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diff --git a/32786.txt b/32786.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..49ea89f --- /dev/null +++ b/32786.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11154 @@ +The Project Gutenberg eBook, Legends of Florence, by Charles Godfrey Leland + + +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: Legends of Florence + Collected from the People, First Series + + +Author: Charles Godfrey Leland + + + +Release Date: June 12, 2010 [eBook #32786] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) + + +***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LEGENDS OF FLORENCE*** + + +Transcribed from the 1895 David Nutt edition by David Price, email +ccx074@pglaf.org + + + + + + Legends of Florence + Collected from the People + + + _And Re-told_ + _by_ + _Charles Godfrey Leland_ + (_Hans Breitmann_) + + * * * * * + + First Series + + * * * * * + + _LONDON_: _DAVID NUTT_ + 270-71 _STRAND_ + 1895 + + _Printed by_ BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO. + _At the Ballantyne Press_ + + + + +PREFACE + + +This book consists almost entirely of legends or traditions of a varied +character, referring to places and buildings in Florence, such as the +Cathedral and Campanile, the Signoria, the Bargello, the different city +gates, ancient towers and bridges, palaces, crosses, and fountains, noted +corners, odd by-ways, and many churches. To all of these there are +tales, or at least anecdotes attached, which will be found as +entertaining to the general reader as they will be interesting, not to +say valuable, to the folklorist and the student of social history; but +here I must leave the work to speak for itself. + +I originally intended that this should be entirely a collection of relics +of ancient mythology, with superstitions and sorceries, witchcraft and +incantations, or what may be called occult folk-lore, of which my work on +"Etruscan-Roman Remains in Popular Tradition" consists, and of which I +have enough additional material to make a large volume. But having +resolved to add to it local legends, and give them the preference, I +found that the latter so abounded, and were so easily collected by an +expert, that I was obliged to cast out my occult folk-lore, piece by +piece, if I ever hoped to get into the port of publication, according to +terms with the underwriters, following the principle laid down by the +illustrious Poggio, that in a storm the heaviest things must go overboard +first, he illustrating the idea with the story of the Florentine, who, +having heard this from the captain when at sea in a tempest, at once +threw his wife into the raging billows--_perche non haveva cosa piu grave +di lei_--because there was nought on earth which weighed on him so +heavily. + +There are several very excellent and pleasant works on Old Florence, such +as that portion devoted to it in the "Cities of Central Italy," by A. J. +C. Hare; the "Walks about Florence," by the Sisters Horner; "Florentine +Life," by Scaife; and the more recent and admirable book by Leader Scott, +which are all--I say it advisedly--indispensable for those who would +really know something about a place which is unusually opulent in +ancient, adventurous, or artistic associations. My book is, however, +_entirely_ different from these, and all which are exclusively taken from +authentic records and books. My tales are, with a few exceptions, +derived directly or indirectly from the people themselves--having been +recorded in the local dialect--the exceptions being a few anecdotes racy +of the soil, taken from antique jest-books and such bygone halfpenny +literature as belonged to the multitude, and had its origin among them. +These I could not, indeed, well omit, as they every one refer to some +peculiar place in Florence. To these I must add several which remained +obscurely in my memory, but which I did not record at the time of hearing +or reading, not having then the intention of publishing such a book. + +It has been well observed by Wordsworth that minor local legends sink +more deeply into the soul than greater histories, as is proved by the +fact that romantic folk-lore spreads far and wide over the world, +completely distancing in the race the records of mighty men and their +deeds. The magic of Washington Irving has cast over the Catskills and +the Hudson, by means of such tales, an indescribable fascination, even as +Scott made of all Scotland a fairyland; for it is indisputable that a +strange story, or one of wild or quaint adventure, or even of humour, +goes further to fix a place in our memory than anything else can do. +Therefore I have great hope that these fairy-tales of Florence, and +strange fables of its fountains, palaces, and public places--as they are +truly gathered from old wives, and bear in themselves unmistakable +evidences of antiquity--will be of real use in impressing on many +memories much which is worth retaining, and which would otherwise have +been forgotten. + +The manner in which these stories were collected was as follows:--In the +year 1886 I made the acquaintance in Florence of a woman who was not only +skilled in fortune-telling, but who inherited as a family gift from +generations, skill in witchcraft--that is, a knowledge of mystical cures, +the relieving people who were bewitched, the making amulets, and who had +withal a memory stocked with a literally incredible number of tales and +names of spirits, with the invocations to them, and strange rites and +charms. She was a native of the Romagna Toscana, where there still lurks +in the recesses of the mountains much antique Etrusco-Roman heathenism, +though it is disappearing very rapidly. Maddalena--such was her +name--soon began to communicate to me all her lore. She could read and +write, but beyond this never gave the least indication of having opened a +book of any kind; albeit she had an immense library of folk-lore in her +brain. When she could not recall a tale or incantation, she would go +about among her extensive number of friends, and being perfectly familiar +with every dialect, whether Neapolitan, Bolognese, Florentine, or +Venetian, and the ways and manners of the poor, and especially of +witches, who are the great repositories of legends, became in time +wonderfully well skilled as a collector. Now, as the proverb says, "Take +a thief to catch a thief," so I found that to take a witch to catch +witches, or detect their secrets, was an infallible means to acquire the +arcana of sorcery. It was in this manner that I gathered a great part of +the lore given in my "Etruscan-Roman Remains." I however collected +enough, in all conscience, from other sources, and verified it all +sufficiently from classic writers, to fully test the honesty of my +authorities. + +The witches in Italy form a class who are the repositories of all the +folk-lore; but, what is not at all generally known, they also keep as +strict secrets an _immense_ number of legends of their own, which have +nothing in common with the nursery or popular tales, such as are commonly +collected and published. The real witch-story is very often only a +frame, so to speak, the real picture within it being the _arcanum_ of a +long _scongiurazione_ or incantation, and what ingredients were used to +work the charm. I have given numbers of these real witch-tales in my +"Etruscan-Roman Remains," and a few, such as "Orpheus and Eurydice," +"Intialo," and "Il Moschone," in this work. + +Lady Vere de Vere, who has investigated witchcraft as it exists in the +Italian Tyrol, in an admirable article in _La Rivista_ of Rome (June +1894)--which article has the only demerit of being too brief--tells us +that "the Community of Italian Witches is regulated by laws, traditions, +and customs of the most secret kind, possessing special recipes for +sorcery," which is perfectly true. Having been free of the community for +years, I can speak from experience. The more occult and singular of +their secrets are naturally not of a nature to be published, any more +than are those of the Voodoos. Some of the milder sort may be found in +the story of the "Moscone, or Great Fly," in this work. The great secret +for scholars is, however, that these pagans and heretics, who are the +last who cling to a heathen creed out-worn in Europe--these outcast +children of the Cainites, Ultra-Taborites, and similar ancient +worshippers of the devil, are really the ones who possess the most +valuable stores of folk-lore, that is to say, such as illustrate the +first origins of the religious Idea, its development, and specially the +evolution of the Opposition or Protestant principle. + +As regards the many legends in this book which do not illustrate such +serious research, it is but natural that witches, who love and live in +the Curious, should have preserved more even of them than other people, +and it was accordingly among her colleagues of the mystic spell that +Maddalena found tales which would have been long sought for elsewhere, of +which this book is a most convincing proof in itself; for while I had +resolved on second thought to make it one of simple local tales, there +still hangs over most--even of these--a dim, unholy air of sorcery, a +witch _aura_, a lurid light, a something eerie and uncanny, a restless +hankering for the broom and the supernatural. Those tales are +Maddalena's every line--I pray thee, reader, not to make them mine. The +spirit will always speak. + +Very different, indeed, from these are the contributions of Marietta +Pery, the _improvvisatrice_, though even she in good faith, and not for +fun, had a horseshoe for luck; which, however, being of an artistic turn, +she had elegantly gilded, and also, like a true Italian, wore an amulet. +She, too, knew many fairy tales, but they were chiefly such as may be +found among the _Racconti delle Fate_, and the variants which are now so +liberally published. She had, however, a rare, I may almost say a +refined, taste in these, as the poems which I have given indicate. + +I must also express my obligations to Miss Roma Lister, a lady born in +Italy of English parentage, who is an accomplished folk-lorist and +collector, as was shown by her paper on the _Legends of the Castelli +Romani_, read at the first meeting of the Italian Folk-Lore Society, +founded by Count Angelo de Gubernatis, the learned and accomplished +Oriental scholar, and editor of _La Rivista_. I would here say that her +researches in the vicinity of Rome have gone far to corroborate what I +published in the "Etruscan-Roman Remains." I must also thank Miss Teresa +Wyndham for sundry kind assistances, when I was ill in Siena. + +There is no city in the world where, within such narrow limit, Art, +Nature, and History have done so much to make a place beautiful and +interesting as Florence. It is one where we feel that there has been +vivid and varied _life_--life such as was led by Benvenuto Cellini and a +thousand like him--and we long more than elsewhere to enter into it, and +know how those men in quaint and picturesque garb thought and felt four +hundred years ago. Now, as at the present day politics and news do not +enter into our habits of thought more than goblins, spirits of fountains +and bridges, legends of palaces and towers, and quaint jests of friar or +squire, did into those of the olden time, I cannot help believing that +this book will be not only entertaining, but useful to all who would +study the spirit of history thoroughly. The folk-lore of the future has +a far higher mission than has as yet been dreamed for it; it is destined +to revive for us the inner sentiment or habitual and peculiar life of man +as he was in the olden time more perfectly than it has been achieved by +fiction. This will be done by bringing before the reader the facts or +_phenomena_ of that life itself in more vivid and familiar form. +Admitting this, the reader can hardly fail to see that the writer who +gathers up with pains whatever he can collect of such materials as this +book contains does at least some slight service to Science. + +And to conclude--with the thing to which I would specially call +attention--I distinctly state that (as will be very evident to the +critical reader) there are in this book, especially in the second series, +which I hope to bring out later, certain tales, or anecdotes, or jests, +which are either based on a very slight foundation of tradition--often a +mere hint--or have been so "written up" by a runaway pen--and mine is an +"awful bolter"--that the second-rate folk-lorist, whose forte consists +not in finding facts but faults, may say in truth, as one of his kind did +in America: "Mr. Leland is throughout inaccurate." In these numerous +instances, which are only "folk-lore" run wild, as Rip Van Winkle, Sleepy +Hollow, and Heine's Gods in Exile are legend, I have, I hope, preserved a +certain _spirit_ of truth, though I have _sans mercy_ sacrificed the +letter, even as the redcap goblins, which haunt old houses, are said to +be the ghosts of infants sacrificed by witches, or slain by their +mothers, in order to make _folletti_ or imps of them. + +Now as for this reconstructing Hercules from a foot, instead of giving +the fragment, at which few would have glanced, the success consists in +the skill attained, and the approbation of the reader. And with this +frank admission, that in a certain number of these tales the utmost +liberty has been taken, I conclude. + + CHARLES GODFREY LELAND. + +FLORENCE, _April_ 6, 1894. + + + + +CONTENTS + + PAGE +THE THREE HORNS OF MESSER GUICCIARDINI 1 +THE PILLS OF THE MEDICI 6 +FURICCHIA, OR THE EGG-WOMAN OF THE MERCATO VECCHIO 11 +THE LANTERNS OF THE STROZZI PALACE 17 +THE GOBLIN OF LA VIA DEL CORNO 21 +FRATE GIOCONDO, THE MONK OF SANTA MARIA NOVELLA 26 +THE LEGEND OF THE CROCE AL TREBBIO 31 +THE TWO FAIRIES OF THE WELL 36 +THE STORY OF THE VIA DELLE SERVE SMARRITE 41 +THE BRONZE BOAR OF THE MERCATO NUOVO 47 +THE FAIRY OF THE CAMPANILE, OR THE TOWER OF GIOTTO 51 +THE GOBLIN OF THE TOWER DELLA TRINITA, OR THE PORTA SAN 54 +NICCOLO +THE GHOST OF MICHEL ANGELO 59 +THE APPARITION OF DANTE 62 +LEGENDS OF LA CERTOSA 66 +LEGENDS OF THE BRIDGES IN FLORENCE 74 +THE BASHFUL LOVER 85 +LA FORTUNA 87 +THE STORY OF THE UNFINISHED PALACE 91 +THE DEVIL OF THE MERCATO VECCHIO 98 +SEEING THAT ALL WAS RIGHT 107 +THE ENCHANTED COW OF LA VIA VACCHERECCIA 109 +THE WITCH OF THE PORTA ALLA CROCE 114 +THE COLUMN OF COSIMO, OR DELLA SANTA TRINITA 118 +LEGENDS OF OR' SAN MICHELE 122 +THE WITCH OF THE ARNO 132 +STORIES OF SAN MINIATO 141 +THE FRAIR'S HEAD OF SANTA MARIA MAGGIORE--THE LADY WHO 149 +CONFESSED FOR EVERYBODY--HOLY RELICS +BIANCONE, THE GIANT STATUE IN THE SIGNORIA 152 +THE RED GOBLIN OF THE BARGELLO 160 +LEGENDS OF SAN LORENZO 167 +LEGENDS OF THE PIAZZA SAN BIAGIO 174 +THE SPIRIT OF THE PORTA SAN GALLO 176 +STORY OF THE PODESTA WHO WAS LONG ON HIS JOURNEY 179 +LEGENDS OF THE BOBOLI GARDENS: THE OLD GARDENER, AND THE 184 +TWO STATUES AND THE FAIRY +HOW LA VIA DELLA MOSCA GOT ITS NAME 188 +THE ROMAN VASE 194 +THE UNFORTUNATE PRIEST 201 +THE MYSTERIOUS FIG-TREE 205 +IL PALAZZO FERONI 211 +LA VIA DELLE BELLE DONNE 219 +THE WIZARD WITH RED TEETH 221 +ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE 225 +INTIALO: THE SPIRIT OF THE HAUNTING SHADOW 237 +CAIN AND HIS WORSHIPPERS 254 + + + + +THE THREE HORNS OF MESSER GUICCIARDINI + + + "More plenty than the fabled horn + Thrice emptied could pour forth at banqueting." + + --KEATS, _The Earlier Version of_ "_Hyperion_." + + "Prosperity is often our worst enemy, making us vicious, frivolous, + and insolent, so that to bear it well is a better test of a man than + to endure adversity."--GICCIARDINI, _Maxims_, No. 64. + +I did not know when I first read and translated the following story, +which was obtained for me and written out by Maddalena, that it had any +reference to the celebrated historian and moralist, Guicciardini. How I +did so forms the subject of a somewhat singular little incident, which I +will subsequently relate. + + LE TRE CORNE. + +"There was an elderly man, a very good, kind-hearted, wise person, who +was gentle and gay with every one, and much beloved by his servants, +because they always found him _buono ed allegro_--pleasant and jolly. +And often when with them while they were at their work, he would say, +'_Felice voi poveri_!'--'Oh, how lucky you are to be poor!' And they +would reply to him, singing in the old Tuscan fashion, because they knew +it pleased him: + + "'O caro Signor, you have gold in store, + With all to divert yourself; + Your bees make honey, you've plenty of money, + And victuals upon the shelf: + A palace you have, and rich attire, + And everything to your heart's desire.' + +"Then he would reply merrily: + + "'My dear good folk, because you are poor + You are my friends, and all the more, + For the poor are polite to all they see, + And therefore blessed be Poverty!' + +"Then a second servant sang: + + "'Oh bello gentile mio Signor', + Your praise of poverty 'd soon be o'er + If you yourself for a time were poor; + For nothing to eat, and water to drink, + Isn't so nice as you seem to think, + And a lord who lives in luxury + Don't know the pressure of poverty.' + +"Then all would laugh, and the jolly old lord would sing in his turn: + + "'O charo servitor', + Tu parli tanto bene, + Ma il tuo parlar + A me non mi conviene.' . . . + + "'My boy, you answer well, + But with false implication; + For what to me you tell + Has no true application; + How oft I heard you say + (You know 'tis true, you sinner!) + "I am half-starved to-day, + How I'll enjoy my dinner!" + Your hunger gives you health + And causes great delight, + While I with all my wealth + Have not an appetite.' + +"Then another servant sang, laughing: + + "'Dear master, proverbs say, + I have heard them from my birth, + That of all frightful beasts + Which walk upon the earth, + Until we reach the bier, + Wherever man may be, + There's nothing which we fear + So much as poverty.' + +"And so one evening as they were merrily improvising and throwing +_stornelli_ at one another in this fashion, the Signore went to his +street-door, and there beheld three ladies of stately form; for though +they were veiled and dressed in the plainest black long robes, it was +evident that they were of high rank. Therefore the old lord saluted them +courteously, and seeing that they were strangers, asked them whither they +were going. But he had first of all had them politely escorted by his +servants into his best reception-room. {3a} + +"And the one who appeared to be the chief replied: + +"'Truly we know not where we shall lodge, for in all Florence there is, I +trow, not a soul who, knowing who we are would receive us.' + +"'And who art thou, lady?' asked the Signore. And she replied: + + "'Io mi chiamo, e sono, + La Poverta in persona, + E queste due donzelle, + Sono le mie sorelle, + Chi voi non conoscete + La Fame e la Sete!' + + "'I am one whom all throw curse on. + I am Poverty in person; + Of these ladies here, the younger + Is my sister, known as Hunger, + And the third, who's not the worst, + Is dreaded still by all as Thirst.' + +"'Blessed be the hour in which ye entered my house!' cried the Signore, +delighted. 'Make yourselves at home, rest and be at ease as long as you +like--_sempre sarei benglieto_.' + +"'And why are you so well disposed towards me?' inquired Poverty. + +"'Because, lady, I am, I trust, sufficiently wise with years and +experience to know that everything must not be judged from the surface. +Great and good art thou, since but for thee the devil a beggar in the +world would ever move a finger to do the least work, and we should all be +in mouldy green misery. Well hath it been said that 'Need makes the old +woman trot,' {3b} and likewise that _Poverta non guasta +gentilezza_--'Poverty doth not degrade true nobility,' as I can perceive +by thy manner, O noble lady. Thou, Poverty, art the mother of Industry, +and grandmother of Wealth, Health, and Art; thou makest all men work; but +for thee there would be no harvests, yea, all the fine things in the +world are due to Want.' + +"'And I?' said Dame Hunger. 'Dost thou also love me?' + +"'_Si_, _Dio ti benedicha_!' replied the Signore. '_La fame ghastiga il +ghiotto_'--'Hunger corrects gluttony. + + "'Hunger causes our delight, + For it gives us appetite; + For dainties without hunger sent + Form a double punishment.' + +'Hunger is the best sauce.' Thou makest men bold, for _chane affamato +non prezza bastone_--a hungry dog fears no stick. Thou makest the +happiness of every feast.' + +"'_Ed io_, _Signore_?' said Thirst. 'Hast thou also a good word for me?' + +"'_A Dio_, _grazie_! God be praised that thou art. For without thee I +should have no wine. Nor do men speak in pity of any one when they say +in a wine-shop, "He is thirsty enough to drink up the Arno." I remember +a Venetian who once said, coming to a feast, "I would not take five gold +_zecchini_ for this thirst which I now have." And to sum it all up, I +find that poverty with want to urge it is better than wealth without +power to enjoy, and, taking one with another, the poor are honester and +have better hearts than the rich.' + +"'Truly thou art great,' replied Poverty. '_Gentile_, _buono_, _e +galantuomo a parlare_--gentle, good, and noble in thy speech. In such +wise thou wilt ever be rich, for as thou art rich thou art good and +charitable. And thou hast well said that Plenty comes from us, and it is +we who truly own the horn of plenty; and therefore take from me this horn +as a gift, and while thou livest be as rich as thou art good and wise!' + +"'And I,' said Hunger, 'give thee another, and while it is thine thou +shalt never want either a good appetite nor the means to gratify it. For +thou hast seen the truth that I was not created to starve men to death, +but to keep them from starving.' + +"'And I,' said Thirst, 'give thee a third horn of plenty; that is, plenty +of wine and temperate desire--_e buon pro vi faccia_. Much good may it +do you!' + +"Saying this they vanished, and he would have thought it all a dream but +for the three horns which they left behind them. So he had a long life +and a happy, and in gratitude to his benefactresses he placed on his +shield three horns, as men may see them to this day." + + * * * * * + +When I received this legend, I did not know that the three horns on a +shield form the coat of arms of Messer Guicciardini, the historian, nor +had I ever seen them. It happened by pure chance I went one day with my +wife and Miss Roma Lister, who is devoted to folk-lore, to make my first +visit to Sir John Edgar at his home, the celebrated old mediaeval +palazzo, the Villa Guicciardini, Via Montugli. + +On the way we passed the Church of the Annunciata, and while driving by I +remarked that there were on its wall, among many shields, several which +had on them a _single_ hunting-horn, but that I had never seen three +together, but had heard of such a device, and was very anxious to find +it, and learn to what family it belonged. + +What was my astonishment, on arriving at the villa or palazzo, at +beholding on the wall in the court a large shield bearing the three +horns. Sir John Edgar informed me that it was the shield of the +Guicciardini family, who at one time inhabited the mansion. I related to +him the story, and he said, "I should think that tale had been invented +by some one who knew Guicciardini, the author, very well, for it is +perfectly inspired with the spirit of his writings. It depicts the man +himself as I have conceived him." + +Then we went into the library, where my host showed me Fenton's +translation of the "History" of Guicciardini and his "Maxims" in Italian, +remarking that the one which I have placed as motto to this chapter was +in fact an epitome of the whole legend. + +I should observe, what did not before occur to me, that the family palace +of the Guicciardini is in the Via Guicciardini, nearly opposite to the +house of Machiavelli, and that it is there that the fairies probably +called, if it was in the winter-time. + + + + +THE PILLS OF THE MEDICI + + + "When I upon a time was somewhat ill, + Then every man did press on me a cure; + And when my wife departed, all of them + Came crowding round, commending me a spouse; + But now my ass is dead, not one of them + Has offered me another--devil a one!"--_Spanish Jests_. + + "_Tu vai cercando il mal_, _come fanno i Medici_"--"Thou goest about + seeking evil, even as the Medici do, and of thee and of them it may + be said, _Anagyram commoves_."--_Italian Proverbs_, A.D. 1618. + +The higher a tree grows, the more do petty animals burrow into its roots, +and displace the dirt to show how it grew in lowly earth; and so it is +with great families, who never want for such investigators, as appears by +the following tale, which refers to the origin of the Medicis, yet which +is withal rather merry than malicious. + + D'UNO MEDICO CHE CURAVA GLI ASINI. + +"It was long ago--so long, Signore Carlo, that the oldest olive-tree in +Tuscany had not been planted, and when wolves sometimes came across the +Ponte Vecchio into the town to look into the shop-windows, and ghosts and +witches were as common by night as Christians by day, that there was a +man in Florence who hated work, and who had observed, early as the age +was, that those who laboured the least were the best paid. And he was +always repeating to himself: + + "'Con arte e con inganno, + Si vive mezzo l'anno, + Con inganno, e con arte, + Si vive l'altra parte.' + +"Or in English: + + "'With tricks and cleverness, 'tis clear, + A man can live six months i' the year, + And then with cleverness and tricks + He'll live as well the other six.' + +"Now having come across a recipe for making pills which were guaranteed +to cure everything, he resolved to set up for an universal doctor, and +that with nothing but the pills to aid. So he went forth from Florence, +wandering from one village to another, selling his pills, curing some +people, and getting, as often happens, fame far beyond his deserts, so +that the peasants began to believe he could remedy all earthly ills. + +"And at last one day a stupid contadino, who had lost his ass, went to +the doctor and asked him whether by his art and learning he could recover +for him the missing animal. Whereupon the doctor gave him six pills at a +_quattrino_ (a farthing) each, and bade him wander forth thinking +intently all the time on the delinquent donkey, and, to perfect the +spell, to walk in all the devious ways and little travelled tracks, +solitary by-paths, and lonely _sentieri_, ever repeating solemnly, +'_Asino mio_! _asino mio_! _Tu che amo come un zio_!' + + "'Oh my ass! my ass! my ass! + Whom I loved like an uncle, + Alas! alas!' + +"And having done this for three days, it came to pass, and no great +wonder either, that he found Signore Somaro (or Don Key) comfortably +feasting in a dark lane on thistles. After which he praised to the skies +the virtue of the wonderful pills, by means of which one could find +strayed cattle. And from this dated the doctor's success, so that he +grew rich and founded the family of the Medici, who, in commemoration of +this their great ancestor, put the six pills into their shield, as you +may see all over Florence to this day." + + * * * * * + +There is given in the "Facezie" a story which may be intended as a jest +on this family. It is as follows: + + "It happened once that a certain doctor or _medico_, who was by no + means wanting in _temerita_ or bold self-conceit, was sent as + ambassador to Giovanna la Superba, or Joanna the Proud, Queen of + Naples. And this Florentine Medico having heard many tales of the + gallantries of the royal lady, thought he would try the chance, and + thereby greatly please himself, and also the better advance his + political aims. Therefore, at the first interview, he told her that + he was charged with a secret mission, which could only be confided to + her 'between four eyes,' or in private. So he was taken by her into + a room, where he bluntly made a proposal of love. {8} + + "Then the Queen, not in the least discomposed, looking straight at + him, asked if that was one of the questions or demands with which he + had been charged by the Florentines. At which he blushed like a beet + and had no more to say, having learned that a bold beggar deserves a + stern refusal." + +The name of the Medici naturally gave rise to many jests, and one of +these is narrated of Gonella, a famous _farceur_. It is as follows: + + "One morning, at the table of the Grand Duke Lorenzo, there was a + discussion as to the number and proportion of those who followed + different trades and callings, one declaring that there were more + clothmakers, another more priests than any others, till at last the + host asked Gonella his opinion. + + "'I am sure,' said Gonella, 'that there are more doctors than any + other kind of people--_e non accade dubitarne_--and there is no use + in doubting it.' + + "'Little do you know about it,' replied the Duke, 'if you do not know + that in all this city there are only two or three accredited + physicians.' + + "'With how little knowledge,' answered Gonella, 'can a state be + governed. It seems, O Excellency, that you have so much to do that + you do not know what is in your city, nor what the citizens do.' And + the result of the debate was a bet, and Gonella took every bet + offered, his stakes being small and the others great--_A quattrino e + quattrino si fa il fiorino_--Farthings to farthings one by one make a + pound when all is done. + + "The next morning Gonella, having well wrapped up his throat and face + in woollen stuff, stood, looking pitifully enough, at the door of the + Duomo, and every one who passed asked him what was the matter, to + which he replied, 'All my teeth ache terribly.' And everybody + offered him an infallible remedy, which he noted down, and with it + the name of him who gave it. And then going about town, he made out + during the day a list of three hundred prescribers, with as many + prescriptions. + + "And last of all he went to the palace at the hour of supper, and the + Grand Duke seeing him so wrapped up, asked the cause, and hearing + that it was toothache, also prescribed a sovereign remedy, and + Gonella put it with the name of the Duke at the head of the list. + And going home, he had the whole fairly engrossed, and the next day, + returning to the palace, was reminded of his bets. Whereupon he + produced the paper, and great was the laughter which it caused, since + it appeared by it that all the first citizens and nobles of Florence + were physicians, and that the Grand Duke himself was their first + Medico. So it was generally admitted that Gonella had won, and they + paid him the money, with which he made merry for many days." + +This tale has been retold by many a writer, but by none better than by an +American feuilletoniste, who improved it by giving a number of the +prescriptions commended. Truly it has been well said that at forty years +of age every man is either a fool or a physician. + +I have another legend of the Medici, in which it is declared that their +armorial symbol is a key, and in which they are spoken of as wicked and +cruel. It is as follows: + + I MEDICI. + + "The Palazzo Medici is situated in the Borgo degli Albizzi, and this + palace is called by the people _I Visacchi_ (_i.e._, figures or + faces), because there are to be seen in it many figures of people who + were when alive all witches and wizards, but who now live a life in + death in stone. + + "The arms of the Medici bear a great key, and it is said that this + was a sorcerer's or magic key, which belonged to the master of all + the wizards or to the queen of the witches. + + "And being ever evil at heart and cruelly wicked, the old Medici + sought restlessly every opportunity to do wrong, which was greatly + aided by the queen of the witches herself, who entered the family, + and allied herself to one of it; others say she was its first + ancestress. And that being on her death-bed, she called her husband, + or son, or the family, and said: + + "'Take this key, and when I am dead, open a certain door in the + cellar, which, through secret passages, leads to an enchanted garden, + in which you will find all the books and apparatus needed to acquire + great skill in sorcery, and thus thou canst do all the evil and enjoy + all the crime that a great ruler can desire; spare not man in thy + vengeance, nor woman in thy passion; he lives best who wishes for + most and gets what he wants.' + + "Thus it came to pass that the Medici became such villains, and why + they bear a key." + +Villains they may have been, but they were not so deficient in moral +dignity as a friend of mine, who, observing that one of the pills in +their scutcheon is blue, remarked that they were the first to take a blue +pill. + +Since the above was written I have collected many more, and indeed far +more interesting and amusing legends of the Medici; especially several +referring to Lorenzo the Magnificent, which are not given by any writer +that I am aware of. These will appear, I trust, in a second series. + + "A race which was the reflex of an age + So strange, so flashed with glory, so bestarred + With splendid deeds, so flushed with rainbow hues, + That one forgot the dark abyss of night + Which covered it at last when all was o'er. + Take all that's evil and unto it add + All that is glorious, and the result + Will be, in one brief word, the Medici." + + + + +FURICCHIA, OR THE EGG-WOMAN OF THE MERCATO VECCHIO + + + "Est anus inferno, vel formidanda barathro, + Saga diu magicis usa magisteriis, + Haec inhians ova gallina matre creatis. + Obsipat assueto pharmaca mixta cibo, + Pharmaca queis quaecunque semel gallina voratis, + Ova decem pariat bis deciesque decem." + + STEUCCIUS, _cited by_ P. GOLDSCHMIDT, + _Verworffener Hexen und Zauberadvocat_. Hamburg, 1705. + + "E un figliuolo della gallina bianca."--_Old Proverb_. + +The Mercato Vecchio was fertile in local traditions, and one of these is +as follows: + + LEGEND OF THE LANTERNS. + +"There was in the Old Market of Florence an old house with a small shop +in it, and over the door was the figure or bas-relief of a pretty hen, to +show that eggs were sold there. + +"All the neighbours were puzzled to know how the woman who kept this shop +could sell so many eggs as she did, or whence she obtained them, for she +was never seen in the market buying any, nor were they brought to her; +whence they concluded that she was a witch and an egg-maker, and this +scandal was especially spread by her rivals in business. But others +found her a very good person, of kindly manner, and it was noted in time +that she not only did a great deal of good in charity, and that her eggs +were not only always fresh and warm, but that many persons who had drunk +them when ill had been at once relieved, and recovered in consequence. +And the name of this egg-wife was Furicchia. + +"Now there was an old lady who had gone down in the world or become poor, +and she too had set up a shop to sell eggs, but did not succeed, chiefly +because everybody went to Furicchia. And this made the former more +intent than ever to discover the secret, and she at once went to work to +find it out. + +"Every morning early, when Furicchia rose, she went out of doors, and +then the hen carved over the door came down as a beautiful white fowl, +who told her all the slanders and gossip which people spread about her, +and what effort was being made to discover her secret. And one day it +said: + +"'There is the Signora who was once rich and who is now poor, and who has +sworn to find out thy secret how thou canst have so many eggs to sell, +since no one sees thee buy any, and how it comes that invalids and +bewitched children are at once cured by the virtue of those eggs. So she +hopes to bring thee to death, and to get all thy trade. + +"'But, dear Furicchia, this shall never be, because I will save thee. I +well remember how, when I was a little chicken, and the poultry dealer +had bought me, and was about to wring my neck--b'r'r'r!--I shudder when I +think of it!--when thou didst save my life, and I will ever be grateful +to thee, and care for thy fortune. + +"'Now I will tell thee what to do. Thou shalt to-morrow take a pot and +fill it with good wine and certain drugs, and boil them well, and leave +it all hot in thy room, and then go forth, and for the rest I will +provide. _Addio_, Furicchia!' And saying this, the hen went back into +her accustomed place. + +"So the next morning, Furicchia, having left the wine boiling, went forth +at ten o'clock, and she was hardly gone ere the Signora, her rival, +entered the place and called for the mistress, but got no answer. Then +she went into the house, but saw nothing more than a vast quantity of +eggs, and all the while she heard the hen singing or clucking: + + "'_Coccode_! Dear me! + Where can Furicchia be? + _Coccode_! Furicchia mine! + Bring me quick some warm red wine! + _Coccode_! Three eggs I have laid! + _Coccode_! Now six for your trade. + _Coccode_! Now there are nine, + Bring me quickly the warm red wine! + _Coccode_! Take them away; + Many more for thee will I lay, + And thou wilt be a lady grand, + As fine as any in all the land; + And should it happen that any one + Drinks of this wine as I have done, + Eggs like me she will surely lay; + That is the secret, that is the way. + _Coccode_! _Coccode_!' + +"Now the Signora heard all this, and knew not whence the song came, but +she found the pot of hot wine and drank it nearly all, but had not time +to finish it nor to escape before Furicchia returned. And the latter +began to scold her visitor for taking such liberty, to which the Signora +replied, 'Furicchia, I came in here to buy an egg, and being shivering +with cold, and seeing this hot wine, I drank it, meaning indeed to pay +for it.' But Furicchia replied, 'Get thee gone; thou hast only come here +to spy out my secret, and much good may it do thee!' + +"The Signora went home, when she begun to feel great pain, and also, in +spite of herself, to cluck like a hen, to the amazement of everybody, and +then sang: + + "'_Coccode_! Che mal di corpo! + _Coccode_! Voglio fa l'uovo! + E se l'uova non faro, + Di dolore moriro.' + + "'_Coccode_! What a pain in my leg! + _Coccode_! I must lay an egg! + And if my eggs I cannot lay, + I shall surely die to-day.' + +"Then she began to lay eggs indeed--_tante_, _tante_--till they nearly +filled all the room, and truly her friends were aghast at such a sight, +never having heard of such a thing before; but she replied, 'Keep quiet; +it is a secret. I have found out how Furicchia gets her eggs, and we +shall be as rich as she.' And having laid her eggs, nothing would do but +she must needs hatch them, and all the time for many days she sat and +sat, clucking like a hen--_coccode_! _coccode_!--and pecking at crusts +like a hen, for she would not eat in any other way. And so she sat and +shrivelled up until she became a hen indeed, and was never anything else, +and died one. But when the eggs hatched, there came from them not +chicks, but mice, which ran away into the cellar, and so ends the story." + + * * * * * + +This story greatly resembles one given by Peter Goldschmidt in "The +Witches' and Sorcerers' Advocate Overthrown," published at Hamburg in +1705, and to the same as sung in Latin song by a certain Steuccius. The +Italian tale is, however, far better told in every respect, the only +point in common being that a certain witch laid eggs by means of a +potion, which produced the same effect on a man. It is the well-managed +play of curiosity, gratitude, and character which make Furicchia so +entertaining, and there is nothing in the heavy German tale like the +"Song of the Hen," or _Coccode_, which is a masterpiece of a juvenile +lyric. The clucking and pecking at crusts of the old woman, as she +gradually passes into a hen, is well imagined, and also the finale of the +chickens turned to mice, who all run away. One could make of it a play +for the nursery or the stage. + +The Mercato Vecchio, in which the egg-wife dwelt, was a place of common +resort in the olden time, "when there was giving and taking of talk on +topics temporal:" + + "Where the good news fleetly flew, + And the bad news ever true, + Softly whispered, loudly told, + Scalding hot or freezing cold." {14} + +This place is recalled by a story which is indeed to be found in the +facetiae of the Florentine Poggio, yet which holds its own to this day in +popular tale-telling. It is as follows: + + "It happened once when Florence was at war with the Duke of Milan, + that a law was passed making it death for any one to speak in any way + of peace. Now there was a certain Bernardo Manetti, a man _di + ingegno vivacissimo_, or an extremely ready wit, who being one day in + the Mercato Vecchio to buy something or other (it being the custom of + the Florentines of those times to go in person to purchase their + daily food), was much annoyed by one of those begging friars who go + about the roads, _alla questua_, collecting alms, and who stand at + street-corners imploring charity. And this brazen beggar, accosting + Bernardo, said to him: + + "'_Pax vobiscum_! Peace be unto you!' + + "'_A chi parlasti di pace_?--How darest thou speak to me of _peace_, + thou traitor and enemy to Florence?' cried Bernardo in well-assumed + anger. 'Dost thou not know that by public decree thou may'st lose + thy shaven head for mentioning the word? And thou darest ask me for + alms here in the open market-place, thou traitor to thy country and + thy God! _Apage_, _Satanas_--avaunt!--begone! lest I be seen talking + to thee and taken for a conspirator myself! _Pax_ indeed--pack off + with you, ere I hand you over to the torturers!' + + "And so he rid himself of that importunate beggar." + +Apropos of the egg-wife, if chickens are apropos to eggs, there is a +merry tale of a certain priest, which will, I think, amuse the reader. +Like all good folk, the Florentines make fun of their neighbours, among +whom are of course included the people of Arezzo, and tell of them this +story: + + "Long long ago, a certain Bishop Angelico convoked a Synod at Arezzo, + summoning every priest in his diocese to be present; and knowing that + many had slipped into very slovenly habits as regarded the sacerdotal + uniform, made it a stern and strict order that every one should + appear in _cappa e cotta_,' {15} or in cloak and robe. + + "Now there was a priest who, though he kept a well-filled cellar, and + a pretty servant-maid, and a fine poultry-yard, had none of these + clerical vestments, and knew not where to borrow them for the + occasion; so he was in great distress and _stavasi molto afflitto in + casa sua_--sat in deep affliction in his home. And his maid, who was + a bright and clever girl, seeing him so cast down, asked him the + cause of his grief, to which he replied that the Bishop had summoned + him to appear at the Synod in _cappa e cotta_. + + "'Oh, nonsense!' replied the good girl. 'Is that all? My dear + master, you do not pronounce the words quite correctly, or else they + have been badly reported to you. It is not _cappa e cotta_ which the + Bishop requires, for assuredly he has plenty of such clothes, but + _capponi cotti_, 'good roast capons,' such as all bishops love, and + which he knows he can get better from the country priests than from + anybody. And _grazie a Dio_! there is nobody in all Tuscany has + better poultry than ours, and I will take good care that you give the + Bishop of the very best.' + + "Now the priest being persuaded by the maid, really made his + appearance at the Council bearing in a dish well covered with a + napkin four of the finest roasted capons ever seen. And with these + he advanced _in pleno concilo_, in full assembly before the Bishop. + The great man looked severely at the priest, and said: + + "'Where are thy _cappa e cotta_?' + + "'Excellenza, behold them!' said the good man, uncovering the dish. + 'And though I say it, no better _capponi cotte_ can be had in all our + country.' + + "The Bishop and all round him gazed with breathless admiration on the + fowls, so plump, so delicious, so exquisitely roasted, with lemons + ranged round them. It was just the hungry time of day, and, in + short, the priest had made a blessed happy blunder, and one which was + greatly admired. There was general applause. + + "'_Figlio mio_!' said the Bishop with a smile, 'take my blessing! + Thou alone of all the ministers of our diocese didst rightly + understand the spirit and meaning of an episcopal edict.'" + + + + +THE LANTERNS OF THE STROZZI PALACE + + + "And what this man did was, as the proverb says, _mostrare altrui + lucciole per laterne_--made him believe that fire-flies were + lanterns--which means to deceive any one."