than the Talking-Cricket vanished
+suddenly like a light that has been blown out, and the road became
+darker than ever.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+PINOCCHIO FALLS AMONGST ASSASSINS
+
+
+"Really," said the puppet to himself, as he resumed his journey, "how
+unfortunate we poor boys are. Everybody scolds us and gives us good
+advice. See now; because I don't choose to listen to that tiresome
+Cricket, who knows, according to him, how many misfortunes are to happen
+to me! I am even to meet with assassins! That is, however, of little
+consequence, for I don't believe in assassins--I have never believed in
+them. For me, I think that assassins have been invented purposely by
+papas to frighten boys who want to go out at night. Besides, supposing I
+was to come across them here in the road, do you imagine they would
+frighten me? Not the least in the world. I should go to meet them and
+cry: 'Gentlemen assassins, what do you want with me? Remember that with
+me there is no joking. Therefore go about your business and be quiet!'
+At this speech they would run away like the wind. If, however, they were
+so badly educated as not to run away, why, then I would run away myself
+and there would be an end of it."
+
+But Pinocchio had not time to finish his reasoning, for at that moment
+he thought that he heard a slight rustle of leaves behind him.
+
+He turned to look and saw in the gloom two evil-looking black figures
+completely enveloped in charcoal sacks. They were running after him on
+tiptoe and making great leaps like two phantoms.
+
+"Here they are in reality!" he said to himself and, not knowing where to
+hide his gold pieces, he put them in his mouth precisely under his
+tongue.
+
+Then he tried to escape. But he had not gone a step when he felt himself
+seized by the arm and heard two horrid, sepulchral voices saying to him:
+
+"Your money or your life!"
+
+Pinocchio, not being able to answer in words, owing to the money that
+was in his mouth, made a thousand low bows and a thousand pantomimes. He
+tried thus to make the two muffled figures, whose eyes were only visible
+through the holes in their sacks, understand that he was a poor puppet,
+and that he had not as much as a counterfeit nickel in his pocket.
+
+"Come, now! Less nonsense and out with the money!" cried the two
+brigands threateningly.
+
+And the puppet made a gesture with his hands to signify: "I have none."
+
+"Deliver up your money or you are dead," said the tallest of the
+brigands.
+
+"Dead!" repeated the other.
+
+"And after we have killed you, we will also kill your father!"
+
+"Also your father!"
+
+"No, no, no, not my poor papa!" cried Pinocchio in a despairing voice,
+and as he said it the sovereigns clinked in his mouth.
+
+"Ah! you rascal! Then you have hidden your money under your tongue! Spit
+it out at once!"
+
+Pinocchio was obstinate.
+
+"Ah! you pretend to be deaf, do you? Wait a moment, leave it to us to
+find a means to make you give it up."
+
+And one of them seized the puppet by the end of his nose, and the other
+took him by the chin, and began to pull them brutally, the one up and
+the other down, to force him to open his mouth. But it was all to no
+purpose. Pinocchio's mouth seemed to be nailed and riveted together.
+
+Then the shorter assassin drew out an ugly knife and tried to put it
+between his lips like a lever or chisel. But Pinocchio, as quick as
+lightning, caught his hand with his teeth, and with one bite bit it
+clear off and spat it out. Imagine his astonishment when instead of a
+hand he perceived that a cat's paw lay on the ground.
+
+Encouraged by this first victory he used his nails to such purpose that
+he succeeded in liberating himself from his assailants, and, jumping the
+hedge by the roadside, he began to fly across the country. The assassins
+ran after him like two dogs chasing a hare, and the one who had lost a
+paw ran on one leg, and no one ever knew how he managed it.
+
+After a race of some miles Pinocchio could go no more. Giving himself
+up for lost, he climbed the trunk of a very high pine tree and seated
+himself in the topmost branches. The assassins attempted to climb after
+him, but when they had reached half-way up they slid down again and
+arrived on the ground with the skin grazed from their hands and knees.
+
+But they were not to be beaten by so little; collecting a quantity of
+dry wood, they piled it beneath the pine and set fire to it. In less
+time than it takes to tell, the pine began to burn and to flame like a
+candle blown by the wind. Pinocchio, seeing that the flames were
+mounting higher every instant, and not wishing to end his life like a
+roasted pigeon, made a stupendous leap from the top of the tree and
+started afresh across the fields and vineyards. The assassins followed
+him, and kept behind him without once giving up.
+
+The day began to break and they were still pursuing him. Suddenly
+Pinocchio found his way barred by a wide, deep ditch full of stagnant
+water the color of coffee. What was he to do? "One! two! three!" cried
+the puppet, and, making a rush, he sprang to the other side. The
+assassins also jumped, but not having measured the distance
+properly--splash! splash! they fell into the very middle of the ditch.
+Pinocchio, who heard the plunge and the splashing of the water, shouted
+out, laughing, and without stopping:
+
+"A fine bath to you, gentleman assassins."
+
+And he felt convinced that they were drowned, when, turning to look, he
+perceived that, on the contrary, they were both running after him, still
+enveloped in their sacks, with the water dripping from them as if they
+had been two hollow baskets.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+THE ASSASSINS HANG PINOCCHIO TO THE BIG OAK
+
+
+At this sight the puppet's courage failed him and he was on the point of
+throwing himself on the ground and giving himself over for lost.
+Turning, however, his eyes in every direction, he saw, at some distance,
+a small house as white as snow.
+
+"If only I had breath to reach that house," he said to himself, "perhaps
+I should be saved."
+
+And, without delaying an instant, he recommenced running for his life
+through the wood, and the assassins after him.
+
+At last, after a desperate race of nearly two hours, he arrived quite
+breathless at the door of the house, and knocked.
+
+No one answered.
+
+He knocked again with great violence, for he heard the sound of steps
+approaching him and the heavy panting of his persecutors. The same
+silence.
+
+Seeing that knocking was useless, he began in desperation to kick and
+pommel the door with all his might. The window then opened and a
+beautiful Child appeared at it. She had blue hair and a face as white as
+a waxen image; her eyes were closed and her hands were crossed on her
+breast. Without moving her lips in the least, she said, in a voice that
+seemed to come from the other world:
+
+"In this house there is no one. They are all dead."
+
+"Then at least open the door for me yourself," shouted Pinocchio, crying
+and imploring.
+
+"I am dead also."
+
+"Dead? Then what are you doing there at the window?"
+
+"I am waiting for the bier to come to carry me away."
+
+Having said this she immediately disappeared and the window was closed
+again without the slightest noise.
+
+"Oh! beautiful Child with blue hair," cried Pinocchio, "open the door,
+for pity's sake! Have compassion on a poor boy pursued by assas--"
+
+But he could not finish the word, for he felt himself seized by the
+collar and the same two horrible voices said to him threateningly:
+
+"You shall not escape from us again!"
+
+The puppet, seeing death staring him in the face, was taken with such a
+violent fit of trembling that the joints of his wooden legs began to
+creak, and the sovereigns hidden under his tongue to clink.
+
+"Now, then," demanded the assassins, "will you open your mouth--yes or
+no? Ah! no answer? Leave it to us: this time we will force you to open
+it!"
+
+And, drawing out two long, horrid knives as sharp as razors,
+clash!--they attempted to stab him twice.
+
+But the puppet, luckily for him, was made of very hard wood; the knives
+therefore broke into a thousand pieces and the assassins were left with
+the handles in their hands, staring at each other.
+
+"I see what we must do," said one of them. "He must be hung! let us hang
+him!"
+
+"Let us hang him!" repeated the other.
+
+Without loss of time they tied his arms behind him, passed a running
+noose round his throat, and hung him to the branch of a tree called the
+Big Oak.
+
+They then sat down on the grass and waited for his last struggle. But at
+the end of three hours the puppet's eyes were still open, his mouth
+closed, and he was kicking more than ever.
+
+Losing patience, they turned to Pinocchio and said in a bantering tone:
+
+"Good-bye till tomorrow. Let us hope that when we return you will be
+polite enough to allow yourself to be found quite dead, and with your
+mouth wide open."
+
+And they walked off.
+
+In the meantime a tempestuous northerly wind began to blow and roar
+angrily, and it beat the poor puppet from side to side, making him swing
+violently, like the clatter of a bell ringing for a wedding. And the
+swinging gave him atrocious spasms, and the running noose, becoming
+still tighter round his throat, took away his breath.
+
+Little by little his eyes began to grow dim, but although he felt that
+death was near he still continued to hope that some charitable person
+would come to his assistance before it was too late. But when, after
+waiting and waiting, he found that no one came, absolutely no one, then
+he remembered his poor father, and, thinking he was dying, he stammered
+out:
+
+"Oh, papa! papa! if only you were here!"
+
+[Illustration: Four Rabbits as Black as Ink Entered Carrying a Little
+Bier]
+
+His breath failed him and he could say no more. He shut his eyes, opened
+his mouth, stretched his legs, gave a long shudder, and hung stiff and
+insensible.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+THE BEAUTIFUL CHILD RESCUES THE PUPPET
+
+
+While poor Pinocchio, suspended to a branch of the Big Oak, was
+apparently more dead than alive, the beautiful Child with blue hair came
+again to the window. When she saw the unhappy puppet hanging by his
+throat, and dancing up and down in the gusts of the north wind, she was
+moved by compassion. Striking her hands together, she gave three little
+claps.
+
+At this signal there came a sound of the sweep of wings flying rapidly
+and a large Falcon flew on to the window-sill.
+
+"What are your orders, gracious Fairy?" he asked, inclining his beak in
+sign of reverence.
+
+"Do you see that puppet dangling from a branch of the Big Oak?"
+
+"I see him."
+
+"Very well. Fly there at once: with your strong beak break the knot that
+keeps him suspended in the air, and lay him gently on the grass at the
+foot of the tree."
+
+The Falcon flew away and after two minutes he returned, saying:
+
+"I have done as you commanded."
+
+"And how did you find him?"
+
+"To see him he appeared dead, but he cannot really be quite dead, for I
+had no sooner loosened the running noose that tightened his throat than,
+giving a sigh, he muttered in a faint voice: 'Now I feel better!'"
+
+The Fairy then struck her hands together twice and a magnificent Poodle
+appeared, walking upright on his hind legs exactly as if he had been a
+man.
+
+He was in the full-dress livery of a coachman. On his head he had a
+three-cornered cap braided with gold, his curly white wig came down on
+to his shoulders, he had a chocolate-colored waistcoat with diamond
+buttons, and two large pockets to contain the bones that his mistress
+gave him at dinner. He had, besides, a pair of short crimson velvet
+breeches, silk stockings, cut-down shoes, and hanging behind him a
+species of umbrella case made of blue satin, to put his tail into when
+the weather was rainy.
+
+"Be quick, Medoro, like a good dog!" said the Fairy to the Poodle. "Have
+the most beautiful carriage in my coach-house harnessed, and take the
+road to the wood. When you come to the Big Oak you will find a poor
+puppet stretched on the grass half dead. Pick him up gently and lay him
+flat on the cushions of the carriage and bring him here to me. Do you
+understand?"
+
+The Poodle, to show that he had understood, shook the case of blue
+satin three or four times and ran off like a race-horse.
+
+Shortly afterwards a beautiful little carriage came out of the
+coach-house. The cushions were stuffed with canary feathers and it was
+lined on the inside with whipped cream, custard and vanilla wafers. The
+little carriage was drawn by a hundred pairs of white mice, and the
+Poodle, seated on the coach-box, cracked his whip from side to side like
+a driver when he is afraid that he is behind time.
+
+Scarcely had a quarter of an hour passed, when the carriage returned.
+The Fairy, who was waiting at the door of the house, took the poor
+puppet in her arms and carried him into a little room that was
+wainscoted with mother-of-pearl. She sent at once to summon the most
+famous doctors in the neighborhood.
+
+They came immediately, one after the other: namely, a Crow, an Owl, and
+a Talking-Cricket.
+
+"I wish to know from you, gentlemen," said the Fairy, "if this
+unfortunate puppet is alive or dead!"
+
+At this request the Crow, advancing first, felt Pinocchio's pulse; he
+then felt his nose and then the little toe of his foot: and, having done
+this carefully, he pronounced solemnly the following words:
+
+"To my belief the puppet is already quite dead; but, if unfortunately he
+should not be dead, then it would be a sign that he is still alive!"
+
+"I regret," said the Owl, "to be obliged to contradict the Crow, my
+illustrious friend and colleague; but, in my opinion the puppet is still
+alive; but, if unfortunately he should not be alive, then it would be a
+sign that he is dead indeed!"
+
+"And you--have you nothing to say?" asked the Fairy of the
+Talking-Cricket.
+
+"In my opinion, the wisest thing a prudent doctor can do, when he does
+not know what he is talking about, is to be silent. For the rest, that
+puppet there has a face that is not new to me. I have known him for some
+time!"
+
+Pinocchio, who up to that moment had lain immovable, like a real piece
+of wood, was seized with a fit of convulsive trembling that shook the
+whole bed.
+
+"That puppet there," continued the Talking-Cricket, "is a confirmed
+rogue."
+
+Pinocchio opened his eyes, but shut them again immediately.
+
+"He is a ragamuffin, a do-nothing, a vagabond."
+
+Pinocchio hid his face beneath the clothes.
+
+"That puppet there is a disobedient son who will make his poor father
+die of a broken heart!"
+
+At that instant a suffocated sound of sobs and crying was heard in the
+room. Imagine everybody's astonishment when, having raised the sheets a
+little, it was discovered that the sounds came from Pinocchio.
+
+"When a dead person cries, it is a sign that he is on the road to get
+well," said the Crow solemnly.
+
+"I grieve to contradict my illustrious friend and colleague," added the
+Owl; "but for me, when the dead person cries, it is a sign that he is
+sorry to die."
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+PINOCCHIO WILL NOT TAKE HIS MEDICINE
+
+
+As soon as the three doctors had left the room the Fairy approached
+Pinocchio and, having touched his forehead, she perceived that he was in
+a high fever.
+
+She therefore dissolved a certain white powder in half a tumbler of
+water and, offering it to the puppet, she said to him lovingly:
+
+"Drink it and in a few days you will be cured."
+
+Pinocchio looked at the tumbler, made a wry face, and then asked in a
+plaintive voice:
+
+"Is it sweet or bitter?"
+
+"It is bitter, but it will do you good."
+
+"If it is bitter, I will not take it."
+
+"Listen to me: drink it."
+
+"I don't like anything bitter."
+
+"Drink it, and when you have drunk it I will give you a lump of sugar to
+take away the taste."
+
+"Where is the lump of sugar?"
+
+"Here it is," said the Fairy, taking a piece from a gold sugar-basin.
+
+"Give me first the lump of sugar and then I will drink that bad bitter
+water."
+
+"Do you promise me?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+The Fairy gave him the sugar and Pinocchio, having crunched it up and
+swallowed it in a second, said, licking his lips:
+
+"It would be a fine thing if sugar were medicine! I would take it every
+day."
+
+"Now keep your promise and drink these few drops of water, which will
+restore you to health."
+
+Pinocchio took the tumbler unwillingly in his hand and put the point of
+his nose to it: he then approached it to his lips: he then again put his
+nose to it, and at last said:
+
+"It is too bitter! too bitter! I cannot drink it."
+
+"How can you tell that, when you have not even tasted it?"
+
+"I can imagine it! I know it from the smell. I want first another lump
+of sugar and then I will drink it!"
+
+The Fairy then, with all the patience of a good mamma, put another lump
+of sugar in his mouth, and again presented the tumbler to him.
+
+"I cannot drink it so!" said the puppet, making a thousand grimaces.
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because that pillow that is down there on my feet bothers me."
+
+The Fairy removed the pillow.
+
+"It is useless. Even so I cannot drink it."
+
+"What is the matter now?"
+
+"The door of the room, which is half open, bothers me."
+
+The Fairy went and closed the door.
+
+"In short," cried Pinocchio, bursting into tears, "I will not drink that
+bitter water--no, no, no!"
+
+"My boy, you will repent it."
+
+"I don't care."
+
+"Your illness is serious."
+
+"I don't care."
+
+"The fever in a few hours will carry you into the other world."
+
+"I don't care."
+
+"Are you not afraid of death?"
+
+"I am not in the least afraid! I would rather die than drink that bitter
+medicine."
+
+At that moment the door of the room flew open and four rabbits as black
+as ink entered carrying on their shoulders a little bier.
+
+"What do you want with me?" cried Pinocchio, sitting up in bed in a
+great fright.
+
+"We have come to take you," said the biggest rabbit.
+
+"To take me? But I am not yet dead!"
+
+"No, not yet? but you have only a few minutes to live, as you have
+refused the medicine that would have cured you of the fever."
+
+"Oh, Fairy, Fairy!" the puppet then began to scream, "give me the
+tumbler at once; be quick, for pity's sake, for I will not die--no, I
+will not die."
+
+And, taking the tumbler in both hands, he emptied it at a gulp.
+
+"We must have patience!" said the rabbits; "this time we have made our
+journey in vain." And, taking the little bier again on their shoulders,
+they left the room, grumbling and murmuring between their teeth.
+
+In fact, a few minutes afterwards, Pinocchio jumped down from the bed
+quite well, because wooden puppets have the privilege of being seldom
+ill and of being cured very quickly.
+
+The Fairy, seeing him running and rushing about the room as gay and as
+lively as a young cock, said to him:
+
+"Then my medicine has really done you good?"
+
+"Good? I should think so! It has restored me to life!"
+
+"Then why on earth did you require so much persuasion to take it?"
+
+"Because you see that we boys are all like that! We are more afraid of
+medicine than of the illness."
+
+"Disgraceful! Boys ought to know that a good remedy taken in time may
+save them from a serious illness, and perhaps even from death."
+
+"Oh! but another time I shall not require so much persuasion. I shall
+remember those black rabbits with the bier on their shoulders and then I
+shall immediately take the tumbler in my hand, and down it will go!"
+
+"Now, come here to me and tell me how it came about that you fell into
+the hands of those assassins."
+
+"You see, the showman, Fire-Eater, gave me some gold pieces and said to
+me: 'Go, and take them to your father!' and instead I met on the road a
+Fox and a Cat, who said to me: 'Would you like those pieces of gold to
+become a thousand or two? Come with us and we will take you to the Field
+of Miracles,' and I said: 'Let us go.' And they said: 'Let us stop at
+the inn of The Red Craw-Fish,' and after midnight they left. And when I
+awoke I found that they were no longer there, because they had gone
+away. Then I began to travel by night, for you cannot imagine how dark
+it was; and on that account I met on the road two assassins in charcoal
+sacks who said to me: 'Out with your money,' and I said to them: 'I have
+got none,' because I had hidden the four gold pieces in my mouth, and
+one of the assassins tried to put his hand in my mouth, and I bit his
+hand off and spat it out, but instead of a hand it was a cat's paw. And
+the assassins ran after me, and I ran, and ran, until at last they
+caught me and tied me by the neck to a tree in this wood, and said to
+me: 'Tomorrow we shall return here and then you will be dead with your
+mouth open and we shall be able to carry off the pieces of gold that you
+have hidden under your tongue."
+
+"And the four pieces--where have you put them?" asked the Fairy.
+
+"I have lost them!" said Pinocchio, but he was telling a lie, for he had
+them in his pocket.
+
+He had scarcely told the lie when his nose, which was already long, grew
+at once two inches longer.
+
+"And where did you lose them?"
+
+"In the wood near here."
+
+At this second lie his nose went on growing.
+
+"If you have lost them in the wood near here," said the Fairy, "we will
+look for them and we shall find them: because everything that is lost in
+that wood is always found."
+
+"Ah! now I remember all about it," replied the puppet, getting quite
+confused; "I didn't lose the four gold pieces, I swallowed them whilst I
+was drinking your medicine."
+
+At this lie his nose grew to such an extraordinary length that poor
+Pinocchio could not move in any direction. If he turned to one side he
+struck his nose against the bed or the window-panes, if he turned to the
+other he struck it against the walls or the door, if he raised his head
+a little he ran the risk of sticking it into one of the Fairy's eyes.
+
+And the Fairy looked at him and laughed.
+
+"What are you laughing at?" asked the puppet, very confused and anxious
+at finding his nose growing so prodigiously.
+
+"I am laughing at the lie you have told."
+
+"And how can you possibly know that I have told a lie?"
+
+"Lies, my dear boy, are found out immediately, because they are of two
+sorts. There are lies that have short legs, and lies that have long
+noses. Your lie, as it happens, is one of those that have a long nose."
+
+Pinocchio, not knowing where to hide himself for shame, tried to run out
+of the room; but he did not succeed, for his nose had increased so much
+that it could no longer pass through the door.
+
+[Illustration: SPLASH! SPLASH! THEY FELL INTO THE VERY MIDDLE OF THE
+DITCH]
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+PINOCCHIO AGAIN MEETS THE FOX AND THE CAT
+
+
+The Fairy allowed the puppet to cry for a good half-hour over his nose,
+which could no longer pass through the door of the room. This she did to
+give him a severe lesson, and to correct him of the disgraceful fault of
+telling lies--the most disgraceful fault that a boy can have. But when
+she saw him quite disfigured and his eyes swollen out of his head from
+weeping, she felt full of compassion for him. She therefore beat her
+hands together and at that signal a thousand large birds called
+Woodpeckers flew in at the window. They immediately perched on
+Pinocchio's nose and began to peck at it with such zeal that in a few
+minutes his enormous and ridiculous nose was reduced to its usual
+dimensions.
+
+"What a good Fairy you are," said the puppet, drying his eyes, "and how
+much I love you!"
+
+"I love you also," answered the Fairy; "and if you will remain with me
+you shall be my little brother and I will be your good little sister."
+
+"I would remain willingly if it were not for my poor papa."
+
+"I have thought of everything. I have already let your father know, and
+he will be here tonight."
+
+"Really?" shouted Pinocchio, jumping for joy. "Then, little Fairy, if
+you consent, I should like to go and meet him. I am so anxious to give a
+kiss to that poor old man, who has suffered so much on my account, that
+I am counting the minutes."
+
+"Go, then, but be careful not to lose yourself. Take the road through
+the wood and I am sure that you will meet him."
+
+Pinocchio set out, and as soon as he was in the wood he began to run
+like a kid. But when he had reached a certain spot, almost in front of
+the Big Oak, he stopped, because he thought he heard people amongst the
+bushes. In fact, two persons came out on to the road. Can you guess who
+they were? His two traveling companions, the Fox and the Cat, with whom
+he had supped at the inn of The Red Craw-Fish.
+
+"Why, here is our dear Pinocchio!" cried the Fox, kissing and embracing
+him. "How came you to be here?"
+
+"How come you to be here?" repeated the Cat.
+
+"It is a long story," answered the puppet, "which I will tell you when I
+have time. But do you know that the other night, when you left me alone
+at the inn, I met with assassins on the road?"
+
+"Assassins! Oh, poor Pinocchio! And what did they want?"
+
+"They wanted to rob me of my gold pieces."
+
+"Villains!" said the Fox.
+
+"Infamous villains!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"But I ran away from them," continued the puppet, "and they followed me,
+and at last they overtook me and hung me to a branch of that oak tree."
+
+And Pinocchio pointed to the Big Oak, which was two steps from them.
+
+"Is it possible to hear of anything more dreadful?" said the Fox. "In
+what a world we are condemned to live! Where can respectable people like
+us find a safe refuge?"
+
+Whilst they were thus talking Pinocchio observed that the Cat was lame
+of her front right leg, for in fact she had lost her paw with all its
+claws. He therefore asked her:
+
+"What have you done with your paw?"
+
+The Cat tried to answer, but became confused. Therefore the Fox said
+immediately:
+
+"My friend is too modest, and that is why she doesn't speak. I will
+answer for her. I must tell you that an hour ago we met an old wolf on
+the road, almost fainting from want of food, who asked alms of us. Not
+having so much as a fish-bone to give him, what did my friend, who has
+really the heart of a Cæsar, do? She bit off one of her fore paws and
+threw it to that poor beast that he might appease his hunger."
+
+And the Fox, in relating this, dried a tear.
+
+Pinocchio was also touched and, approaching the Cat, he whispered into
+her ear:
+
+"If all cats resembled you, how fortunate the mice would be!"
+
+"And now, what are you doing here?" asked the Fox of the puppet.
+
+"I am waiting for my papa, whom I expect to arrive every moment."
+
+"And your gold pieces?"
+
+"I have got them in my pocket, all but one that I spent at the inn of
+The Red Craw-Fish."
+
+"And to think that, instead of four pieces, by tomorrow they might
+become one or two thousand! Why do you not listen to my advice? Why will
+you not go and bury them in the Field of Miracles?"
+
+"Today it is impossible; I will go another day."
+
+"Another day it will be too late!" said the Fox.
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because the field has been bought by a gentleman and after tomorrow no
+one will be allowed to bury money there."
+
+"How far off is the Field of Miracles?"
+
+"Not two miles. Will you come with us? In half an hour you will be
+there. You can bury your money at once, and in a few minutes you will
+collect two thousand, and this evening you will return with your pockets
+full. Will you come with us?"
+
+Pinocchio thought of the good Fairy, old Geppetto, and the warnings of
+the Talking-Cricket, and he hesitated a little before answering. He
+ended, however, by doing as all boys do who have not a grain of sense
+and who have no heart--he ended by giving his head a little shake and
+saying to the Fox and the Cat:
+
+"Let us go: I will come with you."
+
+And they went.
+
+After having walked half the day they reached a town that was called
+"Trap for Blockheads." As soon as Pinocchio entered this town he saw
+that the streets were crowded with dogs who were yawning from hunger,
+shorn sheep trembling with cold, cocks without combs begging for a grain
+of Indian corn, large butterflies that could no longer fly because they
+had sold their beautiful colored wings, peacocks which had no tails and
+were ashamed to be seen, and pheasants that went scratching about in a
+subdued fashion, mourning for their brilliant gold and silver feathers
+gone forever.
+
+In the midst of this crowd of beggars and shamefaced creatures some
+lordly carriage passed from time to time containing a Fox, or a thieving
+Magpie, or some other ravenous bird of prey.
+
+"And where is the Field of Miracles?" asked Pinocchio.
+
+"It is here, not two steps from us."
+
+They crossed the town and, having gone beyond the walls, they came to a
+solitary field.
+
+"Here we are," said the Fox to the puppet. "Now stoop down and dig with
+your hands a little hole in the ground and put your gold pieces into
+it."
+
+Pinocchio obeyed. He dug a hole, put into it the four gold pieces that
+he had left, and then filled up the hole with a little earth.
+
+"Now, then," said the Fox, "go to that canal close to us, fetch a can of
+water, and water the ground where you have sowed them."
+
+Pinocchio went to the canal, and, as he had no can, he took off one of
+his old shoes and filling it with water he watered the ground over the
+hole.
+
+He then asked:
+
+"Is there anything else to be done?"
+
+"Nothing else," answered the Fox. "We can now go away. You can return in
+about twenty minutes and you will find a shrub already pushing through
+the ground, with its branches quite loaded with money."
+
+The poor puppet, beside himself with joy, thanked the Fox and the Cat a
+thousand times, and promised them a beautiful present.
+
+"We wish for no presents," answered the two rascals. "It is enough for
+us to have taught you the way to enrich yourself without undergoing hard
+work, and we are as happy as people out for a holiday."
+
+Thus saying, they took leave of Pinocchio, and, wishing him a good
+harvest, went about their business.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+PINOCCHIO IS ROBBED OF HIS MONEY
+
+
+The puppet returned to the town and began to count the minutes one by
+one, and when he thought that it must be time he took the road leading
+to the Field of Miracles.
+
+And as he walked along with hurried steps his heart beat fast--tic, tac,
+tic, tac--like a drawing-room clock when it is really going well.
+Meanwhile he was thinking to himself:
+
+"And if, instead of a thousand gold pieces, I were to find on the
+branches of the tree two thousand? And instead of two thousand,
+supposing I found five thousand? and instead of five thousand, that I
+found a hundred thousand? Oh! what a fine gentleman I should then
+become! I would have a beautiful palace, a thousand little wooden horses
+and a thousand stables to amuse myself with, a cellar full of currant
+wine and sweet syrups, and a library quite full of candies, tarts,
+plum-cakes, macaroons, and biscuits with cream."
+
+Whilst he was building these castles in the air he had arrived in the
+neighborhood of the field, and he stopped to look about for a tree with
+its branches laden with money, but he saw nothing. He advanced another
+hundred steps--nothing; he entered the field and went right up to the
+little hole where he had buried his sovereigns--and nothing. He then
+became very thoughtful and, forgetting the rules of society and good
+manners, he took his hands out of his pocket and gave his head a long
+scratch.
+
+At that moment he heard an explosion of laughter close to him and,
+looking up, he saw a large Parrot perched on a tree, who was pruning the
+few feathers he had left.
+
+"Why are you laughing?" asked Pinocchio in an angry voice.
+
+"I am laughing because in pruning my feathers I tickled myself under my
+wings."
+
+The puppet did not answer, but went to the canal and, filling the same
+old shoe full of water, he proceeded to water the earth afresh that
+covered his gold pieces.
+
+While he was thus occupied another laugh, still more impertinent than
+the first, rang out in the silence of that solitary place.
+
+"Once for all," shouted Pinocchio in a rage, "may I know, you
+ill-educated Parrot, what you are laughing at?"
+
+"I am laughing at those simpletons who believe in all the foolish things
+that are told them, and who allow themselves to be entrapped by those
+who are more cunning than they are."
+
+"Are you perhaps speaking of me?"
+
+"Yes, I am speaking of you, poor Pinocchio--of you who are simple
+enough to believe that money can be sown and gathered in fields in the
+same way as beans and gourds. I also believed it once and today I am
+suffering for it. Today--but it is too late--I have at last learned that
+to put a few pennies honestly together it is necessary to know how to
+earn them, either by the work of our own hands or by the cleverness of
+our own brains."
+
+"I don't understand you," said the puppet, who was already trembling
+with fear.
+
+"Have patience! I will explain myself better," rejoined the Parrot. "You
+must know, then, that while you were in the town the Fox and the Cat
+returned to the field; they took the buried money and then fled like the
+wind. And now he that catches them will be clever."
+
+Pinocchio remained with his mouth open and, not choosing to believe the
+Parrot's words, he began with his hands and nails to dig up the earth
+that he had watered. And he dug, and dug, and dug, and made such a deep
+hole that a rick of straw might have stood upright in it, but the money
+was no longer there.
+
+He rushed back to the town in a state of desperation and went at once to
+the Courts of Justice to denounce the two knaves who had robbed him to
+the judge.
+
+The judge was a big ape of the gorilla tribe, an old ape respectable for
+his age, his white beard, but especially for his gold spectacles without
+glasses that he was always obliged to wear, on account of an
+inflammation of the eyes that had tormented him for many years.
+
+Pinocchio related in the presence of the judge all the particulars of
+the infamous fraud of which he had been the victim. He gave the names,
+the surnames, and other details, of the two rascals, and ended by
+demanding justice.
+
+The judge listened with great benignity; took a lively interest in the
+story; was much touched and moved; and when the puppet had nothing
+further to say he stretched out his hand and rang a bell.
+
+At this summons two mastiffs immediately appeared dressed as gendarmes.
+The judge then, pointing to Pinocchio, said to them:
+
+"That poor devil has been robbed of four gold pieces; take him away and
+put him immediately into prison."
+
+The puppet was petrified on hearing this unexpected sentence and tried
+to protest; but the gendarmes, to avoid losing time, stopped his mouth
+and carried him off to the lockup.
+
+And there he remained for four months--four long months--and he would
+have remained longer still if a fortunate chance had not released him.
+The young Emperor who reigned over the town of "Trap for Blockheads,"
+having won a splendid victory over his enemies, ordered great public
+rejoicings. There were illuminations, fireworks, horse races and
+velocipede races, and as a further sign of triumph he commanded that the
+prisons should be opened and all the prisoners freed.
+
+"If the others are to be let out of prison, I will go also," said
+Pinocchio to the jailor.
+
+"No, not you," said the jailor, "because you do not belong to the
+fortunate class."
+
+"I beg your pardon," replied Pinocchio, "I am also a criminal."
+
+"In that case you are perfectly right," said the jailor, and, taking off
+his hat and bowing to him respectfully, he opened the prison doors and
+let him escape.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+PINOCCHIO STARTS BACK TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE
+
+
+You can imagine Pinocchio's joy when he found himself free. Without
+stopping to take breath he immediately left the town and took the road
+that led to the Fairy's house.
+
+On account of the rainy weather the road had become a marsh into which
+he sank knee-deep. But the puppet would not give in. Tormented by the
+desire of seeing his father and his little sister with blue hair again,
+he ran on like a greyhound, and as he ran he was splashed with mud from
+head to foot. And he said to himself as he went along: "How many
+misfortunes have happened to me. But I deserved them, for I am an
+obstinate, passionate puppet. I am always bent upon having my own way,
+without listening to those who wish me well, and who have a thousand
+times more sense than I have! But from this time forth I am determined
+to change and to become orderly and obedient. For at last I have seen
+that disobedient boys come to no good and gain nothing. And has my papa
+waited for me? Shall I find him at the Fairy's house? Poor man, it is so
+long since I last saw him: I am dying to embrace him and to cover him
+with kisses! And will the Fairy forgive me my bad conduct to her? To
+think of all the kindness and loving care I received from her, to think
+that if I am now alive I owe it to her! Would it be possible to find a
+more ungrateful boy, or one with less heart than I have?"
+
+Whilst he was saying this he stopped suddenly, frightened to death, and
+made four steps backwards.
+
+What had he seen?
+
+He had seen an immense Serpent stretched across the road. Its skin was
+green, it had red eyes, and a pointed tail that was smoking like a
+chimney.
+
+It would be impossible to imagine the puppet's terror. He walked away to
+a safe distance and, sitting down on a heap of stones, waited until the
+Serpent should have gone about its business and left the road clear.
+
+He waited an hour; two hours; three hours; but the Serpent was always
+there, and even from a distance he could see the red light of his fiery
+eyes and the column of smoke that ascended from the end of his tail.
+
+At last Pinocchio, trying to feel courageous, approached to within a few
+steps, and said to the Serpent in a little soft, insinuating voice:
+
+"Excuse me. Sir Serpent, but would you be so good as to move a little to
+one side--just enough to allow me to pass?"
+
+He might as well have spoken to the wall. Nobody moved.
+
+He began again in the same soft voice:
+
+"You must know. Sir Serpent, that I am on my way home, where my father
+is waiting for me, and it is such a long time since I saw him last! Will
+you, therefore, allow me to continue my road?"
+
+He waited for a sign in answer to this request, but there was none; in
+fact, the Serpent, who up to that moment had been sprightly and full of
+life, became motionless and almost rigid. He shut his eyes and his tail
+ceased smoking.
+
+"Can he really be dead?" said Pinocchio, rubbing his hands with delight.
+He determined to jump over him and reach the other side of the road.
+But, just as he was going to leap, the Serpent raised himself suddenly
+on end, like a spring set in motion; and the puppet, drawing back, in
+his terror caught his feet and fell to the ground.
+
+And he fell so awkwardly that his head stuck in the mud and his legs
+went into the air.
+
+At the sight of the puppet kicking violently with his head in the mud,
+the Serpent went into convulsions of laughter, and laughed, and laughed,
+until he broke a blood-vessel in his chest and died. And that time he
+was really dead.
+
+Pinocchio then set off running, in hopes that he should reach the
+Fairy's house before dark. But before long he began to suffer so
+dreadfully from hunger that he could not bear it, and he jumped into a
+field by the wayside, intending to pick some bunches of Muscatel grapes.
+Oh, that he had never done it!
+
+He had scarcely reached the vines when crack--his legs were caught
+between two cutting iron bars and he became so giddy with pain that
+stars of every color danced before his eyes.
+
+The poor puppet had been taken in a trap put there to capture some big
+polecats which were the scourge of the poultry-yards in the
+neighborhood.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+PINOCCHIO ACTS AS WATCH-DOG
+
+
+Pinocchio began to cry and scream, but his tears and groans were
+useless, for there was not a house to be seen, and not a living soul
+passed down the road.
+
+At last night came on.
+
+Partly from the pain of the trap, that cut his legs, and a little from
+fear at finding himself alone in the dark in the midst of the fields,
+the puppet was on the point of fainting. Just at that moment he saw a
+Firefly flitting over his head. He called to it and said:
+
+"Oh, little Firefly, will you have pity on me and liberate me from this
+torture?"
+
+"Poor boy!" said the Firefly, stopping and looking at him with
+compassion; "but how could your legs have been caught by those sharp
+irons?"
+
+"I came into the field to pick two bunches of these Muscatel grapes,
+and--"
+
+"But were the grapes yours?"
+
+"No."
+
+"Then who taught you to carry off other people's property?"
+
+"I was so hungry."
+
+"Hunger, my boy, is not a good reason for appropriating what does not
+belong to us."
+
+"That is true, that is true!" said Pinocchio, crying. "I will never do
+it again."
+
+At this moment their conversation was interrupted by a slight sound of
+approaching footsteps. It was the owner of the field coming on tiptoe to
+see if one of the polecats that ate his chickens during the night had
+been caught in his trap.
+
+His astonishment was great when, having brought out his lantern from
+under his coat, he perceived that instead of a polecat a boy had been
+taken.
+
+"Ah, little thief," said the angry peasant, "then it is you who carries
+off my chickens?"
+
+"No, it is not I; indeed it is not!" cried Pinocchio, sobbing. "I only
+came into the field to take two bunches of grapes!"
+
+"He who steals grapes is quite capable of stealing chickens. Leave it to
+me, I will give you a lesson that you will not forget in a hurry."
+
+Opening the trap, he seized the puppet by the collar and carried him to
+his house as if he had been a young lamb.
+
+When he reached the yard in front of the house he threw him roughly on
+the ground and, putting his foot on his neck, he said to him:
+
+"It is late and I want to go to bed; we will settle our accounts
+tomorrow. In the meanwhile, as the dog who kept guard at night died
+today, you shall take his place at once. You shall be my watch-dog."
+
+And, taking a great collar covered with brass knobs, he strapped it so
+tightly round his throat that he was not able to draw his head out of
+it. A heavy chain attached to the collar was fastened to the wall.
+
+"If it should rain tonight," he then said to him, "you can go and lie
+down in the kennel; the straw that has served as a bed for my poor dog
+for the last four years is still there. If unfortunately robbers should
+come, remember to keep your ears pricked and to bark."
+
+After giving him this last injunction the man went into the house, shut
+the door, and put up the chain.
+
+Poor Pinocchio remained lying on the ground more dead than alive from
+the effects of cold, hunger and fear. From time to time he put his hands
+angrily to the collar that tightened his throat and said, crying:
+
+"It serves me right! Decidedly, it serves me right! I was determined to
+be a vagabond and a good-for-nothing. I would listen to bad companions,
+and that is why I always meet with misfortunes. If I had been a good
+little boy, as so many are; if I had remained at home with my poor papa,
+I should not now be in the midst of the fields and obliged to be the
+watch-dog to a peasant's house. Oh, if I could be born again! But now it
+is too late and I must have patience!"
+
+Relieved by this little outburst, which came straight from his heart, he
+went into the dog-kennel and fell asleep.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+PINOCCHIO DISCOVERS THE ROBBERS
+
+
+He had been sleeping heavily for about two hours when, towards midnight, he
+was aroused by a whispering of strange voices that seemed to come from the
+courtyard. Putting the point of his nose out of the kennel, he saw four
+little beasts with dark fur, that looked like cats, standing consulting
+together. But they were not cats; they were polecats--carnivorous little
+animals, especially greedy for eggs and young chickens. One of the
+polecats, leaving his companions, came to the opening of the kennel and
+said in a low voice:
+
+"Good evening, Melampo."
+
+"My name is not Melampo," answered the puppet.
+
+"Oh! then who are you?"
+
+"I am Pinocchio."
+
+"And what are you doing here?"
+
+"I am acting as watch-dog."
+
+"Then where is Melampo? Where is the old dog who lived in this kennel?"
+
+"He died this morning."
+
+"Is he dead? Poor beast! He was so good. But, judging you by your face,
+I should say that you were also a good dog."
+
+"I beg your pardon, I am not a dog."
+
+"Not a dog? Then what are you?"
+
+"I am a puppet."
+
+"And you are acting as watch-dog?"
+
+"That is only too true--as a punishment."
+
+"Well, then, I will offer you the same conditions that we made with the
+deceased Melampo, and I am sure you will be satisfied with them."
+
+"What are these conditions?"
+
+"One night in every week you are to permit us to visit this poultry-yard
+as we have hitherto done, and to carry off eight chickens. Of these
+chickens seven are to be eaten by us, and one we will give to you, on
+the express understanding, however, that you pretend to be asleep, and
+that it never enters your head to bark and to waken the peasant."
+
+"Did Melampo act in this manner?" asked Pinocchio.
+
+"Certainly, and we were always on the best terms with him. Sleep
+quietly, and rest assured that before we go we will leave by the kennel
+a beautiful chicken ready plucked for your breakfast tomorrow. Have we
+understood each other clearly?"
+
+"Only too clearly!" answered Pinocchio, and he shook his head
+threateningly, as much as to say: "You shall hear of this shortly!"
+
+The four polecats, thinking themselves safe, repaired to the
+poultry-yard, which was close to the kennel, and, having opened the
+wooden gate with their teeth and claws, they slipped in one by one. But
+they had only just passed through when they heard the gate shut behind
+them with great violence.
+
+It was Pinocchio who had shut it, and for greater security he put a
+large stone against it to keep it closed.
+
+He then began to bark, and he barked exactly like a watch-dog: "Bow-wow,
+bow-wow."
+
+Hearing the barking, the peasant jumped out of bed and, taking his gun,
+he came to the window and asked:
+
+"What is the matter?"
+
+"There are robbers!" answered Pinocchio.
+
+"Where are they?"
+
+"In the poultry-yard."
+
+"I will come down directly."
+
+In fact, in less time than it takes to say "Amen!" the peasant came
+down. He rushed into the poultry-yard, caught the polecats, and, having
+put them into a sack, he said to them in a tone of great satisfaction:
+
+"At last you have fallen into my hands! I might punish you, but I am not
+so cruel. I will content myself instead by carrying you in the morning
+to the innkeeper of the neighboring village, who will skin and cook you
+as hares with a sweet and sour sauce. It is an honor that you don't
+deserve, but generous people like me don't consider such trifles!"
+
+He then approached Pinocchio and began to caress him, and amongst other
+things he asked him:
+
+"How did you manage to discover the four thieves? To think that Melampo,
+my faithful Melampo, never found out anything!"
+
+The puppet might then have told him the whole story; he might have
+informed him of the disgraceful conditions that had been made between
+the dog and the polecats; but he remembered that the dog was dead and he
+thought to himself:
+
+"What is the good of accusing the dead? The dead are dead, and the best
+thing to be done is to leave them in peace!"
+
+"When the thieves got into the yard, were you asleep or awake?" the
+peasant went on to ask him.
+
+"I was asleep," answered Pinocchio, "but the polecats woke me with their
+chatter and one of them came to the kennel and said to me: 'If you
+promise not to bark, and not to wake the master, we will make you a
+present of a fine chicken ready plucked!' To think that they should have
+had the audacity to make such a proposal to me! For, although I am a
+puppet, possessing perhaps nearly all the faults in the world, there is
+one that I certainly will never be guilty of, that of making terms with,
+and sharing the gains of, dishonest people!"
+
+"Well said, my boy!" cried the peasant, slapping him on the shoulder.
+"Such sentiments do you honor; and as a proof of my gratitude I will at
+once set you at liberty, and you may return home."
+
+And he removed the dog-collar.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+PINOCCHIO FLIES TO THE SEASHORE
+
+
+As soon as Pinocchio was released from the heavy and humiliating weight
+of the dog-collar he started off across the fields and never stopped
+until he had reached the high road that led to the Fairy's house. He
+could see amongst the trees the top of the Big Oak to which he had been
+hung, but, although he looked in every direction, the little house
+belonging to the beautiful Child with the blue hair was nowhere visible.
+
+Seized with a sad presentiment, he began to run with all the strength he
+had left and in a few minutes he reached the field where the little
+white house had once stood. But it was no longer there. Instead of the
+house he saw a marble stone, on which were engraved these sad words:
+
+              HERE LIES
+    THE CHILD WITH THE BLUE HAIR
+         WHO DIED FROM SORROW
+    BECAUSE SHE WAS ABANDONED BY HER
+        LITTLE BROTHER PINOCCHIO
+
+I leave you to imagine the puppet's feelings when he had with difficulty
+spelled out this epitaph. He fell with his face on the ground and,
+covering the tombstone with a thousand kisses, burst into an agony of
+tears. He cried all night and when morning came he was still crying,
+although he had no tears left, and his sobs and lamentations were so
+acute and heart-breaking that they aroused the echoes in the surrounding
+hills.
+
+And as he wept he said:
+
+"Oh, little Fairy, why did you die? Why did I not die instead of you, I
+who am so wicked, whilst you were so good? And my papa? Where can he be?
+Oh, little Fairy, tell me where I can find him, for I want to remain
+with him always and never leave him again, never again! Oh, little
+Fairy, tell me that it is not true that you are dead! If you really love
+your little brother, come to life again. Does it not grieve you to see
+me alone and abandoned by everybody? If assassins come they will hang me
+again to the branch of a tree, and then I should die indeed. What do you
+imagine that I can do here alone in the world? Now that I have lost you
+and my papa, who will give me food? Where shall I go to sleep at night?
+Who will make me a new jacket? Oh, it would be better, a hundred times
+better, for me to die also! Yes, I want to die--oh! oh! oh!"
+
+[Illustration: An Immense Serpent Stretched Across the Road]
+
+And in his despair he tried to tear his hair, but his hair was made
+of wood so he could not even have the satisfaction of sticking his
+fingers into it.
+
+Just then a large Pigeon flew over his head and, stopping with distended
+wings, called down to him from a great height:
+
+"Tell me, child, what are you doing there?"
+
+"Don't you see? I am crying!" said Pinocchio, raising his head towards
+the voice and rubbing his eyes with his jacket.
+
+"Tell me," continued the Pigeon, "amongst your companions, do you happen
+to know a puppet who is called Pinocchio?"
+
+"Pinocchio? Did you say Pinocchio?" repeated the puppet, jumping quickly
+to his feet. "I am Pinocchio!"
+
+At this answer the Pigeon descended rapidly to the ground. He was larger
+than a turkey.
+
+"Do you also know Geppetto?" he asked.
+
+"Do I know him! He is my poor papa! Has he perhaps spoken to you of me?
+Will you take me to him? Is he still alive? Answer me, for pity's sake:
+is he still alive?"
+
+"I left him three days ago on the seashore."
+
+"What was he doing?"
+
+"He was building a little boat for himself, to cross the ocean. For more
+than three months that poor man has been going all round the world
+looking for you. Not having succeeded in finding you, he has now taken
+it into his head to go to the distant countries of the New World in
+search of you."
+
+"How far is it from here to the shore?" asked Pinocchio breathlessly.
+
+"More than six hundred miles."
+
+"Six hundred miles? Oh, beautiful Pigeon, what a fine thing it would be
+to have your wings!"
+
+"If you wish to go, I will carry you there."
+
+"How?"
+
+"On my back. Do you weigh much?"
+
+"I weigh next to nothing. I am as light as a feather."
+
+And without waiting for more Pinocchio jumped at once on the Pigeon's
+back and, putting a leg on each side of him as men do on horseback, he
+exclaimed joyfully:
+
+"Gallop, gallop, my little horse, for I am anxious to arrive quickly!"
+
+The Pigeon took flight and in a few minutes had soared so high that they
+almost touched the clouds. Finding himself at such an immense height the
+puppet had the curiosity to turn and look down; but his head spun round
+and he became so frightened to save himself from the danger of falling
+he wound his arms tightly round the neck of his feathered steed.
+
+They flew all day. Towards evening the Pigeon said:
+
+"I am very thirsty!"
+
+"And I am very hungry!" rejoined Pinocchio.
+
+"Let us stop at that dovecote for a few minutes and then we will
+continue our journey, so that we may reach the seashore by dawn
+tomorrow."
+
+They went into a deserted dovecote, where they found nothing but a basin
+full of water and a basket full of vetch.
+
+The puppet had never in his life been able to eat vetch: according to
+him it made him sick. That evening, however, he ate to repletion, and
+when he had nearly emptied the basket he turned to the Pigeon and said
+to him:
+
+"I never could have believed that vetch was so good!"
+
+"Be assured, my boy," replied the Pigeon, "that when hunger is real, and
+there is nothing else to eat, even vetch becomes delicious. Hunger
+knows neither caprice nor greediness."
+
+Having quickly finished their little meal they recommenced their journey
+and flew away. The following morning they reached the seashore.
+
+The Pigeon placed Pinocchio on the ground and, not wishing to be
+troubled with thanks for having done a good action, flew quickly away
+and disappeared.
+
+The shore was crowded with people who were looking out to sea, shouting
+and gesticulating.
+
+"What has happened?" asked Pinocchio of an old woman.
+
+"A poor father who has lost his son has gone away in a boat to search
+for him on the other side of the water, and today the sea is tempestuous
+and the little boat is in danger of sinking."
+
+"Where is the little boat?"
+
+"It is out there in a line with my finger," said the old woman, pointing
+to a little boat which, seen at that distance, looked like a nutshell
+with a very little man in it.
+
+Pinocchio fixed his eyes on it and after looking attentively he gave a
+piercing scream, crying:
+
+"It is my papa! It is my papa!"
+
+The boat, meanwhile, beaten by the fury of the waves, at one moment
+disappeared in the trough of the sea, and the next came again to the
+surface. Pinocchio, standing on the top of a high rock, kept calling to
+his father by name, and making every kind of signal to him with his
+hands, his handkerchief, and his cap.
+
+And, although he was so far off, Geppetto appeared to recognize his son,
+for he also took off his cap and waved it, and tried by gestures to
+make him understand that he would have returned if it had been possible,
+but that the sea was so tempestuous that he could not use his oars or
+approach the shore.
+
+Suddenly a tremendous wave rose and the boat disappeared. They waited,
+hoping it would come again to the surface, but it was seen no more.
+
+"Poor man!" said the fishermen who were assembled on the shore;
+murmuring a prayer, they turned to go home.
+
+Just then they heard a desperate cry and, looking back, they saw a
+little boy who exclaimed, as he jumped from a rock into the sea:
+
+"I will save my papa!"
+
+Pinocchio, being made of wood, floated easily and he swam like a fish.
+At one moment they saw him disappear under the water, carried down by
+the fury of the waves, and next he reappeared struggling with a leg or
+an arm. At last they lost sight of him and he was seen no more.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+PINOCCHIO FINDS THE FAIRY AGAIN
+
+
+Pinocchio, hoping to be in time to help his father, swam the whole
+night.
+
+And what a horrible night it was! The rain came down in torrents, it
+hailed, the thunder was frightful, and the flashes of lightning made it
+as light as day.
+
+Towards morning he saw a long strip of land not far off. It was an
+island in the midst of the sea.
+
+He tried his utmost to reach the shore, but it was all in vain. The
+waves, racing and tumbling over each other, knocked him about as if he
+had been a stick or a wisp of straw. At last, fortunately for him, a
+billow rolled up with such fury and impetuosity that he was lifted up
+and thrown far on to the sands.
+
+He fell with such force that, as he struck the ground, his ribs and all
+his joints cracked, but he comforted himself, saying:
+
+"This time also I have made a wonderful escape!"
+
+Little by little the sky cleared, the sun shone out in all his splendor,
+and the sea became as quiet and as smooth as oil.
+
+The puppet put his clothes in the sun to dry and began to look in every
+direction in hopes of seeing on the vast expanse of water a little boat
+with a little man in it. But, although he looked and looked, he could
+see nothing but the sky, and the sea, and the sail of some ship, but so
+far away that it seemed no bigger than a fly.
+
+"If I only knew what this island was called!" he said to himself. "If I
+only knew whether it was inhabited by civilized people--I mean, by
+people who have not the bad habit of hanging boys to the branches of the
+trees. But whom can I ask? Whom, if there is nobody?"
+
+This idea of finding himself alone, alone, all alone, in the midst of
+this great uninhabited country, made him so melancholy that he was just
+beginning to cry. But at that moment, at a short distance from the
+shore, he saw a big fish swimming by; it was going quietly on its own
+business with its head out of the water.
+
+Not knowing its name, the puppet called to it in a loud voice to make
+himself heard:
+
+"Eh, Sir Fish, will you permit me a word with you?"
+
+"Two if you like," answered the fish, who was a Dolphin, and so polite
+that few similar are to be found in any sea in the world.
+
+"Will you be kind enough to tell me if there are villages in this island
+where it would be possible to obtain something to eat, without running
+the danger of being eaten?"
+
+"Certainly there are," replied the Dolphin. "Indeed, you will find one
+at a short distance from here."
+
+"And what road must I take to go there?"
+
+"You must take that path to your left and follow your nose. You cannot
+make a mistake."
+
+"Will you tell me another thing? You who swim about the sea all day and
+all night, have you by chance met a little boat with my papa in it?"
+
+"And who is your papa?"
+
+"He is the best papa in the world, whilst it would be difficult to find
+a worse son than I am."
+
+"During the terrible storm last night," answered the Dolphin, "the
+little boat must have gone to the bottom."
+
+"And my papa?"
+
+"He must have been swallowed by the terrible Dog-Fish, who for some days
+past has been spreading devastation and ruin in our waters."
+
+"Is this Dog-Fish very big?" asked Pinocchio, who was already beginning
+to quake with fear.
+
+"Big!" replied the Dolphin. "That you may form some idea of his size, I
+need only tell you that he is bigger than a five-storied house, and that
+his mouth is so enormous and so deep that a railway train with its
+smoking engine could pass down his throat."
+
+"Mercy upon us!" exclaimed the terrified puppet; and, putting on his
+clothes with the greatest haste, he said to the Dolphin:
+
+"Good-bye, Sir Fish; excuse the trouble I have given you, and many
+thanks for your politeness."
+
+He then took the path that had been pointed out to him and began to
+walk fast--so fast, indeed, that he was almost running. And at the
+slightest noise he turned to look behind him, fearing that he might see
+the terrible Dog-Fish with a railway train in its mouth following him.
+
+After a walk of half an hour he reached a little village called "The
+Village of the Industrious Bees." The road was alive with people running
+here and there to attend to their business; all were at work, all had
+something to do. You could not have found an idler or a vagabond, not
+even if you had searched for him with a lighted lamp.
+
+"Ah!" said that lazy Pinocchio at once, "I see that this village will
+never suit me! I wasn't born to work!"
+
+In the meanwhile he was tormented by hunger, for he had eaten nothing
+for twenty-four hours--not even vetch. What was he to do?
+
+There were only two ways by which he could obtain food--either by asking
+for a little work, or by begging for a nickel or for a mouthful of
+bread.
+
+He was ashamed to beg, for his father had always preached to him that no
+one had a right to beg except the aged and the infirm. The really poor
+in this world, deserving of compassion and assistance, are only those
+who from age or sickness are no longer able to earn their own bread with
+the labor of their hands. It is the duty of every one else to work; and
+if they will not work, so much the worse for them if they suffer from
+hunger.
+
+At that moment a man came down the road, tired and panting for breath.
+He was dragging, alone, with fatigue and difficulty, two carts full of
+charcoal.
+
+Pinocchio, judging by his face that he was a kind man, approached him
+and, casting down his eyes with shame, he said to him in a low voice:
+
+"Would you have the charity to give me a nickel, for I am dying of
+hunger?"
+
+"You shall have not only a nickel," said the man, "but I will give you a
+quarter, provided that you help me to drag home these two carts of
+charcoal."
+
+"I am surprised at you!" answered the puppet in a tone of offense. "Let
+me tell you that I am not accustomed to do the work of a donkey: I have
+never drawn a cart!"
+
+"So much the better for you," answered the man. "Then, my boy, if you
+are really dying of hunger, eat two fine slices of your pride, and be
+careful not to get indigestion."
+
+A few minutes afterwards a mason passed down the road carrying on his
+shoulders a basket of lime.
+
+"Would you have the charity, good man, to give a nickel to a poor boy
+who is yawning for want of food?"
+
+"Willingly," answered the man. "Come with me and carry the lime, and
+instead of a nickel I will give you a quarter."
+
+"But the lime is heavy," objected Pinocchio, "and I don't want to tire
+myself."
+
+"If you don't want to tire yourself, then, my boy, amuse yourself with
+yawning, and much good may it do you."
+
+In less than half an hour twenty other people went by, and Pinocchio
+asked charity of them all, but they all answered:
+
+"Are you not ashamed to beg? Instead of idling about the roads, go and
+look for a little work and learn to earn your bread."
+
+At last a nice little woman carrying two cans of water came by.
+
+"Will you let me drink a little water out of your can?" asked Pinocchio,
+who was burning with thirst.
+
+"Drink, my boy, if you wish it!" said the little woman, setting down the
+two cans.
+
+Pinocchio drank like a fish, and as he dried his mouth he mumbled:
+
+"I have quenched my thirst. If I could only appease my hunger!"
+
+The good woman, hearing these words, said at once:
+
+"If you will help me to carry home these two cans of water I will give
+you a fine piece of bread."
+
+Pinocchio looked at the can and answered neither yes nor no.
+
+"And besides the bread you shall have a nice dish of cauliflower dressed
+with oil and vinegar," added the good woman.
+
+Pinocchio gave another look at the can and answered neither yes nor no.
+
+"And after the cauliflower I will give you a beautiful bonbon full of
+syrup."
+
+The temptation of this last dainty was so great that Pinocchio could
+resist no longer and with an air of decision he said:
+
+"I must have patience! I will carry the can to your house."
+
+The can was heavy and the puppet, not being strong enough to carry it in
+his hand, had to resign himself to carry it on his head.
+
+When they reached the house the good little woman made Pinocchio sit
+down at a small table already laid and she placed before him the bread,
+the cauliflower and the bonbon.
+
+Pinocchio did not eat, he devoured. His stomach was like an apartment
+that had been left empty and uninhabited for five months.
+
+When his ravenous hunger was somewhat appeased he raised his head to
+thank his benefactress, but he had no sooner looked at her than he gave
+a prolonged "Oh-h!" of astonishment and continued staring at her with
+wide open eyes, his fork in the air, and his mouth full of bread and
+cauliflower, as if he had been bewitched.
+
+"What has surprised you so much?" asked the good woman, laughing.
+
+"It is--" answered the puppet, "it is--it is--that you are like--that
+you remind me--yes, yes, yes, the same voice--the same eyes--the same
+hair--yes, yes, yes--you also have blue hair--as she had--Oh, little
+Fairy! tell me that it is you, really you! Do not make me cry any more!
+If you knew--I have cried so much, I have suffered so much."
+
+And, throwing himself at her feet on the floor, Pinocchio embraced the
+knees of the mysterious little woman and began to cry bitterly.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+PINOCCHIO PROMISES THE FAIRY TO BE GOOD
+
+
+At first the good little woman maintained that she was not the little
+Fairy with blue hair, but, seeing that she was found out and not wishing
+to continue the comedy any longer, she ended by making herself known,
+and she said to Pinocchio:
+
+"You little rogue! how did you ever discover who I was?"
+
+"It was my great affection for you that told me."
+
+"Do you remember? You left me a child, and now that you have found me
+again I am a woman--a woman almost old enough to be your mamma."
+
+"I am delighted at that, for now, instead of calling you little sister,
+I will call you mamma. I have wished for such a long time to have a
+mamma like other boys! But how did you manage to grow so fast?"
+
+"That is a secret."
+
+"Teach it to me, for I should also like to grow. Don't you see? I always
+remain no bigger than a ninepin."
+
+"But you cannot grow," replied the Fairy.
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because puppets never grow. They are born puppets, live puppets, and
+die puppets."
+
+"Oh, I am sick of being a puppet!" cried Pinocchio, giving himself a
+slap. "It is time that I became a man."
+
+"And you will become one, if you know how to deserve it."
+
+"Not really? And what can I do to deserve it?"
+
+"A very easy thing: by learning to be a good boy."
+
+"And you think I am not?"
+
+"You are quite the contrary. Good boys are obedient, and you--"
+
+"And I never obey."
+
+"Good boys like to learn and to work, and you--"
+
+"And I instead lead an idle, vagabond life the year through."
+
+"Good boys always speak the truth."
+
+"And I always tell lies."
+
+"Good boys go willingly to school."
+
+"And school gives me pain all over the body. But from today I will
+change my life."
+
+"Do you promise me?"
+
+"I promise you. I will become a good little boy, and I will be the
+consolation of my papa. Where is my poor papa at this moment?"
+
+"I do not know."
+
+"Shall I ever have the happiness of seeing him again and kissing him?"
+
+"I think so; indeed, I am sure of it."
+
+At this answer Pinocchio was so delighted that he took the Fairy's hands
+and began to kiss them with such fervor that he seemed beside himself.
+Then, raising his face and looking at her lovingly, he asked:
+
+"Tell me, little mamma: then it was not true that you were dead?"
+
+"It seems not," said the Fairy, smiling.
+
+"If you only knew the sorrow I felt and the tightening of my throat when
+I read, 'Here lies--'"
+
+"I know it, and it is on that account that I have forgiven you. I saw
+from the sincerity of your grief that you had a good heart; and when
+boys have good hearts, even if they are scamps and have got bad habits,
+there is always something to hope for; that is, there is always hope
+that they will turn to better ways. That is why I came to look for you
+here. I will be your mamma."
+
+"Oh, how delightful!" shouted Pinocchio, jumping for joy.
+
+"You must obey me and do everything that I bid you."
+
+"Willingly, willingly, willingly!"
+
+"Tomorrow," rejoined the Fairy, "you will begin to go to school."
+
+Pinocchio became at once a little less joyful.
+
+"Then you must choose an art, or a trade, according to your own wishes."
+
+Pinocchio became very grave.
+
+"What are you muttering between your teeth?" asked the Fairy in an
+angry voice.
+
+"I was saying," moaned the puppet in a low voice, "that it seemed to me
+too late for me to go to school now."
+
+"No, sir. Keep it in mind that it is never too late to learn and to
+instruct ourselves."
+
+"But I do not wish to follow either an art or a trade."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because it tires me to work."
+
+"My boy," said the Fairy, "those who talk in that way end almost always
+either in prison or in the hospital. Let me tell you that every man,
+whether he is born rich or poor, is obliged to do something in this
+world--to occupy himself, to work. Woe to those who lead slothful lives.
+Sloth is a dreadful illness and must be cured at once, in childhood. If
+not, when we are old it can never be cured."
+
+Pinocchio was touched by these words and, lifting his head quickly, he
+said to the Fairy:
+
+"I will study, I will work, I will do all that you tell me, for indeed I
+have become weary of being a puppet, and I wish at any price to become a
+boy. You promised me that I should, did you not?"
+
+"I did promise you, and it now depends upon yourself."
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+THE TERRIBLE DOG-FISH
+
+
+The following day Pinocchio went to the government school. Imagine the
+delight of all the little rogues, when they saw a puppet walk into their
+school! They set up a roar of laughter that never ended. They played him
+all sorts of tricks. One boy carried off his cap, another pulled his
+jacket behind; one tried to give him a pair of inky mustachios just
+under his nose, and another attempted to tie strings to his feet and
+hands to make him dance.
+
+For a short time Pinocchio pretended not to care and got on as well as
+he could; but at last, losing all patience, he turned to those who were
+teasing him most and making game of him, and said to them, looking very
+angry:
+
+"Beware, boys! I have not come here to be your buffoon. I respect
+others, and I intend to be respected."
+
+[Illustration: "Oh, I Am Sick of Being a Puppet!" Cried Pinocchio]
+
+"Well said, boaster! You have spoken like a book!" howled the young
+rascals, convulsed with mad laughter, and one of them, more impertinent
+than the others, stretched out his hand, intending to seize the puppet
+by the end of his nose.
+
+But he was not in time, for Pinocchio stuck his leg out from under the
+table and gave him a great kick on his shins.
+
+"Oh, what hard feet!" roared the boy, rubbing the bruise that the puppet
+had given him.
+
+"And what elbows! even harder than his feet!" said another, who for his
+rude tricks had received a blow in the stomach.
+
+But, nevertheless, the kick and the blow acquired at once for Pinocchio
+the sympathy and the esteem of all the boys in the school. They all made
+friends with him and liked him heartily.
+
+And even the master praised him, for he found him attentive, studious
+and intelligent--always the first to come to school, and the last to
+leave when school was over.
+
+But he had one fault: he made too many friends, and amongst them were
+several young rascals well known for their dislike to study and love of
+mischief.
+
+The master warned him every day, and even the good Fairy never failed to
+tell him and to repeat constantly:
+
+"Take care, Pinocchio! Those bad school-fellows of yours will end sooner
+or later by making you lose all love of study, and perhaps they may even
+bring upon you some great misfortune."
+
+"There is no fear of that!" answered the puppet, shrugging his shoulders
+and touching his forehead as much as to say: "There is so much sense
+here!"
+
+Now it happened that one fine day, as he was on his way to school, he
+met several of his usual companions who, coming up to him, asked:
+
+"Have you heard the great news?"
+
+"No."
+
+"In the sea near here a Dog-Fish has appeared as big as a mountain."
+
+"Not really? Can it be the same Dog-Fish that was there when my papa was
+drowned?"
+
+"We are going to the shore to see him. Will you come with us?"
+
+"No; I am going to school."
+
+"What matters school? We can go to school tomorrow. Whether we have a
+lesson more or a lesson less, we shall always remain the same donkeys."
+
+"But what will the master say?"
+
+"The master may say what he likes. He is paid on purpose to grumble all
+day."
+
+"And my mamma?"
+
+"Mammas know nothing," answered those bad little boys.
+
+"Do you know what I will do?" said Pinocchio. "I have reasons for
+wishing to see the Dog-Fish, but I will go and see him when school is
+over."
+
+"Poor donkey!" exclaimed one of the number. "Do you suppose that a fish
+of that size will wait your convenience? As soon as he is tired of being
+here he will start for another place, and then it will be too late."
+
+"How long does it take to go from here to the shore?" asked the puppet.
+
+"We can be there and back in an hour."
+
+"Then away!" shouted Pinocchio, "and he who runs fastest is the best!"
+
+Having thus given the signal to start, the boys, with their books and
+copy-books under their arms, rushed off across the fields, and Pinocchio
+was always the first--he seemed to have wings to his feet.
+
+From time to time he turned to jeer at his companions, who were some
+distance behind, and, seeing them panting for breath, covered with dust,
+and their tongues hanging out of their mouths, he laughed heartily. The
+unfortunate boy little knew what terrors and horrible disasters he was
+going to meet with!
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+PINOCCHIO IS ARRESTED BY THE GENDARMES
+
+
+When he arrived on the shore Pinocchio looked out to sea, but he saw no
+Dog-Fish. The sea was as smooth as a great crystal mirror.
+
+"Where is the Dog-Fish?" he asked, turning to his companions.
+
+"He must have gone to have his breakfast," said one of them, laughing.
+
+"Or he has thrown himself on to his bed to have a little nap," added
+another, laughing still louder.
+
+From their absurd answers and silly laughter Pinocchio perceived that
+his companions had been making a fool of him, in inducing him to believe
+a tale with no truth in it. Taking it very badly, he said to them
+angrily:
+
+"And now, may I ask what fun you could find in deceiving me with the
+story of the Dog-Fish?"
+
+"Oh, it was great fun!" answered the little rascals in chorus.
+
+"And in what did it consist?"
+
+"In making you miss school and persuading you to come with us. Are you
+not ashamed of being always so punctual and so diligent with your
+lessons? Are you not ashamed of studying so hard?"
+
+"And if I study hard, what concern is it of yours?"
+
+"It concerns us excessively, because it makes us appear in a bad light
+to the master."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because boys who study make those who, like us, have no wish to learn,
+seem worse by comparison. And that is too bad. We, too, have our pride!"
+
+"Then what must I do to please you?"
+
+"You must follow our example and hate school, lessons, and the
+master--our three greatest enemies."
+
+"And if I wish to continue my studies?"
+
+"In that case we will have nothing more to do with you, and at the first
+opportunity we will make you pay for it."
+
+"Really," said the puppet, shaking his head, "you make me inclined to
+laugh."
+
+"Eh, Pinocchio" shouted the biggest of the boys, confronting him. "None
+of your superior airs: don't come here to crow over us, for if you are
+not afraid of us, we are not afraid of you. Remember that you are one
+against seven of us."
+
+"Seven, like the seven deadly sins," said Pinocchio, with a shout of
+laughter.
+
+"Listen to him! He has insulted us all! He called us the seven deadly
+sins!"
+
+"Take that to begin with and keep it for your supper tonight," said one
+of the boys.
+
+And, so saying, he gave him a blow on the head with his fist.
+
+But it was give and take; for the puppet, as was to be expected,
+immediately returned the blow, and the fight in a moment became general
+and desperate.
+
+Pinocchio, although he was one alone, defended himself like a hero. He
+used his feet, which were of the hardest wood, to such purpose that he
+kept his enemies at a respectful distance. Wherever they touched they
+left a bruise by way of reminder.
+
+The boys, becoming furious at not being able to measure themselves hand
+to hand with the puppet, had recourse to other weapons. Loosening their
+satchels, they commenced throwing their school-books at him--grammars,
+dictionaries, spelling-books, geography books, and other scholastic
+works. But Pinocchio was quick and had sharp eyes, and always managed to
+duck in time, so that the books passed over his head and all fell into
+the sea.
+
+Imagine the astonishment of the fish! Thinking that the books were
+something to eat they all arrived in shoals, but, having tasted a page
+or two, or a frontispiece, they spat it quickly out and made a wry face
+that seemed to say: "It isn't food for us; we are accustomed to
+something much better!"
+
+The battle meantime had become fiercer than ever, when a big crab, who
+had come out of the water and had climbed slowly up on the shore, called
+out in a hoarse voice that sounded like a trumpet with a bad cold:
+
+[Illustration: FOUR RABBITS AS BLACK AS INK ENTERED CARRYING A LITTLE
+BIER]
+
+"Have done with that, you young ruffians, for you are nothing else!
+These hand-to-hand fights between boys seldom finish well. Some disaster
+is sure to happen!"
+
+Poor crab! He might as well have preached to the wind. Even that young
+rascal, Pinocchio, turning around, looked at him mockingly and said
+rudely:
+
+"Hold your tongue, you tiresome crab! You had better suck some liquorice
+lozenges to cure that cold in your throat."
+
+Just then the boys, who had no more books of their own to throw, spied
+at a little distance the satchel that belonged to Pinocchio, and took
+possession of it.
+
+Amongst the books there was one bound in strong cardboard with the back
+and points of parchment. It was a Treatise on Arithmetic.
+
+One of the boys seized this volume and, aiming at Pinocchio's head,
+threw it at him with all the force he could muster. But instead of
+hitting the puppet it struck one of his companions on the temple, who,
+turning as white as a sheet, said only:
+
+"Oh, mother! help, I am dying!" and fell his whole length on the sand.
+Thinking he was dead, the terrified boys ran off as hard as their legs
+could carry them and in a few minutes they were out of sight.
+
+But Pinocchio remained. Although from grief and fright he was more dead
+than alive, nevertheless he ran and soaked his handkerchief in the sea
+and began to bathe the temples of his poor school-fellow. Crying
+bitterly in his despair, he kept calling him by name and saying to him:
+
+"Eugene! my poor Eugene! Open your eyes and look at me! Why do you not
+answer? I did not do it; indeed it was not I that hurt you so! believe
+me, it was not! Open your eyes, Eugene. If you keep your eyes shut I
+shall die, too. Oh! what shall I do? how shall I ever return home? How
+can I ever have the courage to go back to my good mamma? What will
+become of me? Where can I fly to? Oh! how much better it would have
+been, a thousand times better, if I had only gone to school! Why did I
+listen to my companions? they have been my ruin. The master said to me,
+and my mamma repeated it often: 'Beware of bad companions!' Oh, dear!
+what will become of me, what will become of me, what will become of me?"
+
+And Pinocchio began to cry and sob, and to strike his head with his
+fists, and to call poor Eugene by his name. Suddenly he heard the sound
+of approaching footsteps.
+
+He turned and saw two soldiers.
+
+"What are you doing there, lying on the ground?" they asked Pinocchio.
+
+"I am helping my school-fellow."
+
+"Has he been hurt?"
+
+"So it seems."
+
+"Hurt indeed!" said one of them, stooping down and examining Eugene
+closely.
+
+"This boy has been wounded in the temple. Who wounded him?"
+
+"Not I," stammered the puppet breathlessly.
+
+"If it was not you, who then did it?"
+
+"Not I," repeated Pinocchio.
+
+"And with what was he wounded?"
+
+"With this book." And the puppet picked up from the ground the Treatise
+on Arithmetic, bound in cardboard and parchment, and showed it to the
+soldier.
+
+"And to whom does this belong?"
+
+"To me."
+
+"That is enough, nothing more is wanted. Get up and come with us at
+once."
+
+"But I--"
+
+"Come along with us!"
+
+"But I am innocent."
+
+"Come along with us!"
+
+Before they left, the soldiers called some fishermen who were passing at
+that moment near the shore in their boat, and said to them:
+
+"We give this boy who has been wounded in the head in your charge. Carry
+him to your house and nurse him. Tomorrow we will come and see him."
+
+They then turned to Pinocchio and, having placed him between them, they
+said to him in a commanding voice:
+
+"Forward! and walk quickly, or it will be the worse for you."
+
+Without requiring it to be repeated, the puppet set out along the road
+leading to the village. But the poor little devil hardly knew where he
+was. He thought he must be dreaming, and what a dreadful dream! He was
+beside himself. He saw double; his legs shook; his tongue clung to the
+roof of his mouth, and he could not utter a word. And yet, in the midst
+of his stupefaction and apathy, his heart was pierced by a cruel
+thorn--the thought that he would pass under the windows of the good
+Fairy's house between the soldiers. He would rather have died.
+
+They had already reached the village when a gust of wind blew
+Pinocchio's cap off his head and carried it ten yards off.
+
+"Will you permit me," said the puppet to the soldiers, "to go and get
+my cap?"
+
+"Go, then; but be quick about it."
+
+The puppet went and picked up his cap, but instead of putting it on his
+head he took it between his teeth and began to run as hard as he could
+towards the seashore.
+
+The soldiers, thinking it would be difficult to overtake him, sent after
+him a large mastiff who had won the first prizes at all the dog races.
+Pinocchio ran, but the dog ran faster. The people came to their windows
+and crowded into the street in their anxiety to see the end of the
+desperate race.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+PINOCCHIO ESCAPES BEING FRIED LIKE A FISH
+
+
+There came a moment in this desperate race--a terrible moment--when
+Pinocchio thought himself lost: for Alidoro, the mastiff, had run so
+swiftly that he had nearly come up with him.
+
+The puppet could hear the panting of the dreadful beast close behind
+him; there was not a hand's breadth between them, he could even feel the
+dog's hot breath.
+
+Fortunately the shore was close and the sea but a few steps off.
+
+As soon as he reached the sands the puppet made a wonderful leap--a frog
+could have done no better--and plunged into the water.
+
+Alidoro, on the contrary, wished to stop himself, but, carried away by
+the impetus of the race, he also went into the sea. The unfortunate dog
+could not swim, but he made great efforts to keep himself afloat with
+his paws; but the more he struggled the farther he sank head downwards
+under the water.
+
+When he rose to the surface again his eyes were rolling with terror, and
+he barked out:
+
+"I am drowning! I am drowning!"
+
+"Drown!" shouted Pinocchio from a distance, seeing himself safe from all
+danger.
+
+"Help me, dear Pinocchio! Save me from death!"
+
+At that agonizing cry the puppet, who had in reality an excellent heart,
+was moved with compassion, and, turning to the dog, he said:
+
+"But if I save your life, will you promise to give me no further
+annoyance, and not to run after me?"
+
+"I promise! I promise! Be quick, for pity's sake, for if you delay
+another half-minute I shall be dead."
+
+Pinocchio hesitated; but, remembering that his father had often told him
+that a good action is never lost, he swam to Alidoro, and, taking hold
+of his tail with both hands, brought him safe and sound on to the dry
+sand of the beach.
+
+The poor dog could not stand. He had drunk so much salt water that he
+was like a balloon. The puppet, however, not wishing to trust him too
+far, thought it more prudent to jump again into the water. When he had
+swum some distance from the shore he called out to the friend he had
+rescued:
+
+"Good-bye, Alidoro; a good journey to you, and take my compliments to
+all at home."
+
+"Good-bye, Pinocchio," answered the dog; "a thousand thanks for having
+saved my life. You have done me a great service, and in this world what
+is given is returned. If an occasion offers I shall not forget it."
+
+Pinocchio swam on, keeping always near the land. At last he thought that
+he had reached a safe place. Giving a look along the shore, he saw
+amongst the rocks a kind of cave from which a cloud of smoke was
+ascending.
+
+"In that cave," he said to himself, "there must be a fire. So much the
+better. I will go and dry and warm myself, and then? and then we shall
+see."
+
+Having taken the resolution he approached the rocks, but, as he was
+going to climb up, he felt something under the water that rose higher
+and higher and carried him into the air. He tried to escape, but it was
+too late, for, to his extreme surprise, he found himself enclosed in a
+great net, together with a swarm of fish of every size and shape, who
+were flapping and struggling like so many despairing souls.
+
+At the same moment a fisherman came out of the cave; he was so ugly, so
+horribly ugly, that he looked like a sea monster. Instead of hair his
+head was covered with a thick bush of green grass, his skin was green,
+his eyes were green, his long beard that came down to the ground was
+also green. He had the appearance of an immense lizard standing on its
+hind-paws.
+
+When the fisherman had drawn his net out of the sea, he exclaimed with
+great satisfaction:
+
+"Thank Heaven! Again today I shall have a splendid feast of fish!"
+
+"What a mercy that I am not a fish!" said Pinocchio to himself,
+regaining a little courage.
+
+The netful of fish was carried into the cave, which was dark and smoky.
+In the middle of the cave a large frying-pan full of oil was frying and
+sending out a smell of mushrooms that was suffocating.