--_Italian Proverbs_. + +As all visitors to Florence will have their attention called to the +Strozzi Palace, and its rings and lanterns, the following will probably +prove to them to be of interest: + + "The _campanelle_, or great iron rings, which are on the Strozzi + Palace, were the result of rivalry with the Pitti family. + + "The Strozzi built their palace first, and then the Pitti said that + it would only fill a corner of their own far greater building. And + when the latter was finished, the Strozzi, to be even with them, + placed those magnificent _campanelle_ at the four corners, and then + the great lanterns which are so exquisitely worked, and these were + made by Niccolo il Grosso, a very ingenious but also very poor man, + who, having begun the work, could not finish it for want of money. + + "One morning when this Niccolo was sitting on the stone bench of the + palace, there came by an old man who was carrying some onions, and + the artist begged a few of these to eat with his bread, telling him + he had no money. But the old man said, 'Take them, and welcome, for + a free gift, Niccolo. Truly, it pains me to see an excellent artist + like thee starving for want of proper patronage. Now I will lend + thee a round sum, which thou canst repay me when thou art in better + luck.' + + "'But tell me,' inquired Niccolo, greatly amazed, 'how dost thou know + who I am?' + + "The old man replied, 'I know thee, and that thou hast great genius + (_una gran testa_), and I find thee utterly poor and unable to finish + the Strozzi lanterns. + + "'Now I wish to do thee a service. Go, with these onions in thine + hand, and stand there in the street till the Lords Strozzi go forth, + and see thee with the vegetables, and then they will ask thee why + thou dost not finish the lanterns. And then thou shalt reply, + "Signori, because I must sell onions, not being able otherwise to + finish the lanterns, for truly all my art does not give me bread." + Then they will give thee money, and after that return to me.' + + "So it happened as the old man said: the Signori Strozzi, when they + came forth, found Niccolo their artist selling onions, and gave him a + good sum of money, and with that he went back to the old man. And + they gave him a great sum indeed, for he was to make the lanterns all + of solid gold, so that the palace might be far finer than the Pitti. + + "The old man said, 'Never mind paying me, but put an onion in your + pocket and study it.' And this he did, hence it comes that the tops + of the lanterns are like onion sprouts. And Niccolo seeing that he + lived in a hard and cruel world, in order to be even with it, made + the lanterns of iron, though the work which he put upon it was like + jewellery, so fine was it, and then gilded the iron and passed the + lanterns off on the Signori Strozzi for solid gold, and was soon + heard of as being very far away from Florence, in company with the + good old man who had put him up to the little game (_bel giuoco_). + + "But people say that after all the Strozzi were not so badly cheated, + for those onion-top lanterns could not have been bought even in their + time for their weight in gold, and that they are worth much more + now." + +It is needless to say that this ingenious tale owes its origin to the +iron lanterns having been at one time gilt. These famous works of art +have been copied far and wide: had the Strozzi family taken out and +renewed the copyright for design on them, they might have found that the +gold was a very good investment, especially in these times, when a thing +of beauty brings in cash for ever. One of the latest and prettiest +devices, to be seen in many shops, is a small iron night-lamp in +imitation of these Strozzi lanterns. + +The im-moral, or at least the concluding sentence of the tale is, "_E +cosi Niccolo se ne fuggi a tasche piene_--And so Niccolo fled with his +pockets full of money." I spare the reader reflections on the history of +many bankers in Florence and Rome, who during the past two years followed +his example. + +What is extremely interesting and original in this legend is the +declaration that Niccolo took the idea of the long and very singular +points on the lanterns from an onion. It recalls the story of the +acanthus leaf and the basket which suggested the Ionic capital. It was +understood by the narrator that the old man who gave "the tips" to +Niccolo was a wizard. + +There was much more meaning attached to the lanterns and rings, such as +Niccolo made, than is generally known, as appears by the following +extract: + + "Among the striking features of the Florentine palaces are the + handsome ornaments of bronze or wrought-iron which adorn the facades + of many of them. These were called _fanali_ or _lumiere_, and were + not, as one would naturally suppose, ornaments that a man might place + on his house according to his individual taste, but they were the + visible testimony of the public recognition of great deeds. On + festive occasions, these _fanali_ were provided with great pitch + torches, whose crackling flames gave a merry aspect to the whole + neighbourhood. Amerigo Vespucci addressed the account of one of his + voyages to the Gonfaloniere Piero Soderini, with whom he had formerly + been on intimate terms, and the latter procured a decree of the + Republic, in accordance with which _fanali_ were sent to the family + palace of the Vespucci, and kept burning day and night for three + days. + + "The most beautiful of all the Florentine _fanali_ . . . are those + which adorn the corners of the famous Strozzi Palace. They are of + wrought-iron, and were made by a smith who enjoyed a local celebrity, + not only on account of his masterly work, but also because he carried + on his business on a strictly cash basis; nay, went further, and + refused to work for any one who did not prepay, in part at least, for + his order. Thus he received the name of _Caparra_, or + Earnest-money."--_Florentine Life_, by W. B. Scaife, p. 58. + +There is one thing in this legend which alone would seem to guarantee its +being an authentic or old tradition. In it Niccolo appears as a man who +is eminently grasping, and who takes care to get his money in advance. +And he was in reality so noted for this, that, as Scaife declares, he +went further than dealing on a cash basis--and so got the nickname of +Caparra, or the Pledge--so well did he know the value of cash. _Il +martel d'argento rompe le porte di ferro_, or-- + + "A hammer of silver, as we see, + Breaks the iron gates of poverty." + + + + +THE GOBLIN OF LA VIA DEL CORNO + + + "Oh for one blast of that dread horn, + On Fontarabian echoes borne, + When Roland brave and Olivier, + And every paladin and peer + At Roncesvalles died."--_Walter Scott_. + + "The Korrigan who ever wears a horn." + +The Via del Corno is a narrow street passing from the Via del Leone. I +have found the following story in reference to the origin of its name, +which, if not authentic, is at least amusing and original: + + LA VIA DEL CORNO. + +"There was in what is now known as the Via del Corno an ancient palace, +which a long time ago was inhabited only by a certain gentleman and a +goblin. {21} + +"Nor had he any servants, because of all who came, none remained more +than one day for fear of the _folletto_. And as this spread far and +wide, people kept away from the Via del Corno after dark; but as this +also kept away thieves, and the goblin did all the house-work, the master +was all the better pleased. Only on one point did the two differ, and +that was the point of morality. Here the goblin was extremely strict, +and drew the line distinctly. Several times, as was the custom in those +wicked days, the Signore attempted to introduce a lady-friend to the +palazzo, but the goblin all night long, when not busied in pulling the +sheets from the fair sinner, was industriously occupied in strewing +nettles or burrs under her, or tickling the soles of her feet with a pen; +and then anon, when, sinking to sleep, she hoped for some remission of +the tease, he would begin to play interminable airs on a horn. It is +true that he played beautifully, like no earthly musician, but even +enchanting airs may be annoying when they prevent sleep. + +"Nor did the lord fare the better, even when, inspired by higher motives, +he 'would a-wooing go.' For one lady or another had heard of the goblin, +and when they had not, it always happened that by some mysterious means +or other the match was broken off. + +"Meantime the life led by the Signore was rather peculiar, as he slept +nearly all day, sallied forth for an hour or two to exercise, go to a +barber's, make his small purchases, or hear the news, supped at a +_trattoria_, and then returning home, sat all night listening to the +goblin as he played divinely on the horn, or blew it himself, which he +did extremely well, toped and hob-nobbed with his familiar, who was a +great critic of wine, and, as the proverb says, '_Buon vino fiaba +lunga_--Good wine, long tales'--they told one another no end of merry and +marvellous stories; and as _il vin fa cantare_, it makes man sing, they +also sang duets, solos, and glees. And when the weather was ill, or +chilly, or rainy, or too hot, they cured it with Chianti, according to a +medical prescription laid down in sundry rare old works: + + "Nebbia, nebbia, mattutina, + Che ti levi la mattina? + Questa tazza di buon vino, + Fatta d'una marzamina, + Contra te sia medecina!' + + "'Cloudy sky i' the morning early, + What will make you vanish fairly? + Ah! this goblet of good wine, + Essence of the blessed vine, + Shall be for thee a medicine!' + +"Then they played chess, cards, cribbage, drole, ecarte, Pope Joan, bo, +brag, casino, thirty-one, put, snip-snap-snorem, lift-em-up, +tear-the-rag, smoke, blind-hookey, bless-your-grand-mother, Polish-bank, +seven-up, beggar-my-neighbour, patience, old-maid, fright, baccarat, +_belle-en-chemise_, bang-up, howling-Moses, bluff, swindle-Dick, +go-it-rags, ombre or keep-dark, morelles, go-bang, goose, dominoes, loto, +_morra_ or push-pin. And when extra hands were wanted they came, but all +that came were only fairy hands, short at the wrist, the goblin remarking +that it saved wine not to have mouths, _et cetera_. Then they had long +and curious and exceedingly weighty debates as to the laws of the games +and fair play, not forgetting meanwhile to sample all the various wines +ever sung by Redi. {23} So they got on, the Signore realising that one +near friend is worth a hundred distant relations. + +"Now it befell one night that the goblin, having seen the Signore take +off a pint of good old strong Barolo very neatly and carefully, without +taking breath or winking, exclaimed with a long, deep sigh: + +"'Thou art a gallant fellow, a right true boon companion, and it grieves +me to the heart to think that thou art doomed to be drowned to-morrow.' + +"'Oh you be--doctored!' replied the Signore. 'There isn't water enough +in the Arno now to drown a duck, unless she held her head under in a +half-pint puddle.' + +"The goblin went to the window, took a look at the stars, whistled and +said: + +"'As I expected, it is written that you are to be drowned to-morrow, +unless you carry this horn of mine hung to your neck all day. + + "'Quando ti trovi nel pericolo, + Suona questo corno piccolo, + E tu sarai salvato, + Non sarai affogato!' + + "'If thou find'st thyself forlorn, + Blow aloud this little horn, + And thou wilt be safe and sound, + For with it thou'lt not be drowned.' + +"Saying this, he solemnly handed the horn to the cavalier, drank off a +goblet of muscato, wiped his lips, bowed a ceremonious good-night, and, +as was his wont, vanished with dignity up the chimney. + +"The gentleman was more troubled by this prediction than he liked to +admit. I need not say that the next day he did not go near the Arno, +though it was as dry as a bone; nay, he kept out of a bath, and was +almost afraid to wash his face. + +"At last he got the fancy that some enemies or villains would burst into +his lonely house, bind him hand and foot carry him far away, and drown +him in some lonely stream, or perhaps in the sea. He remembered just +such a case. We all remember just such cases when we don't want to. +That was it, decidedly. + +"Then he had a happy thought. There was a little hiding-chamber, +centuries old, in the palazzo, known only to himself, with a concealed +door. He would go and hide there. He shouted for joy, and when he +entered the room, he leaped with a great bound from the threshold of the +door, down and over three or four steps, into the middle of the little +room. + +"Now he did not know that in the _cantina_ or cellar below this +hiding-place there was an immense _tino_, or vat, containing hundreds of +barrels of wine, such as are used to hold the rough wine ere it is drawn +off and 'made;' nor that the floor was extremely decayed, so that when he +came down on it with a bounce, it gave way, and he found himself in the +cellar over head and ears in wine. + +"And, truly, for a minute he deemed that he was drowning in earnest. And +the sides of the vat were so high that he could not climb out. But while +swimming and struggling for life, he caught between his thumb and finger +at a nail in the side, and to this he held, crying as loud as he could +shout for aid. But no one came, and he was just beginning to despair, +when he thought of the horn! + +"It still hung from his neck, and pouring out the wine, he blew on it, +and there came forth such a tremendous, appalling, and unearthly blast as +he of himself could never have blown. It rang far and wide all over +Florence, it was heard beyond Fiesole, it wakened the dead in old +Etrurian graves, for an instant, to think they had been called by Tinia +to meet the eleven gods; it caused all the _folletti_, _fate_, _diavoli_, +_strege_, and _maliardi_ to stop for an instant their deviltries or +delights. For it was the Great Blast of the Horn of the Fairies, which +only plays second fiddle to the last trump. {24} + +"And at that sound all Florence came running to see what was the matter. +The Grand Duke and his household came; the Council of the Eight burst +their bonds, and left the Palazzo Vecchio; everybody came, and they +fished out the Signore, and listened with awe to his tale. The priests +said that the goblin was San Zenobio, the more liberal swore it was +Crescenzio, the people held to plain San Antonino. The Signore became a +great man. + +"'My son,' said the goblin to him in confidence the following evening, +'as they sat over their wine,' (here I follow the text of Maddalena), +'this is our last night together. Thou art saved, and I have fulfilled +my duty to thee. Once I, too, was a man like thee, and in that life thou +didst save mine by rescuing me from assassins. And I swore to watch over +thee in every peril, and bring thee to a happy end.' + + "'Il momenta e arrivato; + Addio, Via del Corno! + Addio, palazzo, addio! + Addio, padrone, nel altro mondo!' + + "'The final hour has come for me; + Street of the Horn, farewell to thee! + Farewell, O palace, farewell, O street! + My lord, in another world we'll meet.' + +"Then the goblin told the Signore that he would ere long contract a happy +marriage, and that it was for this that he had hitherto kept him from +forming alliances which would have prevented it; and that if in future he +should ever be in great need of assistance, to sound the horn, and he +would come to him, but that this must always be in the palace alone after +midnight. And having said this he vanished. + +"The Signore grieved for a long time at the loss of his goblin friend, +but he married happily, as had been predicted, and his life was long and +prosperous. So he put the horn in his shield, and you may see it to this +day on the Church of Santa Maria Novella. And so it was that the Via del +Corno got its name." + + * * * * * + +"From which we may learn," saith Flaxius, "that wherever a man is +appointed to be on a certain day, there will the man be found. Therefore +do thou, O reader, so manage it that wherever thou art appointed to be, +thou canst _get well out of it_. For even Fate smiles when it desires to +do so." + + + + +FRATE GIOCONDO, THE MONK OF SANTA MARIA NOVELLA + + + "_In illo tempore_--no--_in diebus illis_, che i frati sogliono + percorrere il contado delle terre e delle citta per far proviste alla + barba degli scimuniti d'ogni genere pappatorio, vale dir di grano, + formentone, legumi, mosto, cacio, olio, canape, lino, uova et + cetera--un certo fra Zeffiro, se ne gira alla volta d'un villagio e + tenevagli compagnia il suo ciucarello che carica gia a doppio + sacchetto."--_L'Asino e il suo Frate_, _Racconti Piacevoli_, 1864, + + "Und sie war gar sehr erstannet uber die Adresse und List dieses + Munchleins."--_Lustige Thaten des Kloster-bruders Hannes von Lehnin_, + A.D. 1589. + + "Monachus in claustro + Non valet ova dua, + Sed extra--bene valet triginta."--_Rabelais_. + +Among the monks of Santa Maria Novella in ancient days was one known as +Frate Giocondo, who was truly of the kind who are of little use at home, +or at any steady or reputable calling, but who was profitable enough when +scouring the country on the loose, blarneying and begging from the good +wives, giving counsel to the peasants, and profitable advice, while he +ate their chickens and drank their wine, chucking all the pretty girls +under their chins, or _sub silentio_, and making himself sociable, +edifying, amusing, or holy--according to circumstances. Of whom it could +be truly said: + + "Monaco in convento + Non vale niente, + Ma fuori vale venti." + + "Monk in monastery + Is not worth a cherry; + But abroad when sent, he + Often is worth twenty." + +As a preaching friar of Saint Dominic, truly Brother Giocondo was not a +success, but as a beggar he beat all the Zoccoloni out of Rome, {27} and +that is saying a great deal. For there never was a friar with such an +oiled and honeyed tongue, with which he could flatter and wheedle, tell +legends of the saints, witches, or goblins by the hour, give all the +gossip going; nor was he above selling his collections, or trading +donkeys, or taking a hand at a game of cards, or singing to a lute, or +even fiddling to a dance--so that, being a great, burly, handsome, +merry-eyed knave, he got on marvellously well in the world, his jests +being reported even in Siena. + +Now one evening he was returning home to Santa Maria Novella _dalla +cercha_, "from the quest," and found himself still a few miles from +Florence. And good fortune had favoured him marvellously that day, for +his ass bore two panniers which were _ben carichi d'ogni sorta di grazia +di Dio_--"stuffed full with all sorts of mercies of God," such as bags of +wheat, maize, wheat-meal, chickens, oil, cheese, butter, wine, truffles, +onions, geese, turnips, sausages, bread, ducks; in short, Signore, as I +said, there was _ogni sorta di grazia di Dio_, and enough to support a +poor family for a month. + +Now, darkness coming on, and rain falling, the Friar stopped at a lonely +house, where he neither knew the people nor was known to them, and begged +for a night's lodging. The master of the place was a well-to-do person, +but a great knave, and no sooner had he perceived that the monk had such +a plentiful stock of provisions, than he saw his way to give all his +neighbours a splendid feast at no expense to himself, at which he could +not fail to relieve some of his guests of their money. + +Now this rogue had a daughter who was _scaltra e bene affilata_--shrewd +and sharp as a razor, one who could teach cats to see in the dark, and +who had grown to villainy from her babyhood, even as a reed shoots +upwards. And she only caught a wink from her good father, which glanced +off on to the load of the friar's donkey, to understand the whole game, +and what was expected of her. + +You must know, Signore Carlo, that the wench was very good-looking--bad +wine in a silver cup, pretty to look at, but vile to sup--and had all the +sweet, innocent, simple look of a saint, and she made up to Frate +Giocondo like a kitten to a child, which he took in no wise amiss, being +used to such conquests. And who so flattering and fawning as they all +were on Brother Giocondo; how they laughed at his jests, and seemed to be +in the last agonies of delight; but winked at one another withal, for +there were six lusty brothers or cousins in the family, who, in case of +need, did the heavy dragging out, or advanced the last argument with +clubs. + +By-and-by, as the night wore on, the black-eyed baggage stole away and +hid herself in the room allotted to the Friar, though with no intention +to break the seventh--but that against stealing--as you will see. For +when the good Giocondo went to bed, which he did in full dress, he knew +not that she was there. And as soon as he began to snore, she tapped +gently on the wall three times, and then went and laid herself down +softly by the Friar, who did not awake. At which all the band came +bursting in with torches and staves, and began to beat the victim, +reviling and cursing him for having deluded the poor child, so that there +was a fearful _fracasso_--a great riot--but they left the door open, +through which the pious Giocondo bolted, and none pursued, as they had +already secured his provisions. + +Now Giocondo shrewdly noted this, and at once understood that he had been +as shrewdly robbed, and that by such a trick as left no door open to +return and claim his property. So he quietly mounted his ass and rode +away, and returning to the convent, thought it all over, till he came to +a device to revenge himself. For he was one of those who was never bit +by a wolf but what he had his skin. + +So he let a long time pass by, and then went to work. First of all he +got two jars, and paid a contadino to catch for him as many living vipers +as would fill them both, saying it was for the apothecary of his convent +to make _teriaca_ or Venetian treacle, which is a cure for serpents' +bites. And then he disguised himself like a lord's messenger, darkening +his face, and putting on long curling locks, with a bold impudent air, +with cloak and feather, sword and dagger; truly no one would ever have +known him. And in this guise he went again to the _Albergo de' Ladri_, +or Thieves' Den, asking once more for lodging, which was cheerfully +granted. + +Now the part which he played, and that to perfection, was that of a +foolish gasconading servant; nor had he been long in the house ere he +informed his host in confidence that he served a great lord who was in +love with a married lady in Florence, and to win her good graces had sent +her two jars full of honey or conserves, but that there was in each a +hundred crowns in gold, of which he was to privately inform the lady, +lest her husband should suspect the truth; adding artfully, "But i' +faith, if I were to steal the whole myself and run away, my lord would +never pursue me, so fearful is he lest the thing should be found out; and +even if I were to be robbed, one could do nothing." + +And as he said this he saw the knave give a wink to his daughter, and +knew very well what it meant, but pretended to take no notice of it. So +all went as before, and the girl stole into his room and hid herself. +But he, who was prepared for everything, when he retired took from his +pocket two or three large screws and a screwdriver, and closed the great +strong door so that it would resist a hard assault, and left the window +open so that he could easily escape, and so went to bed. + +Then the girl, when she thought he was asleep, gave the signal, and the +thieves tried to burst in, but could not. And Friar Giocondo, jumping +up, gave the girl such a beating as she had never heard of, abusing her +all the time as a song to the accompaniment of the thrashing, till at +last, when he saw they were really coming in, he jumped through the +window, ran to the stable, and finding there a fine horse, saddled it in +haste and rode away like the wind. + +The thieves were so intent on the jars that they paid no heed to anything +else, not even to the girl, who was raging mad at her father for having +exposed her to such danger. So they got two deep plates, and opened both +jars at once to pour the honey out, when lo! there came swarming forth +the vipers, hissing, and squirming, and darting out their tongues like so +many devils. At which sight they all fled in fear, the girl first, nor +did she stop till she got to Fiesole, where, in great terror, she +(fearing for her soul) told the whole story to everybody and the monks. + +The thief went to the stable, but found his horse gone, and so had to +content himself with Giocondo's donkey, on which, fearing the pursuit of +justice, he rode away, to be hanged somewhere else. And the Abbot of +Santa Maria Novella cheerfully absolved Brother Giocondo for stealing the +horse--and accepted it as a graceful gift, or in recompense for the load +of provisions which had been lost. + + "Thus 'twas with all of them it sped, + And the Abbot came out one horse ahead!" + + + + +THE LEGEND OF THE CROCE AL TREBBIO + + + "The bell in the Bargello called the Montanara obtained the name of + the _Campana delle Arme_ because it was the signal for citizens to + lay aside their weapons and retire home."--_Hare's_ "_Cities of + Central Italy_." + + "Where towers are crushed, and temples fair unfold + A new magnificence that vies with old, + Firm in its pristine majesty hath stood + A votive column."--_Wordsworth_, "_Pillar of Trajan_." + +Very near to the Church of Santa Maria Novella is the small piazza or +open place of the _Croce al Trebbio_. This is a column with a crucifix, +the whole being of beautiful proportions and of a strikingly romantic +character. It is said to have been raised to commemorate a victory of +"that sanguinary fanatic Saint Peter Martyr" over the Paterini. "The +Croce al Trebbio," says Leader Scott, "of the year 1244, is a work of the +Pisan school, but whether it is by Niccolo or Giovanni Pisani, who were +in Florence about that epoch, there is nothing to show. There was {31} a +curious Latin inscription in Gothic letters, which began: _Sanctus +Ambrosius cum Sancto Zenobio propter grande mysterium hanc crucem_--and +went on to say that it was _reconstructed_ by the bishops of Florence and +of Aquileia in August 1308. It is evident that the connection of the +cross with Saint Peter Martyr is mere conjecture, the Italian authorities +say _che si crede_, '_believed_' to be erected on the spot where a +victory was gained over the Paterini. If this were so, where is the +mystery referred to in the inscription?" + +The legend, which was after long inquiry recovered by my collector, +distinctly describes the _reconstruction_ of the cross, and as certainly +sets forth a _mysterium magnum_ with an apparition of the Virgin on this +very spot, which would have assuredly caused a pillar, if not a church, +to be erected in the thirteenth century. The story of this mystery is as +follows: + + LA CROCE AL TREBEIO. + +"Where the _Croce al Trebbio_ now stands, was in very old times a great +palace occupied by one of the most ancient families of Florence. And +when it died out, there came into the house three families, but none +could remain there, being so terrified with fearful sounds and an +apparition. + +"It was the custom in those days in Florence to ring a bell at ten +o'clock at night, which was a signal for every citizen to go home at +once; therefore, after that hour no one was seen in the streets except +police guards, military patrols, and riotous young men, whom the former +aimed at arresting. It often happened that such irregular folk took +refuge in the old palazzo, but if they remained there one night, they had +enough of it, and never returned, so great was the horror which they were +sure to feel. + +"The first occurrence which gave the place a bad name was as follows: +Some time after the death of the last of the old line of Signori who had +occupied the palace, and the three families spoken of had come into it, +on the first night at midnight they heard some one put a key in the +house-door, open the same with great noise, and come storming and +swearing up the stairs into the great dining-hall. Then there entered a +tall and magnificently dressed gentleman, of very handsome and +distinguished appearance, but his face was deadly pale, his eyes had a +terrible gleam, and it seemed as if a light bluish flame flickered and +crept about him, ever rising and vanishing like small serpents. + +"And entering, he began to scold and blaspheme in a diabolical manner, as +if at servants whom he was accustomed to have promptly at his call, +saying, '_Birbanti di servitori_--you scoundrelly waiters--you have not +got supper ready for me, nor laid the tables.' Saying this, he seized on +plates and glasses, and dashing them down violently, broke them in mad +rage. Then he entered the best bedroom in the house, where some one lay +asleep, and this man he maltreated and hurled forth, saying that the bed +was his own. + +"And if after that any one dared to sleep in the old palazzo, he was +found there dead in the morning, or else lived but a few days. So it +came to pass that no one would inhabit it; nay, all the houses round +about began to be deserted, and the whole neighbourhood regarded it as a +pest. And from all this they were relieved by a marvellously strange +occurrence and a great miracle. + +"There was a gentleman who was very pious, honourable, and brave, a good +man at every point, but wretchedly poor, so that he with his eight +children and wife had all been turned into the street, because he could +not pay his rent. + +"Then in his distress he went to the city council and begged for some +kind of relief or employment; and they being much concerned at the time +about the haunted palazzo, knowing him to be a man who would face the +devil, with little to fear on account of his integrity, proposed to him +to occupy the building, adding that he and his family should every day be +supplied with food and wine gratis, and that if, as was generally +supposed, there was hidden treasure in the palace, and he could find it, +he should be welcome to keep it. + +"To which this brave man willingly assented, and at once went his way to +the haunted palace. But while on the road he obtained olive sprigs, +salt, and frankincense, also certain images of saints, and then with much +holy water sprinkled all the rooms, stairs, and cellars, praying withal. +{33} + +"And the first night there was again heard the grating of the key in the +lock, the crash of the door, the rapid heavy footfall, and the spirit +appeared with the waving plume of flame on his splendid _beretta_ or cap, +when suddenly he was checked and could go no farther, because the hall +had been blessed, yes, and thoroughly. Then the spectre began to bellow +and roar, and utter whistling screams and all horrible sounds, worse than +a wild beast. + +"But the new master of the house did not let fear overcome him in the +least, and the next day he renewed the sprinkling and blessing, and +finding there was a chapel in the palace, he called in a priest, who +there read a mass for the soul of the ghost, so that he might rest in +peace. + +"Now there was a beautiful little garden attached to the palace, and the +children of the new tenant were delighted to play in it. + +"And in the middle of the garden they found a cross with a Christ on it, +and the cross had been shattered. But the children took the pieces and +carried them one by one into the chamber where no one dared to sleep, and +there they put them piously together, and dressed a little altar before +it, and began to sing hymns. + +"But while they were thus singing in their simple devotion, wishing to +aid their father, there was a knock at the door, and a lady entered whose +face was concealed in a veil, but who seemed to be weeping as she beheld +them, and she said, 'Children, keep ever as you are; always be good and +love God, and He will love you!' + +"Then she continued, 'The master of this house was a gambler and a +blasphemer; when he lost money at gambling he would return home and beat +this image of Christ, till one night, being in a mad rage, he broke it +and threw it into the garden.' + +"'But soon after that he fell ill, and knowing that he was dying, he +buried all his treasure in the garden. Love God, and you shall find it. +So he died, blaspheming and condemned. Love God, and He will love you!' +And saying this, she vanished. + +"The children, all astonished, ran to their father and mother, and told +them that a beautiful lady had visited them, and what she had said. + +"Then they said to the children, 'You must indeed be always good, for +that Lady who spoke to you was the Holy Virgin, who will always protect +you.' And then the father called in a priest to say midnight mass at the +time when the spirit would appear. And he came, and said, 'I am he who +broke the cross, and for that I was damned!' Then the priest began to +sprinkle holy water, with exorcisms, when all at once the accursed one +disappeared in a tremendous, over-whelming crash of thunder, and the +whole palace fell to gravel and dust--there was not left one stone +standing on the other, save the cross which the children had repaired, +which rose alone in the middle of the garden. + +"Then the next day the good man dug away the rubbish by the cross, and +when this was removed, they found a mass of charcoal, and under this the +treasure. + +"Then the Signore, grown rich, had, to commemorate this, a beautiful +column built, on which he placed the cross, and this is known to this day +as the Croce al Trebbio, or the Crucifix of the Cross-roads." + + * * * * * + +If the Croce al Trebbio really commemorates one of the most iniquitous +massacres which ever disgraced even the Church, then to find this tender +and graceful little tale springing up from it, reminds me of what I once +heard of a violet which was found growing in the Far West, and blooming +in an Indian's skull. The conception of the children playing at +worshipping, and yet half-worshipping, is very Italian. I have seen +little boys and girls thus rig up a small chapel in the streets of Rome, +and go through the mass and other ceremonies with intense interest. + +It may also be observed that in this, as in many other legends, charcoal +is found over a hidden treasure. The folk-lore of coal in connection +with money is so extensive and varied, that one could write on it a small +book. I believe that the two are synonyms in all canting jargons or +"slanguages." + +"Hence probably came," remarks Flaxius, "the saying, 'To haul one over +the coals,' meaning to go over money-accounts with any one who has cause +to dread the ordeal. Truly 'tis but a conjecture, yet I remember that in +my youth it was generally applied to such investigations. + + "'And so 'twas held in early Christian time + That glowing coals were a sure test of truth + And holy innocence, as was full proved + By Santa Agnatesis of the Franks, + And fair Lupita of the Irish isle.'" + +Since writing the foregoing I have found the whole of the ancient +inscription of the cross, as it was preserved by two chroniclers. This +will be found in another chapter. + + + + +THE TWO FAIRIES OF THE WELL +A LEGEND OF THE VIA CALZAIOLI + + + "When looking down into a well, + You'll see a fairy, so they tell, + Although she constantly appears + With your own face instead of hers; + And if you cry aloud, you'll hear + Her voice in the ringing echo clear; + Thus every one unto himself + May be a fairy, or an elf." + + "And truly those nymphs and fairies who inhabit wells, or are found + in springs and fountains, can predict or know what is to take place, + as may be read in Pausanias, and this power they derive from their + _habitat_, or, as Creuzer declares (_Symbolik_, part iv. 72), they + are called Muses, inasmuch as they dwell in Hippocrene and Aganippe, + the inspiring springs of the Muses."--_On the Mysteries of Water_. + FRIEDRICH (_Symbolik_). + +Long after Christianity had come in, there were many places in the vast +edifice of society whence the old heathen deities refused to go out, and +there are even yet nooks and corners in the mountains where they receive +a kind of sorcerer's worship as _folletti_. A trace of this lingering in +a faith outworn, in nymphs, dryads, and _fata_, is found in the following +story: + + LE DUE NINFE DEL POZZO. + +"There once lived in Florence a young nobleman, who had grown up putting +great faith in _fate_, _ninfe_, and similar spirits, believing that they +were friendly, and brought good fortune to those who showed them respect. +Now there was in his palazzo in the Via Calzaioli, at the corner of the +Condotta, a very old well or fountain, on which were ancient and worn +images, and in which there was a marvellous echo, and it was said that +two nymphs had their home in it. And the Signore, believing in them, +often cast into the spring wine or flowers, uttering a prayer to them, +and at table he would always cast a little wine into water, or sprinkle +water on the ground to do them honour. + +"One day he had with him at table two friends, who ridiculed him when he +did this, and still more when he sang a song praising nymphs and fairies, +in answer to their remarks. Whereupon one said to him: + + "'Truly, I would like to see + An example, if 't may be, + How a fairy in a fountain, + Or a goblin of the mountain, + Or a nymph of stream or wood, + Ever did one any good; + For such fays of air or river, + One might wait, I ween, for ever, + And if even such things be, + They are devils all to me.' + +"Then the young Signore, being somewhat angered, replied: + + "'In the wood and by the stream, + Not in reverie or dream, + Where the ancient oak-trees blow, + And the murmuring torrents flow, + Men whose wisdom none condemn + Oft have met and talked with them. + Demons for you they may be, + But are angels unto me.' + +"To which his friend sang in reply, laughing: + + "'Only prove that they exist, + And we will no more resist; + Let them come before we go, + With _ha_!_ ha_!_ ha_! and _ho_!_ ho_!