+
+"Now we will see what fish we have taken!" said the green fisherman,
+and, putting into the net an enormous hand, so out of all proportion
+that it looked like a baker's shovel, he pulled out a handful of fish.
+
+"These fish are good!" he said, looking at them and smelling them
+complacently. And after he had smelled them he threw them into a pan
+without water.
+
+He repeated the same operation many times, and as he drew out the fish
+his mouth watered and he said, chuckling to himself:
+
+"What good whiting!"
+
+"What exquisite sardines!"
+
+"These soles are delicious!"
+
+"And these crabs excellent!"
+
+"What dear little anchovies!"
+
+The last to remain in the net was Pinocchio.
+
+No sooner had the fisherman taken him out than he opened his big green
+eyes with astonishment and cried, half frightened:
+
+"What species of fish is this? Fish of this kind I never remember to
+have eaten."
+
+And he looked at him again attentively and, having examined him well all
+over, he ended by saying:
+
+"I know: he must be a craw-fish."
+
+Pinocchio, mortified at being mistaken for a craw-fish, said in an angry
+voice:
+
+"A craw-fish indeed! Do you take me for a craw-fish? what treatment! Let
+me tell you that I am a puppet."
+
+"A puppet?" replied the fisherman. "To tell the truth, a puppet is
+quite a new fish for me. All the better! I shall eat you with greater
+pleasure."
+
+"Eat me! but will you understand that I am not a fish? Do you hear that
+I talk and reason as you do?"
+
+"That is quite true," said the fisherman; "and as I see that you are a
+fish possessed of the talent of talking and reasoning as I do, I will
+treat you with all the attention that is your due."
+
+"And this attention?"
+
+"In token of my friendship and particular regard, I will leave you the
+choice of how you would like to be cooked. Would you like to be fried in
+the frying-pan, or would you prefer to be stewed with tomato sauce?"
+
+"To tell the truth," answered Pinocchio, "if I am to choose, I should
+prefer to be set at liberty and to return home."
+
+"You are joking! Do you imagine that I would lose the opportunity of
+tasting such a rare fish? It is not every day, I assure you, that a
+puppet fish is caught in these waters. Leave it to me. I will fry you in
+the frying-pan with the other fish, and you will be quite satisfied. It
+is always consolation to be fried in company."
+
+At this speech the unhappy Pinocchio began to cry and scream and to
+implore for mercy, and he said, sobbing: "How much better it would have
+been if I had gone to school! I would listen to my companions and now I
+am paying for it."
+
+And he wriggled like an eel and made indescribable efforts to slip out
+of the clutches of the green fisherman. But it was useless: the
+fisherman took a long strip of rush and, having bound his hands and feet
+as if he had been a sausage, he threw him into the pan with the other
+fish.
+
+He then fetched a wooden bowl full of flour and began to flour them
+each in turn, and as soon as they were ready he threw them into the
+frying-pan.
+
+The first to dance in the boiling oil were the poor whitings; the crabs
+followed, then the sardines, then the soles, then the anchovies, and at
+last it was Pinocchio's turn. Seeing himself so near death, and such a
+horrible death, he was so frightened, and trembled so violently, that he
+had neither voice nor breath left for further entreaties.
+
+But the poor boy implored with his eyes! The green fisherman, however,
+without caring in the least, plunged him five or six times in the flour,
+until he was white from head to foot and looked like a puppet made of
+plaster.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+HE RETURNS TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE
+
+
+Just as the fisherman was on the point of throwing Pinocchio into the
+frying-pan a large dog entered the cave, enticed there by the strong and
+savory odor of fried fish.
+
+"Get out!" shouted the fisherman, threateningly, holding the floured
+puppet in his hand.
+
+But the poor dog, who was as hungry as a wolf, whined and wagged his
+tail as much as to say:
+
+"Give me a mouthful of fish and I will leave you in peace."
+
+"Get out, I tell you!" repeated the fisherman and he stretched out his
+leg to give him a kick.
+
+But the dog, who, when he was really hungry, would not stand trifling,
+turned upon him, growling and showing his terrible tusks.
+
+At that moment a little feeble voice was heard in the cave, saying
+entreatingly:
+
+"Save me, Alidoro! If you do not save me I shall be fried!"
+
+The dog recognized Pinocchio's voice and, to his extreme surprise,
+perceived that it proceeded from the floured bundle that the fisherman
+held in his hand.
+
+So what do you think he did? He made a spring, seized the bundle in his
+mouth, and, holding it gently between his teeth, he rushed out of the
+cave and was gone like a flash of lightning.
+
+The fisherman, furious at seeing a fish he was so anxious to eat
+snatched from him, ran after the dog, but he had not gone many steps
+when he was taken with a fit of coughing and had to give it up.
+
+Alidoro, when he had reached the path that led to the village, stopped
+and put his friend Pinocchio gently on the ground.
+
+"How much I have to thank you for!" said the puppet.
+
+"There is no necessity," replied the dog. "You saved me and I have now
+returned it. You know that we must all help each other in this world."
+
+"But how came you to come to the cave?"
+
+"I was lying on the shore more dead than alive when the wind brought to
+me the smell of fried fish. The smell excited my appetite and I followed
+it up. If I had arrived a second later--"
+
+"Do not mention it!" groaned Pinocchio, who was still trembling with
+fright. "Do not mention it! If you had arrived a second later I should
+by this time have been fried, eaten and digested. Brrr! It makes me
+shudder only to think of it!"
+
+Alidoro, laughing, extended his right paw to the puppet, who shook it
+heartily in token of great friendship, and they then separated.
+
+The dog took the road home, and Pinocchio, left alone, went to a cottage
+not far off and said to a little old man who was warming himself in the
+sun:
+
+"Tell me, good man, do you know anything of a poor boy called Eugene who
+was wounded in the head?"
+
+"The boy was brought by some fishermen to this cottage, and now--"
+
+"And now he is dead!" interrupted Pinocchio with great sorrow.
+
+"No, he is alive and has returned to his home."
+
+"Not really? not really?" cried the puppet, dancing with delight. "Then
+the wound was not serious?"
+
+"It might have been very serious and even fatal," answered the little
+old man, "for they threw a thick book bound in cardboard at his head."
+
+"And who threw it at him?"
+
+"One of his school-fellows, a certain Pinocchio."
+
+"And who is this Pinocchio?" asked the puppet, pretending ignorance.
+
+"They say that he is a bad boy, a vagabond, a regular good-for-nothing."
+
+"Calumnies! all calumnies!"
+
+"Do you know this Pinocchio?"
+
+"By sight!" answered the puppet.
+
+"And what is your opinion of him?" asked the little man.
+
+"He seems to me to be a very good boy, anxious to learn, and obedient
+and affectionate to his father and family."
+
+Whilst the puppet was firing off all these lies, he touched his nose and
+perceived that it had lengthened more than a hand. Very much alarmed he
+began to cry out:
+
+"Don't believe, good man, what I have been telling you. I know Pinocchio
+very well and I can assure you that he is a very bad boy, disobedient
+and idle, who, instead of going to school, runs off with his companions
+to amuse himself."
+
+He had hardly finished speaking when his nose became shorter and
+returned to the same size that it was before.
+
+"And why are you all covered with white?" asked the old man suddenly.
+
+"I will tell you. Without observing it I rubbed myself against a wall
+which had been freshly whitewashed," answered the puppet, ashamed to
+confess that he had been floured like a fish prepared for the
+frying-pan.
+
+"And what have you done with your jacket, your trousers, and your cap?"
+
+"I met with robbers, who took them from me. Tell me, good old man, could
+you perhaps give me some clothes to return home in?"
+
+"My boy, as to clothes, I have nothing but a little sack in which I keep
+beans. If you wish for it, take it; there it is."
+
+Pinocchio did not wait to be told twice. He took the sack at once and
+with a pair of scissors he cut a hole at the end and at each side, and
+put it on like a shirt. And with this slight clothing he set off for the
+village.
+
+But as he went he did not feel at all comfortable--so little so, indeed,
+that for a step forward he took another backwards, and he said, talking
+to himself:
+
+"How shall I ever present myself to my good little Fairy? What will she
+say when she sees me? Will she forgive me this second escapade? Oh, I am
+sure that she will not forgive me! And it serves me right, for I am a
+rascal. I am always promising to correct myself and I never keep my
+word!"
+
+When he reached the village it was night and very dark. A storm had come
+on and as the rain was coming down in torrents he went straight to the
+Fairy's house, resolved to knock at the door.
+
+But when he was there his courage failed him and instead of knocking he
+ran away some twenty paces. He returned to the door a second time and
+laid hold of the knocker, and, trembling, gave a little knock.
+
+He waited and waited. At last, after half an hour had passed, a window
+on the top floor was opened--the house was four stories high--and
+Pinocchio saw a big Snail with a lighted candle on her head looking out.
+She called to him:
+
+"Who is there at this hour?"
+
+"Is the Fairy at home?" asked the puppet.
+
+"The Fairy is asleep and must not be awakened; but who are you?"
+
+"It is I."
+
+"Who is I?"
+
+"Pinocchio."
+
+"And who is Pinocchio?"
+
+"The puppet who lives in the Fairy's house."
+
+"Ah, I understand!" said the Snail. "Wait for me there. I will come down
+and open the door directly."
+
+"Be quick, for pity's sake, for I am dying of cold."
+
+"My boy, I am a snail, and snails are never in a hurry."
+
+An hour passed, and then two, and the door was not opened. Pinocchio,
+who was wet through and through, and trembling from cold and fear, at
+last took courage and knocked again, and this time he knocked louder.
+
+At this second knock a window on the lower story opened and the same
+Snail appeared at it.
+
+"Beautiful little Snail," cried Pinocchio from the street, "I have been
+waiting for two hours! And two hours on such a bad night seem longer
+than two years. Be quick, for pity's sake."
+
+"My boy," answered the calm little animal--"my boy, I am a snail, and
+snails are never in a hurry."
+
+And the window was shut again.
+
+Shortly afterwards midnight struck; then one o'clock, then two o'clock,
+and the door remained still closed.
+
+Pinocchio at last, losing all patience, seized the knocker in a rage,
+intending to give a blow that would resound through the house. But the
+knocker, which was iron, turned suddenly into an eel and, slipping out
+of his hands, disappeared in the stream of water that ran down the
+middle of the street.
+
+"Ah! is that it?" shouted Pinocchio, blind with rage. "Since the knocker
+has disappeared, I will kick instead with all my might."
+
+And, drawing a little back, he gave a tremendous kick against the house
+door. The blow was indeed so violent that his foot went through the wood
+and stuck; and when he tried to draw it back again it was trouble thrown
+away, for it remained fixed like a nail that has been hammered down.
+
+Think of poor Pinocchio! He was obliged to spend the remainder of the
+night with one foot on the ground and the other in the air.
+
+The following morning at daybreak the door was at last opened. The
+clever little Snail had taken only nine hours to come down from the
+fourth story to the house-door. It is evident that her exertions must
+have been great.
+
+"What are you doing with your foot stuck in the door?" she asked the
+puppet.
+
+"It was an accident. Do try, beautiful little Snail, if you cannot
+release me from this torture."
+
+"My boy, that is the work of a carpenter, and I have never been a
+carpenter."
+
+"Beg the Fairy from me!"
+
+"The Fairy is asleep and must not be awakened."
+
+"But what do you suppose that I can do all day nailed to this door?"
+
+"Amuse yourself by counting the ants that pass down the street."
+
+"Bring me at least something to eat, for I am quite exhausted."
+
+"At once," said the Snail.
+
+In fact, after three hours and a half she returned to Pinocchio carrying
+a silver tray on her head. The tray contained a loaf of bread, a roast
+chicken, and four ripe apricots.
+
+"Here is the breakfast that the Fairy has sent you," said the Snail.
+
+The puppet felt very much comforted at the sight of these good things.
+But when he began to eat them, what was his disgust at making the
+discovery that the bread was plaster, the chicken cardboard, and the
+four apricots painted alabaster.
+
+He wanted to cry. In his desperation he tried to throw away the tray and
+all that was on it; but instead, either from grief or exhaustion, he
+fainted away.
+
+When he came to himself he found that he was lying on a sofa, and the
+Fairy was beside him.
+
+"I will pardon you once more," the Fairy said, "but woe to you if you
+behave badly a third time!"
+
+Pinocchio promised and swore that he would study, and that for the
+future he would always conduct himself well.
+
+And he kept his word for the remainder of the year. Indeed, at the
+examinations before the holidays, he had the honor of being the first in
+the school, and his behavior in general was so satisfactory and
+praiseworthy that the Fairy was very much pleased, and said to him:
+
+"Tomorrow your wish shall be gratified."
+
+"And that is?"
+
+"Tomorrow you shall cease to be a wooden puppet and you shall become a
+boy."
+
+No one who had not witnessed it could ever imagine Pinocchio's joy at
+this long-sighed-for good fortune. All his school-fellows were to be
+invited for the following day to a grand breakfast at the Fairy's house,
+that they might celebrate together the great event. The Fairy had
+prepared two hundred cups of coffee and milk, and four hundred rolls cut
+and buttered on each side. The day promised to be most happy and
+delightful, but--
+
+Unfortunately in the lives of puppets there is always a "but" that
+spoils everything.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+THE "LAND OF BOOBIES"
+
+
+Pinocchio, as was natural, asked the Fairy's permission to go round the
+town to give out the invitations, and the Fairy said to him:
+
+"Go, if you like, and invite your companions for the breakfast tomorrow,
+but remember to return home before dark. Have you understood?"
+
+"I promise to be back in an hour," answered the puppet.
+
+"Take care, Pinocchio! Boys are always very ready to promise, but
+generally they are little given to keep their word."
+
+"But I am not like other boys. When I say a thing, I do it."
+
+"We shall see. If you are disobedient, so much the worse for you."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because boys who do not listen to the advice of those who know more
+than they do always meet with some misfortune or other."
+
+"I have experienced that," said Pinocchio, "but I shall never make that
+mistake again."
+
+"We shall see if that is true."
+
+Without saying more the puppet took leave of his good Fairy, who was
+like a mamma to him, and went out of the house singing and dancing.
+
+In less than an hour all his friends were invited. Some accepted at once
+heartily; others at first required pressing; but when they heard that
+the rolls to be eaten with the coffee were to be buttered on both sides
+they ended by saying:
+
+"We will come also, to do you a pleasure."
+
+Now I must tell you that amongst Pinocchio's friends and school-fellows
+there was one that he greatly preferred and was very fond of. This boy's
+name was Romeo, but he always went by the nickname of Candlewick,
+because he was so thin, straight and bright, like the new wick of a
+little nightlight.
+
+Candlewick was the laziest and the naughtiest boy in the school, but
+Pinocchio was devoted to him. He had indeed gone at once to his house to
+invite him to the breakfast, but he had not found him. He returned a
+second time, but Candlewick was not there. He went a third time, but it
+was in vain. Where could he search for him? He looked here, there, and
+everywhere, and at last he saw him hiding on the porch of a peasant's
+cottage.
+
+"What are you doing there?" asked Pinocchio, coming up to him.
+
+"I am waiting for midnight, to start away."
+
+"And where are you going?"
+
+"I am going to live in a country--the most delightful country in the
+world: a real land of sweetmeats!"
+
+"And what is it called?"
+
+"It is called the 'Land of Boobies.' Why do you not come, too?"
+
+"I? No, never!"
+
+"You are wrong, Pinocchio. If you do not come you will repent it. Where
+could you find a better country for us boys? There are no schools there;
+there are no masters; there are no books. In that delightful land nobody
+ever studies. On Saturday there is never school, and every week consists
+of six Saturdays and one Sunday. Only think, the autumn holidays begin
+on the first of January and finish on the last day of December. That is
+the country for me! That is what all civilized countries should be
+like!"
+
+"But how are the days spent in the 'Land of Boobies'?"
+
+They are spent in play and amusement from morning till night. When night
+comes you go to bed, and recommence the same life in the morning. What
+do you think of it?"
+
+"Hum!" said Pinocchio, and he shook his head slightly, as much as to
+say, "That is a life that I also would willingly lead."
+
+"Well, will you go with me? Yes or no? Resolve quickly."
+
+"No, no, no, and again no. I promised my good Fairy to become a well
+conducted boy, and I will keep my word. And as I see that the sun is
+setting I must leave you at once and run away. Good-bye, and a pleasant
+journey to you."
+
+"Where are you rushing off to in such a hurry?"
+
+"Home. My good Fairy wishes me to be back before dark."
+
+"Wait another two minutes."
+
+"It will make me too late."
+
+"Only two minutes."
+
+"And if the Fairy scolds me?"
+
+"Let her scold. When she has scolded well she will hold her tongue,"
+said that rascal Candlewick.
+
+"And what are you going to do? Are you going alone or with companions?"
+
+"Alone? Indeed not, there will be more than a hundred boys."
+
+"And do you make the journey on foot?"
+
+"A coach will pass by shortly which is to take me to that happy
+country."
+
+"What would I not give for the coach to pass by now!"
+
+"Why?"
+
+"That I might see you all start together."
+
+"Stay here a little longer and you will see us."
+
+"No, no, I must go home."
+
+"Wait another two minutes."
+
+"I have already delayed too long. The Fairy will be anxious about me."
+
+"Poor Fairy! Is she afraid that the bats will eat you?"
+
+"But now," continued Pinocchio, "are you really certain that there are
+no schools in that country?"
+
+"Not even the shadow of one."
+
+"And no masters either?"
+
+"Not one."
+
+"And no one is ever made to study?"
+
+"Never, never, never!"
+
+"What a delightful country!" said Pinocchio, his mouth watering. "What a
+delightful country! I have never been there, but I can quite imagine
+it."
+
+"Why will you not come also?"
+
+"It is useless to tempt me. I promised my good Fairy to become a
+sensible boy, and I will not break my word."
+
+"Good-bye, then, and give my compliments to all the boys at school, if
+you meet them in the street."
+
+"Good-bye, Candlewick; a pleasant journey to you; amuse yourself, and
+think sometimes of your friends."
+
+Thus saying, the puppet made two steps to go, but then stopped, and,
+turning to his friend, he inquired:
+
+"But are you quite certain that in that country all the weeks consist of
+six Saturdays and one Sunday?"
+
+"Most certainly."
+
+"But do you know for certain that the holidays begin on the first of
+January and finish on the last day of December?"
+
+"Assuredly."
+
+"What a delightful country!" repeated Pinocchio, looking enchanted.
+Then, with a resolute air, he added in a great hurry:
+
+"This time really good-bye, and a pleasant journey to you."
+
+"Good-bye."
+
+"When do you start?"
+
+"Shortly."
+
+"What a pity! If really it wanted only an hour to the time of your
+start, I should almost be tempted to wait."
+
+"And the Fairy?"
+
+"It is already late. If I return home an hour sooner or later it will
+be all the same."
+
+"Poor Pinocchio! And if the Fairy scolds you?"
+
+"I must have patience! I will let her scold. When she has scolded well
+she will hold her tongue."
+
+In the meantime night had come on and it was quite dark. Suddenly they
+saw in the distance a small light moving and they heard a noise of
+talking, and the sound of a trumpet, but so small and feeble that it
+resembled the hum of a mosquito.
+
+"Here it is!" shouted Candlewick, jumping to his feet.
+
+"What is it?" asked Pinocchio in a whisper.
+
+"It is the coach coming to take me. Now will you come, yes or no?"
+
+"But is it really true," asked the puppet, "that in that country boys
+are never obliged to study?"
+
+"Never, never, never!"
+
+"What a delightful country! What a delightful country! What a delightful
+country!"
+
+[Illustration: THEY THOUGHT IT WOULD BE MORE COMFORTABLE TO GET ON THE
+TUNNY'S BACK]
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXI
+
+PINOCCHIO ENJOYS FIVE MONTHS OF HAPPINESS
+
+
+At last the coach arrived, and it arrived without making the slightest
+noise, for its wheels were bound round with flax and rags.
+
+It was drawn by twelve pairs of donkeys, all the same size but of
+different colors.
+
+Some were gray, some white, some brindled like pepper and salt, and
+others had large stripes of yellow and blue.
+
+But the most extraordinary thing was this: the twelve pairs, that is,
+the twenty-four donkeys, instead of being shod like other beasts of
+burden, had on their feet men's boots made of white kid.
+
+And the coachman?
+
+Picture to yourself a little man broader than he was long, flabby and
+greasy like a lump of butter, with a small round face like an orange, a
+little mouth that was always laughing, and a soft, caressing voice like
+a cat when she is trying to insinuate herself into the good graces of
+the mistress of the house.
+
+All the boys vied with each other in taking places in his coach, to be
+conducted to the "Land of Boobies."
+
+The coach was, in fact, quite full of boys between eight and fourteen
+years old, heaped one upon another like herrings in a barrel. They were
+uncomfortable, packed closely together and could hardly breathe; but
+nobody said "Oh!"--nobody grumbled. The consolation of knowing that in a
+few hours they would reach a country where there were no books, no
+schools, and no masters, made them so happy and resigned that they felt
+neither fatigue nor inconvenience, neither hunger, nor thirst, nor want
+of sleep.
+
+As soon as the coach had drawn up the little man turned to Candlewick
+and with a thousand smirks and grimaces said to him, smiling:
+
+"Tell me, my fine boy, would you also like to go to that fortunate
+country?"
+
+"I certainly wish to go."
+
+"But I must warn you, my dear child, that there is not a place left in
+the coach. You can see for yourself that it is quite full."
+
+"No matter," replied Candlewick, "if there is no place inside, I will
+manage to sit on the springs."
+
+And, giving a leap, he seated himself astride on the springs.
+
+"And you, my love!" said the little man, turning in a flattering manner
+to Pinocchio, "what do you intend to do? Are you coming with us or are
+you going to remain behind?"
+
+"I remain behind," answered Pinocchio. "I am going home. I intend to
+study, as all well conducted boys do."
+
+"Much good may it do you!"
+
+"Pinocchio!" called out Candlewick, "listen to me: come with us and we
+shall have such fun."
+
+"No, no, no!"
+
+"Come with us and we shall have such fun," shouted in chorus a hundred
+voices from the inside of the coach.
+
+"But if I come with you, what will my good Fairy say?" said the puppet,
+who was beginning to yield.
+
+"Do not trouble your head with melancholy thoughts. Consider only that
+we are going to a country where we shall be at liberty to run riot from
+morning till night."
+
+Pinocchio did not answer, but he sighed; he sighed again; he sighed for
+the third time, and he said finally:
+
+"Make a little room for me, for I am coming, too."
+
+"The places are all full," replied the little man; "but, to show you how
+welcome you are, you shall have my seat on the box."
+
+"And you?"
+
+"Oh, I will go on foot."
+
+"No, indeed, I could not allow that. I would rather mount one of these
+donkeys," cried Pinocchio.
+
+Approaching the right-hand donkey of the first pair, he attempted to
+mount him, but the animal turned on him and, giving him a great blow in
+the stomach, rolled him over with his legs in the air.
+
+You can imagine the impertinent and immoderate laughter of all the boys
+who witnessed this scene.
+
+But the little man did not laugh. He approached the rebellious donkey
+and, pretending to give him a kiss, bit off half of his ear.
+
+Pinocchio in the meantime had gotten up from the ground in a fury and,
+with a spring, he seated himself on the poor animal's back. And he
+sprang so well that the boys stopped laughing and began to shout:
+"Hurrah, Pinocchio!" and they clapped their hands and applauded him as
+if they would never finish.
+
+Now that Pinocchio was mounted, the coach started. Whilst the donkeys
+were galloping and the coach was rattling over the stones of the high
+road, the puppet thought that he heard a low voice that was scarcely
+audible saying to him:
+
+"Poor fool! you would follow your own way, but you will repent it!"
+
+Pinocchio, feeling almost frightened, looked from side to side to try
+and discover where these words could come from, but he saw nobody. The
+donkeys galloped, the coach rattled, the boys inside slept, Candlewick
+snored like a dormouse, and the little man seated on the box sang
+between his teeth:
+
+    "During the night all sleep,
+        But I sleep never."
+
+After they had gone another mile, Pinocchio heard the same little low
+voice saying to him:
+
+"Bear it in mind, simpleton! Boys who refuse to study and turn their
+backs upon books, schools and masters, to pass their time in play and
+amusement, sooner or later come to a bad end. I know it by experience,
+and I can tell you. A day will come when you will weep as I am weeping
+now, but then it will be too late!"
+
+On hearing these words whispered very softly, the puppet, more
+frightened than ever, sprang down from the back of his donkey and went
+and took hold of his mouth.
+
+Imagine his surprise when he found that the donkey was crying--crying
+like a boy!
+
+"Eh! Sir Coachman," cried Pinocchio to the little man, "here is an
+extraordinary thing! This donkey is crying."
+
+"Let him cry; he will laugh when he is a bridegroom."
+
+"But have you by chance taught him to talk?"
+
+"No; but he spent three years in a company of learned dogs, and he
+learned to mutter a few words."
+
+"Poor beast!"
+
+"Come, come," said the little man, "don't let us waste time in seeing a
+donkey cry. Mount him and let us go on: the night is cold and the road
+is long."
+
+Pinocchio obeyed without another word. In the morning about daybreak
+they arrived safely in the "Land of Boobies."
+
+It was a country unlike any other country in the world. The population
+was composed entirely of boys. The oldest were fourteen, and the
+youngest scarcely eight years old. In the streets there was such
+merriment, noise and shouting that it was enough to turn anybody's head.
+There were troops of boys everywhere. Some were playing with nuts, some
+with battledores, some with balls. Some rode velocipedes, others wooden
+horses. A party were playing at hide and seek, a few were chasing each
+other. Some were reciting, some singing, some leaping. Some were amusing
+themselves with walking on their hands with their feet in the air;
+others were trundling hoops or strutting about dressed as generals,
+wearing leaf helmets and commanding a squadron of cardboard soldiers.
+Some were laughing, some shouting, some were calling out; others clapped
+their hands, or whistled, or clucked like a hen who has just laid an
+egg.
+
+In every square, canvas theaters had been erected and they were crowded
+with boys from morning till evening. On the walls of the houses there
+were inscriptions written in charcoal: "Long live playthings, we will
+have no more schools; down with arithmetic," and similar other fine
+sentiments, all in bad spelling.
+
+Pinocchio, Candlewick and the other boys who had made the journey with
+the little man, had scarcely set foot in the town before they were in
+the thick of the tumult, and I need not tell you that in a few minutes
+they had made acquaintance with everybody. Where could happier or more
+contented boys be found?
+
+In the midst of continual games and every variety of amusement, the
+hours, the days and the weeks passed like lightning.
+
+"Oh, what a delightful life!" said Pinocchio, whenever by chance he met
+Candlewick.
+
+"See, then, if I was not right?" replied the other. "And to think that
+you did not want to come! To think that you had taken it into your head
+to return home to your Fairy, and to lose your time in studying! If you
+are this moment free from the bother of books and school, you must
+acknowledge that you owe it to me, to my advice, and to my persuasions.
+It is only friends who know how to render such great services."
+
+"It is true, Candlewick! If I am now a really happy boy, it is all your
+doing. But do you know what the master used to say when he talked to me
+of you? He always said to me: 'Do not associate with that rascal
+Candlewick, for he is a bad companion, and will only lead you into
+mischief!'"
+
+"Poor master!" replied the other, shaking his head. "I know only too
+well that he disliked me, and amused himself by calumniating me; but I
+am generous and I forgive him!"
+
+"Noble soul!" said Pinocchio, embracing his friend affectionately and
+kissing him between the eyes.
+
+This delightful life had gone on for five months. The days had been
+entirely spent in play and amusement, without a thought of books or
+school, when one morning Pinocchio awoke to a most disagreeable surprise
+that put him into a very bad humor.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXII
+
+PINOCCHIO TURNS INTO A DONKEY
+
+
+The surprise was that Pinocchio, when he awoke, scratched his head, and
+in scratching his head he discovered, to his great astonishment, that
+his ears had grown more than a hand.
+
+You know that the puppet from his birth had always had very small
+ears--so small that they were not visible to the naked eye. You can
+imagine then what he felt when he found that during the night his ears
+had become so long that they seemed like two brooms.
+
+He went at once in search of a glass that he might look at himself, but,
+not being able to find one, he filled the basin of his washing-stand
+with water, and he saw reflected what he certainly would never have
+wished to see. He saw his head embellished with a magnificent pair of
+donkey's ears!
+
+Only think of poor Pinocchio's sorrow, shame and despair!
+
+He began to cry and roar, and he beat his head against the wall, but the
+more he cried the longer his ears grew; they grew, and grew, and became
+hairy towards the points.
+
+At the sound of his loud outcries a beautiful little Marmot that lived
+on the first floor came into the room. Seeing the puppet in such grief
+she asked earnestly:
+
+"What has happened to you, my dear fellow-lodger?"
+
+"I am ill, my dear little Marmot, very ill, and my illness frightens me.
+Do you understand counting a pulse?"
+
+"A little."
+
+"Then feel and see if by chance I have got fever."
+
+The little Marmot raised her right fore-paw, and, after having felt
+Pinocchio's pulse, she said to him, sighing:
+
+"My friend, I am grieved to be obliged to give you bad news!"
+
+"What is it?"
+
+"You have got a very bad fever!"
+
+"What fever is it?"
+
+"It is donkey fever."
+
+"That is a fever that I do not understand," said the puppet, but he
+understood it only too well.
+
+"Then I will explain it to you," said the Marmot. "You must know that in
+two or three hours you will be no longer a puppet, or a boy."
+
+"Then what shall I be?"
+
+"In two or three hours you will become really and truly a little donkey,
+like those that draw carts and carry cabbages and salad to market."
+
+"Oh, unfortunate that I am! unfortunate that I am!" cried Pinocchio,
+seizing his two ears with his hands and pulling them and tearing them
+furiously as if they had been some one else's ears.
+
+"My dear boy," said the Marmot, by way of consoling him, "you can do
+nothing. It is destiny. It is written in the decrees of wisdom that all
+boys who are lazy, and who take a dislike to books, to schools, and to
+masters, and who pass their time in amusement, games, and diversions,
+must end sooner or later by becoming transformed into so many little
+donkeys."
+
+"But is it really so?" asked the puppet, sobbing.
+
+"It is indeed only too true! And tears are now useless. You should have
+thought of it sooner!"
+
+"But it was not my fault; believe me, little Marmot, the fault was all
+Candlewick's!"
+
+"And who is this Candlewick?"
+
+"One of my school-fellows. I wanted to return home; I wanted to be
+obedient. I wished to study, but Candlewick said to me: 'Why should you
+bother yourself by studying? Why should you go to school? Come with us
+instead to the "Land of Boobies"; there we shall none of us have to
+learn; there we shall amuse ourselves from morning to night, and we
+shall always be merry'."
+
+"And why did you follow the advice of that false friend? of that bad
+companion?"
+
+"Why? Because, my dear little Marmot, I am a puppet with no sense, and
+with no heart. Ah! if I had had the least heart I should never have left
+that good Fairy who loved me like a mamma, and who had done so much for
+me! And I would be no longer a puppet, for I would by this time have
+become a little boy like so many others: But if I meet Candlewick, woe
+to him! He shall hear what I think of him!"
+
+And he turned to go out. But when he reached the door he remembered his
+donkey's ears, and, feeling ashamed to show them in public, what do you
+think he did? He took a big cotton cap and, putting it on his head, he
+pulled it well down over the point of his nose.
+
+He then set out and went everywhere in search of Candlewick. He looked
+for him in the streets, in the squares, in the little theaters, in every
+possible place, but he could not find him. He inquired for him of
+everybody he met, but no one had seen him.
+
+He then went to seek him at his house and, having reached the door, he
+knocked.
+
+"Who is there?" asked Candlewick from within.
+
+"It is I!" answered the puppet.
+
+"Wait a moment and I will let you in."
+
+After half an hour the door was opened and imagine Pinocchio's feelings
+when, upon going into the room, he saw his friend Candlewick with a big
+cotton cap on his head which came down over his nose.
+
+At the sight of the cap Pinocchio felt almost consoled and thought to
+himself:
+
+"Has my friend got the same illness that I have? Is he also suffering
+from donkey fever?"
+
+And, pretending to have observed nothing, he asked him, smiling:
+
+"How are you, my dear Candlewick?"
+
+"Very well; as well as a mouse in a Parmesan cheese."
+
+"Are you saying that seriously?"
+
+"Why should I tell you a lie?"
+
+"Excuse me; but why, then, do you keep that cotton cap on your head
+which covers up your ears?"
+
+"The doctor ordered me to wear it because I have hurt this knee. And
+you, dear puppet, why have you got on that cotton cap pulled down over
+your nose?"
+
+"The doctor prescribed it because I have grazed my foot."
+
+"Oh, poor Pinocchio!"
+
+"Oh, poor Candlewick!"
+
+After these words a long silence followed, during which the two friends
+did nothing but look mockingly at each other.
+
+At last the puppet said in a soft voice to his companion:
+
+"Satisfy my curiosity, my dear Candlewick: have you ever suffered from
+disease of the ears?"
+
+"Never! And you?"
+
+"Never. Only since this morning one of my ears aches."
+
+"Mine is also paining me."
+
+"You also? And which of your ears hurts you?"
+
+"Both of them. And you?"
+
+"Both of them. Can we have got the same illness?"
+
+"I fear so."
+
+"Will you do me a kindness, Candlewick?"
+
+"Willingly! With all my heart."
+
+"Will you let me see your ears?"
+
+"Why not? But first, my dear Pinocchio, I should like to see yours."
+
+"No: you must be first."
+
+"No, dear. First you and then I!"
+
+"Well," said the puppet, "let us come to an agreement like good
+friends."
+
+"Let us hear it."
+
+"We will both take off our caps at the same moment. Do you agree?"
+
+"I agree."
+
+"Then, attention!"
+
+And Pinocchio began to count in a loud voice:
+
+"One, two, three!"
+
+At the word "Three!" the two boys took off their caps and threw them
+into the air.
+
+And then a scene followed that would seem incredible if it were not
+true. That is, that when Pinocchio and Candlewick discovered that they
+were both struck with the same misfortune, instead of feeling full of
+mortification and grief, they began to prick their ungainly ears and to
+make a thousand antics, and they ended by going into bursts of laughter.
+
+And they laughed, and laughed, and laughed, until they had to hold
+themselves together. But in the midst of their merriment Candlewick
+suddenly stopped, staggered, and, changing color, said to his friend:
+
+"Help, help, Pinocchio!"
+
+"What is the matter with you?"
+
+"Alas, I cannot any longer stand upright."
+
+"Neither can I," exclaimed Pinocchio, tottering and beginning to cry.
+
+And whilst they were talking, they both doubled up and began to run
+round the room on their hands and feet. And as they ran, their hands
+became hoofs, their faces lengthened into muzzles, and their backs
+became covered with a light gray hairy coat sprinkled with black.
+
+But do you know what was the worst moment for these two wretched boys?
+The worst and the most humiliating moment was when their tails grew.
+Vanquished by shame and sorrow, they wept and lamented their fate.
+
+Oh, if they had but been wiser! But instead of sighs and lamentations
+they could only bray like asses; and they brayed loudly and said in
+chorus: "Hee-haw!"
+
+Whilst this was going on some one knocked at the door and a voice on the
+outside said:
+
+"Open the door! I am the little man, I am the coachman who brought you
+to this country. Open at once, or it will be the worse for you!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXIII
+
+PINOCCHIO IS TRAINED FOR THE CIRCUS
+
+
+Finding that the door remained shut the little man burst it open with a
+violent kick and, coming into the room, he said to Pinocchio and
+Candlewick with his usual little laugh:
+
+"Well done, boys! You brayed well, and I recognized you by your voices.
+That is why I am here."
+
+At these words the two little donkeys were quite stupefied and stood
+with their heads down, their ears lowered, and their tails between their
+legs.
+
+At first the little man stroked and caressed them; then, taking out a
+currycomb, he currycombed them well. And when by this process he had
+polished them till they shone like two mirrors, he put a halter round
+their necks and led them to the market-place, in hopes of selling them
+and making a good profit.
+
+And indeed buyers were not wanting. Candlewick was bought by a peasant
+whose donkey had died the previous day. Pinocchio was sold to the
+director of a company of buffoons and tight-rope dancers, who bought him
+that he might teach him to leap and to dance with the other animals
+belonging to the company.
+
+And now, my little readers, you will have understood the fine trade that
+little man pursued. The wicked little monster, who had a face all milk
+and honey, made frequent journeys round the world with his coach. As he
+went along he collected, with promises and flattery, all the idle boys
+who had taken a dislike to books and school. As soon as his coach was
+full he conducted them to the "Land of Boobies," that they might pass
+their time in games, in uproar, and in amusement. When these poor,
+deluded boys, from continual play and no study, had become so many
+little donkeys, he took possession of them with great delight and
+satisfaction, and carried them off to the fairs and markets to be sold.
+And in this way he had in a few years made heaps of money and had become
+a millionaire.
+
+What became of Candlewick I do not know, but I do know that Pinocchio
+from the very first day had to endure a very hard, laborious life.
+
+When he was put into his stall his master filled the manger with straw;
+but Pinocchio, having tried a mouthful, spat it out again.
+
+Then his master, grumbling, filled the manger with hay; but neither did
+the hay please him.
+
+"Ah!" exclaimed his master in a passion. "Does not hay please you
+either? Leave it to me, my fine donkey; if you are so full of caprices I
+will find a way to cure you!"
+
+And by way of correcting him he struck his legs with his whip.
+
+Pinocchio began to cry and to bray with pain, and he said, braying:
+
+"Hee-haw! I cannot digest straw!"
+
+"Then eat hay!" said his master, who understood perfectly the asinine
+dialect.
+
+"Hee-haw! hay gives me a pain in my stomach."
+
+"Do you mean to pretend that a little donkey like you must be kept on
+breasts of chickens, and capons in jelly?" asked his master, getting
+more and more angry, and whipping him again.
+
+At this second whipping Pinocchio prudently held his tongue and said
+nothing more.
+
+The stable was then shut and Pinocchio was left alone. He had not eaten
+for many hours and he began to yawn from hunger. And when he yawned he
+opened a mouth that seemed as wide as an oven.
+
+At last, finding nothing else in the manger, he resigned himself and
+chewed a little hay; and after he had chewed it well, he shut his eyes
+and swallowed it.
+
+"This hay is not bad," he said to himself; "but how much better it would
+have been if I had gone on with my studies! Instead of hay I might now
+be eating a hunch of new bread and a fine slice of sausage. But I must
+have patience!"
+
+The next morning when he woke he looked in the manger for a little more
+hay; but he found none, for he had eaten it all during the night.
+
+Then he took a mouthful of chopped straw, but whilst he was chewing it
+he had to acknowledge that the taste of chopped straw did not in the
+least resemble a savory dish of macaroni or pie.
+
+"But I must have patience!" he repeated as he went on chewing. "May my
+example serve at least as a warning to all disobedient boys who do not
+want to study. Patience!"
+
+"Patience indeed!" shouted his master, coming at that moment into the
+stable. "Do you think, my little donkey, that I bought you only to give
+you food and drink? I bought you to make you work, and that you might
+earn money for me. Up, then, at once! you must come with me into the
+circus, and there I will teach you to jump through hoops, to go through
+frames of paper head foremost, to dance waltzes and polkas, and to stand
+upright on your hind legs."
+
+Poor Pinocchio, either by love or by force, had to learn all these fine
+things. But it took him three months before he had learned them, and he
+got many a whipping that nearly took off his skin.
+
+At last a day came when his master was able to announce that he would
+give a really extraordinary representation. The many colored placards
+stuck on the street corners were thus worded:
+
+
+                GREAT FULL DRESS REPRESENTATION
+
+                           TONIGHT
+        WILL TAKE PLACE THE USUAL FEATS AND SURPRISING
+           PERFORMANCES EXECUTED BY ALL THE ARTISTS
+             AND BY ALL THE HORSES OF THE COMPANY
+                         AND MOREOVER
+                          THE FAMOUS
+                   LITTLE DONKEY PINOCCHIO
+                            CALLED
+                    THE STAR OF THE DANCE
+                WILL MAKE HIS FIRST APPEARANCE
+
+         THE THEATER WILL BE BRILLIANTLY ILLUMINATED
+
+[Illustration: In Less Than an Hour All His Friends Were Invited]
+
+On that evening, as you may imagine, an hour before the play was to
+begin the theater was crammed.
+
+There was not a place to be had either in the pit or the stalls, or in
+the boxes even, by paying its weight in gold.
+
+The benches round the circus were crowded with children and with boys of
+all ages, who were in a fever of impatience to see the famous little
+donkey Pinocchio dance.
+
+When the first part of the performance was over, the director of the
+company, dressed in a black coat, white breeches, and big leather boots
+that came above his knees, presented himself to the public, and, after
+making a profound bow, he began with much solemnity the following
+ridiculous speech:
+
+"Respectable public, ladies and gentlemen! The humble undersigned being
+a passer-by in this illustrious city, I have wished to procure for
+myself the honor, not to say the pleasure, of presenting to this
+intelligent and distinguished audience a celebrated little donkey, who
+has already had the honor of dancing in the presence of His Majesty the
+Emperor of all the principal courts of Europe.
+
+"And, thanking you, I beg of you to help us with your inspiring presence
+and to be indulgent to us."
+
+This speech was received with much laughter and applause, but the
+applause redoubled and became tumultuous when the little donkey
+Pinocchio made his appearance in the middle of the circus. He was decked
+out for the occasion. He had a new bridle of polished leather with brass
+buckles and studs, and two white camelias in his ears. His mane was
+divided and curled, and each curl was tied with bows of colored ribbon.
+He had a girth of gold and silver round his body, and his tail was
+plaited with amaranth and blue velvet ribbons. He was, in fact, a little
+donkey to fall in love with!
+
+The director, in presenting him to the public, added these few words:
+
+"My respectable auditors! I am not here to tell you falsehoods of the
+great difficulties that I have overcome in understanding and subjugating
+this mammifer, whilst he was grazing at liberty amongst the mountains in
+the plains of the torrid zone. I beg you will observe the wild rolling
+of his eyes. Every means having been tried in vain to tame him, and to
+accustom him to the life of domestic quadrupeds, I was often forced to
+have recourse to the convincing argument of the whip. But all my
+goodness to him, instead of gaining his affections, has, on the
+contrary, increased his viciousness. However, following the system of
+Gall, I discovered in his cranium a bony cartilage that the Faculty of
+Medicine of Paris has itself recognized as the regenerating bulb of the
+hair, and of dance. For this reason I have not only taught him to dance,
+but also to jump through hoops and through frames covered with paper.
+Admire him, and then pass your opinion on him! But before taking my
+leave of you, permit me, ladies and gentlemen, to invite you to the
+daily performance that will take place tomorrow evening; but in case the
+weather should threaten rain, the performance will be postponed till
+tomorrow morning at 11 ante-meridian of post-meridian."
+
+Here the director made another profound bow, and, then turning to
+Pinocchio, he said:
+
+"Courage, Pinocchio! before you begin your feats make your bow to this
+distinguished audience--ladies, gentlemen, and children."
+
+Pinocchio obeyed, and bent both his knees till they touched the ground,
+and remained kneeling until the director, cracking his whip, shouted to
+him:
+
+"At a foot's pace!"
+
+Then the little donkey raised himself on his four legs and began to walk
+round the theater, keeping at a foot's pace.
+
+After a little the director cried:
+
+"Trot!" and Pinocchio, obeying the order, changed to a trot.
+
+"Gallop!" and Pinocchio broke into a gallop.
+
+"Full gallop!" and Pinocchio went full gallop. But whilst he was going
+full speed like a race horse the director, raising his arm in the air,
+fired off a pistol.
+
+At the shot the little donkey, pretending to be wounded, fell his whole
+length in the circus, as if he were really dying.
+
+As he got up from the ground amidst an outburst of applause, shouts and
+clapping of hands, he naturally raised his head and looked up, and he
+saw in one of the boxes a beautiful lady who wore round her neck a thick
+gold chain from which hung a medallion. On the medallion was painted the
+portrait of a puppet.
+
+"That is my portrait! That lady is the Fairy!" said Pinocchio to
+himself, recognizing her immediately; and, overcome with delight, he
+tried to cry:
+
+"Oh, my little Fairy! Oh, my little Fairy!"
+
+But instead of these words a bray came from his throat, so sonorous and
+so prolonged that all the spectators laughed, and more especially all
+the children who were in the theater.
+
+Then the director, to give him a lesson, and to make him understand that
+it is not good manners to bray before the public, gave him a blow on his
+nose with the handle of his whip.
+
+The poor little donkey put his tongue out an inch and licked his nose
+for at least five minutes, thinking perhaps that it would ease the pain
+he felt.
+
+But what was his despair when, looking up a second time, he saw that the
+box was empty and that the Fairy had disappeared!
+
+He thought he was going to die; his eyes filled with tears and he began
+to weep. Nobody, however, noticed it, and least of all the director who,
+cracking his whip, shouted:
+
+"Courage, Pinocchio! Now let the audience see how gracefully you can
+jump through the hoops."
+
+Pinocchio tried two or three times, but each time that he came in front
+of the hoop, instead of going through it, he found it easier to go under
+it. At last he made a leap and went through it, but his right leg
+unfortunately caught in the hoop, and that caused him to fall to the
+ground doubled up in a heap on the other side.
+
+When he got up he was lame and it was only with great difficulty that he
+managed to return to the stable.
+
+"Bring out Pinocchio! We want the little donkey! Bring out the little
+donkey!" shouted all the boys in the theater, touched and sorry for the
+sad accident.
+
+But the little donkey was seen no more that evening.
+
+The following morning the veterinary, that is, the doctor of animals,
+paid him a visit, and declared that he would remain lame for life.
+
+The director then said to the stable-boy:
+
+"What do you suppose I can do with a lame donkey? He would eat food
+without earning it. Take him to the market and sell him."
+
+When they reached the market a purchaser was found at once. He asked the
+stable-boy:
+
+"How much do you want for that lame donkey?"
+
+"Twenty dollars."
+
+"I will give you two dollars. Don't suppose that I am buying him to make
+use of; I am buying him solely for his skin. I see that his skin is very
+hard and I intend to make a drum with it for the band of my village."
+
+Imagine poor Pinocchio's feelings when he heard that he was destined to
+become a drum!
+
+As soon as the purchaser had paid his two dollars he conducted the
+little donkey to the seashore. He then put a stone round his neck and,
+tying a rope, the end of which he held in his hand, round his leg, he
+gave him a sudden push and threw him into the water.
+
+Pinocchio, weighted down by the stone, went at once to the bottom, and
+his owner, keeping tight hold of the cord, sat down quietly on a piece
+of rock to wait until the little donkey was drowned, intending then to
+skin him.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXIV
+
+PINOCCHIO IS SWALLOWED BY THE DOG-FISH
+
+
+After Pinocchio had been fifty minutes under the water, his purchaser
+said aloud to himself:
+
+"My poor little lame donkey must by this time be quite drowned. I will
+therefore pull him out of the water, and I will make a fine drum of his
+skin."
+
+And he began to haul in the rope that he had tied to the donkey's leg,
+and he hauled, and hauled, and hauled, until at last--what do you think
+appeared above the water? Instead of a little dead donkey he saw a live
+puppet, who was wriggling like an eel.
+
+Seeing this wooden puppet, the poor man thought he was dreaming, and,
+struck dumb with astonishment, he remained with his mouth open and his
+eyes starting out of his head.
+
+Having somewhat recovered from his first stupefaction, he asked in a
+quavering voice:
+
+"And the little donkey that I threw into the sea? What has become of
+him?"
+
+"I am the little donkey!" said Pinocchio, laughing.
+
+"You?"
+
+"I."
+
+"Ah, you young scamp!! Do you dare to make game of me?"
+
+"To make game of you? Quite the contrary, my dear master? I am speaking
+seriously."
+
+"But how can you, who but a short time ago were a little donkey, have
+become a wooden puppet, only from having been left in the water?"
+
+"It must have been the effect of sea water. The sea makes extraordinary
+changes."
+
+"Beware, puppet, beware! Don't imagine that you can amuse yourself at my
+expense. Woe to you if I lose patience!"
+
+"Well, master, do you wish to know the true story? If you will set my
+leg free I will tell it you."
+
+The good man, who was curious to hear the true story, immediately untied
+the knot that kept him bound; and Pinocchio, finding himself free as a
+bird in the air, commenced as follows:
+
+"You must know that I was once a puppet as I am now, and I was on the
+point of becoming a boy like the many who are in the world. But instead,
+induced by my dislike for study and the advice of bad companions, I ran
+away from home. One fine day when I awoke I found myself changed into a
+donkey with long ears, and a long tail. What a disgrace it was to
+me!--a disgrace, dear master, that even your worst enemy would not
+inflict upon you! Taken to the market to be sold I was bought by the
+director of an equestrian company, who took it into his head to make a
+famous dancer of me, and a famous leaper through hoops. But one night
+during a performance I had a bad fall in the circus and lamed both my
+legs. Then the director, not knowing what to do with a lame donkey, sent
+me to be sold, and you were the purchaser!"
+
+"Only too true. And I paid two dollars for you. And now, who will give
+me back my good money?"
+
+"And why did you buy me? You bought me to make a drum of my skin!"
+
+"Only too true! And now, where shall I find another skin?"
+
+"Don't despair, master. There are such a number of little donkeys in the
+world!"
+
+"Tell me, you impertinent rascal, does your story end here?"
+
+"No," answered the puppet; "I have another two words to say and then I
+shall have finished. After you had bought me you brought me to this
+place to kill me; but then, yielding to a feeling of compassion, you
+preferred to tie a stone round my neck and to throw me into the sea.
+This humane feeling does you great honor and I shall always be grateful
+to you for it. But, nevertheless, dear master, this time you made your
+calculations without considering the Fairy!"
+
+"And who is the Fairy?"
+
+"She is my mamma and she resembles all other good mammas who care for
+their children, and who never lose sight of them, but help them
+lovingly, even when, on account of their foolishness and evil conduct,
+they deserve to be abandoned and left to themselves. Well, then, the
+good Fairy, as soon as she saw that I was in danger of drowning, sent
+immediately an immense shoal of fish, who, believing me really to be a
+little dead donkey, began to eat me. And what mouthfuls they took; I
+should never have thought that fish were greedier than boys! Some ate my
+ears, some my muzzle, others my neck and mane, some the skin of my legs,
+some my coat. Amongst them there was a little fish so polite that he
+even condescended to eat my tail."
+
+"From this time forth," said his purchaser, horrified, "I swear that I
+will never touch fish. It would be too dreadful to open a mullet, or a
+fried whiting, and to find inside a donkey's tail!"
+
+"I agree with you," said the puppet, laughing. "However, I must tell you
+that when the fish had finished eating the donkey's hide that covered me
+from head to foot, they naturally reached the bone, or rather the wood,
+for, as you see, I am made of the hardest wood. But after giving a few
+bites they soon discovered that I was not a morsel for their teeth, and,
+disgusted with such indigestible food, they went off, some in one
+direction and some in another, without so much as saying 'Thank you' to
+me. And now, at last, I have told you how it was that when you pulled up
+the rope you found a live puppet instead of a dead donkey."
+
+"I laugh at your story," cried the man in a rage. "I know only that I
+spent two dollars to buy you, and I will have my money back. Shall I
+tell you what I will do? I will take you back to the market and I will
+sell you by weight as seasoned wood for lighting fires."
+
+"Sell me if you like; I am content," said Pinocchio.
+
+But as he said it he made a spring and plunged into the water. Swimming
+gaily away from the shore, he called to his poor owner:
+
+"Good-bye, master; if you should be in want of a skin to make a drum,
+remember me."
+
+And he laughed and went on swimming, and after a while he turned again
+and shouted louder:
+
+"Good-bye, master; if you should be in want of a little well seasoned
+wood for lighting the fire, remember me."
+
+In the twinkling of an eye he had swum so far off that he was scarcely
+visible. All that could be seen of him was a little black speck on the
+surface of the sea that from time to time lifted its legs out of the
+water and leaped and capered like a dolphin enjoying himself.
+
+Whilst Pinocchio was swimming, he knew not whither, he saw in the midst
+of the sea a rock that seemed to be made of white marble, and on the
+summit there stood a beautiful little goat who bleated lovingly and made
+signs to him to approach.
+
+But the most singular thing was this. The little goat's hair, instead of
+being white or black, or a mixture of two colors as is usual with other
+goats, was blue, and a very vivid blue, greatly resembling the hair of
+the beautiful Child.
+
+I leave you to imagine how rapidly poor Pinocchio's heart began to beat.
+He swam with redoubled strength and energy towards the white rock; and
+he was already half-way there when he saw, rising up out of the water
+and coming to meet him, the horrible head of a sea-monster. His
+wide-open, cavernous mouth and his three rows of enormous teeth would
+have been terrifying to look at even in a picture.
+
+And do you know what this sea-monster was?
+
+This sea-monster was neither more nor less than that gigantic Dog-Fish,
+who has been mentioned many times in this story, and who, for his
+slaughter and for his insatiable voracity, had been named the "Attila of
+Fish and Fishermen."
+
+Only to think of poor Pinocchio's terror at the sight of the monster. He
+tried to avoid it, to change his direction; he tried to escape, but that
+immense, wide-open mouth came towards him with the velocity of an arrow.
+
+"Be quick, Pinocchio, for pity's sake!" cried the beautiful little goat,
+bleating.
+
+And Pinocchio swam desperately with his arms, his chest, his legs, and
+his feet.
+
+"Quick, Pinocchio, the monster is close upon you!"
+
+And Pinocchio swam quicker than ever, and flew on with the rapidity of a
+ball from a gun. He had nearly reached the rock, and the little goat,
+leaning over towards the sea, had stretched out her fore-legs to help
+him out of the water!
+
+But it was too late! The monster had overtaken him and, drawing in his
+breath, he sucked in the poor puppet as he would have sucked a hen's
+egg; and he swallowed him with such violence and avidity that Pinocchio,
+in falling into the Dog-Fish's stomach, received such a blow that he
+remained unconscious for a quarter of an hour afterwards.
+
+When he came to himself again after the shock he could not in the least
+imagine in what world he was. All around him it was quite dark, and the
+darkness was so black and so profound that it seemed to him that he had
+fallen head downwards into an inkstand full of ink. He listened, but he
+could hear no noise; only from time to time great gusts of wind blew in
+his face. At first he could not understand where the wind came from, but
+at last he discovered that it came out of the monster's lungs. For you
+must know that the Dog-Fish suffered very much from asthma, and when he
+breathed it was exactly as if a north wind was blowing.
+
+Pinocchio at first tried to keep up his courage, but when he had one
+proof after another that he was really shut up in the body of this
+sea-monster he began to cry and scream, and to sob out:
+
+"Help! help! Oh, how unfortunate I am! Will nobody come to save me?"
+
+"Who do you think could save you, unhappy wretch?" said a voice in the
+dark that sounded like a guitar out of tune.
+
+"Who is speaking?" asked Pinocchio, frozen with terror.
+
+"It is I! I am a poor Tunny who was swallowed by the Dog-Fish at the
+same time that you were. And what fish are you?"
+
+"I have nothing in common with fish. I am a puppet."
+
+"Then, if you are not a fish, why did you let yourself be swallowed by
+the monster?"
+
+"I didn't let myself be swallowed; it was the monster swallowed me! And
+now, what are we to do here in the dark?"
+
+"Resign ourselves and wait until the Dog-Fish has digested us both."
+
+"But I do not want to be digested!" howled Pinocchio, beginning to cry
+again.
+
+"Neither do I want to be digested," added the Tunny; "but I am enough of
+a philosopher to console myself by thinking that when one is born a
+Tunny it is more dignified to die in the water than in oil."
+
+"That is all nonsense!" cried Pinocchio.
+
+"It is my opinion," replied the Tunny, "and opinions, so say the
+political Tunnies, ought to be respected."
+
+"To sum it all up, I want to get away from here. I want to escape."
+
+"Escape, if you are able!"
+
+"Is this Dog-Fish who has swallowed us very big?" asked the puppet.
+
+"Big! Why, only imagine, his body is two miles long without counting his
+tail."
+
+Whilst they were holding this conversation in the dark, Pinocchio
+thought that he saw a light a long way off.
+
+"What is that little light I see in the distance?" he asked.
+
+"It is most likely some companion in misfortune who is waiting, like us,
+to be digested."
+
+"I will go and find him. Do you not think that it may by chance be some
+old fish who perhaps could show us how to escape?"
+
+"I hope it may be so, with all my heart, dear puppet."
+
+"Good-bye, Tunny."
+
+"Good-bye, puppet, and good fortune attend you."
+
+"Where shall we meet again?"
+
+"Who can say? It is better not even to think of it!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXV
+
+A HAPPY SURPRISE FOR PINOCCHIO
+
+
+Pinocchio, having taken leave of his friend the Tunny, began to grope
+his way in the dark through the body of the Dog-Fish, taking a step at a
+time in the direction of the light that he saw shining dimly at a great
+distance.
+
+The farther he advanced the brighter became the light; and he walked and
+walked until at last he reached it; and when he reached it--what did he
+find? I will give you a thousand guesses. He found a little table spread
+out and on it a lighted candle stuck into a green glass bottle, and,
+seated at the table, was a little old man. He was eating some live fish,
+and they were so very much alive that whilst he was eating them they
+sometimes even jumped out of his mouth.
+
+At this sight Pinocchio was filled with such great and unexpected joy
+that he became almost delirious. He wanted to laugh, he wanted to cry,
+he wanted to say a thousand things, and instead he could only stammer
+out a few confused and broken words. At last he succeeded in uttering a
+cry of joy, and, opening his arms, he threw them around the little old
+man's neck, and began to shout:
+
+"Oh, my dear papa! I have found you at last! I will never leave you
+more, never more, never more!"
+
+"Then my eyes tell me true?" said the little old man, rubbing his eyes;
+"then you are really my dear Pinocchio?"
+
+"Yes, yes, I am Pinocchio, really Pinocchio! And you have quite forgiven
+me, have you not? Oh, my dear papa, how good you are! And to think that
+I, on the contrary--Oh! but if you only knew what misfortunes have been
+poured on my head, and all that has befallen me! Only imagine, the day
+that you, poor, dear papa, sold your coat to buy me a spelling-book,
+that I might go to school, I escaped to see the puppet show, and the
+showman wanted to put me on the fire, that I might roast his mutton, and
+he was the same that afterwards gave me five gold pieces to take them to
+you, but I met the Fox and the Cat, who took me to the inn of The Red
+Craw-Fish, where they ate like wolves, and I left by myself in the
+middle of the night, and I encountered assassins who ran after me, and I
+ran away, and they followed, and I ran, and they always followed me, and
+I ran, until they hung me to a branch of a Big Oak, and the beautiful
+Child with blue hair sent a little carriage to fetch me, and the doctors
+when they saw me said immediately, 'If he is not dead, it is a proof
+that he is still alive'--and then by chance I told a lie, and my nose
+began to grow until I could no longer get through the door of the room,
+for which reason I went with the Fox and the Cat to bury the four gold
+pieces, for one I had spent at the inn, and the Parrot began to laugh,
+and instead of two thousand gold pieces I found none left, for which
+reason the judge when he heard that I had been robbed had me immediately
+put in prison to content the robbers, and then when I was coming away I
+saw a beautiful bunch of grapes in a field, and I was caught in a trap,
+and the peasant, who was quite right, put a dog-collar round my neck
+that I might guard the poultry-yard, and acknowledging my innocence let
+me go, and the Serpent with the smoking tail began to laugh and broke a
+blood-vessel in his chest, and so I returned to the house of the
+beautiful Child, who was dead, and the Pigeon, seeing that I was crying,
+said to me, 'I have seen your father who was building a little boat to
+go in search of you,' and I said to him, 'Oh! if I also had wings,' and
+he said to me, 'Do you want to go to your father?' and I said, 'Without
+doubt! but who will take me to him?' and he said to me, 'I will take
+you,' and I said to him, 'How?' and he said to me, 'Get on my back,' and
+so we flew all night, and then in the morning all the fishermen who were
+looking out to sea said to me, 'There is a poor man in a boat who is on
+the point of being drowned,' and I recognized you at once, even at that
+distance, for my heart told me, and I made signs to you to return to
+land."
+
+"I also recognized you," said Geppetto, "and I would willingly have
+returned to the shore, but what was I to do! The sea was tremendous and
+a great wave upset my boat. Then a horrible Dog-Fish, who was near, as
+soon as he saw me in the water, came towards me, and, putting out his
+tongue, took hold of me and swallowed me as if I had been a little apple
+tart."
+
+"And how long have you been shut up here?" asked Pinocchio.
+
+[Illustration: They Thought It Would Be More Comfortable to Get on the
+Tunny's Back]
+
+"Since that day--it must be nearly two years ago; two years, my dear
+Pinocchio, that have seemed like two centuries!"
+
+"And how have you managed to live? And where did you get the candle? And
+the matches to light it? Who gave them to you?"
+
+"Stop, and I will tell you everything. You must know, then, that in the
+same storm in which my boat was upset a merchant vessel foundered. The
+sailors were all saved, but the vessel went to the bottom, and the
+Dog-Fish, who had that day an excellent appetite, after he had swallowed
+me, swallowed also the vessel."
+
+"How?"
+
+"He swallowed it in one mouthful, and the only thing that he spat out
+was the mainmast, that had stuck between his teeth like a fish-bone.
+Fortunately for me, the vessel was laden with preserved meat in tins,
+biscuit, bottles of wine, dried raisins, cheese, coffee, sugar, candles,
+and boxes of wax matches. With this providential supply I have been able
+to live for two years. But I have arrived at the end of my resources;
+there is nothing left in the larder, and this candle that you see
+burning is the last that remains."
+
+"And after that?"
+
+"After that, dear boy, we shall both remain in the dark."
+
+"Then, dear little papa," said Pinocchio, "there is no time to lose. We
+must think of escaping."
+
+"Of escaping? How?"
+
+"We must escape through the mouth of the Dog-Fish, throw ourselves into
+the sea and swim away."
+
+"You talk well; but, dear Pinocchio, I don't know how to swim."
+
+"What does that matter? I am a good swimmer, and you can get on my
+shoulders and I will carry you safely to shore."
+
+"All illusions, my boy!" replied Geppetto, shaking his head, with a
+melancholy smile. "Do you suppose it possible that a puppet like you,
+scarcely a yard high, could have the strength to swim with me on his
+shoulders!"
+
+"Try it and you will see!"
+
+Without another word Pinocchio took the candle in his hand, and, going
+in front to light the way, he said to his father:
+
+"Follow me, and don't be afraid."
+
+And they walked for some time and traversed the body and the stomach of
+the Dog-Fish. But when they had arrived at the point where the monster's
+big throat began, they thought it better to stop to give a good look
+around and to choose the best moment for escaping.
+
+Now, I must tell you that the Dog-Fish, being very old, and suffering
+from asthma and palpitation of the heart, was obliged to sleep with his
+mouth open. Pinocchio, therefore, having approached the entrance to his
+throat, and, looking up, could see beyond the enormous gaping mouth a
+large piece of starry sky and beautiful moonlight.
+
+"This is the moment to escape," he whispered, turning to his father;
+"the Dog-Fish is sleeping like a dormouse, the sea is calm, and it is as
+light as day. Follow me, dear papa, and in a short time we shall be in
+safety."
+
+They immediately climbed up the throat of the sea-monster, and, having
+reached his immense mouth, they began to walk on tiptoe down his tongue.
+
+Before taking the final leap the puppet said to his father:
+
+"Get on my shoulders and put your arms tightly around my neck. I will
+take care of the rest."
+
+As soon as Geppetto was firmly settled on his son's shoulders,
+Pinocchio, feeling sure of himself, threw himself into the water and
+began to swim. The sea was as smooth as oil, the moon shone brilliantly,
+and the Dog-Fish was sleeping so profoundly that even a cannonade would
+have failed to wake him.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXVI
+
+PINOCCHIO AT LAST CEASES TO BE A PUPPET AND BECOMES A BOY
+
+
+Whilst Pinocchio was swimming quickly towards the shore he discovered
+that his father, who was on his shoulders with his legs in the water,
+was trembling as violently as if the poor man had an attack of ague
+fever.
+
+Was he trembling from cold or from fear. Perhaps a little from both the
+one and the other. But Pinocchio, thinking it was from fear, said, to
+comfort him:
+
+"Courage, papa! In a few minutes we shall be safely on shore."
+
+"But where is this blessed shore?" asked the little old man, becoming
+still more frightened, and screwing up his eyes as tailors do when they
+wish to thread a needle. "I have been looking in every direction and I
+see nothing but the sky and the sea."
+
+"But I see the shore as well," said the puppet. "You must know that I am
+like a cat: I see better by night than by day."
+
+Poor Pinocchio was making a pretense of being in good spirits, but in
+reality he was beginning to feel discouraged; his strength was failing,
+he was gasping and panting for breath. He could do no more, and the
+shore was still far off.
+
+He swam until he had no breath left; then he turned his head to Geppetto
+and said in broken words?
+
+"Papa, help me, I am dying!"
+
+The father and son were on the point of drowning when they heard a voice
+like a guitar out of tune saying:
+
+"Who is it that is dying?"
+
+"It is I, and my poor father!"
+
+"I know that voice! You are Pinocchio!"
+
+"Precisely; and you?"
+
+"I am the Tunny, your prison companion in the body of the Dog-Fish."
+
+"And how did you manage to escape?"
+
+"I followed your example. You showed me the road, and I escaped after
+you."
+
+"Tunny, you have arrived at the right moment! I implore you to help us
+or we are lost."
+
+"Willingly and with all my heart. You must, both of you, take hold of my
+tail and leave it to me to guide you. I will take you on shore in four
+minutes."
+
+Geppetto and Pinocchio, as I need not tell you, accepted the offer at
+once; but, instead of holding on by his tail, they thought it would be
+more comfortable to get on the Tunny's back.
+
+Having reached the shore, Pinocchio sprang first on land that he might
+help his father to do the same. He then turned to the Tunny and said to
+him in a voice full of emotion:
+
+"My friend, you have saved my papa's life. I can find no words with
+which to thank you properly. Permit me at least to give you a kiss as a
+sign of my eternal gratitude!"
+
+The Tunny put his head out of the water and Pinocchio, kneeling on the
+ground, kissed him tenderly on the mouth. At this spontaneous proof of
+warm affection, the poor Tunny, who was not accustomed to it, felt
+extremely touched, and, ashamed to let himself be seen crying like a
+child, he plunged under the water and disappeared.
+
+By this time the day had dawned. Pinocchio, then offering his arm to
+Geppetto, who had scarcely breath to stand, said to him:
+
+"Lean on my arm, dear papa, and let us go. We will walk very slowly,
+like the ants, and when we are tired we can rest by the wayside."
+
+"And where shall we go?" asked Geppetto.
+
+"In search of some house or cottage, where they will give us for charity
+a mouthful of bread, and a little straw to serve as a bed."
+
+They had not gone a hundred yards when they saw by the roadside two
+villainous-looking individuals begging.
+
+They were the Cat and the Fox, but they were scarcely recognizable.
+Fancy! the Cat had so long feigned blindness that she had become blind
+in reality; and the Fox, old, mangy, and with one side paralyzed, had
+not even his tail left. That sneaking thief, having fallen into the most
+squalid misery, one fine day had found himself obliged to sell his
+beautiful tail to a traveling peddler, who bought it to drive away
+flies.
+
+"Oh, Pinocchio!" cried the Fox, "give a little in charity to two poor,
+infirm people."
+
+"Infirm people," repeated the Cat.
+
+"Begone, impostors!" answered the puppet. "You took me in once, but you
+will never catch me again."
+
+"Believe me, Pinocchio, we are now poor and unfortunate indeed!"
+
+"If you are poor, you deserve it. Recollect the proverb: 'Stolen money
+never fructifies.' Begone, impostors!"
+
+And, thus saying, Pinocchio and Geppetto went their way in peace. When
+they had gone another hundred yards they saw, at the end of a path in
+the middle of the fields, a nice little straw hut with a roof of tiles
+and bricks.
+
+"That hut must be inhabited by some one," said Pinocchio. "Let us go and
+knock at the door."
+
+They went and knocked.
+
+"We are a poor father and son without bread and without a roof,"
+answered the puppet.
+
+"Turn the key and the door will open," said the same little voice.
+
+Pinocchio turned the key and the door opened. They went in and looked
+here, there, and everywhere, but could see no one.
+
+"Oh! where is the master of the house?" said Pinocchio, much surprised.
+
+"Here I am, up here!"
+
+The father and son looked immediately up to the ceiling, and there on a
+beam they saw the Talking-Cricket.
+
+"Oh, my dear little Cricket!" said Pinocchio, bowing politely to him.
+
+"Ah! now you call me 'Your dear little Cricket.' But do you remember the
+time when you threw the handle of a hammer at me, to drive me from your
+house?"
+
+"You are right, Cricket! Drive me away also! Throw the handle of a
+hammer at me, but have pity on my poor papa."
+
+"I will have pity on both father and son, but I wished to remind you of
+the ill treatment I received from you, to teach you that in this world,
+when it is possible, we should show courtesy to everybody, if we wish it
+to be extended to us in our hour of need."
+
+"You are right. Cricket, you are right, and I will bear in mind the
+lesson you have given me. But tell me how you managed to buy this
+beautiful hut."
+
+"This hut was given to me yesterday by a goat whose wool was of a
+beautiful blue color."
+
+"And where has the goat gone?" asked Pinocchio, with lively curiosity.
+
+"I do not know."
+
+"And when will it come back?"
+
+"It will never come back. It went away yesterday in great grief and,
+bleating, it seemed to say: 'Poor Pinocchio! I shall never see him more,
+for by this time the Dog-Fish must have devoured him!'"
+
+"Did it really say that? Then it was she! It was my dear little Fairy,"
+exclaimed Pinocchio, crying and sobbing.
+
+When he had cried for some time he dried his eyes and prepared a
+comfortable bed of straw for Geppetto to lie down upon. Then he asked
+the Cricket:
+
+"Tell me, little Cricket, where can I find a tumbler of milk for my poor
+papa?"
+
+"Three fields off from here there lives a gardener called Giangio, who
+keeps cows. Go to him and you will get the milk you are in want of."
+
+Pinocchio ran all the way to Giangio's house, and the gardener asked
+him:
+
+"How much milk do you want?"
+
+"I want a tumblerful."
+
+"A tumbler of milk costs five cents. Begin by giving me the five cents."
+
+"I have not even one cent," replied Pinocchio, grieved and mortified.
+
+"That is bad, puppet," answered the gardener. "If you have not even one
+cent, I have not even a drop of milk."
+
+"I must have patience!" said Pinocchio, and he turned to go.
+
+"Wait a little," said Giangio. "We can come to an arrangement together.
+Will you undertake to turn the pumping machine?"
+
+"What is the pumping machine?"
+
+"It is a wooden pole which serves to draw up the water from the cistern
+to water the vegetables."
+
+"You can try me."
+
+"Well, then, if you will draw a hundred buckets of water, I will give
+you in compensation a tumbler of milk."
+
+"It is a bargain."
+
+Giangio then led Pinocchio to the kitchen garden and taught him how to
+turn the pumping machine. Pinocchio immediately began to work; but
+before he had drawn up the hundred buckets of water the perspiration was
+pouring from his head to his feet. Never before had he undergone such
+fatigue.
+
+"Up till now," said the gardener, "the labor of turning the pumping
+machine was performed by my little donkey, but the poor animal is
+dying."
+
+"Will you take me to see him?" said Pinocchio.
+
+"Willingly."
+
+When Pinocchio went into the stable he saw a beautiful little donkey
+stretched on the straw, worn out from hunger and overwork. After looking
+at him earnestly, he said to himself, much troubled:
+
+"I am sure I know this little donkey! His face is not new to me."
+
+And, bending over him, he asked him in asinine language:
+
+"Who are you?"
+
+At this question the little donkey opened his dying eyes, and answered
+in broken words in the same language:
+
+"I am--Can--dle--wick."
+
+And, having again closed his eyes, he expired.
+
+"Oh, poor Candlewick!" said Pinocchio in a low voice; and, taking a
+handful of straw, he dried a tear that was rolling down his face.
+
+"Do you grieve for a donkey that cost you nothing?" said the gardener.
+"What must it be to me, who bought him for ready money?"
+
+"I must tell you--he was my friend!"
+
+"Your friend?"
+
+"One of my school-fellows!"
+
+"How?" shouted Giangio, laughing loudly. "How? had you donkeys for
+school-fellows? I can imagine what wonderful studies you must have
+made!"
+
+The puppet, who felt much mortified at these words, did not answer; but,
+taking his tumbler of milk, still quite warm, he returned to the hut.
+
+And from that day for more than five months he continued to get up at
+daybreak every morning to go and turn the pumping machine, to earn the
+tumbler of milk that was of such benefit to his father in his bad state
+of health. Nor was he satisfied with this; for, during the time that he
+had over, he learned to make hampers and baskets of rushes, and with the
+money he obtained by selling them he was able with great economy to
+provide for all the daily expenses. Amongst other things he constructed
+an elegant little wheel-chair, in which he could take his father out on
+fine days to breathe a mouthful of fresh air.
+
+By his industry, ingenuity and his anxiety to work and to overcome
+difficulties, he not only succeeded in maintaining his father, who
+continued infirm, in comfort, but he also contrived to put aside five
+dollars to buy himself a new coat.
+
+One morning he said to his father:
+
+"I am going to the neighboring market to buy myself a jacket, a cap, and
+a pair of shoes. When I return," he added, laughing, "I shall be so well
+dressed that you will take me for a fine gentleman."
+
+And, leaving the house, he began to run merrily and happily along. All
+at once he heard himself called by name and, turning around, he saw a
+big Snail crawling out from the hedge.
+
+"Do you not know me?" asked the Snail.
+
+"It seems to me--and yet I am not sure--"
+
+"Do you not remember the Snail who was lady's-maid to the Fairy with
+blue hair? Do you not remember the time when I came downstairs to let
+you in, and you were caught by your foot, which you had stuck through
+the house-door?"
+
+"I remember it all" shouted Pinocchio. "Tell me quickly, my beautiful
+little Snail, where have you left my good Fairy? What is she doing? Has
+she forgiven me? Does she still remember me? Does she still wish me
+well? Is she far from here? Can I go and see her?"
+
+To all these rapid, breathless questions the Snail replied in her usual
+phlegmatic manner:
+
+"My dear Pinocchio, the poor Fairy is lying in bed at the hospital!"
+
+"At the hospital?"
+
+"It is only too true. Overtaken by a thousand misfortunes, she has
+fallen seriously ill, and she has not even enough to buy herself a
+mouthful of bread."
+
+"Is it really so? Oh, what sorrow you have given me! Oh, poor Fairy!
+Poor Fairy! Poor Fairy! If I had a million I would run and carry it to
+her, but I have only five dollars. Here they are--I was going to buy a
+new coat. Take them, Snail, and carry them at once to my good Fairy."
+
+"And your new coat?"
+
+"What matters my new coat? I would sell even these rags that I have on
+to be able to help her. Go, Snail, and be quick; and in two days return
+to this place, for I hope I shall then be able to give you some more
+money. Up to this time I have worked to maintain my papa; from today I
+will work five hours more that I may also maintain my good mamma.
+Good-bye, Snail, I shall expect you in two days."
+
+The Snail, contrary to her usual habits, began to run like a lizard in a
+hot August sun.
+
+That evening Pinocchio, instead of going to bed at ten o'clock, sat up
+till midnight had struck; and instead of making eight baskets of rushes
+he made sixteen.
+
+Then he went to bed and fell asleep. And whilst he slept he thought that
+he saw the Fairy, smiling and beautiful, who, after having kissed him,
+said to him:
+
+"Well done, Pinocchio! To reward you for your good heart I will forgive
+you for all that is past. Boys who minister tenderly to their parents
+and assist them in their misery and infirmities, are deserving of great
+praise and affection, even if they cannot be cited as examples of
+obedience and good behavior. Try and do better in the future and you
+will be happy."
+
+At this moment his dream ended and Pinocchio opened his eyes and awoke.
+
+But imagine his astonishment when upon awakening he discovered that he
+was no longer a wooden puppet, but that he had become instead a boy,
+like all other boys. He gave a glance round and saw that the straw walls
+of the hut had disappeared, and that he was in a pretty little room
+furnished and arranged with a simplicity that was almost elegance.
+Jumping out of bed he found a new suit of clothes ready for him, a new
+cap, and a pair of new boots, that fitted him beautifully.
+
+He was hardly dressed when he naturally put his hands in his pockets
+and pulled out a little ivory purse on which these words were written:
+"The Fairy with blue hair returns the five dollars to her dear
+Pinocchio, and thanks him for his good heart." He opened the purse and
+instead of five dollars he saw fifty shining gold pieces fresh from the
+mint.
+
+He then went and looked at himself in the glass, and he thought he was
+some one else. For he no longer saw the usual reflection of a wooden
+puppet; he was greeted instead by the image of a bright, intelligent boy
+with chestnut hair, blue eyes, and looking as happy and joyful as if it
+were the Easter holidays.
+
+In the midst of all these wonders succeeding each other, Pinocchio felt
+quite bewildered, and he could not tell if he was really awake or if he
+was dreaming with his eyes open.
+
+"Where can my papa be?" he exclaimed suddenly, and, going into the next
+room, he found old Geppetto quite well, lively, and in good humor, just
+as he had been formerly. He had already resumed his trade of
+wood-carving, and he was designing a rich and beautiful frame of leaves,
+flowers and the heads of animals.
+
+"Satisfy my curiosity, dear papa," said Pinocchio, throwing his arms
+around his neck and covering him with kisses; "how can this sudden
+change be accounted for?"
+
+"This sudden change in our home is all your doing," answered Geppetto.
+
+"How my doing?"
+
+"Because when boys who have behaved badly turn over a new leaf and
+become good, they have the power of bringing contentment and happiness
+to their families."
+
+"And where has the old wooden Pinocchio hidden himself?"
+
+"There he is," answered Geppetto, and he pointed to a big puppet
+leaning against a chair, with its head on one side, its arms dangling,
+and its legs so crossed and bent that it was really a miracle that it
+remained standing.