_ ho_!' + +"And as they sang this, they heard a peal of silvery laughter without, +or, as it seemed, actually singing in the hall and making a chorus with +their voices. And at the instant a servant came and said that two very +beautiful ladies were without, who begged the young Signore to come to +them immediately, and that it was on a matter of life and death. + +"So he rose and stepped outside, but he had hardly crossed the threshold +before the stone ceiling of the hall fell in with a tremendous crash, and +just where the young Signore had sat was a great stone weighing many +_quintale_ or hundredweights, so that it was plain that if he had not +been called away, in an instant more he would have been crushed like a +fly under a hammer. As for his two friends, they had broken arms and cut +faces, bearing marks in memory of the day to the end of their lives. + +"When the young Signore was without the door and looked for the ladies, +they were gone, and a little boy, who was the only person present, +declared that he had seen them, that they were wonderfully beautiful, and +that, merrily laughing, they had jumped or gone down into the well. + +"Therefore it was generally believed by all who heard the tale that it +was the Fairies of the Well, or _Fonte_, who thus saved the life of the +young Signore, who from that day honoured them more devoutly than ever; +nor did his friends any longer doubt that there are spirits of air or +earth, who, when treated with pious reverence, can confer benefits on +their worshippers. + + "'For there are fairies all around + Everywhere, and elves abound + Even in our homes unseen: + They go wherever we have been, + And often by the fireside sit, + A-laughing gaily at our wit; + And when the ringing echo falls + Back from the ceiling or the walls, + 'Tis not our voices to us thrown + In a reflection, but their own; + For they are near at every turn, + As he who watches soon may learn.' + +"And the young Signore, to do honour to the fairies, because they had +saved his life, put them one on either side of his coat-of-arms, as you +may see by the shield which is on the house at the corner of the Via +Calzaioli." + + * * * * * + +The authenticity of this legend, is more than doubtful, because it exists +elsewhere, as I have read it, being unable to give my authority; but +unless my memory deceives me, it goes back to classic times, and may be +found in some such work as that of Philostratus _de Vita Apollonii_ or +Grosius. Neither am I well assured, to judge from the source whence I +had it, that it is current among the people, though no great measure of +credulity is here required, since it may be laid down as a rule, with +rarest exception, that there is no old Roman tale of the kind which may +not be unearthed with pains and patience among old Tuscan peasant women. +However, the _shield_ is still on the corner of the Via Calzaioli, albeit +one of the nymphs on it has been knocked or worn away. Thus even _fates_ +must yield in time to fate. + +I have in a note to another legend spoken of the instinct which seems to +lead children or grown people to associate wells with indwelling fairies, +to hear a voice in the echo, and see a face in the reflection in the +still water. Keats has beautifully expressed it in "Endymion": + + "Some mouldered steps lead into this cool cell + Far as the slabbed margin of a well, + Whose patient level peeps its crystal eye + Right upward through the bushes to the sky. . . . + Upon a day when thus I watched . . . behold! + A wonder fair as any I have told-- + The same bright face I tasted in my sleep + Smiling in the clear well. My heart did leap + Through the cool depth. . . . + Or 'tis the cell of Echo, where she sits + And babbles thorough silence till her wits + Are gone in tender madness, and anon + Faints into sleep, with many a dying tone." + +"In which tale," writes the immortal Flaxius, "there is a pretty +allegory. Few there are who know why truth is said to be at the bottom +of a well; but this I can indeed declare to you. For as a mirror was +above all things an emblem of truth, because it shows all things exactly +as they are, so the water in a well was, as many traditions prove, +considered as a mirror, because looking into it we see our face, which we +of course most commonly see in a glass, and this disk of shining water +resembles in every way a hand-mirror. And for this reason a mirror was +also regarded as expressing life itself, for which reason people so +greatly fear to break them. So in the Latin, _Velut in speculo_, and in +the Italian, _Vero come un specchio_--'True as a mirror,' we have the +same idea. And a poet has written, 'Mirrored as in a well,' and many +have re-echoed the same pretty fancy. + +"Which reminds me that in the Oberpfalz or Upper Palatinate maidens were +wont to go to a well by moonlight, and if on looking therein they saw +their own faces, they believed that they would soon be happily married. +But if a cloud darkened the moon and they saw nothing, then they would +die old maids. But luckiest of all was it if they fancied they saw a +man's face, for this would be the future husband himself. + +"Now it befell that a certain youth near Heidelberg fell into a well, or +put himself there, when a certain maid whom he loved, came and looked in, +and believing that she saw the face of her destined spouse, went away in +full faith that the fairy of the well had taken his form, and so she +married him. Which, if it be not true, is _ben trovato_. + +"Truth is always represented, be it remembered, as holding a mirror. + +"And note also that the hand-mirror and the well were strangely connected +in ancient times, as appears by Pausanias, who states that before a +certain temple of Ceres hung a _speculum_, which, after it had been +immersed in a neighbouring well or spring, showed invalids by reflection +whether they would live or die. And with all this, the holding a mirror +to the mouth of an insensible person to tell whether the breath was still +in the body, seemed also to make it an indicator of life." + + "Thus in life all things do pass, + As it were, in magic glass." + + + + +THE STORY OF THE VIA DELLE SERVE SMARRITE + + + "We all do know the usual way + In which our handmaids go astray, + But in this tale the situation + Has a peculiar variation; + How an old wizard--strange occurrence! + Deluded all the girls in Florence, + (It needs no magic now to do it), + And how the maidens made him rue it, + For having seized on him and stripped him, + They tied him up and soundly whipped him." + +The author of "The Cities of Central Italy," speaking of Siena, says that +"In its heart, where its different hill-promontories unite, is the Piazza +del Campo, lately--with the time-serving which disgraces every town in +Italy--called Vittorio Emanuele." And with the stupidity and bad taste +which seems to characterise all municipal governments in this respect all +the world over, that of Florence has changed most of the old names of +this kind, and in order to render the confusion more complete, has put +the new names just over the old ones, with the simple addition of the +word _Gia_ or "formerly." Whence came the legend current in the +Anglo-American colony, that a newly arrived young lady, not as yet beyond +the second lesson in Ollendorff, being asked where she lived, answered in +_Gia_ Street. She forgot the rest of the name. + +One of these gaping _gias_ is the Via del Parlascio _gia Via delle Serve +Smarrite_, or the street of the maidservants strayed away or gone astray. +Now Florence is famous for its pretty servant-girls, and if I may believe +a halfpenny work, entitled "Seven Charming Florentine Domestics," now +before me, which is racy of the soil--or dirt--and appears to be written +from life [as accurate portraits of all the fascinating seven are given], +I opine that the damsel of this class who had never been, I do not say a +wife, but a waif and a stray, must be a phenomenal rarity. Therefore it +was suggested to me that it was formerly in very ancient times the custom +to send all such stray cattle to the pound, that is, to dwell in this +street as a kind of Ghetto. But the folly of this measure soon became +apparent when it was found that one might as well try to get all the cats +in Tuscany into a hand-basket, or all its flies--or fleas--under one +tumbler, as try to make a comprehensive menagerie of these valuable +animals, who were, however, by no means curiosities. So the attempt was +abandoned, and thenceforth the maidens were allowed to stray wherever +they pleased, but under some slight supervision; whence it was said of +them that they were _le lucertole chi cominciano a sentir il +sole_--"fireflies which begin to see the sun"--a proverb which the +learned and genial Orlando Peschetti (1618) explains as being applicable +to those who, having been in prison and then set free, are still watched, +but which appears to me rather to refer to the suspected who are +"shadowed" before they are arrested. + +But in due time I received from good authority an ancient legend of the +Via delle Serve Smarrite, in which the origin of the name is explained as +follows: + + VIA DELLE SERVE SMARRITE. + +"There was long ago, in what was afterwards called the Via delle Serve +Smarrite, or Stray Maid-Servants' Street, a very ancient and immensely +large house, which was generally supposed to be vacant, and in which no +one cared to dwell, or even approach, since there were dreadful tales of +evil deeds done in it, and reports that it was a gathering-place for +witches, goblins, and _diavoli_. The clanking of chains and peals of +horrid laughter rung from its chambers at midnight, blue and green fires +gleamed from its windows, and everybody all around had heard from +somebody else that the nightmares had there their special nest, from +which they sailed forth to afflict all Florence. + +"Yet all this was a trick which was often played in those days, when +_gente non dabbene_ or evil folk and outlaws wanted to keep a house to +themselves, and there were no newspapers to publish every mystery. For +there were a great many who went in there, but few who ever came out, and +these were all young and pretty servant-maids. And the way it was +managed was this. When such girls were sent to the market to buy +provisions, they always met there or elsewhere an old woman who pretended +to be extremely pious, {43} who, by using many arts and making small +gifts, and above all by subtle flatteries, persuaded them that service +was only fit for _gentaccia_ or the dregs of the people, and that, +beautiful and graceful as they were, they needed only live like ladies +for a little time at ease, and they would soon be fit to marry some +Signore, and that she herself would thus maintain them, hoping they would +pay her well for it all when once married. And I need not say that the +trick generally succeeded. + +"The house to which they were led was ugly and repulsive outside, but +within there were beautiful rooms of all kinds, magnificently furnished, +and the new-comers were promptly bathed, elegantly attired, and jewelled +from head to foot, and instead of serving, had maids given them as +attendants, and everything conceivable was done to make their life as +pleasant and demoralising among themselves as possible. But in due time +they found out that a certain Signore was lord of the house and of +themselves, and that he gradually led them into the strangest and most +terrible orgies, and finally into witchcraft, after which one disappeared +mysteriously after the other, none knew whither, but as there were always +fresh arrivals to take their places, nobody heeded it. + +"However, this mournful disappearance of pretty servant-maids became at +last so frequent and was so mysterious, that it began to be much talked +about. Now there was a certain gentleman, a man himself of great +authority and intelligence, who had heard of these vanishments and hoped +to find out their cause. And one night at a very late hour, when he was +passing by the mysterious house, he heard from it now and then sounds +like groans mingled with the clanking of chains, and saw red and blue and +green lights at the windows, but by keeping still he also distinguished +the sound of music and girls' voices laughing and singing; and stealing +near in the darkness, and fearing no devils, he contrived to climb up to +a window, and pulling aside a curtain, peeped in, when he beheld plainly +enough a great many beautiful women in scant array, or a real dance of +witches, and being marvellously attracted by the sight of so many charms +so liberally displayed, he naturally desired to enter the gay party. + +"And here chance favoured him beyond all hope; for on going to the door, +he found an old woman about to enter, to whom he gave a gold piece, and +begged her to tell him the true story of the house, and whether he could +enter it. But what was his amazement to find in her his old +foster-mother of the country, whom he had not seen for many years, and +who loved him dearly. + +"And she, being pressed, told him the whole story of the house, wherein +she was a servant, but that she had grown deadly tired of such evil ways, +and seeing such sin as went on there, though she was well paid, and said +if he would only give her a home, she would reveal all to justice. And +she added that for the present he could freely join the girls who were +dancing, as the wizard, their master, was away that night. + +"But when he entered, he was amazed at the splendour of the rooms and the +beauty of the women. Now among these he found one who truly enchanted +him, and entering into conversation with her, found that she would gladly +escape with him, and that many others were inclined to leave, but dare +not show it for fear of the master. + +"Then the Signore, addressing all the girls, told them that in a few +hours the guards or police would, by his orders, be in the house, and +advised them to at once seize on all the valuables on which they could +lay their hands, and pack up their bundles and depart, and that he +himself would write for every one a free pass to let her go with the +property. And truly he had hardly spoken ere there began such a +plundering and pillaging, sacking and spoliation, as it would have done +your heart good to see, and which was like the taking of a rich town, +only that the marauders were all maidens. Here was one rolling up silver +spoons, cups, anything she could get, in a shawl; there another filling a +bag with jewellery, and a silver ladle sticking out of her bosom or back; +anon a couple of Venuses fighting for a splendid garment, while a superb +Hebe ravished a golden goblet, and an enchanting Vesta, if not a vestal, +appropriated most appropriately a silver lamp. Some pulled down the +curtains, others rolled up the costly Venetian rugs; they drank wine when +they were thirsty, and quarrelled and laughed and shrieked, as a parcel +of wild servant-girls in a mad frolic might be expected to do. It was a +fine sight--'one worthy of a great artist or De Goncourt,' notes Flaxius. + +"When lo! all at once there was an awful and simultaneous shriek as the +door opened, and the _Domine_--I mean the headmaster, wizard, or +sultan--entered, gazing like an astonished demon on the scene before his +eyes. In a voice of thunder he asked the meaning of the scene, when he +found himself confronted by the intruding Signore, before whom his heart +run away like water when he recognised in him a man having very great +authority, with the police at his back. + +"Now, servant-maids, however pretty they may be, are mostly _contadine_ +with powerful muscles and mighty arms, and with one accord they rushed on +their late master, and soon overpowered him. Then he was securely bound +with silken curtain ropes, and the new Signore, taking his place at a +great table, bade all the damsels range themselves at the sides in solemn +council, for the offender was now to be tried, condemned, and punished +too, should he be found guilty. + +"The trial was indeed one of peculiar interest, and the testimony adduced +would have made the fortune of a French novelist, but space (if nothing +else) prohibits my giving it. Suffice it to say that the wizard was +found guilty of taking unto himself an undue share of pretty +hand-maidens, a great sin considering the number of gallant soldiers and +other bachelors who were thereby defrauded of their dues. But as he had +neither murdered nor stolen, it was decided to let him go and carry on +his games in some less Christian town, on condition that he would divide +what money he had in the house among the poor girls whom he had so +cruelly cajoled. + +"And as this last sentence was plaintively pronounced, there was a deep +and beautiful sigh uttered by all the victims, followed by three cheers. +The master's strong-box was at once hunted up, and its contents shared, +and indeed they were so considerable that the maidens one and all soon +married nobly and lived happily." + + * * * * * + +The written story, with a pleasing instinct of Italian thrift, adds that +the conquering Signore purchased the property, in fact, the whole street, +at a very low figure, before the facts became known, and gave the place +the name of the _Via delle Serve Smarrite_, as it is still called by the +people, despite its new official christening. + + "Ye may break, ye may ruin the flask if ye will, + But the scent of the brandy will hang round it still." + + + + +THE BRONZE BOAR OF THE MERCATO NUOVO + + + "Now among the Greeks, as with the Northern races, the boar was the + special type of male generation, even as the frog expressed that of + the female sex. And therefore images of the boar were set in public + places that fertility might be developed among women, for which + reason they also wear, as among the Arabs, necklaces of silver + frogs."--_Notes on Symbolism_. + +In front of the Mercato Nuovo, built by Cosimo I., stands a bronze copy +of an ancient boar, now in the Uffizzi Gallery. It was cast by Pietro +Tacca, and is now a fountain. The popular legend in relation to it is as +follows: + +"In the market-place of Florence, which is called _Il Porcellino_, +because there is in it a fountain with a swine, there was anciently only +a spring of water and a pool, in which were many frogs, water-lizards, +shell-snails, and slugs. These were round about, but in the spring +itself was a frog who was confined there because she had revealed that +her lover was a boar. + +"This boar was the son of a rich lord, who, being married for a very long +time, had no children, and for this reason made his wife very unhappy, +saying that she was a useless creature, and that if she could not bear a +son she had better pack up and be off with herself, which she endured +despairingly and weeping continually, praying to the saints and giving +alms withal, all to bring forth an heir, and all in vain. + +"One day she saw a drove of pigs go by her palace, and among them were +many sows and many more very little pigs. Now among these, or at hand, +was a _fata_ or witch-spirit. {47} And the lady seeing this said in the +bitterness of her heart, 'So the very pigs have offspring and I none. I +would I were as they are, and could do as they do, and bring forth as +they bring forth, and so escape all this suffering!' + +"And the fairy heard this, and took her at her word; and, as you will +see, she cut her cloth without measuring it first, from which came a sad +misfit. And soon after she was ill, and this being told to her husband, +he replied, 'Good news, and may she soon be gone!' but he changed his +tone when he heard that he was to have an heir. Then he flew to her and +begged her pardon, and made great rejoicings. + +"Truly there was horror and sorrow when in due time the lady, instead of +a human child, brought forth a boar-pig. Yet the parents were so +possessed with the joy of having any kind of offspring that they ended by +making a great pet of the creature, who was, however, human in his ways, +and could in time talk with grace and ease. {48a} And when he grew older +he began to run after the girls, and they to run away from him, screaming +as if the devil had sent him for them. + +"There lived near the palace a beautiful but very poor girl, and with her +the young Boar fell desperately in love. So he asked her parents for her +hand; but they, poor as they were, laughed at him, saying that their +daughter should never marry a swine. But the young lady had well +perceived that this was no common or lazy pig, such as never gets a ripe +pear--_porco pigro non mangia pere mature_--as he had shown by wooing +her; and, secondly, because she was poor and ambitious, and daring enough +to do anything to become rich and great. {48b} + +"Now she surmised that there were eggs under the chopped straw in this +basket, or more in the youth than people supposed; and she was quite +right, for on the bridal night he not only unclothed himself of silk and +purple and fine linen, but also doffed his very skin or boar's hide, and +appeared as beautiful as a Saint Sebastian freshly painted. + +"Then he said to her, 'Be not astonished to find me good-looking at the +rate of thirty sous to a franc, nor deem thyself over-paid, for if we had +not wedded, truly I should have gone on pigging it to the end of my days, +having been doomed--like many men--to be a beast so long as I was a +bachelor, or till a beautiful maid would marry me. Yet there is a +condition attached to this, which is, that I can only be a man as thou +seest me by night, for I must be a boar by day. And shouldst thou ever +betray this secret to any one, or if it be found out, then I shall again +be a boar all the time for life, and thou turn into a frog because of too +much talking. + +"Now as surely as that time and straw ripen medlars, as the saying is, +just so surely will it come to pass that a woman will tell a secret, even +to her own shame. And so it befell this lady, who told it as a great +mystery to her mother, who at once imparted it under oath to all her dear +friends, who swore all their friends on all their salvations not to +breathe a word of it to anybody, who all confessed it to the priests. +How much farther it went God knows, but by the time the whole town knew +it, which was in one day of twenty-four hours, or ere the next morning, +the bride had become a frog who lived in the spring, and the bridegroom a +boar who every day went to drink at the water, and when there said: + + "'Lady Frog! lo, I am here! + He to whom thou once wert dear. + We are in this sad condition, + Not by avarice or ambition, + Nor by evil or by wrong, + But 'cause thou could'st not hold thy tongue; + For be she shallow, be she deep, + No woman can a secret keep; + Which all should think upon who see + The monument which here will be.' + +"So it came to pass either that the boar turned into the great bronze +_maiale_ which now stands in the market-place, or else the people raised +it in remembrance of the story--_chi sa_--but there it is to this day. + +"As for the Signora Frog, she comforted herself by making a great noise +and telling the tale at the top of her voice, having her brains in her +tongue--_il cervello nella lingua_, as they say of those who talk well +yet have but small sense. And that which you hear frogs croaking all +night long is nothing but this story which I have told you of their +ancestress and the bronze boar." + + * * * * * + +This is, in one form or the other, a widely spread tale. As the voice of +the frog has a strange resemblance to that of man, there being legends +referring to it in every language, and as there is a bold and forward +expression in its eyes, {50} it was anciently regarded as a human being +who was metamorphosed for being too impudent and loquacious, as appears +by the legend of "Latona and the Lycian Boors" (Ovid, _Metamorph._, vi. +340). The general resemblance of the form of a frog to that of man +greatly contributed to create such fables. + +The classic ancient original of this boar may be seen in the Uffizzi +Gallery. As the small image of a pig carried by ladies ensures that they +will soon be, as the Germans say, "in blessed circumstances," or +_enceinte_ (which was all one with luck in old times), so the image of +the boar is supposed to be favourable to those ladies who desire olive +branches. From all which it appears that in ancient times swine were +more highly honoured than at present, or, as Shelley sings: + + "We pigs + Were blest as nightingales on myrtle sprigs, + Or grasshoppers that live on noon-day dew." + + + +THE FAIRY OF THE CAMPANILE, OR THE TOWER OF GIOTTO + + + "Bella di fronte e infino alle Calcagna, + Con un corredo nobile e civile, + In te risiede una cupola magna + E superbo di Giotto il Campanile."--_Giuseppe Moroni_. + + "Round as the O of Giotto, d'ye see? + Which means as well done as a thing can be."--_Proverb_. + +Many have wondered how it came to pass that Virgil lived in tradition not +as a poet but as sorcerer. But the reason for it is clear when we find +that in Florence every man who ever had a genius for anything owed it to +magic, or specially to the favour of some protecting fairy or _folletto_, +spirit or god. Is a girl musical? Giacinto or Hyacinth, the favourite +of Apollo, has given her music lessons in her dreams. For the orthodox +there are Catholic saints with a specialty, from venerable Simeon, who +looks after luck in lotteries, to the ever-blessed Antony, who attends to +everything, and Saint Anna, _nee_ Lucina, who inspires nurses. And where +the saints fail, the _folletti_, according to the witches, take their +place and do the work far better. Therefore, as I shall in another place +set forth, Dante and Michel Angelo have passed into the marvellous +mythology of goblins. With them is included Giotto, as appears by the +following legend of "The Goblin of the Bell-Tower of Giotto." + + IL FOLLETTO DEL CAMPANILE DI GIOTTO. + +"Giotto was a shepherd, and every day when he went forth to pasture his +herd there was one little lamb who always kept near him, and appeared to +be longing to talk to him like a Christian. + +"Now this lamb always laid down on a certain stone which was fast in the +ground (_masso_); and Giotto, who loved the lamb, to please it, lay down +also on the same stone. + +"After a short time the lamb died, and when dying said: + + "'Giotto, cosa non far ti + Se mi senti parlarti, + Ti voglio tanto bene + E dove andrai, + Io ti seguiro sempre + In forma di folletto, + E col mio volere + Tu verrai un bravo scultore + E insegne disegnatore.' + + "'Giotto, be not astonished + That I thus speak to thee; + I have such love for thee, + Wherever thou shalt go + I will follow thee always + In the form of a fairy, + And through my favour + Thou shalt become a great sculptor + And artist.' + +"And so it came to pass that Giotto was an able sculptor by the aid of +the lamb, and all that he did was due to the lamb which helped him. + +"And when he died, the spirit of the lamb remained in the form of a +_folletto_ or fairy in the campanile, and it is still often seen there, +always with the spirit of Giotto. Even in death their souls could not be +separate. + +"When any one desires to ascend the tower, and his or her heart fails in +mounting the steps (_e che ha paura di salire_), the fairy below says: + + "'Vade, vade, Signora! + La vade su salgha, + Non abbia paura, + Ci sono io sotto.' + + "'Go on, go on, Signora, + Go up the stairs--oh go! + Be not afraid, my lady! + For I am here below.' + +"Then the visitor hearing this believes it is one of the guides employed +(_inpiegati_), or one of the gentlemen or ladies who are ascending after. +And often when half-way up there comes a great puff of wind which blows +up their skirts (_fa gonfiare le sottane_) which causes great laughter, +and they think that this is only a common thing, and do not perceive that +it does not happen to others. + +"And it is said that this fairy appears by night in the Piazza del Duomo, +or Cathedral Square, in different forms." + + * * * * * + +The reason why Giotto is so popularly known as having been a shepherd is +that on the central tablet of the tower or campanile, facing the street, +there is a bas-relief of a man seated in a tent with sheep before him, +and this is naturally supposed to represent the builder or Giotto +himself, since it fills the most prominent place. In a very popular +halfpenny chapbook, entitled "The Statues under the Uffizzi in Florence, +Octaves improvised by Giuseppe Moroni, called _Il Niccheri_ or the +Illiterate," I find the following: + + GIOTTO. + + "Voi di Mugello, nato dell' interno, + Giotto felice, la da' Vespignano + Prodigiose pitture in ogni esterno + A Brescia, a Roma, Firenze e Milano, + Nelle pietre, ne' marmi nel quaderno, + L'archittetura al popolo italiano. + Da non trovare paragone simile, + Vi basti, per esempio, il campanile." + + "Thou of Mugello, born in Italy, + Happy Giotto, gav'st to Vespignan + Great pictures which on every front we see + At Brescia, Rome, in Florence and Milan, + In stone, in marble, and in poetry, + And architecture, all Italian. + Nothing surpassed thy wondrous art and power, + Take for example, then, our great bell-tower." + +The fact that this is taken from a very popular halfpenny work indicates +the remarkable familiarity with such a name as that of Giotto among the +people. + + + + +THE GOBLIN OF THE TOWER BELLA TRINITA, OR THE PORTA SAN NICCOLO + + + "They do not speak as mortals speak, + Nor sing as others sing; + Their words are gleams of starry light, + Their songs the glow of sunset light, + Or meteors on the wing." + +I once begun a book--the ending and publishing of it are in the dim and +remote future, and perhaps in the limbo of all things unfinished. It was +or is "The Experiences of Flaxius the Immortal," a sage who dwells for +ever in the world, chiefly to observe the evolution of all things absurd, +grotesque, quaint, illogical--in short, of all that is strictly human. +And on him I bestowed a Florentine legend which is perhaps of great +antiquity, since there is a hint in it of an ancient Hebrew work by Rabbi +ben Mozeltoff or the learned Gedauler Chamar--I forget which--besides +being found in poetic form in my own great work on Confucius. + +That money is the life of man, and that treasure buried in the earth is a +sin to its possessor, forms the subject of one of Christ's parables. The +same is true of all talent unemployed, badly directed, or not developed +at all. The turning-point of evolution and of progressive civilisation +will be when public opinion and state interests require that every man +shall employ what talent he has, and every mere idler be treated as a +defaulter or criminal. From this truly Christian point of view the many +tales of ghosts who walk in agony because of buried gold are strangely +instructive. + + FLAXIUS AND THE ROSE. + +"Midnight was ringing from the cloister of San Miniato in Florence on the +hill above, and Flaxius sat by the Arno down below, on the bank by the +square grey tower of other days, known as the Niccolo, or _Torre delta +Trinita_, because there are in it three arches. . . . + +"It was midnight in mid-winter, and a full moon poured forth all its +light over Florence as if it would fain preserve it in amber, and over +the olive groves as if they had become moss agates. . . . + +["'Or I,' quoth Flaxius, 'a fly in hock.'] + +"Yes, it was a clear, cold, Tuscan night, and as the last peal of bells +went out into eternity and faded in the irrevocable, thousands of spirits +of the departed began to appear, thronging like fireflies through the +streets, visiting their ancient haunts and homes, greeting, gossiping, +arranging their affairs just as the peasants do on Friday in the great +place of the Signoria, as they have done for centuries. + +"Flaxius looked at the rolling river which went rushing by at his feet, +and said: + +"'_Arno mio_, you are in a tremendous hurry to get to the sea, and all +the more so because you have just had an _accessit_--a remittance of rain +from the mountain-banks. _Buon pro vi faccia_--much good may it do you! +So every shopman hurries to become a great merchant when he gets some +money, and every farmer a signore, and every signore a great lord, and +every great lord a ruler at court and over all the land--_prorsum et +sursum_. And when they get there--or when you get to the sea--then ye +are all swallowed up in greater lives, interests, and actions, and so the +rivers run for ever on, larger yet ever seeming less unto yourselves. +And so--_ad altiora tendunt omnes_--the flower-edged torrent and the +Florentine.' . . . + +"When he suddenly heard above his head a spirit voice, clear, sweet and +strange, ringing, not in words, but tones of unearthly music--of which +languages there are many among the Unearthlies, all being wordless songs +or airs suggesting speech, and yet conveying ideas far more rapidly. It +was the Goblin of the Tower calling to him of the tower next beyond on +the farther hill, and he said: + +"'How many ghosts there are out to-night!' + +"'Yes; it is a fine night for ghosting. Moonlight is mid-summer for +them, poor souls! But I say, brother, who is yonder _frate_, the dark +monk-spectre who always haunts your tower, lingering here and there about +it? What is the spell upon that _spirito_?' + +"'He is one to be pitied,' replied the Goblin of the Trinita. 'He was a +good fellow while he lived, but a little too fond of money. He was +afflicted with what doctors called, when I was young in Rome, the _amor +sceleratus habendi_. So it came to pass that he died leaving a +treasure--_mille aureos_--a thousand gold crowns buried in my tower +unknown to any one, and for that he must walk the earth until some one +living wins the money.' + +"Flaxius pricked up his ears. He understood all that the spirits said, +but they had no idea that the man in a scholar's robe who sat below knew +Goblinese. + +"'What must a mortal do to get the gold?' inquired the second goblin. + +"'Truly he must do what is well-nigh impossible,' replied the Elf of the +Tower; 'for he must, without magic aid--note that--bring to me here in +this month of January a fresh full-blown rose.' + +"The voices were silent; a cloud passed over the face of the moon; the +river rushed and roared on; Flaxius sat in a Vandyke-brown study, +thinking how he could obtain peace and repose for the ghostly monk, and +also get the _pecuniam_. + +"'Here is,' he thought, '_aliquid laborare_--something to be worked out. +Now is the time, and here is a chance--_ingirlandarsi di lauro_--to win +the laurel wreath. A rose in January! What a pity that it is not four +hundred years later, when people will have green-houses, and blue-nosed +vagabonds will be selling red roses all the winter long in the +Tornabuoni! Truly it is sometimes inconvenient to be in advance of or +behind the age. + +"'_Eureka_! I have it,' he at last exclaimed, 'by the neck and tail. I +will _spogliar la tesoria_--rob the treasury and spoil the Egyptian--_si +non in errore versatus sum_--unless I am stupendously mistaken. Monk! +thy weird will soon be dreed--thy penance prophesied will soon be o'er.' + +"Saying this he went into the city. And there the next day, going to a +fair dame of his acquaintance, who excelled all the ladies of all Italy +in ingenious needlework, he had made of silk a rose; and so deftly was it +done, that had it been put on a bush, you would have sworn that a +nightingale would have sung to it, or bee have sought to ravish it. + +"Then going to a Venetian perfumer's, the wise Flaxius had his flower +well scented with best attar of roses from Constantinople, and when +midnight struck he was at the tower once more calling to the goblin. + +"'_Che vuoi_? What dost thou seek?' cried the Elf. + +"'The treasure of the monk!' + +"'_Bene_! Give me a rose.' + +"'_Ecco_! There it is,' replied Flaxius, extending it. + +"'_Non facit_--it won't do,' answered the goblin (thinking Flaxius to be +a monk). 'It is a sham rose artificially coloured, _murice tincta est_.' + +"'Smell it,' replied Flaxius calmly. + +"'The _smell_ is all right, I admit,' answered the guardian of the gold. +'The perfume is delicious;' here he sniffed at it deeply, being, like all +his kind, enraptured with perfume, 'and that much of it is, I grant, the +real thing.' + +"'Now tell me,' inquired Flaxius, 'truly--_religiose testimonium +dicere_--by thy great ancestress Diana and her sister-double Herodias and +her Nine Cats, by the Moon and the eternal Shadow, Endamone, and the word +which Bergoia whispered into the ear of the Ox, and the Lamia whom thou +lovest--what is it makes a man? Is it his soul or his body?' + +"'Man of mystery and master of the hidden lore,' replied the awe-struck +goblin, 'it is his _soul_.' + +"'And is not the perfume of the rose its _soul_--that which breathes its +life, in which it speaks to fairies or to men? Is not the voice in song +or sweetened words the perfume of the spirit, ever true? Is not--' + +"'I give it up,' replied the goblin. 'The priest may turn in now for a +long, long nap. Here, take his gold, and _ne gioire tutto +d'allegrezza_--may you have a merry time with it. There is a great deal +of good drinking in a thousand crowns; and if you ever try to _ludere +latrunculis vel aleis_, or shake the bones or dice, I promise you three +sixes. By the way, I'll just keep this rose to remember you by. +_Addio--a rivederlei_!' + +"So the bedesman slept amid his ashes cold, and the good Flaxius, who was +a stout carl for the nonce, with a broad back and a great beard, +returned, bearing a mighty sack of ancient gold, which stood him in good +stead for many a day. And the goblin is still there in the tower." + +"_Haec fabula docet_," wrote Flaxius as he revised the proof with a +red-lead pencil, for which he had paid a penny in the Calzolaio. "This +tale teaches that in this life there is naught which hath not its ideal +side or inner soul, which may raise us to higher reflection or greater +profit, if we will but seek it. The lower the man the lower he looks, +but it is all to his loss in the end. Now every chapter in this book, O +my son--or daughter--may seem to thee only a rose of silk, yet do not +stop at that, but try to find therein a perfume. For thou art thyself, I +doubt not, such a rose, even if thy threads (as in most of us) be +somewhat worn, torn, or faded, yet with a soul far better than many deem +who see thee only afar off. And this my book is written for the perfume, +not the silk of my reader. And there is no person who is better than +what the world deems him or her to be who will not find in it marvellous +comfort, solace, and satisfaction." + +Thus wrote Flaxius. + + * * * * * + +Since I penned the foregoing from memory, I have found the Italian text +or original, which had been mislaid for years. In it the tale is +succinctly told within the compass of forty lines, and ends with these +words: + + "'Take the treasure, and give me the rose!' + + "And so the spirit gave him the treasure and took the rose, and the + poor man went home enriched, and the priest to sleep in peace--_fra + gli eterni_--among the eternals." + +I ought, of course, to have given scientifically only the text word for +word, but _litera scripta manet_--what is written remains, and Flaxius is +an old friend of mine, and I greatly desired to introduce him to my +readers. And I doubt not that the reviewers will tell me if I have +sinned! + + "Do a good deed, or aught that's fit, + You never again may hear of it; + But make a slip, all will detect it, + And every friend at once correct it!" + + + + +THE GHOST OF MICHEL ANGELO + + + "If I believed that spirits ne'er + Return to earth once more, + And that there's naught unto them dear + In the life they loved before; + Then truly it would seem to me, + However fate has sped, + For souls there's no eternity, + And they and all are dead." + +It must have struck every one who has read the life of Michel Angelo, +that he was, like King James the First of England, "nae great gillravager +after the girls," or was far from being susceptible to love--in which he +formed a great contrast to Raphael, and indeed to most of the Men of his +Time--or any other. This appears to have impressed the people of Italy +as something even more singular than his works, for which reason he +appears in popular tradition as a good enough goblin, not without +cheerfulness and song, but as one given to tormenting enamoured couples +and teasing lady artists, whom he subsequently compliments with a gift. +The legend is as follows: + + LO SPIRITO DI MICHELE ANGIOLO BUONAROTTI. + +"The spirit of Michel Angelo is seen mostly by night, in woods or groves. +The good man appears as he did in life, _come era prima_, ever walking +among trees singing poetry. He amuses himself very much by teasing +lovers--_a dare noia agli amoretti_--and when he finds a pair who have +hidden themselves under leaves and boughs to make love, he waits till +they think they are well concealed, and then begins to sing. And the two +feel a spell upon them when they hear his voice, and can neither advance +nor retreat. + +"Then all at once opening the leafy covert, he bursts into a peal of +laughter; and the charm being broken, they fly in fear, because they +think they are discovered, and it is all nothing but the spirit of Michel +Angelo Buonarotti. + +"When some lady-artist goes to sketch or paint, be it _al piazzale_, in +open places, or among the woods, it is his delight to get behind, and +cause her to blunder, scrawl, and daub (_fare degli scarabocchi_). And +when the artist is angered, she will hear a loud peal of laughter; and if +this irritates her still more, she will hear a song, and yet not perceive +the singer. And when at last in alarm she catches up her sketch, all +scrawled and spoiled, and takes to flight, she will hear the song +following her, and yet if she turns her head she will see no one +pursuing. The voice and melody are always beautiful. But it is +marvellously lucky to have this happen to an artist, for when she gets +home and looks at her sketch, she finds that it is neither scrawled nor +daubed, but most exquisitely executed in the style of Michel Angelo." + + * * * * * + +It is marvellous how the teasing faun or Silvanus of the Romans has +survived in Tuscany. I have found him in many forms, under many names, +and this is the last. But why it should be Michel Angelo, I cannot +imagine, unless it be that his face and stump nose, so familiar to the +people, are indeed like that of the faun. The _dii sylvestres_, with all +their endless mischief, riotry, and revelry, were good fellows, and the +concluding and rather startling touch that the great artist in the end +always bestows a valuable picture on his victim is really godlike--in a +small way. + +It is remarkable as a coincidence, that Michel Angelo was himself during +life terribly annoyed and disturbed by people prying and speering about +him while painting--especially by Pope Leo--for whom he nevertheless +painted very good pictures. It would almost seem as if there were an +echo of the event in the legend. Legend is the echo of history. + +"This legend," remarks Flaxius, "may give a valuable hint to collectors. +Many people are aware that there are in existence great numbers of +sketchings and etchings attributed to Michel Angelo, Durer, Raphael, Marc +Antonio, and many more, which were certainly executed long since those +brothers of the paint or pencil passed away. May it not be that the +departed still carry on their ancient callings by the aid of new and +marvellous processes to us as yet unknown, or by what may be called +'pneumato-gravure'? Who knows?--'tis a great idea, my masters;--let us +pass on or _legit_ unto another legend! + + "'Well I ween it may be true + That afar in fairyland + Great artists still pursue + That which in life they knew, + And practise still, with ever bettering hand, + Sculpture and painting, all that charm can bring, + While by them all departed poets sing.'" + + + + +THE APPARITION OF DANTE + + + "Musa profonda dei Toscani, il Dante, + Il nobil cittadin, nostro Alighieri, + Alla filosofia ricco e brillante + Purgo il linguaggio e corredo i pensieri; + E nell' opera sua fatto gigante + A Campaldino nei primi guerrieri; + Lui il Purgatorio, Paradiso e Inferno + Fenomeno terren, poeta eterno!" + + --_Le Statue disotto gli Ufizi in Fireneze_. _Ottave improvisate da + Giuseppe Moroni detto Il Nicchieri_ (_Iliterato_). Florence, 1892. + +It has been boldly asserted by writers who should know better, that there +are no ghosts in Italy, possibly because the two only words in the +language for such beings are the equivocal ones of _spirito_ or spirit, +and _spettro_ or spectre--or _specter_, as the Websterians write +it--which is of itself appalling as a terrific spell. But the truth is +that there is no kind of _spuk_, goblin, elf, fairy, gnome, or ouphe +known to all the North of Europe which was not at home in Italy since old +Etruscan days, and ghosts, though they do not make themselves common, are +by no means as rare as eclipses. For, as may be read in my "Etruscan +Roman Legends," people who will look through a stone with a hole in it +can behold no end of _revenants_, or returners, in any churchyard, and on +fine nights the seer can see them swarming in the streets of Florence. +Giotto is in the campanile as a gentle ghost with the fairy lamb, and +Dante, ever benevolent, is all about town, as appears from the following, +which was unexpectedly bestowed on me: + + LO SPIRITO DI DANTE ALIGHIERI. + +"When any one is passionately fond of poetry, he should sit by night on +the _panchina_ {63} in the piazza or square of Santa Croce or in other +places (_i.e._, those haunted by Dante), and having read his poetry, +pronounce the following: + + "'Dante, che eri + La gran poeta, + Siei morto, ma vero, + Il tuo spirito + E sempre rimasto, + Sempre per nostro + Nostro aiuto. + + "'Ti chiamo, ti prego! + E ti scongiuro! + A voler aiutarmi. + Questa poesia + Voglio imparare; + Di piu ancora, + Non voglio soltanto + Imparar la a cantare, + Ma voglio imparare + Di mia testa + Poter le scrivere, + E cosi venire + Un bravo poeta." + + "'Thou Dante, who wert + Such a great poet, + Art dead, but thy spirit + Is truly yet with us, + Here and to aid us. + + "'I call thee, I pray thee, + And I conjure thee! + Give me assistance! + I would learn perfectly + All of this poetry. + And yet, moreover, + I would not only + Learn it to sing it, + But I would learn too + How I may truly + From my head write it, + And become really + An excellent poet!' + +"And then a form of a man will approach from around the statue (_da +canto_), advancing gently--_piano-piano_--to the causeway, and will sit +on it like any ordinary person, and begin to read the book, and the young +man who has invoked the poet will not fail to obtain his wish. And the +one who has come from the statue is no other indeed than Dante himself. + +"And it is said that if in any public place of resort or inn (_bettola_) +any poet sings the poems of Dante, he is always present among those who +listen, appearing as a gentleman or poor man--_secondo il +locale_--according to the place. + +"Thus the spirit of Dante enters everywhere without being seen. + +"If his poems be in the house of any person who takes no pleasure in +them, the spirit of the poet torments him in his bed (in dreams) until +the works are taken away." + + * * * * * + +There is a simplicity and directness in this tradition, as here told, +which proves the faith of the narrator. Washington Irving found that the +good people of East Cheap had become so familiar with Shakespearian +comedy as to verily believe that Falstaff and Prince Hal and Dame Quickly +had all lived, and still haunted the scenes of their former revels; and +in like manner the Florentine has followed the traditions of olden time +so closely and lovingly, that all the magnates of the olden time live for +him literally at the present day. This is in a great measure due to the +fact that statues of all the celebrities of the past are in the most +public places, and that there are many common traditions to the effect +that all statues at certain times walk about or are animated. + +One of the commonest halfpenny or _soldo_ pamphlets to be found on the +stand of all open-air dealers in ballads--as, for instance, in the +Uffizzi--is a collection of poems on the statues around that building, +which of itself indicates the interest in the past, and the knowledge of +poets and artists possessed by the common people. For the poorest of +them are not only familiar with the names, and more or less with the +works, of Orcagna, Buonarotti, Dante, Giotto, Da Vinci, Raffaelle, +Galileo, Machiavelli, and many more, but these by their counterfeit +presentments have entered into their lives and live. Men who are so +impressioned make but one bold step over the border into the fairyland of +faith while the more cultured are discussing it. + +I do not, with some writers, believe that a familiarity with a few names +of men whose statues are always before them, and from whose works the +town half lives, indicates an indescribably high culture or more refined +nature in a man, but I think it is very natural for him to make legends +on them. There are three other incantations given in another chapter, +the object of which, like this to Dante, is to become a poet. + +"From which we learn that in the fairy faith," writes Flaxius, with +ever-ready pen, "that poets risen to spirits still inspire, even in +person, neophytes to song. + + "'Life is a slate of action, and the store + Of all events is aggregated there + That variegate the eternal universe; + Death is a gate of dreariness and gloom, + That leads to azure isles and beaming skies . . . + Therefore, O spirit, fearlessly bear on.'" + + + + +LEGENDS OF LA CERTOSA + + + "'Now when ye moone like a golden flowre, + In ye sky above doth bloome, + Ile lett doune a basket in that houre, + And pull ye upp to my roome, + And give mee a kisse if 'tis yes,' he cryed; + Ye mayden would nothing refuse; + But held upp hir lippes-- + Oh I would I had beene + Just thenn in that friar's shoos." + +If we pass the Porta Romana, and keep on for three miles, we shall arrive +at the old Carthusian convent of La Certosa in Val d'Ema. Soon after +passing "the village of Galluzzo, where the stream is crossed, we come to +an ancient gateway surmounted by a statue of Saint Laurence, _through +which no female could enter_ except by permission of the archbishop, and +out which no monk could pass." At least, it is so stated in a justly +famous English guide-book, though it does not explain how any "female" +could enter the saint, nor whether the female in question belonged to the +human species, or was fish, flesh, or red-herring. I should, however, +incline to believe the latter is meant, as "herring" is a popular synonym +for a loose fish. + +The Certosa was designed and built in the old Italian Gothic style by +Andrea Orcagna, it having been founded in the middle of the fourteenth +century by Niccolo Acciajuoli, who was of a great Florentine family, from +whom a portion of the Lung Arno is named. The building is on a +picturesque hill, 400 feet above the union of the brooks called the Ema +and the Greve, the whole forming a charming view of a castled monastery +of the Middle Ages. + +There is always, among the few monks who have been allowed to remain, an +English or Irish brother, to act as cicerone to British or American +visitors, and show them the interesting tombs in the crypt or +subterranean church, and the beautiful chapels and celebrated frescoes in +the church. These were painted by Poccetti, and I am told that among +them there is one which commemorates or was suggested by the following +legend, which I leave the reader to verify, not having done so myself, +though I have visited the convent, which institution is, however, +popularly more distinguished--like many other monasteries--as a +distillery of holy cordial than for aught else: + + AL CONVENTO DELLA CERTOSA. + +"There was in this convent a friar called Il Beato Dyonisio, who was so +holy and such a marvellous doctor of medicine, that he was known as the +Frate Miraculoso or Miraculous Brother. + +"And when any of the fraternity fell ill, this good medico would go to +them and say, 'Truly thou hast great need of a powerful remedy, O my +brother, and may it heal and purify thy soul as well as thy body!' {67} +And it always befell that when he had uttered this conjuration that the +patient recovered; and this was specially the case if after it they +confessed their sins with great devoutness. + +"Brother Dyonisio tasted no food save bread and water; he slept on the +bare floor of his cell, in which there was no object to be seen save a +scourge with great knots; he never took off his garments, and was always +ready to attend any one taken ill. + +"The other brothers of the convent were, however, all jolly monks, being +of the kind who wear the tunic as a tonic to give them a better--or +bitter--relish for secular delights, holding that it is far preferable to +have a great deal of pleasure for a little penitence than _per poco +piacer gran penitenza_--much penitence for very little pleasure. In +short, they were just at the other end of the rope away from Brother +Dyonisio, inasmuch as they ate chickens, _bistecche_ or beef-steaks, and +drank the best wine, even on fast-days--_giorni di vigiglia_--and slept +in the best of beds; yes, living like lords, and never bothering +themselves with any kind of penance, as all friars should do. + +"Now there was among these monks one who was a great _bestemmiatore_, a +man of evil words and wicked ways, who had led a criminal life in the +world, and only taken refuge in the disguise of a monk in the convent to +escape the hand of justice. Brother Dyonisio knew all this, but said +nothing; nay, he even exorcised away a devil whom he saw was always +invisibly at the sinner's elbow, awaiting a chance to catch him by the +hair; but the Beato Dyonisio was too much for him, and kept the devil +ever far away. + +"And this was the way he did it: + +"It happened one evening that this _finto frate_, or mock monk or feigned +friar, took it into his head, out of pure mischief, and because it was +specially forbidden, to introduce a _donna di mala vita_, or a girl of no +holy life, into the convent to grace a festival, and so arranged with +divers other scapegraces that the damsel should be drawn up in a basket. + +"And sure enough there came next morning to the outer gate a fresh and +jolly black-eyed _contadina_, who asked the mock monk whether he would +give her anything in charity. And the _finto frate_ answering sang: + + "'You shall have the best of meat, + Anything you like to eat, + Cutlets, macaroni, chickens, + Every kind of dainty pickings. + Pasticcie and fegatelli, + Salame and mortadelle, + With good wine, if you are clever, + For a very trifling favour!' + +"To which the girl replied: + + "'Here I am, as here you see! + What would'st thou, holy man, with me?' + +"The friar answered: + + "'When thou hear'st the hoots and howls + At midnight of the dogs and owls, + And when all men are sunk in sleep, + And only witches watch do keep, + Come 'neath the window unto me, + And there thou wilt a basket see + Hung by a rope as from a shelf, + And in that basket stow thyself, + And I alone will draw thee up, + Then with us thou shalt gaily sup.' + +"But the girl replied, as if in fear: + + "'But if the rope should break away, + Oh, then there'd be the devil to pay, + Oh, holy father, first for thee-- + But most especially for me! + For if by evil luck I'd cracked your + Connecting cord, my limbs I'd fracture!' + +"The friar sang: + + "'The rope is good, as it is long, + The basket's tough, my arms are strong, + Have thou no fear upon that score, + T'as hoisted many a maid before; + For often such a basket-full + Did I into a convent pull, + And many more I trust will I + Draw safely up before I die.' + +"And at midnight the girl was there walking beneath the windows awaiting +the hour to rise--_Ascensionem expectans_--truly not to heaven, nor from +any great liking for the monks, but for a great fondness for +roast-chickens and good wine, having in her mind's eye such a supper as +she had never before enjoyed, and something to carry home with her. + +"So at last there was a rustling sound above, as a window softly opened, +and a great basket came vibrating down below; and the damsel, well +assured, got into it like a hen into her nest, while the lusty friar +above began to draw like an artist. + +"Now the _Beato frate_ Dyonisio, knowing all that passed round about by +virtue of his holy omniscience, determined to make manifest to the monks +that things not adapted to piety led them into the path of eternal +punishment. + +"Therefore, just as the basket-full of girl touched the window of the +convent, it happened by the virtue of the holy Dyonisio that the rope +broke and the damsel came with a _capi tombola_ somerset or first-class +tumble into the street; but as she, poor soul, had only sinned for a +supper, which she greatly needed and seldom got, she was quit for a good +fright, since no other harm happened to her. + +"But it was far otherwise with the wicked monk, who had only come into +that holy monastery to stir up sin; for he, leaning too far over at the +instant, fell with an awful howl to the ground, where he roared so with +pain that all the other monks came running to see what was the matter. +And they found him indeed, more dead than alive, terribly bruised, yet in +greater agony of mind than of body, saying that Satan had tempted him, +and that he would fain confess to the Beato Dyonisio, who alone could +save him. + +"Then the good monk tended him, and so exhorted him that he left his evil +ways and became a worthy servant of God, and the devil ceased to tempt +him. And in due time Brother Dyonisio died, and as a saint they interred +him in the crypt under the convent, and the morning after his burial a +beautiful flower was found growing from his tomb, and so they sainted +him. + +"The fall of the girl was a scandal and cause of laughter for all +Florence, so that from that day the monks never ventured more to draw up +damsels in baskets." + + * * * * * + +This story is so widely spread in many forms, that the reader can hardly +have failed to have heard it; in fact, there are few colleges where it +has not happened that a basket has not been used for such smuggling. One +of the most amusing instances is of a damsel in New Haven, or Cambridge, +Massachusetts, who was very forgetful. One day she said to a friend, +"You have no idea how wicked some girls are. The other morning early--I +mean late at night--I was going by the college when I saw a girl being +drawn up in a basket by some students, when all at once the rope +broke--_and down I came_." + +In Germany, as in the East, the tale is told of a wooer who is drawn up +half-way in a basket and then let remain for everybody to behold. In +Uhland's Old Ballads there is one to this effect of Heinrich Corrade der +Schreiber im Korbe. Tales on this theme at least need not be regarded as +strictly traditional. + +There is another little legend attached to La Certosa which owes its +small interest to being told of a man who was one of the Joe Millers of +Italy in the days of the Medici. It is a curious fact that humorists do +most abound and are most popular in great epochs of culture. + +Domenico Barlacchi was a _banditore_--herald or public crier--of +Florence, commonly known as Il Barlacchia, who lived in the time of +Lorenzo de' Medici, and who, being _molto piacevole e faceto_, or +pleasing and facetious, as I am assured by an ancient yellow jest-book of +1636 now before me, became, like Piovano Arlotto and Gonella, one of the +famous wits of his time. It is worth noting, though it will be no news +to any folk-lorist, that in these flying leaves, or fleeting collections +of facetiae, there are many more indications of familiar old Florentine +life than are to be gleaned from the formal histories which are most +cited by writers who endeavour to illustrate it. + + "One morning Barlacchia, with other boon companions, went to La + Certosa, three miles distant from Florence, {71} where, having heard + mass, they were taken over the convent by one of the friars, who + showed them the convent and cells. Of which Barlacchia said 'twas + all very fine, but that he would like to see the + wine-cellar--_sentendosi egli hauer sete_--as he felt great thirst + sadly stealing over him. + + "To which the friar replied that he would gladly show them that part + of the convent, but that unfortunately the Decano who kept the keys + was absent. [_Decano_, dean or deacon, may be rendered roughly in + English as a dog, or literally of a dog or currish.] To which + Barlacchia replied, 'Truly I am sorry for it, and I wish you were all + _de' cani_ or dogs!' + +Times have changed, and whether this tale brought about the reform I +cannot say, but it is certain that the good monks at present, without +waiting to be asked, generally offer a glass of their famous cordial to +visitors. Tastes may differ, but to mine, when it is old, the green +Certosa, though far cheaper, is superior to Chartreuse. + +Another tale of Barlacchia, which has a certain theological affinity with +this story, is as follows: + + "A great illness once befell Barlacchia, so that it was rumoured all + over Florence that he was dead, and great was the grieving thereover. + But having recovered, by the grace of God, he went from his house to + the palace of the Grand Duke, who said to him: + + "'Ha! art thou alive, Barlacchia? We all heard that thou wert dead.' + + "'Signore, it is true,' was his reply. 'I was indeed in the other + world, but they sent me back again, and that for a mere trifle, which + you forgot to give me.' + + "'And what was that?' asked the Duke. + + "'I knocked,' resumed Barlacchia, 'at the gate of heaven, and they + asked me who I was, what I had done in the world, and whether I had + left any landed property. To which I replied no, never having begged + for anything. So they sent me off, saying that they did not want any + such poor devils about them--_non volevano la simile dapochi_. And + therefore, illustrious Signore, I make so bold as to ask that you + would kindly give me some small estate, so that another time I may + not be turned away.' + + "Which so pleased the magnificent and liberal Lorenzo that he + bestowed on Barlacchia a _podere_ or farm. + + "Now for a long time after this illness, Barlacchia was very pale and + haggard, so that everybody who met him (and he was well known to + everybody) said, 'Barlacchia, _mind the rules_'--meaning the rules of + health; or else, 'Barlacchia, look to yourself;' or _regolati_! or + _guardatevi_!--till at last he became tired with answering them. So + he got several small wooden rules or rulers, such as writers use to + draw lines, and hung them by a cord to his neck, and with them a + little mirror, and when any one said '_Regolati_'--'mind the rules,' + he made no reply, but looked at the sticks, and when they cried + '_Guardatevi_!' he regarded himself in the mirror, and so they were + answered." + +This agrees with the sketch of Lorenzo as given by Oscar Browning in his +admirable "Age of the Condottieri," a short history of Mediaeval Italy +from 1409 to 1530: + + "Lorenzo was a bad man of business; he spent such large sums on + himself that he deserved the appellation of the Magnificent. He + reduced himself to poverty by his extravagance; he alienated his + fellow-citizens by his lust . . . and was shameless in the promotion + of his private favourites." + +Yet with all this he was popular, and left a legendary fame in which +generosity rivals a love of adventure. I have collected many traditions +never as yet published relating to him, and in all he appears as a _bon +prince_. + +"But verily when I consider that what made a gallant lord four hundred +years ago would be looked after now by the Lord Chancellor and the law +courts with a sharp stick, I must needs," writes Flaxius, "exclaim with +Spenser sweet: + + "'Me seemes the world is run quite out of square, + For that which all men once did Vertue call, + Is now called Vice, and that which Vice was hight + Is now hight Vertue, and so used of all; + Right now is wrong, and wrong that was, is right, + As all things else in time are changed quight.'" + + + + +LEGENDS OF THE BRIDGES IN FLORENCE + + + "I stood upon a bridge and heard + The water rushing by, + And as I thought, to every word + The water made reply. + + I looked into the deep river, + I looked so still and long, + Until I saw the elfin shades + Pass by in many a throng. + + They came and went like starry dreams, + For ever moving on, + As darkness takes the starry beams + Unnoted till they're gone." + +There is something in a bridge, and especially in an old one, which has +been time-worn and mossed into harmony with surrounding nature, which has +always seemed peculiarly poetical or strange to men. Hence so many +legends of devil's bridges, and it is rather amusing when we reflect how, +as Pontifex, he is thus identified with the head of the Church. Thus I +once, when attending law lectures in Heidelberg in 1847, heard Professor +Mittermaier say, that those who used the saying of "the divine right of +kings" as an argument reminded him of the peasants who assumed that every +old bridge was built by the devil. It is, however, simply the arch, +which in any form is always graceful, and the stream passing through it +like a living thing, which forms the artistic attraction or charm of such +structures. I have mentioned in my "Memoirs" that Ralph Waldo Emerson +was once impressed by a remark, the first time I met him, to the effect +that a vase in a room had the effect of a bridge in a landscape--at +least, he recalled it at once when I met him twenty years later. + +The most distinguished bridge, from a legendary point of view, in Europe, +was that of Saint John Nepomuc in Prague--recently washed away owing to +stupid neglect; the government of the city probably not supporting, like +the king in the opera-bouffe of "Barbe Bleu," a commissioner of bridges. +The most picturesque work of the kind which I recall is that of the Ponte +Maddalena--also a devil's bridge--at the Bagni di Lucca. That Florence +is not wanting in legends for its bridges appears from the following: + + THE SPIRIT OF THE PONTE VECCHIO OR OLD BRIDGE. + +"He who passes after midnight on the Ponte Vecchio can always see a form +which acts as guard, sometimes looking like a beggar, sometimes like a +_guardia di sicurezza_, or one of the regular watchmen, and indeed +appearing in many varied forms, but generally as that of a watchman, and +always leaning on the bridge. + +"And if the passer-by asks him any such questions as these: 'Chi +siei?'--'Cosa fai?'--'Dove abiti?'--'Ma vien' con me?' That is: 'Who are +you?'--'What dost thou do?'--'Where is your home?'--'Wilt with me +come?'--he seems unable to utter anything; but if you ask him, 'Who am +I?' it seems to delight him, and he bursts into a peal of laughter which +is marvellously loud and ringing, so that the people in the shops waking +up cry, 'There is the goblin of the Ponte Vecchio at his jests again!' +For he is a merry sprite, and then they go to sleep, feeling peaceably +assured that he will watch over them as of yore. + +"And this he really does for those who are faithful unto him. And those +who believe in spirits should say sincerely: + + "'Spirito del Ponte Vecchio, + Guardami la mia bottega! + Guardami dagli ladroni! + Guardami anche dalla strega!' + + "'Spirit of the ancient bridge! + Guard my shop and all my riches, + From the thieves who prowl by night, + And especially from witches!' + +"Then the goblin ever keeps guard for them. And should it ever come to +pass that thieves break into a shop which he protects, he lets them work +away till they are about to leave, when he begins to scream '_Al ladro_!_ +al ladro_!' and follows them till they are taken. + +"But when the police have taken the thief, and he is brought up to be +interrogated, and there is a call for the individual who was witness +(_quando le guardie vanno per interrogare l'individuo che si e trovato +presente_), lo and behold he has always disappeared. + +"And at times, when the weather is bad, he prowls about the bridge in the +form of a cat or of a he-goat, and should any very profane, abusive +rascal (_bestemmiatore_) come along, the spirit as a goat will go before, +running nimbly, when all at once the latter sinks into the earth, from +which flames play forth, to the great terror of the sinner, while the +goblin vanishes laughing." + + * * * * * + +I have very little doubt that this guardian spirit of the bridge is the +same as Teramo, _i.e._, Hermes Mercury, who is believed in the Toscana +Romana to betray thieves when they commit murder. But Mercury was also a +classic guardian of bridges. + +This merry goblin of the Ponte Vecchio has a colleague not far away in +the _Spirito del Ponte alla Carraia_, the legend of which is as follows. +And here I would note, once for all, that in almost every case these +tales were written out for me in order to secure the greater accuracy, +which did not however always ensure it, since even Miss Roma Lister, who +is to the manor or manner born, often had with me great trouble in +deciphering the script. For verily it seems to be a decree of destiny +that everything traditional shall be involved, when not in Egyptian or +Himaritic, or Carthaginian or Norse-Runic, at least in some diabolical +dialect, so anxious is the Spirit of the past to hide from man the things +long passed away. + + AL PONTE ALLA CARRAIA. + +"By the Arno, or under the Bridge alla Carraia, there lived once a +certain Marocchio, {77a} a _bestemmiatore_, or blasphemer, for he cursed +bitterly when he gained but little, being truly a _marocchio_, much +attached to money. Even in dying he still swore. And Marocchio had sold +himself to the devil, and hidden his money under a stone in the arch of +the bridge. Yet though he had very poor relations and friends, he +confided nothing to them, and left _niente a nessuno_, 'nothing to +nobody.' Whence it came that after his death he had no rest or peace, +because his treasure remained undiscovered. + +"Yet where the money lay concealed there was seen every night the form of +a goat which cast forth flames, and running along before those who passed +by, suddenly sunk into the ground, disappearing in a great flash of fire. + +"And when the _renaioli_ or sand-diggers, {77b} thinking it was a real +goat, would catch it by the hair, it cast forth fire, so that many of +them died of fright. And it often overthrew their boats and made all the +mischief possible. + +"Then certain people thinking that all this indicated a hidden treasure, +sought to find it, but in vain; till at last one who was _piu furbo_, or +shrewder than the rest, observed that one day, when the wind was worse +than usual, raising skirts and carrying away caps and hats, there was a +goat in all the hurly-burly, and that this animal vanished at a certain +spot. 'There I ween,' he said, 'lies money hid!' And knowing that +midnight is the proper time or occasion (_cagione di nascosto tesoro_) +for buried hoards, he came at the hour, and finding the habitual goat +(_il solito chaprone_), he addressed him thus: + +"'If thou art a blessed soul, then go thy way in peace, and God be with +thee. But if thou sufferest from buried treasure, then teach me how I, +without any fear, may take thy store, then thou mayst go in peace! And +if thou art in torment for a treasure, show me the spot, and I will take +it home, and then thou'lt be at peace and grieve no more.' + +"Then the goat jumped on the spot where the money was hidden and sank as +usual out of sight in fire. + +"So the next day the young man went there and dug till he discovered the +gold, and the spirit of Marocchio was relieved. But to this hour the +goat is seen now and then walking in his old haunt, where he sinks into +the ground at the same place." + + * * * * * + +The legend of a goat haunting a bridge is probably derived from the +custom of sacrificing an animal to new buildings or erections. These +were originally human sacrifices, for which, in later times, the animals +were substituted. Hence the legends of the devil having been defrauded +out of a promised soul by driving a goat or cat over the bridge as a +first crosser. The spirits of the Ponte Vecchio and Ponte alla Carraia +clearly indicate this origin. + +The next legend on this subject is that of the Ponte alle Grazie, which +was built by Capo, the fellow-pupil of Arnolfo, under the direction of +Rubaconte, who filled the office of Podesta in 1235. Five hundred years +are quite time enough to attract traditions in a country where they +spring up in five; and when I inquired whether there was any special +story attached to the Ponte alle Grazie, I was soon supplied with the +following: + + LE PONTE ALLE GRAZIE. + +"When one passes under a bridge, or in halls of great palaces, or the +vault of a church, or among high rocks, if he calls aloud, he will hear +what is called the _echo_ of his voice. + +"Yet it is really not his own voice which he hears, but the mocking +voices of spirits, the reason being that they are confined to these +places, and therefore we do not hear them in the open air, where they are +free. But we can hear them clearly in great places enclosed, as, for +instance, under vaults, and far oftener in the country, because in +limited spaces their voices are confined and not lost. And these are the +voices of people who were merry and jovial while on earth, and who now +take delight _a rifare il verso_, to re-echo a strain. + +"But under the Ponte alle Grazie we hear the cry of the spirit of a girl. +She was very beautiful, and had grown up from infancy in constant +companionship with a youth of the neighbourhood, and so from liking as +children they went on to loving at a more advanced age, with greater +fondness and with deeper passion. + +"And it went so far that at last the girl found herself with child, and +then she was in great trouble, not knowing how to hide this from her +parents. _Sta beccata da una serpe_, as the proverb is; 'she had been +stung by a serpent,' and now began to feel the poison. But the youth was +faithful and true, and promised to marry her as soon as he could possibly +arrange matters. So she was quieted for a time. + +"But she had a vilely false friend, and a most intimate one, in a girl +who, being a witch, or of that kind, hated her bitterly at heart, albeit +she knew well _portare bene la maschera_, how to wear the mask. + +"Now the poor girl told this false friend that she was _enceinte_, and +that her lover would marry her; and the dear friend took her, as the +saying is, a trip to Volterra, during which a man was treated like a +prince and robbed or murdered at the end. For she insinuated that the +marriage might fail, and meantime she, the friend, would consult witches +and _fate_, who would get her out of her troubles and make all right as +sure as the Angelus. And the false friend went to the witches, but she +took them a lock of hair from the head of the lover to conjure away his +love and work harm. And knowing what the bridal dress would be, she made +herself one like it in every detail. And she so directed that the bride +on the wedding morning shut herself up in a room and see no one till she +should be sent for. + +"The bride-to-be passed the morning in great anxiety, and while waiting +there received a large bouquet of orange-flowers as a gift from her +friend. And these she had perfumed with a witch-powder. And the bride +having inhaled the scent, fell into a deep sleep, or rather trance, +during which she was delivered of a babe, and knew nothing of it. Now +the people in the house hearing the child cry, ran into the room, and +some one ran to the bridegroom, who was just going to be married to the +false friend, who had by aid of the witches put on a face and a false +seeming, the very counterpart of her he loved. + +"Then the unfortunate girl hearing that her betrothed was being married, +and maddened by shame and grief, rushed in her bride's dress through the +streets, and coming to the Bridge delle Grazie, the river being high, +threw herself into it and was drowned; still holding the bouquet of +orange-blossoms in her hand, she was carried on the torrent into death. + +"Then the young man, who had discovered the cheat, and whose heart was +broken, said, 'As we were one in life, so we will be in death,' and threw +himself into the Arno from the same place whence she had plunged, and +like her was drowned. And the echo from the bridge is the sound of their +voices, or of hers. Perhaps she answers to the girls and he to the men; +anyhow they are always there, like the hymns in a church." + + * * * * * + +There is a special interest in the first two paragraphs of this story, as +indicating how a person who believes in spirits, and is quite ignorant of +natural philosophy, explains phenomena. It is precisely in this manner +that most early science was confused with superstition; and there is more +of it still existing than even the learned are aware of. + +I know not whether echoes are more remarkable in and about Florence than +elsewhere, but they are certainly specially noticed in the local +folk-lore, and there are among the witches invocations to echoes, voices +of the wind, and similar sounds. One of the most remarkable echoes which +I ever heard is in the well of the Villa Guicciardini, now belonging to +Sir John Edgar. It is very accurate in repeating every sound in a manner +so suggestive of a mocking goblin, that one can easily believe that a +peasant would never doubt that it was caused by another being. It +renders laughter again with a singularly strange and original effect. +Even when standing by or talking near this mystic fount, the echo from +time to time cast back scraps of phrases and murmurs, as if joining in +the conversation. It is worth observing (_vide_ the story of the Three +Horns) that this villa once belonged to--and is, as a matter of course, +haunted by the ghost of--Messer Guicciardini, the great writer, who was +himself a faithful echo of the history of his country, and of the wisdom +of the ancients. Thus into things do things repeat themselves, and souls +still live in what surrounded them. I have not seen this mystic well +noticed in any of the Florentine guide-books of any kind, but its goblin +is as well worthy an interview as many better known characters. Yea, it +may be that he is the soul of Guicciardini himself, but when I was there +I forgot to ask him if it were so? + +I can, however, inform the reader as to the incantation which is needed +to call to the spirit of the well to settle this question. Take a copy +of his "Maxims" and read them through; then drink off one glass of wine +to the health of the author, and, bending over the well, distinctly +cry--"Sei Messer Guicciardini, di cosi?"--strongly accentuating the last +syllable. And if the reply be in the affirmative, you may draw your own +conclusions. For those who are not Italianate, it will do quite as well +if they cry, "Guicciardini? No or yes?" For even this echo is not equal +to the Irish one, which to "_How do you do_?" replied, "Pretty well, I +thank you!" + +There is a very good story of the Ponte alle Grazie, anciently known as +the Rubaconte, from the Podesta in whose year of office it was built, +told originally by Sachetti in his _Novelle_ and Manni, _Veglie +Piacevoli_, who drew it indeed from Venetian or Neapolitan-Oriental +sources, and which is best told by Leader Scott in "The Echoes of Old +Florence." It still lives among the people, and is briefly as follows, +in another form: + + THE ORIGIN OF THE PONTE ALLE GRAZIE. + +"There was once in Florence a Podesta or chief magistrate named +Rubaconte, and he had been chosen in the year 1236, nor had he been long +in office when a man called Bagnai, because he kept a public bath, was +brought before him on the charge of murder. + +"And Bagnai, telling his tale, said: 'This is the very truth--_ne favola +ne canzone di tavola_--for I was crossing the river on the little bridge +with a hand-rail by the Palazzo Mozzi, when there came riding over it a +company of gentlemen. And it befell that I was knocked over the bridge, +and fell on a man below who was washing his feet in the Arno, and lo! the +man was killed by my dropping on him.' + +"Now to the Podesta this was neither eggs nor milk, as the saying is, and +he could at first no more conclude on it than if one had asked him, '_Chi +nacque prima--l'uovo o la gallina_?' 'Which was born first--the hen or +the egg?' For on one side the _bagnajolo_ was innocent, and on the other +the dead man's relations cried for vengeance. But after going from one +side of his brain to the other for five minutes, he saw 'from here to the +mountain,' and said: + +"'Now I have listened to ye both, and this is a case where one must-- + + "'Non giudicar per legge ni per carte, + Se non ascolti l'un e l'altra parte.' + + "'Judge not by law-books nor by chart, + But look with care to either part.' + +"'And as it is said, "Berta must drink from her own bottle," so I decree +that the _bagnaio_ shall go and wash his feet in the Arno, sitting in the +same place, and that he who is the first of his accusers shall fall from +the bridge on his neck, and so kill him.' + +"And truly this settled the question, and it was agreed that the Podesta +was _piu savio de gli statuti_--wiser even than the law itself. + +"But then Rubaconte did an even wiser thing, for he determined to have a +new bridge built in place of the old one, and hence came the Ponte alle +Grazie, 'of which he himself laid the first foundation-stone, and carried +the first basket of mortar, with all due civic ceremony, in 1236.' {82} + +"But as it is said, 'he who has drunk once will drink again,' it came to +pass that Bagnai had to appear once more as accused before the Podesta. +One day he met a man whose donkey had fallen and could not rise. 'Twas +on the Ponte Vecchio. + +"The owner seized the donkey by the head, Bagnai caught him by the tail, +and pulled so hard that the tail came off! + +"Then the contadino or _asinaio_ had Bagnai brought before the Podesta, +and claimed damages for his injured animal. And Rubaconte decided that +Bagnai should keep the ass in his stable, and feed him well--until the +tail had grown again. + +"As may be supposed, the _asinaio_ preferred to keep his ass himself, and +go no farther in the case." + + * * * * * + +This ancient tale recalls that of Zito, the German magician conjuror, +whose leg was pulled off. It is pretty evident that the donkey's tail +had been glued on for the occasion. + +I may here add something relative to the folk-lore of bridges, which is +not without interest. I once asked a witch in Florence if such a being +as a spirit of the water or one of bridges and streams existed; and she +replied: + +"Yes, there is a spirit of the water as there is of fire, and everything +else. They are rarely seen, but you can make them appear. _How_? Oh, +easily enough, but you must remember that they are capricious, and appear +in many delusive forms. {83} + +"And this is the way to see them. You must go at twilight and look over +a bridge, or it will do if it be in the daytime in the woods at a smooth +stream or a dark pool--_che sia un poco oscuro_--and pronounce the +incantation, and throw a handful or a few drops of its water into the +water itself. And then you must look long and patiently, always thinking +of it for several days, when, _poco a poco_, you will see dim shapes +passing by in the water, at first one or two, then more and more, and if +you remain quiet they will come in great numbers, and show you what you +want to know. But if you tell any one what you have seen, they will +never appear again, and it will be well for you should nothing worse +happen. + +"There was a young man at Civitella in the Romagna Toscana, and he was in +great need of money. He had lost an uncle who was believed to have left +a treasure buried somewhere, but no one knew where it was. Now this +nephew was a reserved, solitary youth, always by himself in lone places, +among ruins or in the woods--_un poco streghon_--a bit of a wizard, and +he learned this secret of looking into streams or lakes, till at last, +whenever he pleased, he could see swarms of all kinds of figures sweeping +along in the water. + +"And one evening he thus saw, as in a glass, the form of his uncle who +had died, and in surprise he called out 'Zio mio!'--'My uncle!' Then the +uncle stopped, and the youth said, 'Didst thou but know how I am +suffering from poverty!' When he at once beheld in the water his home +and the wood near it, and a path, and the form of his uncle passed along +the path to a lonely place where there was a great stone. Then the uncle +pointed to the stone and vanished. The next day the young man went +there, and under the stone he found a great bag of gold--and I hope that +the same may happen to all of us! + + "'He who has sheep has wool in store; + He who has mills hath plenty of flour; + He who hath land hath these at call; + He who has money has got them all.'" + + + + +THE BASHFUL LOVER +A LEGEND OF THE CHIESA SANTA LUCIA IN THE VIA DE' BARDI + + + "She never told her love--oh no! + For she was mild and meek, + And his for her he dared not show, + Because he hadn't the cheek. + 'Tis pity this should e'er be past, + For, to judge by what all men say, + 'Twere best such difference should last + Unto our dying day." + +All who have visited Florence have noticed the Church of Santa Lucia in +the Via de' Bardi, from the figure of the patron with two angels over the +door in Lucca della Robbia ware. Of this place of worship there is in a +jest-book a droll story, which the reader may recall when he enters the +building. + + "A young Florentine once fell desperately in love with a beautiful + lady of unsullied character and ready wit, and so followed her about + wherever she went; but he being sadly lacking in wit and sense, at + all four corners, never got the nearer to her acquaintance, though he + told all his friends how irresistible he would be, and what a + conquest he would make, if he could only once get a chance to speak + to her. Yet as this lady prized ready wit and graceful address in a + man above all things, it will be seen that his chance was thin as a + strip of paper. + + "But one _festa_ the lady went to the Church of Santa Lucia in the + Via dei Bardi, and one of the friends of the slow-witted one said to + him, 'Now is the lucky hour and blooming chance for you. Go up and + speak to her when she approaches the font to take holy water.' + + "Now the lover had prepared a fine speech for the lady, which he had + indeed already rehearsed many times to his friends with great + applause; but when it came to utter it to the lady a great and awful + fear fell on him, the words vanished--vanished from his memory, and + he was dumb as a dead ass. Then his friend poking him in the ribs, + whispered in his ear, 'But say _something_, man, no matter what!' + + "So with a gasp he brought out at last, 'Signora, I would fain be + your humble servant.' + + "To which the lady, smiling, replied, 'Well, I have already in my + house plenty of humble servants, and indeed only too many to sweep + the rooms and wash the dishes, and there is really no place for + another. . . .' + + "And the young man turned aside with sickness in his heart. His + wooing for that holiday was o'er." + +This may be matched with the story of a bashful New England lover of the +olden time, for there are none such now-a-days:-- + + "I don't know how I ever got courage to do it; but one evening I went + courting Miss Almira Chapin. + + "And when she came in, I sat for half-an-hour, and dared not say a + word. At last I made a desperate dash and got out, 'Things are + looking very green out of doors, Miss Almira.' + + "And she answered, 'Seems to me they're looking a great deal greener + _in_ doors this evening.' + + "That extinguished me, and I retreated. And when I was outside I + burst into tears." + + + + +LA FORTUNA +A LEGEND OF THE VIA DE' CERCHI + + + "One day Good Luck came to my home, + I begged of her to stay. + 'There's no one loves you more than I, + Oh, rest with me for aye,' + 'It may not be; it may not be, + I rest with no one long,' said she." + + --"_Witch Ballads_," by C. G. LELAND. + +The manner in which many of the gods in exile still live in Italy is very +fully illustrated by the following story: + +"It is a hard thing sometimes now-a-days for a family to pass for noble +if they are poor, or only poor relations. But it was easy in the old +time, Signore Carlo, easy as drinking good Chianti. A signore had only +to put his shield with something carved on it over his window, and he was +all right. He was noble _senza dubbio_. + +"Now the nobles had their own noble stories as to what these noble +pictures in stone meant, but the ignoble people often had another story +just as good. Coarse woollen cloth wears as well as silk. Now you may +see on an old palazzo in the Via de' Cerchi, and indeed in several other +places, a shield with three rings. But people call them three wheels. +And this is the story about the three wheels." + + LA FORTUNA. + +"There was a man, _tanto buono_, as good as could be, who lived in +squalid misery. He had a wife and two children, one blind and another +_storpia_ or crippled, and so ugly, both--_non si dice_--beyond telling! + +"This poor man in despair often wept, and then he would repeat: + + "'The wheel of Fortune turns, they say, + But for me it turns the other way; + I work with good-will, but do what I may, + I have only bad luck from day to day.' + +"'Yes, little to eat and less to wear, and two poor girls, one blind and +one lame. People say that Fortune is blind herself, and cannot walk, but +she does not bless those who are like her, that is sure!' And so he +wailed and wept, till it was time to go forth to seek work to gain their +daily bread. And a hard time he had of it. + +"Now it happened that very late one night, or very early one morning, as +one may say, between dark and dawn, he went to the forest to cut wood. +When having called to Fortune as was his wont--_Ai_! what was his +surprise to see--_tutta ad un tratto_--all at once, before his eyes, a +gleam of light, and raising his head, he beheld a lady of enchanting +beauty passing along rapidly, and yet not walking--on a rolling ball--_e +ciondolava le gambe_--moving her limbs--I cannot say feet, for she had +none. In place of them were two wheels, and these wheels, as they +turned, threw off flowers from which there came delicious perfume. + +"The poor man uttered a sigh of relief seeing this, and said: + +"'Beautiful lady, believe me when I say that I have invoked thee every +day. Thou art the Lady of the Wheels of Fortune, and had I known how +beautiful thou art, I would have worshipped thee for thy beauty alone. +Even thy very name is beautiful to utter, though I have never been able +to couple it with mine, for one may see that I am not one of the +fortunate. Yet, though thou art mine enemy, give me, I pray, just a +little of the luck which flies from thy wheel! + +"'Yet do not believe, I pray, that I am envious of those who are thy +favourites, nor that because thou art my enemy that I am thine, for if +thou dost not deem that I am worthy, assuredly I do not deserve thy +grace, nor will I, like many, say that Fortune is not beautiful, for +having seen thee, I can now praise thee more than ever.' + +"'I do not cast my favours always on those who deserve them,' replied +Fortune, 'yet this time my wheel shall assist thee. But tell me, thou +man of honesty and without envy, which wouldst thou prefer--to be +fortunate in all things thyself alone, or to give instead as much good +luck to _two_ men as miserable as thou art? If thou wilt gain the prize +for thyself alone, turn and pluck one of these flowers! If for others, +then take two.' + +"The poor man replied: 'It is far better, lady, to raise two families to +prosperity than one. As for me, I can work, and I thank God and thee +that I can do so much good to so many, although I do not profit by it +myself;' and saying this, he advanced and plucked two flowers. + +"Fortune smiled. 'Thou must have heard,' she said, 'that where I spend, +I am lavish and extravagant, and assuredly thou knowest the saying that +"Three is the lucky number," or nine. Now I make it a rule that when I +relieve families, I always do it by threes--_la spando a tre +famiglie_--so do thou go and pluck a flower for thyself!' + +"Then the poor man, hearing this, went to the wheels, and let them turn +till a very large fine flower came forth, and seized it, whereat Fortune +smiled, and said: + +"'I always favour the bold. Now go and sit on yonder bench till some one +comes.' And saying this, she vanished. + +"There came two very poor woodcutters whom he knew well. One had two +sons, another a son and a daughter, and one and all were as poor and +miserable as could be. + +"'What has come over thee, that thou art looking so handsome and young,' +said one amazed, as he came up. + +"'And what fine clothes!' remarked the second. + +"'It shall be so anon for ye both,' replied the favourite of Fortune; +'only take these flowers and guard them well.' + +"Si, Signore, they sat down on the bench three beggars, and they rose +three fine cavaliers, in velvet and satin, with gold-mounted swords, and +found their horses and attendants waiting. And when they got home, they +did not know their wives or children, nor were they known unto them, and +it was an hour before all was got right. Then all went with them as if +it were oiled. The first man found a great treasure the very first day +in his cellar--in fine, they all grew rich, and the three sons married +the three girls, and they all put the three wheels on their _scudi_. One +of the wheels is the ball on which Fortune rolled along, and the other +two are her feet; or else the three men each took a wheel to himself. +Anyhow, there they are, pick and choose, Signore--_chi ha piu cervello_, +_l'usi_!