+
+Pinocchio turned and looked at it; and, after he had looked at it for a
+short time, he said to himself with great complacency:
+
+"How ridiculous I was when I was a puppet! And how glad I am that I have
+become a well-behaved little boy!"
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Pinocchio, by C. Collodi
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PINOCCHIO ***
+
+***** This file should be named 16865-8.txt or 16865-8.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        https://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/8/6/16865/
+
+Produced by Mark C. Orton, Melissa Er-Raqabi and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net.
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+https://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+https://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at https://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit https://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including including checks, online payments and credit card
+donations.  To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     https://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
diff --git a/16865-8.zip b/16865-8.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ee73d1d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-8.zip
diff --git a/16865-h.zip b/16865-h.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..856c185
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h.zip
diff --git a/16865-h/16865-h.htm b/16865-h/16865-h.htm
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..021ec0c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/16865-h.htm
@@ -0,0 +1,7597 @@
+<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
+    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
+
+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
+  <head>
+    <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1" />
+    <title>
+      The Project Gutenberg eBook of Pinocchio, by C Collodi.
+    </title>
+    <style type="text/css">
+/*<![CDATA[  XML blockout */
+<!--
+    p {  margin-top: .75em;
+         text-align: justify;
+         margin-bottom: .75em;
+         }
+    h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6 {
+         text-align: center; /* all headings centered */
+         clear: both;
+         }
+    hr { width: 45%;
+	 margin-top: 1em;
+	 margin-bottom: 1em;
+         margin-left: auto;
+         margin-right: auto;
+         clear: both;
+       }
+
+    table {margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; empty-cells: show; }
+
+    body{margin-left: 10%;
+         margin-right: 10%;
+        }
+
+    img {border: none;}
+
+    ins {text-decoration: none; border-bottom: thin dotted red;}
+
+    .linenum  {position: absolute; top: auto; left: 4%;} /* poetry number */
+    .blockquot{margin-left: 5%; margin-right: 10%;}
+    .pagenum  {position: absolute; left: 92%; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;} /* page numbers */
+    .sidenote {width: 20%; padding-bottom: .5em; padding-top: .5em;
+               padding-left: .5em; padding-right: .5em; margin-left: 1em;
+               float: right; clear: right; margin-top: 1em;
+               font-size: smaller; border: dashed 1px;}
+
+    .bb       {border-bottom: solid 2px;}
+    .bl       {border-left: solid 2px;}
+    .bt       {border-top: solid 2px;}
+    .br       {border-right: solid 2px;}
+    .bbox     {border: solid 2px;}
+
+    .center   {text-align: center;}
+    .right    {text-align: right;}
+    .smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
+    .u        {text-decoration: underline;}
+
+    .hang {text-indent: -3em; margin-left: 3em;}
+
+    .narrow   {margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%;} /* like blockquote, but narrower and with equal margins */
+
+    .tnote    {font-size: .9em; font-style: italic; } /* Transcriber's Notes */
+
+	hr.major { width:75%; margin-top:2em; margin-bottom: 2em;}
+	hr.minor { width:30%; margin-top:0.5em; margin-bottom: 0.5em;}
+
+    .placard   {text-align: center; font-size: 1.2em; color: red; font-weight: bold;}
+
+
+    .caption  {font-size: smaller;}
+
+    .figcenter   {margin: auto; text-align: center;}
+
+    .figleft     {float: left; clear: left; margin-left: 0; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top:
+                 1em; margin-right: 1em; padding: 0; text-align: center;}
+
+    .figright    {float: right; clear: right; margin-left: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;
+                 margin-top: 1em; margin-right: 0; padding: 0; text-align: center;}
+
+    .footnotes        {border: dashed 1px;}
+    .footnote         {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-size: 0.9em;}
+    .footnote .label  {position: absolute; right: 84%; text-align: right;}
+    .fnanchor         {vertical-align: super; font-size: .8em; text-decoration: none;}
+
+    .poem             {margin-left:10%; margin-right:10%; text-align: left;}
+    .poem br          {display: none;}
+    .poem .stanza     {margin: 1em 0em 1em 0em;}
+    .poem span.i0     {display: block; margin-left: 0em;}
+    .poem span.i2     {display: block; margin-left: 2em;}
+    .poem span.i4     {display: block; margin-left: 4em;}
+
+
+
+   /* kludge to get around brain dead IE not understanding CSS */
+   div.centered {text-align: center;}
+   div.centered table {margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;}
+    // -->
+    /* XML end  ]]>*/
+    </style>
+  </head>
+<body>
+
+
+<pre>
+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Pinocchio, by C. Collodi
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Pinocchio
+       The Tale of a Puppet
+
+Author: C. Collodi
+
+Illustrator: Alice Carsey
+
+Release Date: October 13, 2005 [EBook #16865]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PINOCCHIO ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Mark C. Orton, Melissa Er-Raqabi and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-cover.jpg"
+alt="Cover" title="Cover" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+
+<div class="figcenter">
+<p><a name="hi-illus-001" id="hi-illus-001"></a></p>
+<img src="images/hi-illus-001.jpg"
+alt="&quot;HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO GO IN?&quot;" title="&quot;HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO GO IN?&quot;" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/hi-illus-002.jpg" alt="Title Page" title="Title Page" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<h1>PINOCCHIO</h1>
+<h2>THE TALE OF A PUPPET</h2>
+
+<h2>By C COLLODI</h2>
+
+<h3>Illustrated By<br />
+ALICE CARSEY</h3>
+
+
+<p class="center"><span class="smcap">Whitman Publishing Co.</span><br />
+RACINE, WISCONSIN
+</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="center">COPYRIGHT 1916 BY<br />
+<span class="smcap">Whitman Publishing Co.</span><br />
+RACINE, WISCONSIN<br />
+PRINTED IN U.S.A.
+</p>
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3>CONTENTS</h3>
+
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Contents">
+<tr><td align='right'><small>Chap.</small></td><td align='left'></td><td align='right'><small>Page</small></td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>I</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">The Piece of Wood That Laughed and Cried Like a Child</a></span></td><td align='right'>9</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>II</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">Master Cherry Gives the Wood Away</a></span></td><td align='right'>12</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>III</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">Geppetto Names His Puppet Pinocchio</a></span></td><td align='right'>16</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>IV</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">The Talking-Cricket Scolds Pinocchio</a></span></td><td align='right'>23</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>V</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">The Flying Egg</a></span></td><td align='right'>26</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>VI</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">Pinocchio's Feet Burn to Cinders</a></span></td><td align='right'>29</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>VII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">Geppetto Gives His Own Breakfast to Pinocchio</a></span></td><td align='right'>31</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>VIII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">Geppetto Makes Pinocchio New Feet</a></span></td><td align='right'>35</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>IX</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_IX">Pinocchio Goes To See a Puppet-Show</a></span></td><td align='right'>39</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>X</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_X">The Puppets Recognize Their Brother Pinocchio</a></span></td><td align='right'>42</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XI</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XI">Fire-Eater Sneezes and Pardons Pinocchio</a></span></td><td align='right'>45</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XII">Pinocchio Receives a Present of Five Gold Pieces</a></span></td><td align='right'>49</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XIII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">The Inn of the Red Craw-Fish</a></span></td><td align='right'>57</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XIV</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">Pinocchio Falls Among Assassins</a></span></td><td align='right'>61</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XV</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XV">The Assassins Hang Pinocchio to the Big Oak</a></span></td><td align='right'>65</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XVI</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVI">The Beautiful Child Rescues the Puppet</a></span></td><td align='right'>71</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XVII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVII">Pinocchio Will Not Take His Medicine</a></span></td><td align='right'>75</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XVIII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVIII">Pinocchio Again Meets the Fox and the Cat</a></span></td><td align='right'>81</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XIX</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIX">Pinocchio Is Robbed of His Money</a></span></td><td align='right'>87</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XX</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XX">Pinocchio Starts Back to the Fairy's House</a></span></td><td align='right'>91</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXI</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXI">Pinocchio Acts as Watch-dog</a></span></td><td align='right'>94</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXII">Pinocchio Discovers the Robbers</a></span></td><td align='right'>97</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXIII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIII">Pinocchio Flies to the Seashore</a></span></td><td align='right'>101</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXIV</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIV">Pinocchio Finds the Fairy Again</a></span></td><td align='right'>109</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXV</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXV">Pinocchio Promises the Fairy To Be Good</a></span></td><td align='right'>116</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXVI</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVI">The Terrible Dog-Fish</a></span></td><td align='right'>120</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXVII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVII">Pinocchio Is Arrested by the Gendarmes</a></span></td><td align='right'>126</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXVIII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVIII">Pinocchio Escapes Being Fried Like a Fish</a></span></td><td align='right'>133</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXIX</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIX">He Returns to the Fairy's House</a></span></td><td align='right'>139</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXX</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXX">The "Land of Boobies"</a></span></td><td align='right'>147</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXXI</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXXI">Pinocchio Enjoys Five Months of Happiness</a></span></td><td align='right'>153</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXXII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXXII">Pinocchio Turns Into a Donkey</a></span></td><td align='right'>160</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXXIII</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXXIII">Pinocchio Is Trained for the Circus</a></span></td><td align='right'>167</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXXIV</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXXIV">Pinocchio Is Swallowed by the Dog-Fish</a></span></td><td align='right'>178</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXXV</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXXV">A Happy Surprise for Pinocchio</a></span></td><td align='right'>186</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='right'>XXXVI</td><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXXVI">Pinocchio at Last Ceases to Be a Puppet and Becomes a Boy</a></span></td><td align='right'>194</td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3>LINE ILLUSTRATIONS</h3>
+
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Line Illustrations">
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#hi-illus-001">Decorative Title Page</a></span></td><td align='right'>1</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-008">The Runaway Puppet</a></span></td><td align='right'>9</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-011">Geppetto Carried Off His Fine Piece Of Wood</a></span></td><td align='right'>12</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-015">He Set to Work to Cut Out His Puppet</a></span></td><td align='right'>16</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-017">A Little Chicken Popped Out</a></span></td><td align='right'>17</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-022">Pinocchio Threw His Hammer at the Talking-Cricket</a></span></td><td align='right'>23</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-025"><i>Untitled</i></a></span></td><td align='right'>26</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-028">Poor Pinocchio's Feet Burn to Cinders</a></span></td><td align='right'>29</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-034">Geppetto Makes His Puppet Some Clothes</a></span></td><td align='right'>35</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-044">The Puppets Began to Dance Merrily</a></span></td><td align='right'>45</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-048">Pinocchio Meets the Cat and the Fox</a></span></td><td align='right'>49</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-051">Splash! Splash! They Fell Into the Ditch</a></span></td><td align='right'>52</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-057">Dinner at The Red Craw-Fish Inn</a></span></td><td align='right'>57</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-061">Pinocchio Escapes from his Assassins</a></span></td><td align='right'>61</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-065">They Hung Pinocchio to the Big Oak Tree</a></span></td><td align='right'>65</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-070">Four Rabbits as Black as Ink Entered</a></span></td><td align='right'>69</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-071">The Falcon Saves Pinocchio</a></span></td><td align='right'>71</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-075">Pinocchio Refuses to Take His Medicine</a></span></td><td align='right'>75</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-082">Treacherous Companions</a></span></td><td align='right'>81</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-088">The Judge Was a Big Ape</a></span></td><td align='right'>87</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-095">Pinocchio Gets His Foot Caught in a Trap</a></span></td><td align='right'>94</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-098">The New Watch-Dog</a></span></td><td align='right'>97</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-102">Pinocchio's Wild Ride on the Pigeon's Back</a></span></td><td align='right'>101</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-105">An Immense Serpent Stretched across the Road</a></span></td><td align='right'>104</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-110">Pinocchio Braves the Sea to Save His Father</a></span></td><td align='right'>109</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-117">"School Gives Me Pain All Over the Body"</a></span></td><td align='right'>116</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-121">Pinocchio Starts Off Happily for School</a></span></td><td align='right'>120</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-123">"Oh, I Am Sick of Being a Puppet!"</a></span></td><td align='right'>121</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-127">The Boys Threw Their Books at Poor Pinocchio</a></span></td><td align='right'>126</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-135">The Fisherman Put His Hand into the Net</a></span></td><td align='right'>133</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-141">The Dog Seizes Pinocchio and Escapes</a></span></td><td align='right'>139</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-149">"Here Is the Coach!" Shouted Candlewick</a></span></td><td align='right'>147</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-156">They Arrive in the "Land of the Boobies"</a></span></td><td align='right'>153</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-163">The Boys Are Turned into Donkeys</a></span></td><td align='right'>160</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-170">The Little Donkeys Are Sold</a></span></td><td align='right'>167</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-175">All His Friends Were Invited</a></span></td><td align='right'>172</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-181">The Puppet Was Wriggling Like an Eel</a></span></td><td align='right'>178</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-189">Swallowed by the Dog-Fish</a></span></td><td align='right'>186</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-193">It Would Be More Comfortable on the Tunny's Back</a></span></td><td align='right'>189</td></tr>
+<tr><td align='left'><span class="smcap"><a href="#illus-197">The Blind Cat and the Tailless Fox</a></span></td><td align='right'>194</td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-008" id="illus-008"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-008.png" alt="The Runaway Puppet" title="The Runaway Puppet" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I"></a>CHAPTER I</h3>
+
+<h2>THE PIECE OF WOOD THAT LAUGHED
+AND CRIED LIKE A CHILD</h2>
+
+
+<p>There was once upon a time a piece of wood in the
+shop of an old carpenter named Master Antonio. Everybody,
+however, called him Master Cherry, on account of the
+end of his nose, which was always as red and polished as a
+ripe cherry.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had Master Cherry set eyes on the piece of
+wood than his face beamed with delight, and, rubbing his
+hands together with satisfaction, he said softly to himself:</p>
+
+<p>"This wood has come at the right moment; it will just
+do to make the leg of a little table."</p>
+
+<p>He immediately took a sharp axe with which to remove
+the bark and the rough surface, but just as he was going
+to give the first stroke he heard a very small voice say
+imploringly, "Do not strike me so hard!"</p>
+
+<p>He turned his terrified eyes all around the room to try
+and discover where the little voice could possibly have come
+from, but he saw nobody! He looked under the bench&mdash;nobody;
+he looked into a cupboard that was always shut&mdash;nobody;
+he looked into a basket of shavings and sawdust&mdash;nobody;
+he even opened the door of the shop and gave a glance into
+the street&mdash;and still nobody. Who, then, could it be?</p>
+
+<p>"I see how it is," he said, laughing and scratching his
+wig, "evidently that little voice was all my imagination. Let
+us set to work again."</p>
+
+<p>And, taking up the axe, he struck a tremendous blow on
+the piece of wood.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! oh! you have hurt me!" cried the same little voice
+dolefully.</p>
+
+<p>This time Master Cherry was petrified. His eyes started
+out of his head with fright, his mouth remained open, and
+his tongue hung out almost to the end of his chin, like a
+mask on a fountain. As soon as he had recovered the use
+of his speech he began to say, stuttering and trembling
+with fear:</p>
+
+<p>"But where on earth can that little voice have come
+from that said 'Oh! oh!'? Is it possible that this piece of
+wood can have learned to cry and to lament like a child?
+I cannot believe it. This piece of wood is nothing but a log
+for fuel like all the others, and thrown on the fire it would
+about suffice to boil a saucepan of beans. How then? Can
+anyone be hidden inside it? If anyone is hidden inside, so
+much the worse for him. I will settle him at once."</p>
+
+<p>So saying, he seized the poor piece of wood and commenced
+beating it without mercy against the walls of the room.</p>
+
+<p>Then he stopped to listen if he could hear any little
+voice lamenting. He waited two minutes&mdash;nothing; five minutes&mdash;nothing;
+ten minutes&mdash;still nothing!</p>
+
+<p>"I see how it is," he then said, forcing himself to laugh,
+and pushing up his wig; "evidently the little voice that said
+'Oh! oh!' was all my imagination! Let us set to work again."</p>
+
+<p>Putting the axe aside, he took his plane, to plane and
+polish the bit of wood; but whilst he was running it up and
+down he heard the same little voice say, laughing:</p>
+
+<p>"Stop! you are tickling me all over!"</p>
+
+<p>This time poor Master Cherry fell down as if he had
+been struck by lightning. When he at last opened his eyes
+he found himself seated on the floor.</p>
+
+<p>His face was changed, even the end of his nose, instead
+of being crimson, as it was nearly always, had become blue
+from fright.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-011" id="illus-011"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-011.png"
+alt="Geppetto Carried Off His Fine Piece of Wood" title="Geppetto Carried Off His Fine Piece of Wood" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II"></a>CHAPTER II</h3>
+
+<h2>MASTER CHERRY GIVES THE WOOD AWAY</h2>
+
+
+<p>At that moment some one knocked at the door.</p>
+
+<p>"Come in," said the carpenter, without having the
+strength to rise to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>A lively little old man immediately walked into the shop.
+His name was Geppetto, but when the boys of the neighborhood
+wished to make him angry they called him Pudding,
+because his yellow wig greatly resembled a pudding made of
+Indian corn.</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto was very fiery. Woe to him who called him
+Pudding! He became furious and there was no holding him.</p>
+
+<p>"Good-day, Master Antonio," said Geppetto; "what are
+you doing there on the floor?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am teaching the alphabet to the ants."</p>
+
+<p>"Much good may that do you."</p>
+
+<p>"What has brought you to me, neighbor Geppetto?"</p>
+
+<p>"My legs. But to tell the truth. Master Antonio, I came
+to ask a favor of you."</p>
+
+<p>"Here I am, ready to serve you," replied the carpenter,
+getting on his knees.</p>
+
+<p>"This morning an idea came into my head."</p>
+
+<p>"Let us hear it."</p>
+
+<p>"I thought I would make a beautiful wooden puppet;
+one that could dance, fence, and leap like an acrobat. With
+this puppet I would travel about the world to earn a piece
+of bread and a glass of wine. What do you think of it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Bravo, Pudding!" exclaimed the same little voice, and
+it was impossible to say where it came from.</p>
+
+<p>Hearing himself called Pudding, Geppetto became as red
+as a turkey-cock from rage and, turning to the carpenter, he
+said in a fury:</p>
+
+<p>"Why do you insult me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Who insults you?"</p>
+
+<p>"You called me Pudding!"</p>
+
+<p>"It was not I!"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you think I called myself Pudding? It was you,
+I say!"</p>
+
+<p>"No!"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes!"</p>
+
+<p>"No!"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes!"</p>
+
+<p>And, becoming more and more angry, from words they
+came to blows, and, flying at each other, they bit and fought,
+and scratched.</p>
+
+<p>When the fight was over Master Antonio was in possession
+of Geppetto's yellow wig, and Geppetto discovered that
+the grey wig belonging to the carpenter remained between
+his teeth.</p>
+
+<p>"Give me back my wig," screamed Master Antonio.</p>
+
+<p>"And you, return me mine, and let us be friends again."</p>
+
+<p>The two old men having each recovered his own wig,
+shook hands and swore that they would remain friends to the
+end of their lives.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, then, neighbor Geppetto," said the carpenter, to
+prove that peace was made, "what is the favor that you wish
+of me?"</p>
+
+<p>"I want a little wood to make my puppet; will you give
+me some?"</p>
+
+<p>Master Antonio was delighted, and he immediately went
+to the bench and fetched the piece of wood that had caused
+him so much fear. But just as he was going to give it to
+his friend the piece of wood gave a shake and, wriggling
+violently out of his hands, struck with all of its force against
+the dried-up shins of poor Geppetto.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! is that the courteous way in which you make your
+presents, Master Antonio? You have almost lamed me!"</p>
+
+<p>"I swear to you that it was not I!"</p>
+
+<p>"Then you would have it that it was I?"</p>
+
+<p>"The wood is entirely to blame!"</p>
+
+<p>"I know that it was the wood; but it was you that hit
+my legs with it!"</p>
+
+<p>"I did not hit you with it!"</p>
+
+<p>"Liar!"</p>
+
+<p>"Geppetto, don't insult me or I will call you Pudding!"</p>
+
+<p>"Knave!"</p>
+
+<p>"Pudding!"</p>
+
+<p>"Donkey!"</p>
+
+<p>"Pudding!"</p>
+
+<p>"Baboon!"</p>
+
+<p>"Pudding!"</p>
+
+<p>On hearing himself called Pudding for the third time
+Geppetto, mad with rage, fell upon the carpenter and they
+fought desperately.</p>
+
+<p>When the battle was over, Master Antonio had two more
+scratches on his nose, and his adversary had lost two buttons
+off his waistcoat. Their accounts being thus squared, they
+shook hands and swore to remain good friends for the rest
+of their lives.</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto carried off his fine piece of wood and, thanking
+Master Antonio, returned limping to his house.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-015" id="illus-015"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-015.png" alt="He Set to Work to Cut Out His Puppet" title="He Set to Work to Cut Out His Puppet" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></a>CHAPTER III</h3>
+
+<h2>GEPPETTO NAMES HIS PUPPET PINOCCHIO</h2>
+
+
+<p>Geppetto lived in a small ground-floor room that was
+only lighted from the staircase. The furniture could not
+have been simpler&mdash;a rickety chair, a poor bed, and a broken-down
+table. At the end of the room there was a fireplace
+with a lighted fire; but the fire was painted, and by the fire
+was a painted saucepan that was boiling cheerfully and sending
+out a cloud of smoke that looked exactly like real smoke.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as he reached home Geppetto took his tools and
+set to work to cut out and model his puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"What name shall I give him?" he said to himself; "I
+think I will call him Pinocchio. It is a name that will bring
+him luck. I once knew a whole family so called. There was
+Pinocchio the father, Pinocchia the mother, and Pinocchi the
+children, and all of them did well. The richest of them was
+a beggar."</p>
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="A Little Chicken Popped Out">
+<tr><td align='center'><big><b>A Little Chicken Popped Out,<br />
+Very Gay and Polite</b></big></td>
+<td align='center'><a name="illus-017" id="illus-017"></a>
+<img src="images/illus-017.png"
+alt="A Little Chicken Popped Out" title="A Little Chicken Popped Out" /></td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+<p>Having found a name for his puppet he began to work
+in good earnest, and he first made his hair, then his forehead,
+and then his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>The eyes being finished, imagine his astonishment when
+he perceived that they moved and looked fixedly at him.</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto, seeing himself stared at by those two wooden
+eyes, said in an angry voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Wicked wooden eyes, why do you look at me?"</p>
+
+<p>No one answered.</p>
+
+<p>He then proceeded to carve the nose, but no sooner had
+he made it than it began to grow. And it grew, and grew,
+and grew, until in a few minutes it had become an immense
+nose that seemed as if it would never end.</p>
+
+<p>Poor Geppetto tired himself out with cutting it off, but
+the more he cut and shortened it, the longer did that impertinent
+nose become!</p>
+
+<p>The mouth was not even completed when it began to laugh
+and deride him.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop laughing!" said Geppetto, provoked; but he might
+as well have spoken to the wall.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop laughing, I say!" he roared in a threatening tone.</p>
+
+<p>The mouth then ceased laughing, but put out its tongue
+as far as it would go.</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto, not to spoil his handiwork, pretended not to
+see and continued his labors. After the mouth he fashioned
+the chin, then the throat, then the shoulders, the stomach,
+the arms and the hands.</p>
+
+<p>The hands were scarcely finished when Geppetto felt his
+wig snatched from his head. He turned round, and what
+did he see? He saw his yellow wig in the puppet's hand.</p>
+
+<p>"Pinocchio! Give me back my wig instantly!"</p>
+
+<p>But Pinocchio, instead of returning it, put it on his own
+head and was in consequence nearly smothered.</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto at this insolent and derisive behavior felt sadder
+and more melancholy than he had ever been in his life before;
+and, turning to Pinocchio, he said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"You young rascal! You are not yet completed and you
+are already beginning to show want of respect to your father!
+That is bad, my boy, very bad!"</p>
+
+<p>And he dried a tear.</p>
+
+<p>The legs and the feet remained to be done.</p>
+
+<p>When Geppetto had finished the feet he received a kick
+on the point of his nose.</p>
+
+<p>"I deserve it!" he said to himself; "I should have thought
+of it sooner! Now it is too late!"</p>
+
+<p>He then took the puppet under the arms and placed
+him on the floor to teach him to walk.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio's legs were stiff and he could not move, but
+Geppetto led him by the hand and showed him how to put
+one foot before the other.</p>
+
+<p>When his legs became limber Pinocchio began to walk
+by himself and to run about the room, until, having gone out
+of the house door, he jumped into the street and escaped.</p>
+
+<p>Poor Geppetto rushed after him but was not able to overtake
+him, for that rascal Pinocchio leaped in front of him
+like a hare and knocking his wooden feet together against the
+pavement made as much clatter as twenty pairs of peasants'
+clogs.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop him! stop him!" shouted Geppetto; but the people
+in the street, seeing a wooden puppet running like a race-horse,
+stood still in astonishment to look at it, and laughed
+and laughed.</p>
+
+<p>At last, as good luck would have it, a soldier arrived who,
+hearing the uproar, imagined that a colt had escaped from
+his master. Planting himself courageously with his legs apart
+in the middle of the road, he waited with the determined purpose
+of stopping him and thus preventing the chance of worse
+disasters.</p>
+
+<p>When Pinocchio, still at some distance, saw the soldier
+barricading the whole street, he endeavored to take him by
+surprise and to pass between his legs. But he failed entirely.</p>
+
+<p>The soldier without disturbing himself in the least caught
+him cleverly by the nose and gave him to Geppetto. Wishing
+to punish him, Geppetto intended to pull his ears at once.
+But imagine his feelings when he could not succeed in finding
+them. And do you know the reason? In his hurry to model
+him he had forgotten to make any ears.</p>
+
+<p>He then took him by the collar and as he was leading
+him away he said to him, shaking his head threateningly:</p>
+
+<p>"We will go home at once, and as soon as we arrive
+we will settle our accounts, never doubt it."</p>
+
+<p>At this information Pinocchio threw himself on the ground
+and would not take another step. In the meanwhile a crowd
+of idlers and inquisitive people began to assemble and to make
+a ring around them.</p>
+
+<p>Some of them said one thing, some another.</p>
+
+<p>"Poor puppet!" said several, "he is right not to wish
+to return home! Who knows how Geppetto, that bad old
+man, will beat him!"</p>
+
+<p>And the others added maliciously:</p>
+
+<p>"Geppetto seems a good man! but with boys he is a
+regular tyrant! If that poor puppet is left in his hands he
+is quite capable of tearing him in pieces!"</p>
+
+<p>It ended in so much being said and done that the soldier
+at last set Pinocchio at liberty and led Geppetto to prison.
+The poor man, not being ready with words to defend himself,
+cried like a calf and as he was being led away to prison
+sobbed out:</p>
+
+<p>"Wretched boy! And to think how I labored to make
+him a well-conducted puppet! But it serves me right! I should
+have thought of it sooner!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-022" id="illus-022"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-022.png"
+alt="Pinocchio Threw His Hammer at the Talking-Cricket" title="Pinocchio Threw His Hammer at the Talking-Cricket" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV"></a>CHAPTER IV</h3>
+
+<h2>THE TALKING-CRICKET SCOLDS PINOCCHIO</h2>
+
+
+<p>While poor Geppetto was being taken to prison for no
+fault of his, that imp Pinocchio, finding himself free
+from the clutches of the soldier, ran off as fast as his legs
+could carry him. That he might reach home the quicker he
+rushed across the fields, and in his mad hurry he jumped
+high banks, thorn hedges and ditches full of water.</p>
+
+<p>Arriving at the house he found the street door ajar. He
+pushed it open, went in, and having fastened the latch, threw
+himself on the floor and gave a great sigh of satisfaction.</p>
+
+<p>But soon he heard some one in the room who was saying:</p>
+
+<p>"Cri-cri-cri!"</p>
+
+<p>"Who calls me?" said Pinocchio in a fright.</p>
+
+<p>"It is I!"</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio turned round and saw a big cricket crawling
+slowly up the wall.</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, Cricket, who may you be?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am the Talking-Cricket, and I have lived in this room
+a hundred years or more."</p>
+
+<p>"Now, however, this room is mine," said the puppet, "and
+if you would do me a pleasure go away at once, without even
+turning round."</p>
+
+<p>"I will not go," answered the Cricket, "until I have told
+you a great truth."</p>
+
+<p>"Tell it me, then, and be quick about it."</p>
+
+<p>"Woe to those boys who rebel against their parents and
+run away from home. They will never come to any good
+in the world, and sooner or later they will repent bitterly."</p>
+
+<p>"Sing away, Cricket, as you please, and as long as you
+please. For me, I have made up my mind to run away
+tomorrow at daybreak, because if I remain I shall not escape
+the fate of all other boys; I shall be sent to school and shall
+be made to study either by love or by force. To tell you in
+confidence, I have no wish to learn; it is much more amusing
+to run after butterflies, or to climb trees and to take the young
+birds out of their nests."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor little goose! But do you not know that in that
+way you will grow up a perfect donkey, and that every one
+will make fun of you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Hold your tongue, you wicked, ill-omened croaker!"
+shouted Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>But the Cricket, who was patient and philosophical, instead
+of becoming angry at this impertinence, continued in
+the same tone:</p>
+
+<p>"But if you do not wish to go to school why not at least
+learn a trade, if only to enable you to earn honestly a piece
+of bread!"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you want me to tell you?" replied Pinocchio, who
+was beginning to lose patience. "Amongst all the trades in
+the world there is only one that really takes my fancy."</p>
+
+<p>"And that trade&mdash;what is it?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is to eat, drink, sleep and amuse myself, and to lead
+a vagabond life from morning to night."</p>
+
+<p>"As a rule," said the Talking-Cricket, "all those who follow
+that trade end almost always either in a hospital or in
+prison."</p>
+
+<p>"Take care, you wicked, ill-omened croaker! Woe to you
+if I fly into a passion!"</p>
+
+<p>"Poor Pinocchio! I really pity you!"</p>
+
+<p>"Why do you pity me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because you are a puppet and, what is worse, because
+you have a wooden head."</p>
+
+<p>At these last words Pinocchio jumped up in a rage and,
+snatching a wooden hammer from the bench, he threw it at
+the Talking-Cricket.</p>
+
+<p>Perhaps he never meant to hit him, but unfortunately it
+struck him exactly on the head, so that the poor Cricket had
+scarcely breath to cry "Cri-cri-cri!" and then he remained
+dried up and flattened against the wall.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-025" id="illus-025"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-025.png" alt="Untitled" title="Untitled" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V"></a>CHAPTER V</h3>
+
+<h2>THE FLYING EGG</h2>
+
+
+<p>Night was coming on and Pinocchio, remembering that
+he had eaten nothing all day, began to feel a gnawing
+in his stomach that very much resembled appetite.</p>
+
+<p>After a few minutes his appetite had become hunger
+and in no time his hunger became ravenous.</p>
+
+<p>Poor Pinocchio ran quickly to the fireplace, where a saucepan
+was boiling, and was going to take off the lid to see
+what was in it, but the saucepan was only painted on the
+wall. You can imagine his feelings. His nose, which was
+already long, became longer by at least three inches.</p>
+
+<p>He then began to run about the room, searching in the
+drawers and in every imaginable place, in hopes of finding a
+bit of bread. If it was only a bit of dry bread, a crust, a
+bone left by a dog, a little moldy pudding of Indian corn,
+a fish bone, a cherry stone&mdash;in fact, anything that he could
+gnaw. But he could find nothing, nothing at all, absolutely
+nothing.</p>
+
+<p>And in the meanwhile his hunger grew and grew. Poor
+Pinocchio had no other relief than yawning, and his yawns
+were so tremendous that sometimes his mouth almost reached
+his ears. And after he had yawned he spluttered and felt
+as if he were going to faint.</p>
+
+<p>Then he began to cry desperately, and he said:</p>
+
+<p>"The Talking-Cricket was right. I did wrong to rebel
+against my papa and to run away from home. If my papa
+were here I should not now be dying of yawning! Oh! what
+a dreadful illness hunger is!"</p>
+
+<p>Just then he thought he saw something in the dust-heap&mdash;something
+round and white that looked like a hen's egg. To
+give a spring and seize hold of it was the affair of a moment.
+It was indeed an egg.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio's joy was beyond description. Almost believing
+it must be a dream he kept turning the egg over in his hands,
+feeling it and kissing it. And as he kissed it he said:</p>
+
+<p>"And now, how shall I cook it? Shall I make an omelet?
+No, it would be better to cook it in a saucer! Or would it
+not be more savory to fry it in the frying-pan? Or shall I
+simply boil it? No, the quickest way of all is to cook it in
+a saucer: I am in such a hurry to eat it!"</p>
+
+<p>Without loss of time he placed an earthenware saucer on
+a brazier full of red-hot embers. Into the saucer instead of
+oil or butter he poured a little water; and when the water
+began to smoke, tac! he broke the egg-shell over it and let
+the contents drop in. But, instead of the white and the yolk
+a little chicken popped out very gay and polite. Making a
+beautiful courtesy it said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"A thousand thanks, Master Pinocchio, for saving me the
+trouble of breaking the shell. Adieu until we meet again.
+Keep well, and my best compliments to all at home!"</p>
+
+<p>Thus saying, it spread its wings, darted through the open
+window and, flying away, was lost to sight.</p>
+
+<p>The poor puppet stood as if he had been bewitched, with
+his eyes fixed, his mouth open, and the egg-shell in his hand.
+Recovering, however, from his first stupefaction, he began to
+cry and scream, and to stamp his feet on the floor in desperation,
+and amidst his sobs he said:</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, indeed, the Talking-Cricket was right. If I had not
+run away from home, and if my papa were here, I should
+not now be dying of hunger! Oh! what a dreadful illness
+hunger is!"</p>
+
+<p>And, as his stomach cried out more than ever and he did
+not know how to quiet it, he thought he would leave the house
+and make an excursion in the neighborhood in hopes of finding
+some charitable person who would give him a piece of bread.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-028" id="illus-028"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-028.png"
+alt="Poor Pinocchio&#39;s Feet Burn to Cinders" title="Poor Pinocchio&#39;s Feet Burn to Cinders" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI"></a>CHAPTER VI</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO'S FEET BURN TO CINDERS</h2>
+
+
+<p>It was a wild and stormy night. The thunder was tremendous
+and the lightning so vivid that the sky seemed
+on fire.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio had a great fear of thunder, but hunger was
+stronger than fear. He therefore closed the house door and
+made a rush for the village, which he reached in a hundred
+bounds, with his tongue hanging out and panting for breath
+like a dog after game.</p>
+
+<p>But he found it all dark and deserted. The shops were
+closed, the windows shut, and there was not so much as a
+dog in the street. It seemed the land of the dead.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, urged by desperation and hunger, took hold
+of the bell of a house and began to ring it with all his might,
+saying to himself:</p>
+
+<p>"That will bring somebody."</p>
+
+<p>And so it did. A little old man appeared at a window
+with a night-cap on his head and called to him angrily:</p>
+
+<p>"What do you want at such an hour?"</p>
+
+<p>"Would you be kind enough to give me a little bread?"</p>
+
+<p>"Wait there, I will be back directly," said the little old
+man, thinking it was one of those rascally boys who amuse
+themselves at night by ringing the house-bells to rouse respectable
+people who are sleeping quietly.</p>
+
+<p>After half a minute the window was again opened and the
+voice of the same little old man shouted to Pinocchio:</p>
+
+<p>"Come underneath and hold out your cap."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio pulled off his cap; but, just as he held it out,
+an enormous basin of water was poured down on him, soaking
+him from head to foot as if he had been a pot of dried-up
+geraniums.</p>
+
+<p>He returned home like a wet chicken, quite exhausted
+with fatigue and hunger; and, having no longer strength to
+stand, he sat down and rested his damp and muddy feet on
+a brazier full of burning embers.</p>
+
+<p>And then he fell asleep, and whilst he slept his feet, which
+were wooden, took fire, and little by little they burnt away
+and became cinders.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio continued to sleep and to snore as if his feet
+belonged to some one else. At last about daybreak he awoke
+because some one was knocking at the door.</p>
+
+<p>"Who is there?" he asked, yawning and rubbing his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"It is I!" answered a voice.</p>
+
+<p>And Pinocchio recognized Geppetto's voice.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII"></a>CHAPTER VII</h3>
+
+<h2>GEPPETTO GIVES HIS OWN BREAKFAST
+TO PINOCCHIO</h2>
+
+
+<p>Poor Pinocchio, whose eyes were still half shut from sleep,
+had not as yet discovered that his feet were burnt off.
+The moment, therefore, that he heard his father's voice he
+slipped off his stool to run and open the door; but, after
+stumbling two or three times, he fell his whole length on
+the floor.</p>
+
+<p>And the noise he made in falling was as if a sack of
+wooden ladles had been thrown from a fifth story.</p>
+
+<p>"Open the door!" shouted Geppetto from the street.</p>
+
+<p>"Dear papa, I cannot," answered the puppet, crying
+and rolling about on the ground.</p>
+
+<p>"Why can't you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because my feet have been eaten."</p>
+
+<p>"And who has eaten your feet?"</p>
+
+<p>"The cat," said Pinocchio, seeing the cat, who was amusing
+herself by making some shavings dance with her forepaws.</p>
+
+<p>"Open the door, I tell you!" repeated Geppetto. "If
+you don't, when I get into the house you shall have the cat
+from me!"</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot stand up, believe me. Oh, poor me! poor me!
+I shall have to walk on my knees for the rest of my life!"</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto, believing that all this lamentation was only
+another of the puppet's tricks, thought of a means of putting
+an end to it, and, climbing up the wall, he got in at the window.</p>
+
+<p>He was very angry and at first he did nothing but scold;
+but when he saw his Pinocchio lying on the ground and really
+without feet he was quite overcome. He took him in his arms
+and began to kiss and caress him, and to say a thousand
+endearing things to him, and as the big tears ran down his
+cheeks he said, sobbing:</p>
+
+<p>"My little Pinocchio! how did you manage to burn your
+feet?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know, papa, but it has been such a dreadful night
+that I shall remember it as long as I live. It thundered
+and lightened, and I was very hungry, and then the Talking-Cricket
+said to me: 'It serves you right; you have been
+wicked and you deserve it,' and I said to him: 'Take care,
+Cricket!' and he said: 'You are a puppet and you have a
+wooden head,' and I threw the handle of a hammer at him,
+and he died, but the fault was his, for I didn't wish to kill
+him, and the proof of it is that I put an earthenware saucer
+on a brazier of burning embers, but a chicken flew out and
+said: 'Adieu until we meet again, and many compliments to
+all at home': and I got still more hungry, for which reason
+that little old man in a night-cap, opening the window, said
+to me: 'Come underneath and hold out your hat,' and poured
+a basinful of water on my head, because asking for a little
+bread isn't a disgrace, is it? and I returned home at once, and
+because I was always very hungry I put my feet on the
+brazier to dry them, and then you returned, and I found they
+were burnt off, and I am always hungry, but I have no longer
+any feet! Oh! oh! oh! oh!" And poor Pinocchio began to
+cry and to roar so loudly that he was heard five miles off.</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto, who from all this jumbled account had only
+understood one thing, which was that the puppet was dying
+of hunger, drew from his pocket three pears and, giving them
+to him, said:</p>
+
+<p>"These three pears were intended for my breakfast, but
+I will give them to you willingly. Eat them, and I hope
+they will do you good."</p>
+
+<p>"If you wish me to eat them, be kind enough to peel
+them for me."</p>
+
+<p>"Peel them?" said Geppetto, astonished. "I should never
+have thought, my boy, that you were so dainty and fastidious.
+That is bad! In this world we should accustom ourselves
+from childhood to like and to eat everything, for there is no
+saying to what we may be brought. There are so many
+chances!"</p>
+
+<p>"You are no doubt right," interrupted Pinocchio, "but I
+will never eat fruit that has not been peeled. I cannot bear
+rind."</p>
+
+<p>So good Geppetto peeled the three pears and put the rind
+on a corner of the table.</p>
+
+<p>Having eaten the first pear in two mouthfuls, Pinocchio
+was about to throw away the core, but Geppetto caught hold
+of his arm and said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Do not throw it away; in this world everything may
+be of use."</p>
+
+<p>"But core I am determined I will not eat," shouted the
+puppet, turning upon him like a viper.</p>
+
+<p>"Who knows! there are so many chances!" repeated Geppetto,
+without losing his temper.</p>
+
+<p>And so the three cores, instead of being thrown out of
+the window, were placed on the corner of the table, together
+with the three rinds.</p>
+
+<p>Having eaten, or rather having devoured the three pears,
+Pinocchio yawned tremendously, and then said in a fretful tone:</p>
+
+<p>"I am as hungry as ever!"</p>
+
+<p>"But, my boy, I have nothing more to give you!"</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing, really nothing?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have only the rind and the cores of the three pears."</p>
+
+<p>"One must have patience!" said Pinocchio; "if there is
+nothing else I will eat a rind."</p>
+
+<p>And he began to chew it. At first he made a wry face,
+but then one after another he quickly disposed of the rinds:
+and after the rinds even the cores, and when he had eaten
+up everything he clapped his hands on his sides in his satisfaction
+and said joyfully:</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! now I feel comfortable."</p>
+
+<p>"You see, now," observed Geppetto, "that I was right
+when I said to you that it did not do to accustom ourselves
+to be too particular or too dainty in our tastes. We can
+never know, my dear boy, what may happen to us. There
+are so many chances!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-034" id="illus-034"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-034.png"
+alt="Geppetto Makes His Puppet Some Clothes" title="Geppetto Makes His Puppet Some Clothes" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_VIII" id="CHAPTER_VIII"></a>CHAPTER VIII</h3>
+
+<h2>GEPPETTO MAKES PINOCCHIO NEW FEET</h2>
+
+
+<p>No sooner had the puppet satisfied his hunger than he began
+to cry and to grumble because he wanted a pair of
+new feet.</p>
+
+<p>But Geppetto, to punish him for his naughtiness, allowed
+him to cry and to despair for half the day. He then said
+to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Why should I make you new feet? To enable you,
+perhaps, to escape again from home?"</p>
+
+<p>"I promise you," said the puppet, sobbing, "that for the
+future I will be good."</p>
+
+<p>"All boys," replied Geppetto, "when they are bent upon
+obtaining something, say the same thing."</p>
+
+<p>"I promise you that I will go to school and that I will
+study and bring home a good report."</p>
+
+<p>"All boys, when they are bent on obtaining something,
+repeat the same story."</p>
+
+<p>"But I am not like other boys! I am better than all of
+them and I always speak the truth. I promise you, papa,
+that I will learn a trade and that I will be the consolation
+and the staff of your old age."</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto's eyes filled with tears and his heart was sad at
+seeing his poor Pinocchio in such a pitiable state. He did
+not say another word, but, taking his tools and two small
+pieces of well-seasoned wood, he set to work with great diligence.</p>
+
+<p>In less than an hour the feet were finished: two little
+feet&mdash;swift, well-knit and nervous. They might have been
+modelled by an artist of genius.</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto then said to the puppet:</p>
+
+<p>"Shut your eyes and go to sleep!"</p>
+
+<p>And Pinocchio shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep.</p>
+
+<p>And whilst he pretended to sleep, Geppetto, with a little
+glue which he had melted in an egg-shell, fastened his feet
+in their place, and it was so well done that not even a trace
+could be seen of where they were joined.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had the puppet discovered that he had feet
+than he jumped down from the table on which he was lying
+and began to spring and to cut a thousand capers about the
+room, as if he had gone mad with the greatness of his delight.</p>
+
+<p>"To reward you for what you have done for me," said
+Pinocchio to his father, "I will go to school at once."</p>
+
+<p>"Good boy."</p>
+
+<p>"But to go to school I shall want some clothes."</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto, who was poor and who had not so much as a
+penny in his pocket, then made him a little dress of flowered
+paper, a pair of shoes from the bark of a tree, and a cap
+of the crumb of bread.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio ran immediately to look at himself in a crock
+of water, and he was so pleased with his appearance that he
+said, strutting about like a peacock:</p>
+
+<p>"I look quite like a gentleman!"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, indeed," answered Geppetto, "for bear in mind
+that it is not fine clothes that make the gentleman, but rather
+clean clothes."</p>
+
+<p>"By the bye," added the puppet, "to go to school I am
+still in want&mdash;indeed, I am without the best thing, and the
+most important."</p>
+
+<p>"And what is it?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have no spelling-book."</p>
+
+<p>"You are right: but what shall we do to get one?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is quite easy. We have only to go to the bookseller's
+and buy it."</p>
+
+<p>"And the money?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have got none."</p>
+
+<p>"Neither have I," added the good old man, very sadly.</p>
+
+<p>And Pinocchio, although he was a very merry boy, became
+sad also, because poverty, when it is real poverty, is
+understood by everybody&mdash;even by boys.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, patience!" exclaimed Geppetto, all at once rising
+to his feet, and putting on his old corduroy coat, all patched
+and darned, he ran out of the house.</p>
+
+<p>He returned shortly, holding in his hand a spelling-book
+for Pinocchio, but the old coat was gone. The poor man was
+in his shirt-sleeves and out of doors it was snowing.</p>
+
+<p>"And the coat, papa?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have sold it."</p>
+
+<p>"Why did you sell it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because I found it too hot."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio understood this answer in an instant, and unable
+to restrain the impulse of his good heart he sprang up and,
+throwing his arms around Geppetto's neck, he began kissing
+him again and again.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_IX" id="CHAPTER_IX"></a>CHAPTER IX</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO GOES TO SEE A PUPPET-SHOW</h2>
+
+
+<p>As soon as it stopped snowing Pinocchio set out for school
+with his fine spelling-book under his arm. As he went
+along he began to imagine a thousand things in his little brain
+and to build a thousand castles in the air, one more beautiful
+than the other.</p>
+
+<p>And, talking to himself, he said:</p>
+
+<p>"Today at school I will learn to read at once; then tomorrow
+I will begin to write, and the day after tomorrow
+to figure. Then, with my acquirements, I will earn a great
+deal of money, and with the first money I have in my pocket
+I will immediately buy for my papa a beautiful new cloth
+coat. But what am I saying? Cloth, indeed! It shall be
+all made of gold and silver, and it shall have diamond buttons.
+That poor man really deserves it, for to buy me books and
+have me taught he has remained in his shirt-sleeves. And in
+this cold! It is only fathers who are capable of such sacrifices!"</p>
+
+<p>Whilst he was saying this with great emotion, he thought
+that he heard music in the distance that sounded like fifes
+and the beating of a big drum: Fi-fie-fi, fi-fi-fi; zum, zum, zum.</p>
+
+<p>He stopped and listened. The sounds came from the end
+of a cross street that led to a little village on the seashore.</p>
+
+<p>"What can that music be? What a pity that I have to
+go to school, or else&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>And he remained irresolute. It was, however, necessary
+to come to a decision. Should he go to school? or should he
+go after the fifes?</p>
+
+<p>"Today I will go and hear the fifes, and tomorrow I
+will go to school," finally decided the young scapegrace, shrugging
+his shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>The more he ran the nearer came the sounds of the
+fifes and the beating of the big drum: Fi-fi-fi; zum, zum,
+zum, zum.</p>
+
+<p>At last he found himself in the middle of a square quite
+full of people, who were all crowded round a building made
+of wood and canvas, and painted a thousand colors.</p>
+
+<p>"What is that building?" asked Pinocchio, turning to a
+little boy who belonged to the place.</p>
+
+<p>"Read the placard&mdash;it is all written&mdash;and then you will
+know."</p>
+
+<p>"I would read it willingly, but it so happens that today
+I don't know how to read."</p>
+
+<p>"Bravo, blockhead! Then I will read it to you. The writing
+on that placard in those letters red as fire is:</p>
+
+<p class="placard">&quot;<span class="smcap">The Great Puppet Theater</span>.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>"Has the play begun long?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is beginning now."</p>
+
+<p>"How much does it cost to go in?"</p>
+
+<p>"A dime."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, who was in a fever of curiosity, lost all control
+of himself, and without any shame he said to the little boy
+to whom he was talking:</p>
+
+<p>"Would you lend me a dime until tomorrow?"</p>
+
+<p>"I would lend it to you willingly," said the other, "but
+it so happens that today I cannot give it to you."</p>
+
+<p>"I will sell you my jacket for a dime," the puppet then
+said to him.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you think that I could do with a jacket of
+flowered paper? If there were rain and it got wet, it would
+be impossible to get it off my back."</p>
+
+<p>"Will you buy my shoes?"</p>
+
+<p>"They would only be of use to light the fire."</p>
+
+<p>"How much will you give me for my cap?"</p>
+
+<p>"That would be a wonderful acquisition indeed! A cap
+of bread crumb! There would be a risk of the mice coming
+to eat it whilst it was on my head."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio was on thorns. He was on the point of making
+another offer, but he had not the courage. He hesitated, felt
+irresolute and remorseful. At last he said:</p>
+
+<p>"Will you give me a dime for this new spelling-book?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am a boy and I don't buy from boys," replied his little
+interlocutor, who had much more sense than he had.</p>
+
+<p>"I will buy the spelling-book for a dime," called out a
+hawker of old clothes, who had been listening to the conversation.</p>
+
+<p>And the book was sold there and then. And to think
+that poor Geppetto had remained at home trembling with cold
+in his shirt-sleeves in order that his son should have a spelling-book.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_X" id="CHAPTER_X"></a>CHAPTER X</h3>
+
+<h2>THE PUPPETS RECOGNIZE THEIR BROTHER PINOCCHIO</h2>
+
+
+<p>When Pinocchio came into the little puppet theater, an
+incident occurred that almost produced a revolution.</p>
+
+<p>The curtain had gone up and the play had already begun.</p>
+
+<p>On the stage Harlequin and Punch were as usual quarrelling
+with each other and threatening every moment to come
+to blows.</p>
+
+<p>All at once Harlequin stopped short and, turning to the
+public, he pointed with his hand to some one far down in
+the pit and exclaimed in a dramatic tone:</p>
+
+<p>"Gods of the firmament! Do I dream or am I awake?
+But surely that is Pinocchio!"</p>
+
+<p>"It is indeed Pinocchio!" cried Punch.</p>
+
+<p>"It is indeed himself!" screamed Miss Rose, peeping from
+behind the scenes.</p>
+
+<p>"It is Pinocchio! it is Pinocchio!" shouted all the puppets
+in chorus, leaping from all sides on to the stage. "It is
+Pinocchio! It is our brother Pinocchio! Long live Pinocchio!"</p>
+
+<p>"Pinocchio, come up here to me," cried Harlequin, "and
+throw yourself into the arms of your wooden brothers!"</p>
+
+<p>At this affectionate invitation Pinocchio made a leap from
+the end of the pit into the reserved seats; another leap landed
+him on the head of the leader of the orchestra, and he then
+sprang upon the stage.</p>
+
+<p>The embraces, the friendly pinches, and the demonstrations
+of warm brotherly affection that Pinocchio received from
+the excited crowd of actors and actresses of the puppet dramatic
+company are beyond description.</p>
+
+<p>The sight was doubtless a moving one, but the public in
+the pit, finding that the play was stopped, became impatient
+and began to shout: "We will have the play&mdash;go on with
+the play!"</p>
+
+<p>It was all breath thrown away. The puppets, instead of
+continuing the recital, redoubled their noise and outcries, and,
+putting Pinocchio on their shoulders, they carried him in triumph
+before the footlights.</p>
+
+<p>At that moment out came the showman. He was very
+big, and so ugly that the sight of him was enough to frighten
+anyone. His beard was as black as ink, and so long that it
+reached from his chin to the ground. I need only say that
+he trod upon it when he walked. His mouth was as big as
+an oven, and his eyes were like two lanterns of red glass with
+lights burning inside them. He carried a large whip made of
+snakes and foxes' tails twisted together, which he cracked
+constantly.</p>
+
+<p>At his unexpected appearance there was a profound silence:
+no one dared to breathe. A fly might have been heard in the
+stillness. The poor puppets of both sexes trembled like so
+many leaves.</p>
+
+<p>"Why have you come to raise a disturbance in my theater?"
+asked the showman of Pinocchio, in the gruff voice of a hobgoblin
+suffering from a severe cold in the head.</p>
+
+<p>"Believe me, honored sir, it was not my fault!"</p>
+
+<p>"That is enough! Tonight we will settle our accounts."</p>
+
+<p>As soon as the play was over the showman went into the
+kitchen, where a fine sheep, preparing for his supper, was turning
+slowly on the spit in front of the fire. As there was not
+enough wood to finish roasting and browning it, he called
+Harlequin and Punch, and said to them:</p>
+
+<p>"Bring that puppet here: you will find him hanging on
+a nail. It seems to me that he is made of very dry wood and
+I am sure that if he were thrown on the fire he would make
+a beautiful blaze for the roast."</p>
+
+<p>At first Harlequin and Punch hesitated; but, appalled by
+a severe glance from their master, they obeyed. In a short
+time they returned to the kitchen carrying poor Pinocchio, who
+was wriggling like an eel taken out of water and screaming
+desperately: "Papa! papa! save me! I will not die, I will
+not die!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-044" id="illus-044"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-044.png"
+alt="The Puppets Began to Dance Merrily" title="The Puppets Began to Dance Merrily" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XI" id="CHAPTER_XI"></a>CHAPTER XI</h3>
+
+<h2>FIRE-EATER SNEEZES AND PARDONS PINOCCHIO</h2>
+
+
+<p>The showman, Fire-Eater&mdash;for that was his name&mdash;looked
+like a wicked man, especially with his black beard that
+covered his chest and legs like an apron. On the whole, however,
+he had not a bad heart. In proof of this, when he saw
+poor Pinocchio brought before him, struggling and screaming
+"I will not die, I will not die!" he was quite moved and felt
+very sorry for him. He tried to hold out, but after a little
+he could stand it no longer and he sneezed violently. When
+he heard the sneeze, Harlequin, who up to that moment had
+been in the deepest affliction and bowed down like a weeping
+willow, became quite cheerful and, leaning towards Pinocchio,
+he whispered to him softly:</p>
+
+<p>"Good news, brother. The showman has sneezed and that
+is a sign that he pities you, and consequently you are saved."</p>
+
+<p>Most men, when they feel compassion for somebody, either
+weep or at least pretend to dry their eyes. Fire-Eater, on
+the contrary, whenever he was really overcome, had the habit
+of sneezing.</p>
+
+<p>After he had sneezed, the showman, still acting the ruffian,
+shouted to Pinocchio:</p>
+
+<p>"Have done crying! Your lamentations have given me
+a pain in my stomach. I feel a spasm that almost&mdash;Etchoo!
+etchoo!" and he sneezed again twice.</p>
+
+<p>"Bless you!" said Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you! And your papa and your mamma, are they
+still alive?" asked Fire-Eater.</p>
+
+<p>"Papa, yes; my mamma I have never known."</p>
+
+<p>"Who can say what a sorrow it would be for your poor
+old father if I were to have you thrown amongst those burning
+coals! Poor old man! I pity him! Etchoo! etchoo!
+etchoo!" and he sneezed again three times.</p>
+
+<p>"Bless you" said Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you! All the same, some compassion is due to
+me, for as you see I have no more wood with which to finish
+roasting my mutton, and, to tell you the truth, under the circumstances
+you would have been of great use to me! However,
+I have had pity on you, so I must have patience. Instead
+of you I will burn under the spit one of the puppets belonging
+to my company. Ho there, gendarmes!"</p>
+
+<p>At this call two wooden gendarmes immediately appeared.
+They were very long and very thin, and had on cocked hats,
+and held unsheathed swords in their hands.</p>
+
+<p>The showman said to them in a hoarse voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Take Harlequin, bind him securely, and then throw him
+on the fire to burn. I am determined that my mutton shall
+be well roasted."</p>
+
+<p>Only imagine that poor Harlequin! His terror was so
+great that his legs bent under him, and he fell with his face
+on the ground.</p>
+
+<p>At this agonizing sight Pinocchio, weeping bitterly, threw
+himself at the showman's feet and, bathing his long beard with
+his tears, he began to say, in a supplicating voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Have pity, Sir Fire-Eater!"</p>
+
+<p>"Here there are no sirs," the showman answered severely.</p>
+
+<p>"Have pity, Sir Knight!"</p>
+
+<p>"Here there are no knights!"</p>
+
+<p>"Have pity, Commander!"</p>
+
+<p>"Here there are no commanders!"</p>
+
+<p>"Have pity, Excellence!"</p>
+
+<p>Upon hearing himself called Excellence the showman
+began to smile and became at once kinder and more tractable.
+Turning to Pinocchio, he asked:</p>
+
+<p>"Well, what do you want from me?"</p>
+
+<p>"I implore you to pardon poor Harlequin."</p>
+
+<p>"For him there can be no pardon. As I have spared you
+he must be put on the fire, for I am determined that my
+mutton shall be well roasted."</p>
+
+<p>"In that case," cried Pinocchio proudly, rising and throwing
+away his cap of bread crumb&mdash;"in that case I know my
+duty. Come on, gendarmes! Bind me and throw me amongst
+the flames. No, it is not just that poor Harlequin, my true
+friend, should die for me!"</p>
+
+<p>These words, pronounced in a loud, heroic voice, made all
+the puppets who were present cry. Even the gendarmes,
+although they were made of wood, wept like two newly born
+lambs.</p>
+
+<p>Fire-Eater at first remained as hard and unmoved as ice,
+but little by little he began to melt and to sneeze. And,
+having sneezed four or five times, he opened his arms affectionately
+and said to Pinocchio:</p>
+
+<p>"You are a good, brave boy! Come here and give me
+a kiss."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio ran at once and, climbing like a squirrel up the
+showman's beard, he deposited a hearty kiss on the point of
+his nose.</p>
+
+<p>"Then the pardon is granted?" asked poor Harlequin in
+a faint voice that was scarcely audible.</p>
+
+<p>"The pardon is granted!" answered Fire-Eater; he then
+added, sighing and shaking his head:</p>
+
+<p>"I must have patience! Tonight I shall have to resign
+myself to eat the mutton half raw; but another time, woe to
+him who displeases me!"</p>
+
+<p>At the news of the pardon the puppets all ran to the
+stage and, having lighted the lamps and chandeliers as if for
+a full-dress performance, they began to leap and to dance
+merrily. At dawn they were still dancing.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-048" id="illus-048"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-048.png"
+alt="Pinocchio Meets the Cat and the Fox" title="Pinocchio Meets the Cat and the Fox" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XII" id="CHAPTER_XII"></a>CHAPTER XII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO RECEIVES A PRESENT OF FIVE GOLD PIECES</h2>
+
+
+<p>The following day Fire-Eater called Pinocchio to one side
+and asked him:</p>
+
+<p>"What is your father's name?"</p>
+
+<p>"Geppetto."</p>
+
+<p>"And what trade does he follow?"</p>
+
+<p>"He is a beggar."</p>
+
+<p>"Does he gain much?"</p>
+
+<p>"Gain much? Why, he has never a penny in his pocket.
+Only think, in order to buy a spelling-book so that I could
+go to school he was obliged to sell the only coat he had to
+wear&mdash;a coat that, between patches and darns, was not fit to
+be seen."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor devil! I feel almost sorry for him! Here are five
+gold pieces. Go at once and take them to him with my compliments."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio was overjoyed and thanked the showman a thousand
+times. He embraced all the puppets of the company one
+by one, even to the gendarmes, and set out to return home.</p>
+
+<p>But he had not gone far when he met on the road a
+Fox lame of one foot, and a Cat blind of both eyes, and they
+were going along helping each other like good companions in
+misfortune. The Fox, who was lame, walked leaning on the
+Cat; and the Cat, who was blind, was guided by the Fox.</p>
+
+<p>"Good-day, Pinocchio," said the Fox, greeting him politely.</p>
+
+<p>"How do you come to know my name?" asked the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"I know your father well."</p>
+
+<p>"Where did you see him?"</p>
+
+<p>"I saw him yesterday at the door of his house."</p>
+
+<p>"And what was he doing?"</p>
+
+<p>"He was in his shirt-sleeves and shivering with cold."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor papa! But that is over; for the future he shall
+shiver no more!"</p>
+
+<p>"Why?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because I have become a gentleman."</p>
+
+<p>"A gentleman&mdash;you!" said the Fox, and he began to laugh
+rudely and scornfully. The Cat also began to laugh, but to
+conceal it she combed her whiskers with her forepaws.</p>
+
+
+<p>"There is little to laugh at," cried Pinocchio angrily. "I
+am really sorry to make your mouth water, but if you know
+anything about it, you can see that these are five gold pieces."</p>
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="Splash! Splash! They Fell Into the Ditch">
+<tr><td align='center'><big><b>Splash! Splash! They fell Into the<br />
+Very Middle of the Ditch</b></big></td>
+<td align='center'><a name="illus-051" id="illus-051"></a>
+<img src="images/illus-051.png"
+alt="Splash! Splash! They Fell Into the Ditch" title="Splash! Splash! They Fell Into the Ditch" /></td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+
+<p>And he pulled out the money that Fire-Eater had given him.</p>
+
+<p>At the jingling of the money the Fox, with an involuntary
+movement, stretched out the paw that seemed crippled,
+and the Cat opened wide two eyes that looked like two green
+lanterns. It is true that she shut them again, and so quickly
+that Pinocchio observed nothing.</p>
+
+<p>"And now," asked the Fox, "what are you going to do
+with all that money?"</p>
+
+<p>"First of all," answered the puppet, "I intend to buy a
+new coat for my papa, made of gold and silver, and with
+diamond buttons; and then I will buy a spelling-book for
+myself."</p>
+
+<p>"For yourself?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes indeed, for I wish to go to school to study in earnest."</p>
+
+<p>"Look at me!" said the Fox. "Through my foolish passion
+for study I have lost a leg."</p>
+
+<p>"Look at me!" said the Cat. "Through my foolish passion
+for study I have lost the sight of both my eyes."</p>
+
+<p>At that moment a white Blackbird, that was perched on
+the hedge by the road, began his usual song, and said:</p>
+
+<p>"Pinocchio, don't listen to the advice of bad companions;
+if you do you will repent it!"</p>
+
+<p>Poor Blackbird! If only he had not spoken! The Cat,
+with a great leap, sprang upon him, and without even giving
+him time to say "Oh!" ate him in a mouthful, feathers and all.</p>
+
+<p>Having eaten him and cleaned her mouth she shut her
+eyes again and feigned blindness as before.</p>
+
+<p>"Poor Blackbird!" said Pinocchio to the Cat, "why did
+you treat him so badly?"</p>
+
+<p>"I did it to give him a lesson. He will learn another
+time not to meddle in other people's conversation."</p>
+
+<p>They had gone almost half-way when the Fox, halting
+suddenly, said to the puppet:</p>
+
+<p>"Would you like to double your money?"</p>
+
+<p>"In what way?"</p>
+
+<p>"Would you like to make out of your five miserable sovereigns,
+a hundred, a thousand, two thousand?"</p>
+
+<p>"I should think so! but in what way?"</p>
+
+<p>"The way is easy enough. Instead of returning home
+you must go with us."</p>
+
+<p>"And where do you wish to take me?"</p>
+
+<p>"To the land of the Owls."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio reflected a moment, and then he said resolutely:</p>
+
+<p>"No, I will not go. I am already close to the house, and
+I will return home to my papa, who is waiting for me. Who
+can tell how often the poor old man must have sighed yesterday
+when I did not come back! I have indeed been a bad
+son, and the Talking-Cricket was right when he said: 'Disobedient
+boys never come to any good in the world.' I have
+found it to be true, for many misfortunes have happened to
+me. Even yesterday in Fire-Eater's house I ran the risk&mdash;Oh!
+it makes me shudder only to think of it!"</p>
+
+<p>"Well, then," said the Fox, "you are quite decided to go
+home? Go, then, and so much the worse for you."</p>
+
+<p>"So much the worse for you!" repeated the Cat.</p>
+
+<p>"Think well of it, Pinocchio, for you are giving a kick
+to fortune."</p>
+
+<p>"To fortune!" repeated the Cat.</p>
+
+<p>"Between today and tomorrow your five sovereigns would
+have become two thousand."</p>
+
+<p>"Two thousand!" repeated the Cat.</p>
+
+<p>"But how is it possible that they could become so many?"
+asked Pinocchio, remaining with his mouth open from astonishment.</p>
+
+<p>"I will explain it to you at once," said the Fox. "You
+must know that in the land of the Owls there is a sacred
+field called by everybody the Field of Miracles. In this field
+you must dig a little hole, and you put into it, we will say,
+one gold sovereign. You then cover up the hole with a little
+earth; you must water it with two pails of water from the
+fountain, then sprinkle it with two pinches of salt, and when
+night comes you can go quietly to bed. In the meanwhile,
+during the night, the gold piece will grow and flower, and
+in the morning when you get up and return to the field, what
+do you find? You find a beautiful tree laden with as many
+gold sovereigns as a fine ear of corn has grains in the month
+of June."</p>
+
+<p>"So that," said Pinocchio, more and more bewildered, "supposing
+I buried my five sovereigns in that field, how many
+should I find there the following morning?"</p>
+
+<p>"That is an exceedingly easy calculation," replied the Fox,
+"a calculation that you can make on the ends of your fingers.
+Every sovereign will give you an increase of five hundred;
+multiply five hundred by five, and the following morning will
+find you with two thousand five hundred shining gold pieces
+in your pocket."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! how delightful!" cried Pinocchio, dancing for joy.
+"As soon as ever I have obtained those sovereigns, I will keep
+two thousand for myself and the other five hundred I will
+make a present of to you two."</p>
+
+<p>"A present to us?" cried the Fox with indignation and
+appearing much offended. "What are you dreaming of?"</p>
+
+<p>"What are you dreaming of?" repeated the Cat.</p>
+
+<p>"We do not work," said the Fox, "for interest: we work
+solely to enrich others."</p>
+
+<p>"Others!" repeated the Cat.</p>
+
+<p>"What good people!" thought Pinocchio to himself, and,
+forgetting there and then his papa, the new coat, the spelling-book,
+and all his good resolutions, he said to the Fox and
+the Cat:</p>
+
+<p>"Let us be off at once. I will go with you."</p>
+
+
+
+<p><a name="hi-illus-056" id="hi-illus-056"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/hi-illus-056.jpg"
+alt="A LITTLE CHICKEN POPPED OUT, VERY GAY AND POLITE"
+title="A LITTLE CHICKEN POPPED OUT, VERY GAY AND POLITE" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-057" id="illus-057"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-057.png"
+alt="Dinner at The Red Craw-Fish Inn" title="Dinner at The Red Craw-Fish Inn" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XIII" id="CHAPTER_XIII"></a>CHAPTER XIII</h3>
+
+<h2>THE INN OF THE RED CRAW-FISH</h2>
+
+
+<p>They walked, and walked, and walked, until at last, towards
+evening, they arrived, all tired out, at the inn of The
+Red Craw-Fish.</p>
+
+<p>"Let us stop here a little," said the Fox, "that we may
+have something to eat, and rest ourselves for an hour or two.
+We will start again at midnight, so as to arrive at the Field
+of Miracles by dawn tomorrow morning."</p>
+
+<p>Having gone into the inn they all three sat down to table,
+but none of them had any appetite.</p>
+
+<p>The Cat, who was suffering from indigestion and feeling
+seriously indisposed, could only eat thirty-five fish with tomato
+sauce and four portions of tripe with Parmesan cheese; and
+because she thought the tripe was not seasoned enough, she
+asked three times for the butter and grated cheese!</p>
+
+<p>The Fox would also willingly have picked a little, but as
+his doctor had ordered him a strict diet, he was forced to content
+himself simply with a hare dressed with a sweet and sour
+sauce, and garnished lightly with fat chickens and early pullets.
+After the hare he sent for a made dish of partridges, rabbits,
+frogs, lizards and other delicacies; he could not touch anything
+else. He cared so little for food, he said, that he could put
+nothing to his lips.</p>
+
+<p>The one who ate the least was Pinocchio. He asked for
+some walnuts and a hunch of bread, and left everything on
+his plate. The poor boy's thoughts were continually fixed on
+the Field of Miracles.</p>
+
+<p>When they had supped, the Fox said to the host:</p>
+
+<p>"Give us two good rooms, one for Mr. Pinocchio, and
+the other for me and my companion. We will snatch a little
+sleep before we leave. Remember, however, that at midnight
+we wish to be called to continue our journey."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, gentlemen," answered the host, and he winked at
+the Fox and the Cat, as much as to say: "I know what you
+are up to. We understand one another!"</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had Pinocchio got into bed than he fell asleep
+at once and began to dream. And he dreamed that he was
+in the middle of a field, and the field was full of shrubs covered
+with clusters of gold sovereigns, and as they swung in the wind
+they went zin, zin, zin, almost as if they would say: "Let
+who will, come and take us." But just as Pinocchio was
+stretching out his hand to pick handfuls of those beautiful
+gold pieces and to put them in his pocket, he was suddenly
+awakened by three violent blows on the door of his room.</p>
+
+<p>It was the host who had come to tell him that midnight
+had struck.</p>
+
+<p>"Are my companions ready?" asked the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"Ready! Why, they left two hours ago."</p>
+
+<p>"Why were they in such a hurry?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because the Cat had received a message to say that her
+eldest kitten was ill with chilblains on his feet and was in
+danger of death."</p>
+
+<p>"Did they pay for the supper?"</p>
+
+<p>"What are you thinking of? They are too well educated
+to dream of offering such an insult to a gentleman like you."</p>
+
+<p>"What a pity! It is an insult that would have given me
+so much pleasure!" said Pinocchio, scratching his head. He
+then asked:</p>
+
+<p>"And where did my good friends say they would wait
+for me?"</p>
+
+<p>"At the Field of Miracles, tomorrow morning at daybreak."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio paid a sovereign for his supper and that of his
+companions, and then left.</p>
+
+<p>Outside the inn it was so pitch dark that he had almost
+to grope his way, for it was impossible to see a hand's breadth
+in front of him. Some night-birds flying across the road from
+one hedge to the other brushed Pinocchio's nose with their
+wings as they passed, which caused him so much terror that,
+springing back, he shouted: "Who goes there?" and the echo
+in the surrounding hills repeated in the distance: "Who goes
+there? Who goes there?"</p>
+
+<p>As he was walking along he saw a little insect shining
+dimly on the trunk of a tree, like a night-light in a lamp of
+transparent china.</p>
+
+<p>"Who are you?" asked Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"I am the ghost of the Talking-Cricket," answered the
+insect in a low voice, so weak and faint that it seemed to come
+from the other world.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you want with me?" said the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"I want to give you some advice. Go back and take the
+four sovereigns that you have left to your poor father, who
+is weeping and in despair because you have not returned to him."</p>
+
+<p>"By tomorrow my papa will be a gentleman, for these
+four sovereigns will have become two thousand."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't trust to those who promise to make you rich in
+a day. Usually they are either mad or rogues! Give ear
+to me, and go back, my boy."</p>
+
+<p>"On the contrary, I am determined to go on."</p>
+
+<p>"The hour is late!"</p>
+
+<p>"I am determined to go on."</p>
+
+<p>"The night is dark!"</p>
+
+<p>"I am determined to go on."</p>
+
+<p>"The road is dangerous!"</p>
+
+<p>"I am determined to go on."</p>
+
+<p>"Remember that boys who are bent on following their
+caprices, and will have their own way, sooner or later repent it."</p>
+
+<p>"Always the same stories. Good-night, Cricket."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-night, Pinocchio, and may Heaven preserve you
+from dangers and from assassins."</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had he said these words than the Talking-Cricket
+vanished suddenly like a light that has been blown
+out, and the road became darker than ever.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-061" id="illus-061"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-061.png"
+alt="Pinocchio Escapes from his Assassins" title="Pinocchio Escapes from his Assassins" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XIV" id="CHAPTER_XIV"></a>CHAPTER XIV</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO FALLS AMONGST ASSASSINS</h2>
+
+
+<p>"Really," said the puppet to himself, as he resumed his
+journey, "how unfortunate we poor boys are. Everybody
+scolds us and gives us good advice. See now; because I don't
+choose to listen to that tiresome Cricket, who knows, according
+to him, how many misfortunes are to happen to me! I am
+even to meet with assassins! That is, however, of little consequence,
+for I don't believe in assassins&mdash;I have never believed
+in them. For me, I think that assassins have been invented
+purposely by papas to frighten boys who want to go out at
+night. Besides, supposing I was to come across them here in
+the road, do you imagine they would frighten me? Not the
+least in the world. I should go to meet them and cry: 'Gentlemen
+assassins, what do you want with me? Remember that
+with me there is no joking. Therefore go about your business
+and be quiet!' At this speech they would run away like the
+wind. If, however, they were so badly educated as not to run
+away, why, then I would run away myself and there would
+be an end of it."</p>
+
+<p>But Pinocchio had not time to finish his reasoning, for at
+that moment he thought that he heard a slight rustle of leaves
+behind him.</p>
+
+<p>He turned to look and saw in the gloom two evil-looking
+black figures completely enveloped in charcoal sacks. They
+were running after him on tiptoe and making great leaps like
+two phantoms.</p>
+
+<p>"Here they are in reality!" he said to himself and, not
+knowing where to hide his gold pieces, he put them in his
+mouth precisely under his tongue.</p>
+
+<p>Then he tried to escape. But he had not gone a step
+when he felt himself seized by the arm and heard two horrid,
+sepulchral voices saying to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Your money or your life!"</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, not being able to answer in words, owing to
+the money that was in his mouth, made a thousand low bows
+and a thousand pantomimes. He tried thus to make the two
+muffled figures, whose eyes were only visible through the holes
+in their sacks, understand that he was a poor puppet, and that
+he had not as much as a counterfeit nickel in his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>"Come, now! Less nonsense and out with the money!"
+cried the two brigands threateningly.</p>
+
+<p>And the puppet made a gesture with his hands to signify:
+"I have none."</p>
+
+<p>"Deliver up your money or you are dead," said the tallest
+of the brigands.</p>
+
+<p>"Dead!" repeated the other.</p>
+
+<p>"And after we have killed you, we will also kill your
+father!"</p>
+
+<p>"Also your father!"</p>
+
+<p>"No, no, no, not my poor papa!" cried Pinocchio in a
+despairing voice, and as he said it the sovereigns clinked in
+his mouth.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! you rascal! Then you have hidden your money under
+your tongue! Spit it out at once!"</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio was obstinate.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! you pretend to be deaf, do you? Wait a moment,
+leave it to us to find a means to make you give it up."</p>
+
+<p>And one of them seized the puppet by the end of his
+nose, and the other took him by the chin, and began to pull
+them brutally, the one up and the other down, to force him
+to open his mouth. But it was all to no purpose. Pinocchio's
+mouth seemed to be nailed and riveted together.</p>
+
+<p>Then the shorter assassin drew out an ugly knife and tried
+to put it between his lips like a lever or chisel. But Pinocchio,
+as quick as lightning, caught his hand with his teeth, and with
+one bite bit it clear off and spat it out. Imagine his astonishment
+when instead of a hand he perceived that a cat's paw
+lay on the ground.</p>
+
+<p>Encouraged by this first victory he used his nails to such
+purpose that he succeeded in liberating himself from his assailants,
+and, jumping the hedge by the roadside, he began to fly
+across the country. The assassins ran after him like two dogs
+chasing a hare, and the one who had lost a paw ran on one
+leg, and no one ever knew how he managed it.</p>
+
+<p>After a race of some miles Pinocchio could go no more.
+Giving himself up for lost, he climbed the trunk of a very
+high pine tree and seated himself in the topmost branches. The
+assassins attempted to climb after him, but when they had
+reached half-way up they slid down again and arrived on
+the ground with the skin grazed from their hands and knees.</p>
+
+<p>But they were not to be beaten by so little; collecting a
+quantity of dry wood, they piled it beneath the pine and set
+fire to it. In less time than it takes to tell, the pine began
+to burn and to flame like a candle blown by the wind. Pinocchio,
+seeing that the flames were mounting higher every instant,
+and not wishing to end his life like a roasted pigeon, made
+a stupendous leap from the top of the tree and started afresh
+across the fields and vineyards. The assassins followed him,
+and kept behind him without once giving up.</p>
+
+<p>The day began to break and they were still pursuing him.
+Suddenly Pinocchio found his way barred by a wide, deep
+ditch full of stagnant water the color of coffee. What was he
+to do? "One! two! three!" cried the puppet, and, making a
+rush, he sprang to the other side. The assassins also jumped,
+but not having measured the distance properly&mdash;splash! splash!
+they fell into the very middle of the ditch. Pinocchio, who
+heard the plunge and the splashing of the water, shouted out,
+laughing, and without stopping:</p>
+
+<p>"A fine bath to you, gentleman assassins."</p>
+
+<p>And he felt convinced that they were drowned, when,
+turning to look, he perceived that, on the contrary, they were
+both running after him, still enveloped in their sacks, with
+the water dripping from them as if they had been two hollow
+baskets.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-065" id="illus-065"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-065.png"
+alt="They Hung Pinocchio to the Big Oak Tree" title="They Hung Pinocchio to the Big Oak Tree" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XV" id="CHAPTER_XV"></a>CHAPTER XV</h3>
+
+<h2>THE ASSASSINS HANG PINOCCHIO TO THE BIG OAK</h2>
+
+
+<p>At this sight the puppet's courage failed him and he was
+on the point of throwing himself on the ground and giving
+himself over for lost. Turning, however, his eyes in every
+direction, he saw, at some distance, a small house as white
+as snow.</p>
+
+<p>"If only I had breath to reach that house," he said to
+himself, "perhaps I should be saved."</p>
+
+<p>And, without delaying an instant, he recommenced running
+for his life through the wood, and the assassins after him.</p>
+
+<p>At last, after a desperate race of nearly two hours, he
+arrived quite breathless at the door of the house, and knocked.</p>
+
+<p>No one answered.</p>
+
+<p>He knocked again with great violence, for he heard the
+sound of steps approaching him and the heavy panting of his
+persecutors. The same silence.</p>
+
+<p>Seeing that knocking was useless, he began in desperation
+to kick and pommel the door with all his might. The window
+then opened and a beautiful Child appeared at it. She had
+blue hair and a face as white as a waxen image; her eyes were
+closed and her hands were crossed on her breast. Without
+moving her lips in the least, she said, in a voice that seemed
+to come from the other world:</p>
+
+<p>"In this house there is no one. They are all dead."</p>
+
+<p>"Then at least open the door for me yourself," shouted
+Pinocchio, crying and imploring.</p>
+
+<p>"I am dead also."</p>
+
+<p>"Dead? Then what are you doing there at the window?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am waiting for the bier to come to carry me away."</p>
+
+<p>Having said this she immediately disappeared and the
+window was closed again without the slightest noise.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! beautiful Child with blue hair," cried Pinocchio,
+"open the door, for pity's sake! Have compassion on a poor
+boy pursued by assas&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>But he could not finish the word, for he felt himself
+seized by the collar and the same two horrible voices said to
+him threateningly:</p>
+
+<p>"You shall not escape from us again!"</p>
+
+<p>The puppet, seeing death staring him in the face, was
+taken with such a violent fit of trembling that the joints of
+his wooden legs began to creak, and the sovereigns hidden
+under his tongue to clink.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, then," demanded the assassins, "will you open your
+mouth&mdash;yes or no? Ah! no answer? Leave it to us: this
+time we will force you to open it!"</p>
+
+<p>And, drawing out two long, horrid knives as sharp as
+razors, clash!&mdash;they attempted to stab him twice.</p>
+
+<p>But the puppet, luckily for him, was made of very hard
+wood; the knives therefore broke into a thousand pieces and
+the assassins were left with the handles in their hands, staring
+at each other.</p>
+
+<p>"I see what we must do," said one of them. "He must
+be hung! let us hang him!"</p>
+
+<p>"Let us hang him!" repeated the other.</p>
+
+<p>Without loss of time they tied his arms behind him, passed
+a running noose round his throat, and hung him to the branch
+of a tree called the Big Oak.</p>
+
+<p>They then sat down on the grass and waited for his last
+struggle. But at the end of three hours the puppet's eyes
+were still open, his mouth closed, and he was kicking more
+than ever.</p>
+
+<p>Losing patience, they turned to Pinocchio and said in a
+bantering tone:</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye till tomorrow. Let us hope that when we return
+you will be polite enough to allow yourself to be found quite
+dead, and with your mouth wide open."</p>
+
+<p>And they walked off.</p>
+
+<p>In the meantime a tempestuous northerly wind began to
+blow and roar angrily, and it beat the poor puppet from
+side to side, making him swing violently, like the clatter of
+a bell ringing for a wedding. And the swinging gave him
+atrocious spasms, and the running noose, becoming still tighter
+round his throat, took away his breath.</p>
+
+<p>Little by little his eyes began to grow dim, but although
+he felt that death was near he still continued to hope that
+some charitable person would come to his assistance before it
+was too late. But when, after waiting and waiting, he found
+that no one came, absolutely no one, then he remembered his
+poor father, and, thinking he was dying, he stammered out:</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, papa! papa! if only you were here!"</p>
+
+<p>His breath failed him and he could say no more. He
+shut his eyes, opened his mouth, stretched his legs, gave a long
+shudder, and hung stiff and insensible.</p>
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="Four Rabbits as Black as Ink Entered">
+<tr><td align='center'><big><b>Four Rabbits as Black as Ink Entered<br />
+Carrying a Little Bier</b></big></td>
+<td align='center'><a name="illus-070" id="illus-070"></a>
+<img src="images/illus-070.png"
+alt="Four Rabbits as Black as Ink Entered" title="Four Rabbits as Black as Ink Entered" /></td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-071" id="illus-071"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-071.png"
+alt="The Falcon Saves Pinocchio" title="The Falcon Saves Pinocchio" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XVI" id="CHAPTER_XVI"></a>CHAPTER XVI</h3>
+
+<h2>THE BEAUTIFUL CHILD RESCUES THE PUPPET</h2>
+
+
+<p>While poor Pinocchio, suspended to a branch of the Big
+Oak, was apparently more dead than alive, the beautiful
+Child with blue hair came again to the window. When she
+saw the unhappy puppet hanging by his throat, and dancing
+up and down in the gusts of the north wind, she was moved
+by compassion. Striking her hands together, she gave three
+little claps.</p>
+
+<p>At this signal there came a sound of the sweep of wings
+flying rapidly and a large Falcon flew on to the window-sill.</p>
+
+<p>"What are your orders, gracious Fairy?" he asked, inclining
+his beak in sign of reverence.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you see that puppet dangling from a branch of the
+Big Oak?"</p>
+
+<p>"I see him."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well. Fly there at once: with your strong beak
+break the knot that keeps him suspended in the air, and lay
+him gently on the grass at the foot of the tree."</p>
+
+<p>The Falcon flew away and after two minutes he returned,
+saying:</p>
+
+<p>"I have done as you commanded."</p>
+
+<p>"And how did you find him?"</p>
+
+<p>"To see him he appeared dead, but he cannot really be
+quite dead, for I had no sooner loosened the running noose
+that tightened his throat than, giving a sigh, he muttered in
+a faint voice: 'Now I feel better!'"</p>
+
+<p>The Fairy then struck her hands together twice and a
+magnificent Poodle appeared, walking upright on his hind
+legs exactly as if he had been a man.</p>
+
+<p>He was in the full-dress livery of a coachman. On his
+head he had a three-cornered cap braided with gold, his curly
+white wig came down on to his shoulders, he had a chocolate-colored
+waistcoat with diamond buttons, and two large pockets
+to contain the bones that his mistress gave him at dinner.
+He had, besides, a pair of short crimson velvet breeches, silk
+stockings, cut-down shoes, and hanging behind him a species
+of umbrella case made of blue satin, to put his tail into when
+the weather was rainy.</p>
+
+<p>"Be quick, Medoro, like a good dog!" said the Fairy to
+the Poodle. "Have the most beautiful carriage in my coach-house
+harnessed, and take the road to the wood. When you
+come to the Big Oak you will find a poor puppet stretched
+on the grass half dead. Pick him up gently and lay him flat
+on the cushions of the carriage and bring him here to me. Do
+you understand?"</p>
+
+<p>The Poodle, to show that he had understood, shook the
+case of blue satin three or four times and ran off like a race-horse.</p>
+
+<p>Shortly afterwards a beautiful little carriage came out of
+the coach-house. The cushions were stuffed with canary feathers
+and it was lined on the inside with whipped cream, custard
+and vanilla wafers. The little carriage was drawn by a hundred
+pairs of white mice, and the Poodle, seated on the coach-box,
+cracked his whip from side to side like a driver when
+he is afraid that he is behind time.</p>
+
+<p>Scarcely had a quarter of an hour passed, when the carriage
+returned. The Fairy, who was waiting at the door of
+the house, took the poor puppet in her arms and carried him
+into a little room that was wainscoted with mother-of-pearl.
+She sent at once to summon the most famous doctors in the
+neighborhood.</p>
+
+<p>They came immediately, one after the other: namely, a
+Crow, an Owl, and a Talking-Cricket.</p>
+
+<p>"I wish to know from you, gentlemen," said the Fairy,
+"if this unfortunate puppet is alive or dead!"</p>
+
+<p>At this request the Crow, advancing first, felt Pinocchio's
+pulse; he then felt his nose and then the little toe of his foot:
+and, having done this carefully, he pronounced solemnly the
+following words:</p>
+
+<p>"To my belief the puppet is already quite dead; but, if
+unfortunately he should not be dead, then it would be a sign
+that he is still alive!"</p>
+
+<p>"I regret," said the Owl, "to be obliged to contradict the
+Crow, my illustrious friend and colleague; but, in my opinion
+the puppet is still alive; but, if unfortunately he should not
+be alive, then it would be a sign that he is dead indeed!"</p>
+
+<p>"And you&mdash;have you nothing to say?" asked the Fairy
+of the Talking-Cricket.</p>
+
+<p>"In my opinion, the wisest thing a prudent doctor can do,
+when he does not know what he is talking about, is to be
+silent. For the rest, that puppet there has a face that is
+not new to me. I have known him for some time!"</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, who up to that moment had lain immovable,
+like a real piece of wood, was seized with a fit of convulsive
+trembling that shook the whole bed.</p>
+
+<p>"That puppet there," continued the Talking-Cricket, "is
+a confirmed rogue."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio opened his eyes, but shut them again immediately.</p>
+
+<p>"He is a ragamuffin, a do-nothing, a vagabond."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio hid his face beneath the clothes.</p>
+
+<p>"That puppet there is a disobedient son who will make
+his poor father die of a broken heart!"</p>
+
+<p>At that instant a suffocated sound of sobs and crying
+was heard in the room. Imagine everybody's astonishment
+when, having raised the sheets a little, it was discovered that
+the sounds came from Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"When a dead person cries, it is a sign that he is on
+the road to get well," said the Crow solemnly.</p>
+
+<p>"I grieve to contradict my illustrious friend and colleague,"
+added the Owl; "but for me, when the dead person cries, it
+is a sign that he is sorry to die."</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div class="figcenter">
+<p><a name="illus-075" id="illus-075"></a></p>
+<img src="images/illus-075.png"
+alt="Pinocchio Refuses to Take His Medicine" title="Pinocchio Refuses to Take His Medicine" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XVII" id="CHAPTER_XVII"></a>CHAPTER XVII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO WILL NOT TAKE HIS MEDICINE</h2>
+
+
+<p>As soon as the three doctors had left the room the Fairy
+approached Pinocchio and, having touched his forehead,
+she perceived that he was in a high fever.</p>
+
+<p>She therefore dissolved a certain white powder in half a
+tumbler of water and, offering it to the puppet, she said to
+him lovingly:</p>
+
+<p>"Drink it and in a few days you will be cured."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio looked at the tumbler, made a wry face, and
+then asked in a plaintive voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Is it sweet or bitter?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is bitter, but it will do you good."</p>
+
+<p>"If it is bitter, I will not take it."</p>
+
+<p>"Listen to me: drink it."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't like anything bitter."</p>
+
+<p>"Drink it, and when you have drunk it I will give you
+a lump of sugar to take away the taste."</p>
+
+<p>"Where is the lump of sugar?"</p>
+
+<p>"Here it is," said the Fairy, taking a piece from a gold
+sugar-basin.</p>
+
+<p>"Give me first the lump of sugar and then I will drink
+that bad bitter water."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you promise me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes."</p>
+
+<p>The Fairy gave him the sugar and Pinocchio, having
+crunched it up and swallowed it in a second, said, licking
+his lips:</p>
+
+<p>"It would be a fine thing if sugar were medicine! I
+would take it every day."</p>
+
+<p>"Now keep your promise and drink these few drops of
+water, which will restore you to health."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio took the tumbler unwillingly in his hand and
+put the point of his nose to it: he then approached it to his
+lips: he then again put his nose to it, and at last said:</p>
+
+<p>"It is too bitter! too bitter! I cannot drink it."</p>
+
+<p>"How can you tell that, when you have not even tasted it?"</p>
+
+<p>"I can imagine it! I know it from the smell. I want
+first another lump of sugar and then I will drink it!"</p>
+
+<p>The Fairy then, with all the patience of a good mamma,
+put another lump of sugar in his mouth, and again presented
+the tumbler to him.</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot drink it so!" said the puppet, making a thousand
+grimaces.</p>
+
+<p>"Why?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because that pillow that is down there on my feet
+bothers me."</p>
+
+<p>The Fairy removed the pillow.</p>
+
+<p>"It is useless. Even so I cannot drink it."</p>
+
+<p>"What is the matter now?"</p>
+
+<p>"The door of the room, which is half open, bothers me."</p>
+
+<p>The Fairy went and closed the door.</p>
+
+<p>"In short," cried Pinocchio, bursting into tears, "I will
+not drink that bitter water&mdash;no, no, no!"</p>
+
+<p>"My boy, you will repent it."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't care."</p>
+
+<p>"Your illness is serious."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't care."</p>
+
+<p>"The fever in a few hours will carry you into the other
+world."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't care."</p>
+
+<p>"Are you not afraid of death?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am not in the least afraid! I would rather die than
+drink that bitter medicine."</p>
+
+<p>At that moment the door of the room flew open and
+four rabbits as black as ink entered carrying on their shoulders
+a little bier.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you want with me?" cried Pinocchio, sitting
+up in bed in a great fright.</p>
+
+<p>"We have come to take you," said the biggest rabbit.</p>
+
+<p>"To take me? But I am not yet dead!"</p>
+
+<p>"No, not yet? but you have only a few minutes to live,
+as you have refused the medicine that would have cured you
+of the fever."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, Fairy, Fairy!" the puppet then began to scream,
+"give me the tumbler at once; be quick, for pity's sake, for
+I will not die&mdash;no, I will not die."</p>
+
+<p>And, taking the tumbler in both hands, he emptied it
+at a gulp.</p>
+
+<p>"We must have patience!" said the rabbits; "this time
+we have made our journey in vain." And, taking the little
+bier again on their shoulders, they left the room, grumbling
+and murmuring between their teeth.</p>
+
+<p>In fact, a few minutes afterwards, Pinocchio jumped down
+from the bed quite well, because wooden puppets have the
+privilege of being seldom ill and of being cured very quickly.</p>
+
+<p>The Fairy, seeing him running and rushing about the room
+as gay and as lively as a young cock, said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Then my medicine has really done you good?"</p>
+
+<p>"Good? I should think so! It has restored me to life!"</p>
+
+<p>"Then why on earth did you require so much persuasion
+to take it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because you see that we boys are all like that! We
+are more afraid of medicine than of the illness."</p>
+
+<p>"Disgraceful! Boys ought to know that a good remedy
+taken in time may save them from a serious illness, and perhaps
+even from death."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! but another time I shall not require so much persuasion.
+I shall remember those black rabbits with the bier
+on their shoulders and then I shall immediately take the
+tumbler in my hand, and down it will go!"</p>
+
+<p>"Now, come here to me and tell me how it came about
+that you fell into the hands of those assassins."</p>
+
+<p>"You see, the showman, Fire-Eater, gave me some gold
+pieces and said to me: 'Go, and take them to your father!'
+and instead I met on the road a Fox and a Cat, who said
+to me: 'Would you like those pieces of gold to become a
+thousand or two? Come with us and we will take you to
+the Field of Miracles,' and I said: 'Let us go.' And they
+said: 'Let us stop at the inn of The Red Craw-Fish,' and after
+midnight they left. And when I awoke I found that they
+were no longer there, because they had gone away. Then I
+began to travel by night, for you cannot imagine how dark
+it was; and on that account I met on the road two assassins
+in charcoal sacks who said to me: 'Out with your money,' and
+I said to them: 'I have got none,' because I had hidden the
+four gold pieces in my mouth, and one of the assassins tried
+to put his hand in my mouth, and I bit his hand off and spat
+it out, but instead of a hand it was a cat's paw. And the
+assassins ran after me, and I ran, and ran, until at last they
+caught me and tied me by the neck to a tree in this wood, and
+said to me: 'Tomorrow we shall return here and then you
+will be dead with your mouth open and we shall be able to
+carry off the pieces of gold that you have hidden under your
+tongue."</p>
+
+<p>"And the four pieces&mdash;where have you put them?" asked
+the Fairy.</p>
+
+<p>"I have lost them!" said Pinocchio, but he was telling a
+lie, for he had them in his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>He had scarcely told the lie when his nose, which was
+already long, grew at once two inches longer.</p>
+
+<p>"And where did you lose them?"</p>
+
+<p>"In the wood near here."</p>
+
+<p>At this second lie his nose went on growing.</p>
+
+<p>"If you have lost them in the wood near here," said the
+Fairy, "we will look for them and we shall find them: because
+everything that is lost in that wood is always found."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! now I remember all about it," replied the puppet,
+getting quite confused; "I didn't lose the four gold pieces, I
+swallowed them whilst I was drinking your medicine."</p>
+
+<p>At this lie his nose grew to such an extraordinary length
+that poor Pinocchio could not move in any direction. If he
+turned to one side he struck his nose against the bed or the
+window-panes, if he turned to the other he struck it against
+the walls or the door, if he raised his head a little he ran the
+risk of sticking it into one of the Fairy's eyes.</p>
+
+<p>And the Fairy looked at him and laughed.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you laughing at?" asked the puppet, very
+confused and anxious at finding his nose growing so prodigiously.</p>
+
+<p>"I am laughing at the lie you have told."</p>
+
+<p>"And how can you possibly know that I have told a lie?"</p>
+
+<p>"Lies, my dear boy, are found out immediately, because
+they are of two sorts. There are lies that have short legs,
+and lies that have long noses. Your lie, as it happens, is one
+of those that have a long nose."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, not knowing where to hide himself for shame,
+tried to run out of the room; but he did not succeed, for his
+nose had increased so much that it could no longer pass through
+the door.</p>
+
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<p><a name="hi-illus-081" id="hi-illus-081"></a></p>
+<img src="images/hi-illus-081.jpg"
+alt="SPLASH! SPLASH! THEY FELL INTO THE VERY MIDDLE OF THE DITCH"
+title="SPLASH! SPLASH! THEY FELL INTO THE VERY MIDDLE OF THE DITCH" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-082" id="illus-082"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-082.png"
+alt="Treacherous Companions" title="Treacherous Companions" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XVIII" id="CHAPTER_XVIII"></a>CHAPTER XVIII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO AGAIN MEETS THE FOX AND THE CAT</h2>
+
+
+<p>The Fairy allowed the puppet to cry for a good half-hour
+over his nose, which could no longer pass through the
+door of the room. This she did to give him a severe lesson,
+and to correct him of the disgraceful fault of telling lies&mdash;the
+most disgraceful fault that a boy can have. But when
+she saw him quite disfigured and his eyes swollen out of his
+head from weeping, she felt full of compassion for him. She
+therefore beat her hands together and at that signal a thousand
+large birds called Woodpeckers flew in at the window.
+They immediately perched on Pinocchio's nose and began to
+peck at it with such zeal that in a few minutes his enormous
+and ridiculous nose was reduced to its usual dimensions.</p>
+
+<p>"What a good Fairy you are," said the puppet, drying
+his eyes, "and how much I love you!"</p>
+
+<p>"I love you also," answered the Fairy; "and if you will
+remain with me you shall be my little brother and I will be
+your good little sister."</p>
+
+<p>"I would remain willingly if it were not for my poor papa."</p>
+
+<p>"I have thought of everything. I have already let your
+father know, and he will be here tonight."</p>
+
+<p>"Really?" shouted Pinocchio, jumping for joy. "Then,
+little Fairy, if you consent, I should like to go and meet
+him. I am so anxious to give a kiss to that poor old man,
+who has suffered so much on my account, that I am counting
+the minutes."</p>
+
+<p>"Go, then, but be careful not to lose yourself. Take the
+road through the wood and I am sure that you will meet him."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio set out, and as soon as he was in the wood he
+began to run like a kid. But when he had reached a certain
+spot, almost in front of the Big Oak, he stopped, because he
+thought he heard people amongst the bushes. In fact, two
+persons came out on to the road. Can you guess who they
+were? His two traveling companions, the Fox and the Cat,
+with whom he had supped at the inn of The Red Craw-Fish.</p>
+
+<p>"Why, here is our dear Pinocchio!" cried the Fox, kissing
+and embracing him. "How came you to be here?"</p>
+
+<p>"How come you to be here?" repeated the Cat.</p>
+
+<p>"It is a long story," answered the puppet, "which I will
+tell you when I have time. But do you know that the other
+night, when you left me alone at the inn, I met with assassins
+on the road?"</p>
+
+<p>"Assassins! Oh, poor Pinocchio! And what did they want?"</p>
+
+<p>"They wanted to rob me of my gold pieces."</p>
+
+<p>"Villains!" said the Fox.</p>
+
+<p>"Infamous villains!" repeated the Cat.</p>
+
+<p>"But I ran away from them," continued the puppet, "and
+they followed me, and at last they overtook me and hung
+me to a branch of that oak tree."</p>
+
+<p>And Pinocchio pointed to the Big Oak, which was two
+steps from them.</p>
+
+<p>"Is it possible to hear of anything more dreadful?" said
+the Fox. "In what a world we are condemned to live! Where
+can respectable people like us find a safe refuge?"</p>
+
+<p>Whilst they were thus talking Pinocchio observed that
+the Cat was lame of her front right leg, for in fact she had
+lost her paw with all its claws. He therefore asked her:</p>
+
+<p>"What have you done with your paw?"</p>
+
+<p>The Cat tried to answer, but became confused. Therefore
+the Fox said immediately:</p>
+
+<p>"My friend is too modest, and that is why she doesn't
+speak. I will answer for her. I must tell you that an hour
+ago we met an old wolf on the road, almost fainting from
+want of food, who asked alms of us. Not having so much as
+a fish-bone to give him, what did my friend, who has really
+the heart of a C&aelig;sar, do? She bit off one of her fore paws
+and threw it to that poor beast that he might appease his
+hunger."</p>
+
+<p>And the Fox, in relating this, dried a tear.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio was also touched and, approaching the Cat, he
+whispered into her ear:</p>
+
+<p>"If all cats resembled you, how fortunate the mice would
+be!"</p>
+
+<p>"And now, what are you doing here?" asked the Fox of
+the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"I am waiting for my papa, whom I expect to arrive every
+moment."</p>
+
+<p>"And your gold pieces?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have got them in my pocket, all but one that I spent
+at the inn of The Red Craw-Fish."</p>
+
+<p>"And to think that, instead of four pieces, by tomorrow
+they might become one or two thousand! Why do you not
+listen to my advice? Why will you not go and bury them in
+the Field of Miracles?"</p>
+
+<p>"Today it is impossible; I will go another day."</p>
+
+<p>"Another day it will be too late!" said the Fox.</p>
+
+<p>"Why?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because the field has been bought by a gentleman and
+after tomorrow no one will be allowed to bury money there."</p>
+
+<p>"How far off is the Field of Miracles?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not two miles. Will you come with us? In half an
+hour you will be there. You can bury your money at once,
+and in a few minutes you will collect two thousand, and this
+evening you will return with your pockets full. Will you
+come with us?"</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio thought of the good Fairy, old Geppetto, and
+the warnings of the Talking-Cricket, and he hesitated a little
+before answering. He ended, however, by doing as all boys
+do who have not a grain of sense and who have no heart&mdash;he
+ended by giving his head a little shake and saying to the
+Fox and the Cat:</p>
+
+<p>"Let us go: I will come with you."</p>
+
+<p>And they went.</p>
+
+<p>After having walked half the day they reached a town
+that was called "Trap for Blockheads." As soon as Pinocchio
+entered this town he saw that the streets were crowded with
+dogs who were yawning from hunger, shorn sheep trembling
+with cold, cocks without combs begging for a grain of Indian
+corn, large butterflies that could no longer fly because they
+had sold their beautiful colored wings, peacocks which had no
+tails and were ashamed to be seen, and pheasants that went
+scratching about in a subdued fashion, mourning for their brilliant
+gold and silver feathers gone forever.</p>
+
+<p>In the midst of this crowd of beggars and shamefaced
+creatures some lordly carriage passed from time to time containing
+a Fox, or a thieving Magpie, or some other ravenous
+bird of prey.</p>
+
+<p>"And where is the Field of Miracles?" asked Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"It is here, not two steps from us."</p>
+
+<p>They crossed the town and, having gone beyond the walls,
+they came to a solitary field.</p>
+
+<p>"Here we are," said the Fox to the puppet. "Now stoop
+down and dig with your hands a little hole in the ground and
+put your gold pieces into it."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio obeyed. He dug a hole, put into it the four
+gold pieces that he had left, and then filled up the hole with
+a little earth.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, then," said the Fox, "go to that canal close to us,
+fetch a can of water, and water the ground where you have
+sowed them."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio went to the canal, and, as he had no can, he
+took off one of his old shoes and filling it with water he watered
+the ground over the hole.</p>
+
+<p>He then asked:</p>
+
+<p>"Is there anything else to be done?"</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing else," answered the Fox. "We can now go
+away. You can return in about twenty minutes and you will
+find a shrub already pushing through the ground, with its
+branches quite loaded with money."</p>
+
+<p>The poor puppet, beside himself with joy, thanked the
+Fox and the Cat a thousand times, and promised them a beautiful
+present.</p>
+
+<p>"We wish for no presents," answered the two rascals. "It
+is enough for us to have taught you the way to enrich yourself
+without undergoing hard work, and we are as happy as people
+out for a holiday."</p>
+
+<p>Thus saying, they took leave of Pinocchio, and, wishing
+him a good harvest, went about their business.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-088" id="illus-088"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-088.png" alt="The Judge Was a Big Ape" title="The Judge Was a Big Ape" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XIX" id="CHAPTER_XIX"></a>CHAPTER XIX</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO IS ROBBED OF HIS MONEY</h2>
+
+
+<p>The puppet returned to the town and began to count the
+minutes one by one, and when he thought that it must
+be time he took the road leading to the Field of Miracles.</p>
+
+<p>And as he walked along with hurried steps his heart beat
+fast&mdash;tic, tac, tic, tac&mdash;like a drawing-room clock when it is
+really going well. Meanwhile he was thinking to himself:</p>
+
+<p>"And if, instead of a thousand gold pieces, I were to find
+on the branches of the tree two thousand? And instead of
+two thousand, supposing I found five thousand? and instead
+of five thousand, that I found a hundred thousand? Oh! what
+a fine gentleman I should then become! I would have a beautiful
+palace, a thousand little wooden horses and a thousand
+stables to amuse myself with, a cellar full of currant wine and
+sweet syrups, and a library quite full of candies, tarts, plum-cakes,
+macaroons, and biscuits with cream."</p>
+
+<p>Whilst he was building these castles in the air he had
+arrived in the neighborhood of the field, and he stopped to look
+about for a tree with its branches laden with money, but he
+saw nothing. He advanced another hundred steps&mdash;nothing;
+he entered the field and went right up to the little hole where
+he had buried his sovereigns&mdash;and nothing. He then became
+very thoughtful and, forgetting the rules of society and good
+manners, he took his hands out of his pocket and gave his head
+a long scratch.</p>
+
+<p>At that moment he heard an explosion of laughter close
+to him and, looking up, he saw a large Parrot perched on a
+tree, who was pruning the few feathers he had left.</p>
+
+<p>"Why are you laughing?" asked Pinocchio in an angry
+voice.</p>
+
+<p>"I am laughing because in pruning my feathers I tickled
+myself under my wings."</p>
+
+<p>The puppet did not answer, but went to the canal and,
+filling the same old shoe full of water, he proceeded to water
+the earth afresh that covered his gold pieces.</p>
+
+<p>While he was thus occupied another laugh, still more impertinent
+than the first, rang out in the silence of that solitary
+place.</p>
+
+<p>"Once for all," shouted Pinocchio in a rage, "may I know,
+you ill-educated Parrot, what you are laughing at?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am laughing at those simpletons who believe in all the
+foolish things that are told them, and who allow themselves
+to be entrapped by those who are more cunning than they are."</p>
+
+<p>"Are you perhaps speaking of me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, I am speaking of you, poor Pinocchio&mdash;of you who
+are simple enough to believe that money can be sown and
+gathered in fields in the same way as beans and gourds. I
+also believed it once and today I am suffering for it. Today&mdash;but
+it is too late&mdash;I have at last learned that to put a few
+pennies honestly together it is necessary to know how to earn
+them, either by the work of our own hands or by the cleverness
+of our own brains."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't understand you," said the puppet, who was
+already trembling with fear.</p>
+
+<p>"Have patience! I will explain myself better," rejoined
+the Parrot. "You must know, then, that while you were in
+the town the Fox and the Cat returned to the field; they took
+the buried money and then fled like the wind. And now he
+that catches them will be clever."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio remained with his mouth open and, not choosing
+to believe the Parrot's words, he began with his hands and
+nails to dig up the earth that he had watered. And he dug,
+and dug, and dug, and made such a deep hole that a rick of
+straw might have stood upright in it, but the money was no
+longer there.</p>
+
+<p>He rushed back to the town in a state of desperation and
+went at once to the Courts of Justice to denounce the two
+knaves who had robbed him to the judge.</p>
+
+<p>The judge was a big ape of the gorilla tribe, an old ape
+respectable for his age, his white beard, but especially for his
+gold spectacles without glasses that he was always obliged to
+wear, on account of an inflammation of the eyes that had
+tormented him for many years.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio related in the presence of the judge all the
+particulars of the infamous fraud of which he had been the
+victim. He gave the names, the surnames, and other details,
+of the two rascals, and ended by demanding justice.</p>
+
+<p>The judge listened with great benignity; took a lively
+interest in the story; was much touched and moved; and when
+the puppet had nothing further to say he stretched out his
+hand and rang a bell.</p>
+
+<p>At this summons two mastiffs immediately appeared dressed
+as gendarmes. The judge then, pointing to Pinocchio, said
+to them:</p>
+
+<p>"That poor devil has been robbed of four gold pieces; take
+him away and put him immediately into prison."</p>
+
+<p>The puppet was petrified on hearing this unexpected sentence
+and tried to protest; but the gendarmes, to avoid losing
+time, stopped his mouth and carried him off to the lockup.</p>
+
+<p>And there he remained for four months&mdash;four long months&mdash;and
+he would have remained longer still if a fortunate chance
+had not released him. The young Emperor who reigned over
+the town of "Trap for Blockheads," having won a splendid
+victory over his enemies, ordered great public rejoicings. There
+were illuminations, fireworks, horse races and velocipede races,
+and as a further sign of triumph he commanded that the prisons
+should be opened and all the prisoners freed.</p>
+
+<p>"If the others are to be let out of prison, I will go also,"
+said Pinocchio to the jailor.</p>
+
+<p>"No, not you," said the jailor, "because you do not belong
+to the fortunate class."</p>
+
+<p>"I beg your pardon," replied Pinocchio, "I am also a
+criminal."</p>
+
+<p>"In that case you are perfectly right," said the jailor, and,
+taking off his hat and bowing to him respectfully, he opened
+the prison doors and let him escape.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XX" id="CHAPTER_XX"></a>CHAPTER XX</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO STARTS BACK TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE</h2>
+
+
+<p>You can imagine Pinocchio's joy when he found himself
+free. Without stopping to take breath he immediately
+left the town and took the road that led to the Fairy's house.</p>
+
+<p>On account of the rainy weather the road had become a
+marsh into which he sank knee-deep. But the puppet would
+not give in. Tormented by the desire of seeing his father and
+his little sister with blue hair again, he ran on like a greyhound,
+and as he ran he was splashed with mud from head to
+foot. And he said to himself as he went along: "How many
+misfortunes have happened to me. But I deserved them, for
+I am an obstinate, passionate puppet. I am always bent upon
+having my own way, without listening to those who wish me
+well, and who have a thousand times more sense than I have!
+But from this time forth I am determined to change and to
+become orderly and obedient. For at last I have seen that
+disobedient boys come to no good and gain nothing. And
+has my papa waited for me? Shall I find him at the Fairy's
+house? Poor man, it is so long since I last saw him: I am
+dying to embrace him and to cover him with kisses! And will
+the Fairy forgive me my bad conduct to her? To think of
+all the kindness and loving care I received from her, to think
+that if I am now alive I owe it to her! Would it be possible
+to find a more ungrateful boy, or one with less heart than
+I have?"</p>
+
+<p>Whilst he was saying this he stopped suddenly, frightened
+to death, and made four steps backwards.</p>
+
+<p>What had he seen?</p>
+
+<p>He had seen an immense Serpent stretched across the
+road. Its skin was green, it had red eyes, and a pointed tail
+that was smoking like a chimney.</p>
+
+<p>It would be impossible to imagine the puppet's terror. He
+walked away to a safe distance and, sitting down on a heap
+of stones, waited until the Serpent should have gone about its
+business and left the road clear.</p>
+
+<p>He waited an hour; two hours; three hours; but the Serpent
+was always there, and even from a distance he could see
+the red light of his fiery eyes and the column of smoke that
+ascended from the end of his tail.</p>
+
+<p>At last Pinocchio, trying to feel courageous, approached
+to within a few steps, and said to the Serpent in a little soft,
+insinuating voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Excuse me. Sir Serpent, but would you be so good as
+to move a little to one side&mdash;just enough to allow me to pass?"</p>
+
+<p>He might as well have spoken to the wall. Nobody moved.</p>
+
+<p>He began again in the same soft voice:</p>
+
+<p>"You must know. Sir Serpent, that I am on my way
+home, where my father is waiting for me, and it is such a
+long time since I saw him last! Will you, therefore, allow
+me to continue my road?"</p>
+
+<p>He waited for a sign in answer to this request, but there
+was none; in fact, the Serpent, who up to that moment had
+been sprightly and full of life, became motionless and almost
+rigid. He shut his eyes and his tail ceased smoking.</p>
+
+<p>"Can he really be dead?" said Pinocchio, rubbing his hands
+with delight. He determined to jump over him and reach the
+other side of the road. But, just as he was going to leap, the
+Serpent raised himself suddenly on end, like a spring set in
+motion; and the puppet, drawing back, in his terror caught his
+feet and fell to the ground.</p>
+
+<p>And he fell so awkwardly that his head stuck in the mud
+and his legs went into the air.</p>
+
+<p>At the sight of the puppet kicking violently with his head
+in the mud, the Serpent went into convulsions of laughter, and
+laughed, and laughed, until he broke a blood-vessel in his chest
+and died. And that time he was really dead.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio then set off running, in hopes that he should
+reach the Fairy's house before dark. But before long he began
+to suffer so dreadfully from hunger that he could not bear
+it, and he jumped into a field by the wayside, intending to
+pick some bunches of Muscatel grapes. Oh, that he had never
+done it!</p>
+
+<p>He had scarcely reached the vines when crack&mdash;his legs
+were caught between two cutting iron bars and he became so
+giddy with pain that stars of every color danced before his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>The poor puppet had been taken in a trap put there to
+capture some big polecats which were the scourge of the poultry-yards
+in the neighborhood.</p>
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-095" id="illus-095"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-095.png"
+alt="Pinocchio Gets His Foot Caught in a Trap" title="Pinocchio Gets His Foot Caught in a Trap" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXI" id="CHAPTER_XXI"></a>CHAPTER XXI</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO ACTS AS WATCH-DOG</h2>
+
+
+<p>Pinocchio began to cry and scream, but his tears and
+groans were useless, for there was not a house to be seen,
+and not a living soul passed down the road.</p>
+
+<p>At last night came on.</p>
+
+<p>Partly from the pain of the trap, that cut his legs, and
+a little from fear at finding himself alone in the dark in the
+midst of the fields, the puppet was on the point of fainting.
+Just at that moment he saw a Firefly flitting over his head.
+He called to it and said:</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, little Firefly, will you have pity on me and liberate
+me from this torture?"</p>
+
+<p>"Poor boy!" said the Firefly, stopping and looking at
+him with compassion; "but how could your legs have been
+caught by those sharp irons?"</p>
+
+<p>"I came into the field to pick two bunches of these Muscatel
+grapes, and&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"But were the grapes yours?"</p>
+
+<p>"No."</p>
+
+<p>"Then who taught you to carry off other people's property?"</p>
+
+<p>"I was so hungry."</p>
+
+<p>"Hunger, my boy, is not a good reason for appropriating
+what does not belong to us."</p>
+
+<p>"That is true, that is true!" said Pinocchio, crying. "I
+will never do it again."</p>
+
+<p>At this moment their conversation was interrupted by a
+slight sound of approaching footsteps. It was the owner of
+the field coming on tiptoe to see if one of the polecats that
+ate his chickens during the night had been caught in his trap.</p>
+
+<p>His astonishment was great when, having brought out his
+lantern from under his coat, he perceived that instead of a
+polecat a boy had been taken.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, little thief," said the angry peasant, "then it is you
+who carries off my chickens?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, it is not I; indeed it is not!" cried Pinocchio, sobbing.
+"I only came into the field to take two bunches of
+grapes!"</p>
+
+<p>"He who steals grapes is quite capable of stealing chickens.
+Leave it to me, I will give you a lesson that you will not
+forget in a hurry."</p>
+
+<p>Opening the trap, he seized the puppet by the collar and
+carried him to his house as if he had been a young lamb.</p>
+
+<p>When he reached the yard in front of the house he threw
+him roughly on the ground and, putting his foot on his neck,
+he said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"It is late and I want to go to bed; we will settle our
+accounts tomorrow. In the meanwhile, as the dog who kept
+guard at night died today, you shall take his place at once.
+You shall be my watch-dog."</p>
+
+<p>And, taking a great collar covered with brass knobs, he
+strapped it so tightly round his throat that he was not able
+to draw his head out of it. A heavy chain attached to the
+collar was fastened to the wall.</p>
+
+<p>"If it should rain tonight," he then said to him, "you can
+go and lie down in the kennel; the straw that has served as a
+bed for my poor dog for the last four years is still there. If
+unfortunately robbers should come, remember to keep your
+ears pricked and to bark."</p>
+
+<p>After giving him this last injunction the man went into
+the house, shut the door, and put up the chain.</p>
+
+<p>Poor Pinocchio remained lying on the ground more dead
+than alive from the effects of cold, hunger and fear. From
+time to time he put his hands angrily to the collar that tightened
+his throat and said, crying:</p>
+
+<p>"It serves me right! Decidedly, it serves me right! I
+was determined to be a vagabond and a good-for-nothing. I
+would listen to bad companions, and that is why I always meet
+with misfortunes. If I had been a good little boy, as so many
+are; if I had remained at home with my poor papa, I should
+not now be in the midst of the fields and obliged to be the
+watch-dog to a peasant's house. Oh, if I could be born again!
+But now it is too late and I must have patience!"</p>
+
+<p>Relieved by this little outburst, which came straight from
+his heart, he went into the dog-kennel and fell asleep.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+<div class="figcenter">
+<p><a name="illus-098" id="illus-098"></a></p>
+<img src="images/illus-098.png"
+alt="The New Watch-Dog" title="The New Watch-Dog" />
+</div>
+
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXII" id="CHAPTER_XXII"></a>CHAPTER XXII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO DISCOVERS THE ROBBERS</h2>
+
+
+<p>He had been sleeping heavily for about two hours when,
+towards midnight, he was aroused by a whispering of
+strange voices that seemed to come from the courtyard. Putting
+the point of his nose out of the kennel, he saw four little
+beasts with dark fur, that looked like cats, standing consulting
+together. But they were not cats; they were polecats&mdash;carnivorous
+little animals, especially greedy for eggs and young
+chickens. One of the polecats, leaving his companions, came
+to the opening of the kennel and said in a low voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Good evening, Melampo."</p>
+
+<p>"My name is not Melampo," answered the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! then who are you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am Pinocchio."</p>
+
+<p>"And what are you doing here?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am acting as watch-dog."</p>
+
+<p>"Then where is Melampo? Where is the old dog who
+lived in this kennel?"</p>
+
+<p>"He died this morning."</p>
+
+<p>"Is he dead? Poor beast! He was so good. But, judging
+you by your face, I should say that you were also a
+good dog."</p>
+
+<p>"I beg your pardon, I am not a dog."</p>
+
+<p>"Not a dog? Then what are you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am a puppet."</p>
+
+<p>"And you are acting as watch-dog?"</p>
+
+<p>"That is only too true&mdash;as a punishment."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, then, I will offer you the same conditions that
+we made with the deceased Melampo, and I am sure you will
+be satisfied with them."</p>
+
+<p>"What are these conditions?"</p>
+
+<p>"One night in every week you are to permit us to visit
+this poultry-yard as we have hitherto done, and to carry off
+eight chickens. Of these chickens seven are to be eaten by
+us, and one we will give to you, on the express understanding,
+however, that you pretend to be asleep, and that it never
+enters your head to bark and to waken the peasant."</p>
+
+<p>"Did Melampo act in this manner?" asked Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly, and we were always on the best terms with
+him. Sleep quietly, and rest assured that before we go we
+will leave by the kennel a beautiful chicken ready plucked for
+your breakfast tomorrow. Have we understood each other
+clearly?"</p>
+
+<p>"Only too clearly!" answered Pinocchio, and he shook his
+head threateningly, as much as to say: "You shall hear of
+this shortly!"</p>
+
+<p>The four polecats, thinking themselves safe, repaired to
+the poultry-yard, which was close to the kennel, and, having
+opened the wooden gate with their teeth and claws, they slipped
+in one by one. But they had only just passed through when
+they heard the gate shut behind them with great violence.</p>
+
+<p>It was Pinocchio who had shut it, and for greater security
+he put a large stone against it to keep it closed.</p>
+
+<p>He then began to bark, and he barked exactly like a
+watch-dog: "Bow-wow, bow-wow."</p>
+
+<p>Hearing the barking, the peasant jumped out of bed and,
+taking his gun, he came to the window and asked:</p>
+
+<p>"What is the matter?"</p>
+
+<p>"There are robbers!" answered Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"Where are they?"</p>
+
+<p>"In the poultry-yard."</p>
+
+<p>"I will come down directly."</p>
+
+<p>In fact, in less time than it takes to say "Amen!" the
+peasant came down. He rushed into the poultry-yard, caught
+the polecats, and, having put them into a sack, he said to
+them in a tone of great satisfaction:</p>
+
+<p>"At last you have fallen into my hands! I might punish
+you, but I am not so cruel. I will content myself instead by
+carrying you in the morning to the innkeeper of the neighboring
+village, who will skin and cook you as hares with a sweet
+and sour sauce. It is an honor that you don't deserve, but
+generous people like me don't consider such trifles!"</p>
+
+<p>He then approached Pinocchio and began to caress him,
+and amongst other things he asked him:</p>
+
+<p>"How did you manage to discover the four thieves? To
+think that Melampo, my faithful Melampo, never found out
+anything!"</p>
+
+<p>The puppet might then have told him the whole story;
+he might have informed him of the disgraceful conditions that
+had been made between the dog and the polecats; but he remembered
+that the dog was dead and he thought to himself:</p>
+
+<p>"What is the good of accusing the dead? The dead are
+dead, and the best thing to be done is to leave them in peace!"</p>
+
+<p>"When the thieves got into the yard, were you asleep or
+awake?" the peasant went on to ask him.</p>
+
+<p>"I was asleep," answered Pinocchio, "but the polecats woke
+me with their chatter and one of them came to the kennel and
+said to me: 'If you promise not to bark, and not to wake the
+master, we will make you a present of a fine chicken ready
+plucked!' To think that they should have had the audacity
+to make such a proposal to me! For, although I am a puppet,
+possessing perhaps nearly all the faults in the world, there is
+one that I certainly will never be guilty of, that of making
+terms with, and sharing the gains of, dishonest people!"</p>
+
+<p>"Well said, my boy!" cried the peasant, slapping him on
+the shoulder. "Such sentiments do you honor; and as a proof
+of my gratitude I will at once set you at liberty, and you may
+return home."</p>
+
+<p>And he removed the dog-collar.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-102" id="illus-102"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-102.png"
+alt="Pinocchio&#39;s Wild Ride on the Pigeon&#39;s Back" title="Pinocchio&#39;s Wild Ride on the Pigeon&#39;s Back" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXIII" id="CHAPTER_XXIII"></a>CHAPTER XXIII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO FLIES TO THE SEASHORE</h2>
+
+
+<p>As soon as Pinocchio was released from the heavy and humiliating
+weight of the dog-collar he started off across the
+fields and never stopped until he had reached the high road
+that led to the Fairy's house. He could see amongst the trees
+the top of the Big Oak to which he had been hung, but, although
+he looked in every direction, the little house belonging to the
+beautiful Child with the blue hair was nowhere visible.</p>
+
+<p>Seized with a sad presentiment, he began to run with all
+the strength he had left and in a few minutes he reached the
+field where the little white house had once stood. But it was
+no longer there. Instead of the house he saw a marble stone,
+on which were engraved these sad words:</p>
+
+<p class="center">          HERE LIES<br />
+THE CHILD WITH THE BLUE HAIR<br />
+     WHO DIED FROM SORROW<br />
+BECAUSE SHE WAS ABANDONED BY HER<br />
+    LITTLE BROTHER PINOCCHIO</p>
+
+<p>I leave you to imagine the puppet's feelings when he had
+with difficulty spelled out this epitaph. He fell with his face
+on the ground and, covering the tombstone with a thousand
+kisses, burst into an agony of tears. He cried all night and
+when morning came he was still crying, although he had no
+tears left, and his sobs and lamentations were so acute and
+heart-breaking that they aroused the echoes in the surrounding
+hills.</p>
+
+<p>And as he wept he said:</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, little Fairy, why did you die? Why did I not die
+instead of you, I who am so wicked, whilst you were so good?
+And my papa? Where can he be? Oh, little Fairy, tell me
+where I can find him, for I want to remain with him always
+and never leave him again, never again! Oh, little Fairy, tell
+me that it is not true that you are dead! If you really love
+your little brother, come to life again. Does it not grieve
+you to see me alone and abandoned by everybody? If assassins
+come they will hang me again to the branch of a tree, and
+then I should die indeed. What do you imagine that I can
+do here alone in the world? Now that I have lost you and
+my papa, who will give me food? Where shall I go to sleep
+at night? Who will make me a new jacket? Oh, it would
+be better, a hundred times better, for me to die also! Yes,
+I want to die&mdash;oh! oh! oh!"</p>
+
+<p>And in his despair he tried to tear his hair, but his hair
+was made of wood so he could not even have the satisfaction
+of sticking his fingers into it.</p>
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="An Immense Serpent Stretched across the Road">
+<tr><td align='center'><big><b>An Immense Serpent Stretched<br />
+Across the Road</b></big></td>
+<td align='center'><a name="illus-105" id="illus-105"></a>
+<img src="images/illus-105.png"
+alt="An Immense Serpent Stretched across the Road" title="An Immense Serpent Stretched across the Road" /></td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+
+<p>Just then a large Pigeon flew over his head and, stopping
+with distended wings, called down to him from a great height:</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, child, what are you doing there?"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't you see? I am crying!" said Pinocchio, raising
+his head towards the voice and rubbing his eyes with his jacket.</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me," continued the Pigeon, "amongst your companions,
+do you happen to know a puppet who is called Pinocchio?"</p>
+
+<p>"Pinocchio? Did you say Pinocchio?" repeated the puppet,
+jumping quickly to his feet. "I am Pinocchio!"</p>
+
+<p>At this answer the Pigeon descended rapidly to the ground.
+He was larger than a turkey.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you also know Geppetto?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Do I know him! He is my poor papa! Has he perhaps
+spoken to you of me? Will you take me to him? Is he still
+alive? Answer me, for pity's sake: is he still alive?"</p>
+
+<p>"I left him three days ago on the seashore."</p>
+
+<p>"What was he doing?"</p>
+
+<p>"He was building a little boat for himself, to cross the
+ocean. For more than three months that poor man has been
+going all round the world looking for you. Not having succeeded
+in finding you, he has now taken it into his head to go
+to the distant countries of the New World in search of you."</p>
+
+<p>"How far is it from here to the shore?" asked Pinocchio
+breathlessly.</p>
+
+<p>"More than six hundred miles."</p>
+
+<p>"Six hundred miles? Oh, beautiful Pigeon, what a fine
+thing it would be to have your wings!"</p>
+
+<p>"If you wish to go, I will carry you there."</p>
+
+<p>"How?"</p>
+
+<p>"On my back. Do you weigh much?"</p>
+
+<p>"I weigh next to nothing. I am as light as a feather."</p>
+
+<p>And without waiting for more Pinocchio jumped at once
+on the Pigeon's back and, putting a leg on each side of him
+as men do on horseback, he exclaimed joyfully:</p>
+
+<p>"Gallop, gallop, my little horse, for I am anxious to arrive
+quickly!"</p>
+
+<p>The Pigeon took flight and in a few minutes had soared
+so high that they almost touched the clouds. Finding himself
+at such an immense height the puppet had the curiosity to turn
+and look down; but his head spun round and he became so
+frightened to save himself from the danger of falling he wound
+his arms tightly round the neck of his feathered steed.</p>
+
+<p>They flew all day. Towards evening the Pigeon said:</p>
+
+<p>"I am very thirsty!"</p>
+
+<p>"And I am very hungry!" rejoined Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"Let us stop at that dovecote for a few minutes and then
+we will continue our journey, so that we may reach the seashore
+by dawn tomorrow."</p>
+
+<p>They went into a deserted dovecote, where they found
+nothing but a basin full of water and a basket full of vetch.</p>
+
+<p>The puppet had never in his life been able to eat vetch:
+according to him it made him sick. That evening, however,
+he ate to repletion, and when he had nearly emptied the basket
+he turned to the Pigeon and said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"I never could have believed that vetch was so good!"</p>
+
+<p>"Be assured, my boy," replied the Pigeon, "that when
+hunger is real, and there is nothing else to eat, even vetch
+becomes delicious. Hunger knows neither caprice nor greediness."</p>
+
+<p>Having quickly finished their little meal they recommenced
+their journey and flew away. The following morning they
+reached the seashore.</p>
+
+<p>The Pigeon placed Pinocchio on the ground and, not wishing
+to be troubled with thanks for having done a good action,
+flew quickly away and disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>The shore was crowded with people who were looking
+out to sea, shouting and gesticulating.</p>
+
+<p>"What has happened?" asked Pinocchio of an old woman.</p>
+
+<p>"A poor father who has lost his son has gone away in a
+boat to search for him on the other side of the water, and
+today the sea is tempestuous and the little boat is in danger
+of sinking."</p>
+
+<p>"Where is the little boat?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is out there in a line with my finger," said the old
+woman, pointing to a little boat which, seen at that distance,
+looked like a nutshell with a very little man in it.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio fixed his eyes on it and after looking attentively
+he gave a piercing scream, crying:</p>
+
+<p>"It is my papa! It is my papa!"</p>
+
+<p>The boat, meanwhile, beaten by the fury of the waves, at
+one moment disappeared in the trough of the sea, and the next
+came again to the surface. Pinocchio, standing on the top of
+a high rock, kept calling to his father by name, and making
+every kind of signal to him with his hands, his handkerchief,
+and his cap.</p>
+
+<p>And, although he was so far off, Geppetto appeared to
+recognize his son, for he also took off his cap and waved it,
+and tried by gestures to make him understand that he would
+have returned if it had been possible, but that the sea was so
+tempestuous that he could not use his oars or approach the shore.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a tremendous wave rose and the boat disappeared.
+They waited, hoping it would come again to the surface,
+but it was seen no more.</p>
+
+<p>"Poor man!" said the fishermen who were assembled on
+the shore; murmuring a prayer, they turned to go home.</p>
+
+<p>Just then they heard a desperate cry and, looking back,
+they saw a little boy who exclaimed, as he jumped from a rock
+into the sea:</p>
+
+<p>"I will save my papa!"</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, being made of wood, floated easily and he swam
+like a fish. At one moment they saw him disappear under the
+water, carried down by the fury of the waves, and next he
+reappeared struggling with a leg or an arm. At last they lost
+sight of him and he was seen no more.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-110" id="illus-110"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-110.png"
+alt="Pinocchio Braves the Sea to Save His Father" title="Pinocchio Braves the Sea to Save His Father" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXIV" id="CHAPTER_XXIV"></a>CHAPTER XXIV</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO FINDS THE FAIRY AGAIN</h2>
+
+
+<p>Pinocchio, hoping to be in time to help his father, swam
+the whole night.</p>
+
+<p>And what a horrible night it was! The rain came down
+in torrents, it hailed, the thunder was frightful, and the flashes
+of lightning made it as light as day.</p>
+
+<p>Towards morning he saw a long strip of land not far off.
+It was an island in the midst of the sea.</p>
+
+<p>He tried his utmost to reach the shore, but it was all in
+vain. The waves, racing and tumbling over each other, knocked
+him about as if he had been a stick or a wisp of straw. At
+last, fortunately for him, a billow rolled up with such fury
+and impetuosity that he was lifted up and thrown far on to
+the sands.</p>
+
+<p>He fell with such force that, as he struck the ground, his
+ribs and all his joints cracked, but he comforted himself, saying:</p>
+
+<p>"This time also I have made a wonderful escape!"</p>
+
+<p>Little by little the sky cleared, the sun shone out in all
+his splendor, and the sea became as quiet and as smooth as oil.</p>
+
+<p>The puppet put his clothes in the sun to dry and began
+to look in every direction in hopes of seeing on the vast expanse
+of water a little boat with a little man in it. But, although
+he looked and looked, he could see nothing but the sky, and
+the sea, and the sail of some ship, but so far away that it seemed
+no bigger than a fly.</p>
+
+<p>"If I only knew what this island was called!" he said to
+himself. "If I only knew whether it was inhabited by civilized
+people&mdash;I mean, by people who have not the bad habit
+of hanging boys to the branches of the trees. But whom can
+I ask? Whom, if there is nobody?"</p>
+
+<p>This idea of finding himself alone, alone, all alone, in the
+midst of this great uninhabited country, made him so melancholy
+that he was just beginning to cry. But at that moment,
+at a short distance from the shore, he saw a big fish swimming
+by; it was going quietly on its own business with its head out
+of the water.</p>
+
+<p>Not knowing its name, the puppet called to it in a loud
+voice to make himself heard:</p>
+
+<p>"Eh, Sir Fish, will you permit me a word with you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Two if you like," answered the fish, who was a Dolphin,
+and so polite that few similar are to be found in any sea in
+the world.</p>
+
+<p>"Will you be kind enough to tell me if there are villages
+in this island where it would be possible to obtain something
+to eat, without running the danger of being eaten?"</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly there are," replied the Dolphin. "Indeed, you
+will find one at a short distance from here."</p>
+
+<p>"And what road must I take to go there?"</p>
+
+<p>"You must take that path to your left and follow your
+nose. You cannot make a mistake."</p>
+
+<p>"Will you tell me another thing? You who swim about
+the sea all day and all night, have you by chance met a little
+boat with my papa in it?"</p>
+
+<p>"And who is your papa?"</p>
+
+<p>"He is the best papa in the world, whilst it would be
+difficult to find a worse son than I am."</p>
+
+<p>"During the terrible storm last night," answered the Dolphin,
+"the little boat must have gone to the bottom."</p>
+
+<p>"And my papa?"</p>
+
+<p>"He must have been swallowed by the terrible Dog-Fish,
+who for some days past has been spreading devastation and
+ruin in our waters."</p>
+
+<p>"Is this Dog-Fish very big?" asked Pinocchio, who was
+already beginning to quake with fear.</p>
+
+<p>"Big!" replied the Dolphin. "That you may form some
+idea of his size, I need only tell you that he is bigger than a
+five-storied house, and that his mouth is so enormous and so
+deep that a railway train with its smoking engine could pass
+down his throat."</p>
+
+<p>"Mercy upon us!" exclaimed the terrified puppet; and,
+putting on his clothes with the greatest haste, he said to the
+Dolphin:</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, Sir Fish; excuse the trouble I have given you,
+and many thanks for your politeness."</p>
+
+<p>He then took the path that had been pointed out to him
+and began to walk fast&mdash;so fast, indeed, that he was almost
+running. And at the slightest noise he turned to look behind
+him, fearing that he might see the terrible Dog-Fish with a
+railway train in its mouth following him.</p>
+
+<p>After a walk of half an hour he reached a little village
+called "The Village of the Industrious Bees." The road was
+alive with people running here and there to attend to their
+business; all were at work, all had something to do. You
+could not have found an idler or a vagabond, not even if you
+had searched for him with a lighted lamp.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah!" said that lazy Pinocchio at once, "I see that this
+village will never suit me! I wasn't born to work!"</p>
+
+<p>In the meanwhile he was tormented by hunger, for he had
+eaten nothing for twenty-four hours&mdash;not even vetch. What
+was he to do?</p>
+
+<p>There were only two ways by which he could obtain food&mdash;either
+by asking for a little work, or by begging for a nickel
+or for a mouthful of bread.</p>
+
+<p>He was ashamed to beg, for his father had always preached
+to him that no one had a right to beg except the aged and
+the infirm. The really poor in this world, deserving of compassion
+and assistance, are only those who from age or sickness
+are no longer able to earn their own bread with the labor of
+their hands. It is the duty of every one else to work; and if
+they will not work, so much the worse for them if they suffer
+from hunger.</p>
+
+<p>At that moment a man came down the road, tired and
+panting for breath. He was dragging, alone, with fatigue and
+difficulty, two carts full of charcoal.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, judging by his face that he was a kind man,
+approached him and, casting down his eyes with shame, he
+said to him in a low voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Would you have the charity to give me a nickel, for I
+am dying of hunger?"</p>
+
+<p>"You shall have not only a nickel," said the man, "but I
+will give you a quarter, provided that you help me to drag
+home these two carts of charcoal."</p>
+
+<p>"I am surprised at you!" answered the puppet in a tone
+of offense. "Let me tell you that I am not accustomed to do
+the work of a donkey: I have never drawn a cart!"</p>
+
+<p>"So much the better for you," answered the man. "Then,
+my boy, if you are really dying of hunger, eat two fine slices
+of your pride, and be careful not to get indigestion."</p>
+
+<p>A few minutes afterwards a mason passed down the road
+carrying on his shoulders a basket of lime.</p>
+
+<p>"Would you have the charity, good man, to give a nickel
+to a poor boy who is yawning for want of food?"</p>
+
+<p>"Willingly," answered the man. "Come with me and
+carry the lime, and instead of a nickel I will give you a
+quarter."</p>
+
+<p>"But the lime is heavy," objected Pinocchio, "and I don't
+want to tire myself."</p>
+
+<p>"If you don't want to tire yourself, then, my boy, amuse
+yourself with yawning, and much good may it do you."</p>
+
+<p>In less than half an hour twenty other people went by,
+and Pinocchio asked charity of them all, but they all answered:</p>
+
+<p>"Are you not ashamed to beg? Instead of idling about
+the roads, go and look for a little work and learn to earn
+your bread."</p>
+
+<p>At last a nice little woman carrying two cans of water
+came by.</p>
+
+<p>"Will you let me drink a little water out of your can?"
+asked Pinocchio, who was burning with thirst.</p>
+
+<p>"Drink, my boy, if you wish it!" said the little woman,
+setting down the two cans.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio drank like a fish, and as he dried his mouth
+he mumbled:</p>
+
+<p>"I have quenched my thirst. If I could only appease
+my hunger!"</p>
+
+<p>The good woman, hearing these words, said at once:</p>
+
+<p>"If you will help me to carry home these two cans of water
+I will give you a fine piece of bread."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio looked at the can and answered neither yes
+nor no.</p>
+
+<p>"And besides the bread you shall have a nice dish of cauliflower
+dressed with oil and vinegar," added the good woman.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio gave another look at the can and answered
+neither yes nor no.</p>
+
+<p>"And after the cauliflower I will give you a beautiful
+bonbon full of syrup."</p>
+
+<p>The temptation of this last dainty was so great that Pinocchio
+could resist no longer and with an air of decision he said:</p>
+
+<p>"I must have patience! I will carry the can to your house."</p>
+
+<p>The can was heavy and the puppet, not being strong
+enough to carry it in his hand, had to resign himself to carry
+it on his head.</p>
+
+<p>When they reached the house the good little woman made
+Pinocchio sit down at a small table already laid and she placed
+before him the bread, the cauliflower and the bonbon.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio did not eat, he devoured. His stomach was like
+an apartment that had been left empty and uninhabited for
+five months.</p>
+
+<p>When his ravenous hunger was somewhat appeased he
+raised his head to thank his benefactress, but he had no sooner
+looked at her than he gave a prolonged "Oh-h!" of astonishment
+and continued staring at her with wide open eyes, his
+fork in the air, and his mouth full of bread and cauliflower,
+as if he had been bewitched.</p>
+
+<p>"What has surprised you so much?" asked the good woman,
+laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"It is&mdash;" answered the puppet, "it is&mdash;it is&mdash;that you
+are like&mdash;that you remind me&mdash;yes, yes, yes, the same voice&mdash;the
+same eyes&mdash;the same hair&mdash;yes, yes, yes&mdash;you also have blue
+hair&mdash;as she had&mdash;Oh, little Fairy! tell me that it is you, really
+you! Do not make me cry any more! If you knew&mdash;I have
+cried so much, I have suffered so much."</p>
+
+<p>And, throwing himself at her feet on the floor, Pinocchio
+embraced the knees of the mysterious little woman and began
+to cry bitterly.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-117" id="illus-117"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-117.png"
+alt="&quot;School Gives Me Pain All Over the Body&quot;" title="&quot;School Gives Me Pain All Over the Body&quot;" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXV" id="CHAPTER_XXV"></a>CHAPTER XXV</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO PROMISES THE FAIRY TO BE GOOD</h2>
+
+
+<p>At first the good little woman maintained that she was not
+the little Fairy with blue hair, but, seeing that she was
+found out and not wishing to continue the comedy any longer,
+she ended by making herself known, and she said to Pinocchio:</p>
+
+<p>"You little rogue! how did you ever discover who I was?"</p>
+
+<p>"It was my great affection for you that told me."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you remember? You left me a child, and now that
+you have found me again I am a woman&mdash;a woman almost old
+enough to be your mamma."</p>
+
+<p>"I am delighted at that, for now, instead of calling you
+little sister, I will call you mamma. I have wished for such a
+long time to have a mamma like other boys! But how did you
+manage to grow so fast?"</p>
+
+<p>"That is a secret."</p>
+
+<p>"Teach it to me, for I should also like to grow. Don't
+you see? I always remain no bigger than a ninepin."</p>
+
+<p>"But you cannot grow," replied the Fairy.</p>
+
+<p>"Why?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because puppets never grow. They are born puppets,
+live puppets, and die puppets."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, I am sick of being a puppet!" cried Pinocchio, giving
+himself a slap. "It is time that I became a man."</p>
+
+<p>"And you will become one, if you know how to deserve it."</p>
+
+<p>"Not really? And what can I do to deserve it?"</p>
+
+<p>"A very easy thing: by learning to be a good boy."</p>
+
+<p>"And you think I am not?"</p>
+
+<p>"You are quite the contrary. Good boys are obedient,
+and you&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"And I never obey."</p>
+
+<p>"Good boys like to learn and to work, and you&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"And I instead lead an idle, vagabond life the year
+through."</p>
+
+<p>"Good boys always speak the truth."</p>
+
+<p>"And I always tell lies."</p>
+
+<p>"Good boys go willingly to school."</p>
+
+<p>"And school gives me pain all over the body. But from
+today I will change my life."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you promise me?"</p>
+
+<p>"I promise you. I will become a good little boy, and I
+will be the consolation of my papa. Where is my poor papa
+at this moment?"</p>
+
+<p>"I do not know."</p>
+
+<p>"Shall I ever have the happiness of seeing him again and
+kissing him?"</p>
+
+<p>"I think so; indeed, I am sure of it."</p>
+
+<p>At this answer Pinocchio was so delighted that he took
+the Fairy's hands and began to kiss them with such fervor
+that he seemed beside himself. Then, raising his face and looking
+at her lovingly, he asked:</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, little mamma: then it was not true that you
+were dead?"</p>
+
+<p>"It seems not," said the Fairy, smiling.</p>
+
+<p>"If you only knew the sorrow I felt and the tightening
+of my throat when I read, 'Here lies&mdash;'"</p>
+
+<p>"I know it, and it is on that account that I have forgiven
+you. I saw from the sincerity of your grief that you had a
+good heart; and when boys have good hearts, even if they are
+scamps and have got bad habits, there is always something
+to hope for; that is, there is always hope that they will turn
+to better ways. That is why I came to look for you here. I
+will be your mamma."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, how delightful!" shouted Pinocchio, jumping for joy.</p>
+
+<p>"You must obey me and do everything that I bid you."</p>
+
+<p>"Willingly, willingly, willingly!"</p>
+
+<p>"Tomorrow," rejoined the Fairy, "you will begin to go
+to school."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio became at once a little less joyful.</p>
+
+<p>"Then you must choose an art, or a trade, according to
+your own wishes."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio became very grave.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you muttering between your teeth?" asked the
+Fairy in an angry voice.</p>
+
+<p>"I was saying," moaned the puppet in a low voice, "that
+it seemed to me too late for me to go to school now."</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir. Keep it in mind that it is never too late to
+learn and to instruct ourselves."</p>
+
+<p>"But I do not wish to follow either an art or a trade."</p>
+
+<p>"Why?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because it tires me to work."</p>
+
+<p>"My boy," said the Fairy, "those who talk in that way
+end almost always either in prison or in the hospital. Let me
+tell you that every man, whether he is born rich or poor, is
+obliged to do something in this world&mdash;to occupy himself, to
+work. Woe to those who lead slothful lives. Sloth is a dreadful
+illness and must be cured at once, in childhood. If not,
+when we are old it can never be cured."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio was touched by these words and, lifting his head
+quickly, he said to the Fairy:</p>
+
+<p>"I will study, I will work, I will do all that you tell me,
+for indeed I have become weary of being a puppet, and I wish
+at any price to become a boy. You promised me that I should,
+did you not?"</p>
+
+<p>"I did promise you, and it now depends upon yourself."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-121" id="illus-121"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-121.png"
+alt="Pinocchio Starts Off Happily for School" title="Pinocchio Starts Off Happily for School" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXVI" id="CHAPTER_XXVI"></a>CHAPTER XXVI</h3>
+
+<h2>THE TERRIBLE DOG-FISH</h2>
+
+
+<p>The following day Pinocchio went to the government school.
+Imagine the delight of all the little rogues, when they
+saw a puppet walk into their school! They set up a roar of
+laughter that never ended. They played him all sorts of tricks.
+One boy carried off his cap, another pulled his jacket behind;
+one tried to give him a pair of inky mustachios just under his
+nose, and another attempted to tie strings to his feet and hands
+to make him dance.</p>
+
+<p>For a short time Pinocchio pretended not to care and got
+on as well as he could; but at last, losing all patience, he turned
+to those who were teasing him most and making game of him,
+and said to them, looking very angry:</p>
+
+<p>"Beware, boys! I have not come here to be your buffoon.
+I respect others, and I intend to be respected."</p>
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="&quot;Oh, I Am Sick of Being a Puppet!&quot;">
+<tr><td align='center'><big><b>"Oh, I Am Sick of Being a Puppet!<br />
+Cried Pinocchio</b></big></td>
+<td align='center'><a name="illus-123" id="illus-123"></a>
+<img src="images/illus-123.png"
+alt="&quot;Oh, I Am Sick of Being a Puppet!&quot;" title="&quot;Oh, I Am Sick of Being a Puppet!&quot;" /></td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+<p>"Well said, boaster! You have spoken like a book!"
+howled the young rascals, convulsed with mad laughter, and
+one of them, more impertinent than the others, stretched out
+his hand, intending to seize the puppet by the end of his nose.</p>
+
+<p>But he was not in time, for Pinocchio stuck his leg out
+from under the table and gave him a great kick on his shins.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, what hard feet!" roared the boy, rubbing the bruise
+that the puppet had given him.</p>
+
+<p>"And what elbows! even harder than his feet!" said another,
+who for his rude tricks had received a blow in the stomach.</p>
+
+<p>But, nevertheless, the kick and the blow acquired at once
+for Pinocchio the sympathy and the esteem of all the boys in
+the school. They all made friends with him and liked him
+heartily.</p>
+
+<p>And even the master praised him, for he found him attentive,
+studious and intelligent&mdash;always the first to come to school,
+and the last to leave when school was over.</p>
+
+<p>But he had one fault: he made too many friends, and
+amongst them were several young rascals well known for their
+dislike to study and love of mischief.</p>
+
+<p>The master warned him every day, and even the good
+Fairy never failed to tell him and to repeat constantly:</p>
+
+<p>"Take care, Pinocchio! Those bad school-fellows of yours
+will end sooner or later by making you lose all love of study,
+and perhaps they may even bring upon you some great misfortune."</p>
+
+<p>"There is no fear of that!" answered the puppet, shrugging
+his shoulders and touching his forehead as much as to say:
+"There is so much sense here!"</p>
+
+<p>Now it happened that one fine day, as he was on his way
+to school, he met several of his usual companions who, coming
+up to him, asked:</p>
+
+<p>"Have you heard the great news?"</p>
+
+<p>"No."</p>
+
+<p>"In the sea near here a Dog-Fish has appeared as big
+as a mountain."</p>
+
+<p>"Not really? Can it be the same Dog-Fish that was there
+when my papa was drowned?"</p>
+
+<p>"We are going to the shore to see him. Will you come
+with us?"</p>
+
+<p>"No; I am going to school."</p>
+
+<p>"What matters school? We can go to school tomorrow.
+Whether we have a lesson more or a lesson less, we shall always
+remain the same donkeys."</p>
+
+<p>"But what will the master say?"</p>
+
+<p>"The master may say what he likes. He is paid on purpose
+to grumble all day."</p>
+
+<p>"And my mamma?"</p>
+
+<p>"Mammas know nothing," answered those bad little boys.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know what I will do?" said Pinocchio. "I have
+reasons for wishing to see the Dog-Fish, but I will go and
+see him when school is over."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor donkey!" exclaimed one of the number. "Do you
+suppose that a fish of that size will wait your convenience?
+As soon as he is tired of being here he will start for another
+place, and then it will be too late."</p>
+
+<p>"How long does it take to go from here to the shore?"
+asked the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"We can be there and back in an hour."</p>
+
+<p>"Then away!" shouted Pinocchio, "and he who runs fastest
+is the best!"</p>
+
+<p>Having thus given the signal to start, the boys, with their
+books and copy-books under their arms, rushed off across the
+fields, and Pinocchio was always the first&mdash;he seemed to have
+wings to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>From time to time he turned to jeer at his companions,
+who were some distance behind, and, seeing them panting for
+breath, covered with dust, and their tongues hanging out of
+their mouths, he laughed heartily. The unfortunate boy little
+knew what terrors and horrible disasters he was going to
+meet with!</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-127" id="illus-127"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-127.png"
+alt="The Boys Threw Their Books at Poor Pinocchio" title="The Boys Threw Their Books at Poor Pinocchio" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXVII" id="CHAPTER_XXVII"></a>CHAPTER XXVII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO IS ARRESTED BY THE GENDARMES</h2>
+
+
+<p>When he arrived on the shore Pinocchio looked out to
+sea, but he saw no Dog-Fish. The sea was as smooth
+as a great crystal mirror.</p>
+
+<p>"Where is the Dog-Fish?" he asked, turning to his companions.</p>
+
+<p>"He must have gone to have his breakfast," said one of
+them, laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"Or he has thrown himself on to his bed to have a little
+nap," added another, laughing still louder.</p>
+
+<p>From their absurd answers and silly laughter Pinocchio
+perceived that his companions had been making a fool of him,
+in inducing him to believe a tale with no truth in it. Taking
+it very badly, he said to them angrily:</p>
+
+<p>"And now, may I ask what fun you could find in deceiving
+me with the story of the Dog-Fish?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, it was great fun!" answered the little rascals in chorus.</p>
+
+<p>"And in what did it consist?"</p>
+
+<p>"In making you miss school and persuading you to come
+with us. Are you not ashamed of being always so punctual
+and so diligent with your lessons? Are you not ashamed of
+studying so hard?"</p>
+
+<p>"And if I study hard, what concern is it of yours?"</p>
+
+<p>"It concerns us excessively, because it makes us appear in
+a bad light to the master."</p>
+
+<p>"Why?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because boys who study make those who, like us, have
+no wish to learn, seem worse by comparison. And that is too
+bad. We, too, have our pride!"</p>
+
+<p>"Then what must I do to please you?"</p>
+
+<p>"You must follow our example and hate school, lessons,
+and the master&mdash;our three greatest enemies."</p>
+
+<p>"And if I wish to continue my studies?"</p>
+
+<p>"In that case we will have nothing more to do with you,
+and at the first opportunity we will make you pay for it."</p>
+
+<p>"Really," said the puppet, shaking his head, "you make
+me inclined to laugh."</p>
+
+<p>"Eh, Pinocchio" shouted the biggest of the boys, confronting
+him. "None of your superior airs: don't come here
+to crow over us, for if you are not afraid of us, we are not
+afraid of you. Remember that you are one against seven of us."</p>
+
+<p>"Seven, like the seven deadly sins," said Pinocchio, with
+a shout of laughter.</p>
+
+<p>"Listen to him! He has insulted us all! He called us
+the seven deadly sins!"</p>
+
+<p>"Take that to begin with and keep it for your supper
+tonight," said one of the boys.</p>
+
+<p>And, so saying, he gave him a blow on the head with his fist.</p>
+
+<p>But it was give and take; for the puppet, as was to be
+expected, immediately returned the blow, and the fight in a
+moment became general and desperate.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, although he was one alone, defended himself
+like a hero. He used his feet, which were of the hardest wood,
+to such purpose that he kept his enemies at a respectful distance.
+Wherever they touched they left a bruise by way of
+reminder.</p>
+
+<p>The boys, becoming furious at not being able to measure
+themselves hand to hand with the puppet, had recourse to other
+weapons. Loosening their satchels, they commenced throwing
+their school-books at him&mdash;grammars, dictionaries, spelling-books,
+geography books, and other scholastic works. But
+Pinocchio was quick and had sharp eyes, and always managed
+to duck in time, so that the books passed over his head and
+all fell into the sea.</p>
+
+<p>Imagine the astonishment of the fish! Thinking that the
+books were something to eat they all arrived in shoals, but,
+having tasted a page or two, or a frontispiece, they spat it
+quickly out and made a wry face that seemed to say: "It
+isn't food for us; we are accustomed to something much better!"</p>
+
+<p>The battle meantime had become fiercer than ever, when a
+big crab, who had come out of the water and had climbed
+slowly up on the shore, called out in a hoarse voice that sounded
+like a trumpet with a bad cold:</p>
+
+<p>"Have done with that, you young ruffians, for you are
+nothing else! These hand-to-hand fights between boys seldom
+finish well. Some disaster is sure to happen!"</p>
+
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<p><a name="hi-illus-130" id="hi-illus-130"></a></p>
+<img src="images/hi-illus-130.jpg"
+alt="FOUR RABBITS AS BLACK AS INK ENTERED CARRYING A LITTLE BIER"
+title="FOUR RABBITS AS BLACK AS INK ENTERED CARRYING A LITTLE BIER" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<p>Poor crab! He might as well have preached to the wind.
+Even that young rascal, Pinocchio, turning around, looked at
+him mockingly and said rudely:</p>
+
+<p>"Hold your tongue, you tiresome crab! You had better
+suck some liquorice lozenges to cure that cold in your throat."</p>
+
+<p>Just then the boys, who had no more books of their own
+to throw, spied at a little distance the satchel that belonged to
+Pinocchio, and took possession of it.</p>
+
+<p>Amongst the books there was one bound in strong cardboard
+with the back and points of parchment. It was a Treatise
+on Arithmetic.</p>
+
+<p>One of the boys seized this volume and, aiming at Pinocchio's
+head, threw it at him with all the force he could muster.
+But instead of hitting the puppet it struck one of his
+companions on the temple, who, turning as white as a sheet,
+said only:</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, mother! help, I am dying!" and fell his whole length
+on the sand. Thinking he was dead, the terrified boys ran off
+as hard as their legs could carry them and in a few minutes
+they were out of sight.</p>
+
+<p>But Pinocchio remained. Although from grief and fright
+he was more dead than alive, nevertheless he ran and soaked
+his handkerchief in the sea and began to bathe the temples of
+his poor school-fellow. Crying bitterly in his despair, he kept
+calling him by name and saying to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Eugene! my poor Eugene! Open your eyes and look at
+me! Why do you not answer? I did not do it; indeed it was
+not I that hurt you so! believe me, it was not! Open your eyes,
+Eugene. If you keep your eyes shut I shall die, too. Oh!
+what shall I do? how shall I ever return home? How can I
+ever have the courage to go back to my good mamma? What
+will become of me? Where can I fly to? Oh! how much better
+it would have been, a thousand times better, if I had only
+gone to school! Why did I listen to my companions? they
+have been my ruin. The master said to me, and my mamma
+repeated it often: 'Beware of bad companions!' Oh, dear!