--let him who has brains, brain! + +"Now, it is a saying that _ogni fior non fa frutto_--every blossom doth +not bear a fruit--but the flowers of Fortune bear fruit enough to make up +for the short crop elsewhere. + +"But there is some sense and use in such stories as these, Signore, after +all; for a poor devil who half believes--and very often quite believes in +them--gets a great deal of hope and comfort out of them. They make him +trust that luck or fairies or something will give him a good turn yet +some day--_chi sa_?--and so he hopes, and truly, as they say that no +pretty girl is ever quite poor, so no man who hopes is ever really +broken--_grazie_, _Signore_! I hope to tell you another story before +long." + + * * * * * + +There is something in the making Fortune with _two_ heels for feet which +suggests a memory of skate-rollers. + +I once published an article in the _Ethnologische Monatsheft_ of +Budapest, which set forth more fully the idea expressed in this tale, +that the popular or fairy tale is a source of comfort, or a Bible to the +poor, for it always teaches the frequently delusive, but always cheering +lesson that good-luck or fortune may turn up some day, even for the most +unfortunate. The Scripture promises happiness for the poorest, or indeed +specially for the poorest in the next life; the fairy tale teaches that +Cinderella, the despised, and the youngest, humblest of the three, will +win fortune while here on earth. It inspires hope, which is a great +secret of happiness and success. + +To which the learned Flaxius annotates: + +"It hath escaped the author--as it hath indeed all mankind--that as the +first syllable of Fortuna is _fort_ (Latin _fortis_), so the true +beginning of luck is strength; and if we are to understand by _una_, +'one' or 'only,' we may even believe that the name means strength alone +or vigorous will, in accordance with which the ancients declared that +'Fortune favours the bold,' and also _Fortuna contentionis studiosa +est_--'Fortune delights in strife.' Therefore she is ever fleeting in +this world. _Fortuna simul cum moribus immutatur_, as Boethius hath it." + + + + +THE STORY OF THE UNFINISHED PALACE +A LEGEND OF THE VIA DEL PROCONSOLO + + + "'Yes, you have cheated me,' howled the devil to the architect. 'But + I lay a curse upon your work. It shall never be finished.'"--_Snow + and Planche's_ "_Legends of the Rhine_." + +All great and ancient buildings which were never finished have a legend +referring to their incompleteness. There was one relative to the +Cathedral of Cologne, which may be found in Planche's "Legends of the +Rhine," and as there is a _palazzo non finito_ in Florence, I at once +scented an old story; nor was I disappointed, it being unearthed in due +time, and written out for me as follows: + + IL PALAZZO NON FINITO. + +"On the corner of the Via del Proconsole and the Borgo degli Albizzi +there is an unfinished palace. + +"The great Signore Alessandro Strozzi had a friend who, when dying, +confided to him the care of his only son. And it was a troublesome task, +for the youth was of a strange temper. And a vast property was left to +the young man, his father imploring him not to waste it, and to live in +friendship with his guardian. + +"But his father had hardly closed his eyes in death before this youth +began to act wildly, and above all things to gamble terribly. And as the +saying is, _Il diavolo ha parte in ogni giuoco_--'The devil has a hand in +every game,' so he soon brought himself into company with the gamester. +Now, as you have heard, 'tis _la lingua o la bocca e quella che fa il +giuoco_. + + "'Every game, as it is sung, + Is won by mouth, or else by tongue.' + +"So this devil or imp by smooth talk succeeded in deceiving the young +heir, and leading him into a compact by which he was to achieve for the +Signore all the work which might be required of him for a hundred years, +no matter what it was, and then the heir must forfeit his soul. + +"For some time the young man was satisfied with always winning at +gambling. Yes, he ruined scores, hundreds, and piled up gold till he got +sick of the sight of cards. You know the saying, 'When the belly is full +the eyes are tired,' and 'A crammed dove hates to fly.' + +"So for a while he kept the devil busy, bringing him a girl here, and +building him a tower there, sending him to India for diamonds, or setting +him at work to keep off storm and hail from his vineyards, which the +devil found hard work enough, I promise you, Signore, for then he had to +fight other devils and witches. Then he put him at a harder job. There +was a ghost of a _stregone_ or wizard who haunted his _palazzo_. Now +such ghosts are the hardest to lay. + +"'_E niente_, _Signore_,' said the devil. '_E vi passarebbe un carro di +fieno_. 'Tis nothing, my lord; one could drive a cartload of hay through +it.' {92} But the devil had a devil of a time to lay _that_ ghost! +There was clanking of chains and howling, and _il diavolo scatenato_ all +night long ere it was done. + +"'_E finito_, _Signore_,' said the devil in the morning. But he looked +so worn-out and tired, that the young man began to _think_. + +"And he thought, 'This devil of mine is not quite so clever as I +supposed.' And it is a fact that it was only a _diavolino_--a small +devil who had thought the young man was a fool--in which he was mistaken. +A man may have _un ramo di pazzo come l'olmo di Fiesole_--'be a bit of a +fool,' but 'a fool and a sage together can beat a clever man,' as the +saying is, and both were in this boy's brain, for he came of wizard +blood. So he reflected, 'Perhaps I can cheat this devil after all.' And +he did it. + +"Moreover, this devil being foolish, had begun to be too officious and +consequential. He was continually annoying the Signore by asking for +more work, even when he did not want it, as if to make a show of his +immense ability and insatiable activity. Finally, beginning to believe +in his own power, he began to appear far too frequently, uncalled, rising +up from behind chairs abruptly in his own diabolical form, in order to +inspire fear; but the young lad had not been born in Carnival to be +afraid of a mask, as the saying is, and all this only made him resolve to +send his attendant packing. + + "'Chi ha pazienza, cugino, + Ha i tordi grassi a un quattrino.' + + "'He who hath patience, mind me, cousin, + May buy fat larks a farthing a dozen.' + +"Now, amid all these dealings, the young signore had contrived to fall in +love with the daughter of his guardian, Alessandro Strozzi, and also to +win her affections; but he observed one day when he went to see her, +having the _diavolino_ invisible by his side, the attendant spirit +suddenly jibbed or balked, like a horse which stops before the door, and +refused to go farther. For there was a Madonna painted on the outside, +and the devil said: + + "'I see a virgin form divine, + And virgins are not in my line; + I'm not especially devout: + Go thou within--I'll wait without!' + +"And the young man observing that his devil was devilishly afraid of holy +water, made a note of it for future use. And having asked the Signore +Alessandro Strozzi for the hand of his daughter, the great lord +consented, but made it a condition that the youth should build for his +bride a palace on the corner of the Via del Proconsolo and the Borgo +degli Albizzi, and it must be ready within a year. This he said because +in his heart he did not like the match, yet for his daughter's love he +put this form upon it, and he hoped that ere the time would be out +something might happen to prevent the marriage. _In fin che v'e fiato +v'e speranza_--while there is breath, Signore, there is hope. + +"Now the young man having resolved to finish with his devil for good and +all, began to give him great hope in divers ways. And one day he said to +the imp: + +"'Truly thou hast great power, but I have a mind to make a great final +game with thee. _Ogni bel giuoco vuol durar poco_--no good game should +last long, and let us play this compact of ours out. If thou canst build +for me a palace at the corner of the Via del Proconsolo and the Borgo +degli Albizzi, and finish it in every detail exactly as I shall order it, +then will I be thine, and thou need'st do no more work for me. And if +thou canst not complete it to my taste, then our compact will be all +smoke, and we two past acquaintances.' + +"Now it is said that to cook an egg to a turn, make a dog's bed to suit +him exactly, or teach a Florentine a trick, _sono tre cose +difficile_--are three very difficult things to do, and this contract for +building the palace on time with indefinite ornaments made the devil +shake in his shoes. However, he knew that 'Pippo found out how to stand +an egg on its end,' {94} and where there's a will there's a way, +especially when you have 'all hell to back you up'--_tutto l'inferno a +spalleggiarvi_. + +"So he built and built away, with one gang of devils disguised as workmen +by day, and another, invisible, by night, and everybody was amazed to see +how the palace rose like weeds after a rain; for, as the saying is, _mala +herba presto cresce_--'ill weeds grow apace,' and this had the devil to +water it. + +"Till at last one day, when the six months were nearly up, the imp said +to the master: + +"'_Ebbene_, Signore, it is getting to the time for you to tell me how you +would like to have the palace decorated. Thus far everything has been +done exactly as you directed.' + +"'Ah yes, I see--all done but the finishing. Well, it may be a little +hard, but I promise you, on the word of a gentleman (_tra galant' uomini +una parola e un instrumento_), that I will not ask you to do anything +which cannot be executed even by the artists of this city.' + +"Now the devil was delighted to hear this (for he was afraid he might be +called on to work miracles unheard of), and so replied: + +"'_Top_! what man has done the devil can do. I'll risk the trick if you +swear that men can work it.' + +"'I swear!' + +"'And what is the finish?' + +"'Oh, very easy. My wife who is to be is of a very pious turn, and I +want to please her. Firstly, all the work must be equal in execution to +the best by the greatest masters--painting, sculpture, and gilding.' + +"'Agreed.' + +"'Secondly, the subjects. Over the front door--_bisogna mettermi Gesu +Cristo onnipotente unitamente a Maria e il suo divin figlio_, _Padre_, +_Figlio e Spirito Santo_--that is, the Holy Family and Trinity, the +Virgin and Child.' + +"'Wha--wha--what's that?' stammered the devil, aghast. 'It isn't fair +play--not according to the game.' + +"'On every door,' continued the young man, raising his voice, and looking +severely at the devil, 'the same subject is to be repeated on a thick +gold ground, all the ultramarine to be of the very best quality, washed +in holy water.' + +"'Ugh! ugh! ugh!' wailed the devil. + +"'The roof is to be covered with the images of saints as pinnacles, and, +by the way, wherever you have a blank space, outside on the walls or +inside, including ceilings--just cover it with the same subjects--the +Temptation of Saint Antony or Saint--' + +"'Oh, go to the devil with your saints and gold grounds!' roared the imp. +'Truly I have lost this game; fishing with a golden hook is a fool's +business. There is the compact!' + +"It was night--deep, dark night--there came a blinding flash of light--an +awful crash of indescribable unearthly sound, like a thunder-voice. The +imp, taking the form of a _civetta_ or small owl, vanished through the +window in the storm-wind and rain, wailing, '_Mai finito_!' + +"And it is said that to this day the small owl still perches by night on +the roof of the palace, wailing wearily--'Unfinished! unfinished!'" + + * * * * * + +In no country in the world has unscrupulous vigorous intellect been so +admired as in Italy, the land of the Borgias and Machiavellis. In the +rest of Europe man finds a master in the devil; in Italy he aims at +becoming the devil's master. This is developed boldly in the legend of +"Intialo," to which I have devoted another chapter, and it appears as +markedly in this. The idea of having an attendant demon, whom the +master, in the consciousness of superior intellect, despises, knowing +that he will crush him when he will, is not to be found, I believe, in a +single German, French, or any other legend not Italian. + +If this be so, it is a conception well deserving study, as illustrating +the subtle and powerful Italian intellect as it was first analysed by +Macaulay, and is now popularly understood by such writers as Scaife. {96} +It is indeed a most unholy and unchristian conception, since it is quite +at war with the orthodox theology of the Church, as of Calvin and Luther, +which makes the devil the grand master of mankind, and irresistible +except where man is saved by a _special_ miracle or grace. + +And it may also be noted from such traditions that folk-lore, when it +shall have risen to a sense of its true dignity and power, will not limit +itself to collecting variants of fairy tales to prove the routes of races +over the earth, but rise to illustrating the characteristic, and even the +aesthetic, developments of different stocks. That we are now laying the +basis for this is evident. + +Though the devil dared not depict lives and legends of the saints upon +the palace, he did not neglect to put his own ugly likeness there, +repeated above the four front windows in a perfectly appalling Gothic +style, which contrasts oddly with the later and severe character of the +stately building. These faces are fiendish enough to have suggested the +story. + +It may here be mentioned that it was in the middle of the Borgo degli +Albizzi, near this palace, that that indefatigable corpse-reviver and +worker of miracles, San Zenobio, raised from the dead the child of a +noble and rich French lady. "Then in that place there was put a pillar +of white marble in the middle of the street, as a token of a great +miracle." + + "_Haec fabula docet_--this fable teaches," adds Flaxius the immortal, + "that there was never yet anything left incomplete by neglect or + incapacity or poverty, be it in buildings or in that higher + structure, man himself, but what it was attributed to the devil. If + it had not been for the devil, what fine fellows, what charming + creatures, we would all have been to be sure! The devil alone + inspires us to sin; _we_ would never have dreamed of it. Whence I + conclude that the devil is dearer to man, and a greater benefactor, + than all the saints and several deities thrown in, because he serves + as a scudaway scapegoat, and excellent excuse for the sins of all the + orthodox of all time. How horrible it would be were we all made unto + ourselves distinctly responsible for our sins--our unfinished + palaces, our good resolutions broken; and how very pleasant it is + that it is all the devil's fault, and not our own! Oh my friends, + did I believe as ye do--which I don't--I would long ago have raised + altars and churches to the devil, wherein I would praise him daily as + the one who in spirit and in truth takes upon himself the sins of all + the world, bearing the burden of our iniquities. For saying which + thing, but in other words, the best Christian of his age, Bishop + Agobard, was hunted down well-nigh to death. Thus endeth a great + lesson!" + + + + +THE DEVIL OF THE MERCATO VECCHIO + + + "Have I not the magic wand, by means of which, having first invoked + the spirit Odeken, one can enter the elfin castle? Is not this a + fine trot on the devil's crupper? Here it is--one of the palaces + erected by rivals of the Romans. Let us enter, for I hold a hand of + glory to which all doors open. Let us enter, _hic et nunc_, the + palace fair. . . . Here it was once on a Sabato of the Carnival that + there entered four graceful youths of noble air."--_Arlecchino alle + Nozze di Cana_. + +I very naturally made inquiry as to whether there was not a legend of the +celebrated bronze devil made by Giovanni di Bologna, which remained until +lately in the Mercato Vecchio, and I obtained the following, which is, +from intrinsic evidence, extremely curious and ancient. + + IL DIAVOLO ALLA CAVOLAIA. + +"On the corner of the Palace Cavolaia there were anciently four devils of +iron. {98} These were once four gentlemen who, being wonderfully +intimate, had made a strange compact, swearing fidelity and love among +themselves to death, agreeing also that if they married, their wives and +children and property should be all in common. + +"When such vows and oaths are uttered, the saints may pass them by, but +the devils hear them; they hear them in hell, and they laugh and cry, +'These are men who will some day be like us, and here for ever!' Such +sin as that is like a root which, once planted, may be let alone--the +longer it is in the ground, the more it grows. _Terra non avvilisce +oro_--earth does not spoil gold, but even virtue, like friendship, may +grow into a great vice when it grows too much. + +"As it happened in this case. Well, the four friends were invited to a +great _festa_ in that fatal palace of the Cavolaia, and they all went. +And they danced and diverted themselves with great and beautiful ladies +in splendour and luxury. As the four were all singularly handsome and +greatly admired, the ladies came _con grandi tueletti_--in their best +array, _sfarzose per essere corteggiate_--making themselves magnificent +to be courted by these gentlemen, and so they looked at one another with +jealous eyes, and indeed many a girl there would have gladly been wife to +them all, or wished that the four were one, while the married dames +wished that they could _fare i sposamenti_--be loved by one or all. +People were wicked in those days! + +"But what was their surprise--and a fearful surprise it was--when, after +all their gaiety, they heard at three o'clock in the morning the sound of +a bell which they had never heard before, and then divine music and +singing, and there entered a lady of such superhuman beauty as held them +enchanted and speechless. Now it was known that, by the strict rules of +that palace, the _festa_ must soon close, and there was only time for one +more dance, and it was sworn among these friends that every lady who +danced with one of them, must dance with all in succession. Truly they +now repented of their oath, for she was so beautiful. + +"But the lady advancing, pointed out one of the four, and said, 'I will +dance with him alone.' + +"The young signore would have refused, but he felt himself obliged, +despite himself, to obey her, and when they had danced, she suddenly +disappeared, leaving all amazed. + +"And when they had recovered from the spell which had been upon them, +they said that as she had come in with the dawn and vanished with the +day, it must have been the Beautiful Alba, the enchanting queen of the +fairies. + +"The _festa_ lasted for three days, and every night at the same hour the +beautiful Alba reappeared, enchanting all so wonderfully, that even the +ladies forgot their jealousy, and were as much fascinated by her as were +the men. + +"Now of the four friends, three sternly reproached the other for breaking +his oath, they being themselves madly in love; but he replied, and truly, +that he had been compelled by some power which he could not resist to +obey her. But that, as a man of honour, so far as he could, he would +comply with the common oath which bound them. + +"Then they declared that he should ask her if she loved him, and if she +assented, that he should inform her of their oath, and that she must +share her love with all or none--_altrimenti non avrebbe mai potuta +sposarla_. + +"Which he did in good faith, and she answered, 'Hadst thou loved me +sincerely and fully, thou wouldst have broken that vile oath; and yet it +is creditable to thee that, as a man of honour, thou wilt not break thy +word. Therefore thou shalt be mine, but not till after a long and bitter +punishment. Now I ask thy friends and thee, if to be mine they are +willing to take the form of demons and bear it openly before all men.' + +"And when he proposed it to his friends, he found them so madly in love +with the lady that they, thinking she meant some disguise, declared that +to be hers they would willingly wear any form, however terrible. + +"And the fair Alba, having heard them, said, 'Yes, ye shall indeed be +mine; more than that I do not promise. Now meet me to-morrow at the +Canto dei Diavoli--at the Devil's Corner!' + +"And they gazed at her astonished, never having heard of such a place. +But she replied, 'Go into the street and your feet shall guide you, and +truly it will be a great surprise.' + +"And they laughed among themselves, saying, 'The surprise will be that +she will consent to become a wife to us all.' + +"But when they came to the corner, in the night, what was their amazement +to see on it four figures of devils indeed, and Alba, who said, 'Now ye +are indeed mine, but as for my being yours, that is another matter.' + +"Then touching each one, she also touched a devil, and said, 'This is thy +form; enter into it. Three of ye shall ever remain as such. As for this +fourth youth, he shall be with ye for a year, and then, set free, shall +live with me in human form. And from midnight till three in the morning +ye also may be as ye were, and go to the Palazzo Cavolaia, and dance and +be merry with the rest, but through the day become devils again.' + +"And so it came to pass. After a year the image of the chosen lover +disappeared; and then one of the three was stolen, and then another, till +only one remained." + + * * * * * + +There is some confusion in the conclusion of this story, which I have +sought to correct. The exact words are, "For many years all four +remained, till _one_ was stolen away, and that was the image of the young +man who pleased the beautiful Alba, who thus relieved him of the spell." +But as there has been always only one devil on the corner, I cannot +otherwise reconcile the story with the fact. + +I have said that this tale is ancient from intrinsic evidence. Such +extravagant alliances of friendship as is here described were actually +common in the Middle Ages; they existed in England even till the time of +Queen Elizabeth. In "Shakespeare and his Friends," or in the "Youth of +Shakespeare"--I forget which--two young men are represented as fighting a +duel because each declared that he loved the other most. There was no +insane folly of sentiment which was not developed in those days. But +this is so foreign to modern ideas, that I think it could only have +existed in tradition to these our times. + +There were also during the Middle Ages strange heretical sects, among +whom such communism existed, like the polyandria of the ancient Hindoos. +There may be a trace of it in this story. + +Alba, Albina, or Bellaria, appear in several Tuscan traditions. They are +forms of the Etruscan Alpan, the fairy of the Dawn, a sub-form of Venus, +the spirit of Light and Flowers, described in my work on "Etruscan Roman +Traditions." It may be remarked as an ingenious touch in the tale, that +she always appears at the first dawn, or at three o'clock, and vanishes +with broad day. This distinguishes her from the witches and evil +spirits, who always come at midnight and vanish at three o'clock. + +The readiness with which the young men consented to assume the forms of +demons is easily explained. They understood that it meant only a +disguise, and it was very common in the Middle Ages for lovers to wear +something strange in honour of their mistresses. The dress of a devil +would only seem a joke to the habitues of the Cavolaia. It may be also +borne in mind that in other tales of Florence it is distinctly stated +that spirits confined in statues, columns, _et cetera_, only inhabit them +"as bees live in hives." They appear to sleep in them by day, and come +out at night. So in India the saint or demon only comes into the relic +or image from time to time, or when invoked. + +After I had written the foregoing, I was so fortunate as to receive from +Maddalena yet another legend of the bronze imp of Giovanni di Bologna, +which tale she had unearthed in the purlieus of the Mercato Vecchio. I +have often met her when thus employed, always in the old part of the +town, amid towering old buildings bearing shields of the Middle Ages, or +in dusky _vicoli_ and _chiassi_, and when asked what she was doing, 'twas +ever the same reply, "_Ma_, _Signore Carlo_, there's an old woman--or +somebody--lives here who knows a story." And then I knew that there was +going to be a long colloquy in dialect which would appal any one who only +knew choice Italian, the end of which would be the recovery, perhaps from +half-a-dozen _vecchie_, of a legend like the following, of which I would +premise that it was not translated by me, but by Miss Roma Lister, who +knew Maddalena, having taken lessons from her in the sublime art of +_battezare le carte_, or telling fortunes by cards, and other branches of +the black art. And having received the manuscript, which was unusually +illegible and troublesome, I asked Miss Lister to kindly transcribe it, +but with great kindness she translated the whole, only begging me to +mention that it is given with the most scrupulous accuracy, word for +word, from the original, so far as the difference of language permitted. + + IL DIAVOLINO DEL CANTO DE' DIAVOLI. + _The Imp of the Devil's Corner and the Pious Fairy_. + +"There was once a pious fairy who employed all her time in going about +the streets of Florence in the shape of a woman, preaching moral sermons +for the good of her hearers, and singing so sweetly that all who heard +her voice fell in love with her. Even the women forgot to be jealous, so +charming was her voice, and dames and damsels followed her about, trying +to learn her manner of singing. + +"Now the fairy had converted so many folk from their evil ways, that a +certain devil or imp--who also had much business in Florence about that +time--became jealous of the intruder, and swore to avenge himself; but it +appears that there was as much love as hate in the fiend's mind, for the +fairy's beautiful voice had worked its charm even when the hearer was a +devil. Now, besides being an imp of superior intelligence, he was also +an accomplished ventriloquist (or one who could imitate strange voices as +if sounding afar or in any place); so one day while the pious fairy in +the form of a beautiful maiden held forth to an admiring audience, two +voices were heard in the street, one here, another there, and the first +sang: + + "'Senti o bella una parola, + Te la dico a te sola, + Qui nessun ci puo'l sentire + Una cosa ti vuo dire; + Se la senti la stemperona, + L'a un voce da buffona + Tiene in mano la corona. {103} + Per fare credere a questo o quella, + Che l'e sempre una verginella.' + + "'Hear, O lovely maid, a word, + Only to thyself I'd bear it, + For it must not be o'erheard, + Least of all should the preacher hear it. + 'Tis that, while seeming pious, she, + Holding in hand a rosary, + Her talk is all hypocrisy, + To make believe to simple ears, + That still the maiden wreath she wears.' + +"Then another voice answered: + + "'La risposta ti vuo dare, + Senza farti aspettare; + Ora di un bell' affare, + Te la voglio raccontare, + Quella donna che sta a cantare, + E una Strega di queste contrade, + Che va da questo e quello, + A cantarle indovinello, + A chi racconta: Voi siete + Buona donna affezionata. + Al vostro marito, ma non sapete, + Cie' di voi un 'altra appasionata.' + + "'Friends, you'll not have long to wait + For what I'm going to relate; + And it is a pretty story + Which I am going to lay before ye. + That dame who singing there you see + Is a witch of this our Tuscany, + Who up and down the city flies, + Deceiving people with her lies, + Saying to one: The truth to tell, + I know you love your husband well; + But you will find, on close inspection, + Another has his fond affection.' + +"In short, the imp, by changing his voice artfully, and singing his +ribald songs everywhere, managed in the end to persuade people that the +fairy was no better than she should be, and a common mischief-maker and +disturber of domestic peace. So the husbands, becoming jealous, began to +quarrel with their wives, and then to swear at the witch who led them +astray or put false suspicion into their minds. + +"But it happened that the fairy was in high favour with a great saint, +and going to him, she told all her troubles and the wicked things which +were said of her, and besought him to free her good name from the +slanders which the imp of darkness had spread abroad (_l'aveva +chalugnato_). + +"Then the saint, very angry, changed the devil into a bronze figure +(_mascherone_, an architectural ornament), but first compelled him to go +about to all who had been influenced by his slanders, and undo the +mischief which he had made, and finally to make a full confession in +public of everything, including his designs on the beautiful fairy, and +how he hoped by compromising her to lead her to share his fate. + +"Truly the imp cut but a sorry figure when compelled to thus stand up in +the Old Market place at the corner of the Palazzo Cavolaia before a vast +multitude and avow all his dirty little tricks; but he contrived withal +to so artfully represent his passionate love for the fairy, and to turn +all his sins to that account, that many had compassion on him, so that +indeed among the people, in time, no one ever spoke ill of the _doppio +povero diavolo_, or doubly poor devil, for they said he was to be pitied +since he had no love on earth and was shut out of heaven. + +"Nor did he quite lose his power, for it was said that after he had been +confined in the bronze image, if any one spoke ill of him or said, 'This +is a devil, and as a devil he can never enter Paradise,' then the imp +would persecute that man with strange voices and sounds until such time +as the offender should betake himself to the Palazzo della Cavolaia, and +there, standing before the bronze image, should ask his pardon. + +"And if it pleased the Diavolino, he forgave them, and they had peace; +but if it did not, they were pursued by the double mocking voice which +made dialogue or sang duets over all their sins and follies and +disgraces. And whether they stayed at home or went abroad, the voices +were ever about them, crying aloud or tittering and whispering or +hissing, so that they had no rest by day or night; and this is what +befell all who spoke ill of the Diavolino del Canto dei Diavoli." + + * * * * * + +The saint mentioned in this story was certainly Pietro Martire or Peter +the Martyrer, better deserving the name of murderer, who, preaching at +the very corner where the bronze imp was afterwards placed, declared that +he beheld the devil, and promptly exorcised him. There can be little +doubt that the image was placed there to commemorate this probably "pious +fraud." + +It is only since I wrote all this that I learned that there were formerly +_two_ of these devils, one having been stolen not many years ago. This +verifies to some extent the consistency of the author of the legend, "The +Devil of the Mercato Vecchio," who says there were four. + +There is a very amusing and curious trait of character manifested in the +conclusion of this story which might escape the reader's attention were +it not indicated. It is the vindication of the "puir deil," and the very +evident desire to prove that he was led astray by love, and that even the +higher spirit could not take away all his power. Here I recognise beyond +all question the witch, the fortune-teller and sorceress, who prefers +Cain to Abel, and sings invocations to the former, and to Diana as the +dark queen of the _Strege_, and always takes sides with the heretic and +sinner and magian and goblin. It is the last working of the true spirit +of ancient heathenism, for the fortune-tellers, and especially those of +the mountains, all come of families who have been regarded as enemies by +the Church during all the Middle Ages, and who are probably real and +direct descendants of Canidia and her contemporaries, for where this +thing is in a family it never dies out. I have a great many traditions +in which the hand of the heathen witch and the worship of "him who has +been wronged" and banished to darkness, is as evident as it is here. + + * * * * * + +"Which indeed seems to show," comments the learned Flaxius, "that if the +devil is never quite so black as he is painted, yet, on the other hand, +he is so far from being of a pure white--as the jolly George Sand boys, +such as Heine and Co., thought--that it is hard to make him out of any +lighter hue than mud and verdigris mixed. _In medio tutissimus ibis_. +'Tis also to be especially noted, that in this legend--as in Shelley's +poem--the Devil appears as a meddling wretch who is interested in small +things, and above all, as given to gossip: + + "The Devil sat down in London town + Before earth's morning ray, + With a favourite imp he began to chat, + On religion, and scandal, and this and that, + Until the dawn of day." + + + + +SEEING THAT ALL WAS RIGHT +A LEGEND OF THE PORTA A SAN NICOLO + + + "God keep us from the devil's lackies, + Who are the aggravating jackies, + Who to the letter execute + An order and exactly do't, + Or else, with fancy free and bold, + Do twice as much as they are told, + And when reproved, cry bravely, 'Oh! + I _thought_ you'd like it so and so.' + From all such, wheresoe'er they be, + _Libera nos_, _Domine_!' + +The Porta a San Nicolo in Florence is, among other legends, associated +with a jest played by the famous Barlacchia on a friend, the story of +which runs as follows: + +"It is an old saying that _la porta di dietro e quella che ruba la casa_ +(it is the back gate which robs a house), and it was going back to the +gate of San Nicolo which robbed a man of all his patience. This man had +gone with Barlacchia the jester from Florence to Val d'Arno, and on +returning they had stopped in the plain of Ripolo, where the friend was +obliged to delay for a time, while Barlacchia went on. Now it was so +late that although Barlacchia was certain to reach the Porto a San Nicolo +in time to enter, it was doubtful whether the one who came later could do +so unless a word should be spoken in advance to the guard, who for +friendship or a fee would sit up and let the late-comer in. Therefore +the friend said to the jester, '_Di gratia facesse sostenere la +porta_'--'See that the gate is all right,' or that all is right at the +bridge--meaning, of course, that he should make it right with the +guardian to let him in. + +"And when Barlacchia came to the gate, he indeed asked the officer in +charge _se questi si sostengo_--whether it was all right, and if it stood +firmly, and was in no danger of falling, affirming that he was making +special inquiry at request of a friend who was commissioner of the city +gates and bridges, and obtained a paper certifying that the gate was in +excellent condition, after which he went home. + +"Trotting along on his mule came the friend, who, believing that +Barlacchia had made it all right with the guard, had not hurried. But he +found it was all wrong, and that 'a great mistake had been made +somewhere,' as the eel said when he was thrown into boiling hot oil +instead of cold water. For he found the gate locked and nobody to let +him in, so that in a great rage he was obliged to go back to an inn which +was distinguished for nothing but its badness, _dove stette con gran +disagio quella notte_ (where he passed the night in great discomfort). + +"And when morning came, he passed the gate, but stopped and asked whether +Barlacchia had been there the night before. To which the guard answered, +'Yes,' and that he had been very particular in his inquiries as to +whether the doors were firm on their hinges, and if the foundations were +secure; on hearing which, the man saw that he had been sold, {108} and +going to the Piazza Signoria, and meeting Barlacchia, _gli disse rilevata +villania_, let him have abuse in bold relief and large proportion, saying +that it was infamous to snipe his equal in all things and better in most, +in such a low-flung manner, unbecoming a half-grown chimney-sweep, and +that if he did not respect himself too much to use improper or strong +language, he would say that Barlacchia was a dastardly blackguard and a +son of a priest. To which Barlacchia remonstrated that he had performed +to perfection exactly what he had promised to do, yea, _a punto_, to the +very letter. + +"Now by this time half Florence had assembled, and being delighted beyond +all measure at this racy dispute, insisted on forming a street-court and +settling the question _alla fresca_. And when the evidence was taken, +and all the facts, which long in darkness lay, were brought full clearly +to the light of day, there was such a roaring of laughter and clapping of +lands that you would have sworn the Guelfs and Ghibellines had got at it +again full swing. But the verdict was that Barlacchia was acquitted +without a stain on his character. + +"_Haec fabula docet_," comments Flaxius, "that there be others besides +Tyll Eulenspiegel who make mischief by fulfilling laws too literally. +And there are no people in this world who contrive to break the Spirit of +Christianity so much as those who follow it simply to the Letter." + + + + +THE ENCHANTED COW OF LA VIA VACCHERECCIA + + + "On Dunmore Heath I also slewe + A monstrous wild and cruell beaste + Called the Dun Cow of Dunmore plaine, + Who many people had opprest." + + --_Guy_, _Earl of Warwick_. + +The Via Vacchereccia is a very short street leading from the Signoria to +the Via Por San Maria. _Vaccherricia_, also _Vacchereccia_, means a cow, +and is also applied scornfully to a bad woman. The following legend was +given to me as accounting for the name of the place. A well-known Vienna +beerhouse-restaurant, Gilli and Letta's, has contributed much of late +years to make this street known, and it was on its site that, at some +time in "the fabled past," the building stood in which dwelt the witch +who figures in the story. + + LA VIA VACCHERECCIA. + +"There lived long ago in the Via Vacchereccia a poor girl, who was, +however, so beautiful and graceful, and sweet in her manner, that it +seemed to be a marvel that she belonged to the people, and still more +that she was the daughter of the woman who was believed to be her mother, +for the latter was as ugly as she was wicked, brutal, and cruel before +all the world, and a witch in secret, a creature without heart or +humanity. + +"Nor was the beautiful Artemisia--such being the name of the girl--in +reality her daughter, for the old woman had stolen her from her parents, +who were noble and wealthy, when she was a babe, and had brought her up, +hoping that when grown she could make money out of her in some evil way, +and live upon her. But, as sometimes happens, it seemed as if some +benevolent power watched over the poor child, for all the evil words and +worse example of the witch had no effect on her whatever. + +"Now it happened that Artemisia in time attracted the attention and love +of a young gentleman, who, while of moderate estate, was by no means +rich; and he had learned to know her through his mother, an admirable +lady, who had often employed Artemisia, and been impressed by her beauty +and goodness. So it happened that the mother favoured the son's suit, +and as Artemisia loved the young man, it seemed as if her sufferings +would soon be at an end, for be it observed that the witch treated the +maid at all times with extraordinary cruelty. + +"But it did not suit the views of the old woman at all that the girl on +whom she reckoned to bring in much money from great protectors, and whom +she was wont to call the cow from whom she would yet draw support, should +settle down into the wife of a small noble of moderate means. So she not +only scornfully rejected the suit, but scolded and beat Artemisia with +even greater wickedness than ever. + +"But there are times when the gentlest natures (especially when supported +by good principles and truly good blood) will not give way to any +oppression, however cruel, and Artemisia, feeling keenly that the +marriage was most advantageous for her, and a great honour, and that her +whole heart had been wisely given, for once turned on the old woman and +defied her, threatening to appeal to the law, and showing that she knew +so much that was wicked in her life that the witch became as much +frightened as she was enraged, well knowing that an investigation by +justice would bring her to the bonfire. So, inspired by the devil, she +turned the girl into a cow, and shut her up in a stable in the courtyard +of the house, where she went every day two or three times to beat and +torture her victim in the most fiendish manner. + +"Meanwhile the disappearance of Artemisia had excited much talk and +suspicion, as it followed immediately after the refusal of the old woman +to give her daughter to the young gentleman. And he indeed was in sad +case and great suffering, but after a while, recovering himself, he began +to wonder whether the maid was not after all confined in the Via +Vacchereccia. And as love doubles all our senses and makes the deaf +hear, and, according to the proverb, 'he who finds it in his heart will +feel spurs in his flanks,' so this young man, hearing the old woman +spoken of as a witch, began to wonder whether she might not be one in +truth, and whether Artemisia might not have been _confinata_ or enchanted +into some form of an animal, and so imprisoned. + +"And, full of this thought, he went by night to the house, where there +was an opening like a window or portal in the courtyard, and began to +sing: + + "'Batte le dodici a una campana, + Si sente appena dalla lontana. + + "'Se almeno la voce potessi sentire, + Della mia bella che tanto deve soffrire.' + + "'Midnight is striking, I hear it afar, + High in the heaven shines many a star. + + "'And oh that the voice of the one I could hear, + Who suffers so sadly--the love I hold dear. + + "'Oh stars, if you're looking with pity on me, + I pray you the maid from affliction to free!' + +"As he sang this, he heard a cow lowing in the courtyard, and as his mind +was full of the idea of enchantment, his attention was attracted to it. +Then he sang: + + "'If enchanted here you be, + Low, but gently, _one_, _two_, _three_! + Low in answer unto me, + And a rescue soon you'll see.' + +"Then the cow lowed three times, very softly, and the young man, +delighted, put to her other questions, and being very shrewd, he so +managed it as to extract with only yea and nay all the story. Having +learned all this, he reflected that to beat a terrier 'tis well to take a +bulldog, and after much inquiry, he found that there dwelt in Arezzo a +great sorcerer, but a man of noble character, and was, moreover, +astonished to learn from his mother that this _gran mago_ had been a +friend of his father. + +"And being well received by the wise man, and having told his story, the +sage replied: + +"'Evil indeed is the woman of whom you speak--a black witch of low +degree, who has been allowed, as all of her kind are, to complete her +measure of sin, in order that she may receive her full measure of +punishment. For all things may be forgiven, but not cruelty, and she has +lived on the sufferings of others. Yet her power is of a petty kind, and +such as any priest can crush. + +"'Go to the stable when she shall be absent, and I will provide that she +shall be away all to-morrow. Then bind verbena on the cow's horns, and +hang a crucifix over the door, and sprinkle all the floor with holy water +and incense, and sing to the cow: + + "'The witch is not thy mother in truth, + She stole thee in thy early youth, + She has deserved thy bitterest hate, + Then fear not to retaliate; + And when she comes to thee again, + Then rush at her with might and main; + She has heaped on thee many a scorn, + Repay it with thy pointed horn.' + +"'And note that there is a _halter_ on the cow's neck, and this is the +charm which gives her the form of a cow, but it cannot be removed except +in a church by the priest.' + +"And to this he added other advice, which was duly followed. + +"Then the next day the young man went to the stable, and did all that the +wise man had bid, and hiding near, awaited the return of the witch. Nor +had he indeed long to wait, for the witch, who was evidently in a great +rage at something, and bore a