+what will become of me, what will become of me, what will
+become of me?"</p>
+
+<p>And Pinocchio began to cry and sob, and to strike his head
+with his fists, and to call poor Eugene by his name. Suddenly
+he heard the sound of approaching footsteps.</p>
+
+<p>He turned and saw two soldiers.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you doing there, lying on the ground?" they
+asked Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"I am helping my school-fellow."</p>
+
+<p>"Has he been hurt?"</p>
+
+<p>"So it seems."</p>
+
+<p>"Hurt indeed!" said one of them, stooping down and
+examining Eugene closely.</p>
+
+<p>"This boy has been wounded in the temple. Who wounded
+him?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not I," stammered the puppet breathlessly.</p>
+
+<p>"If it was not you, who then did it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not I," repeated Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"And with what was he wounded?"</p>
+
+<p>"With this book." And the puppet picked up from the
+ground the Treatise on Arithmetic, bound in cardboard and
+parchment, and showed it to the soldier.</p>
+
+<p>"And to whom does this belong?"</p>
+
+<p>"To me."</p>
+
+<p>"That is enough, nothing more is wanted. Get up and
+come with us at once."</p>
+
+<p>"But I&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Come along with us!"</p>
+
+<p>"But I am innocent."</p>
+
+<p>"Come along with us!"</p>
+
+<p>Before they left, the soldiers called some fishermen who
+were passing at that moment near the shore in their boat, and
+said to them:</p>
+
+<p>"We give this boy who has been wounded in the head in
+your charge. Carry him to your house and nurse him. Tomorrow
+we will come and see him."</p>
+
+<p>They then turned to Pinocchio and, having placed him
+between them, they said to him in a commanding voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Forward! and walk quickly, or it will be the worse
+for you."</p>
+
+<p>Without requiring it to be repeated, the puppet set out
+along the road leading to the village. But the poor little devil
+hardly knew where he was. He thought he must be dreaming,
+and what a dreadful dream! He was beside himself. He saw
+double; his legs shook; his tongue clung to the roof of his
+mouth, and he could not utter a word. And yet, in the midst
+of his stupefaction and apathy, his heart was pierced by a cruel
+thorn&mdash;the thought that he would pass under the windows of
+the good Fairy's house between the soldiers. He would rather
+have died.</p>
+
+<p>They had already reached the village when a gust of wind
+blew Pinocchio's cap off his head and carried it ten yards off.</p>
+
+<p>"Will you permit me," said the puppet to the soldiers,
+"to go and get my cap?"</p>
+
+<p>"Go, then; but be quick about it."</p>
+
+<p>The puppet went and picked up his cap, but instead of
+putting it on his head he took it between his teeth and began
+to run as hard as he could towards the seashore.</p>
+
+<p>The soldiers, thinking it would be difficult to overtake him,
+sent after him a large mastiff who had won the first prizes at
+all the dog races. Pinocchio ran, but the dog ran faster. The
+people came to their windows and crowded into the street in
+their anxiety to see the end of the desperate race.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-135" id="illus-135"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-135.png"
+alt="The Fisherman Put His Hand into the Net" title="The Fisherman Put His Hand into the Net" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXVIII" id="CHAPTER_XXVIII"></a>CHAPTER XXVIII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO ESCAPES BEING FRIED LIKE A FISH</h2>
+
+
+<p>There came a moment in this desperate race&mdash;a terrible
+moment&mdash;when Pinocchio thought himself lost: for Alidoro,
+the mastiff, had run so swiftly that he had nearly come up
+with him.</p>
+
+<p>The puppet could hear the panting of the dreadful beast
+close behind him; there was not a hand's breadth between them,
+he could even feel the dog's hot breath.</p>
+
+<p>Fortunately the shore was close and the sea but a few
+steps off.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as he reached the sands the puppet made a wonderful
+leap&mdash;a frog could have done no better&mdash;and plunged
+into the water.</p>
+
+<p>Alidoro, on the contrary, wished to stop himself, but, carried
+away by the impetus of the race, he also went into the
+sea. The unfortunate dog could not swim, but he made great
+efforts to keep himself afloat with his paws; but the more he
+struggled the farther he sank head downwards under the water.</p>
+
+<p>When he rose to the surface again his eyes were rolling
+with terror, and he barked out:</p>
+
+<p>"I am drowning! I am drowning!"</p>
+
+<p>"Drown!" shouted Pinocchio from a distance, seeing himself
+safe from all danger.</p>
+
+<p>"Help me, dear Pinocchio! Save me from death!"</p>
+
+<p>At that agonizing cry the puppet, who had in reality an
+excellent heart, was moved with compassion, and, turning to
+the dog, he said:</p>
+
+<p>"But if I save your life, will you promise to give me no
+further annoyance, and not to run after me?"</p>
+
+<p>"I promise! I promise! Be quick, for pity's sake, for if
+you delay another half-minute I shall be dead."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio hesitated; but, remembering that his father had
+often told him that a good action is never lost, he swam to
+Alidoro, and, taking hold of his tail with both hands, brought
+him safe and sound on to the dry sand of the beach.</p>
+
+<p>The poor dog could not stand. He had drunk so much
+salt water that he was like a balloon. The puppet, however,
+not wishing to trust him too far, thought it more prudent to
+jump again into the water. When he had swum some distance
+from the shore he called out to the friend he had rescued:</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, Alidoro; a good journey to you, and take
+my compliments to all at home."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, Pinocchio," answered the dog; "a thousand
+thanks for having saved my life. You have done me a great
+service, and in this world what is given is returned. If an
+occasion offers I shall not forget it."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio swam on, keeping always near the land. At last
+he thought that he had reached a safe place. Giving a look
+along the shore, he saw amongst the rocks a kind of cave from
+which a cloud of smoke was ascending.</p>
+
+<p>"In that cave," he said to himself, "there must be a fire.
+So much the better. I will go and dry and warm myself, and
+then? and then we shall see."</p>
+
+<p>Having taken the resolution he approached the rocks,
+but, as he was going to climb up, he felt something under the
+water that rose higher and higher and carried him into the air.
+He tried to escape, but it was too late, for, to his extreme surprise,
+he found himself enclosed in a great net, together with
+a swarm of fish of every size and shape, who were flapping
+and struggling like so many despairing souls.</p>
+
+<p>At the same moment a fisherman came out of the cave;
+he was so ugly, so horribly ugly, that he looked like a sea
+monster. Instead of hair his head was covered with a thick
+bush of green grass, his skin was green, his eyes were green,
+his long beard that came down to the ground was also green.
+He had the appearance of an immense lizard standing on its
+hind-paws.</p>
+
+<p>When the fisherman had drawn his net out of the sea,
+he exclaimed with great satisfaction:</p>
+
+<p>"Thank Heaven! Again today I shall have a splendid
+feast of fish!"</p>
+
+<p>"What a mercy that I am not a fish!" said Pinocchio to
+himself, regaining a little courage.</p>
+
+<p>The netful of fish was carried into the cave, which was
+dark and smoky. In the middle of the cave a large frying-pan
+full of oil was frying and sending out a smell of mushrooms
+that was suffocating.</p>
+
+<p>"Now we will see what fish we have taken!" said the
+green fisherman, and, putting into the net an enormous hand,
+so out of all proportion that it looked like a baker's shovel,
+he pulled out a handful of fish.</p>
+
+<p>"These fish are good!" he said, looking at them and smelling
+them complacently. And after he had smelled them he
+threw them into a pan without water.</p>
+
+<p>He repeated the same operation many times, and as he
+drew out the fish his mouth watered and he said, chuckling
+to himself:</p>
+
+<p>"What good whiting!"</p>
+
+<p>"What exquisite sardines!"</p>
+
+<p>"These soles are delicious!"</p>
+
+<p>"And these crabs excellent!"</p>
+
+<p>"What dear little anchovies!"</p>
+
+<p>The last to remain in the net was Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had the fisherman taken him out than he opened
+his big green eyes with astonishment and cried, half frightened:</p>
+
+<p>"What species of fish is this? Fish of this kind I never
+remember to have eaten."</p>
+
+<p>And he looked at him again attentively and, having examined
+him well all over, he ended by saying:</p>
+
+<p>"I know: he must be a craw-fish."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, mortified at being mistaken for a craw-fish, said
+in an angry voice:</p>
+
+<p>"A craw-fish indeed! Do you take me for a craw-fish?
+what treatment! Let me tell you that I am a puppet."</p>
+
+<p>"A puppet?" replied the fisherman. "To tell the truth, a
+puppet is quite a new fish for me. All the better! I shall
+eat you with greater pleasure."</p>
+
+<p>"Eat me! but will you understand that I am not a fish?
+Do you hear that I talk and reason as you do?"</p>
+
+<p>"That is quite true," said the fisherman; "and as I see
+that you are a fish possessed of the talent of talking and
+reasoning as I do, I will treat you with all the attention that
+is your due."</p>
+
+<p>"And this attention?"</p>
+
+<p>"In token of my friendship and particular regard, I will
+leave you the choice of how you would like to be cooked.
+Would you like to be fried in the frying-pan, or would you
+prefer to be stewed with tomato sauce?"</p>
+
+<p>"To tell the truth," answered Pinocchio, "if I am to choose,
+I should prefer to be set at liberty and to return home."</p>
+
+<p>"You are joking! Do you imagine that I would lose the
+opportunity of tasting such a rare fish? It is not every day,
+I assure you, that a puppet fish is caught in these waters.
+Leave it to me. I will fry you in the frying-pan with the
+other fish, and you will be quite satisfied. It is always consolation
+to be fried in company."</p>
+
+<p>At this speech the unhappy Pinocchio began to cry and
+scream and to implore for mercy, and he said, sobbing: "How
+much better it would have been if I had gone to school! I
+would listen to my companions and now I am paying for it."</p>
+
+<p>And he wriggled like an eel and made indescribable efforts
+to slip out of the clutches of the green fisherman. But it was
+useless: the fisherman took a long strip of rush and, having
+bound his hands and feet as if he had been a sausage, he
+threw him into the pan with the other fish.</p>
+
+<p>He then fetched a wooden bowl full of flour and began
+to flour them each in turn, and as soon as they were ready he
+threw them into the frying-pan.</p>
+
+<p>The first to dance in the boiling oil were the poor whitings;
+the crabs followed, then the sardines, then the soles, then the
+anchovies, and at last it was Pinocchio's turn. Seeing himself
+so near death, and such a horrible death, he was so frightened,
+and trembled so violently, that he had neither voice nor breath
+left for further entreaties.</p>
+
+<p>But the poor boy implored with his eyes! The green fisherman,
+however, without caring in the least, plunged him five
+or six times in the flour, until he was white from head to foot
+and looked like a puppet made of plaster.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-141" id="illus-141"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-141.png"
+alt="The Dog Seizes Pinocchio and Escapes" title="The Dog Seizes Pinocchio and Escapes" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXIX" id="CHAPTER_XXIX"></a>CHAPTER XXIX</h3>
+
+<h2>HE RETURNS TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE</h2>
+
+
+<p>Just as the fisherman was on the point of throwing Pinocchio
+into the frying-pan a large dog entered the cave, enticed
+there by the strong and savory odor of fried fish.</p>
+
+<p>"Get out!" shouted the fisherman, threateningly, holding
+the floured puppet in his hand.</p>
+
+<p>But the poor dog, who was as hungry as a wolf, whined
+and wagged his tail as much as to say:</p>
+
+<p>"Give me a mouthful of fish and I will leave you in peace."</p>
+
+<p>"Get out, I tell you!" repeated the fisherman and he
+stretched out his leg to give him a kick.</p>
+
+<p>But the dog, who, when he was really hungry, would not
+stand trifling, turned upon him, growling and showing his terrible
+tusks.</p>
+
+<p>At that moment a little feeble voice was heard in the cave,
+saying entreatingly:</p>
+
+<p>"Save me, Alidoro! If you do not save me I shall be
+fried!"</p>
+
+<p>The dog recognized Pinocchio's voice and, to his extreme
+surprise, perceived that it proceeded from the floured bundle
+that the fisherman held in his hand.</p>
+
+<p>So what do you think he did? He made a spring, seized
+the bundle in his mouth, and, holding it gently between his
+teeth, he rushed out of the cave and was gone like a flash of
+lightning.</p>
+
+<p>The fisherman, furious at seeing a fish he was so anxious
+to eat snatched from him, ran after the dog, but he had not gone
+many steps when he was taken with a fit of coughing and had
+to give it up.</p>
+
+<p>Alidoro, when he had reached the path that led to the village,
+stopped and put his friend Pinocchio gently on the ground.</p>
+
+<p>"How much I have to thank you for!" said the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"There is no necessity," replied the dog. "You saved me
+and I have now returned it. You know that we must all help
+each other in this world."</p>
+
+<p>"But how came you to come to the cave?"</p>
+
+<p>"I was lying on the shore more dead than alive when the
+wind brought to me the smell of fried fish. The smell excited
+my appetite and I followed it up. If I had arrived a second
+later&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Do not mention it!" groaned Pinocchio, who was still trembling
+with fright. "Do not mention it! If you had arrived
+a second later I should by this time have been fried, eaten and
+digested. Brrr! It makes me shudder only to think of it!"</p>
+
+<p>Alidoro, laughing, extended his right paw to the puppet,
+who shook it heartily in token of great friendship, and they
+then separated.</p>
+
+<p>The dog took the road home, and Pinocchio, left alone, went
+to a cottage not far off and said to a little old man who was
+warming himself in the sun:</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, good man, do you know anything of a poor boy
+called Eugene who was wounded in the head?"</p>
+
+<p>"The boy was brought by some fishermen to this cottage,
+and now&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"And now he is dead!" interrupted Pinocchio with great
+sorrow.</p>
+
+<p>"No, he is alive and has returned to his home."</p>
+
+<p>"Not really? not really?" cried the puppet, dancing with
+delight. "Then the wound was not serious?"</p>
+
+<p>"It might have been very serious and even fatal," answered
+the little old man, "for they threw a thick book bound in cardboard
+at his head."</p>
+
+<p>"And who threw it at him?"</p>
+
+<p>"One of his school-fellows, a certain Pinocchio."</p>
+
+<p>"And who is this Pinocchio?" asked the puppet, pretending
+ignorance.</p>
+
+<p>"They say that he is a bad boy, a vagabond, a regular
+good-for-nothing."</p>
+
+<p>"Calumnies! all calumnies!"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know this Pinocchio?"</p>
+
+<p>"By sight!" answered the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"And what is your opinion of him?" asked the little man.</p>
+
+<p>"He seems to me to be a very good boy, anxious to learn,
+and obedient and affectionate to his father and family."</p>
+
+<p>Whilst the puppet was firing off all these lies, he touched
+his nose and perceived that it had lengthened more than a hand.
+Very much alarmed he began to cry out:</p>
+
+<p>"Don't believe, good man, what I have been telling you.
+I know Pinocchio very well and I can assure you that he is
+a very bad boy, disobedient and idle, who, instead of going to
+school, runs off with his companions to amuse himself."</p>
+
+<p>He had hardly finished speaking when his nose became
+shorter and returned to the same size that it was before.</p>
+
+<p>"And why are you all covered with white?" asked the old
+man suddenly.</p>
+
+<p>"I will tell you. Without observing it I rubbed myself
+against a wall which had been freshly whitewashed," answered
+the puppet, ashamed to confess that he had been floured like
+a fish prepared for the frying-pan.</p>
+
+<p>"And what have you done with your jacket, your trousers,
+and your cap?"</p>
+
+<p>"I met with robbers, who took them from me. Tell me,
+good old man, could you perhaps give me some clothes to return
+home in?"</p>
+
+<p>"My boy, as to clothes, I have nothing but a little sack in
+which I keep beans. If you wish for it, take it; there it is."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio did not wait to be told twice. He took the sack
+at once and with a pair of scissors he cut a hole at the end
+and at each side, and put it on like a shirt. And with this slight
+clothing he set off for the village.</p>
+
+<p>But as he went he did not feel at all comfortable&mdash;so little
+so, indeed, that for a step forward he took another backwards,
+and he said, talking to himself:</p>
+
+<p>"How shall I ever present myself to my good little Fairy?
+What will she say when she sees me? Will she forgive me this
+second escapade? Oh, I am sure that she will not forgive me!
+And it serves me right, for I am a rascal. I am always promising
+to correct myself and I never keep my word!"</p>
+
+<p>When he reached the village it was night and very dark.
+A storm had come on and as the rain was coming down in
+torrents he went straight to the Fairy's house, resolved to knock
+at the door.</p>
+
+<p>But when he was there his courage failed him and instead
+of knocking he ran away some twenty paces. He returned to
+the door a second time and laid hold of the knocker, and, trembling,
+gave a little knock.</p>
+
+<p>He waited and waited. At last, after half an hour had
+passed, a window on the top floor was opened&mdash;the house was
+four stories high&mdash;and Pinocchio saw a big Snail with a lighted
+candle on her head looking out. She called to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Who is there at this hour?"</p>
+
+<p>"Is the Fairy at home?" asked the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"The Fairy is asleep and must not be awakened; but who
+are you?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is I."</p>
+
+<p>"Who is I?"</p>
+
+<p>"Pinocchio."</p>
+
+<p>"And who is Pinocchio?"</p>
+
+<p>"The puppet who lives in the Fairy's house."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, I understand!" said the Snail. "Wait for me there.
+I will come down and open the door directly."</p>
+
+<p>"Be quick, for pity's sake, for I am dying of cold."</p>
+
+<p>"My boy, I am a snail, and snails are never in a hurry."</p>
+
+<p>An hour passed, and then two, and the door was not opened.
+Pinocchio, who was wet through and through, and trembling
+from cold and fear, at last took courage and knocked again,
+and this time he knocked louder.</p>
+
+<p>At this second knock a window on the lower story opened
+and the same Snail appeared at it.</p>
+
+<p>"Beautiful little Snail," cried Pinocchio from the street,
+"I have been waiting for two hours! And two hours on such
+a bad night seem longer than two years. Be quick, for pity's
+sake."</p>
+
+<p>"My boy," answered the calm little animal&mdash;"my boy, I
+am a snail, and snails are never in a hurry."</p>
+
+<p>And the window was shut again.</p>
+
+<p>Shortly afterwards midnight struck; then one o'clock, then
+two o'clock, and the door remained still closed.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio at last, losing all patience, seized the knocker
+in a rage, intending to give a blow that would resound through
+the house. But the knocker, which was iron, turned suddenly
+into an eel and, slipping out of his hands, disappeared in
+the stream of water that ran down the middle of the street.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! is that it?" shouted Pinocchio, blind with rage.
+"Since the knocker has disappeared, I will kick instead with
+all my might."</p>
+
+<p>And, drawing a little back, he gave a tremendous kick
+against the house door. The blow was indeed so violent that
+his foot went through the wood and stuck; and when he tried
+to draw it back again it was trouble thrown away, for it
+remained fixed like a nail that has been hammered down.</p>
+
+<p>Think of poor Pinocchio! He was obliged to spend the
+remainder of the night with one foot on the ground and the
+other in the air.</p>
+
+<p>The following morning at daybreak the door was at last
+opened. The clever little Snail had taken only nine hours
+to come down from the fourth story to the house-door. It
+is evident that her exertions must have been great.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you doing with your foot stuck in the door?"
+she asked the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"It was an accident. Do try, beautiful little Snail, if
+you cannot release me from this torture."</p>
+
+<p>"My boy, that is the work of a carpenter, and I have
+never been a carpenter."</p>
+
+<p>"Beg the Fairy from me!"</p>
+
+<p>"The Fairy is asleep and must not be awakened."</p>
+
+<p>"But what do you suppose that I can do all day nailed
+to this door?"</p>
+
+<p>"Amuse yourself by counting the ants that pass down
+the street."</p>
+
+<p>"Bring me at least something to eat, for I am quite
+exhausted."</p>
+
+<p>"At once," said the Snail.</p>
+
+<p>In fact, after three hours and a half she returned to
+Pinocchio carrying a silver tray on her head. The tray contained
+a loaf of bread, a roast chicken, and four ripe apricots.</p>
+
+<p>"Here is the breakfast that the Fairy has sent you," said
+the Snail.</p>
+
+<p>The puppet felt very much comforted at the sight of
+these good things. But when he began to eat them, what
+was his disgust at making the discovery that the bread was
+plaster, the chicken cardboard, and the four apricots painted
+alabaster.</p>
+
+<p>He wanted to cry. In his desperation he tried to throw
+away the tray and all that was on it; but instead, either from
+grief or exhaustion, he fainted away.</p>
+
+<p>When he came to himself he found that he was lying on
+a sofa, and the Fairy was beside him.</p>
+
+<p>"I will pardon you once more," the Fairy said, "but woe
+to you if you behave badly a third time!"</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio promised and swore that he would study, and
+that for the future he would always conduct himself well.</p>
+
+<p>And he kept his word for the remainder of the year.
+Indeed, at the examinations before the holidays, he had the
+honor of being the first in the school, and his behavior in
+general was so satisfactory and praiseworthy that the Fairy
+was very much pleased, and said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Tomorrow your wish shall be gratified."</p>
+
+<p>"And that is?"</p>
+
+<p>"Tomorrow you shall cease to be a wooden puppet and
+you shall become a boy."</p>
+
+<p>No one who had not witnessed it could ever imagine
+Pinocchio's joy at this long-sighed-for good fortune. All his
+school-fellows were to be invited for the following day to a
+grand breakfast at the Fairy's house, that they might celebrate
+together the great event. The Fairy had prepared two
+hundred cups of coffee and milk, and four hundred rolls cut
+and buttered on each side. The day promised to be most
+happy and delightful, but&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>Unfortunately in the lives of puppets there is always a
+"but" that spoils everything.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-149" id="illus-149"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-149.png"
+alt="&quot;Here Is the Coach!&quot; Shouted Candlewick" title="&quot;Here Is the Coach!&quot; Shouted Candlewick" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXX" id="CHAPTER_XXX"></a>CHAPTER XXX</h3>
+
+<h2>THE "LAND OF BOOBIES"</h2>
+
+
+<p>Pinocchio, as was natural, asked the Fairy's permission
+to go round the town to give out the invitations, and the
+Fairy said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Go, if you like, and invite your companions for the
+breakfast tomorrow, but remember to return home before dark.
+Have you understood?"</p>
+
+<p>"I promise to be back in an hour," answered the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"Take care, Pinocchio! Boys are always very ready to
+promise, but generally they are little given to keep their word."</p>
+
+<p>"But I am not like other boys. When I say a thing,
+I do it."</p>
+
+<p>"We shall see. If you are disobedient, so much the worse
+for you."</p>
+
+<p>"Why?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because boys who do not listen to the advice of those
+who know more than they do always meet with some misfortune or other."</p>
+
+<p>"I have experienced that," said Pinocchio, "but I shall
+never make that mistake again."</p>
+
+<p>"We shall see if that is true."</p>
+
+<p>Without saying more the puppet took leave of his good
+Fairy, who was like a mamma to him, and went out of the
+house singing and dancing.</p>
+
+<p>In less than an hour all his friends were invited. Some
+accepted at once heartily; others at first required pressing; but
+when they heard that the rolls to be eaten with the coffee were
+to be buttered on both sides they ended by saying:</p>
+
+<p>"We will come also, to do you a pleasure."</p>
+
+<p>Now I must tell you that amongst Pinocchio's friends
+and school-fellows there was one that he greatly preferred and
+was very fond of. This boy's name was Romeo, but he always
+went by the nickname of Candlewick, because he was so thin,
+straight and bright, like the new wick of a little nightlight.</p>
+
+<p>Candlewick was the laziest and the naughtiest boy in the
+school, but Pinocchio was devoted to him. He had indeed
+gone at once to his house to invite him to the breakfast, but
+he had not found him. He returned a second time, but Candlewick
+was not there. He went a third time, but it was in
+vain. Where could he search for him? He looked here, there,
+and everywhere, and at last he saw him hiding on the porch
+of a peasant's cottage.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you doing there?" asked Pinocchio, coming
+up to him.</p>
+
+<p>"I am waiting for midnight, to start away."</p>
+
+<p>"And where are you going?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am going to live in a country&mdash;the most delightful
+country in the world: a real land of sweetmeats!"</p>
+
+<p>"And what is it called?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is called the 'Land of Boobies.' Why do you not
+come, too?"</p>
+
+<p>"I? No, never!"</p>
+
+<p>"You are wrong, Pinocchio. If you do not come you
+will repent it. Where could you find a better country for us
+boys? There are no schools there; there are no masters; there
+are no books. In that delightful land nobody ever studies.
+On Saturday there is never school, and every week consists
+of six Saturdays and one Sunday. Only think, the autumn
+holidays begin on the first of January and finish on the last
+day of December. That is the country for me! That is what
+all civilized countries should be like!"</p>
+
+<p>"But how are the days spent in the 'Land of Boobies'?"</p>
+
+<p>They are spent in play and amusement from morning till
+night. When night comes you go to bed, and recommence
+the same life in the morning. What do you think of it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Hum!" said Pinocchio, and he shook his head slightly,
+as much as to say, "That is a life that I also would willingly
+lead."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, will you go with me? Yes or no? Resolve quickly."</p>
+
+<p>"No, no, no, and again no. I promised my good Fairy
+to become a well conducted boy, and I will keep my word.
+And as I see that the sun is setting I must leave you at once
+and run away. Good-bye, and a pleasant journey to you."</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you rushing off to in such a hurry?"</p>
+
+<p>"Home. My good Fairy wishes me to be back before
+dark."</p>
+
+<p>"Wait another two minutes."</p>
+
+<p>"It will make me too late."</p>
+
+<p>"Only two minutes."</p>
+
+<p>"And if the Fairy scolds me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Let her scold. When she has scolded well she will hold
+her tongue," said that rascal Candlewick.</p>
+
+<p>"And what are you going to do? Are you going alone
+or with companions?"</p>
+
+<p>"Alone? Indeed not, there will be more than a hundred
+boys."</p>
+
+<p>"And do you make the journey on foot?"</p>
+
+<p>"A coach will pass by shortly which is to take me to that
+happy country."</p>
+
+<p>"What would I not give for the coach to pass by now!"</p>
+
+<p>"Why?"</p>
+
+<p>"That I might see you all start together."</p>
+
+<p>"Stay here a little longer and you will see us."</p>
+
+<p>"No, no, I must go home."</p>
+
+<p>"Wait another two minutes."</p>
+
+<p>"I have already delayed too long. The Fairy will be
+anxious about me."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor Fairy! Is she afraid that the bats will eat you?"</p>
+
+<p>"But now," continued Pinocchio, "are you really certain
+that there are no schools in that country?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not even the shadow of one."</p>
+
+<p>"And no masters either?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not one."</p>
+
+<p>"And no one is ever made to study?"</p>
+
+<p>"Never, never, never!"</p>
+
+<p>"What a delightful country!" said Pinocchio, his mouth
+watering. "What a delightful country! I have never been
+there, but I can quite imagine it."</p>
+
+<p>"Why will you not come also?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is useless to tempt me. I promised my good Fairy
+to become a sensible boy, and I will not break my word."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, then, and give my compliments to all the
+boys at school, if you meet them in the street."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, Candlewick; a pleasant journey to you; amuse
+yourself, and think sometimes of your friends."</p>
+
+<p>Thus saying, the puppet made two steps to go, but then
+stopped, and, turning to his friend, he inquired:</p>
+
+<p>"But are you quite certain that in that country all the
+weeks consist of six Saturdays and one Sunday?"</p>
+
+<p>"Most certainly."</p>
+
+<p>"But do you know for certain that the holidays begin on
+the first of January and finish on the last day of December?"</p>
+
+<p>"Assuredly."</p>
+
+<p>"What a delightful country!" repeated Pinocchio, looking
+enchanted. Then, with a resolute air, he added in a great
+hurry:</p>
+
+<p>"This time really good-bye, and a pleasant journey to you."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye."</p>
+
+<p>"When do you start?"</p>
+
+<p>"Shortly."</p>
+
+<p>"What a pity! If really it wanted only an hour to the
+time of your start, I should almost be tempted to wait."</p>
+
+<p>"And the Fairy?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is already late. If I return home an hour sooner or
+later it will be all the same."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor Pinocchio! And if the Fairy scolds you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I must have patience! I will let her scold. When she
+has scolded well she will hold her tongue."</p>
+
+<p>In the meantime night had come on and it was quite dark.
+Suddenly they saw in the distance a small light moving and
+they heard a noise of talking, and the sound of a trumpet,
+but so small and feeble that it resembled the hum of a mosquito.</p>
+
+<p>"Here it is!" shouted Candlewick, jumping to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>"What is it?" asked Pinocchio in a whisper.</p>
+
+<p>"It is the coach coming to take me. Now will you come,
+yes or no?"</p>
+
+<p>"But is it really true," asked the puppet, "that in that
+country boys are never obliged to study?"</p>
+
+<p>"Never, never, never!"</p>
+
+<p>"What a delightful country! What a delightful country!
+What a delightful country!"</p>
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<p><a name="hi-illus-155" id="hi-illus-15"></a></p>
+<img src="images/hi-illus-155.jpg"
+alt="IT WOULD BE MORE COMFORTABLE ON THE TUNNY'S BACK"
+title="IT WOULD BE MORE COMFORTABLE ON THE TUNNY'S BACK" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+
+<div class="figcenter">
+<p><a name="illus-156" id="illus-156"></a></p>
+<img src="images/illus-156.png"
+alt="They Arrive in the &quot;Land of the Boobies&quot;" title="They Arrive in the &quot;Land of the Boobies&quot;" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXXI" id="CHAPTER_XXXI"></a>CHAPTER XXXI</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO ENJOYS FIVE MONTHS OF HAPPINESS</h2>
+
+
+<p>At last the coach arrived, and it arrived without making
+the slightest noise, for its wheels were bound round with
+flax and rags.</p>
+
+<p>It was drawn by twelve pairs of donkeys, all the same
+size but of different colors.</p>
+
+<p>Some were gray, some white, some brindled like pepper
+and salt, and others had large stripes of yellow and blue.</p>
+
+<p>But the most extraordinary thing was this: the twelve
+pairs, that is, the twenty-four donkeys, instead of being shod
+like other beasts of burden, had on their feet men's boots
+made of white kid.</p>
+
+<p>And the coachman?</p>
+
+<p>Picture to yourself a little man broader than he was long,
+flabby and greasy like a lump of butter, with a small round
+face like an orange, a little mouth that was always laughing,
+and a soft, caressing voice like a cat when she is trying to
+insinuate herself into the good graces of the mistress of the
+house.</p>
+
+<p>All the boys vied with each other in taking places in his
+coach, to be conducted to the "Land of Boobies."</p>
+
+<p>The coach was, in fact, quite full of boys between eight
+and fourteen years old, heaped one upon another like herrings
+in a barrel. They were uncomfortable, packed closely together
+and could hardly breathe; but nobody said "Oh!"&mdash;nobody
+grumbled. The consolation of knowing that in a few hours
+they would reach a country where there were no books, no
+schools, and no masters, made them so happy and resigned
+that they felt neither fatigue nor inconvenience, neither hunger,
+nor thirst, nor want of sleep.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as the coach had drawn up the little man turned
+to Candlewick and with a thousand smirks and grimaces said
+to him, smiling:</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, my fine boy, would you also like to go to that
+fortunate country?"</p>
+
+<p>"I certainly wish to go."</p>
+
+<p>"But I must warn you, my dear child, that there is not
+a place left in the coach. You can see for yourself that it is
+quite full."</p>
+
+<p>"No matter," replied Candlewick, "if there is no place
+inside, I will manage to sit on the springs."</p>
+
+<p>And, giving a leap, he seated himself astride on the
+springs.</p>
+
+<p>"And you, my love!" said the little man, turning in a
+flattering manner to Pinocchio, "what do you intend to do?
+Are you coming with us or are you going to remain behind?"</p>
+
+<p>"I remain behind," answered Pinocchio. "I am going
+home. I intend to study, as all well conducted boys do."</p>
+
+<p>"Much good may it do you!"</p>
+
+<p>"Pinocchio!" called out Candlewick, "listen to me: come
+with us and we shall have such fun."</p>
+
+<p>"No, no, no!"</p>
+
+<p>"Come with us and we shall have such fun," shouted in
+chorus a hundred voices from the inside of the coach.</p>
+
+<p>"But if I come with you, what will my good Fairy say?"
+said the puppet, who was beginning to yield.</p>
+
+<p>"Do not trouble your head with melancholy thoughts.
+Consider only that we are going to a country where we shall
+be at liberty to run riot from morning till night."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio did not answer, but he sighed; he sighed again;
+he sighed for the third time, and he said finally:</p>
+
+<p>"Make a little room for me, for I am coming, too."</p>
+
+<p>"The places are all full," replied the little man; "but, to
+show you how welcome you are, you shall have my seat on
+the box."</p>
+
+<p>"And you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, I will go on foot."</p>
+
+<p>"No, indeed, I could not allow that. I would rather
+mount one of these donkeys," cried Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>Approaching the right-hand donkey of the first pair, he
+attempted to mount him, but the animal turned on him and,
+giving him a great blow in the stomach, rolled him over with
+his legs in the air.</p>
+
+<p>You can imagine the impertinent and immoderate laughter
+of all the boys who witnessed this scene.</p>
+
+<p>But the little man did not laugh. He approached the
+rebellious donkey and, pretending to give him a kiss, bit off
+half of his ear.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio in the meantime had gotten up from the ground
+in a fury and, with a spring, he seated himself on the poor
+animal's back. And he sprang so well that the boys stopped
+laughing and began to shout: "Hurrah, Pinocchio!" and they
+clapped their hands and applauded him as if they would never
+finish.</p>
+
+<p>Now that Pinocchio was mounted, the coach started.
+Whilst the donkeys were galloping and the coach was rattling
+over the stones of the high road, the puppet thought that he
+heard a low voice that was scarcely audible saying to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Poor fool! you would follow your own way, but you will
+repent it!"</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, feeling almost frightened, looked from side to
+side to try and discover where these words could come from,
+but he saw nobody. The donkeys galloped, the coach rattled,
+the boys inside slept, Candlewick snored like a dormouse, and
+the little man seated on the box sang between his teeth:</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"During the night all sleep,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">But I sleep never."<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p>After they had gone another mile, Pinocchio heard the
+same little low voice saying to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Bear it in mind, simpleton! Boys who refuse to study
+and turn their backs upon books, schools and masters, to pass
+their time in play and amusement, sooner or later come to a
+bad end. I know it by experience, and I can tell you. A
+day will come when you will weep as I am weeping now, but
+then it will be too late!"</p>
+
+<p>On hearing these words whispered very softly, the puppet,
+more frightened than ever, sprang down from the back of
+his donkey and went and took hold of his mouth.</p>
+
+<p>Imagine his surprise when he found that the donkey was
+crying&mdash;crying like a boy!</p>
+
+<p>"Eh! Sir Coachman," cried Pinocchio to the little man,
+"here is an extraordinary thing! This donkey is crying."</p>
+
+<p>"Let him cry; he will laugh when he is a bridegroom."</p>
+
+<p>"But have you by chance taught him to talk?"</p>
+
+<p>"No; but he spent three years in a company of learned
+dogs, and he learned to mutter a few words."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor beast!"</p>
+
+<p>"Come, come," said the little man, "don't let us waste
+time in seeing a donkey cry. Mount him and let us go on:
+the night is cold and the road is long."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio obeyed without another word. In the morning
+about daybreak they arrived safely in the "Land of Boobies."</p>
+
+<p>It was a country unlike any other country in the world.
+The population was composed entirely of boys. The oldest
+were fourteen, and the youngest scarcely eight years old. In
+the streets there was such merriment, noise and shouting that
+it was enough to turn anybody's head. There were troops of
+boys everywhere. Some were playing with nuts, some with
+battledores, some with balls. Some rode velocipedes, others
+wooden horses. A party were playing at hide and seek, a
+few were chasing each other. Some were reciting, some singing,
+some leaping. Some were amusing themselves with walking
+on their hands with their feet in the air; others were
+trundling hoops or strutting about dressed as generals, wearing
+leaf helmets and commanding a squadron of cardboard soldiers.
+Some were laughing, some shouting, some were calling
+out; others clapped their hands, or whistled, or clucked like
+a hen who has just laid an egg.</p>
+
+<p>In every square, canvas theaters had been erected and
+they were crowded with boys from morning till evening. On
+the walls of the houses there were inscriptions written in charcoal:
+"Long live playthings, we will have no more schools;
+down with arithmetic," and similar other fine sentiments, all
+in bad spelling.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, Candlewick and the other boys who had made
+the journey with the little man, had scarcely set foot in the
+town before they were in the thick of the tumult, and I need
+not tell you that in a few minutes they had made acquaintance
+with everybody. Where could happier or more contented boys
+be found?</p>
+
+<p>In the midst of continual games and every variety of
+amusement, the hours, the days and the weeks passed like
+lightning.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, what a delightful life!" said Pinocchio, whenever
+by chance he met Candlewick.</p>
+
+<p>"See, then, if I was not right?" replied the other. "And
+to think that you did not want to come! To think that you
+had taken it into your head to return home to your Fairy,
+and to lose your time in studying! If you are this moment
+free from the bother of books and school, you must acknowledge
+that you owe it to me, to my advice, and to my persuasions.
+It is only friends who know how to render such
+great services."</p>
+
+<p>"It is true, Candlewick! If I am now a really happy
+boy, it is all your doing. But do you know what the master
+used to say when he talked to me of you? He always said
+to me: 'Do not associate with that rascal Candlewick, for he
+is a bad companion, and will only lead you into mischief!'"</p>
+
+<p>"Poor master!" replied the other, shaking his head. "I
+know only too well that he disliked me, and amused himself
+by calumniating me; but I am generous and I forgive him!"</p>
+
+<p>"Noble soul!" said Pinocchio, embracing his friend affectionately
+and kissing him between the eyes.</p>
+
+<p>This delightful life had gone on for five months. The
+days had been entirely spent in play and amusement, without
+a thought of books or school, when one morning Pinocchio
+awoke to a most disagreeable surprise that put him into a
+very bad humor.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-163" id="illus-163"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-163.png" alt="The Boys Are Turned into Donkeys" title="The Boys Are Turned into Donkeys" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXXII" id="CHAPTER_XXXII"></a>CHAPTER XXXII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO TURNS INTO A DONKEY</h2>
+
+
+<p>The surprise was that Pinocchio, when he awoke, scratched
+his head, and in scratching his head he discovered, to his
+great astonishment, that his ears had grown more than a hand.</p>
+
+<p>You know that the puppet from his birth had always
+had very small ears&mdash;so small that they were not visible to
+the naked eye. You can imagine then what he felt when he
+found that during the night his ears had become so long that
+they seemed like two brooms.</p>
+
+<p>He went at once in search of a glass that he might look
+at himself, but, not being able to find one, he filled the basin
+of his washing-stand with water, and he saw reflected what
+he certainly would never have wished to see. He saw his
+head embellished with a magnificent pair of donkey's ears!</p>
+
+<p>Only think of poor Pinocchio's sorrow, shame and despair!</p>
+
+<p>He began to cry and roar, and he beat his head against
+the wall, but the more he cried the longer his ears grew; they
+grew, and grew, and became hairy towards the points.</p>
+
+<p>At the sound of his loud outcries a beautiful little Marmot
+that lived on the first floor came into the room. Seeing the
+puppet in such grief she asked earnestly:</p>
+
+<p>"What has happened to you, my dear fellow-lodger?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am ill, my dear little Marmot, very ill, and my illness
+frightens me. Do you understand counting a pulse?"</p>
+
+<p>"A little."</p>
+
+<p>"Then feel and see if by chance I have got fever."</p>
+
+<p>The little Marmot raised her right fore-paw, and, after
+having felt Pinocchio's pulse, she said to him, sighing:</p>
+
+<p>"My friend, I am grieved to be obliged to give you bad
+news!"</p>
+
+<p>"What is it?"</p>
+
+<p>"You have got a very bad fever!"</p>
+
+<p>"What fever is it?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is donkey fever."</p>
+
+<p>"That is a fever that I do not understand," said the puppet,
+but he understood it only too well.</p>
+
+<p>"Then I will explain it to you," said the Marmot. "You
+must know that in two or three hours you will be no longer
+a puppet, or a boy."</p>
+
+<p>"Then what shall I be?"</p>
+
+<p>"In two or three hours you will become really and truly
+a little donkey, like those that draw carts and carry cabbages
+and salad to market."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, unfortunate that I am! unfortunate that I am!" cried
+Pinocchio, seizing his two ears with his hands and pulling them
+and tearing them furiously as if they had been some one
+else's ears.</p>
+
+<p>"My dear boy," said the Marmot, by way of consoling
+him, "you can do nothing. It is destiny. It is written in the
+decrees of wisdom that all boys who are lazy, and who take
+a dislike to books, to schools, and to masters, and who pass
+their time in amusement, games, and diversions, must end
+sooner or later by becoming transformed into so many little
+donkeys."</p>
+
+<p>"But is it really so?" asked the puppet, sobbing.</p>
+
+<p>"It is indeed only too true! And tears are now useless.
+You should have thought of it sooner!"</p>
+
+<p>"But it was not my fault; believe me, little Marmot, the
+fault was all Candlewick's!"</p>
+
+<p>"And who is this Candlewick?"</p>
+
+<p>"One of my school-fellows. I wanted to return home; I
+wanted to be obedient. I wished to study, but Candlewick
+said to me: 'Why should you bother yourself by studying?
+Why should you go to school? Come with us instead to the
+"Land of Boobies"; there we shall none of us have to learn;
+there we shall amuse ourselves from morning to night, and
+we shall always be merry'."</p>
+
+<p>"And why did you follow the advice of that false friend?
+of that bad companion?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why? Because, my dear little Marmot, I am a puppet
+with no sense, and with no heart. Ah! if I had had the least
+heart I should never have left that good Fairy who loved me
+like a mamma, and who had done so much for me! And I
+would be no longer a puppet, for I would by this time have
+become a little boy like so many others: But if I meet Candlewick,
+woe to him! He shall hear what I think of him!"</p>
+
+<p>And he turned to go out. But when he reached the door
+he remembered his donkey's ears, and, feeling ashamed to
+show them in public, what do you think he did? He took a
+big cotton cap and, putting it on his head, he pulled it well
+down over the point of his nose.</p>
+
+<p>He then set out and went everywhere in search of Candlewick.
+He looked for him in the streets, in the squares, in
+the little theaters, in every possible place, but he could not
+find him. He inquired for him of everybody he met, but no
+one had seen him.</p>
+
+<p>He then went to seek him at his house and, having reached
+the door, he knocked.</p>
+
+<p>"Who is there?" asked Candlewick from within.</p>
+
+<p>"It is I!" answered the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"Wait a moment and I will let you in."</p>
+
+<p>After half an hour the door was opened and imagine
+Pinocchio's feelings when, upon going into the room, he saw
+his friend Candlewick with a big cotton cap on his head which
+came down over his nose.</p>
+
+<p>At the sight of the cap Pinocchio felt almost consoled and
+thought to himself:</p>
+
+<p>"Has my friend got the same illness that I have? Is he
+also suffering from donkey fever?"</p>
+
+<p>And, pretending to have observed nothing, he asked him,
+smiling:</p>
+
+<p>"How are you, my dear Candlewick?"</p>
+
+<p>"Very well; as well as a mouse in a Parmesan cheese."</p>
+
+<p>"Are you saying that seriously?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why should I tell you a lie?"</p>
+
+<p>"Excuse me; but why, then, do you keep that cotton cap
+on your head which covers up your ears?"</p>
+
+<p>"The doctor ordered me to wear it because I have hurt
+this knee. And you, dear puppet, why have you got on that
+cotton cap pulled down over your nose?"</p>
+
+<p>"The doctor prescribed it because I have grazed my foot."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, poor Pinocchio!"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, poor Candlewick!"</p>
+
+<p>After these words a long silence followed, during which
+the two friends did nothing but look mockingly at each other.</p>
+
+<p>At last the puppet said in a soft voice to his companion:</p>
+
+<p>"Satisfy my curiosity, my dear Candlewick: have you
+ever suffered from disease of the ears?"</p>
+
+<p>"Never! And you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Never. Only since this morning one of my ears aches."</p>
+
+<p>"Mine is also paining me."</p>
+
+<p>"You also? And which of your ears hurts you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Both of them. And you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Both of them. Can we have got the same illness?"</p>
+
+<p>"I fear so."</p>
+
+<p>"Will you do me a kindness, Candlewick?"</p>
+
+<p>"Willingly! With all my heart."</p>
+
+<p>"Will you let me see your ears?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why not? But first, my dear Pinocchio, I should like
+to see yours."</p>
+
+<p>"No: you must be first."</p>
+
+<p>"No, dear. First you and then I!"</p>
+
+<p>"Well," said the puppet, "let us come to an agreement
+like good friends."</p>
+
+<p>"Let us hear it."</p>
+
+<p>"We will both take off our caps at the same moment. Do
+you agree?"</p>
+
+<p>"I agree."</p>
+
+<p>"Then, attention!"</p>
+
+<p>And Pinocchio began to count in a loud voice:</p>
+
+<p>"One, two, three!"</p>
+
+<p>At the word "Three!" the two boys took off their caps
+and threw them into the air.</p>
+
+<p>And then a scene followed that would seem incredible if
+it were not true. That is, that when Pinocchio and Candlewick
+discovered that they were both struck with the same
+misfortune, instead of feeling full of mortification and grief,
+they began to prick their ungainly ears and to make a thousand
+antics, and they ended by going into bursts of laughter.</p>
+
+<p>And they laughed, and laughed, and laughed, until they
+had to hold themselves together. But in the midst of their
+merriment Candlewick suddenly stopped, staggered, and,
+changing color, said to his friend:</p>
+
+<p>"Help, help, Pinocchio!"</p>
+
+<p>"What is the matter with you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Alas, I cannot any longer stand upright."</p>
+
+<p>"Neither can I," exclaimed Pinocchio, tottering and beginning
+to cry.</p>
+
+<p>And whilst they were talking, they both doubled up and
+began to run round the room on their hands and feet. And
+as they ran, their hands became hoofs, their faces lengthened
+into muzzles, and their backs became covered with a light gray
+hairy coat sprinkled with black.</p>
+
+<p>But do you know what was the worst moment for these
+two wretched boys? The worst and the most humiliating moment
+was when their tails grew. Vanquished by shame and
+sorrow, they wept and lamented their fate.</p>
+
+<p>Oh, if they had but been wiser! But instead of sighs and
+lamentations they could only bray like asses; and they brayed
+loudly and said in chorus: "Hee-haw!"</p>
+
+<p>Whilst this was going on some one knocked at the door
+and a voice on the outside said:</p>
+
+<p>"Open the door! I am the little man, I am the coachman
+who brought you to this country. Open at once, or it will
+be the worse for you!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-170" id="illus-170"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-170.png"
+alt="The Little Donkeys Are Sold" title="The Little Donkeys Are Sold" />
+
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXXIII" id="CHAPTER_XXXIII"></a>CHAPTER XXXIII</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO IS TRAINED FOR THE CIRCUS</h2>
+
+
+<p>Finding that the door remained shut the little man burst
+it open with a violent kick and, coming into the room, he
+said to Pinocchio and Candlewick with his usual little laugh:</p>
+
+<p>"Well done, boys! You brayed well, and I recognized
+you by your voices. That is why I am here."</p>
+
+<p>At these words the two little donkeys were quite stupefied
+and stood with their heads down, their ears lowered, and their
+tails between their legs.</p>
+
+<p>At first the little man stroked and caressed them; then,
+taking out a currycomb, he currycombed them well. And
+when by this process he had polished them till they shone like
+two mirrors, he put a halter round their necks and led them
+to the market-place, in hopes of selling them and making a
+good profit.</p>
+
+<p>And indeed buyers were not wanting. Candlewick was
+bought by a peasant whose donkey had died the previous day.
+Pinocchio was sold to the director of a company of buffoons
+and tight-rope dancers, who bought him that he might teach
+him to leap and to dance with the other animals belonging to
+the company.</p>
+
+<p>And now, my little readers, you will have understood the
+fine trade that little man pursued. The wicked little monster,
+who had a face all milk and honey, made frequent journeys
+round the world with his coach. As he went along he collected,
+with promises and flattery, all the idle boys who had
+taken a dislike to books and school. As soon as his coach was
+full he conducted them to the "Land of Boobies," that they
+might pass their time in games, in uproar, and in amusement.
+When these poor, deluded boys, from continual play and no
+study, had become so many little donkeys, he took possession
+of them with great delight and satisfaction, and carried them
+off to the fairs and markets to be sold. And in this way he
+had in a few years made heaps of money and had become a
+millionaire.</p>
+
+<p>What became of Candlewick I do not know, but I do
+know that Pinocchio from the very first day had to endure a
+very hard, laborious life.</p>
+
+<p>When he was put into his stall his master filled the
+manger with straw; but Pinocchio, having tried a mouthful,
+spat it out again.</p>
+
+<p>Then his master, grumbling, filled the manger with hay;
+but neither did the hay please him.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah!" exclaimed his master in a passion. "Does not hay
+please you either? Leave it to me, my fine donkey; if you
+are so full of caprices I will find a way to cure you!"</p>
+
+<p>And by way of correcting him he struck his legs with
+his whip.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio began to cry and to bray with pain, and he
+said, braying:</p>
+
+<p>"Hee-haw! I cannot digest straw!"</p>
+
+<p>"Then eat hay!" said his master, who understood perfectly
+the asinine dialect.</p>
+
+<p>"Hee-haw! hay gives me a pain in my stomach."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you mean to pretend that a little donkey like you
+must be kept on breasts of chickens, and capons in jelly?"
+asked his master, getting more and more angry, and whipping
+him again.</p>
+
+<p>At this second whipping Pinocchio prudently held his
+tongue and said nothing more.</p>
+
+<p>The stable was then shut and Pinocchio was left alone.
+He had not eaten for many hours and he began to yawn from
+hunger. And when he yawned he opened a mouth that seemed
+as wide as an oven.</p>
+
+<p>At last, finding nothing else in the manger, he resigned
+himself and chewed a little hay; and after he had chewed it
+well, he shut his eyes and swallowed it.</p>
+
+<p>"This hay is not bad," he said to himself; "but how much
+better it would have been if I had gone on with my studies!
+Instead of hay I might now be eating a hunch of new bread
+and a fine slice of sausage. But I must have patience!"</p>
+
+<p>The next morning when he woke he looked in the manger
+for a little more hay; but he found none, for he had eaten
+it all during the night.</p>
+
+<p>Then he took a mouthful of chopped straw, but whilst
+he was chewing it he had to acknowledge that the taste of
+chopped straw did not in the least resemble a savory dish
+of macaroni or pie.</p>
+
+<p>"But I must have patience!" he repeated as he went on
+chewing. "May my example serve at least as a warning to
+all disobedient boys who do not want to study. Patience!"</p>
+
+<p>"Patience indeed!" shouted his master, coming at that
+moment into the stable. "Do you think, my little donkey, that
+I bought you only to give you food and drink? I bought you
+to make you work, and that you might earn money for me.
+Up, then, at once! you must come with me into the circus, and
+there I will teach you to jump through hoops, to go through
+frames of paper head foremost, to dance waltzes and polkas,
+and to stand upright on your hind legs."</p>
+
+<p>Poor Pinocchio, either by love or by force, had to learn
+all these fine things. But it took him three months before
+he had learned them, and he got many a whipping that nearly
+took off his skin.</p>
+
+<p>At last a day came when his master was able to announce
+that he would give a really extraordinary representation. The
+many colored placards stuck on the street corners were thus
+worded:<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p class="center">        <span class="smcap">Great Full Dress Representation</span></p>
+
+<hr class="minor" />
+
+<p class="center">                  <big><b>TONIGHT</b></big><br />
+  <span class="smcap">Will Take Place the Usual Feats and Surprising</span><br />
+      <span class="smcap">Performances Executed by All the Artists</span><br />
+        <span class="smcap">and by all the horses of the company</span><br />
+                  <span class="smcap">and moreover</span><br />
+                   <span class="smcap">The Famous</span><br />
+           <big><b>LITTLE DONKEY PINOCCHIO</b></big><br />
+                   <span class="smcap">called</span><br />
+            <big><b>THE STAR OF THE DANCE</b></big><br />
+         <span class="smcap">Will Make His First Appearance</span></p>
+
+<hr class="minor" />
+
+<p class="center">    <span class="smcap">the theater will be brilliantly illuminated</span>
+<br /><br /></p>
+
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="All His Friends Were Invited">
+<tr><td align='center'><big><b>In Less Than an Hour All His Friends<br />
+Were Invited</b></big></td>
+<td align='center'><a name="illus-175" id="illus-175"></a>
+<img src="images/illus-175.png"
+alt="All His Friends Were Invited" title="All His Friends Were Invited" /></td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+
+
+
+<p>On that evening, as you may imagine, an hour before
+the play was to begin the theater was crammed.</p>
+
+<p>There was not a place to be had either in the pit or the
+stalls, or in the boxes even, by paying its weight in gold.</p>
+
+<p>The benches round the circus were crowded with children
+and with boys of all ages, who were in a fever of impatience
+to see the famous little donkey Pinocchio dance.</p>
+
+<p>When the first part of the performance was over, the
+director of the company, dressed in a black coat, white breeches,
+and big leather boots that came above his knees, presented
+himself to the public, and, after making a profound bow, he
+began with much solemnity the following ridiculous speech:</p>
+
+<p>"Respectable public, ladies and gentlemen! The humble
+undersigned being a passer-by in this illustrious city, I have
+wished to procure for myself the honor, not to say the pleasure,
+of presenting to this intelligent and distinguished audience a
+celebrated little donkey, who has already had the honor of
+dancing in the presence of His Majesty the Emperor of all
+the principal courts of Europe.</p>
+
+<p>"And, thanking you, I beg of you to help us with your
+inspiring presence and to be indulgent to us."</p>
+
+<p>This speech was received with much laughter and applause,
+but the applause redoubled and became tumultuous when the
+little donkey Pinocchio made his appearance in the middle of
+the circus. He was decked out for the occasion. He had a
+new bridle of polished leather with brass buckles and studs,
+and two white camelias in his ears. His mane was divided and
+curled, and each curl was tied with bows of colored ribbon.
+He had a girth of gold and silver round his body, and his tail
+was plaited with amaranth and blue velvet ribbons. He was,
+in fact, a little donkey to fall in love with!</p>
+
+<p>The director, in presenting him to the public, added these
+few words:</p>
+
+<p>"My respectable auditors! I am not here to tell you
+falsehoods of the great difficulties that I have overcome in
+understanding and subjugating this mammifer, whilst he was
+grazing at liberty amongst the mountains in the plains of the
+torrid zone. I beg you will observe the wild rolling of his
+eyes. Every means having been tried in vain to tame him,
+and to accustom him to the life of domestic quadrupeds, I
+was often forced to have recourse to the convincing argument
+of the whip. But all my goodness to him, instead of gaining
+his affections, has, on the contrary, increased his viciousness.
+However, following the system of Gall, I discovered in his
+cranium a bony cartilage that the Faculty of Medicine of Paris
+has itself recognized as the regenerating bulb of the hair, and
+of dance. For this reason I have not only taught him to dance,
+but also to jump through hoops and through frames covered
+with paper. Admire him, and then pass your opinion on him!
+But before taking my leave of you, permit me, ladies and
+gentlemen, to invite you to the daily performance that will
+take place tomorrow evening; but in case the weather should
+threaten rain, the performance will be postponed till tomorrow
+morning at 11 ante-meridian of post-meridian."</p>
+
+<p>Here the director made another profound bow, and, then
+turning to Pinocchio, he said:</p>
+
+<p>"Courage, Pinocchio! before you begin your feats make
+your bow to this distinguished audience&mdash;ladies, gentlemen, and
+children."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio obeyed, and bent both his knees till they touched
+the ground, and remained kneeling until the director, cracking
+his whip, shouted to him:</p>
+
+<p>"At a foot's pace!"</p>
+
+<p>Then the little donkey raised himself on his four legs and
+began to walk round the theater, keeping at a foot's pace.</p>
+
+<p>After a little the director cried:</p>
+
+<p>"Trot!" and Pinocchio, obeying the order, changed to
+a trot.</p>
+
+<p>"Gallop!" and Pinocchio broke into a gallop.</p>
+
+<p>"Full gallop!" and Pinocchio went full gallop. But whilst
+he was going full speed like a race horse the director, raising
+his arm in the air, fired off a pistol.</p>
+
+<p>At the shot the little donkey, pretending to be wounded,
+fell his whole length in the circus, as if he were really dying.</p>
+
+<p>As he got up from the ground amidst an outburst of
+applause, shouts and clapping of hands, he naturally raised his
+head and looked up, and he saw in one of the boxes a beautiful
+lady who wore round her neck a thick gold chain from
+which hung a medallion. On the medallion was painted the
+portrait of a puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"That is my portrait! That lady is the Fairy!" said Pinocchio
+to himself, recognizing her immediately; and, overcome
+with delight, he tried to cry:</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, my little Fairy! Oh, my little Fairy!"</p>
+
+<p>But instead of these words a bray came from his throat,
+so sonorous and so prolonged that all the spectators laughed,
+and more especially all the children who were in the theater.</p>
+
+<p>Then the director, to give him a lesson, and to make him
+understand that it is not good manners to bray before the
+public, gave him a blow on his nose with the handle of his whip.</p>
+
+<p>The poor little donkey put his tongue out an inch and
+licked his nose for at least five minutes, thinking perhaps that
+it would ease the pain he felt.</p>
+
+<p>But what was his despair when, looking up a second time,
+he saw that the box was empty and that the Fairy had disappeared!</p>
+
+<p>He thought he was going to die; his eyes filled with tears
+and he began to weep. Nobody, however, noticed it, and
+least of all the director who, cracking his whip, shouted:</p>
+
+<p>"Courage, Pinocchio! Now let the audience see how
+gracefully you can jump through the hoops."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio tried two or three times, but each time that
+he came in front of the hoop, instead of going through it, he
+found it easier to go under it. At last he made a leap and
+went through it, but his right leg unfortunately caught in the
+hoop, and that caused him to fall to the ground doubled up
+in a heap on the other side.</p>
+
+<p>When he got up he was lame and it was only with great
+difficulty that he managed to return to the stable.</p>
+
+<p>"Bring out Pinocchio! We want the little donkey! Bring
+out the little donkey!" shouted all the boys in the theater,
+touched and sorry for the sad accident.</p>
+
+<p>But the little donkey was seen no more that evening.</p>
+
+<p>The following morning the veterinary, that is, the doctor
+of animals, paid him a visit, and declared that he would
+remain lame for life.</p>
+
+<p>The director then said to the stable-boy:</p>
+
+<p>"What do you suppose I can do with a lame donkey?
+He would eat food without earning it. Take him to the
+market and sell him."</p>
+
+<p>When they reached the market a purchaser was found
+at once. He asked the stable-boy:</p>
+
+<p>"How much do you want for that lame donkey?"</p>
+
+<p>"Twenty dollars."</p>
+
+<p>"I will give you two dollars. Don't suppose that I am
+buying him to make use of; I am buying him solely for his
+skin. I see that his skin is very hard and I intend to make
+a drum with it for the band of my village."</p>
+
+<p>Imagine poor Pinocchio's feelings when he heard that he
+was destined to become a drum!</p>
+
+<p>As soon as the purchaser had paid his two dollars he
+conducted the little donkey to the seashore. He then put a
+stone round his neck and, tying a rope, the end of which he
+held in his hand, round his leg, he gave him a sudden push
+and threw him into the water.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio, weighted down by the stone, went at once to
+the bottom, and his owner, keeping tight hold of the cord,
+sat down quietly on a piece of rock to wait until the little
+donkey was drowned, intending then to skin him.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-181" id="illus-181"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/illus-181.png" width="640" height="380"
+alt="The Puppet Was Wriggling Like an Eel" title="The Puppet Was Wriggling Like an Eel" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXXIV" id="CHAPTER_XXXIV"></a>CHAPTER XXXIV</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO IS SWALLOWED BY THE DOG-FISH</h2>
+
+
+<p>After Pinocchio had been fifty minutes under the water,
+his purchaser said aloud to himself:</p>
+
+<p>"My poor little lame donkey must by this time be quite
+drowned. I will therefore pull him out of the water, and I
+will make a fine drum of his skin."</p>
+
+<p>And he began to haul in the rope that he had tied to
+the donkey's leg, and he hauled, and hauled, and hauled, until
+at last&mdash;what do you think appeared above the water? Instead
+of a little dead donkey he saw a live puppet, who was wriggling
+like an eel.</p>
+
+<p>Seeing this wooden puppet, the poor man thought he was
+dreaming, and, struck dumb with astonishment, he remained
+with his mouth open and his eyes starting out of his head.</p>
+
+<p>Having somewhat recovered from his first stupefaction,
+he asked in a quavering voice:</p>
+
+<p>"And the little donkey that I threw into the sea? What
+has become of him?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am the little donkey!" said Pinocchio, laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"You?"</p>
+
+<p>"I."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, you young scamp!! Do you dare to make game
+of me?"</p>
+
+<p>"To make game of you? Quite the contrary, my dear
+master? I am speaking seriously."</p>
+
+<p>"But how can you, who but a short time ago were a little
+donkey, have become a wooden puppet, only from having been
+left in the water?"</p>
+
+<p>"It must have been the effect of sea water. The sea makes
+extraordinary changes."</p>
+
+<p>"Beware, puppet, beware! Don't imagine that you can
+amuse yourself at my expense. Woe to you if I lose patience!"</p>
+
+<p>"Well, master, do you wish to know the true story?
+If you will set my leg free I will tell it you."</p>
+
+<p>The good man, who was curious to hear the true story,
+immediately untied the knot that kept him bound; and Pinocchio,
+finding himself free as a bird in the air, commenced as
+follows:</p>
+
+<p>"You must know that I was once a puppet as I am now,
+and I was on the point of becoming a boy like the many who
+are in the world. But instead, induced by my dislike for study
+and the advice of bad companions, I ran away from home.
+One fine day when I awoke I found myself changed into a
+donkey with long ears, and a long tail. What a disgrace it
+was to me!&mdash;a disgrace, dear master, that even your worst
+enemy would not inflict upon you! Taken to the market to
+be sold I was bought by the director of an equestrian company,
+who took it into his head to make a famous dancer of me, and
+a famous leaper through hoops. But one night during a performance
+I had a bad fall in the circus and lamed both my
+legs. Then the director, not knowing what to do with a lame
+donkey, sent me to be sold, and you were the purchaser!"</p>
+
+<p>"Only too true. And I paid two dollars for you. And
+now, who will give me back my good money?"</p>
+
+<p>"And why did you buy me? You bought me to make a
+drum of my skin!"</p>
+
+<p>"Only too true! And now, where shall I find another
+skin?"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't despair, master. There are such a number of little
+donkeys in the world!"</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, you impertinent rascal, does your story end
+here?"</p>
+
+<p>"No," answered the puppet; "I have another two words
+to say and then I shall have finished. After you had bought
+me you brought me to this place to kill me; but then, yielding
+to a feeling of compassion, you preferred to tie a stone round
+my neck and to throw me into the sea. This humane feeling
+does you great honor and I shall always be grateful to you
+for it. But, nevertheless, dear master, this time you made
+your calculations without considering the Fairy!"</p>
+
+<p>"And who is the Fairy?"</p>
+
+<p>"She is my mamma and she resembles all other good
+mammas who care for their children, and who never lose sight
+of them, but help them lovingly, even when, on account of
+their foolishness and evil conduct, they deserve to be abandoned
+and left to themselves. Well, then, the good Fairy, as
+soon as she saw that I was in danger of drowning, sent immediately
+an immense shoal of fish, who, believing me really to
+be a little dead donkey, began to eat me. And what mouthfuls
+they took; I should never have thought that fish were
+greedier than boys! Some ate my ears, some my muzzle, others
+my neck and mane, some the skin of my legs, some my coat.
+Amongst them there was a little fish so polite that he even
+condescended to eat my tail."</p>
+
+<p>"From this time forth," said his purchaser, horrified, "I
+swear that I will never touch fish. It would be too dreadful
+to open a mullet, or a fried whiting, and to find inside a
+donkey's tail!"</p>
+
+<p>"I agree with you," said the puppet, laughing. "However,
+I must tell you that when the fish had finished eating the
+donkey's hide that covered me from head to foot, they naturally
+reached the bone, or rather the wood, for, as you see, I am
+made of the hardest wood. But after giving a few bites they
+soon discovered that I was not a morsel for their teeth, and,
+disgusted with such indigestible food, they went off, some in
+one direction and some in another, without so much as saying
+'Thank you' to me. And now, at last, I have told you how
+it was that when you pulled up the rope you found a live
+puppet instead of a dead donkey."</p>
+
+<p>"I laugh at your story," cried the man in a rage. "I
+know only that I spent two dollars to buy you, and I will
+have my money back. Shall I tell you what I will do? I
+will take you back to the market and I will sell you by weight
+as seasoned wood for lighting fires."</p>
+
+<p>"Sell me if you like; I am content," said Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>But as he said it he made a spring and plunged into the
+water. Swimming gaily away from the shore, he called to his
+poor owner:</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, master; if you should be in want of a skin to
+make a drum, remember me."</p>
+
+<p>And he laughed and went on swimming, and after a while
+he turned again and shouted louder:</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, master; if you should be in want of a little
+well seasoned wood for lighting the fire, remember me."</p>
+
+<p>In the twinkling of an eye he had swum so far off that he
+was scarcely visible. All that could be seen of him was a little
+black speck on the surface of the sea that from time to time
+lifted its legs out of the water and leaped and capered like
+a dolphin enjoying himself.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst Pinocchio was swimming, he knew not whither, he
+saw in the midst of the sea a rock that seemed to be made
+of white marble, and on the summit there stood a beautiful
+little goat who bleated lovingly and made signs to him to
+approach.</p>
+
+<p>But the most singular thing was this. The little goat's
+hair, instead of being white or black, or a mixture of two colors
+as is usual with other goats, was blue, and a very vivid blue,
+greatly resembling the hair of the beautiful Child.</p>
+
+<p>I leave you to imagine how rapidly poor Pinocchio's heart
+began to beat. He swam with redoubled strength and energy
+towards the white rock; and he was already half-way there
+when he saw, rising up out of the water and coming to meet
+him, the horrible head of a sea-monster. His wide-open, cavernous
+mouth and his three rows of enormous teeth would have
+been terrifying to look at even in a picture.</p>
+
+<p>And do you know what this sea-monster was?</p>
+
+<p>This sea-monster was neither more nor less than that
+gigantic Dog-Fish, who has been mentioned many times in this
+story, and who, for his slaughter and for his insatiable voracity,
+had been named the "Attila of Fish and Fishermen."</p>
+
+<p>Only to think of poor Pinocchio's terror at the sight of
+the monster. He tried to avoid it, to change his direction; he
+tried to escape, but that immense, wide-open mouth came
+towards him with the velocity of an arrow.</p>
+
+<p>"Be quick, Pinocchio, for pity's sake!" cried the beautiful
+little goat, bleating.</p>
+
+<p>And Pinocchio swam desperately with his arms, his chest,
+his legs, and his feet.</p>
+
+<p>"Quick, Pinocchio, the monster is close upon you!"</p>
+
+<p>And Pinocchio swam quicker than ever, and flew on with
+the rapidity of a ball from a gun. He had nearly reached the
+rock, and the little goat, leaning over towards the sea, had
+stretched out her fore-legs to help him out of the water!</p>
+
+<p>But it was too late! The monster had overtaken him and,
+drawing in his breath, he sucked in the poor puppet as he
+would have sucked a hen's egg; and he swallowed him with
+such violence and avidity that Pinocchio, in falling into the
+Dog-Fish's stomach, received such a blow that he remained
+unconscious for a quarter of an hour afterwards.</p>
+
+<p>When he came to himself again after the shock he could
+not in the least imagine in what world he was. All around
+him it was quite dark, and the darkness was so black and so
+profound that it seemed to him that he had fallen head downwards
+into an inkstand full of ink. He listened, but he
+could hear no noise; only from time to time great gusts of
+wind blew in his face. At first he could not understand where
+the wind came from, but at last he discovered that it came
+out of the monster's lungs. For you must know that the
+Dog-Fish suffered very much from asthma, and when he
+breathed it was exactly as if a north wind was blowing.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio at first tried to keep up his courage, but when
+he had one proof after another that he was really shut up in
+the body of this sea-monster he began to cry and scream, and
+to sob out:</p>
+
+<p>"Help! help! Oh, how unfortunate I am! Will nobody
+come to save me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Who do you think could save you, unhappy wretch?"
+said a voice in the dark that sounded like a guitar out of tune.</p>
+
+<p>"Who is speaking?" asked Pinocchio, frozen with terror.</p>
+
+<p>"It is I! I am a poor Tunny who was swallowed by the
+Dog-Fish at the same time that you were. And what fish
+are you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have nothing in common with fish. I am a puppet."</p>
+
+<p>"Then, if you are not a fish, why did you let yourself
+be swallowed by the monster?"</p>
+
+<p>"I didn't let myself be swallowed; it was the monster
+swallowed me! And now, what are we to do here in the dark?"</p>
+
+<p>"Resign ourselves and wait until the Dog-Fish has digested
+us both."</p>
+
+<p>"But I do not want to be digested!" howled Pinocchio,
+beginning to cry again.</p>
+
+<p>"Neither do I want to be digested," added the Tunny;
+"but I am enough of a philosopher to console myself by
+thinking that when one is born a Tunny it is more dignified
+to die in the water than in oil."</p>
+
+<p>"That is all nonsense!" cried Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"It is my opinion," replied the Tunny, "and opinions, so
+say the political Tunnies, ought to be respected."</p>
+
+<p>"To sum it all up, I want to get away from here. I
+want to escape."</p>
+
+<p>"Escape, if you are able!"</p>
+
+<p>"Is this Dog-Fish who has swallowed us very big?" asked
+the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"Big! Why, only imagine, his body is two miles long
+without counting his tail."</p>
+
+<p>Whilst they were holding this conversation in the dark,
+Pinocchio thought that he saw a light a long way off.</p>
+
+<p>"What is that little light I see in the distance?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"It is most likely some companion in misfortune who is
+waiting, like us, to be digested."</p>
+
+<p>"I will go and find him. Do you not think that it may
+by chance be some old fish who perhaps could show us how
+to escape?"</p>
+
+<p>"I hope it may be so, with all my heart, dear puppet."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, Tunny."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye, puppet, and good fortune attend you."</p>
+
+<p>"Where shall we meet again?"</p>
+
+<p>"Who can say? It is better not even to think of it!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-189" id="illus-189"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-189.png"
+alt="Swallowed by the Dog-Fish" title="Swallowed by the Dog-Fish" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXXV" id="CHAPTER_XXXV"></a>CHAPTER XXXV</h3>
+
+<h2>A HAPPY SURPRISE FOR PINOCCHIO</h2>
+
+
+<p>Pinocchio, having taken leave of his friend the Tunny,
+began to grope his way in the dark through the body of
+the Dog-Fish, taking a step at a time in the direction of the
+light that he saw shining dimly at a great distance.</p>
+
+<p>The farther he advanced the brighter became the light;
+and he walked and walked until at last he reached it; and
+when he reached it&mdash;what did he find? I will give you a
+thousand guesses. He found a little table spread out and on
+it a lighted candle stuck into a green glass bottle, and, seated
+at the table, was a little old man. He was eating some live
+fish, and they were so very much alive that whilst he was
+eating them they sometimes even jumped out of his mouth.</p>
+
+<p>At this sight Pinocchio was filled with such great and
+unexpected joy that he became almost delirious. He wanted
+to laugh, he wanted to cry, he wanted to say a thousand things,
+and instead he could only stammer out a few confused and
+broken words. At last he succeeded in uttering a cry of joy,
+and, opening his arms, he threw them around the little old
+man's neck, and began to shout:</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, my dear papa! I have found you at last! I will
+never leave you more, never more, never more!"</p>
+
+<p>"Then my eyes tell me true?" said the little old man,
+rubbing his eyes; "then you are really my dear Pinocchio?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, yes, I am Pinocchio, really Pinocchio! And you
+have quite forgiven me, have you not? Oh, my dear papa,
+how good you are! And to think that I, on the contrary&mdash;Oh!
+but if you only knew what misfortunes have been poured
+on my head, and all that has befallen me! Only imagine, the
+day that you, poor, dear papa, sold your coat to buy me a
+spelling-book, that I might go to school, I escaped to see the
+puppet show, and the showman wanted to put me on the fire,
+that I might roast his mutton, and he was the same that afterwards
+gave me five gold pieces to take them to you, but I
+met the Fox and the Cat, who took me to the inn of The
+Red Craw-Fish, where they ate like wolves, and I left by
+myself in the middle of the night, and I encountered assassins
+who ran after me, and I ran away, and they followed,
+and I ran, and they always followed me, and I ran, until they
+hung me to a branch of a Big Oak, and the beautiful Child
+with blue hair sent a little carriage to fetch me, and the doctors
+when they saw me said immediately, 'If he is not dead, it is
+a proof that he is still alive'&mdash;and then by chance I told a lie,
+and my nose began to grow until I could no longer get through
+the door of the room, for which reason I went with the Fox
+and the Cat to bury the four gold pieces, for one I had spent
+at the inn, and the Parrot began to laugh, and instead of two
+thousand gold pieces I found none left, for which reason the
+judge when he heard that I had been robbed had me immediately
+put in prison to content the robbers, and then when I
+was coming away I saw a beautiful bunch of grapes in a field,
+and I was caught in a trap, and the peasant, who was quite
+right, put a dog-collar round my neck that I might guard the
+poultry-yard, and acknowledging my innocence let me go, and
+the Serpent with the smoking tail began to laugh and broke a
+blood-vessel in his chest, and so I returned to the house of
+the beautiful Child, who was dead, and the Pigeon, seeing that
+I was crying, said to me, 'I have seen your father who was
+building a little boat to go in search of you,' and I said to
+him, 'Oh! if I also had wings,' and he said to me, 'Do you
+want to go to your father?' and I said, 'Without doubt! but
+who will take me to him?' and he said to me, 'I will take you,'
+and I said to him, 'How?' and he said to me, 'Get on my
+back,' and so we flew all night, and then in the morning all
+the fishermen who were looking out to sea said to me, 'There
+is a poor man in a boat who is on the point of being drowned,'
+and I recognized you at once, even at that distance, for my
+heart told me, and I made signs to you to return to land."</p>
+
+<p>"I also recognized you," said Geppetto, "and I would
+willingly have returned to the shore, but what was I to do!
+The sea was tremendous and a great wave upset my boat.
+Then a horrible Dog-Fish, who was near, as soon as he saw
+me in the water, came towards me, and, putting out his tongue,
+took hold of me and swallowed me as if I had been a little
+apple tart."</p>
+
+<p>"And how long have you been shut up here?" asked
+Pinocchio.</p>
+
+
+
+<div class='center'>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="It Would Be More Comfortable on the Tunny's Back">
+<tr><td align='center'><big><b>They Thought It Would Be More<br />
+Comfortable to Get on the Tunny's<br />
+Back</b></big></td>
+<td align='center'><a name="illus-193" id="illus-193"></a>
+<img src="images/illus-193.png"
+alt="It Would Be More Comfortable on the Tunny's Back" title="It Would Be More Comfortable on the Tunny's Back" /></td></tr>
+</table></div>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<p>"Since that day&mdash;it must be nearly two years ago; two
+years, my dear Pinocchio, that have seemed like two centuries!"</p>
+
+<p>"And how have you managed to live? And where did
+you get the candle? And the matches to light it? Who gave
+them to you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Stop, and I will tell you everything. You must know,
+then, that in the same storm in which my boat was upset a
+merchant vessel foundered. The sailors were all saved, but
+the vessel went to the bottom, and the Dog-Fish, who had that
+day an excellent appetite, after he had swallowed me, swallowed
+also the vessel."</p>
+
+<p>"How?"</p>
+
+<p>"He swallowed it in one mouthful, and the only thing
+that he spat out was the mainmast, that had stuck between
+his teeth like a fish-bone. Fortunately for me, the vessel was
+laden with preserved meat in tins, biscuit, bottles of wine,
+dried raisins, cheese, coffee, sugar, candles, and boxes of wax
+matches. With this providential supply I have been able to
+live for two years. But I have arrived at the end of my
+resources; there is nothing left in the larder, and this candle
+that you see burning is the last that remains."</p>
+
+<p>"And after that?"</p>
+
+<p>"After that, dear boy, we shall both remain in the dark."</p>
+
+<p>"Then, dear little papa," said Pinocchio, "there is no time
+to lose. We must think of escaping."</p>
+
+<p>"Of escaping? How?"</p>
+
+<p>"We must escape through the mouth of the Dog-Fish,
+throw ourselves into the sea and swim away."</p>
+
+<p>"You talk well; but, dear Pinocchio, I don't know how
+to swim."</p>
+
+<p>"What does that matter? I am a good swimmer, and
+you can get on my shoulders and I will carry you safely
+to shore."</p>
+
+<p>"All illusions, my boy!" replied Geppetto, shaking his
+head, with a melancholy smile. "Do you suppose it possible
+that a puppet like you, scarcely a yard high, could have the
+strength to swim with me on his shoulders!"</p>
+
+<p>"Try it and you will see!"</p>
+
+<p>Without another word Pinocchio took the candle in his
+hand, and, going in front to light the way, he said to his father:</p>
+
+<p>"Follow me, and don't be afraid."</p>
+
+<p>And they walked for some time and traversed the body
+and the stomach of the Dog-Fish. But when they had arrived
+at the point where the monster's big throat began, they thought
+it better to stop to give a good look around and to choose the
+best moment for escaping.</p>
+
+<p>Now, I must tell you that the Dog-Fish, being very old,
+and suffering from asthma and palpitation of the heart, was
+obliged to sleep with his mouth open. Pinocchio, therefore,
+having approached the entrance to his throat, and, looking up,
+could see beyond the enormous gaping mouth a large piece of
+starry sky and beautiful moonlight.</p>
+
+<p>"This is the moment to escape," he whispered, turning to
+his father; "the Dog-Fish is sleeping like a dormouse, the sea
+is calm, and it is as light as day. Follow me, dear papa, and
+in a short time we shall be in safety."</p>
+
+<p>They immediately climbed up the throat of the sea-monster,
+and, having reached his immense mouth, they began to
+walk on tiptoe down his tongue.</p>
+
+<p>Before taking the final leap the puppet said to his father:</p>
+
+<p>"Get on my shoulders and put your arms tightly around
+my neck. I will take care of the rest."</p>
+
+<p>As soon as Geppetto was firmly settled on his son's shoulders,
+Pinocchio, feeling sure of himself, threw himself into the
+water and began to swim. The sea was as smooth as oil, the
+moon shone brilliantly, and the Dog-Fish was sleeping so
+profoundly that even a cannonade would have failed to wake
+him.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><a name="illus-197" id="illus-197"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter">
+<img src="images/illus-197.png"
+alt="The Blind Cat and the Tailless Fox" title="The Blind Cat and the Tailless Fox" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h3><a name="CHAPTER_XXXVI" id="CHAPTER_XXXVI"></a>CHAPTER XXXVI</h3>
+
+<h2>PINOCCHIO AT LAST CEASES TO BE A PUPPET
+AND BECOMES A BOY</h2>
+
+
+<p>Whilst Pinocchio was swimming quickly towards the
+shore he discovered that his father, who was on his
+shoulders with his legs in the water, was trembling as violently
+as if the poor man had an attack of ague fever.</p>
+
+<p>Was he trembling from cold or from fear. Perhaps a
+little from both the one and the other. But Pinocchio, thinking
+it was from fear, said, to comfort him:</p>
+
+<p>"Courage, papa! In a few minutes we shall be safely
+on shore."</p>
+
+<p>"But where is this blessed shore?" asked the little old man,
+becoming still more frightened, and screwing up his eyes as
+tailors do when they wish to thread a needle. "I have been
+looking in every direction and I see nothing but the sky and
+the sea."</p>
+
+<p>"But I see the shore as well," said the puppet. "You must
+know that I am like a cat: I see better by night than by day."</p>
+
+<p>Poor Pinocchio was making a pretense of being in good
+spirits, but in reality he was beginning to feel discouraged;
+his strength was failing, he was gasping and panting for breath.