cruel-looking stick with an iron goad on +the end, rushed to the courtyard and into the stable, but fell flat on +the floor, being overcome by the holy water. And the cow, whose halter +had been untied from the post, turned on her with fury, and tossed and +gored her, and trampled on her till she was senseless, and then ran full +speed, guided by the young man, to the Baptistery, into which she +entered, and where there was a priest awaiting her. And the priest +sprinkled her with holy water, and took the halter from her neck, and she +was disenchanted, and became once more the beautiful Artemisia. + +"And this done, the young man took the halter, and hurrying back to the +stable, put it about the neck of the witch, who at once became a cow +without horns, or such as are called 'the devil's own.' And as she, +maddened with rage, rushed forth, attacking everybody, all the town was +soon after her with staves, pikes, and all their dogs, and so they hunted +her down through the Uffizzi and along Lung' Arno, all roaring and +screaming and barking, out into the country, for she gave them a long run +and a good chase, till they came to a gate of a _podere_, over which was +a Saint Antony, who, indignant that she dared pass under him, descended +from his niche, and gave her a tremendous blow with his staff between the +horns, or where they would have been if she had possessed them. +Whereupon the earth opened and swallowed her up, amid a fearful flashing +of fire, and a smell which was even worse than that of the streets of +Siena in summer-time--which is often so fearful that the poorer natives +commonly carry fennel (as people do perfumed vinaigrettes in other +places) to sniff at, as a relief from the horrible odour. + +"And when all this was done, the _mago_ revealed to the maiden that her +parents, who were still living, were very great and wealthy people, so +that there was soon a grand reunion, a general recognition, and a happy +marriage. + + "'Maidens, beware lest witches catch you; + Think of the Via Vacchereccia; + And tourists dining in the same, + Note how the street once got its name.'" + + + + +THE WITCH OF THE PORTA ALLA CROCE + + + "If any secret should sacred be, + Though it guarded the life of a family, + And any woman be there about, + She will die but what she will find it out; + And though it hurried her soul to--well-- + That secret she _must_ immediately tell." + + --_Sage Stuffing for Young Ducks_. + +There are in Italy, as elsewhere, families to whom a fatality or +tradition is attached. The following is a curious legend of the kind: + + LA FATTUCHIERA DELLA PORTA ALLA CROCE. + +"There was a very old Florentine family which lived in a castle in the +country. The elder or head of this family had always one room in which +no one was ever allowed to enter. There he passed hours alone every day, +and woe to any one who dared disturb him while there. And this had been +the case for generations, and no one had ever found out what the secret +was. This was, of course, a great vexation to the ladies of the +family--_perche la donna e sempre churiosa_--women being always +inquisitive. + +"And most inquisitive of all was a niece of the old man, who had got it +into her head that the secret was simply a great treasure which she might +obtain. Therefore she resolved to consult with a certain witch, who +would tell her what it was, and how she could enter the mysterious room. +This sorceress lived hard by the Porta alla Croce, for there are always +many witches in that quarter. + +"The witch, who was a very large tall woman, made the niece go with her +to an isolated small house, and thence along a path, the lady in advance. +While so doing, the latter turned her head to look behind her, and at +that instant heard the cry of a _civetta_ or small owl. The witch +exclaimed, 'My dear lady, what you wish for will hardly be granted; I +fear there is a great disaster awaiting you.' + +"Then they went into a field, and the fortune-teller produced a goblet of +coloured glass, and called to the swallow, which is a bird of good omen, +and to the small owl, which forebodes evil, and said, 'Whichever shall +alight first on the edge of this cup will be a sign to you of success or +failure.' + +"But the first which came and sat upon the cup was the owl. + +"Then the witch said, 'What there is in that room I cannot reveal, for it +disturbs my soul far too much. But I know that the number of that room +is thirteen, and you can infer for yourself what that portends; and more +I cannot tell you, save that you should be extremely careful and keep a +cheerful heart--otherwise there is great trouble awaiting you.' + +"But the lady returned home in a great rage at her disappointment, and +all the more resolved to enter the room. Then all the family finding +this out, reproached her, and urged her not to be so distracted; and she, +being obstinate, only became the more determined; for she was furious +that she could not force an old man to reveal a secret which had been +handed down for many generations, and which could only be confided to +one, or to the eldest, when the old man should die. + +"And at last her evil will or mania attained such command over her, that +she resolved to kill all the family one by one, till the succession of +the secret should come to her. And so, after boiling deadly herbs with +care, she made a strong subtle poison. And by this means she put to +death her parents, brothers and sisters, aunts and all the family, +without remorse, so resolved was she to master the secret. + +"The last to perish was her grandfather, and calling her to his bedside +he said, 'We have all died by thy hand; we who never did thee any harm; +and thou hast felt no remorse. This thou didst to gain a treasure, and +bitterly wilt thou be disappointed. Thy punishment will begin when thou +shalt learn what the thing was so long hidden: truly there was sorrow +enough therein, without the misery which thou hast added to it. That +which thou wilt find in the chamber is a skull--the skull of our earliest +ancestor, which must always be given to the care of the eldest +descendant, and I now give it to thee. And this thou must do. Go every +morning at seven o clock into the room and close the windows. Then light +four candles before the skull. In front of it there lies a great book in +which is written the history of all our family, my life and thine; and +see that thou do this with care, or woe be unto thee!' + +"Therewith the old man died, and scarcely had he departed ere she called +an old woman who was allied and devoted to the family, and in a rage told +her all the secret. The old woman reproved her, saying that she would +bring punishment on herself. But, without heeding this, the lady ran to +the chamber, entered, and seeing the skull, gave it a kick and hurled it +from the window, far below. + +"But a minute after she heard a rattling sound, and looking at the +window, there the skull was grinning at her. Again she threw it down, +and again it returned, and was with her wherever she went; day after day, +waking or sleeping, the skull was always before her eyes. + +"At last fear came over her, and then horror, and she said to the old +woman, 'Let us go to some place far, far away, and bury the skull. +Perhaps it will rest in its grave.' The old woman tried to dissuade her, +and they went to a lonely spot at a great distance, and there they dug +long and deep. + +"Dug till a great hole was made, and the lady standing on the edge +dropped the skull into it. Then the hole spread into a great pit, flame +rose from it--the edge crumbled away--the guilty woman fell into the +fire, and the earth closed over it all, and there was no trace left of +her. + +"The skull returned to the castle and to its room; people say it is there +to this day. The old woman returned too, and being the last remote +relation, entered into possession of the property." + + * * * * * + +There is perhaps not one well-educated person in society in England who +has not had the opportunity to remark how very much any old family can +succeed in being notorious if it can only once make it known that it has +an hereditary _secret_. Novels will be written on it, every member of it +will be pointed out everywhere, and people who do not know the name of a +sovereign in Europe can tell you all about it and them. And the number +is not small of those who consider themselves immensely greater because +they have in some way mastered something which they are expected to keep +concealed. I could almost believe that this "'orrible tale" was composed +as a satire on family secrets. But I believe that she who told it firmly +believed it. _Credo quia absurdum_ would not be well understood among +humble folk in Italy. + + * * * * * + +"To this I may add," writes Flaxius, "that there is an English legend of +a certain skull which always returned to a certain window in a tower. +_Apropos_ of which there is a poem called _The Student and the Head_ in +'Hans Breitmann in Germany' (London: T. Fisher Unwin, 1895), prefaced by +a remark to the effect that the subject is so extensive as to deserve a +book--instancing the head of the physician Douban in the 'Arabian +Nights,' with that of Orpheus, which spoke to Cyrus, and that of the +priest of Jupiter, and another described by Trallianus, and the +marvellously preserved head of a saint in Olaf Tryggvason's Saga, and the +Witch's Head of Rider Haggard, with many more, not to speak of the +talking Teraphim heads, and Friar Bacon's bust. With which a thoroughly +exhaustive list should include the _caput mortuum_ of the alchemists + + "'And the dead-heads of the Press.'" + + + + +THE COLUMN OF COSIMO, OR DELLA SANTA TRINITA + + + "_Columna Florentina_.--Prope Sanctae Trinitatis aedem ingens et + sublimis columna erecta, cujus in fastigio extat justitia. Eam + erexit Cosmus Magnus Dux, cui per urbem deambulanti, illic de + victoria renunciatum fuit quam Malignani Marchio in Senarum finibus + anno 1555 contra Petrum Strozium obtinuit."--_Templum Naturae + Historicum_, Darmstadt, 1611. + + "Vesti una Colonna, + Le par una donna."--_Italian Proverb_. + +The central spot of Florence is the grand column of granite which stands +in the middle of the Piazza di Santa Trinita, in the Via Tornabuoni, +opposite the Palazzo Feroni. It was brought from the Baths of Caracalla +in Rome, and erected in 1564 by Cosimo I., "in commemoration of the +surrender of Siena in 1554, and of the destruction of the last liberties +of Florence by the victory at Monte Murlo, 1537, over those whom his +tyranny had driven into exile, headed by Filippo and Piero Strozzi. It +is surmounted by a statue of 'Justice' in porphyry, by _Ferruci_," says +Murray's Guide-Book--the Italian declares it to be by _Taddi_, adding +that the column was from the Baths of Antoninus, and was a gift to Cosimo +I. from Pius IV. + +There is a popular legend that once on a time a poor girl was arrested in +Florence for having stolen a chain, a bracelet, or some such article of +jewellery of immense value. She was thrown into prison, but though there +was collateral or indirect evidence to prove her guilt, the stolen +article could not be found. Gossip and rumour constituted ample grounds +for indictment and trial, and torture did the rest in the pious times +when it was generally taught and believed that Providence would always +rescue the innocent, and that everybody who came to grief on the gallows +had deserved it for something or other at some time, and that it was all +right. + +So the girl was executed, and almost forgotten. When a long time after, +some workman or other was sent up to the top of the column of the Piazza +Trinita, and there found that a jackdaw or magpie had built a nest in the +balance or scales held by Justice, and in it was the missing jewel. + +This is an Italian form of "The Maid and the Magpie," known the world +over from ancient times. The scales suggest a droll German story. There +was in front of a certain palace or town-hall, where all criminals were +tried, a statue of Justice holding a pair of scales, and these were not +cast solid, but were a _bona fide_ pair of balances. And certain low +thieves having been arrested with booty--whatever it was--it was +discovered that they had divided it among themselves very accurately, +even to the ounce. At which the magistrate greatly marvelling, asked +them how they could have done it so well, since it had appeared that they +had not been in any house between the period of the theft and their +arrest. Whereupon one replied: "Very easily, your Honour, for, to be +honourable, honest, and just as possible, we weighed the goods in the +scales of Justice itself, here on the front of the _Rath-haus_." + +It is for every reason more probable that the bird which stole the jewel +of the column was a jackdaw than a magpie, and it is certainly fitter +that it should have been thus in Florence. "It is well known," says Oken +in his "Natural History" (7 B. Part I. 347), "that the jackdaw steals +glittering objects, and carries them to its nest." Hence the ancient +legend of Arne, who so greatly loved gold, that she sold her native isle +Siphnos to Minos, and was for that turned by the gods into a daw (Ovid's +"Metamorphoses," vii. 466). As a mischief-making, thieving, and +chattering bird of black colour, the jackdaw was naturally considered +evil, and witches, or their imps, often assumed its form. In fact, the +only really good or pious bird of the kind on record known to me, is the +jackdaw of Rheims sung by Ingoldsby Barham. + +According to Kornmannus, the column was placed where it now stands, +because Cosimo was in the Piazza Trinita when he heard the news of the +surrender of Siena. + + * * * * * + +After I had written the foregoing legend, I found the following: + + LA COLONNA DI SANTA TRINITA. + +"The pillar di Santa Trinita was in times a meeting-place for fairies +(_Fate_), whither they went afoot or in their carriages. At the base of +the column there was a great stone, and there they exchanged greetings or +consulted about their affairs. They were all great ladies, of kindly +disposition. And when it came that any one was cast into the city +prison, they inquired into the affair, and then a _fate_ would go as a +magistrate in disguise and question the accused. Now they always knew +whether any one spoke the truth, and if the prisoner did so, and was +deserving mercy, they delivered him; but if he lied, they left him to be +hanged, with a _buon pro vi faccia_!--Much good may it do you! + +"Of evenings they assembled round the rock at the foot of the column in a +great company, and had great merriment and love-making. Then in the +crowd a couple would descend, or one after another into their vaults +below, and then come again, often taking with them mortals who were their +friends or favourites. + +"Their chief was a matron who always held a pair of scales. Now when +they were to judge the fate of any one, they took with great care the +earth from one of his footprints, and weighed it most scrupulously, for +thereby they could tell whether in his life he had done more good or +evil, and it was thus that they settled the fate of all the accused in +the prisons. + +"And it often came to pass that when prisoners were young and handsome, +these _fate_ or fairy-witches took them from their cells in the prison +through subterranean ways to their vaults under the Trinita, and passed +the time merrily enough, for all was magnificent there. + +"But woe unto those, no matter how handsome they might be, who betrayed +the secrets and the love of the _fate_. Verily they had their reward, +and a fine long repentance with it, for they were all turned into cats or +mice, and condemned to live in the cellars and subterranean passages of +the old Ghetto, which is now destroyed--and a nasty place it was. In its +time people often wondered that there were so many cats there, but the +truth is that they were all people who had been enchanted by those who +were called in olden time _le Gran Dame di Firenze_--the Great Ladies of +Florence. + +"And the image holding the scales is called _la Giustizia_, but it really +represents the Matrona, or Queen of the Fate, who of old exercised such +strict justice with her scales in Florence." + + * * * * * + +This is, I am confident, a tradition of great antiquity, for all its +elements are of a very ancient or singularly witch-like nature. In it +the _fate_ are found in their most natural form, as _fates_, weighing +justice and dealing out rewards and punishments. Justice herself appears +naively and amusingly to the witches as Queen of the _Fate_, who are +indeed all spirits who have been good witches in a previous life. + +What is most mystical and peculiarly classic Italian is the belief that +the earth on which a human being has trod can be used wherewith to +conjure him. This subject is treated elsewhere in my "Etruscan Roman +Traditions." + +The great stone at the base of the column was a kind of palladium of the +city of Florence. There are brief notices of it in many works. It would +be curious if it still exists somewhere and can be identified. + + "A great palladium, whose virtues lie + In undefined remote antiquity; + A god unformed, who sleeps within a stone, + Which sculptor's hand as yet has never known; + Brought in past ages from some unknown shore; + Our fathers worshipped it--we know no more." + + + + +LEGENDS OF OR' SAN MICHELE + + + "The spirit of Antiquity, enshrined + In sumptuous buildings, vocal in sweet song, + In pictures speaking with heroic tongue, + And with devout solemnities entwined." + + --WORDSWORTH, "_Bruges_." + +Or' San Michele is a very beautiful church in the Italian Gothic style in +the Via Calzaioli. It was originally a market or stable below and a barn +or granary above, whence some derive its name from _Horreum Sancti +Michaelis_, and others from the Italian _Orto_, a garden, a term also +applied to a church-congregation. "The statues and decorations on the +exterior are among the best productions of the Florentine school of +sculpture." As that of Saint Eloy or San Eligio, the blacksmith, with +great pincers at an anvil, in a sculpture representing a horse being +shod, is the most conspicuous on the facade, the people have naturally +concluded that the church was originally a stable or smithy. The legend +of the place is as follows: + + LA CHIESA OR' SAN MICHELE. + +"This was originally a stable and coach-house (_rimessa_), and there was +a hayloft above. Every night the horses were heard to neigh, and in the +morning they were found all curried and well managed, and no one knew who +did it; but none of the grooms ever shed any tears over it that ever I +heard of. + +"Now, the master of the place had a son, a priest named Michele, who was +so holy that he worked many miracles, so that all began to call him a +saint. And after he died he appeared to his parents in a dream, and told +them that the stable and barn should be transformed into a church, and +that he would read mass therein thrice a day. + +"But his parents wished to have him buried under the altar of a church +which was on their estate in the country, but the saint did not wish to +be buried there. + +"One day one of the grooms of the stable found that a horse could not +move a foot, so he ran to call the _manescalco_, or blacksmith, who led +the horse to his forge. And when he took the hoof to examine it, lo! it +came off at the joint and remained in his hand. Then the smith said that +the horse should be killed, because he was now worthless. But the horse +struck his stump on the hoof, and the latter joined itself to his leg as +firmly as ever it had been. But in doing this the old shoe fell off, +whence it comes to this day that whoever finds an old horse-shoe gets +luck with it. + +"When the smith had shod the horse anew, he tried to lead it back into +the stable, but it refused to enter. Then it was plain that this was a +miracle worked by San Michele. So they removed all the horses and hay +from the building, and made of it the fine church which is now called _La +Chiesa di Or' San Michele_." + + * * * * * + +There is a vast mass of tradition extant relative to the Horse, enough to +make a large volume, and in it there is a great deal which is so nearly +allied to this story as to establish its antiquity. Karl Blind has found +an old Norse spell, in which, by the aid of Balder and Odin, the lameness +of a horse's ankle or pastern joint can be cured. There is another +version of this story, which runs as follows: + + THE SMITH AND SAINT PETER. + +"It is a good thing in this world to be bold and have a good opinion of +one's self; yes, and to hold your head high--but not so high as to bend +over backwards--else that may happen to you which befell the celebrated +cock of Aspromonte." + +"And what happened to him?" + +"Only this, Signore--he was so cocky, and bent his head so far backwards, +that his spurs ran into his eyes and blinded him. Now, the cock reminds +me of Saint Peter, and too much cheek of the _ferrajo spacciato_, or the +saucy smith, who wanted to equal him. + +"It happened once that the Lord and Saint Peter came to a forge, and the +smith was about to lead a horse from the stable to the anvil to shoe him. +Saint Peter said: + +"'Thou hast boasted that thou art the best smith in the world, and canst +work such wonders in shoeing as man never beheld. Canst thou not shoe +this horse without taking him to the forge?' + +"'Neither thou, nor I, nor any man can do it,' replied the smith. + +"Saint Peter took the hoof in his left hand, gave it a rap with the side +of his right across the joint, and the hoof fell off. Then Saint Peter +carried it to the anvil, fastened a new shoe on it, returned and put it +on the horse again, who stamped with it as if nothing had happened. + +"Now the smith, like all boasters, was a great fool, and he only thought +that this was something which he had not learned before, and so cried +boldly, 'Oh, that is only the Bolognese manner of taking hoofs off and +putting them on--we do it much better here in Florence!' So he seized +the horse's hoof, and with one blow of a hatchet cut it off. + +"'And now put it on again,' said Saint Peter. The smith tried, but it +would not stick. + +"'The horse is bleeding to death rapidly,' remarked the Saint. + +"'I believe,' said the smith ruefully, 'that I am a fool in folio.' + +"'_Piu matto che un granchio_--as crazy as a crawfish,' solemnly added +one of his assistants. + +"'_Pazzo a bandiera_--as wild and witless as a flapping flag,' quoth +another. + +"'_Matto di sette cotte_--an idiot seven times baked,' chimed in Saint +Peter. + +"'A _campanile_--a church bell-tower of a fool,' contributed his wife, +who had just come in. + +"The poor horse continued to bleed. + +"'You are like the mouse,' added a neighbour, 'who thought because he had +dipped the end of his tail in the meal, that he owned and could run the +mill.' + +"'The Florentine method of shoeing horses,' remarked Saint Peter gravely, +'does not appear to be invariably successful. I think that we had better +recur to mine.' And with this he put the hoof to the ankle, and +_presto_! the miracle was wrought again. That is the story. In most +cases, Signore, _un pazzo gitta una pietra nel pozzo_--a fool rolls a +rock into a well which it requires a hundred wise men to get out again. +This time a single sage sufficed. But for that you must have the Lord at +your back, as Saint Peter had." + +"Why do they say, as foolish as a crawfish or lobster?" I inquired. + +"Because, Signore, the _granchio_, be he lobster or crawfish, carries his +head in the _scarsella_, which is a hole in his belly. Men who have +their brains in their bellies--or gluttons--are generally foolish. But +what is the use of boasting of our wisdom? He who has neither poor men +nor fools among his relations was born of the lightning or of thunder." + + * * * * * + +There is another story current among the people, though it is in print, +but as it is a merry one, belonging truly enough to the folk-lore of +Florence, I give it as it runs: + +"You have heard of Piovano Arlotto, who made this our town so lively long +ago. It was rich then, indeed. There are more flowers than florins in +Florence now: _ogni fior non fa frutto_--all flowers do not bear fruit. + +"Well, it happened one day that Piovano, having heard a good story from +Piero di Cosimo de' Medicis, answered with another. Now the tale which +Messer Piero di Cosimo told was this: + +"Once there lived in Florence a poor shoemaker, who went every morning to +the Church of San Michele Berteldi--some say it was at San Bartolommeo, +and maybe at both, for a good story or a big lie is at home anywhere. + +"Well, he used to pray before a John the Baptist in wood, or it may have +been cast in plaster, or moulded in wax, which was on the altar. One +morning he prayed scalding hot, and the _chierico_--a boy who waits on +the priest, who was a young rascal, like all of his kind--overheard him +say: 'Oh, Saint John, I pray thee make known to me two things. One is +whether my wife is good and true to me, and the other what will become of +my only son.' + +"Then the mass-boy, who had hidden himself behind the altar, replied in a +soft, slow, strange voice: 'Know, my son, that because thou hast long +been so devout to me, thou shalt be listened unto. Return hither +to-morrow, and thou wilt be answered; and now go in peace.' + +"And the shoemaker, having heard this, verily believed that Saint John +had spoken to him, and went his way with great rejoicing. So, bright and +early the next morning, he was in the church, and said: 'Saint John, I +await thy reply.' + +"Then the mass-boy, who was hidden as before, replied: 'Oh, my son, I am +sorry to say that thy wife is no better than she should be--_ha fatto +fallo con piu d'uno_--and everybody in Florence except thee knows it.' + +"'And my son?' gasped the shoemaker. + +"'_He will be hung_,' replied the voice. + +"The shoemaker rose and departed abruptly. In the middle of the church +he paused, and, without a sign of the cross, and putting on his cap, he +cried: 'What sort of a Saint John are you, anyhow?' + +"'Saint John the Baptist,' replied the voice. + +"'_Sia col malanno e con la mala Pasque che Iddio ti dia_!--Then may the +Lord give you a bad year and a miserable Easter-tide! You never utter +aught save evil, and it was for thy evil tongue that Herod cut thy head +off--and served thee right! I do not believe a word of all which thou +hast told me. I have been coming here every day for twenty-five years, +and never asked thee for anything before; but I will make one more vow to +thee, and that is--never to see thy face again.' + +"And when Messer Cosimo had ended, Piovano Arlotto replied: + +"'One good turn deserves another. It is not many years ago since a poor +_farsettajo_, or doublet-maker, lived in Florence, his shop being close +to the Oratorio di Orto San Michele, {126} and every morning he went to +worship in the church, and lit a candle before a picture representing +Christ as a child disputing with the Doctors, while his mother enters +seeking him. + +"'And after he had done this daily for more than twenty-five years, it +happened that his little son, while looking on at a game of ball, had a +tile fall on his head, which wounded him terribly. The doctors being +called in, despaired. + +"'The next morning the poor tailor went to his devotions in Or' San +Michele, bearing this time, instead of a farthing taper, a great +wax-candle; and kneeling, he spoke thus: "_Dolce Signor mio Gesu Cristo_, +I beg thee to restore my son to health. Thou knowest that I have +worshipped thee here for twenty-five years, and never asked for anything +before, and thou thyself can best bear witness to it. This my son is all +my happiness on earth, and he was also most devoted to thee. Should he +be taken away, I would die in despair, and so I commend myself to three!" + +"'Then he departed, and coming home, learned that his son had died. + +"'The next morning, in grief and anger, he entered Orto San Michele, and, +without any candle, he went directly to the picture, and, without +kneeling, broke forth in these words: "_Io ti disgrazio_--I dislike, +disown, and despise thee, and will return here no more. Five-and-twenty +years have I worshipped thee and never asked for anything before, and now +thou dost refuse me my request. If I had only gone to the great crucifix +there, I daresay I should have got all I wanted; but this is what comes +of trusting to a mere child, for, as the proverb says, _Chi s'impaccia +con fanciulli_, _con fanciulli si ritrova_--he who troubles himself with +children will himself be treated as a child.'" + + * * * * * + +It is worth remarking, as regards the tone and character of this tale, +that such freedom was commonest when people were most devout. The most +sceptical critics generally agree that these stories of Piovano Arlotto +are authentic, having been dictated by him, and that he had a very +exceptional character in his age for morality, honesty, and truth. He +himself declared, without being contradicted, that he was the only priest +of whom he knew who did not keep a mistress; and yet this story is simply +an average specimen of the two hundred connected with his name, and that +they in turn are identical in character with all the popular wit and +humour of the time. + +Regarding the image of the Holy Blacksmith, Saint Eligius or Eloi, the +authors of "Walks in Florence" say that it is attributed to Nanni di +Banco, and is meagre and stiff, but has dignity, which accords admirably +with the character of most saints, or their ideals. It is evident that +the _bon roi_ Dagobert was considered as the type of all that was free +and easy-- + + "Le bon roi Dagobert + Mettait son culotte a l'envers." + +Therefore he is contrasted with the very dignified Saint Eloy, who was +(like the breeches) quite the reverse, declining to lend the monarch two +sous, which Dagobert had ascertained were in the holy man's possession. +"The bas-relief below," continue the critics cited, "is more certainly by +the hand of Nanni. It records a miracle of Saint Eloy, who one day, when +shoeing a restive horse which was possessed by a demon, and was kicking +and plunging, cut off the animal's leg to fasten the shoe, and having +completed his task, made the sign of the cross and restored the severed +limb." I regret to say that this was written without careful reference +to the original. It was not the _leg_ of the horse which was severed, +nor a limb, but only the hoof at the pastern joint. + +There is yet another explanation of this bas-relief, which I have +somewhere read, but cannot now recall--more's the pity, because it is the +true one, as I remember, and one accounting for the presence of the +female saint who is standing by, evidently invisibly. Perhaps some +reader who knows Number Four will send it to me for a next edition. + +It is worth noting that there is in Innsbruck, on the left bank of the +Inn, a blacksmith's shop, on the front of which is a very interesting +bas-relief of the fourteenth or fifteenth century, representing Saint +Peter or Eligius with the horse in a smithy. + +There is another statue on the exterior of this church, that of Saint +Philip, by the sculptor Nanni de Banco, concerning which and whom I find +an anecdote in the _Facetie Diverse_, A.D. 1636: + + "Now, it befell in adorning the church of Or' San Michele in + Florence, that _I Consoli d'Arte_ (Art Directors of Florence) wanting + a certain statue, wished to have it executed by Donatello, a most + excellent sculptor; but as he asked fifty _scudi_, which was indeed a + very moderate price for such statues as he made, they, thinking it + too dear, refused him, and gave it to a sculptor _mediocre e + mulo_--indifferent and mongrel--who had been a pupil of Donatello; + nor did they ask him the price, supposing it would be, of course, + less. Who, having done his best, asked for the work eighty scudi. + Then the Directors in anger explained to him that Donatello, a + first-class sculptor, had only asked fifty; but as he refused to + abate a single _quattrino_, saying that he would rather keep the + statue, the question was referred to Donatello himself, who at once + said they should pay the man _seventy_ scudi. But when they reminded + him that he himself had only asked fifty, he very courteously + replied, 'Certainly, and being a master of the art, I should have + executed it in less than a month, but that poor fellow, who was + hardly fit to be my pupil, has been more than half a year making it.' + + "By which shrewd argument he not only reproached them for their + meanness and his rival for incapacity, but also vindicated himself as + an artist." + +This is the story as popularly known. In it Nanni is called Giovanni, +and it is not true that he was an unworthy, inferior sculptor, for he was +truly great. There is another legend of Or' San Michele, which is thus +given by Pascarel, who, however, like most writers on Florence, is so +extravagantly splendid or "gushing" in his description of everything, +that untravelled readers who peruse his pages in good faith must needs +believe that in every church and palazzo there is a degree of picturesque +magnificence, compared to which the Pandemonium of Milton, or even the +Celestial City itself as seen by Saint John, is a mere cheap Dissenting +chapel. According to him, Or' San Michele is by right "a world's wonder, +and a gift so perfect to the whole world, that, passing it, one should +need say (or be _compelled_ to pronounce) a prayer for Taddeo's soul." +Which is like the dentist in Paris, who proclaimed in 1847 that it was-- + + "Presque une crime + De ne pas crier, '_Vive_ Fattet!'" + +The legend, as told by this writer, and cited by Hare, is as follows: + + "Surely nowhere in the world is the rugged, changeless, mountain + force of hewn stone piled against the sky, and the luxuriant, + dream-like poetic delicacy of stone carven and shaped into leafage + and loveliness, more perfectly blended and made one than where San + Michele rises out of the dim, many-coloured, twisting streets, in its + mass of ebon darkness and of silvery light. + + "The other day, under the walls of it, I stood and looked at its + Saint George, where he leans upon his shield, so calm, so young, with + his bared head and his quiet eyes. + + "'That is our Donatello's,' said a Florentine beside me--a man of the + people, who drove a horse for hire in the public ways, and who + paused, cracking his whip, to tell this tale to me. 'Donatello did + that, and it killed him. Do you not know? When he had done that + Saint George he showed it to his master. And the master said, "It + wants one thing only." Now this saying our Donatello took gravely to + heart, chiefly because his master would never explain where the fault + lay; and so much did it hurt him, that he fell ill of it, and came + nigh to death. Then he called his master to him. "Dear and great + one, do tell me before I die," he said, "what is the one thing my + statue lacks?" The master smiled and said: "Only speech." "Then I + die happy," said our Donatello. And he--died--indeed, that hour.' + + "Now I cannot say that the pretty story is true--it is not in the + least true; Donatello died when he was eighty-three, in the Street of + the Melon, and it was he himself who cried, 'Speak then--speak!' to + his statue, as it was carried through the city. But whether true or + false, this fact is surely true, that it is well--nobly and purely + well--with a people when the men amongst it who ply for hire on its + public ways think caressingly of a sculptor dead five hundred years + ago, and tell such a tale, standing idly in the noonday sun, feeling + the beauty and the pathos of it all." + +Truly, in a town half of whose income is derived from art-hunting +tourists, and where every vagabond offers himself, in consequence, as a +cicerone, it is no sign that "all is well--nobly and purely well--with a +people," because a coachman who had been asked which was Donatello's +Saint George by about five hundred English "fares," and nearly as many +American young ladies--of whom many of the latter told him all they knew +about it--should have picked up such a tale. In fact, while I have been +amazed at the _incredible_ amount of legend, superstitious traditions, +and incantations existing among the people, I have been struck by their +great ignorance of art, and all pertaining to it; of which, were it worth +while, I could cite convincing and amusing instances. + + "But as regards a vast proportion of the 'sweet and light' writing on + the Renaissance and on Italy which is at present fashionable," writes + Flaxius, "I am reminded of the 'esthetic axe'ems' of an American + writer, the first of which were: + + "'Art is a big thing. Always bust into teers wen you see a pictur.' + + "'Bildins and churches arn't of no account unless they drive you + clean out of your census.'" + + + + +THE WITCH OF THE ARNO + + + "Il spirito usci dal fiume a un tratto, + E venne come Dio l'aveva fatto, + E presentando come un cortegiano + Alla donna gentil la destra mano, + 'Scusate,' disse si io vengo avanti + E se vi do la mano sensa guanti."--_Paranti_. + +The following, as a French book of fables says, is "a poem, or rather +prose rhymed:" + + "Two pretty maids one morning sat by the rushing stream. It murmured + glittering in the sun; it seemed to sing as on it run, enchanting + while a wantoning, as in a merry dream. + + "Said one unto the other: 'I wish, and all in truth, that the + glorious dancing river were as fine and brave a youth. Its voice is + like an angel's, its drops of light like eyes so bright are beautiful + I wis. Oh, ne'er before, on sea or shore, did I love aught like + this.' + + "A voice came from the river: 'For a love thou hast chosen me; + henceforward, sweet, for ever thine own love I will be. Wherever + there is water, of Florence the fairest daughter, by night or day or + far away, thou'lt find me close by thee.' + + "She saw bright eyes a shining in dewdrops on her path--she returned + unto the palace, she entered in a bath. 'How the water doth caress + me; 'tis embracing me, I vow! _M'abbracia_, _mi baccia_--my lover + has me now. Since fate has really willed it, then to my fate I bow.' + + "Seven years have come and vanished, seven years of perfect bliss. + Whenever she washed in water, she felt her lover's kiss. She washed + full oft, I ween; 'twas plain to be seen there was no maid in + Florence who kept herself so clean. + + "Little by little, as summer makes frogs croak in a ditch, there + spread about a rumour that the damsel was a witch. They showed her + scanty mercies; with cruelty extreme, with blows and bitter curses, + they cast her in the stream. 'If she be innocent, she'll sink, so + hurl her from the Arno's brink; if guilty, she will swim!' + + "Up rose from the sparkling river a youth who was fair to see. 'I + have loved thee, and for ever thine own I'll truly be.' He took her + in his arms; she felt no more alarms. 'Farewell to you all!' sang + she; 'a fish cannot drown in the water; now I am a fish, you + know--the Arno's loving daughter. _Per sempre addio_!'" + +The foregoing is not literal, nor do I know that it is strictly +"traditional;" it is a mere short tale or anecdote which I met with, and +put into irregular metre to suit the sound of a rushing stream. I take +the liberty of adding to it another water-poem of my own, which has +become, if not "popular," at least a halfpenny broadside sold at divers +street-stands by old women, the history whereof is as follows:--I had +written several ballads in Italian in imitation of the simplest +old-fashioned lyrics, and was anxious to know if I had really succeeded +in coming down to the level of the people, for this is a very difficult +thing to do in any language. When I showed them to Marietta Pery, she +expressed it as her candid opinion that they were really very nice +indeed, and that I ought for once in my life to come before the public as +a poet. And as I, fired by literary ambition, at last consented to +appear in this _role_, Marietta took a ballad, and going to E. Ducci, 32 +Via Pilastri, who is the Catnach of Florence (I advise collectors of the +really curious to buy his _soldo_ publications), made an arrangement +whereby my song should appear as a broadside, the lady strictly +conditioning that from among his blocks Signore Ducci should find a ship +and a flying bird to grace the head and the end of the lyric. But as he +had no bird, she took great credit to herself that for five francs she +not only got a hundred copies, but also had specially engraved for the +work and inserted an object which appears as flying to the right hand of +the ship. The song was as follows: + + + +LA BELLA STREGA. +_Nuova Canzonetta di_ CHARLES GODFREY LELAND. + + + Era una bella strega + Che si bagnava alla riva; + Vennero i pirati + Lei presero captiva. + + Il vento era in poppa + Sull' onde la nave ballo + La donna lacrimante + Al capitan parlo. + + "O Signor capitano! + O Capitano del mar! + Daro cento ducati, + Se tu mi lasci andar." + + "Non prendero cento ducati, + Tu costi molto piu + Io ti vendro al Sultano," + Disse il Capitano, + "Per mille zecchini d'oro + Vi stimi troppo giu." + + "Non vuoi i cento ducati + Ebben tu non gli avrai, + Ho un' amante amato + Non mi abbandona mai." + + Essa sede sul ponte + Principio a cantar, + "Vieni il mio amante," + Da lontano il vento + Si mette a mugghiar. + + Forte e piu forte + La tempesta ruggio, + Gridava il capitano: + "Io credo che il tuo amante + E il vento che corre innante, + Ovvero il diavolo." + + Forte e piu forte + La procella urlo, + "Sono rocce davanti, + E il vento vien di dietro + Benvenuto sei tu mio amante!" + La bella donna canto. + + [Picture: A sailing ship with flying bird] + + "Vattene al tuo amante + All' inferno a cantar!" + Disse il Capitano + E getto la donna fuori, + Della nave nel mar. + + Ma come un gabbiano + Sull' onde essa volo. + "O mio Capitano, + Non sarai appiccato, + Ma sarai annegato: + Per sempre addio!" + + + +The Beautiful Witch. + + + A pretty witch was bathing + In the sea one summer day; + There came a ship with pirates, + Who carried her away. + + The ship due course was keeping + On the waves as they rose and broke; + The lovely lady, weeping, + Thus to the captain spoke: + + "O Signor Capitano! + O captain of the sea! + I'll give you a hundred ducats + If you will set me free." + + "I will not take a hundred, + You're worth much more, you know; + I will sell you to the Sultan + For a hundred gold sequins; + You set yourself far too low." + + "You will not take a hundred-- + Oh well! then let them be, + But I have a faithful lover, + Who, as you may discover, + Will never abandon me." + + Upon the windlass sitting, + The lady began to sing: + "Oh, come to me, my lover!" + From afar a breeze just rising + In the rigging began to ring. + + Louder and ever louder + The wind began to blow: + Said the captain, "I think your lover + Is the squall which is coming over, + Or the devil who has us in tow." + + Stronger and ever stronger + The tempest roared and rang, + "There are rocks ahead and the wind dead aft, + Thank you, my love," the lady laughed; + And loud to the wind she sang. + + "Oh, go with your cursed lover, + To the devil to sing for me!" + Thus cried the angry rover, + And threw the lady over + Into the raging sea. + + But changing to a seagull, + Over the waves she flew: + "Oh captain, captain mine," sung she, + "You will not swing on the gallows-tree, + For you shall drown in the foaming sea-- + Oh captain, for ever adieu!" + +I must in honesty admit that this my _debut_ as an Italian poet was not +noticed in any of the reviews--possibly because I did not send it to +them--and there were no indications that anybody considered that a new +Dante had arisen in the land. It is true, as Marietta told me with much +delight, that the printer, or his foreman, had declared it was a very +good song indeed; but then he was an interested party. And Marietta also +kindly praised it to the skies (after she had corrected it); but then +Marietta was herself a far better poet than I can ever hope to be, and +could afford to be generous. + +The reader will pardon me if I avail myself of the opportunity to give +another Italian ballad which I wrote on a theme which I also picked up in +Florence. + + + +Il Giardino d'Amore, o La Figlia del Re, e il Contino Stregone. + + + Era un giovine Contino, + Di tutto il paese il fior, + Aveva un bel giardino, + Il bel giardin d'amor. + + "Chi batte alla mia porta?" + Domanda il bel Contin'. + "Son la figlia del re, + Vo vedere il tuo giardin'?" + + "Entra pur nel mio giardino, + O bella figlia del re, + Purche tu non tocchi niente, + A cio che dentro v'e!" + + Entrata nel giardino, + La bella figlia del re, + Non vidde cola niente, + Che fiori e foglie. + + Le foglie eran d'argento, + Di oro ogni fior, + I frutti eran' gemmi, + Nel bel giardin d'amor. + + Sedi sulla panchetta, + Sotto il frascame la; + Che vissi nel sentiero? + Un bell' anello c'era. + + Non seppe che il Contino, + Fu stregone appostator; + Non seppe che l'anello, + Era lo stesso signor. + + Ella ando nel suo letto, + Con l'anello nella man', + Non 'n sospetto che la trasse + Sul dito un giovan. + + Svegliato da un bacino, + Tra la mezzanotte e tre; + Si trovo il bel Contino + Accanto alla figlia del re. + + Credo che fu ben contenta + Con la cosa come era; + Come molte donne sarebbero + Con tal stregoneria. + + Portar dei gioielli, + A de' sposi il fior; + Il di un di-amante, + La notte un bel signor. + + D'avere un bel diamante + Piace ognuno, si; + Ma meglio e un amante + Quando non ha piu il _di_. + + Chi scrisse questa canzone + Un gran Contino e, + Anch 'egli il stregone + Ch' amava la figlia del re. + + + +The Garden of Love, or The King's Daughter and the Wizard Count. + + + There was a Count of high degree, + All others far above; + He had a garden fair to see, + 'Twas called the Garden of Love. + + "Now who is knocking at my gate? + Who is it that makes so free?" + "Oh, I am the daughter of the king, + And your garden I would see!" + + "Oh, come into my garden, + Fair daughter of the king! + Look well at all that's growing, + But touch not anything!" + + She entered in the garden, + The princess young and fair, + She looked it all well over, + Yet nothing but trees were there. + + But every leaf was of silver, + The flowers of gold; in the grove + The fruits were gems and jewels + In the beautiful Garden of Love. + + She sat beneath the foliage, + The daughter of the king; + What shone in the path before her? + A beautiful diamond ring! + + She knew not that the County + Was a wizard wondrous wise; + She did not know that the diamond + Was the wizard in disguise. + + And when at night, fast sleeping, + The diamond ring she wore, + She never dreamed that her finger + Was bearing a young signor. + + Awakened by his kisses + As she heard the midnight ring, + There was the handsome wizard + By the daughter of the king. + + I ween she was well contented, + As many dames would be, + If they could be enchanted + With just such sorcery. + + To have not only a jewel, + But a husband, which is more, + All day a dazzling diamond, + And by night a bright signor! + + Who was it wrote this ballad + About this loving pair? + He was the Count and wizard + Who won the princess fair. + + + + +STORIES OF SAN MINIATO + + + "The picturesque height of San Miniato, now the great cemetery of the + city which dominates the Arno from the south, has an especial + religious and saintly interest. The grand Basilica, with its + glittering ancient mosaic, shines amid the cypresses against the sky, + and whether it gleams in the sunlight against the blue, or is cut in + black on the primrose sky of twilight, it is equally + imposing."