+He could do no more, and the shore was still far off.</p>
+
+<p>He swam until he had no breath left; then he turned his
+head to Geppetto and said in broken words?</p>
+
+<p>"Papa, help me, I am dying!"</p>
+
+<p>The father and son were on the point of drowning when
+they heard a voice like a guitar out of tune saying:</p>
+
+<p>"Who is it that is dying?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is I, and my poor father!"</p>
+
+<p>"I know that voice! You are Pinocchio!"</p>
+
+<p>"Precisely; and you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am the Tunny, your prison companion in the body of
+the Dog-Fish."</p>
+
+<p>"And how did you manage to escape?"</p>
+
+<p>"I followed your example. You showed me the road, and
+I escaped after you."</p>
+
+<p>"Tunny, you have arrived at the right moment! I implore
+you to help us or we are lost."</p>
+
+<p>"Willingly and with all my heart. You must, both of you,
+take hold of my tail and leave it to me to guide you. I will take
+you on shore in four minutes."</p>
+
+<p>Geppetto and Pinocchio, as I need not tell you, accepted
+the offer at once; but, instead of holding on by his tail, they
+thought it would be more comfortable to get on the Tunny's
+back.</p>
+
+<p>Having reached the shore, Pinocchio sprang first on land
+that he might help his father to do the same. He then turned
+to the Tunny and said to him in a voice full of emotion:</p>
+
+<p>"My friend, you have saved my papa's life. I can find
+no words with which to thank you properly. Permit me at least
+to give you a kiss as a sign of my eternal gratitude!"</p>
+
+<p>The Tunny put his head out of the water and Pinocchio,
+kneeling on the ground, kissed him tenderly on the mouth. At
+this spontaneous proof of warm affection, the poor Tunny,
+who was not accustomed to it, felt extremely touched, and,
+ashamed to let himself be seen crying like a child, he plunged
+under the water and disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the day had dawned. Pinocchio, then offering
+his arm to Geppetto, who had scarcely breath to stand,
+said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Lean on my arm, dear papa, and let us go. We will
+walk very slowly, like the ants, and when we are tired we can
+rest by the wayside."</p>
+
+<p>"And where shall we go?" asked Geppetto.</p>
+
+<p>"In search of some house or cottage, where they will give
+us for charity a mouthful of bread, and a little straw to serve
+as a bed."</p>
+
+<p>They had not gone a hundred yards when they saw by
+the roadside two villainous-looking individuals begging.</p>
+
+<p>They were the Cat and the Fox, but they were scarcely
+recognizable. Fancy! the Cat had so long feigned blindness
+that she had become blind in reality; and the Fox, old, mangy,
+and with one side paralyzed, had not even his tail left. That
+sneaking thief, having fallen into the most squalid misery, one
+fine day had found himself obliged to sell his beautiful tail to
+a traveling peddler, who bought it to drive away flies.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, Pinocchio!" cried the Fox, "give a little in charity
+to two poor, infirm people."</p>
+
+<p>"Infirm people," repeated the Cat.</p>
+
+<p>"Begone, impostors!" answered the puppet. "You took
+me in once, but you will never catch me again."</p>
+
+<p>"Believe me, Pinocchio, we are now poor and unfortunate
+indeed!"</p>
+
+<p>"If you are poor, you deserve it. Recollect the proverb:
+'Stolen money never fructifies.' Begone, impostors!"</p>
+
+<p>And, thus saying, Pinocchio and Geppetto went their way
+in peace. When they had gone another hundred yards they
+saw, at the end of a path in the middle of the fields, a nice
+little straw hut with a roof of tiles and bricks.</p>
+
+<p>"That hut must be inhabited by some one," said Pinocchio.
+"Let us go and knock at the door."</p>
+
+<p>They went and knocked.</p>
+
+<p>"We are a poor father and son without bread and without
+a roof," answered the puppet.</p>
+
+<p>"Turn the key and the door will open," said the same
+little voice.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio turned the key and the door opened. They
+went in and looked here, there, and everywhere, but could see
+no one.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! where is the master of the house?" said Pinocchio,
+much surprised.</p>
+
+<p>"Here I am, up here!"</p>
+
+<p>The father and son looked immediately up to the ceiling,
+and there on a beam they saw the Talking-Cricket.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, my dear little Cricket!" said Pinocchio, bowing politely
+to him.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! now you call me 'Your dear little Cricket.' But
+do you remember the time when you threw the handle of a
+hammer at me, to drive me from your house?"</p>
+
+<p>"You are right, Cricket! Drive me away also! Throw
+the handle of a hammer at me, but have pity on my poor papa."</p>
+
+<p>"I will have pity on both father and son, but I wished
+to remind you of the ill treatment I received from you, to
+teach you that in this world, when it is possible, we should
+show courtesy to everybody, if we wish it to be extended to
+us in our hour of need."</p>
+
+<p>"You are right. Cricket, you are right, and I will bear
+in mind the lesson you have given me. But tell me how you
+managed to buy this beautiful hut."</p>
+
+<p>"This hut was given to me yesterday by a goat whose
+wool was of a beautiful blue color."</p>
+
+<p>"And where has the goat gone?" asked Pinocchio, with
+lively curiosity.</p>
+
+<p>"I do not know."</p>
+
+<p>"And when will it come back?"</p>
+
+<p>"It will never come back. It went away yesterday in
+great grief and, bleating, it seemed to say: 'Poor Pinocchio!
+I shall never see him more, for by this time the Dog-Fish
+must have devoured him!'"</p>
+
+<p>"Did it really say that? Then it was she! It was my
+dear little Fairy," exclaimed Pinocchio, crying and sobbing.</p>
+
+<p>When he had cried for some time he dried his eyes and
+prepared a comfortable bed of straw for Geppetto to lie down
+upon. Then he asked the Cricket:</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, little Cricket, where can I find a tumbler of
+milk for my poor papa?"</p>
+
+<p>"Three fields off from here there lives a gardener called
+Giangio, who keeps cows. Go to him and you will get the
+milk you are in want of."</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio ran all the way to Giangio's house, and the
+gardener asked him:</p>
+
+<p>"How much milk do you want?"</p>
+
+<p>"I want a tumblerful."</p>
+
+<p>"A tumbler of milk costs five cents. Begin by giving
+me the five cents."</p>
+
+<p>"I have not even one cent," replied Pinocchio, grieved and
+mortified.</p>
+
+<p>"That is bad, puppet," answered the gardener. "If you
+have not even one cent, I have not even a drop of milk."</p>
+
+<p>"I must have patience!" said Pinocchio, and he turned
+to go.</p>
+
+<p>"Wait a little," said Giangio. "We can come to an arrangement
+together. Will you undertake to turn the pumping
+machine?"</p>
+
+<p>"What is the pumping machine?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is a wooden pole which serves to draw up the water
+from the cistern to water the vegetables."</p>
+
+<p>"You can try me."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, then, if you will draw a hundred buckets of water,
+I will give you in compensation a tumbler of milk."</p>
+
+<p>"It is a bargain."</p>
+
+<p>Giangio then led Pinocchio to the kitchen garden and
+taught him how to turn the pumping machine. Pinocchio
+immediately began to work; but before he had drawn up the
+hundred buckets of water the perspiration was pouring from
+his head to his feet. Never before had he undergone such
+fatigue.</p>
+
+<p>"Up till now," said the gardener, "the labor of turning
+the pumping machine was performed by my little donkey, but
+the poor animal is dying."</p>
+
+<p>"Will you take me to see him?" said Pinocchio.</p>
+
+<p>"Willingly."</p>
+
+<p>When Pinocchio went into the stable he saw a beautiful
+little donkey stretched on the straw, worn out from hunger
+and overwork. After looking at him earnestly, he said to
+himself, much troubled:</p>
+
+<p>"I am sure I know this little donkey! His face is not
+new to me."</p>
+
+<p>And, bending over him, he asked him in asinine language:</p>
+
+<p>"Who are you?"</p>
+
+<p>At this question the little donkey opened his dying eyes,
+and answered in broken words in the same language:</p>
+
+<p>"I am&mdash;Can&mdash;dle&mdash;wick."</p>
+
+<p>And, having again closed his eyes, he expired.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, poor Candlewick!" said Pinocchio in a low voice;
+and, taking a handful of straw, he dried a tear that was rolling
+down his face.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you grieve for a donkey that cost you nothing?" said
+the gardener. "What must it be to me, who bought him for
+ready money?"</p>
+
+<p>"I must tell you&mdash;he was my friend!"</p>
+
+<p>"Your friend?"</p>
+
+<p>"One of my school-fellows!"</p>
+
+<p>"How?" shouted Giangio, laughing loudly. "How? had
+you donkeys for school-fellows? I can imagine what wonderful
+studies you must have made!"</p>
+
+<p>The puppet, who felt much mortified at these words, did
+not answer; but, taking his tumbler of milk, still quite warm,
+he returned to the hut.</p>
+
+<p>And from that day for more than five months he continued
+to get up at daybreak every morning to go and turn the
+pumping machine, to earn the tumbler of milk that was of
+such benefit to his father in his bad state of health. Nor was
+he satisfied with this; for, during the time that he had over,
+he learned to make hampers and baskets of rushes, and with
+the money he obtained by selling them he was able with great
+economy to provide for all the daily expenses. Amongst other
+things he constructed an elegant little wheel-chair, in which
+he could take his father out on fine days to breathe a mouthful
+of fresh air.</p>
+
+<p>By his industry, ingenuity and his anxiety to work and
+to overcome difficulties, he not only succeeded in maintaining
+his father, who continued infirm, in comfort, but he also contrived
+to put aside five dollars to buy himself a new coat.</p>
+
+<p>One morning he said to his father:</p>
+
+<p>"I am going to the neighboring market to buy myself a
+jacket, a cap, and a pair of shoes. When I return," he added,
+laughing, "I shall be so well dressed that you will take me
+for a fine gentleman."</p>
+
+<p>And, leaving the house, he began to run merrily and
+happily along. All at once he heard himself called by name
+and, turning around, he saw a big Snail crawling out from
+the hedge.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you not know me?" asked the Snail.</p>
+
+<p>"It seems to me&mdash;and yet I am not sure&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you not remember the Snail who was lady's-maid to
+the Fairy with blue hair? Do you not remember the time
+when I came downstairs to let you in, and you were caught
+by your foot, which you had stuck through the house-door?"</p>
+
+<p>"I remember it all" shouted Pinocchio. "Tell me quickly,
+my beautiful little Snail, where have you left my good Fairy?
+What is she doing? Has she forgiven me? Does she still remember
+me? Does she still wish me well? Is she far from here? Can
+I go and see her?"</p>
+
+<p>To all these rapid, breathless questions the Snail replied in
+her usual phlegmatic manner:</p>
+
+<p>"My dear Pinocchio, the poor Fairy is lying in bed at the
+hospital!"</p>
+
+<p>"At the hospital?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is only too true. Overtaken by a thousand misfortunes,
+she has fallen seriously ill, and she has not even enough
+to buy herself a mouthful of bread."</p>
+
+<p>"Is it really so? Oh, what sorrow you have given me!
+Oh, poor Fairy! Poor Fairy! Poor Fairy! If I had a million
+I would run and carry it to her, but I have only five dollars.
+Here they are&mdash;I was going to buy a new coat. Take them,
+Snail, and carry them at once to my good Fairy."</p>
+
+<p>"And your new coat?"</p>
+
+<p>"What matters my new coat? I would sell even these
+rags that I have on to be able to help her. Go, Snail, and
+be quick; and in two days return to this place, for I hope I
+shall then be able to give you some more money. Up to this
+time I have worked to maintain my papa; from today I will
+work five hours more that I may also maintain my good
+mamma. Good-bye, Snail, I shall expect you in two days."</p>
+
+<p>The Snail, contrary to her usual habits, began to run like
+a lizard in a hot August sun.</p>
+
+<p>That evening Pinocchio, instead of going to bed at ten
+o'clock, sat up till midnight had struck; and instead of making
+eight baskets of rushes he made sixteen.</p>
+
+<p>Then he went to bed and fell asleep. And whilst he
+slept he thought that he saw the Fairy, smiling and beautiful,
+who, after having kissed him, said to him:</p>
+
+<p>"Well done, Pinocchio! To reward you for your good
+heart I will forgive you for all that is past. Boys who minister
+tenderly to their parents and assist them in their misery and
+infirmities, are deserving of great praise and affection, even if
+they cannot be cited as examples of obedience and good behavior.
+Try and do better in the future and you will be happy."</p>
+
+<p>At this moment his dream ended and Pinocchio opened
+his eyes and awoke.</p>
+
+<p>But imagine his astonishment when upon awakening he
+discovered that he was no longer a wooden puppet, but that
+he had become instead a boy, like all other boys. He gave a
+glance round and saw that the straw walls of the hut had
+disappeared, and that he was in a pretty little room furnished
+and arranged with a simplicity that was almost elegance. Jumping
+out of bed he found a new suit of clothes ready for him,
+a new cap, and a pair of new boots, that fitted him beautifully.</p>
+
+<p>He was hardly dressed when he naturally put his hands
+in his pockets and pulled out a little ivory purse on which
+these words were written: "The Fairy with blue hair returns
+the five dollars to her dear Pinocchio, and thanks him for his
+good heart." He opened the purse and instead of five dollars
+he saw fifty shining gold pieces fresh from the mint.</p>
+
+<p>He then went and looked at himself in the glass, and he
+thought he was some one else. For he no longer saw the
+usual reflection of a wooden puppet; he was greeted instead
+by the image of a bright, intelligent boy with chestnut hair,
+blue eyes, and looking as happy and joyful as if it were the
+Easter holidays.</p>
+
+<p>In the midst of all these wonders succeeding each other,
+Pinocchio felt quite bewildered, and he could not tell if he
+was really awake or if he was dreaming with his eyes open.</p>
+
+<p>"Where can my papa be?" he exclaimed suddenly, and,
+going into the next room, he found old Geppetto quite well,
+lively, and in good humor, just as he had been formerly. He
+had already resumed his trade of wood-carving, and he was
+designing a rich and beautiful frame of leaves, flowers and
+the heads of animals.</p>
+
+<p>"Satisfy my curiosity, dear papa," said Pinocchio, throwing
+his arms around his neck and covering him with kisses;
+"how can this sudden change be accounted for?"</p>
+
+<p>"This sudden change in our home is all your doing," answered
+Geppetto.</p>
+
+<p>"How my doing?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because when boys who have behaved badly turn over
+a new leaf and become good, they have the power of bringing
+contentment and happiness to their families."</p>
+
+<p>"And where has the old wooden Pinocchio hidden himself?"</p>
+
+<p>"There he is," answered Geppetto, and he pointed to a
+big puppet leaning against a chair, with its head on one side,
+its arms dangling, and its legs so crossed and bent that it was
+really a miracle that it remained standing.</p>
+
+<p>Pinocchio turned and looked at it; and, after he had
+looked at it for a short time, he said to himself with great
+complacency:</p>
+
+<p>"How ridiculous I was when I was a puppet! And how
+glad I am that I have become a well-behaved little boy!"</p>
+<hr style="width: 95%;" />
+
+<h4>Transcriber's Note:</h4>
+
+<p class="tnote">The untitled illustration on page 26 was not listed in the List of
+Illustrations of the source book.</p>
+
+<p class="tnote">In several cases, missing punctuation was added or wrong punctuation
+removed.</p>
+
+<p class="tnote">The following typos were fixed:<br />
+<span style="margin-left: 2em;">    thouand to thousand</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 2em;">    Harelquin to Harlequin</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 2em;">    pretrified to petrified</span></p>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Pinocchio, by C. Collodi
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PINOCCHIO ***
+
+***** This file should be named 16865-h.htm or 16865-h.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        https://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/8/6/16865/
+
+Produced by Mark C. Orton, Melissa Er-Raqabi and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net.
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+https://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+https://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at https://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit https://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including including checks, online payments and credit card
+donations.  To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     https://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
+
+
+</pre>
+
+</body>
+</html>
diff --git a/16865-h/images/hi-illus-001.jpg b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-001.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..25655c8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-001.jpg
diff --git a/16865-h/images/hi-illus-002.jpg b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-002.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e11873f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-002.jpg
diff --git a/16865-h/images/hi-illus-056.jpg b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-056.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..79cdf26
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-056.jpg
diff --git a/16865-h/images/hi-illus-081.jpg b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-081.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0c64683
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-081.jpg
diff --git a/16865-h/images/hi-illus-130.jpg b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-130.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3a401d2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-130.jpg
diff --git a/16865-h/images/hi-illus-155.jpg b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-155.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c11fb3d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/hi-illus-155.jpg
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-008.png b/16865-h/images/illus-008.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dae06df
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-008.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-011.png b/16865-h/images/illus-011.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d44cbe2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-011.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-015.png b/16865-h/images/illus-015.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7f703a8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-015.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-017.png b/16865-h/images/illus-017.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d83d461
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-017.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-022.png b/16865-h/images/illus-022.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a3fbcc3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-022.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-025.png b/16865-h/images/illus-025.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6dbd102
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-025.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-028.png b/16865-h/images/illus-028.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ebb2d25
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-028.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-034.png b/16865-h/images/illus-034.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a54a265
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-034.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-044.png b/16865-h/images/illus-044.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3b26a3e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-044.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-048.png b/16865-h/images/illus-048.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9a1d0ca
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-048.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-051.png b/16865-h/images/illus-051.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..50be105
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-051.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-057.png b/16865-h/images/illus-057.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..da4bdcb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-057.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-061.png b/16865-h/images/illus-061.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..49d74b9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-061.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-065.png b/16865-h/images/illus-065.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6d06c4c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-065.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-070.png b/16865-h/images/illus-070.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..11a5aab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-070.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-071.png b/16865-h/images/illus-071.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6f75ce0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-071.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-075.png b/16865-h/images/illus-075.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9402e91
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-075.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-082.png b/16865-h/images/illus-082.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..235b4e2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-082.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-088.png b/16865-h/images/illus-088.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ce2352d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-088.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-095.png b/16865-h/images/illus-095.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dcfb592
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-095.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-098.png b/16865-h/images/illus-098.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ca255ee
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-098.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-102.png b/16865-h/images/illus-102.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f0fe1f6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-102.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-105.png b/16865-h/images/illus-105.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..07c1ab5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-105.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-110.png b/16865-h/images/illus-110.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..433432e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-110.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-117.png b/16865-h/images/illus-117.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..07fe8b2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-117.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-121.png b/16865-h/images/illus-121.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cc3b225
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-121.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-123.png b/16865-h/images/illus-123.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d679cb1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-123.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-127.png b/16865-h/images/illus-127.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..29eefb5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-127.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-135.png b/16865-h/images/illus-135.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..032c780
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-135.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-141.png b/16865-h/images/illus-141.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bc115dd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-141.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-149.png b/16865-h/images/illus-149.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0be36f3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-149.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-156.png b/16865-h/images/illus-156.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e1695f3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-156.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-163.png b/16865-h/images/illus-163.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cf20352
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-163.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-170.png b/16865-h/images/illus-170.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..987f821
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-170.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-175.png b/16865-h/images/illus-175.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7418b88
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-175.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-181.png b/16865-h/images/illus-181.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1fb4c98
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-181.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-189.png b/16865-h/images/illus-189.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7966402
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-189.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-193.png b/16865-h/images/illus-193.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..af63e5a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-193.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-197.png b/16865-h/images/illus-197.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f56b5b1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-197.png
diff --git a/16865-h/images/illus-cover.jpg b/16865-h/images/illus-cover.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4966924
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865-h/images/illus-cover.jpg
diff --git a/16865.txt b/16865.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9a55e64
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,6557 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Pinocchio, by C. Collodi
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Pinocchio
+       The Tale of a Puppet
+
+Author: C. Collodi
+
+Illustrator: Alice Carsey
+
+Release Date: October 13, 2005 [EBook #16865]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PINOCCHIO ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Mark C. Orton, Melissa Er-Raqabi and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net.
+
+
+
+
+
+PINOCCHIO
+
+THE TALE OF A
+PUPPET
+
+By C COLLODI
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: "HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO GO IN?"]
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+
+
+PINOCCHIO
+
+THE TALE OF A
+PUPPET
+
+By C COLLODI
+
+Illustrated By
+ALICE CARSEY
+
+
+WHITMAN PUBLISHING CO.
+RACINE, WISCONSIN
+
+
+
+
+COPYRIGHT 1916 BY
+WHITMAN PUBLISHING CO.
+RACINE, WISCONSIN
+PRINTED IN U.S.A.
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note:
+
+The untitled illustration on page 26 was not listed in the List of
+Illustrations of the source book.
+
+In several cases, missing punctuation was added or wrong punctuation
+removed.
+
+The following typos were fixed:
+    thouand to thousand
+    Harelquin to Harlequin
+    pretrified to petrified
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+  Chap.                                                           Page
+     I  THE PIECE OF WOOD THAT LAUGHED AND CRIED LIKE A CHILD        9
+    II  MASTER CHERRY GIVES THE WOOD AWAY                           12
+   III  GEPPETTO NAMES HIS PUPPET PINOCCHIO                         16
+    IV  THE TALKING-CRICKET SCOLDS PINOCCHIO                        23
+     V  THE FLYING EGG                                              26
+    VI  PINOCCHIO'S FEET BURN TO CINDERS                            29
+   VII  GEPPETTO GIVES HIS OWN BREAKFAST TO PINOCCHIO               31
+  VIII  GEPPETTO MAKES PINOCCHIO NEW FEET                           35
+    IX  PINOCCHIO GOES TO SEE A PUPPET-SHOW                         39
+     X  THE PUPPETS RECOGNIZE THEIR BROTHER PINOCCHIO               42
+    XI  FIRE-EATER SNEEZES AND PARDONS PINOCCHIO                    45
+   XII  PINOCCHIO RECEIVES A PRESENT OF FIVE GOLD PIECES            49
+  XIII  THE INN OF THE RED CRAW-FISH                                57
+   XIV  PINOCCHIO FALLS AMONG ASSASSINS                             61
+    XV  THE ASSASSINS HANG PINOCCHIO TO THE BIG OAK                 65
+   XVI  THE BEAUTIFUL CHILD RESCUES THE PUPPET                      71
+  XVII  PINOCCHIO WILL NOT TAKE HIS MEDICINE                        75
+ XVIII  PINOCCHIO AGAIN MEETS THE FOX AND THE CAT                   81
+   XIX  PINOCCHIO IS ROBBED OF HIS MONEY                            87
+    XX  PINOCCHIO STARTS BACK TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE                  91
+   XXI  PINOCCHIO ACTS AS WATCH-DOG                                 94
+  XXII  PINOCCHIO DISCOVERS THE ROBBERS                             97
+ XXIII  PINOCCHIO FLIES TO THE SEASHORE                            101
+  XXIV  PINOCCHIO FINDS THE FAIRY AGAIN                            109
+   XXV  PINOCCHIO PROMISES THE FAIRY TO BE GOOD                    116
+  XXVI  THE TERRIBLE DOG-FISH                                      120
+ XXVII  PINOCCHIO IS ARRESTED BY THE GENDARMES                     126
+XXVIII  PINOCCHIO ESCAPES BEING FRIED LIKE A FISH                  133
+  XXIX  HE RETURNS TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE                            139
+   XXX  THE "LAND OF BOOBIES"                                      147
+  XXXI  PINOCCHIO ENJOYS FIVE MONTHS OF HAPPINESS                  153
+ XXXII  PINOCCHIO TURNS INTO A DONKEY                              160
+XXXIII  PINOCCHIO IS TRAINED FOR THE CIRCUS                        167
+ XXXIV  PINOCCHIO IS SWALLOWED BY THE DOG-FISH                     178
+  XXXV  A HAPPY SURPRISE FOR PINOCCHIO                             186
+ XXXVI  PINOCCHIO AT LAST CEASES TO BE A PUPPET AND BECOMES A BOY  194
+
+
+
+
+LINE ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+DECORATIVE TITLE PAGE                                       1
+THE RUNAWAY PUPPET                                          9
+GEPPETTO CARRIED OFF HIS FINE PIECE OF WOOD                12
+HE SET TO WORK TO CUT OUT HIS PUPPET                       16
+A LITTLE CHICKEN POPPED OUT                                17
+PINOCCHIO THREW HIS HAMMER AT THE TALKING-CRICKET          23
+UNTITLED                                                   26
+POOR PINOCCHIO'S FEET BURN TO CINDERS                      29
+GEPPETTO MAKES HIS PUPPET SOME CLOTHES                     35
+THE PUPPETS BEGAN TO DANCE MERRILY                         45
+PINOCCHIO MEETS THE CAT AND THE FOX                        49
+SPLASH! SPLASH! THEY FELL INTO THE DITCH                   52
+DINNER AT THE RED CRAW-FISH INN                            57
+PINOCCHIO ESCAPES FROM HIS ASSASSINS                       61
+THEY HUNG PINOCCHIO TO THE BIG OAK TREE                    65
+FOUR RABBITS AS BLACK AS INK ENTERED                       69
+THE FALCON SAVES PINOCCHIO                                 71
+PINOCCHIO REFUSES TO TAKE HIS MEDICINE                     75
+TREACHEROUS COMPANIONS                                     81
+THE JUDGE WAS A BIG APE                                    87
+PINOCCHIO GETS HIS FOOT CAUGHT IN A TRAP                   94
+THE NEW WATCH-DOG                                          97
+PINOCCHIO'S WILD RIDE ON THE PIGEON'S BACK                101
+AN IMMENSE SERPENT STRETCHED ACROSS THE ROAD              104
+PINOCCHIO BRAVES THE SEA TO SAVE HIS FATHER               109
+"SCHOOL GIVES ME PAIN ALL OVER THE BODY"                  116
+PINOCCHIO STARTS OFF HAPPILY FOR SCHOOL                   120
+"OH, I AM SICK OF BEING A PUPPET!"                        121
+THE BOYS THREW THEIR BOOKS AT POOR PINOCCHIO              126
+THE FISHERMAN PUT HIS HAND INTO THE NET                   133
+THE DOG SEIZES PINOCCHIO AND ESCAPES                      139
+"HERE IS THE COACH!" SHOUTED CANDLEWICK                   147
+THEY ARRIVE IN THE "LAND OF THE BOOBIES"                  153
+THE BOYS ARE TURNED INTO DONKEYS                          160
+THE LITTLE DONKEYS ARE SOLD                               167
+ALL HIS FRIENDS WERE INVITED                              172
+THE PUPPET WAS WRIGGLING LIKE AN EEL                      178
+SWALLOWED BY THE DOG-FISH                                 186
+IT WOULD BE MORE COMFORTABLE ON THE TUNNY'S BACK          189
+THE BLIND CAT AND THE TAILLESS FOX                        194
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+PINOCCHIO
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+THE PIECE OF WOOD THAT LAUGHED AND CRIED LIKE A CHILD
+
+
+There was once upon a time a piece of wood in the shop of an old
+carpenter named Master Antonio. Everybody, however, called him Master
+Cherry, on account of the end of his nose, which was always as red and
+polished as a ripe cherry.
+
+No sooner had Master Cherry set eyes on the piece of wood than his face
+beamed with delight, and, rubbing his hands together with satisfaction,
+he said softly to himself:
+
+"This wood has come at the right moment; it will just do to make the leg
+of a little table."
+
+He immediately took a sharp axe with which to remove the bark and the
+rough surface, but just as he was going to give the first stroke he
+heard a very small voice say imploringly, "Do not strike me so hard!"
+
+He turned his terrified eyes all around the room to try and discover
+where the little voice could possibly have come from, but he saw nobody!
+He looked under the bench--nobody; he looked into a cupboard that was
+always shut--nobody; he looked into a basket of shavings and
+sawdust--nobody; he even opened the door of the shop and gave a glance
+into the street--and still nobody. Who, then, could it be?
+
+"I see how it is," he said, laughing and scratching his wig, "evidently
+that little voice was all my imagination. Let us set to work again."
+
+And, taking up the axe, he struck a tremendous blow on the piece of
+wood.
+
+"Oh! oh! you have hurt me!" cried the same little voice dolefully.
+
+This time Master Cherry was petrified. His eyes started out of his head
+with fright, his mouth remained open, and his tongue hung out almost to
+the end of his chin, like a mask on a fountain. As soon as he had
+recovered the use of his speech he began to say, stuttering and
+trembling with fear:
+
+"But where on earth can that little voice have come from that said 'Oh!
+oh!'? Is it possible that this piece of wood can have learned to cry and
+to lament like a child? I cannot believe it. This piece of wood is
+nothing but a log for fuel like all the others, and thrown on the fire
+it would about suffice to boil a saucepan of beans. How then? Can anyone
+be hidden inside it? If anyone is hidden inside, so much the worse for
+him. I will settle him at once."
+
+So saying, he seized the poor piece of wood and commenced beating it
+without mercy against the walls of the room.
+
+Then he stopped to listen if he could hear any little voice lamenting.
+He waited two minutes--nothing; five minutes--nothing; ten
+minutes--still nothing!
+
+"I see how it is," he then said, forcing himself to laugh, and pushing
+up his wig; "evidently the little voice that said 'Oh! oh!' was all my
+imagination! Let us set to work again."
+
+Putting the axe aside, he took his plane, to plane and polish the bit of
+wood; but whilst he was running it up and down he heard the same little
+voice say, laughing:
+
+"Stop! you are tickling me all over!"
+
+This time poor Master Cherry fell down as if he had been struck by
+lightning. When he at last opened his eyes he found himself seated on
+the floor.
+
+His face was changed, even the end of his nose, instead of being
+crimson, as it was nearly always, had become blue from fright.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+MASTER CHERRY GIVES THE WOOD AWAY
+
+
+At that moment some one knocked at the door.
+
+"Come in," said the carpenter, without having the strength to rise to
+his feet.
+
+A lively little old man immediately walked into the shop. His name was
+Geppetto, but when the boys of the neighborhood wished to make him angry
+they called him Pudding, because his yellow wig greatly resembled a
+pudding made of Indian corn.
+
+Geppetto was very fiery. Woe to him who called him Pudding! He became
+furious and there was no holding him.
+
+"Good-day, Master Antonio," said Geppetto; "what are you doing there on
+the floor?"
+
+"I am teaching the alphabet to the ants."
+
+"Much good may that do you."
+
+"What has brought you to me, neighbor Geppetto?"
+
+"My legs. But to tell the truth. Master Antonio, I came to ask a favor
+of you."
+
+"Here I am, ready to serve you," replied the carpenter, getting on his
+knees.
+
+"This morning an idea came into my head."
+
+"Let us hear it."
+
+"I thought I would make a beautiful wooden puppet; one that could dance,
+fence, and leap like an acrobat. With this puppet I would travel about
+the world to earn a piece of bread and a glass of wine. What do you
+think of it?"
+
+"Bravo, Pudding!" exclaimed the same little voice, and it was impossible
+to say where it came from.
+
+Hearing himself called Pudding, Geppetto became as red as a turkey-cock
+from rage and, turning to the carpenter, he said in a fury:
+
+"Why do you insult me?"
+
+"Who insults you?"
+
+"You called me Pudding!"
+
+"It was not I!"
+
+"Do you think I called myself Pudding? It was you, I say!"
+
+"No!"
+
+"Yes!"
+
+"No!"
+
+"Yes!"
+
+And, becoming more and more angry, from words they came to blows, and,
+flying at each other, they bit and fought, and scratched.
+
+When the fight was over Master Antonio was in possession of Geppetto's
+yellow wig, and Geppetto discovered that the grey wig belonging to the
+carpenter remained between his teeth.
+
+"Give me back my wig," screamed Master Antonio.
+
+"And you, return me mine, and let us be friends again."
+
+The two old men having each recovered his own wig, shook hands and swore
+that they would remain friends to the end of their lives.
+
+"Well, then, neighbor Geppetto," said the carpenter, to prove that peace
+was made, "what is the favor that you wish of me?"
+
+"I want a little wood to make my puppet; will you give me some?"
+
+Master Antonio was delighted, and he immediately went to the bench and
+fetched the piece of wood that had caused him so much fear. But just as
+he was going to give it to his friend the piece of wood gave a shake
+and, wriggling violently out of his hands, struck with all of its force
+against the dried-up shins of poor Geppetto.
+
+"Ah! is that the courteous way in which you make your presents, Master
+Antonio? You have almost lamed me!"
+
+"I swear to you that it was not I!"
+
+"Then you would have it that it was I?"
+
+"The wood is entirely to blame!"
+
+"I know that it was the wood; but it was you that hit my legs with it!"
+
+"I did not hit you with it!"
+
+"Liar!"
+
+"Geppetto, don't insult me or I will call you Pudding!"
+
+"Knave!"
+
+"Pudding!"
+
+"Donkey!"
+
+"Pudding!"
+
+"Baboon!"
+
+"Pudding!"
+
+On hearing himself called Pudding for the third time Geppetto, mad with
+rage, fell upon the carpenter and they fought desperately.
+
+When the battle was over, Master Antonio had two more scratches on his
+nose, and his adversary had lost two buttons off his waistcoat. Their
+accounts being thus squared, they shook hands and swore to remain good
+friends for the rest of their lives.
+
+Geppetto carried off his fine piece of wood and, thanking Master
+Antonio, returned limping to his house.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+GEPPETTO NAMES HIS PUPPET PINOCCHIO
+
+
+Geppetto lived in a small ground-floor room that was only lighted from
+the staircase. The furniture could not have been simpler--a rickety
+chair, a poor bed, and a broken-down table. At the end of the room there
+was a fireplace with a lighted fire; but the fire was painted, and by
+the fire was a painted saucepan that was boiling cheerfully and sending
+out a cloud of smoke that looked exactly like real smoke.
+
+As soon as he reached home Geppetto took his tools and set to work to
+cut out and model his puppet.
+
+[Illustration: A Little Chicken Popped Out, Very Gay and Polite]
+
+"What name shall I give him?" he said to himself; "I think I will call
+him Pinocchio. It is a name that will bring him luck. I once knew a
+whole family so called. There was Pinocchio the father, Pinocchia the
+mother, and Pinocchi the children, and all of them did well. The
+richest of them was a beggar."
+
+Having found a name for his puppet he began to work in good earnest, and
+he first made his hair, then his forehead, and then his eyes.
+
+The eyes being finished, imagine his astonishment when he perceived that
+they moved and looked fixedly at him.
+
+Geppetto, seeing himself stared at by those two wooden eyes, said in an
+angry voice:
+
+"Wicked wooden eyes, why do you look at me?"
+
+No one answered.
+
+He then proceeded to carve the nose, but no sooner had he made it than
+it began to grow. And it grew, and grew, and grew, until in a few
+minutes it had become an immense nose that seemed as if it would never
+end.
+
+Poor Geppetto tired himself out with cutting it off, but the more he cut
+and shortened it, the longer did that impertinent nose become!
+
+The mouth was not even completed when it began to laugh and deride him.
+
+"Stop laughing!" said Geppetto, provoked; but he might as well have
+spoken to the wall.
+
+"Stop laughing, I say!" he roared in a threatening tone.
+
+The mouth then ceased laughing, but put out its tongue as far as it
+would go.
+
+Geppetto, not to spoil his handiwork, pretended not to see and continued
+his labors. After the mouth he fashioned the chin, then the throat, then
+the shoulders, the stomach, the arms and the hands.
+
+The hands were scarcely finished when Geppetto felt his wig snatched
+from his head. He turned round, and what did he see? He saw his yellow
+wig in the puppet's hand.
+
+"Pinocchio! Give me back my wig instantly!"
+
+But Pinocchio, instead of returning it, put it on his own head and was
+in consequence nearly smothered.
+
+Geppetto at this insolent and derisive behavior felt sadder and more
+melancholy than he had ever been in his life before; and, turning to
+Pinocchio, he said to him:
+
+"You young rascal! You are not yet completed and you are already
+beginning to show want of respect to your father! That is bad, my boy,
+very bad!"
+
+And he dried a tear.
+
+The legs and the feet remained to be done.
+
+When Geppetto had finished the feet he received a kick on the point of
+his nose.
+
+"I deserve it!" he said to himself; "I should have thought of it sooner!
+Now it is too late!"
+
+He then took the puppet under the arms and placed him on the floor to
+teach him to walk.
+
+Pinocchio's legs were stiff and he could not move, but Geppetto led him
+by the hand and showed him how to put one foot before the other.
+
+When his legs became limber Pinocchio began to walk by himself and to
+run about the room, until, having gone out of the house door, he jumped
+into the street and escaped.
+
+Poor Geppetto rushed after him but was not able to overtake him, for
+that rascal Pinocchio leaped in front of him like a hare and knocking
+his wooden feet together against the pavement made as much clatter as
+twenty pairs of peasants' clogs.
+
+"Stop him! stop him!" shouted Geppetto; but the people in the street,
+seeing a wooden puppet running like a race-horse, stood still in
+astonishment to look at it, and laughed and laughed.
+
+At last, as good luck would have it, a soldier arrived who, hearing the
+uproar, imagined that a colt had escaped from his master. Planting
+himself courageously with his legs apart in the middle of the road, he
+waited with the determined purpose of stopping him and thus preventing
+the chance of worse disasters.
+
+When Pinocchio, still at some distance, saw the soldier barricading the
+whole street, he endeavored to take him by surprise and to pass between
+his legs. But he failed entirely.
+
+The soldier without disturbing himself in the least caught him cleverly
+by the nose and gave him to Geppetto. Wishing to punish him, Geppetto
+intended to pull his ears at once. But imagine his feelings when he
+could not succeed in finding them. And do you know the reason? In his
+hurry to model him he had forgotten to make any ears.
+
+He then took him by the collar and as he was leading him away he said to
+him, shaking his head threateningly:
+
+"We will go home at once, and as soon as we arrive we will settle our
+accounts, never doubt it."
+
+At this information Pinocchio threw himself on the ground and would not
+take another step. In the meanwhile a crowd of idlers and inquisitive
+people began to assemble and to make a ring around them.
+
+Some of them said one thing, some another.
+
+"Poor puppet!" said several, "he is right not to wish to return home!
+Who knows how Geppetto, that bad old man, will beat him!"
+
+And the others added maliciously:
+
+"Geppetto seems a good man! but with boys he is a regular tyrant! If
+that poor puppet is left in his hands he is quite capable of tearing him
+in pieces!"
+
+It ended in so much being said and done that the soldier at last set
+Pinocchio at liberty and led Geppetto to prison. The poor man, not being
+ready with words to defend himself, cried like a calf and as he was
+being led away to prison sobbed out:
+
+"Wretched boy! And to think how I labored to make him a well-conducted
+puppet! But it serves me right! I should have thought of it sooner!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+THE TALKING-CRICKET SCOLDS PINOCCHIO
+
+
+While poor Geppetto was being taken to prison for no fault of his, that
+imp Pinocchio, finding himself free from the clutches of the soldier,
+ran off as fast as his legs could carry him. That he might reach home
+the quicker he rushed across the fields, and in his mad hurry he jumped
+high banks, thorn hedges and ditches full of water.
+
+Arriving at the house he found the street door ajar. He pushed it open,
+went in, and having fastened the latch, threw himself on the floor and
+gave a great sigh of satisfaction.
+
+But soon he heard some one in the room who was saying:
+
+"Cri-cri-cri!"
+
+"Who calls me?" said Pinocchio in a fright.
+
+"It is I!"
+
+Pinocchio turned round and saw a big cricket crawling slowly up the
+wall.
+
+"Tell me, Cricket, who may you be?"
+
+"I am the Talking-Cricket, and I have lived in this room a hundred years
+or more."
+
+"Now, however, this room is mine," said the puppet, "and if you would do
+me a pleasure go away at once, without even turning round."
+
+"I will not go," answered the Cricket, "until I have told you a great
+truth."
+
+"Tell it me, then, and be quick about it."
+
+"Woe to those boys who rebel against their parents and run away from
+home. They will never come to any good in the world, and sooner or later
+they will repent bitterly."
+
+"Sing away, Cricket, as you please, and as long as you please. For me, I
+have made up my mind to run away tomorrow at daybreak, because if I
+remain I shall not escape the fate of all other boys; I shall be sent to
+school and shall be made to study either by love or by force. To tell
+you in confidence, I have no wish to learn; it is much more amusing to
+run after butterflies, or to climb trees and to take the young birds out
+of their nests."
+
+"Poor little goose! But do you not know that in that way you will grow
+up a perfect donkey, and that every one will make fun of you?"
+
+"Hold your tongue, you wicked, ill-omened croaker!" shouted Pinocchio.
+
+But the Cricket, who was patient and philosophical, instead of becoming
+angry at this impertinence, continued in the same tone:
+
+"But if you do not wish to go to school why not at least learn a trade,
+if only to enable you to earn honestly a piece of bread!"
+
+"Do you want me to tell you?" replied Pinocchio, who was beginning to
+lose patience. "Amongst all the trades in the world there is only one
+that really takes my fancy."
+
+"And that trade--what is it?"
+
+"It is to eat, drink, sleep and amuse myself, and to lead a vagabond
+life from morning to night."
+
+"As a rule," said the Talking-Cricket, "all those who follow that trade
+end almost always either in a hospital or in prison."
+
+"Take care, you wicked, ill-omened croaker! Woe to you if I fly into a
+passion!"
+
+"Poor Pinocchio! I really pity you!"
+
+"Why do you pity me?"
+
+"Because you are a puppet and, what is worse, because you have a wooden
+head."
+
+At these last words Pinocchio jumped up in a rage and, snatching a
+wooden hammer from the bench, he threw it at the Talking-Cricket.
+
+Perhaps he never meant to hit him, but unfortunately it struck him
+exactly on the head, so that the poor Cricket had scarcely breath to cry
+"Cri-cri-cri!" and then he remained dried up and flattened against the
+wall.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE FLYING EGG
+
+
+Night was coming on and Pinocchio, remembering that he had eaten nothing
+all day, began to feel a gnawing in his stomach that very much resembled
+appetite.
+
+After a few minutes his appetite had become hunger and in no time his
+hunger became ravenous.
+
+Poor Pinocchio ran quickly to the fireplace, where a saucepan was
+boiling, and was going to take off the lid to see what was in it, but
+the saucepan was only painted on the wall. You can imagine his feelings.
+His nose, which was already long, became longer by at least three
+inches.
+
+He then began to run about the room, searching in the drawers and in
+every imaginable place, in hopes of finding a bit of bread. If it was
+only a bit of dry bread, a crust, a bone left by a dog, a little moldy
+pudding of Indian corn, a fish bone, a cherry stone--in fact, anything
+that he could gnaw. But he could find nothing, nothing at all,
+absolutely nothing.
+
+And in the meanwhile his hunger grew and grew. Poor Pinocchio had no
+other relief than yawning, and his yawns were so tremendous that
+sometimes his mouth almost reached his ears. And after he had yawned he
+spluttered and felt as if he were going to faint.
+
+Then he began to cry desperately, and he said:
+
+"The Talking-Cricket was right. I did wrong to rebel against my papa and
+to run away from home. If my papa were here I should not now be dying of
+yawning! Oh! what a dreadful illness hunger is!"
+
+Just then he thought he saw something in the dust-heap--something round
+and white that looked like a hen's egg. To give a spring and seize hold
+of it was the affair of a moment. It was indeed an egg.
+
+Pinocchio's joy was beyond description. Almost believing it must be a
+dream he kept turning the egg over in his hands, feeling it and kissing
+it. And as he kissed it he said:
+
+"And now, how shall I cook it? Shall I make an omelet? No, it would be
+better to cook it in a saucer! Or would it not be more savory to fry it
+in the frying-pan? Or shall I simply boil it? No, the quickest way of
+all is to cook it in a saucer: I am in such a hurry to eat it!"
+
+Without loss of time he placed an earthenware saucer on a brazier full
+of red-hot embers. Into the saucer instead of oil or butter he poured a
+little water; and when the water began to smoke, tac! he broke the
+egg-shell over it and let the contents drop in. But, instead of the
+white and the yolk a little chicken popped out very gay and polite.
+Making a beautiful courtesy it said to him:
+
+"A thousand thanks, Master Pinocchio, for saving me the trouble of
+breaking the shell. Adieu until we meet again. Keep well, and my best
+compliments to all at home!"
+
+Thus saying, it spread its wings, darted through the open window and,
+flying away, was lost to sight.
+
+The poor puppet stood as if he had been bewitched, with his eyes fixed,
+his mouth open, and the egg-shell in his hand. Recovering, however, from
+his first stupefaction, he began to cry and scream, and to stamp his
+feet on the floor in desperation, and amidst his sobs he said:
+
+"Ah, indeed, the Talking-Cricket was right. If I had not run away from
+home, and if my papa were here, I should not now be dying of hunger! Oh!
+what a dreadful illness hunger is!"
+
+And, as his stomach cried out more than ever and he did not know how to
+quiet it, he thought he would leave the house and make an excursion in
+the neighborhood in hopes of finding some charitable person who would
+give him a piece of bread.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+PINOCCHIO'S FEET BURN TO CINDERS
+
+
+It was a wild and stormy night. The thunder was tremendous and the
+lightning so vivid that the sky seemed on fire.
+
+Pinocchio had a great fear of thunder, but hunger was stronger than
+fear. He therefore closed the house door and made a rush for the
+village, which he reached in a hundred bounds, with his tongue hanging
+out and panting for breath like a dog after game.
+
+But he found it all dark and deserted. The shops were closed, the
+windows shut, and there was not so much as a dog in the street. It
+seemed the land of the dead.
+
+Pinocchio, urged by desperation and hunger, took hold of the bell of a
+house and began to ring it with all his might, saying to himself:
+
+"That will bring somebody."
+
+And so it did. A little old man appeared at a window with a night-cap on
+his head and called to him angrily:
+
+"What do you want at such an hour?"
+
+"Would you be kind enough to give me a little bread?"
+
+"Wait there, I will be back directly," said the little old man, thinking
+it was one of those rascally boys who amuse themselves at night by
+ringing the house-bells to rouse respectable people who are sleeping
+quietly.
+
+After half a minute the window was again opened and the voice of the
+same little old man shouted to Pinocchio:
+
+"Come underneath and hold out your cap."
+
+Pinocchio pulled off his cap; but, just as he held it out, an enormous
+basin of water was poured down on him, soaking him from head to foot as
+if he had been a pot of dried-up geraniums.
+
+He returned home like a wet chicken, quite exhausted with fatigue and
+hunger; and, having no longer strength to stand, he sat down and rested
+his damp and muddy feet on a brazier full of burning embers.
+
+And then he fell asleep, and whilst he slept his feet, which were
+wooden, took fire, and little by little they burnt away and became
+cinders.
+
+Pinocchio continued to sleep and to snore as if his feet belonged to
+some one else. At last about daybreak he awoke because some one was
+knocking at the door.
+
+"Who is there?" he asked, yawning and rubbing his eyes.
+
+"It is I!" answered a voice.
+
+And Pinocchio recognized Geppetto's voice.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+GEPPETTO GIVES HIS OWN BREAKFAST TO PINOCCHIO
+
+
+Poor Pinocchio, whose eyes were still half shut from sleep, had not as
+yet discovered that his feet were burnt off. The moment, therefore, that
+he heard his father's voice he slipped off his stool to run and open the
+door; but, after stumbling two or three times, he fell his whole length
+on the floor.
+
+And the noise he made in falling was as if a sack of wooden ladles had
+been thrown from a fifth story.
+
+"Open the door!" shouted Geppetto from the street.
+
+"Dear papa, I cannot," answered the puppet, crying and rolling about on
+the ground.
+
+"Why can't you?"
+
+"Because my feet have been eaten."
+
+"And who has eaten your feet?"
+
+"The cat," said Pinocchio, seeing the cat, who was amusing herself by
+making some shavings dance with her forepaws.
+
+"Open the door, I tell you!" repeated Geppetto. "If you don't, when I
+get into the house you shall have the cat from me!"
+
+"I cannot stand up, believe me. Oh, poor me! poor me! I shall have to
+walk on my knees for the rest of my life!"
+
+Geppetto, believing that all this lamentation was only another of the
+puppet's tricks, thought of a means of putting an end to it, and,
+climbing up the wall, he got in at the window.
+
+He was very angry and at first he did nothing but scold; but when he saw
+his Pinocchio lying on the ground and really without feet he was quite
+overcome. He took him in his arms and began to kiss and caress him, and
+to say a thousand endearing things to him, and as the big tears ran down
+his cheeks he said, sobbing:
+
+"My little Pinocchio! how did you manage to burn your feet?"
+
+"I don't know, papa, but it has been such a dreadful night that I shall
+remember it as long as I live. It thundered and lightened, and I was
+very hungry, and then the Talking-Cricket said to me: 'It serves you
+right; you have been wicked and you deserve it,' and I said to him:
+'Take care, Cricket!' and he said: 'You are a puppet and you have a
+wooden head,' and I threw the handle of a hammer at him, and he died,
+but the fault was his, for I didn't wish to kill him, and the proof of
+it is that I put an earthenware saucer on a brazier of burning embers,
+but a chicken flew out and said: 'Adieu until we meet again, and many
+compliments to all at home': and I got still more hungry, for which
+reason that little old man in a night-cap, opening the window, said to
+me: 'Come underneath and hold out your hat,' and poured a basinful of
+water on my head, because asking for a little bread isn't a disgrace, is
+it? and I returned home at once, and because I was always very hungry I
+put my feet on the brazier to dry them, and then you returned, and I
+found they were burnt off, and I am always hungry, but I have no longer
+any feet! Oh! oh! oh! oh!" And poor Pinocchio began to cry and to roar
+so loudly that he was heard five miles off.
+
+Geppetto, who from all this jumbled account had only understood one
+thing, which was that the puppet was dying of hunger, drew from his
+pocket three pears and, giving them to him, said:
+
+"These three pears were intended for my breakfast, but I will give them
+to you willingly. Eat them, and I hope they will do you good."
+
+"If you wish me to eat them, be kind enough to peel them for me."
+
+"Peel them?" said Geppetto, astonished. "I should never have thought, my
+boy, that you were so dainty and fastidious. That is bad! In this world
+we should accustom ourselves from childhood to like and to eat
+everything, for there is no saying to what we may be brought. There are
+so many chances!"
+
+"You are no doubt right," interrupted Pinocchio, "but I will never eat
+fruit that has not been peeled. I cannot bear rind."
+
+So good Geppetto peeled the three pears and put the rind on a corner of
+the table.
+
+Having eaten the first pear in two mouthfuls, Pinocchio was about to
+throw away the core, but Geppetto caught hold of his arm and said to
+him:
+
+"Do not throw it away; in this world everything may be of use."
+
+"But core I am determined I will not eat," shouted the puppet, turning
+upon him like a viper.
+
+"Who knows! there are so many chances!" repeated Geppetto, without
+losing his temper.
+
+And so the three cores, instead of being thrown out of the window, were
+placed on the corner of the table, together with the three rinds.
+
+Having eaten, or rather having devoured the three pears, Pinocchio
+yawned tremendously, and then said in a fretful tone:
+
+"I am as hungry as ever!"
+
+"But, my boy, I have nothing more to give you!"
+
+"Nothing, really nothing?"
+
+"I have only the rind and the cores of the three pears."
+
+"One must have patience!" said Pinocchio; "if there is nothing else I
+will eat a rind."
+
+And he began to chew it. At first he made a wry face, but then one after
+another he quickly disposed of the rinds: and after the rinds even the
+cores, and when he had eaten up everything he clapped his hands on his
+sides in his satisfaction and said joyfully:
+
+"Ah! now I feel comfortable."
+
+"You see, now," observed Geppetto, "that I was right when I said to you
+that it did not do to accustom ourselves to be too particular or too
+dainty in our tastes. We can never know, my dear boy, what may happen to
+us. There are so many chances!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+GEPPETTO MAKES PINOCCHIO NEW FEET
+
+
+No sooner had the puppet satisfied his hunger than he began to cry and
+to grumble because he wanted a pair of new feet.
+
+But Geppetto, to punish him for his naughtiness, allowed him to cry and
+to despair for half the day. He then said to him:
+
+"Why should I make you new feet? To enable you, perhaps, to escape again
+from home?"
+
+"I promise you," said the puppet, sobbing, "that for the future I will
+be good."
+
+"All boys," replied Geppetto, "when they are bent upon obtaining
+something, say the same thing."
+
+"I promise you that I will go to school and that I will study and bring
+home a good report."
+
+"All boys, when they are bent on obtaining something, repeat the same
+story."
+
+"But I am not like other boys! I am better than all of them and I always
+speak the truth. I promise you, papa, that I will learn a trade and that
+I will be the consolation and the staff of your old age."
+
+Geppetto's eyes filled with tears and his heart was sad at seeing his
+poor Pinocchio in such a pitiable state. He did not say another word,
+but, taking his tools and two small pieces of well-seasoned wood, he set
+to work with great diligence.
+
+In less than an hour the feet were finished: two little feet--swift,
+well-knit and nervous. They might have been modelled by an artist of
+genius.
+
+Geppetto then said to the puppet:
+
+"Shut your eyes and go to sleep!"
+
+And Pinocchio shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep.
+
+And whilst he pretended to sleep, Geppetto, with a little glue which he
+had melted in an egg-shell, fastened his feet in their place, and it was
+so well done that not even a trace could be seen of where they were
+joined.
+
+No sooner had the puppet discovered that he had feet than he jumped down
+from the table on which he was lying and began to spring and to cut a
+thousand capers about the room, as if he had gone mad with the greatness
+of his delight.
+
+"To reward you for what you have done for me," said Pinocchio to his
+father, "I will go to school at once."
+
+"Good boy."
+
+"But to go to school I shall want some clothes."
+
+Geppetto, who was poor and who had not so much as a penny in his pocket,
+then made him a little dress of flowered paper, a pair of shoes from the
+bark of a tree, and a cap of the crumb of bread.
+
+Pinocchio ran immediately to look at himself in a crock of water, and he
+was so pleased with his appearance that he said, strutting about like a
+peacock:
+
+"I look quite like a gentleman!"
+
+"Yes, indeed," answered Geppetto, "for bear in mind that it is not fine
+clothes that make the gentleman, but rather clean clothes."
+
+"By the bye," added the puppet, "to go to school I am still in
+want--indeed, I am without the best thing, and the most important."
+
+"And what is it?"
+
+"I have no spelling-book."
+
+"You are right: but what shall we do to get one?"
+
+"It is quite easy. We have only to go to the bookseller's and buy it."
+
+"And the money?"
+
+"I have got none."
+
+"Neither have I," added the good old man, very sadly.
+
+And Pinocchio, although he was a very merry boy, became sad also,
+because poverty, when it is real poverty, is understood by
+everybody--even by boys.
+
+"Well, patience!" exclaimed Geppetto, all at once rising to his feet,
+and putting on his old corduroy coat, all patched and darned, he ran out
+of the house.
+
+He returned shortly, holding in his hand a spelling-book for Pinocchio,
+but the old coat was gone. The poor man was in his shirt-sleeves and out
+of doors it was snowing.
+
+"And the coat, papa?"
+
+"I have sold it."
+
+"Why did you sell it?"
+
+"Because I found it too hot."
+
+Pinocchio understood this answer in an instant, and unable to restrain
+the impulse of his good heart he sprang up and, throwing his arms around
+Geppetto's neck, he began kissing him again and again.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+PINOCCHIO GOES TO SEE A PUPPET-SHOW
+
+
+As soon as it stopped snowing Pinocchio set out for school with his fine
+spelling-book under his arm. As he went along he began to imagine a
+thousand things in his little brain and to build a thousand castles in
+the air, one more beautiful than the other.
+
+And, talking to himself, he said:
+
+"Today at school I will learn to read at once; then tomorrow I will
+begin to write, and the day after tomorrow to figure. Then, with my
+acquirements, I will earn a great deal of money, and with the first
+money I have in my pocket I will immediately buy for my papa a beautiful
+new cloth coat. But what am I saying? Cloth, indeed! It shall be all
+made of gold and silver, and it shall have diamond buttons. That poor
+man really deserves it, for to buy me books and have me taught he has
+remained in his shirt-sleeves. And in this cold! It is only fathers who
+are capable of such sacrifices!"
+
+Whilst he was saying this with great emotion, he thought that he heard
+music in the distance that sounded like fifes and the beating of a big
+drum: Fi-fie-fi, fi-fi-fi; zum, zum, zum.
+
+He stopped and listened. The sounds came from the end of a cross street
+that led to a little village on the seashore.
+
+"What can that music be? What a pity that I have to go to school, or
+else--"
+
+And he remained irresolute. It was, however, necessary to come to a
+decision. Should he go to school? or should he go after the fifes?
+
+"Today I will go and hear the fifes, and tomorrow I will go to school,"
+finally decided the young scapegrace, shrugging his shoulders.
+
+The more he ran the nearer came the sounds of the fifes and the beating
+of the big drum: Fi-fi-fi; zum, zum, zum, zum.
+
+At last he found himself in the middle of a square quite full of people,
+who were all crowded round a building made of wood and canvas, and
+painted a thousand colors.
+
+"What is that building?" asked Pinocchio, turning to a little boy who
+belonged to the place.
+
+"Read the placard--it is all written--and then you will know."
+
+"I would read it willingly, but it so happens that today I don't know
+how to read."
+
+"Bravo, blockhead! Then I will read it to you. The writing on that
+placard in those letters red as fire is:
+
+     "THE GREAT PUPPET THEATER."
+
+"Has the play begun long?"
+
+"It is beginning now."
+
+"How much does it cost to go in?"
+
+"A dime."
+
+Pinocchio, who was in a fever of curiosity, lost all control of himself,
+and without any shame he said to the little boy to whom he was talking:
+
+"Would you lend me a dime until tomorrow?"
+
+"I would lend it to you willingly," said the other, "but it so happens
+that today I cannot give it to you."
+
+"I will sell you my jacket for a dime," the puppet then said to him.
+
+"What do you think that I could do with a jacket of flowered paper? If
+there were rain and it got wet, it would be impossible to get it off my
+back."
+
+"Will you buy my shoes?"
+
+"They would only be of use to light the fire."
+
+"How much will you give me for my cap?"
+
+"That would be a wonderful acquisition indeed! A cap of bread crumb!
+There would be a risk of the mice coming to eat it whilst it was on my
+head."
+
+Pinocchio was on thorns. He was on the point of making another offer,
+but he had not the courage. He hesitated, felt irresolute and
+remorseful. At last he said:
+
+"Will you give me a dime for this new spelling-book?"
+
+"I am a boy and I don't buy from boys," replied his little interlocutor,
+who had much more sense than he had.
+
+"I will buy the spelling-book for a dime," called out a hawker of old
+clothes, who had been listening to the conversation.
+
+And the book was sold there and then. And to think that poor Geppetto
+had remained at home trembling with cold in his shirt-sleeves in order
+that his son should have a spelling-book.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE PUPPETS RECOGNIZE THEIR BROTHER PINOCCHIO
+
+
+When Pinocchio came into the little puppet theater, an incident occurred
+that almost produced a revolution.
+
+The curtain had gone up and the play had already begun.
+
+On the stage Harlequin and Punch were as usual quarrelling with each
+other and threatening every moment to come to blows.
+
+All at once Harlequin stopped short and, turning to the public, he
+pointed with his hand to some one far down in the pit and exclaimed in a
+dramatic tone:
+
+"Gods of the firmament! Do I dream or am I awake? But surely that is
+Pinocchio!"
+
+"It is indeed Pinocchio!" cried Punch.
+
+"It is indeed himself!" screamed Miss Rose, peeping from behind the
+scenes.
+
+"It is Pinocchio! it is Pinocchio!" shouted all the puppets in chorus,
+leaping from all sides on to the stage. "It is Pinocchio! It is our
+brother Pinocchio! Long live Pinocchio!"
+
+"Pinocchio, come up here to me," cried Harlequin, "and throw yourself
+into the arms of your wooden brothers!"
+
+At this affectionate invitation Pinocchio made a leap from the end of
+the pit into the reserved seats; another leap landed him on the head of
+the leader of the orchestra, and he then sprang upon the stage.
+
+The embraces, the friendly pinches, and the demonstrations of warm
+brotherly affection that Pinocchio received from the excited crowd of
+actors and actresses of the puppet dramatic company are beyond
+description.
+
+The sight was doubtless a moving one, but the public in the pit, finding
+that the play was stopped, became impatient and began to shout: "We will
+have the play--go on with the play!"
+
+It was all breath thrown away. The puppets, instead of continuing the
+recital, redoubled their noise and outcries, and, putting Pinocchio on
+their shoulders, they carried him in triumph before the footlights.
+
+At that moment out came the showman. He was very big, and so ugly that
+the sight of him was enough to frighten anyone. His beard was as black
+as ink, and so long that it reached from his chin to the ground. I need
+only say that he trod upon it when he walked. His mouth was as big as an
+oven, and his eyes were like two lanterns of red glass with lights
+burning inside them. He carried a large whip made of snakes and foxes'
+tails twisted together, which he cracked constantly.
+
+At his unexpected appearance there was a profound silence: no one dared
+to breathe. A fly might have been heard in the stillness. The poor
+puppets of both sexes trembled like so many leaves.
+
+"Why have you come to raise a disturbance in my theater?" asked the
+showman of Pinocchio, in the gruff voice of a hobgoblin suffering from a
+severe cold in the head.
+
+"Believe me, honored sir, it was not my fault!"
+
+"That is enough! Tonight we will settle our accounts."
+
+As soon as the play was over the showman went into the kitchen, where a
+fine sheep, preparing for his supper, was turning slowly on the spit in
+front of the fire. As there was not enough wood to finish roasting and
+browning it, he called Harlequin and Punch, and said to them:
+
+"Bring that puppet here: you will find him hanging on a nail. It seems
+to me that he is made of very dry wood and I am sure that if he were
+thrown on the fire he would make a beautiful blaze for the roast."
+
+At first Harlequin and Punch hesitated; but, appalled by a severe glance
+from their master, they obeyed. In a short time they returned to the
+kitchen carrying poor Pinocchio, who was wriggling like an eel taken out
+of water and screaming desperately: "Papa! papa! save me! I will not
+die, I will not die!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+FIRE-EATER SNEEZES AND PARDONS PINOCCHIO
+
+
+The showman, Fire-Eater--for that was his name--looked like a wicked
+man, especially with his black beard that covered his chest and legs
+like an apron. On the whole, however, he had not a bad heart. In proof
+of this, when he saw poor Pinocchio brought before him, struggling and
+screaming "I will not die, I will not die!" he was quite moved and felt
+very sorry for him. He tried to hold out, but after a little he could
+stand it no longer and he sneezed violently. When he heard the sneeze,
+Harlequin, who up to that moment had been in the deepest affliction and
+bowed down like a weeping willow, became quite cheerful and, leaning
+towards Pinocchio, he whispered to him softly:
+
+"Good news, brother. The showman has sneezed and that is a sign that he
+pities you, and consequently you are saved."
+
+Most men, when they feel compassion for somebody, either weep or at
+least pretend to dry their eyes. Fire-Eater, on the contrary, whenever
+he was really overcome, had the habit of sneezing.
+
+After he had sneezed, the showman, still acting the ruffian, shouted to
+Pinocchio:
+
+"Have done crying! Your lamentations have given me a pain in my stomach.
+I feel a spasm that almost--Etchoo! etchoo!" and he sneezed again twice.
+
+"Bless you!" said Pinocchio.
+
+"Thank you! And your papa and your mamma, are they still alive?" asked
+Fire-Eater.
+
+"Papa, yes; my mamma I have never known."
+
+"Who can say what a sorrow it would be for your poor old father if I
+were to have you thrown amongst those burning coals! Poor old man! I
+pity him! Etchoo! etchoo! etchoo!" and he sneezed again three times.
+
+"Bless you" said Pinocchio.
+
+"Thank you! All the same, some compassion is due to me, for as you see I
+have no more wood with which to finish roasting my mutton, and, to tell
+you the truth, under the circumstances you would have been of great use
+to me! However, I have had pity on you, so I must have patience. Instead
+of you I will burn under the spit one of the puppets belonging to my
+company. Ho there, gendarmes!"
+
+At this call two wooden gendarmes immediately appeared. They were very
+long and very thin, and had on cocked hats, and held unsheathed swords
+in their hands.
+
+The showman said to them in a hoarse voice:
+
+"Take Harlequin, bind him securely, and then throw him on the fire to
+burn. I am determined that my mutton shall be well roasted."
+
+Only imagine that poor Harlequin! His terror was so great that his legs
+bent under him, and he fell with his face on the ground.
+
+At this agonizing sight Pinocchio, weeping bitterly, threw himself at
+the showman's feet and, bathing his long beard with his tears, he began
+to say, in a supplicating voice:
+
+"Have pity, Sir Fire-Eater!"
+
+"Here there are no sirs," the showman answered severely.
+
+"Have pity, Sir Knight!"
+
+"Here there are no knights!"
+
+"Have pity, Commander!"
+
+"Here there are no commanders!"
+
+"Have pity, Excellence!"
+
+Upon hearing himself called Excellence the showman began to smile and
+became at once kinder and more tractable. Turning to Pinocchio, he
+asked:
+
+"Well, what do you want from me?"
+
+"I implore you to pardon poor Harlequin."
+
+"For him there can be no pardon. As I have spared you he must be put on
+the fire, for I am determined that my mutton shall be well roasted."
+
+"In that case," cried Pinocchio proudly, rising and throwing away his
+cap of bread crumb--"in that case I know my duty. Come on, gendarmes!
+Bind me and throw me amongst the flames. No, it is not just that poor
+Harlequin, my true friend, should die for me!"
+
+These words, pronounced in a loud, heroic voice, made all the puppets
+who were present cry. Even the gendarmes, although they were made of
+wood, wept like two newly born lambs.
+
+Fire-Eater at first remained as hard and unmoved as ice, but little by
+little he began to melt and to sneeze. And, having sneezed four or five
+times, he opened his arms affectionately and said to Pinocchio:
+
+"You are a good, brave boy! Come here and give me a kiss."
+
+Pinocchio ran at once and, climbing like a squirrel up the showman's
+beard, he deposited a hearty kiss on the point of his nose.
+
+"Then the pardon is granted?" asked poor Harlequin in a faint voice that
+was scarcely audible.
+
+"The pardon is granted!" answered Fire-Eater; he then added, sighing and
+shaking his head:
+
+"I must have patience! Tonight I shall have to resign myself to eat the
+mutton half raw; but another time, woe to him who displeases me!"
+
+At the news of the pardon the puppets all ran to the stage and, having
+lighted the lamps and chandeliers as if for a full-dress performance,
+they began to leap and to dance merrily. At dawn they were still
+dancing.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+PINOCCHIO RECEIVES A PRESENT OF FIVE GOLD PIECES
+
+
+The following day Fire-Eater called Pinocchio to one side and asked him:
+
+"What is your father's name?"
+
+"Geppetto."
+
+"And what trade does he follow?"
+
+"He is a beggar."
+
+"Does he gain much?"
+
+"Gain much? Why, he has never a penny in his pocket. Only think, in
+order to buy a spelling-book so that I could go to school he was obliged
+to sell the only coat he had to wear--a coat that, between patches and
+darns, was not fit to be seen."
+
+"Poor devil! I feel almost sorry for him! Here are five gold pieces. Go
+at once and take them to him with my compliments."
+
+Pinocchio was overjoyed and thanked the showman a thousand times. He
+embraced all the puppets of the company one by one, even to the
+gendarmes, and set out to return home.
+
+But he had not gone far when he met on the road a Fox lame of one foot,
+and a Cat blind of both eyes, and they were going along helping each
+other like good companions in misfortune. The Fox, who was lame, walked
+leaning on the Cat; and the Cat, who was blind, was guided by the Fox.
+
+"Good-day, Pinocchio," said the Fox, greeting him politely.
+
+"How do you come to know my name?" asked the puppet.
+
+"I know your father well."
+
+"Where did you see him?"
+
+"I saw him yesterday at the door of his house."
+
+"And what was he doing?"
+
+"He was in his shirt-sleeves and shivering with cold."
+
+"Poor papa! But that is over; for the future he shall shiver no more!"
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because I have become a gentleman."
+
+"A gentleman--you!" said the Fox, and he began to laugh rudely and
+scornfully. The Cat also began to laugh, but to conceal it she combed
+her whiskers with her forepaws.
+
+[Illustration: Splash! Splash! They fell Into the Very Middle of the
+Ditch]
+
+"There is little to laugh at," cried Pinocchio angrily. "I am really
+sorry to make your mouth water, but if you know anything about it, you
+can see that these are five gold pieces."
+
+And he pulled out the money that Fire-Eater had given him.
+
+At the jingling of the money the Fox, with an involuntary movement,
+stretched out the paw that seemed crippled, and the Cat opened wide two
+eyes that looked like two green lanterns. It is true that she shut them
+again, and so quickly that Pinocchio observed nothing.
+
+"And now," asked the Fox, "what are you going to do with all that
+money?"
+
+"First of all," answered the puppet, "I intend to buy a new coat for my
+papa, made of gold and silver, and with diamond buttons; and then I will
+buy a spelling-book for myself."
+
+"For yourself?"
+
+"Yes indeed, for I wish to go to school to study in earnest."
+
+"Look at me!" said the Fox. "Through my foolish passion for study I have
+lost a leg."
+
+"Look at me!" said the Cat. "Through my foolish passion for study I have
+lost the sight of both my eyes."
+
+At that moment a white Blackbird, that was perched on the hedge by the
+road, began his usual song, and said:
+
+"Pinocchio, don't listen to the advice of bad companions; if you do you
+will repent it!"
+
+Poor Blackbird! If only he had not spoken! The Cat, with a great leap,
+sprang upon him, and without even giving him time to say "Oh!" ate him
+in a mouthful, feathers and all.
+
+Having eaten him and cleaned her mouth she shut her eyes again and
+feigned blindness as before.
+
+"Poor Blackbird!" said Pinocchio to the Cat, "why did you treat him so
+badly?"
+
+"I did it to give him a lesson. He will learn another time not to
+meddle in other people's conversation."
+
+They had gone almost half-way when the Fox, halting suddenly, said to
+the puppet:
+
+"Would you like to double your money?"
+
+"In what way?"
+
+"Would you like to make out of your five miserable sovereigns, a
+hundred, a thousand, two thousand?"
+
+"I should think so! but in what way?"
+
+"The way is easy enough. Instead of returning home you must go with us."
+
+"And where do you wish to take me?"
+
+"To the land of the Owls."
+
+Pinocchio reflected a moment, and then he said resolutely:
+
+"No, I will not go. I am already close to the house, and I will return
+home to my papa, who is waiting for me. Who can tell how often the poor
+old man must have sighed yesterday when I did not come back! I have
+indeed been a bad son, and the Talking-Cricket was right when he said:
+'Disobedient boys never come to any good in the world.' I have found it
+to be true, for many misfortunes have happened to me. Even yesterday in
+Fire-Eater's house I ran the risk--Oh! it makes me shudder only to think
+of it!"
+
+"Well, then," said the Fox, "you are quite decided to go home? Go, then,
+and so much the worse for you."
+
+"So much the worse for you!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"Think well of it, Pinocchio, for you are giving a kick to fortune."
+
+"To fortune!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"Between today and tomorrow your five sovereigns would have become two
+thousand."
+
+"Two thousand!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"But how is it possible that they could become so many?" asked
+Pinocchio, remaining with his mouth open from astonishment.
+
+"I will explain it to you at once," said the Fox. "You must know that in
+the land of the Owls there is a sacred field called by everybody the
+Field of Miracles. In this field you must dig a little hole, and you put
+into it, we will say, one gold sovereign. You then cover up the hole
+with a little earth; you must water it with two pails of water from the
+fountain, then sprinkle it with two pinches of salt, and when night
+comes you can go quietly to bed. In the meanwhile, during the night, the
+gold piece will grow and flower, and in the morning when you get up and
+return to the field, what do you find? You find a beautiful tree laden
+with as many gold sovereigns as a fine ear of corn has grains in the
+month of June."
+
+"So that," said Pinocchio, more and more bewildered, "supposing I buried
+my five sovereigns in that field, how many should I find there the
+following morning?"
+
+"That is an exceedingly easy calculation," replied the Fox, "a
+calculation that you can make on the ends of your fingers. Every
+sovereign will give you an increase of five hundred; multiply five
+hundred by five, and the following morning will find you with two
+thousand five hundred shining gold pieces in your pocket."
+
+"Oh! how delightful!" cried Pinocchio, dancing for joy. "As soon as ever
+I have obtained those sovereigns, I will keep two thousand for myself
+and the other five hundred I will make a present of to you two."
+
+"A present to us?" cried the Fox with indignation and appearing much
+offended. "What are you dreaming of?"
+
+"What are you dreaming of?" repeated the Cat.
+
+"We do not work," said the Fox, "for interest: we work solely to enrich
+others."
+
+"Others!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"What good people!" thought Pinocchio to himself, and, forgetting there
+and then his papa, the new coat, the spelling-book, and all his good
+resolutions, he said to the Fox and the Cat:
+
+"Let us be off at once. I will go with you."
+
+[Illustration: A LITTLE CHICKEN POPPED OUT, VERY GAY AND POLITE]
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+THE INN OF THE RED CRAW-FISH
+
+
+They walked, and walked, and walked, until at last, towards evening,
+they arrived, all tired out, at the inn of The Red Craw-Fish.
+
+"Let us stop here a little," said the Fox, "that we may have something
+to eat, and rest ourselves for an hour or two. We will start again at
+midnight, so as to arrive at the Field of Miracles by dawn tomorrow
+morning."
+
+Having gone into the inn they all three sat down to table, but none of
+them had any appetite.
+
+The Cat, who was suffering from indigestion and feeling seriously
+indisposed, could only eat thirty-five fish with tomato sauce and four
+portions of tripe with Parmesan cheese; and because she thought the
+tripe was not seasoned enough, she asked three times for the butter and
+grated cheese!
+
+The Fox would also willingly have picked a little, but as his doctor had
+ordered him a strict diet, he was forced to content himself simply with
+a hare dressed with a sweet and sour sauce, and garnished lightly with
+fat chickens and early pullets. After the hare he sent for a made dish
+of partridges, rabbits, frogs, lizards and other delicacies; he could
+not touch anything else. He cared so little for food, he said, that he
+could put nothing to his lips.
+
+The one who ate the least was Pinocchio. He asked for some walnuts and a
+hunch of bread, and left everything on his plate. The poor boy's
+thoughts were continually fixed on the Field of Miracles.
+
+When they had supped, the Fox said to the host:
+
+"Give us two good rooms, one for Mr. Pinocchio, and the other for me and
+my companion. We will snatch a little sleep before we leave. Remember,
+however, that at midnight we wish to be called to continue our journey."
+
+"Yes, gentlemen," answered the host, and he winked at the Fox and the
+Cat, as much as to say: "I know what you are up to. We understand one
+another!"
+
+No sooner had Pinocchio got into bed than he fell asleep at once and
+began to dream. And he dreamed that he was in the middle of a field, and
+the field was full of shrubs covered with clusters of gold sovereigns,
+and as they swung in the wind they went zin, zin, zin, almost as if they
+would say: "Let who will, come and take us." But just as Pinocchio was
+stretching out his hand to pick handfuls of those beautiful gold pieces
+and to put them in his pocket, he was suddenly awakened by three violent
+blows on the door of his room.
+
+It was the host who had come to tell him that midnight had struck.
+
+"Are my companions ready?" asked the puppet.
+
+"Ready! Why, they left two hours ago."
+
+"Why were they in such a hurry?"
+
+"Because the Cat had received a message to say that her eldest kitten
+was ill with chilblains on his feet and was in danger of death."
+
+"Did they pay for the supper?"
+
+"What are you thinking of? They are too well educated to dream of
+offering such an insult to a gentleman like you."
+
+"What a pity! It is an insult that would have given me so much
+pleasure!" said Pinocchio, scratching his head. He then asked:
+
+"And where did my good friends say they would wait for me?"
+
+"At the Field of Miracles, tomorrow morning at daybreak."
+
+Pinocchio paid a sovereign for his supper and that of his companions,
+and then left.
+
+Outside the inn it was so pitch dark that he had almost to grope his
+way, for it was impossible to see a hand's breadth in front of him. Some
+night-birds flying across the road from one hedge to the other brushed
+Pinocchio's nose with their wings as they passed, which caused him so
+much terror that, springing back, he shouted: "Who goes there?" and the
+echo in the surrounding hills repeated in the distance: "Who goes there?
+Who goes there?"
+
+As he was walking along he saw a little insect shining dimly on the
+trunk of a tree, like a night-light in a lamp of transparent china.
+
+"Who are you?" asked Pinocchio.
+
+"I am the ghost of the Talking-Cricket," answered the insect in a low
+voice, so weak and faint that it seemed to come from the other world.
+
+"What do you want with me?" said the puppet.
+
+"I want to give you some advice. Go back and take the four sovereigns
+that you have left to your poor father, who is weeping and in despair
+because you have not returned to him."
+
+"By tomorrow my papa will be a gentleman, for these four sovereigns will
+have become two thousand."
+
+"Don't trust to those who promise to make you rich in a day. Usually
+they are either mad or rogues! Give ear to me, and go back, my boy."
+
+"On the contrary, I am determined to go on."
+
+"The hour is late!"
+
+"I am determined to go on."
+
+"The night is dark!"
+
+"I am determined to go on."
+
+"The road is dangerous!"
+
+"I am determined to go on."
+
+"Remember that boys who are bent on following their caprices, and will
+have their own way, sooner or later repent it."
+
+"Always the same stories. Good-night, Cricket."
+
+"Good-night, Pinocchio, and may Heaven preserve you from dangers and
+from assassins."
+
+No sooner had he said these words than the Talking-Cricket vanished
+suddenly like a light that has been blown out, and the road became
+darker than ever.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+PINOCCHIO FALLS AMONGST ASSASSINS
+
+
+"Really," said the puppet to himself, as he resumed his journey, "how
+unfortunate we poor boys are. Everybody scolds us and gives us good
+advice. See now; because I don't choose to listen to that tiresome
+Cricket, who knows, according to him, how many misfortunes are to happen
+to me! I am even to meet with assassins! That is, however, of little
+consequence, for I don't believe in assassins--I have never believed in
+them. For me, I think that assassins have been invented purposely by
+papas to frighten boys who want to go out at night. Besides, supposing I
+was to come across them here in the road, do you imagine they would
+frighten me? Not the least in the world. I should go to meet them and
+cry: 'Gentlemen assassins, what do you want with me? Remember that with
+me there is no joking. Therefore go about your business and be quiet!'