--"_Echoes of Old Florence_," _by_ LEADER SCOTT. + +To the old people of Florence, who still see visions and dream dreams, +and behold the wind and the stars at noonday (which latter thing I have +myself beheld), the very ancient convent of San Miniato, "the only one in +Tuscany which has preserved the ancient form of the Roman basilica," and +the neighbourhood, are still a kind of Sleepy Hollow, where witches fly +of nights more than elsewhere, where ghosts or _folletti_ are most +commonly seen, and where the _orco_ and the nightmare and her whole +ninefold disturb slumbers _a bel agio_ at their easiest ease, as appears +by the following narrative: + + SAN MINIATO FRA LE TORRE. + +"This is a place which not long ago was surrounded by towers, which were +inhabited by many witches. + +"Those who lived in the place often noticed by night in those towers, +serpents, cats, small owls, and similar creatures, and they were alarmed +by frequently seeing their infants die like candles blown out--_struggere +i bambini come candele_; nor could they understand it; but those who +believed in witchcraft, seeking in the children's beds, often found +threads woven together in forms like animals or garlands, and when +mothers had left their children alone with the doors open, found their +infants, on returning, in the fireplace under the ashes. And at such +times there was always found a strange cat in the room. + +"And believing the cat to be a witch, they took it, and first tying the +two hind-paws, cut off the fore-claws (_zampe_, claws or paws), and said: + + "'Fammi guarire + La mia creatura; + Altrimenti per te saranno + Pene e guai!' + + "'Cure my child, + Or there shall be; + Trouble and sorrow + Enough for thee!' + +"This happened once, and the next day the mother was sitting out of doors +with her child, when she saw a woman who was her intimate friend at her +window, and asked her if she would not wash for her her child's clothes, +since she herself was ill. But the other replied: 'I cannot, for I have +my hands badly cut.' + +"Then the mother in a rage told this to other women whose children had +been bewitched or died. + +"Then all together seized the witch, and by beating her, aided with +knives crossed, and whatever injuries they could think of, subdued her +and drenched her under a tower with holy water. And the witch began to +howl, not being able to endure this, and least of all the holy water! + +"When all at once there came a mighty wind, which blew down the +witch-tower, and carried away the witch, and killed all the uncanny +animals which dwelt in the ruins. And unbelievers say that this was done +by an earthquake; but this is not true, for the witches were really the +cause (_chagione_) of its overthrow. + +"And though many old things are destroyed and rebuilt, there are many +cats still there which are assuredly witches. + +"And in the houses thereabout people often perceive and see spirits, and +if any one will go at night in the Piazza San Miniato fra le Torri, +especially where those old things (_chose vecche_) were cleared away, he +will see sparks of fire (_faville di fuocho_) break out, and then flames; +and this signifies that some diabolical creature or animal is still +confined there which needs relief (_che a bisogna di bene_), or that in +that spot lies a treasure which requires to be discovered." + + * * * * * + +I consider this as very interesting, because I most truthfully guarantee +that this specimen of witch-lore was written in good faith and firm +belief, and is not at all, like most of the tales gleaned or gathered +now-a-days, taken from people who got them from others who perhaps only +half believed in them. She who wrote it has no more doubt that +witch-cats prowl, and that wild-fire hisses forth from evil spirits in +durance pent 'neath the soil of San Miniato, than that the spirit of the +Arno appears as "a small white hand pointing tremulously upwards." + +There is given in the _Facetiae_ of Piovano Arlotto, which is considered +a truthful record of the adventures of its subject, a tale relative to +San Miniato which cannot here be deemed out of place. It is as follows: + + LA TESTA DI SAN MINIATO. + +"There was in Florence a poor and learned gentleman--_savio e da bene_, +who was a good friend of Piovano Arlotto, who was also good to him, since +he had often aided the former with money, meal, and many other things, +and indeed without such help he could hardly have fed his family; for he +had fourteen sons and daughters, and though the proverb says _Figliuoli_, +_mioli_, _'lenzuoli non sono mai troppi in una casa_--there are never too +many children, glasses, or linen sheets in a house, this good man found +indeed that he had too many of the former. + +"Now to help dire need, this gentleman tried to buy on credit two bales +of cloth, one wherewith to clothe his family, and the other to sell in +order to make some money. To do this, he needed some one to be his +security, and he had recourse to Piovano Arlotto, who willingly agreed to +pay the manufacturer in case the friend who gave his note could not meet +it. Now he found that the manufacturer had sadly cheated the purchaser +in the measure or quantity, fully one-half, as was also evident to many +others; however, as matters stood, he was obliged to let it pass. + +"As things were thus, the poor gentleman died and passed away from this +_misera vita_ or sad life, and Piovano was in deep grief for his loss, +and as much for the poor orphans. + +"When the note fell due, the manufacturer went to Piovano Arlotto and +asked for his money, saying that he only demanded what was justly due to +him. + +"And after a few days' delay, he paid the man two-thirds of the sum, and +ten florins for the time and trouble, and said he would not give a +farthing more. Then the dealer begun to dun him, but he evaded every +demand. Then the merchant employed a young man, eighteen years of age, +who had not his equal in Florence to collect debts. And this youth set +to work in earnest to get from the priest the sum of about twenty-eight +gold florins, still due from the account. + +"In a few days he had attacked Piovano a hundred times with the utmost +impudence, in the market, in the public squares, on the streets at home, +and in the church, without regard to persons present, at all times, and +in every aggravating way, until the priest conceived a mortal hatred of +the dun, and turned over in his head many ways to get rid of him. + +"At last he went one day to the Abbot of San Miniato or Monte, and said +to him: '_Padre reverendo_, I seek your paternal kindness to relieve a +very distressing case in which I am concerned. I have a nephew who is +possessed by the devil, one into whom an evil spirit has entered, and who +has a monomania that I owe him money, and is always crying to me +everywhere, 'When are you going to pay me? I want twenty-eight florins.' +'Tis a great pity, for he is a fine young man, and something really ought +to be done to cure him. Now I know that the holy relic which you +possess, the worthy head of the glorious and gracious San Miniato, has +such a virtue, that, if it be once placed on the head of this poor youth, +'twill certainly cure him. Would you so contrive, in any way, to put it +on him some time this week?' + +"The Abbot answered, 'Bring him when you will.' + +"Piovano thanked him and said: 'I will bring him on Saturday, but when he +shall be here, I pray you be at the gate with seven or eight strong men, +that he may not escape; for you know, holy father, that these demoniacs +are accustomed to rage when they see relics and hear prayers, and it will +be specially so with this poor youth, who is young and vigorous--yea, it +may be that 'twill be necessary to give him sundry cuffs and kicks, so +terrible is the power of Satan--_lupus esuriens_. Do so, I pray, without +fearing to hurt my feelings--nay, it would be a great pleasure to me, so +heartily do I desire to see him cured.' + +"The Abbot answered, 'Bring him here, my son, and I will see that all is +rightly done.' + +"Piovano returned, saying to himself: + + "'Chi vuol giusta vendetta, + In Dio la metta.' + +"'Leave vengeance to the Lord, or to his ministers--_videlicet_, the +monks of San Miniato. Which I will do.' + +"On Friday he went to the merchant who had sold the cloth, and said: 'As +for this which I owe you, it is all rubbish. You cheated the man who +gave you the note out of half the cloth--you know it, and I can prove it. +However, to avoid further trouble and litigation, I am willing to pay +all, but you must allow time for it. _Dura cosa e l'aspettare_--'tis +hard to wait, but harder still to have nothing to wait for. The monks of +San Miniato owe me for forty cords of wood, which is to be paid for at +the end of two years, and then you shall have your money.' + +"This sounded like 'for ever and a day' to the creditor, and in a rage he +had recourse to his collector, who on Saturday morning went to San +Miniato. When he arrived, he had to wait till the grand mass was over, +to the great vexation of the young man, and meanwhile eight powerful +monks with long staves had grouped themselves about the door, awaiting a +little healthy exercise. + +"And mass being over, the dun hastened up to the Abbot, who, taking him +by the hand, said: 'Oh, my son, put thy trust in God and in San Miniato +the blessed; pray that he may take this evil conceit from thy head,' and +with this much more, till the young man grew impatient and said: + +"'Messer Abbot, to-day is Saturday, and no time for sermons. I have come +to know what you are going to do about this debt of Piovano of +twenty-eight florins, and when it will be paid?' + +"Then the Abbot, hearing, as he expected, the demand for money, began to +exhort and exorcise. And the youth began to abuse the Abbot with all +kind of villanies, and finally turned to depart; but the Abbot caught him +by the cloak, and there was a fight. Then came the eight monks, who +seizing him, chastised him lustily, and bound him with cords, and bearing +him into the sacristy, sprinkled him with holy water, and incensed him +indeed--and then set the holy head of San Miniato on his head--he +thinking they were all mad as hatters. Then they exorcised the evil +spirits in him--'_Maledicti_!_ excommunicati et rebelles--sitis in paena +aeternali nulla requies sit in vo-o-o-bis si statim non eritis +obedientes_, _praeceptis me-e-e-e-is_!'--until the youth had to give in, +and beg the Abbot's pardon, and being released, fled as for dear life. + +"But he met outside Piovano Arlotto, who said to him: 'Thou hast had a +dainty drubbing, my son, but there is plenty more where that came +from--_non v'e ne fin_, _ne fondo_--there is neither end nor bottom to +it. Now go to thy master, and say that if he goes further in this +business he will fare worse than thou hast done.' + +"The youth, returning to Florence, told the tale to his employer, and how +Piovano Arlotto had declared if they dunned him any more he would do his +best to have them drubbed to death. So they dropped the matter--like a +hot shot. + +"Everybody in Florence roared with laughter for seven days--_sparsa la +piacevolezza per Firenze_, _vi fu che ridere per setti giorni_--that is +to say, everybody laughed except one clothmaker and his collector, and if +they smiled, 'twas sour and bitterly--the smile which does not rise above +the throat--the merriment like German mourning grim. And as for the +young man, he had to leave Florence, for all of whom he would collect +money told him to go to--the monks of San Miniato!" + + * * * * * + +There was a curious custom, from which came a proverb, in reference to +this monastery, which is thus narrated in that singular work, _La Zucca +del Doni Fiorentino_ ("The Pumpkin of Doni the Florentine"): + + "There is a saying, _E non terrebbe un cocomere all'erta_--He could + not catch a cucumber if thrown to him. Well, ye must know, my + masters and gallant signors, that our Florentine youth in the season + of cucumbers go to San Miniato, where there is a steep declivity, and + when there, those who are above toss or roll them down to those + below, while those below throw them up to those above, just as people + play at toss-and-pitching oranges with girls at windows. So they + keep it up, and it is considered a great shame and sign of feebleness + (_dapocaggine_) not to be able to catch; and so in declining the + company of a duffer one says: 'I'll have nothing to do with him--he + isn't able to catch a cucumber.' + + "It is one of the popular legends of this place that a certain + painter named Gallo di San Miniato was a terribly severe critic of + the works of others, but was very considerate as regarded his own. + And having this cast at him one day, and being asked how it was, he + frankly replied: 'I have but two eyes wherewith to see my own + pictures, but I look at those of others with the hundred of Argus.'" + +And indeed, as I record this, I cannot but think of a certain famous +critic who is so vain and captious that one must needs say that his head, +like a butterfly's, is all full of little _i's_. + + "And this tale of two optics reminds me of the story of Messer + Gismondo della Stufa, a Florentine of Miniato, who once said to some + friends: 'If I had devoted myself to letters, I should have been + twice as learned as others, and yet ye cannot tell why.' Then some + guessed it would have been due to a good memory, while others + suggested genius, but Messer Gismondo said: 'You are not there yet, + my children; it is because I am so confoundedly cross-eyed that I + could have read in two books at once.'" + +In the first legend which I narrated, the fall of the tower is attributed +to witchcraft or evil spirits. In the very ancient frescoes of San +Miniato there is one in which the devil causes a wall or tower to fall +down and crush a young monk. What confirms the legend, or its antiquity, +is that the original bell-tower of San Miniato actually fell down in +1499. The other then built was saved from a similar fate by the genius +of Michael Angelo Buonarotti, who built a bank of earth to support it. + + "_Haec fabula_ of the head of San Miniato," wrote the immortal + Flaxius on the proof, "teaches that he who would get round a priest + in small trickery must arise uncommonly early--nay, in most cases + 'twould be as well not to go to bed at all--especially when dunning + is 'on the tap.' Concerning which word _dun_ it is erroneously + believed in England to have been derived from the name of a certain + Joseph Dunn, who was an indefatigable collecting bailiff. But in + very truth 'tis from the Italian _donare_, to give oneself up to + anything with ardour--to stick to it; in accordance with which, + _donar guanto_, or to give the glove, means to promise to pay or give + security. And if any philologist differs from me in opinion as to + this, why then--_let_ him diff! Which magnanimously sounding + conclusion, when translated according to the spirit of most who utter + it, generally means: + + "Let him be maledict, excommunicate, and damnated _ad inferos--in + saecula saeculorum_!--twice over!" + + + + +THE FRIAR'S HEAD OF SANTA MARIA MAGGIORE--THE LADY WHO CONFESSED FOR +EVERYBODY--HOLY RELICS + + + "He who speaks from a window or a pulpit, or the top of a good name + or any high place, should speak wisely, if he speak at all, unto + those who pass." + +The Church of Santa Maria Maggiore "remounts," as the Italians say, or +can be traced back to 700 A.D., but it was enlarged and renewed by the +architect Bueno in the twelfth century, and according to Pitre it was the +germ of a new style of architecture which we find much refined +(_ringentilata_) in Santa Maria del Fiore. "There were, regarding its +bell-tower, which no longer exists, many tales and curious anecdotes, +which might form a part of a fine collection of local legends." There is +still to-day on the wall above the little side-door facing the Via de' +Conti, a much worn head of stone, coming out of a round cornice, which is +in all probability the one referred to in the following legend: + +"There was once a condemned criminal being carried along to execution, +and on the way passed before the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore. One of +the friars put his head out of a little round window, which was just +large enough for it to pass through, and this was over the entrance on +the lesser side of the church, facing the Via de' Conti. As the +condemned passed by the friar said: + + "'Date gli da bere, 'un morira mai.' + "'Give him a drink and he never will die.' + +"To which the condemned replied: + + "'E la testa di costi tu 'un la levrai'. + "'And thy head shall stick where it is for aye.' + +"And so it came to pass that they could not get the head of the friar +back through the hole, so there he died. And some say that after they +got the body out they carried his likeness in stone and put it there in +the little round window, in remembrance of the event, while others think +that it is the friar himself turned to stone--_chi sa_?" + + * * * * * + +The conception of a stone head having been that of a person petrified for +punishment is of the kind which would spring up anywhere, quite +independently of tradition or borrowing; hence it is found the world +over. That ideas of the kind may be common, yet not in common, nor yet +uncommon, is shown by the resemblance of the remark of the friar: + + "Give him a drink and he never will die,"-- + +which was as much as to say that inebriation would cause him to forget +his execution--to a verse of a song in "Jack Sheppard": + + "For nothing so calms, + Our dolorous qualms, + And nothing the transit to Tyburn beguiles, + So well as a drink from the bowl of Saint Giles." + +There is a merrier tale, however, of Santa Maria Maggiore, and one which +is certainly far more likely to have occurred than this of the petrified +_pater_. For it is told in the ancient _Facetiae_ that a certain +Florentine nobleman, who was a jolly and reckless cavalier, had a wife +who, for all her beauty, was _bisbetica e cattiva_, capricious and +spiteful, malicious and mischievous, a daughter of the devil, if there +ever was one, who, like all those of her kind, was very devout, and went +every day to confession in Santa Maria Maggiore, where she confessed not +only her own sins, but also those of all her neighbours. And as she +dwelt with vast eloquence on the great wickedness of her husband--having +a tongue which would serve to sweep out an oven, or even a worse place +{150}--the priest one day urged the husband to come to confession, +thinking that it might lead to more harmony between the married couple. +With which he complied; but when the priest asked him to tell what sins +he had committed, the cavalier answered, "There is no need of it, Padre; +you have heard them all from my wife many a time and oft, and with them a +hundred times as many which I never dreamed of committing--including +those of all Florence." + +It was in the first Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, which stood on the +site of the present, that San Zenobio in the fourth century had walled +into the high altar an inestimable gift which he had received from the +Pope. This was "the two bodies of the glorious martyrs Abdon and Sennen, +who had been thrown unto wild beasts, which would not touch them, +whereupon they were put to death by swords in the hands of viler human +beasts." I may remark by the way, adds the observant Flaxius, that +relics have of late somewhat lost their value in Florence. I saw not +long ago for sale a very large silver casket, stuffed full of the remains +of the holiest saints, and the certificates of their authenticity, and I +was offered the whole for the value of the silver in the casket--the +relics being generously thrown in! And truly the mass of old bones, +clay, splinters, nails, rags with blood, bits of wood, dried-up eyes, _et +cetera_, was precisely like the Voodoo-box or conjuring bag of an old +darkey in the United States. But then the latter was heathen! "That is +a _very_ different matter." + + + + +BIANCONE, THE GIANT STATUE IN THE SIGNORIA + + + "_Fons Florentinus_.--In foro lympidas aquas fons effundit marmoreis + figuris Neptuni et Faunorum ab Amanate confectis."--_Templum Naturae + Historicum_. HENRICI KORNMANNI, A.D. 1614. + +The most striking object in the most remarkable part of Florence is the +colossal marble Neptune in the Fountain of the Signoria, by Ammanati, +dating from 1575. He stands in a kind of car or box, drawn by horses +which Murray declares "are exceedingly spirited." They are indeed more +so than he imagined, for according to popular belief, when the spirit +seizes them and their driver, and the bronze statues round them, they all +go careering off like mad beings over the congenial Arno, and even on to +the Mediterranean! That is to say, that they did so on a time, till they +were all petrified with their driver in the instant when they were +bounding like the billows, which are typified by white horses. + +Neptune has, however, lost his name for the multitude, who simply call +him the Biancone, or Great White Man; and this is the legend (given to me +in writing by a witch), by which he is popularly known: + + BIANCONE, THE GOD OF THE ARNO. + +"Biancone was a great and potent man, held in great respect for his +grandeur and manly presence, a being of tremendous strength, and the true +type of a magician, {152} he being a wizard indeed. In those days there +was much water in the Arno, {153} and Biancone passed over it in his car. + +"There was then in the Arno a witch, a beautiful girl, the _vera dea_ or +true goddess of the river, in the form of an eel. And Biancone finding +this fish every day as he drove forth in his chariot, spurned it away +_con cattivo garbo_--with an ill grace. And one day when he had done +this more contemptuously than usual, the eel in a rage declared she would +be revenged, and sent to him a smaller eel. But Biancone crushed its +head (_le stiaccio il chapo_). + +"Then the eel appeared with a little branch of olive with berries, and +said: + + "'Entro in questa carozza, + Dove si trove l'uomo, + L'uomo il piu potente, + Che da tutti e temuto; + Ed e un uomo grande, + E grande, e ben vero; + Ma il gran dio del Arno, + Il potente Biancone, + Non sara il solo potente; + Vi sara una piccola pesce, + Una piccola anguilla; + Benche piccola la sia; + Fara vedere la sua potenza + Tu Biancone, a mi, + Le magie, e siei mezzo stregone + Io una piccola anguillina, + Sono una vera fata, + E sono la Fata dell Arno, + Tu credevi d'essere + Il solo dio d'Arno, + Ma ci, no, io che sono + La regina, e la vera, + Vera dea qui del Arno.' + + "'Lo, I enter in this chariot! + Where I find the man of power, + Who is feared by all before him, + And he is a mighty being, + Great he is, there's no denying; + But the great god of the Arno, + The so powerful Biancone, + Is not all alone in power; + There's a little fish or eel, who, + Though but little, has the power, + Mighty man, to make thee tremble! + Biancone, thou art only + Unto me as half a wizard; + I, a little eel of the Arno, + Am the fairy of the river; + Thou didst deem thyself its ruler; + I deny it--for I only + Am the queen and the true goddess-- + The true goddess of the Arno.' + +"Having said this, she touched with the twig of olive the little eel whom +Biancone had killed, and repeated while touching it: + + "'Anguillina che dal Grande + Siei stata stiacciata, + Io con questo ramoscello + Ti faccio in vita tornare, + E al Grande, io, del Arno + Tutto il mio pensiero, + Tutto posso raccontare.' + + "'I, little eel, who by the mighty + Man hast been to death delivered, + Do call thee back unto the living! + Wake thee with this twig of olive! + Now unto this Biancone, + Thou who art too of the Arno, + Shalt speak out thy mind and freely.' + +"Then the little eel, resuscitated and influenced by the goddess of the +Arno, said: + + "'Biancone, tu che siei + Il potente dio dell' Arno, + L'anguilla discacciata, + Che tu ai discacciata, + E di te inamorata, + E di te piu potente, + E se tu la discaccerai, + Ti giura la vendetta, + E si vendichera. . . .' + + "'Biancone, Biancone! + Thou great spirit of the Arno, + Lo, the eel by thee despised + Turns again with love unto thee: + She surpasses thee in power; + If she is by thee rejected, + She will vow revenge upon thee, + And will be avenged truly.' + +"Biancone replied: + + "'Io non voglio amar donne, + Sia pure d'una bellezza + Da fare a cecare, + Ma per me non mi fa niente, + Non voglio amare donne, + Sara per bellezza una + Gran persona, ma non vero, + Per potenza, per che piu, + Piu potente di me non + Vi e alcun . . . ' + + "'I seek not the love of women. + Thou art of a dazzling beauty; + Unto that I am indifferent; + I seek not the love of ladies. + Thou may'st be full great in beauty, + Not in power, for in power + I shall ever be the greater.' + +"Then the eel arose {155} and said: + + "'Biancone, or guardami, + Guarda mi bene perche piu, + Non mi vedrai vedermi, + E se mi vedrai, + Non mi potrai toccare, + Dici che piu potente + Di te non ce nessuno, + Ma sa io la prima, + Mia potenza e quella + Di vederti inamorato, + Di me vere inamorato, + Ma che ora sono io, + Che ti discaccio per la tua, + Al te si guardami mi vedi.' + + "'Biancone, now regard me, + Look well at me now, for never, + Wilt thou ever more behold me, + Or if thou behold'st me, touch me, + And thou say'st that thou hast power, + And that none can rival with thee. + Thou shalt learn that I am stronger, + For I've power to make thee love me, + But 'tis I who now reject thee, + If thou doubtest--now behold me!' + +"And then, instead of an eel, appeared a maid of dazzling beauty, and +Biancone sought to embrace her, but could not, and said: + + "'Contentami una volta + Sola, o dea dell' Arno; + Lascia che ti abbraci + Una volta sola, o dea.' + + "'For a single time content me, + Lovely goddess of the Arno; + Let me but for once embrace thee, + Yield to me I pray, O fairy!' + +"But the goddess of the Arno replied: + + "'Una donna piu potente + Di te, non si lascia + Vincere da uno superbo; + Tuo pari mi basta di + Far ti vedere, che c'e + Persona ancora di te + Piu potente . . . Ora io + Mi voglio vendi care per che, + Tu mi ai discacciata, + Tante volte, ed ora invece + Tu saresti bene contento + Di abbraciarmi anche, + Anche or per una volta, + Ma no. Addio Biancone!' + + "'A woman who has greater power + Than thine will surely not be conquered + Merely by pride in outward seeming, + But now, in brief, I will content me + By proving mine the greater power; + I seek to avenge myself upon thee, + Since of old thou didst despise me + Many times, but now wouldst gladly, + Though it were but for once, embrace me-- + Farewell for ever, Biancone!' + +"And Biancone fled, but he always bore the beautiful goddess in his mind, +and could not forget her, so he too meditated a vengeance. + +"But the vengeance of a woman strikes more powerfully than that of a man. + +"One day when Biancone was passing over the Arno in his chariot, with all +his attendants, he thought he saw the eel engaged in forming the basin of +a fountain (_vasca_), and bear it away in a car, she herself being in it, +{156} and it was covered with glass; but in the time that he thought (or +dreamed) that he saw this, the eel appeared and said: + + "'Il momenta della mia vendetta + E arrivato, e ti giuro + Giuro che la mia vendetta + E potente, or Turanna, + Mia regina delle Fate, + E dea dell Arno, commanda + Che questa carroza sprafondi, + E che tu e la tua servitu, + Non vi potrete salvare.' + + "'Now the time to wreak my vengeance + Has arrived, and I swear thee + That my vengeance shall be fearful, + Very great, because my sovereign, + Turanna, queen of all the fairies, + Orders that thy chariot + Shall be firmly fixed for ever, + And that thou and all thy following + Never more canst hope for rescue.' + +"Then she sang again: + + "'Confino i tuoi servitori, + Quelli che ti aiut avanno + A discacciar sui, o + Diventare della forma, + Mezze bestie, mezzi uomini, + E tu o Biancone, + Che tanto grande siei, + Ti confino a stare sempre, + Sempre ritto e non potrete + Mai ragionare, ne camminare + Solo quando sara luna, + Luna piena, passero io + Ti vedro, e mi vedrai, + Ma parlarmi non potrai. + + "'Quando sara luna piena, + E che sara una notte, + Che sara mezza nuvola, + E mezza serena s'enderai, + Della tua carozza nei, + Nei momenti che la Luna + Resta sotto le nuvole, + E cosi potrei favellare, + Con tutte le statue, che ai + Attorno, allor tua carozza, + E col mio permesso potrai + Andare anche dai tuoi amici!' + + "'I hereby compel thy servants, + Those who aided thee, to vanish, + Or take forms half brute, half human. {158} + As for thee, O Biancone! + Thou who art so tall and stately, + Thou shalt stand erect for ever, + Without power to speak or wander, + Only when the full moon shining + Falls upon thee, I will pass thee, + I shall see thee; thou will see me, + Without power to address me! + + "'When the moon in full is shining, + Yet when clouds begin to gather; + Half in light and half in darkness, + Thou may'st only in the moment + When the moon is overclouded, + Leave thy chariot, and have converse + With the statues who are round thee, + Then thou may'st, by my permission, + Go among thy friends, then only.'" + + * * * * * + +I may here explain to the reader that this tale with its elaborate +invocations is not current as here given among the _people_. Such forms +and formulas are confined to the witches, who, as in all countries, are +the keepers of mysterious traditions. All that is generally heard as +regards this subject is, that when the full moon shines on Biancone at +midnight, he becomes animated, and walks about the Signoria conversing +with the other statues. + +The Neptune was, with horses and all, produced by Bartolommeo Ammanati +between 1564 and 1565. It has a certain merit of grandeur, but in lesser +degree is like its neighbour Cacus, by Baccio Bandinelli, which Benvenuto +Cellini justly regarded as resembling a mere bag of fat. When Michael +Angelo saw the Neptune he exclaimed: "Ammanato! Ammanato! che bel blocco +che hai sciupato!"--"Ammanato, what a fine block of marble thou hast +spoiled!" + +The Italians say that the satyr at the corner of the Palazzo Vecchio is a +copy, because the original was stolen one night in January in 1821, "and +is now one of the finest bronzes in the British Museum of London." It +may be so; there was a great deal of fine stealing in those days. I +suspect, however, that the truth is that as these images return to life +now and then, the satyr availed himself of his revivification to set +forth on his travels, and coming to London and finding good company in +the British Museum, settled down there. But truly, when I think of the +wanton and heartless destruction of beautiful and valuable old relics +which has gone on of late years in Florence, to no earthly purpose, and +to no profit whatever, I feel as if all the tales of such things being +stolen or sold away to foreign museums were supremely silly, and as if it +were all just so much saved from ruin--in case the tales are true. + + "_Haec fabula docet_," wrote Flaxius, "a strange lesson. For as it + was anciently forbidden to make images, because it was an imitation + of God's work; and secondly, because men believed that spirits would + enter into them--even so doth it become all novel-writers, romancers, + and poets, to take good heed how they portray satyrs, free-love + nymphs, and all such deviltry, because they may be sure that into + these models or types there will enter many a youthful soul, who will + be led away thereby to madness and ruin. Which is, I take it, the + most practical explanation for commandment, which hath been as yet + set _coram populo_." + + + + +THE RED GOBLIN OF THE BARGELLO + + + "Lord Foulis in his castle sat, + And beside him old Red-cap sly; + 'Now tell me, thou sprite, who art mickle of might, + The death which I shall die?'" + + --SCOTT'S _Border Minstrelsy_. + +The Bargello has been truly described as one of the most interesting +historical monuments of Florence, and it is a very picturesque type of a +towered mediaeval palace. It was partly burned down in 1322, and rebuilt +in its present form by Neri di Fioravanti, after which it served as a +prison. Restored, or modernised, it is now a museum. As I conjectured, +there was some strange legend connected with it, and this was given to me +as follows: + + IL FOLLETTO ROSSO. + +"The Red Goblin is a spirit who haunts the Bargello, or was there of old +in the prisons, _nelle carceri_, and he always foretold to every prisoner +what his sentence would be before it was pronounced. + +"He always appeared in the cell of the condemned, and first lighting a +candle, showed himself all clad in red, and said to the prisoner: + + "'Piangi, piangi, ma piangi forte, + E prepararti che e giunta + L'ora della tua morte.' + + "'Weep, oh weep full many a tear; + Make ready; thy hour for death is near.' + +"Then if the prisoner replied boldly: + + "'Anima chi siei! + Ti prego di volermi aiutare + A liberarmi dalla morte!' + + "'Spirit, whoe'er thou be, + I beg thee now for aid; + From death pray set me free!' + +Then the goblin would burst into a laugh and say: + + "'Non piangere, ridi, ridi! + Ma ride sempre, e spera + Che io ti aiutera!' + +"But if the prisoner had replied badly, or cursed, or said '_Vai al +diavolo_!' or '_Che il diavolo ti porti_!'--then there were heard +dreadful sounds, such as frightened all the prisoners and assistants, and +the goblin vanished crying: + + "'Woe, woe, and woe to thee! + For thou soon shalt punished be; + Away be led, to lose your head, + There is no hope for thee!' + +"And after that the man might well despair. Yet the Red Goblin was a +jolly sprite when not crossed, and made great sport for the prisoners, +who all knew him. He went into every cell, and would tell wild tales, +and relate to every one all that he, the prisoner, had done since he was +a boy, and how he came to be locked up, and what would be the end of it, +and told all this with such peals of laughter that the most unhappy were +fain to laugh with him. + +"Then the assistants and the director hearing such sounds, thought it was +the prisoners rioting, but could not detect them. {161a} And the spirit +relieved many innocent men from punishment, and especially visited those +condemned to wear the iron collar or _gogna_, which was fastened to a +post, but at the Bargello it was on the Campanile outside, in sight of +all the people. {161b} + +"Now there was a young man in the prison who was good at heart, and +deeply repented that he had done wrong, and now feared that he indeed was +in the power of Satan, and destined to be in prison for all this life and +in _inferno_ all the next. + +"And when he was thus sunk in misery one night, he heard him, and was in +great alarm, but it said, 'Fear not, for I am the protecting spirit of +the prisoners in the Bargello, and have come to free thee; put thy trust +in me and I will save thee!' + +"Then he told the youth how he was to act, and bade him say certain +things when examined, and follow closely all the goblin would whisper to +him; but whether it was his fault or his failure, he missed every point +and went wrong in his replies, the end being that he was condemned to +prison for life. Truly it went to his heart to think that while he lived +he should always see the sun looking like a chess-board, {162} and +bitterly reflected on the proverb: + + "'Ne a torto ne a ragione, + Non ti lasciar metter prigione.' + + "'Whether you're right or wrong, my man, + Keep out of prison as long as you can.' + +"But it went most bitterly to his heart to think that he had by his own +stupidity and want of study lost the chance of freedom. And for some +time the Red Goblin never came near him. But at last the prisoner heard +him call, and then the spirit said, 'Now thou see'st to what a pass thy +neglect of my advice has brought thee. Truly _il diavolo non ti +tenterebbe_--the devil takes no pains to tempt such a fool as thou, for +he knows that he will get him without the trouble of asking. And yet I +will give thee one more chance, and this time be thou wide awake and +remember that _a buona volonta_, _non manca facolta_--where there's a +will there's a way.' + +"Now there was a great lord and mighty man of the state who had been in +the Bargello, and greatly comforted by the Red Goblin, who now went unto +this Signore, speaking so well of the young man that the latter ere long +had a new trial. And this time, I warrant you, he studied his case like +a lawyer; for _asino punto_, _convien che trotte_--when an ass is goaded +he must needs trot--and the end thereof was that he trotted out of +prison, and thence into the world, and having learned repentance as well +as the art of watching his wits and turning them to account, prospered +mightily, and to his dying day never forgot to pray for the Red Goblin of +the Bargello." + + * * * * * + +There have been other spirits which haunted prisons; there was one in the +Bastile, and the White Ladies of Berlin and Parma are of their kind. +This of the Bargello is certainly the household sprite with the red cap, +in a short shirt, who was very well known to the Etruscans and Romans, +and afterwards to the Germans, the _Lutin_ of the French castles, the +Robin Goodfellow of England, and the Domovoy of the Russians. His +characteristics are reckless good nature mingled with mischief and +revenge; but he is always, when not thwarted, at heart a _bon garcon_. +Of the Bargello I have also the following anecdotes or correlative +incidents: + + GIORGIO. + +"Truly I will not swear that this is a story of the Bargello, for I am +very particular as to truth, Signore, but I will swear that 'tis of a +prison in Florence, and that when it happened the Bargello was the only +prison there. And it runs thus: Giorgio, whoever he was, had killed a +man, and as the law ran in his case, in those strange days, he could not +be executed till he had confessed or owned the deed. And he would not +confess. + +"Now there was a lawyer, _un notaio_, _o chi che si fosse_ (or whoever he +was), who declared that he would bring to pass with a trick what justice +had not been able to do with torture. So going to the prison, he called +for wine, and when they had drunk deep he cried heartily: + +"'_Orsu_, _Giorgio_, _stiamo un poco allegri_, _cantiam qualche +cosa_'--'Come now, Giorgio, let's be merry and sing something!' + +"'_Come ti piace_'--'As you please,' quoth Master Giorgio. 