+At this speech they would run away like the wind. If, however, they were
+so badly educated as not to run away, why, then I would run away myself
+and there would be an end of it."
+
+But Pinocchio had not time to finish his reasoning, for at that moment
+he thought that he heard a slight rustle of leaves behind him.
+
+He turned to look and saw in the gloom two evil-looking black figures
+completely enveloped in charcoal sacks. They were running after him on
+tiptoe and making great leaps like two phantoms.
+
+"Here they are in reality!" he said to himself and, not knowing where to
+hide his gold pieces, he put them in his mouth precisely under his
+tongue.
+
+Then he tried to escape. But he had not gone a step when he felt himself
+seized by the arm and heard two horrid, sepulchral voices saying to him:
+
+"Your money or your life!"
+
+Pinocchio, not being able to answer in words, owing to the money that
+was in his mouth, made a thousand low bows and a thousand pantomimes. He
+tried thus to make the two muffled figures, whose eyes were only visible
+through the holes in their sacks, understand that he was a poor puppet,
+and that he had not as much as a counterfeit nickel in his pocket.
+
+"Come, now! Less nonsense and out with the money!" cried the two
+brigands threateningly.
+
+And the puppet made a gesture with his hands to signify: "I have none."
+
+"Deliver up your money or you are dead," said the tallest of the
+brigands.
+
+"Dead!" repeated the other.
+
+"And after we have killed you, we will also kill your father!"
+
+"Also your father!"
+
+"No, no, no, not my poor papa!" cried Pinocchio in a despairing voice,
+and as he said it the sovereigns clinked in his mouth.
+
+"Ah! you rascal! Then you have hidden your money under your tongue! Spit
+it out at once!"
+
+Pinocchio was obstinate.
+
+"Ah! you pretend to be deaf, do you? Wait a moment, leave it to us to
+find a means to make you give it up."
+
+And one of them seized the puppet by the end of his nose, and the other
+took him by the chin, and began to pull them brutally, the one up and
+the other down, to force him to open his mouth. But it was all to no
+purpose. Pinocchio's mouth seemed to be nailed and riveted together.
+
+Then the shorter assassin drew out an ugly knife and tried to put it
+between his lips like a lever or chisel. But Pinocchio, as quick as
+lightning, caught his hand with his teeth, and with one bite bit it
+clear off and spat it out. Imagine his astonishment when instead of a
+hand he perceived that a cat's paw lay on the ground.
+
+Encouraged by this first victory he used his nails to such purpose that
+he succeeded in liberating himself from his assailants, and, jumping the
+hedge by the roadside, he began to fly across the country. The assassins
+ran after him like two dogs chasing a hare, and the one who had lost a
+paw ran on one leg, and no one ever knew how he managed it.
+
+After a race of some miles Pinocchio could go no more. Giving himself
+up for lost, he climbed the trunk of a very high pine tree and seated
+himself in the topmost branches. The assassins attempted to climb after
+him, but when they had reached half-way up they slid down again and
+arrived on the ground with the skin grazed from their hands and knees.
+
+But they were not to be beaten by so little; collecting a quantity of
+dry wood, they piled it beneath the pine and set fire to it. In less
+time than it takes to tell, the pine began to burn and to flame like a
+candle blown by the wind. Pinocchio, seeing that the flames were
+mounting higher every instant, and not wishing to end his life like a
+roasted pigeon, made a stupendous leap from the top of the tree and
+started afresh across the fields and vineyards. The assassins followed
+him, and kept behind him without once giving up.
+
+The day began to break and they were still pursuing him. Suddenly
+Pinocchio found his way barred by a wide, deep ditch full of stagnant
+water the color of coffee. What was he to do? "One! two! three!" cried
+the puppet, and, making a rush, he sprang to the other side. The
+assassins also jumped, but not having measured the distance
+properly--splash! splash! they fell into the very middle of the ditch.
+Pinocchio, who heard the plunge and the splashing of the water, shouted
+out, laughing, and without stopping:
+
+"A fine bath to you, gentleman assassins."
+
+And he felt convinced that they were drowned, when, turning to look, he
+perceived that, on the contrary, they were both running after him, still
+enveloped in their sacks, with the water dripping from them as if they
+had been two hollow baskets.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+THE ASSASSINS HANG PINOCCHIO TO THE BIG OAK
+
+
+At this sight the puppet's courage failed him and he was on the point of
+throwing himself on the ground and giving himself over for lost.
+Turning, however, his eyes in every direction, he saw, at some distance,
+a small house as white as snow.
+
+"If only I had breath to reach that house," he said to himself, "perhaps
+I should be saved."
+
+And, without delaying an instant, he recommenced running for his life
+through the wood, and the assassins after him.
+
+At last, after a desperate race of nearly two hours, he arrived quite
+breathless at the door of the house, and knocked.
+
+No one answered.
+
+He knocked again with great violence, for he heard the sound of steps
+approaching him and the heavy panting of his persecutors. The same
+silence.
+
+Seeing that knocking was useless, he began in desperation to kick and
+pommel the door with all his might. The window then opened and a
+beautiful Child appeared at it. She had blue hair and a face as white as
+a waxen image; her eyes were closed and her hands were crossed on her
+breast. Without moving her lips in the least, she said, in a voice that
+seemed to come from the other world:
+
+"In this house there is no one. They are all dead."
+
+"Then at least open the door for me yourself," shouted Pinocchio, crying
+and imploring.
+
+"I am dead also."
+
+"Dead? Then what are you doing there at the window?"
+
+"I am waiting for the bier to come to carry me away."
+
+Having said this she immediately disappeared and the window was closed
+again without the slightest noise.
+
+"Oh! beautiful Child with blue hair," cried Pinocchio, "open the door,
+for pity's sake! Have compassion on a poor boy pursued by assas--"
+
+But he could not finish the word, for he felt himself seized by the
+collar and the same two horrible voices said to him threateningly:
+
+"You shall not escape from us again!"
+
+The puppet, seeing death staring him in the face, was taken with such a
+violent fit of trembling that the joints of his wooden legs began to
+creak, and the sovereigns hidden under his tongue to clink.
+
+"Now, then," demanded the assassins, "will you open your mouth--yes or
+no? Ah! no answer? Leave it to us: this time we will force you to open
+it!"
+
+And, drawing out two long, horrid knives as sharp as razors,
+clash!--they attempted to stab him twice.
+
+But the puppet, luckily for him, was made of very hard wood; the knives
+therefore broke into a thousand pieces and the assassins were left with
+the handles in their hands, staring at each other.
+
+"I see what we must do," said one of them. "He must be hung! let us hang
+him!"
+
+"Let us hang him!" repeated the other.
+
+Without loss of time they tied his arms behind him, passed a running
+noose round his throat, and hung him to the branch of a tree called the
+Big Oak.
+
+They then sat down on the grass and waited for his last struggle. But at
+the end of three hours the puppet's eyes were still open, his mouth
+closed, and he was kicking more than ever.
+
+Losing patience, they turned to Pinocchio and said in a bantering tone:
+
+"Good-bye till tomorrow. Let us hope that when we return you will be
+polite enough to allow yourself to be found quite dead, and with your
+mouth wide open."
+
+And they walked off.
+
+In the meantime a tempestuous northerly wind began to blow and roar
+angrily, and it beat the poor puppet from side to side, making him swing
+violently, like the clatter of a bell ringing for a wedding. And the
+swinging gave him atrocious spasms, and the running noose, becoming
+still tighter round his throat, took away his breath.
+
+Little by little his eyes began to grow dim, but although he felt that
+death was near he still continued to hope that some charitable person
+would come to his assistance before it was too late. But when, after
+waiting and waiting, he found that no one came, absolutely no one, then
+he remembered his poor father, and, thinking he was dying, he stammered
+out:
+
+"Oh, papa! papa! if only you were here!"
+
+[Illustration: Four Rabbits as Black as Ink Entered Carrying a Little
+Bier]
+
+His breath failed him and he could say no more. He shut his eyes, opened
+his mouth, stretched his legs, gave a long shudder, and hung stiff and
+insensible.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+THE BEAUTIFUL CHILD RESCUES THE PUPPET
+
+
+While poor Pinocchio, suspended to a branch of the Big Oak, was
+apparently more dead than alive, the beautiful Child with blue hair came
+again to the window. When she saw the unhappy puppet hanging by his
+throat, and dancing up and down in the gusts of the north wind, she was
+moved by compassion. Striking her hands together, she gave three little
+claps.
+
+At this signal there came a sound of the sweep of wings flying rapidly
+and a large Falcon flew on to the window-sill.
+
+"What are your orders, gracious Fairy?" he asked, inclining his beak in
+sign of reverence.
+
+"Do you see that puppet dangling from a branch of the Big Oak?"
+
+"I see him."
+
+"Very well. Fly there at once: with your strong beak break the knot that
+keeps him suspended in the air, and lay him gently on the grass at the
+foot of the tree."
+
+The Falcon flew away and after two minutes he returned, saying:
+
+"I have done as you commanded."
+
+"And how did you find him?"
+
+"To see him he appeared dead, but he cannot really be quite dead, for I
+had no sooner loosened the running noose that tightened his throat than,
+giving a sigh, he muttered in a faint voice: 'Now I feel better!'"
+
+The Fairy then struck her hands together twice and a magnificent Poodle
+appeared, walking upright on his hind legs exactly as if he had been a
+man.
+
+He was in the full-dress livery of a coachman. On his head he had a
+three-cornered cap braided with gold, his curly white wig came down on
+to his shoulders, he had a chocolate-colored waistcoat with diamond
+buttons, and two large pockets to contain the bones that his mistress
+gave him at dinner. He had, besides, a pair of short crimson velvet
+breeches, silk stockings, cut-down shoes, and hanging behind him a
+species of umbrella case made of blue satin, to put his tail into when
+the weather was rainy.
+
+"Be quick, Medoro, like a good dog!" said the Fairy to the Poodle. "Have
+the most beautiful carriage in my coach-house harnessed, and take the
+road to the wood. When you come to the Big Oak you will find a poor
+puppet stretched on the grass half dead. Pick him up gently and lay him
+flat on the cushions of the carriage and bring him here to me. Do you
+understand?"
+
+The Poodle, to show that he had understood, shook the case of blue
+satin three or four times and ran off like a race-horse.
+
+Shortly afterwards a beautiful little carriage came out of the
+coach-house. The cushions were stuffed with canary feathers and it was
+lined on the inside with whipped cream, custard and vanilla wafers. The
+little carriage was drawn by a hundred pairs of white mice, and the
+Poodle, seated on the coach-box, cracked his whip from side to side like
+a driver when he is afraid that he is behind time.
+
+Scarcely had a quarter of an hour passed, when the carriage returned.
+The Fairy, who was waiting at the door of the house, took the poor
+puppet in her arms and carried him into a little room that was
+wainscoted with mother-of-pearl. She sent at once to summon the most
+famous doctors in the neighborhood.
+
+They came immediately, one after the other: namely, a Crow, an Owl, and
+a Talking-Cricket.
+
+"I wish to know from you, gentlemen," said the Fairy, "if this
+unfortunate puppet is alive or dead!"
+
+At this request the Crow, advancing first, felt Pinocchio's pulse; he
+then felt his nose and then the little toe of his foot: and, having done
+this carefully, he pronounced solemnly the following words:
+
+"To my belief the puppet is already quite dead; but, if unfortunately he
+should not be dead, then it would be a sign that he is still alive!"
+
+"I regret," said the Owl, "to be obliged to contradict the Crow, my
+illustrious friend and colleague; but, in my opinion the puppet is still
+alive; but, if unfortunately he should not be alive, then it would be a
+sign that he is dead indeed!"
+
+"And you--have you nothing to say?" asked the Fairy of the
+Talking-Cricket.
+
+"In my opinion, the wisest thing a prudent doctor can do, when he does
+not know what he is talking about, is to be silent. For the rest, that
+puppet there has a face that is not new to me. I have known him for some
+time!"
+
+Pinocchio, who up to that moment had lain immovable, like a real piece
+of wood, was seized with a fit of convulsive trembling that shook the
+whole bed.
+
+"That puppet there," continued the Talking-Cricket, "is a confirmed
+rogue."
+
+Pinocchio opened his eyes, but shut them again immediately.
+
+"He is a ragamuffin, a do-nothing, a vagabond."
+
+Pinocchio hid his face beneath the clothes.
+
+"That puppet there is a disobedient son who will make his poor father
+die of a broken heart!"
+
+At that instant a suffocated sound of sobs and crying was heard in the
+room. Imagine everybody's astonishment when, having raised the sheets a
+little, it was discovered that the sounds came from Pinocchio.
+
+"When a dead person cries, it is a sign that he is on the road to get
+well," said the Crow solemnly.
+
+"I grieve to contradict my illustrious friend and colleague," added the
+Owl; "but for me, when the dead person cries, it is a sign that he is
+sorry to die."
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+PINOCCHIO WILL NOT TAKE HIS MEDICINE
+
+
+As soon as the three doctors had left the room the Fairy approached
+Pinocchio and, having touched his forehead, she perceived that he was in
+a high fever.
+
+She therefore dissolved a certain white powder in half a tumbler of
+water and, offering it to the puppet, she said to him lovingly:
+
+"Drink it and in a few days you will be cured."
+
+Pinocchio looked at the tumbler, made a wry face, and then asked in a
+plaintive voice:
+
+"Is it sweet or bitter?"
+
+"It is bitter, but it will do you good."
+
+"If it is bitter, I will not take it."
+
+"Listen to me: drink it."
+
+"I don't like anything bitter."
+
+"Drink it, and when you have drunk it I will give you a lump of sugar to
+take away the taste."
+
+"Where is the lump of sugar?"
+
+"Here it is," said the Fairy, taking a piece from a gold sugar-basin.
+
+"Give me first the lump of sugar and then I will drink that bad bitter
+water."
+
+"Do you promise me?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+The Fairy gave him the sugar and Pinocchio, having crunched it up and
+swallowed it in a second, said, licking his lips:
+
+"It would be a fine thing if sugar were medicine! I would take it every
+day."
+
+"Now keep your promise and drink these few drops of water, which will
+restore you to health."
+
+Pinocchio took the tumbler unwillingly in his hand and put the point of
+his nose to it: he then approached it to his lips: he then again put his
+nose to it, and at last said:
+
+"It is too bitter! too bitter! I cannot drink it."
+
+"How can you tell that, when you have not even tasted it?"
+
+"I can imagine it! I know it from the smell. I want first another lump
+of sugar and then I will drink it!"
+
+The Fairy then, with all the patience of a good mamma, put another lump
+of sugar in his mouth, and again presented the tumbler to him.
+
+"I cannot drink it so!" said the puppet, making a thousand grimaces.
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because that pillow that is down there on my feet bothers me."
+
+The Fairy removed the pillow.
+
+"It is useless. Even so I cannot drink it."
+
+"What is the matter now?"
+
+"The door of the room, which is half open, bothers me."
+
+The Fairy went and closed the door.
+
+"In short," cried Pinocchio, bursting into tears, "I will not drink that
+bitter water--no, no, no!"
+
+"My boy, you will repent it."
+
+"I don't care."
+
+"Your illness is serious."
+
+"I don't care."
+
+"The fever in a few hours will carry you into the other world."
+
+"I don't care."
+
+"Are you not afraid of death?"
+
+"I am not in the least afraid! I would rather die than drink that bitter
+medicine."
+
+At that moment the door of the room flew open and four rabbits as black
+as ink entered carrying on their shoulders a little bier.
+
+"What do you want with me?" cried Pinocchio, sitting up in bed in a
+great fright.
+
+"We have come to take you," said the biggest rabbit.
+
+"To take me? But I am not yet dead!"
+
+"No, not yet? but you have only a few minutes to live, as you have
+refused the medicine that would have cured you of the fever."
+
+"Oh, Fairy, Fairy!" the puppet then began to scream, "give me the
+tumbler at once; be quick, for pity's sake, for I will not die--no, I
+will not die."
+
+And, taking the tumbler in both hands, he emptied it at a gulp.
+
+"We must have patience!" said the rabbits; "this time we have made our
+journey in vain." And, taking the little bier again on their shoulders,
+they left the room, grumbling and murmuring between their teeth.
+
+In fact, a few minutes afterwards, Pinocchio jumped down from the bed
+quite well, because wooden puppets have the privilege of being seldom
+ill and of being cured very quickly.
+
+The Fairy, seeing him running and rushing about the room as gay and as
+lively as a young cock, said to him:
+
+"Then my medicine has really done you good?"
+
+"Good? I should think so! It has restored me to life!"
+
+"Then why on earth did you require so much persuasion to take it?"
+
+"Because you see that we boys are all like that! We are more afraid of
+medicine than of the illness."
+
+"Disgraceful! Boys ought to know that a good remedy taken in time may
+save them from a serious illness, and perhaps even from death."
+
+"Oh! but another time I shall not require so much persuasion. I shall
+remember those black rabbits with the bier on their shoulders and then I
+shall immediately take the tumbler in my hand, and down it will go!"
+
+"Now, come here to me and tell me how it came about that you fell into
+the hands of those assassins."
+
+"You see, the showman, Fire-Eater, gave me some gold pieces and said to
+me: 'Go, and take them to your father!' and instead I met on the road a
+Fox and a Cat, who said to me: 'Would you like those pieces of gold to
+become a thousand or two? Come with us and we will take you to the Field
+of Miracles,' and I said: 'Let us go.' And they said: 'Let us stop at
+the inn of The Red Craw-Fish,' and after midnight they left. And when I
+awoke I found that they were no longer there, because they had gone
+away. Then I began to travel by night, for you cannot imagine how dark
+it was; and on that account I met on the road two assassins in charcoal
+sacks who said to me: 'Out with your money,' and I said to them: 'I have
+got none,' because I had hidden the four gold pieces in my mouth, and
+one of the assassins tried to put his hand in my mouth, and I bit his
+hand off and spat it out, but instead of a hand it was a cat's paw. And
+the assassins ran after me, and I ran, and ran, until at last they
+caught me and tied me by the neck to a tree in this wood, and said to
+me: 'Tomorrow we shall return here and then you will be dead with your
+mouth open and we shall be able to carry off the pieces of gold that you
+have hidden under your tongue."
+
+"And the four pieces--where have you put them?" asked the Fairy.
+
+"I have lost them!" said Pinocchio, but he was telling a lie, for he had
+them in his pocket.
+
+He had scarcely told the lie when his nose, which was already long, grew
+at once two inches longer.
+
+"And where did you lose them?"
+
+"In the wood near here."
+
+At this second lie his nose went on growing.
+
+"If you have lost them in the wood near here," said the Fairy, "we will
+look for them and we shall find them: because everything that is lost in
+that wood is always found."
+
+"Ah! now I remember all about it," replied the puppet, getting quite
+confused; "I didn't lose the four gold pieces, I swallowed them whilst I
+was drinking your medicine."
+
+At this lie his nose grew to such an extraordinary length that poor
+Pinocchio could not move in any direction. If he turned to one side he
+struck his nose against the bed or the window-panes, if he turned to the
+other he struck it against the walls or the door, if he raised his head
+a little he ran the risk of sticking it into one of the Fairy's eyes.
+
+And the Fairy looked at him and laughed.
+
+"What are you laughing at?" asked the puppet, very confused and anxious
+at finding his nose growing so prodigiously.
+
+"I am laughing at the lie you have told."
+
+"And how can you possibly know that I have told a lie?"
+
+"Lies, my dear boy, are found out immediately, because they are of two
+sorts. There are lies that have short legs, and lies that have long
+noses. Your lie, as it happens, is one of those that have a long nose."
+
+Pinocchio, not knowing where to hide himself for shame, tried to run out
+of the room; but he did not succeed, for his nose had increased so much
+that it could no longer pass through the door.
+
+[Illustration: SPLASH! SPLASH! THEY FELL INTO THE VERY MIDDLE OF THE
+DITCH]
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+PINOCCHIO AGAIN MEETS THE FOX AND THE CAT
+
+
+The Fairy allowed the puppet to cry for a good half-hour over his nose,
+which could no longer pass through the door of the room. This she did to
+give him a severe lesson, and to correct him of the disgraceful fault of
+telling lies--the most disgraceful fault that a boy can have. But when
+she saw him quite disfigured and his eyes swollen out of his head from
+weeping, she felt full of compassion for him. She therefore beat her
+hands together and at that signal a thousand large birds called
+Woodpeckers flew in at the window. They immediately perched on
+Pinocchio's nose and began to peck at it with such zeal that in a few
+minutes his enormous and ridiculous nose was reduced to its usual
+dimensions.
+
+"What a good Fairy you are," said the puppet, drying his eyes, "and how
+much I love you!"
+
+"I love you also," answered the Fairy; "and if you will remain with me
+you shall be my little brother and I will be your good little sister."
+
+"I would remain willingly if it were not for my poor papa."
+
+"I have thought of everything. I have already let your father know, and
+he will be here tonight."
+
+"Really?" shouted Pinocchio, jumping for joy. "Then, little Fairy, if
+you consent, I should like to go and meet him. I am so anxious to give a
+kiss to that poor old man, who has suffered so much on my account, that
+I am counting the minutes."
+
+"Go, then, but be careful not to lose yourself. Take the road through
+the wood and I am sure that you will meet him."
+
+Pinocchio set out, and as soon as he was in the wood he began to run
+like a kid. But when he had reached a certain spot, almost in front of
+the Big Oak, he stopped, because he thought he heard people amongst the
+bushes. In fact, two persons came out on to the road. Can you guess who
+they were? His two traveling companions, the Fox and the Cat, with whom
+he had supped at the inn of The Red Craw-Fish.
+
+"Why, here is our dear Pinocchio!" cried the Fox, kissing and embracing
+him. "How came you to be here?"
+
+"How come you to be here?" repeated the Cat.
+
+"It is a long story," answered the puppet, "which I will tell you when I
+have time. But do you know that the other night, when you left me alone
+at the inn, I met with assassins on the road?"
+
+"Assassins! Oh, poor Pinocchio! And what did they want?"
+
+"They wanted to rob me of my gold pieces."
+
+"Villains!" said the Fox.
+
+"Infamous villains!" repeated the Cat.
+
+"But I ran away from them," continued the puppet, "and they followed me,
+and at last they overtook me and hung me to a branch of that oak tree."
+
+And Pinocchio pointed to the Big Oak, which was two steps from them.
+
+"Is it possible to hear of anything more dreadful?" said the Fox. "In
+what a world we are condemned to live! Where can respectable people like
+us find a safe refuge?"
+
+Whilst they were thus talking Pinocchio observed that the Cat was lame
+of her front right leg, for in fact she had lost her paw with all its
+claws. He therefore asked her:
+
+"What have you done with your paw?"
+
+The Cat tried to answer, but became confused. Therefore the Fox said
+immediately:
+
+"My friend is too modest, and that is why she doesn't speak. I will
+answer for her. I must tell you that an hour ago we met an old wolf on
+the road, almost fainting from want of food, who asked alms of us. Not
+having so much as a fish-bone to give him, what did my friend, who has
+really the heart of a Caesar, do? She bit off one of her fore paws and
+threw it to that poor beast that he might appease his hunger."
+
+And the Fox, in relating this, dried a tear.
+
+Pinocchio was also touched and, approaching the Cat, he whispered into
+her ear:
+
+"If all cats resembled you, how fortunate the mice would be!"
+
+"And now, what are you doing here?" asked the Fox of the puppet.
+
+"I am waiting for my papa, whom I expect to arrive every moment."
+
+"And your gold pieces?"
+
+"I have got them in my pocket, all but one that I spent at the inn of
+The Red Craw-Fish."
+
+"And to think that, instead of four pieces, by tomorrow they might
+become one or two thousand! Why do you not listen to my advice? Why will
+you not go and bury them in the Field of Miracles?"
+
+"Today it is impossible; I will go another day."
+
+"Another day it will be too late!" said the Fox.
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because the field has been bought by a gentleman and after tomorrow no
+one will be allowed to bury money there."
+
+"How far off is the Field of Miracles?"
+
+"Not two miles. Will you come with us? In half an hour you will be
+there. You can bury your money at once, and in a few minutes you will
+collect two thousand, and this evening you will return with your pockets
+full. Will you come with us?"
+
+Pinocchio thought of the good Fairy, old Geppetto, and the warnings of
+the Talking-Cricket, and he hesitated a little before answering. He
+ended, however, by doing as all boys do who have not a grain of sense
+and who have no heart--he ended by giving his head a little shake and
+saying to the Fox and the Cat:
+
+"Let us go: I will come with you."
+
+And they went.
+
+After having walked half the day they reached a town that was called
+"Trap for Blockheads." As soon as Pinocchio entered this town he saw
+that the streets were crowded with dogs who were yawning from hunger,
+shorn sheep trembling with cold, cocks without combs begging for a grain
+of Indian corn, large butterflies that could no longer fly because they
+had sold their beautiful colored wings, peacocks which had no tails and
+were ashamed to be seen, and pheasants that went scratching about in a
+subdued fashion, mourning for their brilliant gold and silver feathers
+gone forever.
+
+In the midst of this crowd of beggars and shamefaced creatures some
+lordly carriage passed from time to time containing a Fox, or a thieving
+Magpie, or some other ravenous bird of prey.
+
+"And where is the Field of Miracles?" asked Pinocchio.
+
+"It is here, not two steps from us."
+
+They crossed the town and, having gone beyond the walls, they came to a
+solitary field.
+
+"Here we are," said the Fox to the puppet. "Now stoop down and dig with
+your hands a little hole in the ground and put your gold pieces into
+it."
+
+Pinocchio obeyed. He dug a hole, put into it the four gold pieces that
+he had left, and then filled up the hole with a little earth.
+
+"Now, then," said the Fox, "go to that canal close to us, fetch a can of
+water, and water the ground where you have sowed them."
+
+Pinocchio went to the canal, and, as he had no can, he took off one of
+his old shoes and filling it with water he watered the ground over the
+hole.
+
+He then asked:
+
+"Is there anything else to be done?"
+
+"Nothing else," answered the Fox. "We can now go away. You can return in
+about twenty minutes and you will find a shrub already pushing through
+the ground, with its branches quite loaded with money."
+
+The poor puppet, beside himself with joy, thanked the Fox and the Cat a
+thousand times, and promised them a beautiful present.
+
+"We wish for no presents," answered the two rascals. "It is enough for
+us to have taught you the way to enrich yourself without undergoing hard
+work, and we are as happy as people out for a holiday."
+
+Thus saying, they took leave of Pinocchio, and, wishing him a good
+harvest, went about their business.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+PINOCCHIO IS ROBBED OF HIS MONEY
+
+
+The puppet returned to the town and began to count the minutes one by
+one, and when he thought that it must be time he took the road leading
+to the Field of Miracles.
+
+And as he walked along with hurried steps his heart beat fast--tic, tac,
+tic, tac--like a drawing-room clock when it is really going well.
+Meanwhile he was thinking to himself:
+
+"And if, instead of a thousand gold pieces, I were to find on the
+branches of the tree two thousand? And instead of two thousand,
+supposing I found five thousand? and instead of five thousand, that I
+found a hundred thousand? Oh! what a fine gentleman I should then
+become! I would have a beautiful palace, a thousand little wooden horses
+and a thousand stables to amuse myself with, a cellar full of currant
+wine and sweet syrups, and a library quite full of candies, tarts,
+plum-cakes, macaroons, and biscuits with cream."
+
+Whilst he was building these castles in the air he had arrived in the
+neighborhood of the field, and he stopped to look about for a tree with
+its branches laden with money, but he saw nothing. He advanced another
+hundred steps--nothing; he entered the field and went right up to the
+little hole where he had buried his sovereigns--and nothing. He then
+became very thoughtful and, forgetting the rules of society and good
+manners, he took his hands out of his pocket and gave his head a long
+scratch.
+
+At that moment he heard an explosion of laughter close to him and,
+looking up, he saw a large Parrot perched on a tree, who was pruning the
+few feathers he had left.
+
+"Why are you laughing?" asked Pinocchio in an angry voice.
+
+"I am laughing because in pruning my feathers I tickled myself under my
+wings."
+
+The puppet did not answer, but went to the canal and, filling the same
+old shoe full of water, he proceeded to water the earth afresh that
+covered his gold pieces.
+
+While he was thus occupied another laugh, still more impertinent than
+the first, rang out in the silence of that solitary place.
+
+"Once for all," shouted Pinocchio in a rage, "may I know, you
+ill-educated Parrot, what you are laughing at?"
+
+"I am laughing at those simpletons who believe in all the foolish things
+that are told them, and who allow themselves to be entrapped by those
+who are more cunning than they are."
+
+"Are you perhaps speaking of me?"
+
+"Yes, I am speaking of you, poor Pinocchio--of you who are simple
+enough to believe that money can be sown and gathered in fields in the
+same way as beans and gourds. I also believed it once and today I am
+suffering for it. Today--but it is too late--I have at last learned that
+to put a few pennies honestly together it is necessary to know how to
+earn them, either by the work of our own hands or by the cleverness of
+our own brains."
+
+"I don't understand you," said the puppet, who was already trembling
+with fear.
+
+"Have patience! I will explain myself better," rejoined the Parrot. "You
+must know, then, that while you were in the town the Fox and the Cat
+returned to the field; they took the buried money and then fled like the
+wind. And now he that catches them will be clever."
+
+Pinocchio remained with his mouth open and, not choosing to believe the
+Parrot's words, he began with his hands and nails to dig up the earth
+that he had watered. And he dug, and dug, and dug, and made such a deep
+hole that a rick of straw might have stood upright in it, but the money
+was no longer there.
+
+He rushed back to the town in a state of desperation and went at once to
+the Courts of Justice to denounce the two knaves who had robbed him to
+the judge.
+
+The judge was a big ape of the gorilla tribe, an old ape respectable for
+his age, his white beard, but especially for his gold spectacles without
+glasses that he was always obliged to wear, on account of an
+inflammation of the eyes that had tormented him for many years.
+
+Pinocchio related in the presence of the judge all the particulars of
+the infamous fraud of which he had been the victim. He gave the names,
+the surnames, and other details, of the two rascals, and ended by
+demanding justice.
+
+The judge listened with great benignity; took a lively interest in the
+story; was much touched and moved; and when the puppet had nothing
+further to say he stretched out his hand and rang a bell.
+
+At this summons two mastiffs immediately appeared dressed as gendarmes.
+The judge then, pointing to Pinocchio, said to them:
+
+"That poor devil has been robbed of four gold pieces; take him away and
+put him immediately into prison."
+
+The puppet was petrified on hearing this unexpected sentence and tried
+to protest; but the gendarmes, to avoid losing time, stopped his mouth
+and carried him off to the lockup.
+
+And there he remained for four months--four long months--and he would
+have remained longer still if a fortunate chance had not released him.
+The young Emperor who reigned over the town of "Trap for Blockheads,"
+having won a splendid victory over his enemies, ordered great public
+rejoicings. There were illuminations, fireworks, horse races and
+velocipede races, and as a further sign of triumph he commanded that the
+prisons should be opened and all the prisoners freed.
+
+"If the others are to be let out of prison, I will go also," said
+Pinocchio to the jailor.
+
+"No, not you," said the jailor, "because you do not belong to the
+fortunate class."
+
+"I beg your pardon," replied Pinocchio, "I am also a criminal."
+
+"In that case you are perfectly right," said the jailor, and, taking off
+his hat and bowing to him respectfully, he opened the prison doors and
+let him escape.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+PINOCCHIO STARTS BACK TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE
+
+
+You can imagine Pinocchio's joy when he found himself free. Without
+stopping to take breath he immediately left the town and took the road
+that led to the Fairy's house.
+
+On account of the rainy weather the road had become a marsh into which
+he sank knee-deep. But the puppet would not give in. Tormented by the
+desire of seeing his father and his little sister with blue hair again,
+he ran on like a greyhound, and as he ran he was splashed with mud from
+head to foot. And he said to himself as he went along: "How many
+misfortunes have happened to me. But I deserved them, for I am an
+obstinate, passionate puppet. I am always bent upon having my own way,
+without listening to those who wish me well, and who have a thousand
+times more sense than I have! But from this time forth I am determined
+to change and to become orderly and obedient. For at last I have seen
+that disobedient boys come to no good and gain nothing. And has my papa
+waited for me? Shall I find him at the Fairy's house? Poor man, it is so
+long since I last saw him: I am dying to embrace him and to cover him
+with kisses! And will the Fairy forgive me my bad conduct to her? To
+think of all the kindness and loving care I received from her, to think
+that if I am now alive I owe it to her! Would it be possible to find a
+more ungrateful boy, or one with less heart than I have?"
+
+Whilst he was saying this he stopped suddenly, frightened to death, and
+made four steps backwards.
+
+What had he seen?
+
+He had seen an immense Serpent stretched across the road. Its skin was
+green, it had red eyes, and a pointed tail that was smoking like a
+chimney.
+
+It would be impossible to imagine the puppet's terror. He walked away to
+a safe distance and, sitting down on a heap of stones, waited until the
+Serpent should have gone about its business and left the road clear.
+
+He waited an hour; two hours; three hours; but the Serpent was always
+there, and even from a distance he could see the red light of his fiery
+eyes and the column of smoke that ascended from the end of his tail.
+
+At last Pinocchio, trying to feel courageous, approached to within a few
+steps, and said to the Serpent in a little soft, insinuating voice:
+
+"Excuse me. Sir Serpent, but would you be so good as to move a little to
+one side--just enough to allow me to pass?"
+
+He might as well have spoken to the wall. Nobody moved.
+
+He began again in the same soft voice:
+
+"You must know. Sir Serpent, that I am on my way home, where my father
+is waiting for me, and it is such a long time since I saw him last! Will
+you, therefore, allow me to continue my road?"
+
+He waited for a sign in answer to this request, but there was none; in
+fact, the Serpent, who up to that moment had been sprightly and full of
+life, became motionless and almost rigid. He shut his eyes and his tail
+ceased smoking.
+
+"Can he really be dead?" said Pinocchio, rubbing his hands with delight.
+He determined to jump over him and reach the other side of the road.
+But, just as he was going to leap, the Serpent raised himself suddenly
+on end, like a spring set in motion; and the puppet, drawing back, in
+his terror caught his feet and fell to the ground.
+
+And he fell so awkwardly that his head stuck in the mud and his legs
+went into the air.
+
+At the sight of the puppet kicking violently with his head in the mud,
+the Serpent went into convulsions of laughter, and laughed, and laughed,
+until he broke a blood-vessel in his chest and died. And that time he
+was really dead.
+
+Pinocchio then set off running, in hopes that he should reach the
+Fairy's house before dark. But before long he began to suffer so
+dreadfully from hunger that he could not bear it, and he jumped into a
+field by the wayside, intending to pick some bunches of Muscatel grapes.
+Oh, that he had never done it!
+
+He had scarcely reached the vines when crack--his legs were caught
+between two cutting iron bars and he became so giddy with pain that
+stars of every color danced before his eyes.
+
+The poor puppet had been taken in a trap put there to capture some big
+polecats which were the scourge of the poultry-yards in the
+neighborhood.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+PINOCCHIO ACTS AS WATCH-DOG
+
+
+Pinocchio began to cry and scream, but his tears and groans were
+useless, for there was not a house to be seen, and not a living soul
+passed down the road.
+
+At last night came on.
+
+Partly from the pain of the trap, that cut his legs, and a little from
+fear at finding himself alone in the dark in the midst of the fields,
+the puppet was on the point of fainting. Just at that moment he saw a
+Firefly flitting over his head. He called to it and said:
+
+"Oh, little Firefly, will you have pity on me and liberate me from this
+torture?"
+
+"Poor boy!" said the Firefly, stopping and looking at him with
+compassion; "but how could your legs have been caught by those sharp
+irons?"
+
+"I came into the field to pick two bunches of these Muscatel grapes,
+and--"
+
+"But were the grapes yours?"
+
+"No."
+
+"Then who taught you to carry off other people's property?"
+
+"I was so hungry."
+
+"Hunger, my boy, is not a good reason for appropriating what does not
+belong to us."
+
+"That is true, that is true!" said Pinocchio, crying. "I will never do
+it again."
+
+At this moment their conversation was interrupted by a slight sound of
+approaching footsteps. It was the owner of the field coming on tiptoe to
+see if one of the polecats that ate his chickens during the night had
+been caught in his trap.
+
+His astonishment was great when, having brought out his lantern from
+under his coat, he perceived that instead of a polecat a boy had been
+taken.
+
+"Ah, little thief," said the angry peasant, "then it is you who carries
+off my chickens?"
+
+"No, it is not I; indeed it is not!" cried Pinocchio, sobbing. "I only
+came into the field to take two bunches of grapes!"
+
+"He who steals grapes is quite capable of stealing chickens. Leave it to
+me, I will give you a lesson that you will not forget in a hurry."
+
+Opening the trap, he seized the puppet by the collar and carried him to
+his house as if he had been a young lamb.
+
+When he reached the yard in front of the house he threw him roughly on
+the ground and, putting his foot on his neck, he said to him:
+
+"It is late and I want to go to bed; we will settle our accounts
+tomorrow. In the meanwhile, as the dog who kept guard at night died
+today, you shall take his place at once. You shall be my watch-dog."
+
+And, taking a great collar covered with brass knobs, he strapped it so
+tightly round his throat that he was not able to draw his head out of
+it. A heavy chain attached to the collar was fastened to the wall.
+
+"If it should rain tonight," he then said to him, "you can go and lie
+down in the kennel; the straw that has served as a bed for my poor dog
+for the last four years is still there. If unfortunately robbers should
+come, remember to keep your ears pricked and to bark."
+
+After giving him this last injunction the man went into the house, shut
+the door, and put up the chain.
+
+Poor Pinocchio remained lying on the ground more dead than alive from
+the effects of cold, hunger and fear. From time to time he put his hands
+angrily to the collar that tightened his throat and said, crying:
+
+"It serves me right! Decidedly, it serves me right! I was determined to
+be a vagabond and a good-for-nothing. I would listen to bad companions,
+and that is why I always meet with misfortunes. If I had been a good
+little boy, as so many are; if I had remained at home with my poor papa,
+I should not now be in the midst of the fields and obliged to be the
+watch-dog to a peasant's house. Oh, if I could be born again! But now it
+is too late and I must have patience!"
+
+Relieved by this little outburst, which came straight from his heart, he
+went into the dog-kennel and fell asleep.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+PINOCCHIO DISCOVERS THE ROBBERS
+
+
+He had been sleeping heavily for about two hours when, towards midnight, he
+was aroused by a whispering of strange voices that seemed to come from the
+courtyard. Putting the point of his nose out of the kennel, he saw four
+little beasts with dark fur, that looked like cats, standing consulting
+together. But they were not cats; they were polecats--carnivorous little
+animals, especially greedy for eggs and young chickens. One of the
+polecats, leaving his companions, came to the opening of the kennel and
+said in a low voice:
+
+"Good evening, Melampo."
+
+"My name is not Melampo," answered the puppet.
+
+"Oh! then who are you?"
+
+"I am Pinocchio."
+
+"And what are you doing here?"
+
+"I am acting as watch-dog."
+
+"Then where is Melampo? Where is the old dog who lived in this kennel?"
+
+"He died this morning."
+
+"Is he dead? Poor beast! He was so good. But, judging you by your face,
+I should say that you were also a good dog."
+
+"I beg your pardon, I am not a dog."
+
+"Not a dog? Then what are you?"
+
+"I am a puppet."
+
+"And you are acting as watch-dog?"
+
+"That is only too true--as a punishment."
+
+"Well, then, I will offer you the same conditions that we made with the
+deceased Melampo, and I am sure you will be satisfied with them."
+
+"What are these conditions?"
+
+"One night in every week you are to permit us to visit this poultry-yard
+as we have hitherto done, and to carry off eight chickens. Of these
+chickens seven are to be eaten by us, and one we will give to you, on
+the express understanding, however, that you pretend to be asleep, and
+that it never enters your head to bark and to waken the peasant."
+
+"Did Melampo act in this manner?" asked Pinocchio.
+
+"Certainly, and we were always on the best terms with him. Sleep
+quietly, and rest assured that before we go we will leave by the kennel
+a beautiful chicken ready plucked for your breakfast tomorrow. Have we
+understood each other clearly?"
+
+"Only too clearly!" answered Pinocchio, and he shook his head
+threateningly, as much as to say: "You shall hear of this shortly!"
+
+The four polecats, thinking themselves safe, repaired to the
+poultry-yard, which was close to the kennel, and, having opened the
+wooden gate with their teeth and claws, they slipped in one by one. But
+they had only just passed through when they heard the gate shut behind
+them with great violence.
+
+It was Pinocchio who had shut it, and for greater security he put a
+large stone against it to keep it closed.
+
+He then began to bark, and he barked exactly like a watch-dog: "Bow-wow,
+bow-wow."
+
+Hearing the barking, the peasant jumped out of bed and, taking his gun,
+he came to the window and asked:
+
+"What is the matter?"
+
+"There are robbers!" answered Pinocchio.
+
+"Where are they?"
+
+"In the poultry-yard."
+
+"I will come down directly."
+
+In fact, in less time than it takes to say "Amen!" the peasant came
+down. He rushed into the poultry-yard, caught the polecats, and, having
+put them into a sack, he said to them in a tone of great satisfaction:
+
+"At last you have fallen into my hands! I might punish you, but I am not
+so cruel. I will content myself instead by carrying you in the morning
+to the innkeeper of the neighboring village, who will skin and cook you
+as hares with a sweet and sour sauce. It is an honor that you don't
+deserve, but generous people like me don't consider such trifles!"
+
+He then approached Pinocchio and began to caress him, and amongst other
+things he asked him:
+
+"How did you manage to discover the four thieves? To think that Melampo,
+my faithful Melampo, never found out anything!"
+
+The puppet might then have told him the whole story; he might have
+informed him of the disgraceful conditions that had been made between
+the dog and the polecats; but he remembered that the dog was dead and he
+thought to himself:
+
+"What is the good of accusing the dead? The dead are dead, and the best
+thing to be done is to leave them in peace!"
+
+"When the thieves got into the yard, were you asleep or awake?" the
+peasant went on to ask him.
+
+"I was asleep," answered Pinocchio, "but the polecats woke me with their
+chatter and one of them came to the kennel and said to me: 'If you
+promise not to bark, and not to wake the master, we will make you a
+present of a fine chicken ready plucked!' To think that they should have
+had the audacity to make such a proposal to me! For, although I am a
+puppet, possessing perhaps nearly all the faults in the world, there is
+one that I certainly will never be guilty of, that of making terms with,
+and sharing the gains of, dishonest people!"
+
+"Well said, my boy!" cried the peasant, slapping him on the shoulder.
+"Such sentiments do you honor; and as a proof of my gratitude I will at
+once set you at liberty, and you may return home."
+
+And he removed the dog-collar.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+PINOCCHIO FLIES TO THE SEASHORE
+
+
+As soon as Pinocchio was released from the heavy and humiliating weight
+of the dog-collar he started off across the fields and never stopped
+until he had reached the high road that led to the Fairy's house. He
+could see amongst the trees the top of the Big Oak to which he had been
+hung, but, although he looked in every direction, the little house
+belonging to the beautiful Child with the blue hair was nowhere visible.
+
+Seized with a sad presentiment, he began to run with all the strength he
+had left and in a few minutes he reached the field where the little
+white house had once stood. But it was no longer there. Instead of the
+house he saw a marble stone, on which were engraved these sad words:
+
+              HERE LIES
+    THE CHILD WITH THE BLUE HAIR
+         WHO DIED FROM SORROW
+    BECAUSE SHE WAS ABANDONED BY HER
+        LITTLE BROTHER PINOCCHIO
+
+I leave you to imagine the puppet's feelings when he had with difficulty
+spelled out this epitaph. He fell with his face on the ground and,
+covering the tombstone with a thousand kisses, burst into an agony of
+tears. He cried all night and when morning came he was still crying,
+although he had no tears left, and his sobs and lamentations were so
+acute and heart-breaking that they aroused the echoes in the surrounding
+hills.
+
+And as he wept he said:
+
+"Oh, little Fairy, why did you die? Why did I not die instead of you, I
+who am so wicked, whilst you were so good? And my papa? Where can he be?
+Oh, little Fairy, tell me where I can find him, for I want to remain
+with him always and never leave him again, never again! Oh, little
+Fairy, tell me that it is not true that you are dead! If you really love
+your little brother, come to life again. Does it not grieve you to see
+me alone and abandoned by everybody? If assassins come they will hang me
+again to the branch of a tree, and then I should die indeed. What do you
+imagine that I can do here alone in the world? Now that I have lost you
+and my papa, who will give me food? Where shall I go to sleep at night?
+Who will make me a new jacket? Oh, it would be better, a hundred times
+better, for me to die also! Yes, I want to die--oh! oh! oh!"
+
+[Illustration: An Immense Serpent Stretched Across the Road]
+
+And in his despair he tried to tear his hair, but his hair was made
+of wood so he could not even have the satisfaction of sticking his
+fingers into it.
+
+Just then a large Pigeon flew over his head and, stopping with distended
+wings, called down to him from a great height:
+
+"Tell me, child, what are you doing there?"
+
+"Don't you see? I am crying!" said Pinocchio, raising his head towards
+the voice and rubbing his eyes with his jacket.
+
+"Tell me," continued the Pigeon, "amongst your companions, do you happen
+to know a puppet who is called Pinocchio?"
+
+"Pinocchio? Did you say Pinocchio?" repeated the puppet, jumping quickly
+to his feet. "I am Pinocchio!"
+
+At this answer the Pigeon descended rapidly to the ground. He was larger
+than a turkey.
+
+"Do you also know Geppetto?" he asked.
+
+"Do I know him! He is my poor papa! Has he perhaps spoken to you of me?
+Will you take me to him? Is he still alive? Answer me, for pity's sake:
+is he still alive?"
+
+"I left him three days ago on the seashore."
+
+"What was he doing?"
+
+"He was building a little boat for himself, to cross the ocean. For more
+than three months that poor man has been going all round the world
+looking for you. Not having succeeded in finding you, he has now taken
+it into his head to go to the distant countries of the New World in
+search of you."
+
+"How far is it from here to the shore?" asked Pinocchio breathlessly.
+
+"More than six hundred miles."
+
+"Six hundred miles? Oh, beautiful Pigeon, what a fine thing it would be
+to have your wings!"
+
+"If you wish to go, I will carry you there."
+
+"How?"
+
+"On my back. Do you weigh much?"
+
+"I weigh next to nothing. I am as light as a feather."
+
+And without waiting for more Pinocchio jumped at once on the Pigeon's
+back and, putting a leg on each side of him as men do on horseback, he
+exclaimed joyfully:
+
+"Gallop, gallop, my little horse, for I am anxious to arrive quickly!"
+
+The Pigeon took flight and in a few minutes had soared so high that they
+almost touched the clouds. Finding himself at such an immense height the
+puppet had the curiosity to turn and look down; but his head spun round
+and he became so frightened to save himself from the danger of falling
+he wound his arms tightly round the neck of his feathered steed.
+
+They flew all day. Towards evening the Pigeon said:
+
+"I am very thirsty!"
+
+"And I am very hungry!" rejoined Pinocchio.
+
+"Let us stop at that dovecote for a few minutes and then we will
+continue our journey, so that we may reach the seashore by dawn
+tomorrow."
+
+They went into a deserted dovecote, where they found nothing but a basin
+full of water and a basket full of vetch.
+
+The puppet had never in his life been able to eat vetch: according to
+him it made him sick. That evening, however, he ate to repletion, and
+when he had nearly emptied the basket he turned to the Pigeon and said
+to him:
+
+"I never could have believed that vetch was so good!"
+
+"Be assured, my boy," replied the Pigeon, "that when hunger is real, and
+there is nothing else to eat, even vetch becomes delicious. Hunger
+knows neither caprice nor greediness."
+
+Having quickly finished their little meal they recommenced their journey
+and flew away. The following morning they reached the seashore.
+
+The Pigeon placed Pinocchio on the ground and, not wishing to be
+troubled with thanks for having done a good action, flew quickly away
+and disappeared.
+
+The shore was crowded with people who were looking out to sea, shouting
+and gesticulating.
+
+"What has happened?" asked Pinocchio of an old woman.
+
+"A poor father who has lost his son has gone away in a boat to search
+for him on the other side of the water, and today the sea is tempestuous
+and the little boat is in danger of sinking."
+
+"Where is the little boat?"
+
+"It is out there in a line with my finger," said the old woman, pointing
+to a little boat which, seen at that distance, looked like a nutshell
+with a very little man in it.
+
+Pinocchio fixed his eyes on it and after looking attentively he gave a
+piercing scream, crying:
+
+"It is my papa! It is my papa!"
+
+The boat, meanwhile, beaten by the fury of the waves, at one moment
+disappeared in the trough of the sea, and the next came again to the
+surface. Pinocchio, standing on the top of a high rock, kept calling to
+his father by name, and making every kind of signal to him with his
+hands, his handkerchief, and his cap.
+
+And, although he was so far off, Geppetto appeared to recognize his son,
+for he also took off his cap and waved it, and tried by gestures to
+make him understand that he would have returned if it had been possible,
+but that the sea was so tempestuous that he could not use his oars or
+approach the shore.
+
+Suddenly a tremendous wave rose and the boat disappeared. They waited,
+hoping it would come again to the surface, but it was seen no more.
+
+"Poor man!" said the fishermen who were assembled on the shore;
+murmuring a prayer, they turned to go home.
+
+Just then they heard a desperate cry and, looking back, they saw a
+little boy who exclaimed, as he jumped from a rock into the sea:
+
+"I will save my papa!"
+
+Pinocchio, being made of wood, floated easily and he swam like a fish.
+At one moment they saw him disappear under the water, carried down by
+the fury of the waves, and next he reappeared struggling with a leg or
+an arm. At last they lost sight of him and he was seen no more.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+PINOCCHIO FINDS THE FAIRY AGAIN
+
+
+Pinocchio, hoping to be in time to help his father, swam the whole
+night.
+
+And what a horrible night it was! The rain came down in torrents, it
+hailed, the thunder was frightful, and the flashes of lightning made it
+as light as day.
+
+Towards morning he saw a long strip of land not far off. It was an
+island in the midst of the sea.
+
+He tried his utmost to reach the shore, but it was all in vain. The
+waves, racing and tumbling over each other, knocked him about as if he
+had been a stick or a wisp of straw. At last, fortunately for him, a
+billow rolled up with such fury and impetuosity that he was lifted up
+and thrown far on to the sands.
+
+He fell with such force that, as he struck the ground, his ribs and all
+his joints cracked, but he comforted himself, saying:
+
+"This time also I have made a wonderful escape!"
+
+Little by little the sky cleared, the sun shone out in all his splendor,
+and the sea became as quiet and as smooth as oil.
+
+The puppet put his clothes in the sun to dry and began to look in every
+direction in hopes of seeing on the vast expanse of water a little boat
+with a little man in it. But, although he looked and looked, he could
+see nothing but the sky, and the sea, and the sail of some ship, but so
+far away that it seemed no bigger than a fly.
+
+"If I only knew what this island was called!" he said to himself. "If I
+only knew whether it was inhabited by civilized people--I mean, by
+people who have not the bad habit of hanging boys to the branches of the
+trees. But whom can I ask? Whom, if there is nobody?"
+
+This idea of finding himself alone, alone, all alone, in the midst of
+this great uninhabited country, made him so melancholy that he was just
+beginning to cry. But at that moment, at a short distance from the
+shore, he saw a big fish swimming by; it was going quietly on its own
+business with its head out of the water.
+
+Not knowing its name, the puppet called to it in a loud voice to make
+himself heard:
+
+"Eh, Sir Fish, will you permit me a word with you?"
+
+"Two if you like," answered the fish, who was a Dolphin, and so polite
+that few similar are to be found in any sea in the world.
+
+"Will you be kind enough to tell me if there are villages in this island
+where it would be possible to obtain something to eat, without running
+the danger of being eaten?"
+
+"Certainly there are," replied the Dolphin. "Indeed, you will find one
+at a short distance from here."
+
+"And what road must I take to go there?"
+
+"You must take that path to your left and follow your nose. You cannot
+make a mistake."
+
+"Will you tell me another thing? You who swim about the sea all day and
+all night, have you by chance met a little boat with my papa in it?"
+
+"And who is your papa?"
+
+"He is the best papa in the world, whilst it would be difficult to find
+a worse son than I am."
+
+"During the terrible storm last night," answered the Dolphin, "the
+little boat must have gone to the bottom."
+
+"And my papa?"
+
+"He must have been swallowed by the terrible Dog-Fish, who for some days
+past has been spreading devastation and ruin in our waters."
+
+"Is this Dog-Fish very big?" asked Pinocchio, who was already beginning
+to quake with fear.
+
+"Big!" replied the Dolphin. "That you may form some idea of his size, I
+need only tell you that he is bigger than a five-storied house, and that
+his mouth is so enormous and so deep that a railway train with its
+smoking engine could pass down his throat."
+
+"Mercy upon us!" exclaimed the terrified puppet; and, putting on his
+clothes with the greatest haste, he said to the Dolphin:
+
+"Good-bye, Sir Fish; excuse the trouble I have given you, and many
+thanks for your politeness."
+
+He then took the path that had been pointed out to him and began to
+walk fast--so fast, indeed, that he was almost running. And at the
+slightest noise he turned to look behind him, fearing that he might see
+the terrible Dog-Fish with a railway train in its mouth following him.
+
+After a walk of half an hour he reached a little village called "The
+Village of the Industrious Bees." The road was alive with people running
+here and there to attend to their business; all were at work, all had
+something to do. You could not have found an idler or a vagabond, not
+even if you had searched for him with a lighted lamp.
+
+"Ah!" said that lazy Pinocchio at once, "I see that this village will
+never suit me! I wasn't born to work!"
+
+In the meanwhile he was tormented by hunger, for he had eaten nothing
+for twenty-four hours--not even vetch. What was he to do?
+
+There were only two ways by which he could obtain food--either by asking
+for a little work, or by begging for a nickel or for a mouthful of
+bread.
+
+He was ashamed to beg, for his father had always preached to him that no
+one had a right to beg except the aged and the infirm. The really poor
+in this world, deserving of compassion and assistance, are only those
+who from age or sickness are no longer able to earn their own bread with
+the labor of their hands. It is the duty of every one else to work; and
+if they will not work, so much the worse for them if they suffer from
+hunger.
+
+At that moment a man came down the road, tired and panting for breath.
+He was dragging, alone, with fatigue and difficulty, two carts full of
+charcoal.
+
+Pinocchio, judging by his face that he was a kind man, approached him
+and, casting down his eyes with shame, he said to him in a low voice:
+
+"Would you have the charity to give me a nickel, for I am dying of
+hunger?"
+
+"You shall have not only a nickel," said the man, "but I will give you a
+quarter, provided that you help me to drag home these two carts of
+charcoal."
+
+"I am surprised at you!" answered the puppet in a tone of offense. "Let
+me tell you that I am not accustomed to do the work of a donkey: I have
+never drawn a cart!"
+
+"So much the better for you," answered the man. "Then, my boy, if you
+are really dying of hunger, eat two fine slices of your pride, and be
+careful not to get indigestion."
+
+A few minutes afterwards a mason passed down the road carrying on his
+shoulders a basket of lime.
+
+"Would you have the charity, good man, to give a nickel to a poor boy
+who is yawning for want of food?"
+
+"Willingly," answered the man. "Come with me and carry the lime, and
+instead of a nickel I will give you a quarter."
+
+"But the lime is heavy," objected Pinocchio, "and I don't want to tire
+myself."
+
+"If you don't want to tire yourself, then, my boy, amuse yourself with
+yawning, and much good may it do you."
+
+In less than half an hour twenty other people went by, and Pinocchio
+asked charity of them all, but they all answered:
+
+"Are you not ashamed to beg? Instead of idling about the roads, go and
+look for a little work and learn to earn your bread."
+
+At last a nice little woman carrying two cans of water came by.
+
+"Will you let me drink a little water out of your can?" asked Pinocchio,
+who was burning with thirst.
+
+"Drink, my boy, if you wish it!" said the little woman, setting down the
+two cans.
+
+Pinocchio drank like a fish, and as he dried his mouth he mumbled:
+
+"I have quenched my thirst. If I could only appease my hunger!"
+
+The good woman, hearing these words, said at once:
+
+"If you will help me to carry home these two cans of water I will give
+you a fine piece of bread."
+
+Pinocchio looked at the can and answered neither yes nor no.
+
+"And besides the bread you shall have a nice dish of cauliflower dressed
+with oil and vinegar," added the good woman.
+
+Pinocchio gave another look at the can and answered neither yes nor no.
+
+"And after the cauliflower I will give you a beautiful bonbon full of
+syrup."
+
+The temptation of this last dainty was so great that Pinocchio could
+resist no longer and with an air of decision he said:
+
+"I must have patience! I will carry the can to your house."
+
+The can was heavy and the puppet, not being strong enough to carry it in
+his hand, had to resign himself to carry it on his head.
+
+When they reached the house the good little woman made Pinocchio sit
+down at a small table already laid and she placed before him the bread,
+the cauliflower and the bonbon.
+
+Pinocchio did not eat, he devoured. His stomach was like an apartment
+that had been left empty and uninhabited for five months.
+
+When his ravenous hunger was somewhat appeased he raised his head to
+thank his benefactress, but he had no sooner looked at her than he gave
+a prolonged "Oh-h!" of astonishment and continued staring at her with
+wide open eyes, his fork in the air, and his mouth full of bread and
+cauliflower, as if he had been bewitched.
+
+"What has surprised you so much?" asked the good woman, laughing.
+
+"It is--" answered the puppet, "it is--it is--that you are like--that
+you remind me--yes, yes, yes, the same voice--the same eyes--the same
+hair--yes, yes, yes--you also have blue hair--as she had--Oh, little
+Fairy! tell me that it is you, really you! Do not make me cry any more!
+If you knew--I have cried so much, I have suffered so much."
+
+And, throwing himself at her feet on the floor, Pinocchio embraced the
+knees of the mysterious little woman and began to cry bitterly.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+PINOCCHIO PROMISES THE FAIRY TO BE GOOD
+
+
+At first the good little woman maintained that she was not the little
+Fairy with blue hair, but, seeing that she was found out and not wishing
+to continue the comedy any longer, she ended by making herself known,
+and she said to Pinocchio:
+
+"You little rogue! how did you ever discover who I was?"
+
+"It was my great affection for you that told me."
+
+"Do you remember? You left me a child, and now that you have found me
+again I am a woman--a woman almost old enough to be your mamma."
+
+"I am delighted at that, for now, instead of calling you little sister,
+I will call you mamma. I have wished for such a long time to have a
+mamma like other boys! But how did you manage to grow so fast?"
+
+"That is a secret."
+
+"Teach it to me, for I should also like to grow. Don't you see? I always
+remain no bigger than a ninepin."
+
+"But you cannot grow," replied the Fairy.
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because puppets never grow. They are born puppets, live puppets, and
+die puppets."
+
+"Oh, I am sick of being a puppet!" cried Pinocchio, giving himself a
+slap. "It is time that I became a man."
+
+"And you will become one, if you know how to deserve it."
+
+"Not really? And what can I do to deserve it?"
+
+"A very easy thing: by learning to be a good boy."
+
+"And you think I am not?"
+
+"You are quite the contrary. Good boys are obedient, and you--"
+
+"And I never obey."
+
+"Good boys like to learn and to work, and you--"
+
+"And I instead lead an idle, vagabond life the year through."
+
+"Good boys always speak the truth."
+
+"And I always tell lies."
+
+"Good boys go willingly to school."
+
+"And school gives me pain all over the body. But from today I will
+change my life."
+
+"Do you promise me?"
+
+"I promise you. I will become a good little boy, and I will be the
+consolation of my papa. Where is my poor papa at this moment?"
+
+"I do not know."
+
+"Shall I ever have the happiness of seeing him again and kissing him?"
+
+"I think so; indeed, I am sure of it."
+
+At this answer Pinocchio was so delighted that he took the Fairy's hands
+and began to kiss them with such fervor that he seemed beside himself.
+Then, raising his face and looking at her lovingly, he asked:
+
+"Tell me, little mamma: then it was not true that you were dead?"
+
+"It seems not," said the Fairy, smiling.
+
+"If you only knew the sorrow I felt and the tightening of my throat when
+I read, 'Here lies--'"
+
+"I know it, and it is on that account that I have forgiven you. I saw
+from the sincerity of your grief that you had a good heart; and when
+boys have good hearts, even if they are scamps and have got bad habits,
+there is always something to hope for; that is, there is always hope
+that they will turn to better ways. That is why I came to look for you
+here. I will be your mamma."
+
+"Oh, how delightful!" shouted Pinocchio, jumping for joy.
+
+"You must obey me and do everything that I bid you."
+
+"Willingly, willingly, willingly!"
+
+"Tomorrow," rejoined the Fairy, "you will begin to go to school."
+
+Pinocchio became at once a little less joyful.
+
+"Then you must choose an art, or a trade, according to your own wishes."
+
+Pinocchio became very grave.
+
+"What are you muttering between your teeth?" asked the Fairy in an
+angry voice.
+
+"I was saying," moaned the puppet in a low voice, "that it seemed to me
+too late for me to go to school now."
+
+"No, sir. Keep it in mind that it is never too late to learn and to
+instruct ourselves."
+
+"But I do not wish to follow either an art or a trade."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because it tires me to work."
+
+"My boy," said the Fairy, "those who talk in that way end almost always
+either in prison or in the hospital. Let me tell you that every man,
+whether he is born rich or poor, is obliged to do something in this
+world--to occupy himself, to work. Woe to those who lead slothful lives.
+Sloth is a dreadful illness and must be cured at once, in childhood. If
+not, when we are old it can never be cured."
+
+Pinocchio was touched by these words and, lifting his head quickly, he
+said to the Fairy:
+
+"I will study, I will work, I will do all that you tell me, for indeed I
+have become weary of being a puppet, and I wish at any price to become a
+boy. You promised me that I should, did you not?"
+
+"I did promise you, and it now depends upon yourself."
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+THE TERRIBLE DOG-FISH
+
+
+The following day Pinocchio went to the government school. Imagine the
+delight of all the little rogues, when they saw a puppet walk into their
+school! They set up a roar of laughter that never ended. They played him
+all sorts of tricks. One boy carried off his cap, another pulled his
+jacket behind; one tried to give him a pair of inky mustachios just
+under his nose, and another attempted to tie strings to his feet and
+hands to make him dance.
+
+For a short time Pinocchio pretended not to care and got on as well as
+he could; but at last, losing all patience, he turned to those who were
+teasing him most and making game of him, and said to them, looking very
+angry:
+
+"Beware, boys! I have not come here to be your buffoon. I respect
+others, and I intend to be respected."
+
+[Illustration: "Oh, I Am Sick of Being a Puppet!" Cried Pinocchio]
+
+"Well said, boaster! You have spoken like a book!" howled the young
+rascals, convulsed with mad laughter, and one of them, more impertinent
+than the others, stretched out his hand, intending to seize the puppet
+by the end of his nose.
+
+But he was not in time, for Pinocchio stuck his leg out from under the
+table and gave him a great kick on his shins.
+
+"Oh, what hard feet!" roared the boy, rubbing the bruise that the puppet
+had given him.
+
+"And what elbows! even harder than his feet!" said another, who for his
+rude tricks had received a blow in the stomach.
+
+But, nevertheless, the kick and the blow acquired at once for Pinocchio
+the sympathy and the esteem of all the boys in the school. They all made
+friends with him and liked him heartily.
+
+And even the master praised him, for he found him attentive, studious
+and intelligent--always the first to come to school, and the last to
+leave when school was over.
+
+But he had one fault: he made too many friends, and amongst them were
+several young rascals well known for their dislike to study and love of
+mischief.
+
+The master warned him every day, and even the good Fairy never failed to
+tell him and to repeat constantly:
+
+"Take care, Pinocchio! Those bad school-fellows of yours will end sooner
+or later by making you lose all love of study, and perhaps they may even
+bring upon you some great misfortune."
+
+"There is no fear of that!" answered the puppet, shrugging his shoulders
+and touching his forehead as much as to say: "There is so much sense
+here!"
+
+Now it happened that one fine day, as he was on his way to school, he
+met several of his usual companions who, coming up to him, asked:
+
+"Have you heard the great news?"
+
+"No."
+
+"In the sea near here a Dog-Fish has appeared as big as a mountain."
+
+"Not really? Can it be the same Dog-Fish that was there when my papa was
+drowned?"
+
+"We are going to the shore to see him. Will you come with us?"
+
+"No; I am going to school."
+
+"What matters school? We can go to school tomorrow. Whether we have a
+lesson more or a lesson less, we shall always remain the same donkeys."
+
+"But what will the master say?"
+
+"The master may say what he likes. He is paid on purpose to grumble all
+day."
+
+"And my mamma?"
+
+"Mammas know nothing," answered those bad little boys.
+
+"Do you know what I will do?" said Pinocchio. "I have reasons for
+wishing to see the Dog-Fish, but I will go and see him when school is
+over."
+
+"Poor donkey!" exclaimed one of the number. "Do you suppose that a fish
+of that size will wait your convenience? As soon as he is tired of being
+here he will start for another place, and then it will be too late."
+
+"How long does it take to go from here to the shore?" asked the puppet.
+
+"We can be there and back in an hour."
+
+"Then away!" shouted Pinocchio, "and he who runs fastest is the best!"
+
+Having thus given the signal to start, the boys, with their books and
+copy-books under their arms, rushed off across the fields, and Pinocchio
+was always the first--he seemed to have wings to his feet.
+
+From time to time he turned to jeer at his companions, who were some
+distance behind, and, seeing them panting for breath, covered with dust,
+and their tongues hanging out of their mouths, he laughed heartily. The
+unfortunate boy little knew what terrors and horrible disasters he was
+going to meet with!
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+PINOCCHIO IS ARRESTED BY THE GENDARMES
+
+
+When he arrived on the shore Pinocchio looked out to sea, but he saw no
+Dog-Fish. The sea was as smooth as a great crystal mirror.
+
+"Where is the Dog-Fish?" he asked, turning to his companions.
+
+"He must have gone to have his breakfast," said one of them, laughing.
+
+"Or he has thrown himself on to his bed to have a little nap," added
+another, laughing still louder.
+
+From their absurd answers and silly laughter Pinocchio perceived that
+his companions had been making a fool of him, in inducing him to believe
+a tale with no truth in it. Taking it very badly, he said to them
+angrily:
+
+"And now, may I ask what fun you could find in deceiving me with the
+story of the Dog-Fish?"
+
+"Oh, it was great fun!" answered the little rascals in chorus.
+
+"And in what did it consist?"
+
+"In making you miss school and persuading you to come with us. Are you
+not ashamed of being always so punctual and so diligent with your
+lessons? Are you not ashamed of studying so hard?"
+
+"And if I study hard, what concern is it of yours?"
+
+"It concerns us excessively, because it makes us appear in a bad light
+to the master."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because boys who study make those who, like us, have no wish to learn,
+seem worse by comparison. And that is too bad. We, too, have our pride!"
+
+"Then what must I do to please you?"
+
+"You must follow our example and hate school, lessons, and the
+master--our three greatest enemies."
+
+"And if I wish to continue my studies?"
+
+"In that case we will have nothing more to do with you, and at the first
+opportunity we will make you pay for it."
+
+"Really," said the puppet, shaking his head, "you make me inclined to
+laugh."
+
+"Eh, Pinocchio" shouted the biggest of the boys, confronting him. "None
+of your superior airs: don't come here to crow over us, for if you are
+not afraid of us, we are not afraid of you. Remember that you are one
+against seven of us."
+
+"Seven, like the seven deadly sins," said Pinocchio, with a shout of
+laughter.
+
+"Listen to him! He has insulted us all! He called us the seven deadly
+sins!"
+
+"Take that to begin with and keep it for your supper tonight," said one
+of the boys.
+
+And, so saying, he gave him a blow on the head with his fist.
+
+But it was give and take; for the puppet, as was to be expected,
+immediately returned the blow, and the fight in a moment became general
+and desperate.
+
+Pinocchio, although he was one alone, defended himself like a hero. He
+used his feet, which were of the hardest wood, to such purpose that he
+kept his enemies at a respectful distance. Wherever they touched they
+left a bruise by way of reminder.
+
+The boys, becoming furious at not being able to measure themselves hand
+to hand with the puppet, had recourse to other weapons. Loosening their
+satchels, they commenced throwing their school-books at him--grammars,
+dictionaries, spelling-books, geography books, and other scholastic
+works. But Pinocchio was quick and had sharp eyes, and always managed to
+duck in time, so that the books passed over his head and all fell into
+the sea.
+
+Imagine the astonishment of the fish! Thinking that the books were
+something to eat they all arrived in shoals, but, having tasted a page
+or two, or a frontispiece, they spat it quickly out and made a wry face
+that seemed to say: "It isn't food for us; we are accustomed to
+something much better!"
+
+The battle meantime had become fiercer than ever, when a big crab, who
+had come out of the water and had climbed slowly up on the shore, called
+out in a hoarse voice that sounded like a trumpet with a bad cold:
+
+[Illustration: FOUR RABBITS AS BLACK AS INK ENTERED CARRYING A LITTLE
+BIER]
+
+"Have done with that, you young ruffians, for you are nothing else!
+These hand-to-hand fights between boys seldom finish well. Some disaster
+is sure to happen!"
+
+Poor crab! He might as well have preached to the wind. Even that young
+rascal, Pinocchio, turning around, looked at him mockingly and said
+rudely:
+
+"Hold your tongue, you tiresome crab! You had better suck some liquorice
+lozenges to cure that cold in your throat."
+
+Just then the boys, who had no more books of their own to throw, spied
+at a little distance the satchel that belonged to Pinocchio, and took
+possession of it.
+
+Amongst the books there was one bound in strong cardboard with the back
+and points of parchment. It was a Treatise on Arithmetic.
+
+One of the boys seized this volume and, aiming at Pinocchio's head,
+threw it at him with all the force he could muster. But instead of
+hitting the puppet it struck one of his companions on the temple, who,
+turning as white as a sheet, said only:
+
+"Oh, mother! help, I am dying!" and fell his whole length on the sand.
+Thinking he was dead, the terrified boys ran off as hard as their legs
+could carry them and in a few minutes they were out of sight.
+
+But Pinocchio remained. Although from grief and fright he was more dead
+than alive, nevertheless he ran and soaked his handkerchief in the sea
+and began to bathe the temples of his poor school-fellow. Crying
+bitterly in his despair, he kept calling him by name and saying to him:
+
+"Eugene! my poor Eugene! Open your eyes and look at me! Why do you not
+answer? I did not do it; indeed it was not I that hurt you so! believe
+me, it was not! Open your eyes, Eugene. If you keep your eyes shut I
+shall die, too. Oh! what shall I do? how shall I ever return home? How
+can I ever have the courage to go back to my good mamma? What will
+become of me? Where can I fly to? Oh! how much better it would have
+been, a thousand times better, if I had only gone to school! Why did I
+listen to my companions? they have been my ruin. The master said to me,
+and my mamma repeated it often: 'Beware of bad companions!' Oh, dear!
+what will become of me, what will become of me, what will become of me?"
+
+And Pinocchio began to cry and sob, and to strike his head with his
+fists, and to call poor Eugene by his name. Suddenly he heard the sound
+of approaching footsteps.
+
+He turned and saw two soldiers.
+
+"What are you doing there, lying on the ground?" they asked Pinocchio.
+
+"I am helping my school-fellow."
+
+"Has he been hurt?"
+
+"So it seems."
+
+"Hurt indeed!" said one of them, stooping down and examining Eugene
+closely.
+
+"This boy has been wounded in the temple. Who wounded him?"
+
+"Not I," stammered the puppet breathlessly.
+
+"If it was not you, who then did it?"
+
+"Not I," repeated Pinocchio.
+
+"And with what was he wounded?"
+
+"With this book." And the puppet picked up from the ground the Treatise
+on Arithmetic, bound in cardboard and parchment, and showed it to the
+soldier.
+
+"And to whom does this belong?"
+
+"To me."
+
+"That is enough, nothing more is wanted. Get up and come with us at
+once."
+
+"But I--"
+
+"Come along with us!"
+
+"But I am innocent."
+
+"Come along with us!"
+
+Before they left, the soldiers called some fishermen who were passing at
+that moment near the shore in their boat, and said to them:
+
+"We give this boy who has been wounded in the head in your charge. Carry
+him to your house and nurse him. Tomorrow we will come and see him."
+
+They then turned to Pinocchio and, having placed him between them, they
+said to him in a commanding voice:
+
+"Forward! and walk quickly, or it will be the worse for you."
+
+Without requiring it to be repeated, the puppet set out along the road
+leading to the village. But the poor little devil hardly knew where he
+was. He thought he must be dreaming, and what a dreadful dream! He was
+beside himself. He saw double; his legs shook; his tongue clung to the
+roof of his mouth, and he could not utter a word. And yet, in the midst
+of his stupefaction and apathy, his heart was pierced by a cruel
+thorn--the thought that he would pass under the windows of the good
+Fairy's house between the soldiers. He would rather have died.
+
+They had already reached the village when a gust of wind blew
+Pinocchio's cap off his head and carried it ten yards off.
+
+"Will you permit me," said the puppet to the soldiers, "to go and get
+my cap?"
+
+"Go, then; but be quick about it."
+
+The puppet went and picked up his cap, but instead of putting it on his
+head he took it between his teeth and began to run as hard as he could
+towards the seashore.
+
+The soldiers, thinking it would be difficult to overtake him, sent after
+him a large mastiff who had won the first prizes at all the dog races.
+Pinocchio ran, but the dog ran faster. The people came to their windows
+and crowded into the street in their anxiety to see the end of the
+desperate race.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+PINOCCHIO ESCAPES BEING FRIED LIKE A FISH
+
+
+There came a moment in this desperate race--a terrible moment--when
+Pinocchio thought himself lost: for Alidoro, the mastiff, had run so
+swiftly that he had nearly come up with him.
+
+The puppet could hear the panting of the dreadful beast close behind
+him; there was not a hand's breadth between them, he could even feel the
+dog's hot breath.
+
+Fortunately the shore was close and the sea but a few steps off.
+
+As soon as he reached the sands the puppet made a wonderful leap--a frog
+could have done no better--and plunged into the water.
+
+Alidoro, on the contrary, wished to stop himself, but, carried away by
+the impetus of the race, he also went into the sea. The unfortunate dog
+could not swim, but he made great efforts to keep himself afloat with
+his paws; but the more he struggled the farther he sank head downwards
+under the water.
+
+When he rose to the surface again his eyes were rolling with terror, and
+he barked out:
+
+"I am drowning! I am drowning!"
+
+"Drown!" shouted Pinocchio from a distance, seeing himself safe from all
+danger.
+
+"Help me, dear Pinocchio! Save me from death!"
+
+At that agonizing cry the puppet, who had in reality an excellent heart,
+was moved with compassion, and, turning to the dog, he said:
+
+"But if I save your life, will you promise to give me no further
+annoyance, and not to run after me?"
+
+"I promise! I promise! Be quick, for pity's sake, for if you delay
+another half-minute I shall be dead."
+
+Pinocchio hesitated; but, remembering that his father had often told him
+that a good action is never lost, he swam to Alidoro, and, taking hold
+of his tail with both hands, brought him safe and sound on to the dry
+sand of the beach.
+
+The poor dog could not stand. He had drunk so much salt water that he
+was like a balloon. The puppet, however, not wishing to trust him too
+far, thought it more prudent to jump again into the water. When he had
+swum some distance from the shore he called out to the friend he had
+rescued:
+
+"Good-bye, Alidoro; a good journey to you, and take my compliments to
+all at home."
+
+"Good-bye, Pinocchio," answered the dog; "a thousand thanks for having
+saved my life. You have done me a great service, and in this world what
+is given is returned. If an occasion offers I shall not forget it."
+
+Pinocchio swam on, keeping always near the land. At last he thought that
+he had reached a safe place. Giving a look along the shore, he saw
+amongst the rocks a kind of cave from which a cloud of smoke was
+ascending.
+
+"In that cave," he said to himself, "there must be a fire. So much the
+better. I will go and dry and warm myself, and then? and then we shall
+see."
+
+Having taken the resolution he approached the rocks, but, as he was
+going to climb up, he felt something under the water that rose higher
+and higher and carried him into the air. He tried to escape, but it was
+too late, for, to his extreme surprise, he found himself enclosed in a
+great net, together with a swarm of fish of every size and shape, who
+were flapping and struggling like so many despairing souls.
+
+At the same moment a fisherman came out of the cave; he was so ugly, so
+horribly ugly, that he looked like a sea monster. Instead of hair his
+head was covered with a thick bush of green grass, his skin was green,
+his eyes were green, his long beard that came down to the ground was
+also green. He had the appearance of an immense lizard standing on its
+hind-paws.
+
+When the fisherman had drawn his net out of the sea, he exclaimed with
+great satisfaction:
+
+"Thank Heaven! Again today I shall have a splendid feast of fish!"
+
+"What a mercy that I am not a fish!" said Pinocchio to himself,
+regaining a little courage.
+
+The netful of fish was carried into the cave, which was dark and smoky.
+In the middle of the cave a large frying-pan full of oil was frying and
+sending out a smell of mushrooms that was suffocating.
+
+"Now we will see what fish we have taken!" said the green fisherman,
+and, putting into the net an enormous hand, so out of all proportion
+that it looked like a baker's shovel, he pulled out a handful of fish.
+
+"These fish are good!" he said, looking at them and smelling them
+complacently. And after he had smelled them he threw them into a pan
+without water.
+
+He repeated the same operation many times, and as he drew out the fish
+his mouth watered and he said, chuckling to himself:
+
+"What good whiting!"
+
+"What exquisite sardines!"
+
+"These soles are delicious!"
+
+"And these crabs excellent!"
+
+"What dear little anchovies!"
+
+The last to remain in the net was Pinocchio.
+
+No sooner had the fisherman taken him out than he opened his big green
+eyes with astonishment and cried, half frightened:
+
+"What species of fish is this? Fish of this kind I never remember to
+have eaten."
+
+And he looked at him again attentively and, having examined him well all
+over, he ended by saying:
+
+"I know: he must be a craw-fish."
+
+Pinocchio, mortified at being mistaken for a craw-fish, said in an angry
+voice:
+
+"A craw-fish indeed! Do you take me for a craw-fish? what treatment! Let
+me tell you that I am a puppet."
+
+"A puppet?" replied the fisherman. "To tell the truth, a puppet is
+quite a new fish for me. All the better! I shall eat you with greater
+pleasure."
+
+"Eat me! but will you understand that I am not a fish? Do you hear that
+I talk and reason as you do?"
+
+"That is quite true," said the fisherman; "and as I see that you are a
+fish possessed of the talent of talking and reasoning as I do, I will
+treat you with all the attention that is your due."
+
+"And this attention?"
+
+"In token of my friendship and particular regard, I will leave you the
+choice of how you would like to be cooked. Would you like to be fried in
+the frying-pan, or would you prefer to be stewed with tomato sauce?"
+
+"To tell the truth," answered Pinocchio, "if I am to choose, I should
+prefer to be set at liberty and to return home."
+
+"You are joking! Do you imagine that I would lose the opportunity of
+tasting such a rare fish? It is not every day, I assure you, that a
+puppet fish is caught in these waters. Leave it to me. I will fry you in
+the frying-pan with the other fish, and you will be quite satisfied. It
+is always consolation to be fried in company."
+
+At this speech the unhappy Pinocchio began to cry and scream and to
+implore for mercy, and he said, sobbing: "How much better it would have
+been if I had gone to school! I would listen to my companions and now I
+am paying for it."
+
+And he wriggled like an eel and made indescribable efforts to slip out
+of the clutches of the green fisherman. But it was useless: the
+fisherman took a long strip of rush and, having bound his hands and feet
+as if he had been a sausage, he threw him into the pan with the other
+fish.
+
+He then fetched a wooden bowl full of flour and began to flour them
+each in turn, and as soon as they were ready he threw them into the
+frying-pan.
+
+The first to dance in the boiling oil were the poor whitings; the crabs
+followed, then the sardines, then the soles, then the anchovies, and at
+last it was Pinocchio's turn. Seeing himself so near death, and such a
+horrible death, he was so frightened, and trembled so violently, that he
+had neither voice nor breath left for further entreaties.
+
+But the poor boy implored with his eyes! The green fisherman, however,
+without caring in the least, plunged him five or six times in the flour,
+until he was white from head to foot and looked like a puppet made of
+plaster.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+HE RETURNS TO THE FAIRY'S HOUSE
+
+
+Just as the fisherman was on the point of throwing Pinocchio into the
+frying-pan a large dog entered the cave, enticed there by the strong and
+savory odor of fried fish.
+
+"Get out!" shouted the fisherman, threateningly, holding the floured
+puppet in his hand.
+
+But the poor dog, who was as hungry as a wolf, whined and wagged his
+tail as much as to say:
+
+"Give me a mouthful of fish and I will leave you in peace."
+
+"Get out, I tell you!" repeated the fisherman and he stretched out his
+leg to give him a kick.
+
+But the dog, who, when he was really hungry, would not stand trifling,
+turned upon him, growling and showing his terrible tusks.
+
+At that moment a little feeble voice was heard in the cave, saying
+entreatingly:
+
+"Save me, Alidoro! If you do not save me I shall be fried!"
+
+The dog recognized Pinocchio's voice and, to his extreme surprise,
+perceived that it proceeded from the floured bundle that the fisherman
+held in his hand.
+
+So what do you think he did? He made a spring, seized the bundle in his
+mouth, and, holding it gently between his teeth, he rushed out of the
+cave and was gone like a flash of lightning.
+
+The fisherman, furious at seeing a fish he was so anxious to eat
+snatched from him, ran after the dog, but he had not gone many steps
+when he was taken with a fit of coughing and had to give it up.
+
+Alidoro, when he had reached the path that led to the village, stopped
+and put his friend Pinocchio gently on the ground.
+
+"How much I have to thank you for!" said the puppet.
+
+"There is no necessity," replied the dog. "You saved me and I have now
+returned it. You know that we must all help each other in this world."
+
+"But how came you to come to the cave?"
+
+"I was lying on the shore more dead than alive when the wind brought to
+me the smell of fried fish. The smell excited my appetite and I followed
+it up. If I had arrived a second later--"
+
+"Do not mention it!" groaned Pinocchio, who was still trembling with
+fright. "Do not mention it! If you had arrived a second later I should
+by this time have been fried, eaten and digested. Brrr! It makes me
+shudder only to think of it!"
+
+Alidoro, laughing, extended his right paw to the puppet, who shook it
+heartily in token of great friendship, and they then separated.
+
+The dog took the road home, and Pinocchio, left alone, went to a cottage
+not far off and said to a little old man who was warming himself in the
+sun:
+
+"Tell me, good man, do you know anything of a poor boy called Eugene who
+was wounded in the head?"
+
+"The boy was brought by some fishermen to this cottage, and now--"
+
+"And now he is dead!" interrupted Pinocchio with great sorrow.
+
+"No, he is alive and has returned to his home."
+
+"Not really? not really?" cried the puppet, dancing with delight. "Then
+the wound was not serious?"
+
+"It might have been very serious and even fatal," answered the little
+old man, "for they threw a thick book bound in cardboard at his head."
+
+"And who threw it at him?"
+
+"One of his school-fellows, a certain Pinocchio."
+
+"And who is this Pinocchio?" asked the puppet, pretending ignorance.
+
+"They say that he is a bad boy, a vagabond, a regular good-for-nothing."
+
+"Calumnies! all calumnies!"
+
+"Do you know this Pinocchio?"
+
+"By sight!" answered the puppet.
+
+"And what is your opinion of him?" asked the little man.
+
+"He seems to me to be a very good boy, anxious to learn, and obedient
+and affectionate to his father and family."
+
+Whilst the puppet was firing off all these lies, he touched his nose and
+perceived that it had lengthened more than a hand. Very much alarmed he
+began to cry out:
+
+"Don't believe, good man, what I have been telling you. I know Pinocchio
+very well and I can assure you that he is a very bad boy, disobedient
+and idle, who, instead of going to school, runs off with his companions
+to amuse himself."
+
+He had hardly finished speaking when his nose became shorter and
+returned to the same size that it was before.
+
+"And why are you all covered with white?" asked the old man suddenly.
+
+"I will tell you. Without observing it I rubbed myself against a wall
+which had been freshly whitewashed," answered the puppet, ashamed to
+confess that he had been floured like a fish prepared for the
+frying-pan.
+
+"And what have you done with your jacket, your trousers, and your cap?"
+
+"I met with robbers, who took them from me. Tell me, good old man, could
+you perhaps give me some clothes to return home in?"
+
+"My boy, as to clothes, I have nothing but a little sack in which I keep
+beans. If you wish for it, take it; there it is."
+
+Pinocchio did not wait to be told twice. He took the sack at once and
+with a pair of scissors he cut a hole at the end and at each side, and
+put it on like a shirt. And with this slight clothing he set off for the
+village.
+
+But as he went he did not feel at all comfortable--so little so, indeed,
+that for a step forward he took another backwards, and he said, talking
+to himself:
+
+"How shall I ever present myself to my good little Fairy? What will she
+say when she sees me? Will she forgive me this second escapade? Oh, I am
+sure that she will not forgive me! And it serves me right, for I am a
+rascal. I am always promising to correct myself and I never keep my
+word!"
+
+When he reached the village it was night and very dark. A storm had come
+on and as the rain was coming down in torrents he went straight to the
+Fairy's house, resolved to knock at the door.
+
+But when he was there his courage failed him and instead of knocking he
+ran away some twenty paces. He returned to the door a second time and
+laid hold of the knocker, and, trembling, gave a little knock.
+
+He waited and waited. At last, after half an hour had passed, a window
+on the top floor was opened--the house was four stories high--and
+Pinocchio saw a big Snail with a lighted candle on her head looking out.
+She called to him:
+
+"Who is there at this hour?"
+
+"Is the Fairy at home?" asked the puppet.
+
+"The Fairy is asleep and must not be awakened; but who are you?"
+
+"It is I."
+
+"Who is I?"
+
+"Pinocchio."
+
+"And who is Pinocchio?"
+
+"The puppet who lives in the Fairy's house."
+
+"Ah, I understand!" said the Snail. "Wait for me there. I will come down
+and open the door directly."
+
+"Be quick, for pity's sake, for I am dying of cold."
+
+"My boy, I am a snail, and snails are never in a hurry."
+
+An hour passed, and then two, and the door was not opened. Pinocchio,
+who was wet through and through, and trembling from cold and fear, at
+last took courage and knocked again, and this time he knocked louder.
+
+At this second knock a window on the lower story opened and the same
+Snail appeared at it.
+
+"Beautiful little Snail," cried Pinocchio from the street, "I have been
+waiting for two hours! And two hours on such a bad night seem longer
+than two years. Be quick, for pity's sake."
+
+"My boy," answered the calm little animal--"my boy, I am a snail, and
+snails are never in a hurry."
+
+And the window was shut again.
+
+Shortly afterwards midnight struck; then one o'clock, then two o'clock,
+and the door remained still closed.
+
+Pinocchio at last, losing all patience, seized the knocker in a rage,
+intending to give a blow that would resound through the house. But the
+knocker, which was iron, turned suddenly into an eel and, slipping out
+of his hands, disappeared in the stream of water that ran down the
+middle of the street.
+
+"Ah! is that it?" shouted Pinocchio, blind with rage. "Since the knocker
+has disappeared, I will kick instead with all my might."
+
+And, drawing a little back, he gave a tremendous kick against the house
+door. The blow was indeed so violent that his foot went through the wood
+and stuck; and when he tried to draw it back again it was trouble thrown
+away, for it remained fixed like a nail that has been hammered down.
+
+Think of poor Pinocchio! He was obliged to spend the remainder of the
+night with one foot on the ground and the other in the air.
+
+The following morning at daybreak the door was at last opened. The
+clever little Snail had taken only nine hours to come down from the
+fourth story to the house-door. It is evident that her exertions must
+have been great.
+
+"What are you doing with your foot stuck in the door?" she asked the
+puppet.
+
+"It was an accident. Do try, beautiful little Snail, if you cannot
+release me from this torture."
+
+"My boy, that is the work of a carpenter, and I have never been a
+carpenter."
+
+"Beg the Fairy from me!"
+
+"The Fairy is asleep and must not be awakened."
+
+"But what do you suppose that I can do all day nailed to this door?"
+
+"Amuse yourself by counting the ants that pass down the street."
+
+"Bring me at least something to eat, for I am quite exhausted."
+
+"At once," said the Snail.
+
+In fact, after three hours and a half she returned to Pinocchio carrying
+a silver tray on her head. The tray contained a loaf of bread, a roast
+chicken, and four ripe apricots.
+
+"Here is the breakfast that the Fairy has sent you," said the Snail.
+
+The puppet felt very much comforted at the sight of these good things.
+But when he began to eat them, what was his disgust at making the
+discovery that the bread was plaster, the chicken cardboard, and the
+four apricots painted alabaster.
+
+He wanted to cry. In his desperation he tried to throw away the tray and
+all that was on it; but instead, either from grief or exhaustion, he
+fainted away.
+
+When he came to himself he found that he was lying on a sofa, and the
+Fairy was beside him.
+
+"I will pardon you once more," the Fairy said, "but woe to you if you
+behave badly a third time!"
+
+Pinocchio promised and swore that he would study, and that for the
+future he would always conduct himself well.
+
+And he kept his word for the remainder of the year. Indeed, at the
+examinations before the holidays, he had the honor of being the first in
+the school, and his behavior in general was so satisfactory and
+praiseworthy that the Fairy was very much pleased, and said to him:
+
+"Tomorrow your wish shall be gratified."
+
+"And that is?"
+
+"Tomorrow you shall cease to be a wooden puppet and you shall become a
+boy."
+
+No one who had not witnessed it could ever imagine Pinocchio's joy at
+this long-sighed-for good fortune. All his school-fellows were to be
+invited for the following day to a grand breakfast at the Fairy's house,
+that they might celebrate together the great event. The Fairy had
+prepared two hundred cups of coffee and milk, and four hundred rolls cut
+and buttered on each side. The day promised to be most happy and
+delightful, but--
+
+Unfortunately in the lives of puppets there is always a "but" that
+spoils everything.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+THE "LAND OF BOOBIES"
+
+
+Pinocchio, as was natural, asked the Fairy's permission to go round the
+town to give out the invitations, and the Fairy said to him:
+
+"Go, if you like, and invite your companions for the breakfast tomorrow,
+but remember to return home before dark. Have you understood?"
+
+"I promise to be back in an hour," answered the puppet.
+
+"Take care, Pinocchio! Boys are always very ready to promise, but
+generally they are little given to keep their word."
+
+"But I am not like other boys. When I say a thing, I do it."
+
+"We shall see. If you are disobedient, so much the worse for you."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because boys who do not listen to the advice of those who know more
+than they do always meet with some misfortune or other."
+
+"I have experienced that," said Pinocchio, "but I shall never make that
+mistake again."
+
+"We shall see if that is true."
+
+Without saying more the puppet took leave of his good Fairy, who was
+like a mamma to him, and went out of the house singing and dancing.
+
+In less than an hour all his friends were invited. Some accepted at once
+heartily; others at first required pressing; but when they heard that
+the rolls to be eaten with the coffee were to be buttered on both sides
+they ended by saying:
+
+"We will come also, to do you a pleasure."
+
+Now I must tell you that amongst Pinocchio's friends and school-fellows
+there was one that he greatly preferred and was very fond of. This boy's
+name was Romeo, but he always went by the nickname of Candlewick,
+because he was so thin, straight and bright, like the new wick of a
+little nightlight.
+
+Candlewick was the laziest and the naughtiest boy in the school, but
+Pinocchio was devoted to him. He had indeed gone at once to his house to
+invite him to the breakfast, but he had not found him. He returned a
+second time, but Candlewick was not there. He went a third time, but it
+was in vain. Where could he search for him? He looked here, there, and
+everywhere, and at last he saw him hiding on the porch of a peasant's
+cottage.
+
+"What are you doing there?" asked Pinocchio, coming up to him.
+
+"I am waiting for midnight, to start away."
+
+"And where are you going?"
+
+"I am going to live in a country--the most delightful country in the
+world: a real land of sweetmeats!"
+
+"And what is it called?"
+
+"It is called the 'Land of Boobies.' Why do you not come, too?"
+
+"I? No, never!"
+
+"You are wrong, Pinocchio. If you do not come you will repent it. Where
+could you find a better country for us boys? There are no schools there;
+there are no masters; there are no books. In that delightful land nobody
+ever studies. On Saturday there is never school, and every week consists
+of six Saturdays and one Sunday. Only think, the autumn holidays begin
+on the first of January and finish on the last day of December. That is
+the country for me! That is what all civilized countries should be
+like!"
+
+"But how are the days spent in the 'Land of Boobies'?"
+
+They are spent in play and amusement from morning till night. When night
+comes you go to bed, and recommence the same life in the morning. What
+do you think of it?"
+
+"Hum!" said Pinocchio, and he shook his head slightly, as much as to
+say, "That is a life that I also would willingly lead."
+
+"Well, will you go with me? Yes or no? Resolve quickly."
+
+"No, no, no, and again no. I promised my good Fairy to become a well
+conducted boy, and I will keep my word. And as I see that the sun is
+setting I must leave you at once and run away. Good-bye, and a pleasant
+journey to you."
+
+"Where are you rushing off to in such a hurry?"
+
+"Home. My good Fairy wishes me to be back before dark."
+
+"Wait another two minutes."
+
+"It will make me too late."
+
+"Only two minutes."
+
+"And if the Fairy scolds me?"
+
+"Let her scold. When she has scolded well she will hold her tongue,"
+said that rascal Candlewick.
+
+"And what are you going to do? Are you going alone or with companions?"
+
+"Alone? Indeed not, there will be more than a hundred boys."
+
+"And do you make the journey on foot?"
+
+"A coach will pass by shortly which is to take me to that happy
+country."
+
+"What would I not give for the coach to pass by now!"
+
+"Why?"
+
+"That I might see you all start together."
+
+"Stay here a little longer and you will see us."
+
+"No, no, I must go home."
+
+"Wait another two minutes."
+
+"I have already delayed too long. The Fairy will be anxious about me."
+
+"Poor Fairy! Is she afraid that the bats will eat you?"
+
+"But now," continued Pinocchio, "are you really certain that there are
+no schools in that country?"
+
+"Not even the shadow of one."
+
+"And no masters either?"
+
+"Not one."
+
+"And no one is ever made to study?"
+
+"Never, never, never!"
+
+"What a delightful country!" said Pinocchio, his mouth watering. "What a
+delightful country! I have never been there, but I can quite imagine
+it."
+
+"Why will you not come also?"
+
+"It is useless to tempt me. I promised my good Fairy to become a
+sensible boy, and I will not break my word."
+
+"Good-bye, then, and give my compliments to all the boys at school, if
+you meet them in the street."
+
+"Good-bye, Candlewick; a pleasant journey to you; amuse yourself, and
+think sometimes of your friends."
+
+Thus saying, the puppet made two steps to go, but then stopped, and,
+turning to his friend, he inquired:
+
+"But are you quite certain that in that country all the weeks consist of
+six Saturdays and one Sunday?"
+
+"Most certainly."
+
+"But do you know for certain that the holidays begin on the first of
+January and finish on the last day of December?"
+
+"Assuredly."
+
+"What a delightful country!" repeated Pinocchio, looking enchanted.
+Then, with a resolute air, he added in a great hurry:
+
+"This time really good-bye, and a pleasant journey to you."
+
+"Good-bye."
+
+"When do you start?"
+
+"Shortly."
+
+"What a pity! If really it wanted only an hour to the time of your
+start, I should almost be tempted to wait."
+
+"And the Fairy?"
+
+"It is already late. If I return home an hour sooner or later it will
+be all the same."
+
+"Poor Pinocchio! And if the Fairy scolds you?"
+
+"I must have patience! I will let her scold. When she has scolded well
+she will hold her tongue."
+
+In the meantime night had come on and it was quite dark. Suddenly they
+saw in the distance a small light moving and they heard a noise of
+talking, and the sound of a trumpet, but so small and feeble that it
+resembled the hum of a mosquito.
+
+"Here it is!" shouted Candlewick, jumping to his feet.
+
+"What is it?" asked Pinocchio in a whisper.
+
+"It is the coach coming to take me. Now will you come, yes or no?"
+
+"But is it really true," asked the puppet, "that in that country boys
+are never obliged to study?"
+
+"Never, never, never!"
+
+"What a delightful country! What a delightful country! What a delightful
+country!"
+
+[Illustration: THEY THOUGHT IT WOULD BE MORE COMFORTABLE TO GET ON THE
+TUNNY'S BACK]
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXI
+
+PINOCCHIO ENJOYS FIVE MONTHS OF HAPPINESS
+
+
+At last the coach arrived, and it arrived without making the slightest
+noise, for its wheels were bound round with flax and rags.
+
+It was drawn by twelve pairs of donkeys, all the same size but of
+different colors.
+
+Some were gray, some white, some brindled like pepper and salt, and
+others had large stripes of yellow and blue.
+
+But the most extraordinary thing was this: the twelve pairs, that is,
+the twenty-four donkeys, instead of being shod like other beasts of
+burden, had on their feet men's boots made of white kid.
+
+And the coachman?
+
+Picture to yourself a little man broader than he was long, flabby and
+greasy like a lump of butter, with a small round face like an orange, a
+little mouth that was always laughing, and a soft, caressing voice like
+a cat when she is trying to insinuate herself into the good graces of
+the mistress of the house.
+
+All the boys vied with each other in taking places in his coach, to be
+conducted to the "Land of Boobies."
+
+The coach was, in fact, quite full of boys between eight and fourteen
+years old, heaped one upon another like herrings in a barrel. They were
+uncomfortable, packed closely together and could hardly breathe; but
+nobody said "Oh!"--nobody grumbled. The consolation of knowing that in a
+few hours they would reach a country where there were no books, no
+schools, and no masters, made them so happy and resigned that they felt
+neither fatigue nor inconvenience, neither hunger, nor thirst, nor want
+of sleep.
+
+As soon as the coach had drawn up the little man turned to Candlewick
+and with a thousand smirks and grimaces said to him, smiling:
+
+"Tell me, my fine boy, would you also like to go to that fortunate
+country?"
+
+"I certainly wish to go."
+
+"But I must warn you, my dear child, that there is not a place left in
+the coach. You can see for yourself that it is quite full."
+
+"No matter," replied Candlewick, "if there is no place inside, I will
+manage to sit on the springs."
+
+And, giving a leap, he seated himself astride on the springs.
+
+"And you, my love!" said the little man, turning in a flattering manner
+to Pinocchio, "what do you intend to do? Are you coming with us or are
+you going to remain behind?"
+
+"I remain behind," answered Pinocchio. "I am going home. I intend to
+study, as all well conducted boys do."
+
+"Much good may it do you!"
+
+"Pinocchio!" called out Candlewick, "listen to me: come with us and we
+shall have such fun."
+
+"No, no, no!"
+
+"Come with us and we shall have such fun," shouted in chorus a hundred
+voices from the inside of the coach.
+
+"But if I come with you, what will my good Fairy say?" said the puppet,
+who was beginning to yield.
+
+"Do not trouble your head with melancholy thoughts. Consider only that
+we are going to a country where we shall be at liberty to run riot from
+morning till night."
+
+Pinocchio did not answer, but he sighed; he sighed again; he sighed for
+the third time, and he said finally:
+
+"Make a little room for me, for I am coming, too."
+
+"The places are all full," replied the little man; "but, to show you how
+welcome you are, you shall have my seat on the box."
+
+"And you?"
+
+"Oh, I will go on foot."
+
+"No, indeed, I could not allow that. I would rather mount one of these
+donkeys," cried Pinocchio.
+
+Approaching the right-hand donkey of the first pair, he attempted to
+mount him, but the animal turned on him and, giving him a great blow in
+the stomach, rolled him over with his legs in the air.
+
+You can imagine the impertinent and immoderate laughter of all the boys
+who witnessed this scene.
+
+But the little man did not laugh. He approached the rebellious donkey
+and, pretending to give him a kiss, bit off half of his ear.
+
+Pinocchio in the meantime had gotten up from the ground in a fury and,
+with a spring, he seated himself on the poor animal's back. And he
+sprang so well that the boys stopped laughing and began to shout:
+"Hurrah, Pinocchio!" and they clapped their hands and applauded him as
+if they would never finish.
+
+Now that Pinocchio was mounted, the coach started. Whilst the donkeys
+were galloping and the coach was rattling over the stones of the high
+road, the puppet thought that he heard a low voice that was scarcely
+audible saying to him:
+
+"Poor fool! you would follow your own way, but you will repent it!"
+
+Pinocchio, feeling almost frightened, looked from side to side to try
+and discover where these words could come from, but he saw nobody. The
+donkeys galloped, the coach rattled, the boys inside slept, Candlewick
+snored like a dormouse, and the little man seated on the box sang
+between his teeth:
+
+    "During the night all sleep,
+        But I sleep never."
+
+After they had gone another mile, Pinocchio heard the same little low
+voice saying to him:
+
+"Bear it in mind, simpleton! Boys who refuse to study and turn their
+backs upon books, schools and masters, to pass their time in play and
+amusement, sooner or later come to a bad end. I know it by experience,
+and I can tell you. A day will come when you will weep as I am weeping
+now, but then it will be too late!"
+
+On hearing these words whispered very softly, the puppet, more
+frightened than ever, sprang down from the back of his donkey and went
+and took hold of his mouth.
+
+Imagine his surprise when he found that the donkey was crying--crying
+like a boy!
+
+"Eh! Sir Coachman," cried Pinocchio to the little man, "here is an
+extraordinary thing! This donkey is crying."
+
+"Let him cry; he will laugh when he is a bridegroom."
+
+"But have you by chance taught him to talk?"
+
+"No; but he spent three years in a company of learned dogs, and he
+learned to mutter a few words."
+
+"Poor beast!"
+
+"Come, come," said the little man, "don't let us waste time in seeing a
+donkey cry. Mount him and let us go on: the night is cold and the road
+is long."
+
+Pinocchio obeyed without another word. In the morning about daybreak
+they arrived safely in the "Land of Boobies."
+
+It was a country unlike any other country in the world. The population
+was composed entirely of boys. The oldest were fourteen, and the
+youngest scarcely eight years old. In the streets there was such
+merriment, noise and shouting that it was enough to turn anybody's head.
+There were troops of boys everywhere. Some were playing with nuts, some
+with battledores, some with balls. Some rode velocipedes, others wooden
+horses. A party were playing at hide and seek, a few were chasing each
+other. Some were reciting, some singing, some leaping. Some were amusing
+themselves with walking on their hands with their feet in the air;
+others were trundling hoops or strutting about dressed as generals,
+wearing leaf helmets and commanding a squadron of cardboard soldiers.
+Some were laughing, some shouting, some were calling out; others clapped
+their hands, or whistled, or clucked like a hen who has just laid an
+egg.
+
+In every square, canvas theaters had been erected and they were crowded
+with boys from morning till evening. On the walls of the houses there
+were inscriptions written in charcoal: "Long live playthings, we will
+have no more schools; down with arithmetic," and similar other fine
+sentiments, all in bad spelling.
+
+Pinocchio, Candlewick and the other boys who had made the journey with
+the little man, had scarcely set foot in the town before they were in
+the thick of the tumult, and I need not tell you that in a few minutes
+they had made acquaintance with everybody. Where could happier or more
+contented boys be found?
+
+In the midst of continual games and every variety of amusement, the
+hours, the days and the weeks passed like lightning.
+
+"Oh, what a delightful life!" said Pinocchio, whenever by chance he met
+Candlewick.
+
+"See, then, if I was not right?" replied the other. "And to think that
+you did not want to come! To think that you had taken it into your head
+to return home to your Fairy, and to lose your time in studying! If you
+are this moment free from the bother of books and school, you must
+acknowledge that you owe it to me, to my advice, and to my persuasions.
+It is only friends who know how to render such great services."
+
+"It is true, Candlewick! If I am now a really happy boy, it is all your
+doing. But do you know what the master used to say when he talked to me
+of you? He always said to me: 'Do not associate with that rascal
+Candlewick, for he is a bad companion, and will only lead you into
+mischief!'"
+
+"Poor master!" replied the other, shaking his head. "I know only too
+well that he disliked me, and amused himself by calumniating me; but I
+am generous and I forgive him!"
+
+"Noble soul!" said Pinocchio, embracing his friend affectionately and
+kissing him between the eyes.
+
+This delightful life had gone on for five months. The days had been
+entirely spent in play and amusement, without a thought of books or
+school, when one morning Pinocchio awoke to a most disagreeable surprise
+that put him into a very bad humor.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXII
+
+PINOCCHIO TURNS INTO A DONKEY
+
+
+The surprise was that Pinocchio, when he awoke, scratched his head, and
+in scratching his head he discovered, to his great astonishment, that
+his ears had grown more than a hand.
+
+You know that the puppet from his birth had always had very small
+ears--so small that they were not visible to the naked eye. You can
+imagine then what he felt when he found that during the night his ears
+had become so long that they seemed like two brooms.
+
+He went at once in search of a glass that he might look at himself, but,
+not being able to find one, he filled the basin of his washing-stand
+with water, and he saw reflected what he certainly would never have
+wished to see. He saw his head embellished with a magnificent pair of
+donkey's ears!
+
+Only think of poor Pinocchio's sorrow, shame and despair!
+
+He began to cry and roar, and he beat his head against the wall, but the
+more he cried the longer his ears grew; they grew, and grew, and became
+hairy towards the points.
+
+At the sound of his loud outcries a beautiful little Marmot that lived
+on the first floor came into the room. Seeing the puppet in such grief
+she asked earnestly:
+
+"What has happened to you, my dear fellow-lodger?"
+
+"I am ill, my dear little Marmot, very ill, and my illness frightens me.
+Do you understand counting a pulse?"
+
+"A little."
+
+"Then feel and see if by chance I have got fever."
+
+The little Marmot raised her right fore-paw, and, after having felt
+Pinocchio's pulse, she said to him, sighing:
+
+"My friend, I am grieved to be obliged to give you bad news!"
+
+"What is it?"
+
+"You have got a very bad fever!"
+
+"What fever is it?"
+
+"It is donkey fever."
+
+"That is a fever that I do not understand," said the puppet, but he
+understood it only too well.
+
+"Then I will explain it to you," said the Marmot. "You must know that in
+two or three hours you will be no longer a puppet, or a boy."
+
+"Then what shall I be?"
+
+"In two or three hours you will become really and truly a little donkey,
+like those that draw carts and carry cabbages and salad to market."
+
+"Oh, unfortunate that I am! unfortunate that I am!" cried Pinocchio,
+seizing his two ears with his hands and pulling them and tearing them
+furiously as if they had been some one else's ears.
+
+"My dear boy," said the Marmot, by way of consoling him, "you can do
+nothing. It is destiny. It is written in the decrees of wisdom that all
+boys who are lazy, and who take a dislike to books, to schools, and to
+masters, and who pass their time in amusement, games, and diversions,
+must end sooner or later by becoming transformed into so many little
+donkeys."
+
+"But is it really so?" asked the puppet, sobbing.
+
+"It is indeed only too true! And tears are now useless. You should have
+thought of it sooner!"
+
+"But it was not my fault; believe me, little Marmot, the fault was all
+Candlewick's!"
+
+"And who is this Candlewick?"
+
+"One of my school-fellows. I wanted to return home; I wanted to be
+obedient. I wished to study, but Candlewick said to me: 'Why should you
+bother yourself by studying? Why should you go to school? Come with us
+instead to the "Land of Boobies"; there we shall none of us have to
+learn; there we shall amuse ourselves from morning to night, and we
+shall always be merry'."
+
+"And why did you follow the advice of that false friend? of that bad
+companion?"
+
+"Why? Because, my dear little Marmot, I am a puppet with no sense, and
+with no heart. Ah! if I had had the least heart I should never have left
+that good Fairy who loved me like a mamma, and who had done so much for
+me! And I would be no longer a puppet, for I would by this time have
+become a little boy like so many others: But if I meet Candlewick, woe
+to him! He shall hear what I think of him!"
+
+And he turned to go out. But when he reached the door he remembered his
+donkey's ears, and, feeling ashamed to show them in public, what do you
+think he did? He took a big cotton cap and, putting it on his head, he
+pulled it well down over the point of his nose.
+
+He then set out and went everywhere in search of Candlewick. He looked
+for him in the streets, in the squares, in the little theaters, in every
+possible place, but he could not find him. He inquired for him of
+everybody he met, but no one had seen him.
+
+He then went to seek him at his house and, having reached the door, he
+knocked.
+
+"Who is there?" asked Candlewick from within.
+
+"It is I!" answered the puppet.
+
+"Wait a moment and I will let you in."
+
+After half an hour the door was opened and imagine Pinocchio's feelings
+when, upon going into the room, he saw his friend Candlewick with a big
+cotton cap on his head which came down over his nose.
+
+At the sight of the cap Pinocchio felt almost consoled and thought to
+himself:
+
+"Has my friend got the same illness that I have? Is he also suffering
+from donkey fever?"
+
+And, pretending to have observed nothing, he asked him, smiling:
+
+"How are you, my dear Candlewick?"
+
+"Very well; as well as a mouse in a Parmesan cheese."
+
+"Are you saying that seriously?"
+
+"Why should I tell you a lie?"
+
+"Excuse me; but why, then, do you keep that cotton cap on your head
+which covers up your ears?"
+
+"The doctor ordered me to wear it because I have hurt this knee. And
+you, dear puppet, why have you got on that cotton cap pulled down over
+your nose?"
+
+"The doctor prescribed it because I have grazed my foot."
+
+"Oh, poor Pinocchio!"
+
+"Oh, poor Candlewick!"
+
+After these words a long silence followed, during which the two friends
+did nothing but look mockingly at each other.
+
+At last the puppet said in a soft voice to his companion:
+
+"Satisfy my curiosity, my dear Candlewick: have you ever suffered from
+disease of the ears?"
+
+"Never! And you?"
+
+"Never. Only since this morning one of my ears aches."
+
+"Mine is also paining me."
+
+"You also? And which of your ears hurts you?"
+
+"Both of them. And you?"
+
+"Both of them. Can we have got the same illness?"
+
+"I fear so."
+
+"Will you do me a kindness, Candlewick?"
+
+"Willingly! With all my heart."
+
+"Will you let me see your ears?"
+
+"Why not? But first, my dear Pinocchio, I should like to see yours."
+
+"No: you must be first."
+
+"No, dear. First you and then I!"
+
+"Well," said the puppet, "let us come to an agreement like good
+friends."
+
+"Let us hear it."
+
+"We will both take off our caps at the same moment. Do you agree?"
+
+"I agree."
+
+"Then, attention!"
+
+And Pinocchio began to count in a loud voice:
+
+"One, two, three!"
+
+At the word "Three!" the two boys took off their caps and threw them
+into the air.
+
+And then a scene followed that would seem incredible if it were not
+true. That is, that when Pinocchio and Candlewick discovered that they
+were both struck with the same misfortune, instead of feeling full of
+mortification and grief, they began to prick their ungainly ears and to
+make a thousand antics, and they ended by going into bursts of laughter.
+
+And they laughed, and laughed, and laughed, until they had to hold
+themselves together. But in the midst of their merriment Candlewick
+suddenly stopped, staggered, and, changing color, said to his friend:
+
+"Help, help, Pinocchio!"
+
+"What is the matter with you?"
+
+"Alas, I cannot any longer stand upright."
+
+"Neither can I," exclaimed Pinocchio, tottering and beginning to cry.
+
+And whilst they were talking, they both doubled up and began to run
+round the room on their hands and feet. And as they ran, their hands
+became hoofs, their faces lengthened into muzzles, and their backs
+became covered with a light gray hairy coat sprinkled with black.
+
+But do you know what was the worst moment for these two wretched boys?
+The worst and the most humiliating moment was when their tails grew.
+Vanquished by shame and sorrow, they wept and lamented their fate.
+
+Oh, if they had but been wiser! But instead of sighs and lamentations
+they could only bray like asses; and they brayed loudly and said in
+chorus: "Hee-haw!"
+
+Whilst this was going on some one knocked at the door and a voice on the
+outside said:
+
+"Open the door! I am the little man, I am the coachman who brought you
+to this country. Open at once, or it will be the worse for you!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXIII
+
+PINOCCHIO IS TRAINED FOR THE CIRCUS
+
+
+Finding that the door remained shut the little man burst it open with a
+violent kick and, coming into the room, he said to Pinocchio and
+Candlewick with his usual little laugh:
+
+"Well done, boys! You brayed well, and I recognized you by your voices.
+That is why I am here."
+
+At these words the two little donkeys were quite stupefied and stood
+with their heads down, their ears lowered, and their tails between their
+legs.
+
+At first the little man stroked and caressed them; then, taking out a
+currycomb, he currycombed them well. And when by this process he had
+polished them till they shone like two mirrors, he put a halter round
+their necks and led them to the market-place, in hopes of selling them
+and making a good profit.
+
+And indeed buyers were not wanting. Candlewick was bought by a peasant
+whose donkey had died the previous day. Pinocchio was sold to the
+director of a company of buffoons and tight-rope dancers, who bought him
+that he might teach him to leap and to dance with the other animals
+belonging to the company.
+
+And now, my little readers, you will have understood the fine trade that
+little man pursued. The wicked little monster, who had a face all milk
+and honey, made frequent journeys round the world with his coach. As he
+went along he collected, with promises and flattery, all the idle boys
+who had taken a dislike to books and school. As soon as his coach was
+full he conducted them to the "Land of Boobies," that they might pass
+their time in games, in uproar, and in amusement. When these poor,
+deluded boys, from continual play and no study, had become so many
+little donkeys, he took possession of them with great delight and
+satisfaction, and carried them off to the fairs and markets to be sold.
+And in this way he had in a few years made heaps of money and had become
+a millionaire.
+
+What became of Candlewick I do not know, but I do know that Pinocchio
+from the very first day had to endure a very hard, laborious life.
+
+When he was put into his stall his master filled the manger with straw;
+but Pinocchio, having tried a mouthful, spat it out again.
+
+Then his master, grumbling, filled the manger with hay; but neither did
+the hay please him.
+
+"Ah!" exclaimed his master in a passion. "Does not hay please you
+either? Leave it to me, my fine donkey; if you are so full of caprices I
+will find a way to cure you!"
+
+And by way of correcting him he struck his legs with his whip.
+
+Pinocchio began to cry and to bray with pain, and he said, braying:
+
+"Hee-haw! I cannot digest straw!"
+
+"Then eat hay!" said his master, who understood perfectly the asinine
+dialect.
+
+"Hee-haw! hay gives me a pain in my stomach."
+
+"Do you mean to pretend that a little donkey like you must be kept on
+breasts of chickens, and capons in jelly?" asked his master, getting
+more and more angry, and whipping him again.
+
+At this second whipping Pinocchio prudently held his tongue and said
+nothing more.
+
+The stable was then shut and Pinocchio was left alone. He had not eaten
+for many hours and he began to yawn from hunger. And when he yawned he
+opened a mouth that seemed as wide as an oven.
+
+At last, finding nothing else in the manger, he resigned himself and
+chewed a little hay; and after he had chewed it well, he shut his eyes
+and swallowed it.
+
+"This hay is not bad," he said to himself; "but how much better it would
+have been if I had gone on with my studies! Instead of hay I might now
+be eating a hunch of new bread and a fine slice of sausage. But I must
+have patience!"
+
+The next morning when he woke he looked in the manger for a little more
+hay; but he found none, for he had eaten it all during the night.
+
+Then he took a mouthful of chopped straw, but whilst he was chewing it
+he had to acknowledge that the taste of chopped straw did not in the
+least resemble a savory dish of macaroni or pie.
+
+"But I must have patience!" he repeated as he went on chewing. "May my
+example serve at least as a warning to all disobedient boys who do not
+want to study. Patience!"
+
+"Patience indeed!" shouted his master, coming at that moment into the
+stable. "Do you think, my little donkey, that I bought you only to give
+you food and drink? I bought you to make you work, and that you might
+earn money for me. Up, then, at once! you must come with me into the
+circus, and there I will teach you to jump through hoops, to go through
+frames of paper head foremost, to dance waltzes and polkas, and to stand
+upright on your hind legs."
+
+Poor Pinocchio, either by love or by force, had to learn all these fine
+things. But it took him three months before he had learned them, and he
+got many a whipping that nearly took off his skin.
+
+At last a day came when his master was able to announce that he would
+give a really extraordinary representation. The many colored placards
+stuck on the street corners were thus worded:
+
+
+                GREAT FULL DRESS REPRESENTATION
+
+                           TONIGHT
+        WILL TAKE PLACE THE USUAL FEATS AND SURPRISING
+           PERFORMANCES EXECUTED BY ALL THE ARTISTS
+             AND BY ALL THE HORSES OF THE COMPANY
+                         AND MOREOVER
+                          THE FAMOUS
+                   LITTLE DONKEY PINOCCHIO
+                            CALLED
+                    THE STAR OF THE DANCE
+                WILL MAKE HIS FIRST APPEARANCE
+
+         THE THEATER WILL BE BRILLIANTLY ILLUMINATED
+
+[Illustration: In Less Than an Hour All His Friends Were Invited]
+
+On that evening, as you may imagine, an hour before the play was to
+begin the theater was crammed.
+
+There was not a place to be had either in the pit or the stalls, or in
+the boxes even, by paying its weight in gold.
+
+The benches round the circus were crowded with children and with boys of
+all ages, who were in a fever of impatience to see the famous little
+donkey Pinocchio dance.
+
+When the first part of the performance was over, the director of the
+company, dressed in a black coat, white breeches, and big leather boots
+that came above his knees, presented himself to the public, and, after
+making a profound bow, he began with much solemnity the following
+ridiculous speech:
+
+"Respectable public, ladies and gentlemen! The humble undersigned being
+a passer-by in this illustrious city, I have wished to procure for
+myself the honor, not to say the pleasure, of presenting to this
+intelligent and distinguished audience a celebrated little donkey, who
+has already had the honor of dancing in the presence of His Majesty the
+Emperor of all the principal courts of Europe.
+
+"And, thanking you, I beg of you to help us with your inspiring presence
+and to be indulgent to us."
+
+This speech was received with much laughter and applause, but the
+applause redoubled and became tumultuous when the little donkey
+Pinocchio made his appearance in the middle of the circus. He was decked
+out for the occasion. He had a new bridle of polished leather with brass
+buckles and studs, and two white camelias in his ears. His mane was
+divided and curled, and each curl was tied with bows of colored ribbon.
+He had a girth of gold and silver round his body, and his tail was
+plaited with amaranth and blue velvet ribbons. He was, in fact, a little
+donkey to fall in love with!
+
+The director, in presenting him to the public, added these few words:
+
+"My respectable auditors! I am not here to tell you falsehoods of the
+great difficulties that I have overcome in understanding and subjugating
+this mammifer, whilst he was grazing at liberty amongst the mountains in
+the plains of the torrid zone. I beg you will observe the wild rolling
+of his eyes. Every means having been tried in vain to tame him, and to
+accustom him to the life of domestic quadrupeds, I was often forced to
+have recourse to the convincing argument of the whip. But all my
+goodness to him, instead of gaining his affections, has, on the
+contrary, increased his viciousness. However, following the system of
+Gall, I discovered in his cranium a bony cartilage that the Faculty of
+Medicine of Paris has itself recognized as the regenerating bulb of the
+hair, and of dance. For this reason I have not only taught him to dance,
+but also to jump through hoops and through frames covered with paper.
+Admire him, and then pass your opinion on him! But before taking my
+leave of you, permit me, ladies and gentlemen, to invite you to the
+daily performance that will take place tomorrow evening; but in case the
+weather should threaten rain, the performance will be postponed till
+tomorrow morning at 11 ante-meridian of post-meridian."
+
+Here the director made another profound bow, and, then turning to
+Pinocchio, he said:
+
+"Courage, Pinocchio! before you begin your feats make your bow to this
+distinguished audience--ladies, gentlemen, and children."
+
+Pinocchio obeyed, and bent both his knees till they touched the ground,
+and remained kneeling until the director, cracking his whip, shouted to
+him:
+
+"At a foot's pace!"
+
+Then the little donkey raised himself on his four legs and began to walk
+round the theater, keeping at a foot's pace.
+
+After a little the director cried:
+
+"Trot!" and Pinocchio, obeying the order, changed to a trot.
+
+"Gallop!" and Pinocchio broke into a gallop.
+
+"Full gallop!" and Pinocchio went full gallop. But whilst he was going
+full speed like a race horse the director, raising his arm in the air,
+fired off a pistol.
+
+At the shot the little donkey, pretending to be wounded, fell his whole
+length in the circus, as if he were really dying.
+
+As he got up from the ground amidst an outburst of applause, shouts and
+clapping of hands, he naturally raised his head and looked up, and he
+saw in one of the boxes a beautiful lady who wore round her neck a thick
+gold chain from which hung a medallion. On the medallion was painted the
+portrait of a puppet.
+
+"That is my portrait! That lady is the Fairy!" said Pinocchio to
+himself, recognizing her immediately; and, overcome with delight, he
+tried to cry:
+
+"Oh, my little Fairy! Oh, my little Fairy!"
+
+But instead of these words a bray came from his throat, so sonorous and
+so prolonged that all the spectators laughed, and more especially all
+the children who were in the theater.
+
+Then the director, to give him a lesson, and to make him understand that
+it is not good manners to bray before the public, gave him a blow on his
+nose with the handle of his whip.
+
+The poor little donkey put his tongue out an inch and licked his nose
+for at least five minutes, thinking perhaps that it would ease the pain
+he felt.
+
+But what was his despair when, looking up a second time, he saw that the
+box was empty and that the Fairy had disappeared!
+
+He thought he was going to die; his eyes filled with tears and he began
+to weep. Nobody, however, noticed it, and least of all the director who,
+cracking his whip, shouted:
+
+"Courage, Pinocchio! Now let the audience see how gracefully you can
+jump through the hoops."
+
+Pinocchio tried two or three times, but each time that he came in front
+of the hoop, instead of going through it, he found it easier to go under
+it. At last he made a leap and went through it, but his right leg
+unfortunately caught in the hoop, and that caused him to fall to the
+ground doubled up in a heap on the other side.
+
+When he got up he was lame and it was only with great difficulty that he
+managed to return to the stable.
+
+"Bring out Pinocchio! We want the little donkey! Bring out the little
+donkey!" shouted all the boys in the theater, touched and sorry for the
+sad accident.
+
+But the little donkey was seen no more that evening.
+
+The following morning the veterinary, that is, the doctor of animals,
+paid him a visit, and declared that he would remain lame for life.
+
+The director then said to the stable-boy:
+
+"What do you suppose I can do with a lame donkey? He would eat food
+without earning it. Take him to the market and sell him."
+
+When they reached the market a purchaser was found at once. He asked the
+stable-boy:
+
+"How much do you want for that lame donkey?"
+
+"Twenty dollars."
+
+"I will give you two dollars. Don't suppose that I am buying him to make
+use of; I am buying him solely for his skin. I see that his skin is very
+hard and I intend to make a drum with it for the band of my village."
+
+Imagine poor Pinocchio's feelings when he heard that he was destined to
+become a drum!
+
+As soon as the purchaser had paid his two dollars he conducted the
+little donkey to the seashore. He then put a stone round his neck and,
+tying a rope, the end of which he held in his hand, round his leg, he
+gave him a sudden push and threw him into the water.
+
+Pinocchio, weighted down by the stone, went at once to the bottom, and
+his owner, keeping tight hold of the cord, sat down quietly on a piece
+of rock to wait until the little donkey was drowned, intending then to
+skin him.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXIV
+
+PINOCCHIO IS SWALLOWED BY THE DOG-FISH
+
+
+After Pinocchio had been fifty minutes under the water, his purchaser
+said aloud to himself:
+
+"My poor little lame donkey must by this time be quite drowned. I will
+therefore pull him out of the water, and I will make a fine drum of his
+skin."
+
+And he began to haul in the rope that he had tied to the donkey's leg,
+and he hauled, and hauled, and hauled, until at last--what do you think
+appeared above the water? Instead of a little dead donkey he saw a live
+puppet, who was wriggling like an eel.
+
+Seeing this wooden puppet, the poor man thought he was dreaming, and,
+struck dumb with astonishment, he remained with his mouth open and his
+eyes starting out of his head.
+
+Having somewhat recovered from his first stupefaction, he asked in a
+quavering voice:
+
+"And the little donkey that I threw into the sea? What has become of
+him?"
+
+"I am the little donkey!" said Pinocchio, laughing.
+
+"You?"
+
+"I."
+
+"Ah, you young scamp!! Do you dare to make game of me?"
+
+"To make game of you? Quite the contrary, my dear master? I am speaking
+seriously."
+
+"But how can you, who but a short time ago were a little donkey, have
+become a wooden puppet, only from having been left in the water?"
+
+"It must have been the effect of sea water. The sea makes extraordinary
+changes."
+
+"Beware, puppet, beware! Don't imagine that you can amuse yourself at my
+expense. Woe to you if I lose patience!"
+
+"Well, master, do you wish to know the true story? If you will set my
+leg free I will tell it you."
+
+The good man, who was curious to hear the true story, immediately untied
+the knot that kept him bound; and Pinocchio, finding himself free as a
+bird in the air, commenced as follows:
+
+"You must know that I was once a puppet as I am now, and I was on the
+point of becoming a boy like the many who are in the world. But instead,
+induced by my dislike for study and the advice of bad companions, I ran
+away from home. One fine day when I awoke I found myself changed into a
+donkey with long ears, and a long tail. What a disgrace it was to
+me!--a disgrace, dear master, that even your worst enemy would not
+inflict upon you! Taken to the market to be sold I was bought by the
+director of an equestrian company, who took it into his head to make a
+famous dancer of me, and a famous leaper through hoops. But one night
+during a performance I had a bad fall in the circus and lamed both my
+legs. Then the director, not knowing what to do with a lame donkey, sent
+me to be sold, and you were the purchaser!"
+
+"Only too true. And I paid two dollars for you. And now, who will give
+me back my good money?"
+
+"And why did you buy me? You bought me to make a drum of my skin!"
+
+"Only too true! And now, where shall I find another skin?"
+
+"Don't despair, master. There are such a number of little donkeys in the
+world!"
+
+"Tell me, you impertinent rascal, does your story end here?"
+
+"No," answered the puppet; "I have another two words to say and then I
+shall have finished. After you had bought me you brought me to this
+place to kill me; but then, yielding to a feeling of compassion, you
+preferred to tie a stone round my neck and to throw me into the sea.
+This humane feeling does you great honor and I shall always be grateful
+to you for it. But, nevertheless, dear master, this time you made your
+calculations without considering the Fairy!"
+
+"And who is the Fairy?"
+
+"She is my mamma and she resembles all other good mammas who care for
+their children, and who never lose sight of them, but help them
+lovingly, even when, on account of their foolishness and evil conduct,
+they deserve to be abandoned and left to themselves. Well, then, the
+good Fairy, as soon as she saw that I was in danger of drowning, sent
+immediately an immense shoal of fish, who, believing me really to be a
+little dead donkey, began to eat me. And what mouthfuls they took; I
+should never have thought that fish were greedier than boys! Some ate my
+ears, some my muzzle, others my neck and mane, some the skin of my legs,
+some my coat. Amongst them there was a little fish so polite that he
+even condescended to eat my tail."
+
+"From this time forth," said his purchaser, horrified, "I swear that I
+will never touch fish. It would be too dreadful to open a mullet, or a
+fried whiting, and to find inside a donkey's tail!"
+
+"I agree with you," said the puppet, laughing. "However, I must tell you
+that when the fish had finished eating the donkey's hide that covered me
+from head to foot, they naturally reached the bone, or rather the wood,
+for, as you see, I am made of the hardest wood. But after giving a few
+bites they soon discovered that I was not a morsel for their teeth, and,
+disgusted with such indigestible food, they went off, some in one
+direction and some in another, without so much as saying 'Thank you' to
+me. And now, at last, I have told you how it was that when you pulled up
+the rope you found a live puppet instead of a dead donkey."
+
+"I laugh at your story," cried the man in a rage. "I know only that I
+spent two dollars to buy you, and I will have my money back. Shall I
+tell you what I will do? I will take you back to the market and I will
+sell you by weight as seasoned wood for lighting fires."
+
+"Sell me if you like; I am content," said Pinocchio.
+
+But as he said it he made a spring and plunged into the water. Swimming
+gaily away from the shore, he called to his poor owner:
+
+"Good-bye, master; if you should be in want of a skin to make a drum,
+remember me."
+
+And he laughed and went on swimming, and after a while he turned again
+and shouted louder:
+
+"Good-bye, master; if you should be in want of a little well seasoned
+wood for lighting the fire, remember me."
+
+In the twinkling of an eye he had swum so far off that he was scarcely
+visible. All that could be seen of him was a little black speck on the
+surface of the sea that from time to time lifted its legs out of the
+water and leaped and capered like a dolphin enjoying himself.
+
+Whilst Pinocchio was swimming, he knew not whither, he saw in the midst
+of the sea a rock that seemed to be made of white marble, and on the
+summit there stood a beautiful little goat who bleated lovingly and made
+signs to him to approach.
+
+But the most singular thing was this. The little goat's hair, instead of
+being white or black, or a mixture of two colors as is usual with other
+goats, was blue, and a very vivid blue, greatly resembling the hair of
+the beautiful Child.
+
+I leave you to imagine how rapidly poor Pinocchio's heart began to beat.
+He swam with redoubled strength and energy towards the white rock; and
+he was already half-way there when he saw, rising up out of the water
+and coming to meet him, the horrible head of a sea-monster. His
+wide-open, cavernous mouth and his three rows of enormous teeth would
+have been terrifying to look at even in a picture.
+
+And do you know what this sea-monster was?
+
+This sea-monster was neither more nor less than that gigantic Dog-Fish,
+who has been mentioned many times in this story, and who, for his
+slaughter and for his insatiable voracity, had been named the "Attila of
+Fish and Fishermen."
+
+Only to think of poor Pinocchio's terror at the sight of the monster. He
+tried to avoid it, to change his direction; he tried to escape, but that
+immense, wide-open mouth came towards him with the velocity of an arrow.
+
+"Be quick, Pinocchio, for pity's sake!" cried the beautiful little goat,
+bleating.
+
+And Pinocchio swam desperately with his arms, his chest, his legs, and
+his feet.
+
+"Quick, Pinocchio, the monster is close upon you!"
+
+And Pinocchio swam quicker than ever, and flew on with the rapidity of a
+ball from a gun. He had nearly reached the rock, and the little goat,
+leaning over towards the sea, had stretched out her fore-legs to help
+him out of the water!
+
+But it was too late! The monster had overtaken him and, drawing in his
+breath, he sucked in the poor puppet as he would have sucked a hen's
+egg; and he swallowed him with such violence and avidity that Pinocchio,
+in falling into the Dog-Fish's stomach, received such a blow that he
+remained unconscious for a quarter of an hour afterwards.
+
+When he came to himself again after the shock he could not in the least
+imagine in what world he was. All around him it was quite dark, and the
+darkness was so black and so profound that it seemed to him that he had
+fallen head downwards into an inkstand full of ink. He listened, but he
+could hear no noise; only from time to time great gusts of wind blew in
+his face. At first he could not understand where the wind came from, but
+at last he discovered that it came out of the monster's lungs. For you
+must know that the Dog-Fish suffered very much from asthma, and when he
+breathed it was exactly as if a north wind was blowing.
+
+Pinocchio at first tried to keep up his courage, but when he had one
+proof after another that he was really shut up in the body of this
+sea-monster he began to cry and scream, and to sob out:
+
+"Help! help! Oh, how unfortunate I am! Will nobody come to save me?"
+
+"Who do you think could save you, unhappy wretch?" said a voice in the
+dark that sounded like a guitar out of tune.
+
+"Who is speaking?" asked Pinocchio, frozen with terror.
+
+"It is I! I am a poor Tunny who was swallowed by the Dog-Fish at the
+same time that you were. And what fish are you?"
+
+"I have nothing in common with fish. I am a puppet."
+
+"Then, if you are not a fish, why did you let yourself be swallowed by
+the monster?"
+
+"I didn't let myself be swallowed; it was the monster swallowed me! And
+now, what are we to do here in the dark?"
+
+"Resign ourselves and wait until the Dog-Fish has digested us both."
+
+"But I do not want to be digested!" howled Pinocchio, beginning to cry
+again.
+
+"Neither do I want to be digested," added the Tunny; "but I am enough of
+a philosopher to console myself by thinking that when one is born a
+Tunny it is more dignified to die in the water than in oil."
+
+"That is all nonsense!" cried Pinocchio.
+
+"It is my opinion," replied the Tunny, "and opinions, so say the
+political Tunnies, ought to be respected."
+
+"To sum it all up, I want to get away from here. I want to escape."
+
+"Escape, if you are able!"
+
+"Is this Dog-Fish who has swallowed us very big?" asked the puppet.
+
+"Big! Why, only imagine, his body is two miles long without counting his
+tail."
+
+Whilst they were holding this conversation in the dark, Pinocchio
+thought that he saw a light a long way off.
+
+"What is that little light I see in the distance?" he asked.
+
+"It is most likely some companion in misfortune who is waiting, like us,
+to be digested."
+
+"I will go and find him. Do you not think that it may by chance be some
+old fish who perhaps could show us how to escape?"
+
+"I hope it may be so, with all my heart, dear puppet."
+
+"Good-bye, Tunny."
+
+"Good-bye, puppet, and good fortune attend you."
+
+"Where shall we meet again?"
+
+"Who can say? It is better not even to think of it!"
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXV
+
+A HAPPY SURPRISE FOR PINOCCHIO
+
+
+Pinocchio, having taken leave of his friend the Tunny, began to grope
+his way in the dark through the body of the Dog-Fish, taking a step at a
+time in the direction of the light that he saw shining dimly at a great
+distance.
+
+The farther he advanced the brighter became the light; and he walked and
+walked until at last he reached it; and when he reached it--what did he
+find? I will give you a thousand guesses. He found a little table spread
+out and on it a lighted candle stuck into a green glass bottle, and,
+seated at the table, was a little old man. He was eating some live fish,
+and they were so very much alive that whilst he was eating them they
+sometimes even jumped out of his mouth.
+
+At this sight Pinocchio was filled with such great and unexpected joy
+that he became almost delirious. He wanted to laugh, he wanted to cry,
+he wanted to say a thousand things, and instead he could only stammer
+out a few confused and broken words. At last he succeeded in uttering a
+cry of joy, and, opening his arms, he threw them around the little old
+man's neck, and began to shout:
+
+"Oh, my dear papa! I have found you at last! I will never leave you
+more, never more, never more!"
+
+"Then my eyes tell me true?" said the little old man, rubbing his eyes;
+"then you are really my dear Pinocchio?"
+
+"Yes, yes, I am Pinocchio, really Pinocchio! And you have quite forgiven
+me, have you not? Oh, my dear papa, how good you are! And to think that
+I, on the contrary--Oh! but if you only knew what misfortunes have been
+poured on my head, and all that has befallen me! Only imagine, the day
+that you, poor, dear papa, sold your coat to buy me a spelling-book,
+that I might go to school, I escaped to see the puppet show, and the
+showman wanted to put me on the fire, that I might roast his mutton, and
+he was the same that afterwards gave me five gold pieces to take them to
+you, but I met the Fox and the Cat, who took me to the inn of The Red
+Craw-Fish, where they ate like wolves, and I left by myself in the
+middle of the night, and I encountered assassins who ran after me, and I
+ran away, and they followed, and I ran, and they always followed me, and
+I ran, until they hung me to a branch of a Big Oak, and the beautiful
+Child with blue hair sent a little carriage to fetch me, and the doctors
+when they saw me said immediately, 'If he is not dead, it is a proof
+that he is still alive'--and then by chance I told a lie, and my nose
+began to grow until I could no longer get through the door of the room,
+for which reason I went with the Fox and the Cat to bury the four gold
+pieces, for one I had spent at the inn, and the Parrot began to laugh,
+and instead of two thousand gold pieces I found none left, for which
+reason the judge when he heard that I had been robbed had me immediately
+put in prison to content the robbers, and then when I was coming away I
+saw a beautiful bunch of grapes in a field, and I was caught in a trap,
+and the peasant, who was quite right, put a dog-collar round my neck
+that I might guard the poultry-yard, and acknowledging my innocence let
+me go, and the Serpent with the smoking tail began to laugh and broke a
+blood-vessel in his chest, and so I returned to the house of the
+beautiful Child, who was dead, and the Pigeon, seeing that I was crying,
+said to me, 'I have seen your father who was building a little boat to
+go in search of you,' and I said to him, 'Oh! if I also had wings,' and
+he said to me, 'Do you want to go to your father?' and I said, 'Without
+doubt! but who will take me to him?' and he said to me, 'I will take
+you,' and I said to him, 'How?' and he said to me, 'Get on my back,' and
+so we flew all night, and then in the morning all the fishermen who were
+looking out to sea said to me, 'There is a poor man in a boat who is on
+the point of being drowned,' and I recognized you at once, even at that
+distance, for my heart told me, and I made signs to you to return to
+land."
+
+"I also recognized you," said Geppetto, "and I would willingly have
+returned to the shore, but what was I to do! The sea was tremendous and
+a great wave upset my boat. Then a horrible Dog-Fish, who was near, as
+soon as he saw me in the water, came towards me, and, putting out his
+tongue, took hold of me and swallowed me as if I had been a little apple
+tart."
+
+"And how long have you been shut up here?" asked Pinocchio.
+
+[Illustration: They Thought It Would Be More Comfortable to Get on the
+Tunny's Back]
+
+"Since that day--it must be nearly two years ago; two years, my dear
+Pinocchio, that have seemed like two centuries!"
+
+"And how have you managed to live? And where did you get the candle? And
+the matches to light it? Who gave them to you?"
+
+"Stop, and I will tell you everything. You must know, then, that in the
+same storm in which my boat was upset a merchant vessel foundered. The
+sailors were all saved, but the vessel went to the bottom, and the
+Dog-Fish, who had that day an excellent appetite, after he had swallowed
+me, swallowed also the vessel."
+
+"How?"
+
+"He swallowed it in one mouthful, and the only thing that he spat out
+was the mainmast, that had stuck between his teeth like a fish-bone.
+Fortunately for me, the vessel was laden with preserved meat in tins,
+biscuit, bottles of wine, dried raisins, cheese, coffee, sugar, candles,
+and boxes of wax matches. With this providential supply I have been able
+to live for two years. But I have arrived at the end of my resources;
+there is nothing left in the larder, and this candle that you see
+burning is the last that remains."
+
+"And after that?"
+
+"After that, dear boy, we shall both remain in the dark."
+
+"Then, dear little papa," said Pinocchio, "there is no time to lose. We
+must think of escaping."
+
+"Of escaping? How?"
+
+"We must escape through the mouth of the Dog-Fish, throw ourselves into
+the sea and swim away."
+
+"You talk well; but, dear Pinocchio, I don't know how to swim."
+
+"What does that matter? I am a good swimmer, and you can get on my
+shoulders and I will carry you safely to shore."
+
+"All illusions, my boy!" replied Geppetto, shaking his head, with a
+melancholy smile. "Do you suppose it possible that a puppet like you,
+scarcely a yard high, could have the strength to swim with me on his
+shoulders!"
+
+"Try it and you will see!"
+
+Without another word Pinocchio took the candle in his hand, and, going
+in front to light the way, he said to his father:
+
+"Follow me, and don't be afraid."
+
+And they walked for some time and traversed the body and the stomach of
+the Dog-Fish. But when they had arrived at the point where the monster's
+big throat began, they thought it better to stop to give a good look
+around and to choose the best moment for escaping.
+
+Now, I must tell you that the Dog-Fish, being very old, and suffering
+from asthma and palpitation of the heart, was obliged to sleep with his
+mouth open. Pinocchio, therefore, having approached the entrance to his
+throat, and, looking up, could see beyond the enormous gaping mouth a
+large piece of starry sky and beautiful moonlight.
+
+"This is the moment to escape," he whispered, turning to his father;
+"the Dog-Fish is sleeping like a dormouse, the sea is calm, and it is as
+light as day. Follow me, dear papa, and in a short time we shall be in
+safety."
+
+They immediately climbed up the throat of the sea-monster, and, having
+reached his immense mouth, they began to walk on tiptoe down his tongue.
+
+Before taking the final leap the puppet said to his father:
+
+"Get on my shoulders and put your arms tightly around my neck. I will
+take care of the rest."
+
+As soon as Geppetto was firmly settled on his son's shoulders,
+Pinocchio, feeling sure of himself, threw himself into the water and
+began to swim. The sea was as smooth as oil, the moon shone brilliantly,
+and the Dog-Fish was sleeping so profoundly that even a cannonade would
+have failed to wake him.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+CHAPTER XXXVI
+
+PINOCCHIO AT LAST CEASES TO BE A PUPPET AND BECOMES A BOY
+
+
+Whilst Pinocchio was swimming quickly towards the shore he discovered
+that his father, who was on his shoulders with his legs in the water,
+was trembling as violently as if the poor man had an attack of ague
+fever.
+
+Was he trembling from cold or from fear. Perhaps a little from both the
+one and the other. But Pinocchio, thinking it was from fear, said, to
+comfort him:
+
+"Courage, papa! In a few minutes we shall be safely on shore."
+
+"But where is this blessed shore?" asked the little old man, becoming
+still more frightened, and screwing up his eyes as tailors do when they
+wish to thread a needle. "I have been looking in every direction and I
+see nothing but the sky and the sea."
+
+"But I see the shore as well," said the puppet. "You must know that I am
+like a cat: I see better by night than by day."
+
+Poor Pinocchio was making a pretense of being in good spirits, but in
+reality he was beginning to feel discouraged; his strength was failing,
+he was gasping and panting for breath. He could do no more, and the
+shore was still far off.
+
+He swam until he had no breath left; then he turned his head to Geppetto
+and said in broken words?
+
+"Papa, help me, I am dying!"
+
+The father and son were on the point of drowning when they heard a voice
+like a guitar out of tune saying:
+
+"Who is it that is dying?"
+
+"It is I, and my poor father!"
+
+"I know that voice! You are Pinocchio!"
+
+"Precisely; and you?"
+
+"I am the Tunny, your prison companion in the body of the Dog-Fish."
+
+"And how did you manage to escape?"
+
+"I followed your example. You showed me the road, and I escaped after
+you."
+
+"Tunny, you have arrived at the right moment! I implore you to help us
+or we are lost."
+
+"Willingly and with all my heart. You must, both of you, take hold of my
+tail and leave it to me to guide you. I will take you on shore in four
+minutes."
+
+Geppetto and Pinocchio, as I need not tell you, accepted the offer at
+once; but, instead of holding on by his tail, they thought it would be
+more comfortable to get on the Tunny's back.
+
+Having reached the shore, Pinocchio sprang first on land that he might
+help his father to do the same. He then turned to the Tunny and said to
+him in a voice full of emotion:
+
+"My friend, you have saved my papa's life. I can find no words with
+which to thank you properly. Permit me at least to give you a kiss as a
+sign of my eternal gratitude!"
+
+The Tunny put his head out of the water and Pinocchio, kneeling on the
+ground, kissed him tenderly on the mouth. At this spontaneous proof of
+warm affection, the poor Tunny, who was not accustomed to it, felt
+extremely touched, and, ashamed to let himself be seen crying like a
+child, he plunged under the water and disappeared.
+
+By this time the day had dawned. Pinocchio, then offering his arm to
+Geppetto, who had scarcely breath to stand, said to him:
+
+"Lean on my arm, dear papa, and let us go. We will walk very slowly,
+like the ants, and when we are tired we can rest by the wayside."
+
+"And where shall we go?" asked Geppetto.
+
+"In search of some house or cottage, where they will give us for charity
+a mouthful of bread, and a little straw to serve as a bed."
+
+They had not gone a hundred yards when they saw by the roadside two
+villainous-looking individuals begging.
+
+They were the Cat and the Fox, but they were scarcely recognizable.
+Fancy! the Cat had so long feigned blindness that she had become blind
+in reality; and the Fox, old, mangy, and with one side paralyzed, had
+not even his tail left. That sneaking thief, having fallen into the most
+squalid misery, one fine day had found himself obliged to sell his
+beautiful tail to a traveling peddler, who bought it to drive away
+flies.
+
+"Oh, Pinocchio!" cried the Fox, "give a little in charity to two poor,
+infirm people."
+
+"Infirm people," repeated the Cat.
+
+"Begone, impostors!" answered the puppet. "You took me in once, but you
+will never catch me again."
+
+"Believe me, Pinocchio, we are now poor and unfortunate indeed!"
+
+"If you are poor, you deserve it. Recollect the proverb: 'Stolen money
+never fructifies.' Begone, impostors!"
+
+And, thus saying, Pinocchio and Geppetto went their way in peace. When
+they had gone another hundred yards they saw, at the end of a path in
+the middle of the fields, a nice little straw hut with a roof of tiles
+and bricks.
+
+"That hut must be inhabited by some one," said Pinocchio. "Let us go and
+knock at the door."
+
+They went and knocked.
+
+"We are a poor father and son without bread and without a roof,"
+answered the puppet.
+
+"Turn the key and the door will open," said the same little voice.
+
+Pinocchio turned the key and the door opened. They went in and looked
+here, there, and everywhere, but could see no one.
+
+"Oh! where is the master of the house?" said Pinocchio, much surprised.
+
+"Here I am, up here!"
+
+The father and son looked immediately up to the ceiling, and there on a
+beam they saw the Talking-Cricket.
+
+"Oh, my dear little Cricket!" said Pinocchio, bowing politely to him.
+
+"Ah! now you call me 'Your dear little Cricket.' But do you remember the
+time when you threw the handle of a hammer at me, to drive me from your
+house?"
+
+"You are right, Cricket! Drive me away also! Throw the handle of a
+hammer at me, but have pity on my poor papa."
+
+"I will have pity on both father and son, but I wished to remind you of
+the ill treatment I received from you, to teach you that in this world,
+when it is possible, we should show courtesy to everybody, if we wish it
+to be extended to us in our hour of need."
+
+"You are right. Cricket, you are right, and I will bear in mind the
+lesson you have given me. But tell me how you managed to buy this
+beautiful hut."
+
+"This hut was given to me yesterday by a goat whose wool was of a
+beautiful blue color."
+
+"And where has the goat gone?" asked Pinocchio, with lively curiosity.
+
+"I do not know."
+
+"And when will it come back?"
+
+"It will never come back. It went away yesterday in great grief and,
+bleating, it seemed to say: 'Poor Pinocchio! I shall never see him more,
+for by this time the Dog-Fish must have devoured him!'"
+
+"Did it really say that? Then it was she! It was my dear little Fairy,"
+exclaimed Pinocchio, crying and sobbing.
+
+When he had cried for some time he dried his eyes and prepared a
+comfortable bed of straw for Geppetto to lie down upon. Then he asked
+the Cricket:
+
+"Tell me, little Cricket, where can I find a tumbler of milk for my poor
+papa?"
+
+"Three fields off from here there lives a gardener called Giangio, who
+keeps cows. Go to him and you will get the milk you are in want of."
+
+Pinocchio ran all the way to Giangio's house, and the gardener asked
+him:
+
+"How much milk do you want?"
+
+"I want a tumblerful."
+
+"A tumbler of milk costs five cents. Begin by giving me the five cents."
+
+"I have not even one cent," replied Pinocchio, grieved and mortified.
+
+"That is bad, puppet," answered the gardener. "If you have not even one
+cent, I have not even a drop of milk."
+
+"I must have patience!" said Pinocchio, and he turned to go.
+
+"Wait a little," said Giangio. "We can come to an arrangement together.
+Will you undertake to turn the pumping machine?"
+
+"What is the pumping machine?"
+
+"It is a wooden pole which serves to draw up the water from the cistern
+to water the vegetables."
+
+"You can try me."
+
+"Well, then, if you will draw a hundred buckets of water, I will give
+you in compensation a tumbler of milk."
+
+"It is a bargain."
+
+Giangio then led Pinocchio to the kitchen garden and taught him how to
+turn the pumping machine. Pinocchio immediately began to work; but
+before he had drawn up the hundred buckets of water the perspiration was
+pouring from his head to his feet. Never before had he undergone such
+fatigue.
+
+"Up till now," said the gardener, "the labor of turning the pumping
+machine was performed by my little donkey, but the poor animal is
+dying."
+
+"Will you take me to see him?" said Pinocchio.
+
+"Willingly."
+
+When Pinocchio went into the stable he saw a beautiful little donkey
+stretched on the straw, worn out from hunger and overwork. After looking
+at him earnestly, he said to himself, much troubled:
+
+"I am sure I know this little donkey! His face is not new to me."
+
+And, bending over him, he asked him in asinine language:
+
+"Who are you?"
+
+At this question the little donkey opened his dying eyes, and answered
+in broken words in the same language:
+
+"I am--Can--dle--wick."
+
+And, having again closed his eyes, he expired.
+
+"Oh, poor Candlewick!" said Pinocchio in a low voice; and, taking a
+handful of straw, he dried a tear that was rolling down his face.
+
+"Do you grieve for a donkey that cost you nothing?" said the gardener.
+"What must it be to me, who bought him for ready money?"
+
+"I must tell you--he was my friend!"
+
+"Your friend?"
+
+"One of my school-fellows!"
+
+"How?" shouted Giangio, laughing loudly. "How? had you donkeys for
+school-fellows? I can imagine what wonderful studies you must have
+made!"
+
+The puppet, who felt much mortified at these words, did not answer; but,
+taking his tumbler of milk, still quite warm, he returned to the hut.
+
+And from that day for more than five months he continued to get up at
+daybreak every morning to go and turn the pumping machine, to earn the
+tumbler of milk that was of such benefit to his father in his bad state
+of health. Nor was he satisfied with this; for, during the time that he
+had over, he learned to make hampers and baskets of rushes, and with the
+money he obtained by selling them he was able with great economy to
+provide for all the daily expenses. Amongst other things he constructed
+an elegant little wheel-chair, in which he could take his father out on
+fine days to breathe a mouthful of fresh air.
+
+By his industry, ingenuity and his anxiety to work and to overcome
+difficulties, he not only succeeded in maintaining his father, who
+continued infirm, in comfort, but he also contrived to put aside five
+dollars to buy himself a new coat.
+
+One morning he said to his father:
+
+"I am going to the neighboring market to buy myself a jacket, a cap, and
+a pair of shoes. When I return," he added, laughing, "I shall be so well
+dressed that you will take me for a fine gentleman."
+
+And, leaving the house, he began to run merrily and happily along. All
+at once he heard himself called by name and, turning around, he saw a
+big Snail crawling out from the hedge.
+
+"Do you not know me?" asked the Snail.
+
+"It seems to me--and yet I am not sure--"
+
+"Do you not remember the Snail who was lady's-maid to the Fairy with
+blue hair? Do you not remember the time when I came downstairs to let
+you in, and you were caught by your foot, which you had stuck through
+the house-door?"
+
+"I remember it all" shouted Pinocchio. "Tell me quickly, my beautiful
+little Snail, where have you left my good Fairy? What is she doing? Has
+she forgiven me? Does she still remember me? Does she still wish me
+well? Is she far from here? Can I go and see her?"
+
+To all these rapid, breathless questions the Snail replied in her usual
+phlegmatic manner:
+
+"My dear Pinocchio, the poor Fairy is lying in bed at the hospital!"
+
+"At the hospital?"
+
+"It is only too true. Overtaken by a thousand misfortunes, she has
+fallen seriously ill, and she has not even enough to buy herself a
+mouthful of bread."
+
+"Is it really so? Oh, what sorrow you have given me! Oh, poor Fairy!
+Poor Fairy! Poor Fairy! If I had a million I would run and carry it to
+her, but I have only five dollars. Here they are--I was going to buy a
+new coat. Take them, Snail, and carry them at once to my good Fairy."
+
+"And your new coat?"
+
+"What matters my new coat? I would sell even these rags that I have on
+to be able to help her. Go, Snail, and be quick; and in two days return
+to this place, for I hope I shall then be able to give you some more
+money. Up to this time I have worked to maintain my papa; from today I
+will work five hours more that I may also maintain my good mamma.
+Good-bye, Snail, I shall expect you in two days."
+
+The Snail, contrary to her usual habits, began to run like a lizard in a
+hot August sun.
+
+That evening Pinocchio, instead of going to bed at ten o'clock, sat up
+till midnight had struck; and instead of making eight baskets of rushes
+he made sixteen.
+
+Then he went to bed and fell asleep. And whilst he slept he thought that
+he saw the Fairy, smiling and beautiful, who, after having kissed him,
+said to him:
+
+"Well done, Pinocchio! To reward you for your good heart I will forgive
+you for all that is past. Boys who minister tenderly to their parents
+and assist them in their misery and infirmities, are deserving of great
+praise and affection, even if they cannot be cited as examples of
+obedience and good behavior. Try and do better in the future and you
+will be happy."
+
+At this moment his dream ended and Pinocchio opened his eyes and awoke.
+
+But imagine his astonishment when upon awakening he discovered that he
+was no longer a wooden puppet, but that he had become instead a boy,
+like all other boys. He gave a glance round and saw that the straw walls
+of the hut had disappeared, and that he was in a pretty little room
+furnished and arranged with a simplicity that was almost elegance.
+Jumping out of bed he found a new suit of clothes ready for him, a new
+cap, and a pair of new boots, that fitted him beautifully.
+
+He was hardly dressed when he naturally put his hands in his pockets
+and pulled out a little ivory purse on which these words were written:
+"The Fairy with blue hair returns the five dollars to her dear
+Pinocchio, and thanks him for his good heart." He opened the purse and
+instead of five dollars he saw fifty shining gold pieces fresh from the
+mint.
+
+He then went and looked at himself in the glass, and he thought he was
+some one else. For he no longer saw the usual reflection of a wooden
+puppet; he was greeted instead by the image of a bright, intelligent boy
+with chestnut hair, blue eyes, and looking as happy and joyful as if it
+were the Easter holidays.
+
+In the midst of all these wonders succeeding each other, Pinocchio felt
+quite bewildered, and he could not tell if he was really awake or if he
+was dreaming with his eyes open.
+
+"Where can my papa be?" he exclaimed suddenly, and, going into the next
+room, he found old Geppetto quite well, lively, and in good humor, just
+as he had been formerly. He had already resumed his trade of
+wood-carving, and he was designing a rich and beautiful frame of leaves,
+flowers and the heads of animals.
+
+"Satisfy my curiosity, dear papa," said Pinocchio, throwing his arms
+around his neck and covering him with kisses; "how can this sudden
+change be accounted for?"
+
+"This sudden change in our home is all your doing," answered Geppetto.
+
+"How my doing?"
+
+"Because when boys who have behaved badly turn over a new leaf and
+become good, they have the power of bringing contentment and happiness
+to their families."
+
+"And where has the old wooden Pinocchio hidden himself?"
+
+"There he is," answered Geppetto, and he pointed to a big puppet
+leaning against a chair, with its head on one side, its arms dangling,
+and its legs so crossed and bent that it was really a miracle that it
+remained standing.
+
+Pinocchio turned and looked at it; and, after he had looked at it for a
+short time, he said to himself with great complacency:
+
+"How ridiculous I was when I was a puppet! And how glad I am that I have
+become a well-behaved little boy!"
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Pinocchio, by C. Collodi
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PINOCCHIO ***
+
+***** This file should be named 16865.txt or 16865.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        https://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/8/6/16865/
+
+Produced by Mark C. Orton, Melissa Er-Raqabi and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net.
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+https://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+https://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at https://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit https://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including including checks, online payments and credit card
+donations.  To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     https://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
diff --git a/16865.zip b/16865.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0f2838a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/16865.zip
diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6312041
--- /dev/null
+++ b/LICENSE.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements,
+metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be
+in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES.
+
+Procedures for determining public domain status are described in
+the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org.
+
+No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in
+jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize
+this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright
+status under the laws that apply to them.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d07ec48
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #16865 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/16865)