'You sing one +line.' + +"So the notary began, touching a lute: + + "'Giorgi ha morto l'huomo.' + "'Giorgio once killed a man.' + +"To which Giorgio, who was sharp as a razor, added: + + "'Cosi non canta Giorgio.' + "'But it was not thus that Giorgio sang.' + +"So it passed into a proverb, meaning as much as _Cosi non dico io_--I +don't say that; or _Cosi non l'intendo io_--I don't see it in that light. +And so the notary found that you cannot see Verona from the top of every +hill. + +"And there is another story of a prisoner, who had long curling hair in +the old Florentine style. Hair, Signore, like charity, may cover much +sin. Now this man, after he had been a while in the Bargello, got his +sentence, which was to have his ears cropped off. But when the _boia_ or +hangman came to do the job, he found that the man had had his ears cut +off smooth long before. Whence came the proverb: + + "'Quel che havea mozzi gli orecchi, + E'ci sara de gli arreticati.' + + "'He whose ears had been cut away, + Fooled another, or so they say.' + +Which is a proverb to this day, when a man finds that somebody has been +before him. + +"And it may have been that Donatello, the great sculptor, was in the +Bargello when he said, '_E'rise a me ed io riso a lui_'--'He laughs at +me, and I do laugh at him.' Donatello was _in quistione_, or in trouble +with the law, and in prison, for having killed one of his pupils. The +Marquis di Ferrara asked him if he was guilty. But Donatello had already +received from the Marquis a license to slay any one in self-defence, and +so he made that answer." + + A LEGEND OF THE BARGELLO. + +"One day a young man, who had been gaming and lost, threw some dirt at an +image of the Virgin in one of the numerous shrines in the city, blaming +her for his bad luck. He was observed by a boy, who reported it to the +authorities, and was soon arrested. Having confessed that he did it in a +rage at having lost, he was hanged the same night from one of the windows +of the Bargello." {164} + + * * * * * + +Thereby adding another ghost or _folletto_ to those who already haunt the +place. It should be noted that according to Italian witch-lore a ghost +is never simply the spirit of the departed as he _was_, but a spirit +transformed. A witch becomes a _fata_, good or bad, and all men +something more than they were. + +Among other small legends or tales in which the Bargello is referred to, +I find the following, of which I must first mention that _debito_ in +Italian means not only debt but duty, and that _fare un debito_ is not +only to get into debt, but to do what is just, upright, and honourable. + + "It happened once, long ago, that a certain good fellow was being + escorted, truly not by a guard of honour, but by several + bum-bailiffs, to the Bargello, and met a friend who asked him why he + was in custody. To which he replied, 'Other men are arrested and + punished for crime or villainy, but I am treated thus for having + acted honourably, _per aver fatto il debito mio_.' + + "And it happened to this same man that after he had been entertained + for a time at the public expense in that _gran albergo_, or great + hotel, the Bargello, that the Council of Eight, or the public + magistracy, gave him a hearing, and told him that he must promptly + pay the debt which he owed, which was one of fifty _scudi_ or crowns. + To which he replied that he could not. Then the chief of the Eight + said, 'We will find out a way to make you pay it, be sure of that.' + To which he answered, '_De gratia_, _Signore_, while you are about + it, then, make it a hundred, for I have great need just now of + another fifty crowns.'" + +Prisoners in the Bargello, as elsewhere, were subject to the most +appalling injustice and cruelty. Thus we are told of Cosimo di Medici, +when he was doing all in his power to assassinate or poison Piero +Strozzi, that he was always very circumspect as regarded the venom, "and +did not use it till he had studied the effects and doses on condemned +prisoners in the Bargello." But "condemned prisoners" here means +doubtless those who were simply condemned to be made the subjects of such +experiments, as may be supposed, when we learn that Cosimo obtained the +recipe of making up a poison from Messer Apollino, secretary of Piero +Luigi, by _torturing_ him. It was thus they did in good old pious times. +Poisoning, as a most familiar and frequent thing, even in England, did +not pass out of practice, even in politics, until that great beginning of +a moral era, the Reformation. + +"_Haec fabula docet_," wrote the good and wise Flaxius on the revise, +"that as a _Zoccolone_ friar is the best priest for a peasant, so even a +_buon diavolo_, or jolly devil, or a boon blackguard who knows his men, +is, perhaps, generally the best guide for certain kinds of rough sinners, +often setting them aright in life where a holy saint would be _inter +sacrem et saxum_, or in despair. As for poisoning, I fear _that_ cup, +far from passing away, is, under another form, passed round far more +frequently now than it ever was. For Francois Villon declared that lying +gossip, tittle-tattle, and second-hand slander were worse than poison +(which simply kills the body), and this with infinite refinement prevails +far more in modern society (being aided by newspapers) than it ever did +of yore anywhere. _This_ is the poison of the present day, which has +more _veneficae_ to spread it than the Locustan or Borgian venoms ever +found. Now for a merrier tale!" + + "If all that's written, talked or sunge + Must be of the follies of menne, + 'Twere better that no one moved his tongue, + Or that none could use a penne. + + "Jog on, jog on the footpath-waye, + And cheerily jump the stile; + A merry heart goes all the daye, + A sad one tires in a mile!" + + + +LEGENDS OF SAN LORENZO +THE CANON AND THE DEBTOR, AND THE CATS IN THE CLOISTER + + + "Pazienza, paziendum! + Disse il diavolo a Sant Antonium." + + "A scratching he heard and a horrible groan, + As of hundreds of cats with mollrowing and moan: + 'Oh!' said he to himself, 'sure the devil is come.'" + + --_Mr. Jones and the Cats_. + +The celebrated Church of San Lorenzo is a grand museum of art, even among +the many of its kind in Florence. It was originally a Roman Christian +basilica, built by the matron Giuliana, which edifice was consecrated +A.D. 373 by Saint Ambrose, and called the Basilica Ambrosiana. It was +partially rebuilt by Brunelleschi in 1435, and completed with sad +alteration, and finished by Antonio Manetti. As is well known, or has +been made known by many great poets, it contains the grandest statuary by +Michael Angelo in its monuments of Lorenzo de' Medici and his uncle +Giuliano. + +This church served as a sanctuary in the olden time, and of this there is +a tale told in the old collections of facetiae, which, though trifling, +is worth recalling as connected with it. + + IL DEBITORE. + +"Messer Paolo dell' Ottonaio, a Canon of San Lorenzo in Florence, a +cheerful and facetious man, found a certain citizen one of his friends, +who had taken refuge as a debtor in the church; and the latter stood in +sorrowful and pensive attitude, having in no wise the appearance of one +who had found a treasure, or who was going to be married, or to dine with +the Duke, or anything of the kind. + +"'Man, what aileth thee?' cried the Canon. 'Has thy wife beaten thee, or +the cat broken thy best crockery, or thy favourite housemaid run away?' + +"'What I have,' replied the poor man, 'is ten times worse than all that +put together.' And so, _havendo caro di sfogarsi_, being glad to relieve +himself, he told Messer Paolo all his sorrows, wailing that his +creditors, having taken all his property, threatened his person, swearing +that they would put him in the _Stinche_, which was so horrible a prison +that it was infamous even then all the world over as an _inferno_ where +every one confined at once became _infermo_, or a hell which made men +ill, and that, being in despair, he would have taken his own life had he +not come across a charming book on patience which had consoled him. + +"Messer Paolo asked him whether the creditors had been paid in full. + +"'Alas, no!' replied the debtor; 'not one half; nor will they ever get +the rest, for I have naught.' + +"'In that case,' answered the Canon, 'it seems to me that it is your +creditors and not you who should read that charming book, since it is +evident that, as they are to have nothing till the Greek Kalends, or on +Saint Never's day, that they must have patience whether they will or no.' + +"Well, as the saying is, _Pazienza vince scienza_ (Patience beats +knowledge), and _Chi ha pazienza vede le sue vendette_ (Wait long enough +and you'll get your revenges), the Canon got for the poor man money +enough to make a composition with his creditors, and he, having +expectations which they knew not of, compounded with them for five per +cent., on conditions written, that he should pay all up 'as he earned +more money.' + +"And so he was set free, and it befell on a day that some relation died +and left him a fortune, whereupon his creditors summoned him to pay his +old debts, which he refused to do. Then they cited him before the +Council as a fraudulent debtor, but he replied by showing his quittance +or agreement, and declared that he was only obliged to pay out of his +_earnings_, and that he had inherited his money and not earned it. +Whereupon there was great dispute, and one of the creditors who had shown +himself most unfeeling and inhuman protested that to get money in any way +whatever was to _guadagnare_ (a gain by labour), since it was labour even +to put it in one's pocket. Now, this man had a handsome wife, who, it +was generally known, greatly enriched her husband by dishonouring him, at +which he willingly winked. + +"Whereupon the debtor asked the magistrate if an ox carried off a bundle +of hay on his horns, which had by chance been stuck into it, he could be +said to have earned it by honest labour? At which there was such a roar +of laughter, and so many cries of 'No! no! no!' that the court went no +further, and acquitted the culprit." + + * * * * * + +There is an odd bit of folklore attached to this church. As may be +supposed, and as I have frequently verified, "the idle repetition of vain +words," as the heathen do, or prayers in a language which people do not +understand, generally lead to most ridiculous perversions of the unknown +tongue. A popular specimen of this is the _Salve Regina delle Ciane +Fiorentine di San Lorenzo_, or the "_Salve Regina_ of the Florentine +women of the lower class, as given in San Lorenzo." _Ciana_ is given by +Barretti as a specially Florentine word. + + LA SALVE REGINA. + +"Sarvia della Regina, dreco la Misericordia, vita d'un cieco, spezia +nostra, sarvia tua, te chiamao esule, fili e vacche! + +"Ate sospirao, i' gemeo fetente in barca e lacrima la valle. + +"L' la eggo educata nostra, _illons in tus_. + +"Misericordia se' cieli e in ossi e coperte, e lesine benedette, frutti, +ventri, tubi, novi, posti cocche, esilio e tende! + +"O crema, o pia, o dorce virgola Maria!--Ammenne!" + + * * * * * + +This is perfectly in the spirit of the Middle Ages, of which so much is +still found in the cheapest popular Italian literature. I have elsewhere +mentioned that it was long before the Reformation, when the Church was at +the height of her power, that blasphemies, travesties of religious +services, and scathing sarcasms of monkish life reached their extreme, +and were never equalled afterwards, even by Protestant satirists. The +_Epistolae Obscurorum Virorum_ of Hutten and Reuchlin was an avowed +caricature by an enemy. The revelations of monkish life by Boccaccio, +Cintio, Arlotto, and a hundred other good Catholics, were a thousand +times more damaging than the _Epistolae_, because they were the +unconscious betrayals of friends. + +Since writing the foregoing, I have obtained the following, entitled, +_The Pater Noster of the Country People in the Old Market_, or, + + IL PATER NOSTER DEI BECERI DI MERCATO. + +"Pate nostro quisin celi sanctifice tuore nome tumme; avvenia regno +tumme; fia te volunta stua, in celo en terra. + +"Pane nostro cotediano da nobis sodie, e dimitti nobis debita nostra, +sicutte ette nos dimittimus debitori nostri, sette ananossie in due +casse, intenzione sedie nosse e mulo.--Amenne!" + + * * * * * + +There is, however, this great difference in the two prayers here given, +that the _Salve Regina_ is intended for a jest, while the paternoster is +given as actually taken down from a _ciana_, and is rather a specimen of +dialect than a _jeu d'esprit_. The following _Ave Maria_ is also +serious, and simply a curiosity of language:-- + + L'AVE MARIA. + +"Avemmaria grazia piena, domino teco beneditta e frustris, e mulieri +busse e benedetti fruttus ventris tui eiusse! + +"Santa Maria Materdei, ora pro nobisse, pecatoribusse, tinche, tinona, +mortis nostrisse.--Ammenne!" + + * * * * * + +These specimens of Italianised Latin are not so grotesque as some which +were written out for me in all seriousness by a poor woman. A specimen +of the latter is given in my work on "Etruscan-Roman Traditions." + +Last of all, there came to me a small tale of little value, save that it +professes to account for the reason why so many cats have ever flourished +and been nourished in the cloister of San Lorenzo, these felines being, +indeed, in a small way among the lions of Florence. It is as follows:-- + + I GATTI DI SAN LORENZO. + +"In the cloisters of San Lorenzo there are many cats, and every evening +people may be seen who go there to feed them, among whom are many old men +and women. But these cats were long ago themselves human, that is to +say, they were once all wizards and witches, who bear their present form +for punishment of an evil deed. + +"There was once a very wealthy and powerful family in Florence, at the +head of which was a gentleman and lady who had an only daughter, in whom +was all their love and hope. Among their servants in a higher position +was an old woman, who was very vindictive and easily offended, so that +she could brood over deadly revenge for years for the least affront, and +she fancied she had a great many, because when she had neglected her duty +at times she had been scolded by her mistress or master. + +"Now this old woman knew that death or disaster to the daughter would +drive the parents mad; and so having recourse to witchcraft, she put into +the drink of the young lady a decoction, the result of which was that she +began to waste away, growing weaker and paler, without feeling any pain. + +"Then her parents, in great fear, consulted the best physicians, who did +no good, for indeed it was a case beyond their skill. And at last, +beginning to believe that there was something unearthly in it all, they +sent for an old woman who cured by occult art. {171} And when she came +she looked steadily at the girl, then frowned and shook her head, and +asked for a ribbon or cord, no matter what, so that it were one which the +young lady had worn about her waist. With this she measured accurately +the height of the patient from head to foot, and then the width from hand +to hand, it being desirous that the arms be of equal length; but there +was the disproportion of the thickness of a piece of money. Then the +witch said: + +"'This is none of my affair as regards the cure. Your daughter is +bewitched, and I can indeed make the witch appear, but to beat her and +compel her to remove the spell depends on you alone.' + +"Now they, suspecting the old servant, sent for her, but she had +disappeared and could not be found. Then the doctress took a caldron, +and put into it hot water and the undergarments of the girl and certain +herbs, and boiled them all together, singing an incantation, and, taking +a knife, sharpened it on the table, whetting it on the chemise of the +young lady. + +"Then the old servant woman appeared at the door, against her will, +forced by the power of the spell, in an agony of rage and bitterness; but +she was at once seized and beaten, whereupon she consented to unbewitch +the girl, who speedily recovered. + +"Now Florence was at that time fearfully afflicted with evil witches, who +defied all authority, and spread disease and death far and wide; but this +affair of the bewitched lady being made known, both priests and laymen +rose up in wrath, and the sorceress fled for sanctuary to the cloisters +of San Lorenzo. + +"Then to save their lives the _Strege_ made a compromise with the +priests, and it was agreed that they should no longer live as witches, or +do any harm, but all live and die as cats in the cloister, where they +should be regularly fed, and exist in peace. Which agreement has been +duly carried out to this day, and among these cats are many who were once +witches in human form hundreds of years ago." + + * * * * * + +This narrative is not so much a story as an account of the manner in +which bewitchment is undone by another witch. The reader will find the +incantations in the chapter entitled "The Spell of the Boiling Clothes," +in my work on "Etruscan-Roman Remains." One of the most serious riots +which has occurred in Milan for many years took place March 3, 1891, when +the populace tortured terribly and tried to kill a witch, who had, it was +believed, been detected by this spell. + + * * * * * + +"_Haec fabula docet_," adds the wise Flaxius, "this story suggests a +reason why a certain kind of ladies of ecclesiastical proclivities are +always called tabbies. And that there is something in it I can well +believe, knowing one who, when she calls her rector or bishop '_De-ar +man_!' does so in a manner which marvellously suggests the purring of a +cat. And the manner in which the tabby pounces on the small birds, mice, +and gold-fish of others--_i.e._, their peccadilloes, and small pets or +pleasures, which in good faith do her no harm--seems like literally +copying the feline--upon line. . . . + +"Oh! ye who visit the cloister, and see the cats, think well on this +legend, and especially on the deep identity of witches with tabbies! + +"And for a moral, note that, with all their sins, what the witches and +cats aimed at above all things was _food_, with which they have remained +content, according to the exquisite lyric by the divine Shelley, p. 661, +Dowden's edition:-- + + "'This poor little cat + Only wanted a rat, + To stuff out its own little maw, + And it were as good + Some people had such food + To make them _hold their jaw_.'" + + + + +LEGEND OF THE PIAZZA SAN BIAGIO + + + "For by diabolical art he assumed varied forms, even the human, and + deceived people by many occult tricks."--FROMANN, _Tractatus de + Fascinatione_, 1675. + +This is a slight tale of light value, and not new, but it has assumed +local colour, and may amuse the reader. + +"It was a great art of witches and sorcerers of old to give a man or +woman by art the appearance of another person, and this they called +'drawing white lines with charcoal,' and there is many a fine tale about +it. Now it was about the time when Berta spun and owls wore silk cloaks +that a Signore Nannincino lived in the old Piazza San Biagio. He had +many small possessions in Florence, but the roast chickens of the supper, +or his great piece, was an estate in the country called the Mula a +Quinto, for which all his relations longed, like wolves for a fat sheep. +And Nannincini, being sharp to a keen edge, and knowing how to lend water +and borrow wine, had promised this estate in secret to everybody, and got +from them many a gratification, and supped and dined with them for years, +yet after this died without leaving a will. + +"Then six of his relations assembled and resolved to secure the property, +though they invoked the devil. And to aid them they took a certain scamp +named Giano di Selva, who somewhat resembled the departed Nannincino, and +he, calling in a witch of his acquaintance, was made by sorcery to look +as much like the defunct as two beads of the same rosary. So Nannincino +was removed and Giano put in his place, where he lay still for an hour, +and then began to show signs of life. And after a time he called for a +notary and began to make his will. First he left a house to one, and his +sword to another, and so on, till it came to the Mula a Quinto. + +"'And who shall have the Mula a Quinto, dear good uncle?' asked a nephew. + +"'That,' replied the dying man, 'I leave to my good friend, the only true +friend I ever had, the noblest of men--' + +"'But what is his _name_?' asked the nephew. + +"'Giano di Selva,' gasped the dying man. And it was written down by the +notary, and the will was signed, and the signer died immediately after. +All their shaking could not revive him. + +"The tale ends with these words: _E cosi ingannati gli ingannatori_, +_rimase Giano herede del podere_--And thus the biters being bit, d'ye +see, Giano took a handsome property." + +"And does his ghost still promenade the palace?" + +"To oblige you, Signore, for this once--_place a lei il comandare_--it +does. The ghost walks--always when the rent fails to come in, and there +is no money in the treasury--_cammina_, _cammina per un fil di +spada_--walks as straight as an acrobat on a rope. But I cannot give you +a walking ghost of a rascal to every house, Signore. If all the knaves +who made fortunes by trickery were to take to haunting our houses in +Florence, they would have to lie ten in a bed, or live one hundred in a +room, and ghosts, as you know, love to be alone. _Mille grazie_, Signore +Carlo! This will keep _our_ ghost from walking for a week." + +"Of which remark here made that '_the ghost doth walk_,'" comments the +sage Flaxius, "when money is forbidden unto man (which is so commonly +heard in theatrical circles when the weekly salary is not paid), I have +no doubt that it comes from the many ancient legends which assign a +jealous guardian sprite to every hoard. And thus in Spenser's wondrous +'Faerie Queene' the marvellous stores in Mammon's treasury, 'embost with +massy gold of glorious guifte,' were watched by + + "'An ugly feend more fowle than dismall day; + The which with monstrous stalk behind him stept, + And ever as he went dew watch upon him kept.' + +"The which quotation is in its turn otherwise curious since it gave, I +doubt not, the original suggestion to Coleridge of the verse wherein +mention is made in simile of one who walks in tear and dread, and dares +not turn his head-- + + "'For well he knows a griesly fiend + Doth close behind him tread.' + +"'More or less accurately, my masters, more or less.' ''Tis sixty years +since'--I read the original." + + + + +THE SPIRIT OF THE PORTA SAN GALLO + + + "And both the undying fish that swim + Through Bowscale Tarn did wait on him: + The pair were servants of his eye + In their immortality; + They moved about in open sight, + To and fro, for his delight." + + --WORDSWORTH, _Poems of the Imagination_. + +The reader should never at once infer that a legend is recent because it +is attached to a new place. Spirits and traditions are like the goblin +of Norse tale, who moved with the family. The family changed its home to +get rid of him, but on the way the elf popped his head out and remarked, +"_Wi flutten_" ("We're flitting" or moving). The ghost of Benjamin +Franklin long haunted the library which he had founded in Philadelphia, +and when the library or books were transferred to a new building, the +ghost went with them and his statue. And in like manner the legend of +the religious person, male or female, who is also a _fish_ has travelled +over many lands, till it came to the _vasca_ or basin of the Porto San +Gallo. Thus Leonard Vair, in his charming _Trois Livres des Charmes_, +_Sorcelages ou Enchantemens_, Paris, 1583, tells us that "there is a +cloister in Burgundy, by which there is a pond, and in this pond are as +many fish as there be monks in the cloister. And when one of the fish +swims on the surface of the water and beats with its tail, then one of +the monks is ever ill." But there is a mass of early Christian or +un-Christian folklore which identifies "Catholic clergy-women" with fish, +even as Quakers are identified in Philadelphia with shad. In Germany all +maids just in their teens are called _Backfisch_, that is, pan-fish or +_fritures_, from their youth and liveliness, or delicacy. We may read in +Friedrich that the fish is a common Christian symbol of immortality, +which fully accounts for all legends of certain of them living for ever. +The story which I have to tell is as follows:-- + + LO SPIRITO DELLA VASCA DELLA PORTA SAN GALLO. + +"In this fountain-basin is found a pretty little fish, which is always +there, and which no one can catch, because it always escapes with great +_lestezza_ or agility. + +"And this is the queen of all the other fish, or else the Spirit of the +Fountain. + +"This spirit, while on earth, was a beautiful girl who loved an official, +and he fell ill and was in the military hospital. + +"The parents of the maid opposed her marriage with this official, though +he was so much in love with her that it and anxiety had made him ill. +Then the maid became a nun so that she might be near him in illness, and +nurse him in his last moments, which indeed came to pass, for he died, +nor did she long survive him. + +"Then her mother, who had magic power (_essendo stata una fata_ {177}), +regretted having opposed her daughter's love and that of the young man, +since it had caused the death of both. And to amend this she so +enchanted them that by night both became _folletti_ or spirits haunting +the hospital, while by day the maid becomes a little fish living in the +fountain. But when seen by night she appears as a pretty little nun +(_una bella monachina_), and goes to the hospital to nurse the invalids, +for which she has, indeed, a passion. And if any one of them observes +her, he feels better, but in that instant she vanishes, and is in the +arms of her lover. But sometimes it happens that he becomes jealous of a +patient, and then he vexes the poor man in every way, twitching off his +covering, and playing him all kinds of spiteful tricks." + + * * * * * + +It is otherwise narrated, in a more consistent, and certainly more +traditionally truthful manner, that both the lovers are fish by day and +_folletti_ by night. This brings the legend to close resemblance with +the undying fish of Bowscale Tarn, recorded in Wordsworth's beautiful +song at the feast of Brougham Castle in the "Poems of the Imagination." + + * * * * * + +"'Tis worth noting," pens the observant Flaxius on this, "that in days of +yore fish, feminines, and fascination were considered so inseparable that +Dr. Johannes Christian Fromann wrote a chapter on this mystical trinity, +observing that music was, as an attractor, connected with them, as shown +by dolphins, syrens, Arions, and things of that sort. And he +quoted--yea, in the holy Latin tongue--many instances of fishers who +entice their finny prey by playing flutes: + + "'Which thing I doubted till I saw that Doubt + Pursued, its refutation oft begets, + When in America I once found out + That shad were caught by means of castin' nets!'" + + + + +STORY OF THE PODESTA WHO WAS LONG ON HIS JOURNEY +A LEGEND OF THE DUOMO + + + "Were I ten times as tedious, I would find it in my heart to bestow + it all on you."--_Dogberry_. + +This little tale is told by the Florentine Poggio, who was born in 1380 +and died in 1459, yet lived--in his well-known _Facezie_. But as it ever +was and is a folk-story, independently of the great jester, I think it +worthy of a place in this collection. + +"There was once a podesta sent from Rome to govern Florence, and truly he +was of that kind who to a farthing's worth of sense have ten ducats' +value in self-conceit; for if vanity could have kept a man warm, he never +would have had need to buy blankets. And this was most shown in his +belief that he was a great orator, though he was so intolerably stupid +and slow that his speeches were like the post-rider of Giordano, who in +good weather sometimes got as far as five miles a day. + +"Now he was to be inducted into office in the Cathedral, in the presence +of the _priori_, or notables of the city of Florence, and so begun a +discourse in which he first of all described how great a man he had been +as senator in Rome, and what he had done, and what everybody else +connected with him had done, and all the details of his departure from +the Eternal City; and then depicted a banquet given to him at Sutro, and +so went on, telling everything about everybody, till, after several hours +of terribly tiresome discourse, he had got no farther than Siena. + +"Now by this time, as Poggio words it, 'This excessive length of +wearisome narration had so exhausted his auditors that they began to fear +that the entire day would be spent on the road,' and at last, as the +shades of night began to fall, one who was present rose and said: + +"'Monsignore, I beg you to remember that it is growing late, and you must +really get on a little faster in your journey, for if you are not in +Florence to-day, the gates will be shut, and unless you get here in time +you will not be allowed to enter, and thus you will miss being ordained, +and cannot enter on your office.' + +"Which having heard, the man of many words promptly concluded his speech +by saying that he was really in Florence." + + * * * * * + +Southey, in "The Doctor," has narrated a number of instances of tedious +discourse, but none, I think, quite equal to this. + +There is a shadow under every lamp, a devil's chapel close by every +church, and even of the venerable and holy Duomo of Florence there are +such tales as the following: + + LA MESSA DE' VILLANI. + +"If there is any faith to be put in old stories and ancient books, even +the ladies and gentleman, to say nothing of priests, used such language +in their ordinary conversation, in good old Medici times, as would not be +heard among any but the lowest people now-a-days. Well, as the saying +is: + + "'Ne di tempo, ne di Signoria, + Non ti dar malinconia.' + + "'Fret not thyself for time long past away, + For weather, nor for what the great may say.' + +"Well, it happened one morning in Florence that a _gentil donna_, who, I +take it, was more _donna_ than truly _gentil_, whatever her rank may have +been, meeting at the door of the Duomo a very ordinary and rough figure +of her acquaintance, who had only made himself look more vulgar by new +and gaudy clothes, asked him as he came out: + +"'Is the Cads' Mass {180} over already?' + +"To which he, in nowise put out, promptly replied: + +"'Yes, Madonna, and that of the Demireps is just going to begin; {181} +only hurry, and you'll be there in time with the rest of 'em!' + +"And that lifted him to celebrity, for in those famous days a small joke +often made a great reputation. Ah! Signore--a great many of us have +been born into this world four hundred years too late--more's the pity! +However, the lady learned the truth of the old proverb, '_Guardati del +villan_, _quando ha la camicia bianca_'--'Look out for a vulgar fellow +when he has a clean shirt on,' for then he thinks himself fine enough to +say anything saucy. + +"And there is yet another story of the same sort, Signore; indeed, I +think that while the world lasts there will always be a few of them left +for steady customers, under the counter, like smuggled goods in Venice; +and it is this: It befell once that a Florentine fell in love with a +lady, who was like her mother, _come il ramo al tronco s'assomiglia_--'as +the bough to the tree, or very much worse than she ought to be;' for the +dear mamma was like the Porta San Niccolo, only not so well famed. + +"However, the gentleman wedded her, never heeding the proverb: + + "'Let every wooer be afraid + To wed a maiden not a maid; + For sooner or later, as 'tis said, + She'll turn again unto her trade.' + +"However, in this case the proverb got the lie, for the lady after she +was married behaved with great propriety, and yet was often reminded that +she had better have repented before she sinned than after; for many would +not speak to her, for all her wealth, till she was well convinced that +_Che profitta ravedersi dopo il fatto_? + + "'When the deed has once been done, + What is the use of repenting, my son?' + +"So it befell one morning that the poor soul was praying in the Cathedral +or Duomo, as many another poor sinner had done before her (doubtless on +the same spot), when a noble lady, who had never been found out in any +naughtiness (some people are certainly very lucky in this world, Signore +Carlo!), came by, and seeing the penitent, drew in her robe, turned up +her nose, and retreated as if the other had the plague. To which the +Magdalen replied, in a sad but firm voice, 'Madonna, you need not be +afraid to touch me, for I assure you that the malady (of which I have, I +trust, been thoroughly cured) attacks none save those who wish to have +it.'" + + * * * * * + +When standing in the Cathedral, the visitor may remember that here Santo +Crescenzio, who died in 424, once wrought a miracle, thus recorded in his +"Life" of the fourteenth century: + + "A poor man had come into the Cathedral and saw no light (_i.e._, was + blind), and going to where Saint Crescentius was, implored him with + great piety that he would cause the light to return unto him. And + being moved to pity, he made the sign of the cross in the eyes of the + blind man, and incontinently the light was restored unto him. Saint + Crescentius did not wish this to be made known, and pretended to know + nothing about it, but he could not conceal such miracles." + +Of which the immortal Flaxius remarks, that "it is singular that so many +saints who wished to keep their miracles unknown had not the forethought +to make silence a condition of cure. Also, that of all the +wonder-working once effected by the holy men of the Church, the only gift +now remaining to them is the miraculous power of changing sons and +daughters into nephews and nieces; the which, as I am assured, is still +as flourishing as ever, and permitted as a proof of transubstantiation." +Thus it is that simple heretics deride holy men. And Flaxius is, I bid +ye note, a sinner, in whose antique, unsanctified derision I most +assuredly do take no part, "it being in bad form in this our age to +believe or disbelieve in anything," and therefore in bad style to laugh +at aught. + +It may be worth recalling, when looking out on the Cathedral Square, that +it was here that San Zenobio performed another great miracle, recorded in +all his lives, but most briefly in the poetical one: + + "Then did he raise an orphan from the dead, + The only son of a poor widow, he, + A cart with oxen passing o'er his head, + Died in the Duomo Square in misery; + But though all crushed, the Saint restored his life, + And, well and gay and bright as stars do shine, + He went to his mother, and the pious wife + Gave thanks to God for mercy all divine." + +Which being witnessed, says the _Vita San Zenobii_, all who were present +began to sing, "_Gloria tibi Domine qui mirabilia per servos tuos in +nobis operari dignatus es_, _gloria sit tibi-i et laus in +saecu-la--sec-u-lo-o-o-rum_, _A-men_. + +Which, if they sung it as I heard it sung yesterday in the Cathedral of +Siena, must have had an extremely soporific effect, lulling all others to +sleep, and causing them to see beatific visions beyond all belief. I had +in my boyhood a teacher named Professor Sears C. Walker, who was wont to +tell how he had once heard in a rural New England village a church +congregation sing: + + "Before thy throne the angels bow-wow-wow-ow!" + +But to hear the _bow-wow_ in perfection, one must go to Rome. A pack in +full cry or a chorus of owls is nothing to it. But let us pass on to a +fresh story. + + + + +LEGENDS OF THE BOBOLI GARDENS: THE OLD GARDENER, AND THE TWO STATUES AND +THE FAIRY + + + "He found such strange enchantment there, + In that garden sweet and rare, + Where night and day + The nightingales still sing their roundelay, + And plashing fountains 'neath the verdure play, + That for his life he could not thence away; + And even yet, though he hath long been dead, + 'Tis said his spirit haunts the pleasant shade." + + --_The Ring of Charlemagne_. + +A great showman, as I have heard, once declared that in establishing a +menagerie, one should have the indispensable lion, an _obligato_ +elephant, a requisite tiger, an essential camel, and imperative monkeys. +One of the "indispensable lions" of Florence is the Boboli Gardens, +joining the Pitti Palace, which, from their careful preservation in their +original condition, give an admirable idea of what gardens were like in +an age when far more was thought of them than now as places of habitual +resort and enjoyment, and when they entered into all literature and life. +Abraham a Santa Clara once wrote a discourse against gardens, as making +life too happy or simple, basing his idea on the fact that sin originated +in the Garden of Eden. + +The Boboli Gardens were planned by Il Tribolo for Cosimo di Medici. The +ground which they occupy is greatly varied, rising high in some places, +from which very beautiful views of Florence, with its "walls and +churches, palaces and towers," may be seen. Of their many attractions +the guide-book remarks poetically in very nearly the following words:-- + + "Its long-embowered walks, like lengthened arbours, + Are well adapted to the summer's sun; + While statues, terraces, and vases add + Still more unto its splendour. All around + We see attractive statues, and of these + A number really are restored antiques, + And many by good artists; best of all + Are four by mighty Michel Angelo, + Made for the second Julius, and meant + To decorate his tomb. You see them at + The angles of the grotto opposite + The entrance to the gardens. Of this grot + The famous Redi sang in verse grotesque: + + "Ye satyrs, in a trice + Leave your low jests and verses rough and hobbly, + And bring me a good fragment of the ice + Kept in the grotto of the Garden Boboli. + With nicks and picks + Of hammers and sticks, + Disintegrate it + And separate it, + Break it and split it, + Splinter and slit it! + Till at the end 'tis fairly ground and rolled + Into the finest powder, freezing cold." + +There are also, among the things worth seeing, the Venus by Giovanni of +Boulogne (called di Bologna); the Apollo and Ceres by Baccio Bandinelli; +the group of Paris carrying off Helen by V. de' Rossi, and the old Roman +fountain-bath and obelisk. The trees and flowers, shrubbery and +_boschetti_, are charming; and if the reader often visits them, long +sitting in the sylvan shade on sunny days, he will not fail to feel that +strange enchantment which seems to haunt certain places, and people them +with dreams, if not with elves. + +The fascination of these dark arbours old, and of the antique gardens, +has been recognised by many authors, and there are, I suppose, few +visitors to Florence who have not felt it and recalled it years after in +distant lands as one recalls a dream. Therefore, I read with interest or +sympathy the following, which, though amounting to nothing as a legend, +is still valuable as setting forth the fascination of the place, and how +it dates even from him who gave the Boboli Gardens their name: + + IL GIARDINO BOBOLI. + +"The Boboli Garden is the most beautiful in Europe. + +"Boboli was the name of the farmer who cultivated the land before it was +bought by Cosimo de' Medici and his wife Eleanora. + +"After he had sold the property he remained buried in grief, because he +had an attachment for it such as some form for a dog or a cat. And so +great was his love for it that it never left his mind, nor could he ever +say amen to it; for on whatever subject he might discourse, it always +came in like one who will not be kept out, and his refrain was, 'Well, +you'll see that my place will become _il nido degli amori_ (the nest of +loves), and I myself after my death will never be absent from it.' His +friends tried to dissuade him from thinking so much of it, saying that he +would end by being lunatic, but he persevered in it till he died. + +"And it really came to pass as he said; for soon after his death, and +ever since, many have on moonlight nights seen his spirit occupied in +working in the gardens." + + * * * * * + +The story is a pretty one, and it is strangely paralleled by one narrated +in my own Memoirs of the old Penington mansion in Philadelphia, the +gardens of which were haunted by a gentle ghost, a lady who had lived +there in her life, and who was, after her death, often seen watering the +flowers in them by moonlight. And thus do-- + + "printless footsteps fall + By the spots they loved before." + +The second legend which I recovered, relating to the Boboli Gardens, is +as follows: + + LE DUE STATUE E LA NINFA. + +"There are in the Boboli Gardens two statues of two imprisoned kings, and +it is said that every night a beautiful fairy of the grotto clad in white +rises from the water, emerging perfectly dry, and converses with the +captive kings for one hour, going alternately from one to the other, as +if bearing mutual messages, and then returns to the grotto, gliding over +the ground without touching the grass with her feet, and after this +vanishes in the water." + +"This tale is, as I conceive," writes the observant Flaxius, "an +allegory, or, as Petrus Berchorius would have called it, a +_moralisation_, the marrow whereof is as follows: The two captive kings +are Labour and Capital, who have, indeed, been long enchained, evil +tongues telling each that the other was his deadly foe, while the fairy +is Wise Reform, who passes her time in consoling and reconciling them. +And it shall come to pass that when the go-betweens or brokering +mischief-makers are silenced, then the kings will be free and allied." + + "Then indeed, as you may see, + All the world will happy be!" + +_Vivat Sequenz_! Now for the next story. + + + + +HOW LA VIA DELLA MOSCA GOT ITS NAME + + + "Puer--abige Muscas!" + + --_Cicero de Orat._, 60. + +The following story contains no new or original elements, as it is only +an ordinary tale of transformation by witchcraft, but as it accounts for +the origin of the name of a street in Florence I give it place:-- + + LA VIA DELLA MOSCA. + +"This is the way that the Via della Mosca, or the Street of the Fly, got +its name. There once dwelt in it, in a very old house, a family which, +while of rank, were not very wealthy, and therefore lived in a retired +manner. There were father, mother, and one daughter, who was wonderfully +beautiful--_un vero occhio di sole_. + +"And as the sun hath its shadow, so there was a living darkness in this +family in a _donna di servizio_, a servant woman who had been many years +with them, who had a daughter of her own, who was also a beauty of a +kind, but as dark as the other was fair; the two were like day and night, +and as they differed in face, so were they unlike in soul. For the young +signora had not a fault in her; she would not have caused any one pain +even to have her own way or please her vanity, and they say the devil +will drop dead whenever he shall meet with such a woman as _that_. +However, he never met with this young lady, I suppose, because he is +living yet. And the young lady was so gentle of heart that she never +said an ill word of any one, while the maid and her mother never opened +their mouths save for gossip and slander. And she was so occupied with +constant charity, and caring for poor children, and finding work for poor +people, that she never thought about her own beauty at all, and when +people told her that _chi nasce bella_, _nasce maritata_ (Whoever is born +pretty is born to be married), she would reply, 'Pretty or ugly, there +are things more important in life than weddings.' + +"And so far did she carry this, that she gave no heed at all to a very +gallant and handsome yet good-hearted honourable wealthy young gentleman +who lived in a palazzo opposite, and who, from watching and admiring her, +had ended by falling desperately in love. So he made a proposal of +marriage to her through her parents, but she replied (having had her +mind, in truth, on other things) that she was too much taken up with +other duties to properly care for a husband, and that her dowry was not +sufficient to correspond to his wealth, however generous he might be in +dispensing with one. And as she was as firm and determined as she was +gentle and good, she resolutely kept him at arm's length. But firmness +is nothing against fate, and he 'who runs away with nimble feet, in the +war of love at last will beat.' {189} + +"Now, if she was indifferent to the young signore, the dark maid-servant +was not, for she had fallen as much in love with him as an evil, selfish +nature would permit her, and she planned and plotted with her mother by +night and by day to bring about what she desired. Now, the old woman, +unknown to all, was a witch, as all wicked women really are--they rot +away with vanity and self-will and evil feelings till their hearts are +like tinder or gunpowder, and then some day comes a spark of the devil's +fire, and they flash out into witches of some kind. + +"The young signore had a great love for boating on the Arno, which was a +deeper river in those days; he would often pass half the night in his +boat. Now, the mother and daughter so contrived it that the young +signorina should return very late on a certain night from visiting the +poor, accompanied by the old woman. And when just in the middle of the +Ponte Vecchio the mother gave a whistle, and lo! there came a sudden and +terrible blast of wind, which lifted up the young lady and whirled her +over the bridge into the rushing river underneath. + +"But, as fate would have it, the young man was in his boat just below, +and fortune fell down to him, as it were, from heaven; for seeing a form +float or flit past him in the water and the darkness, he caught at it and +drew it into the boat, and truly Pilate's wife was not so astonished when +the roast capon rose up in the dish and crowed as was this boatman at +finding what he had fished up out of the stream. + +"There is a saying of a very unlucky contrary sort of man that _casco in +Arno ed arse_ (He fell in the Arno and burnt himself). But in this case, +by luck, the falling of the young lady into the river caused her heart to +burn with love, for so bravely and courteously and kindly did the young +signore behave, conveying her promptly home without a sign of love-making +or hint of the past, that she began to reconsider her refusal, and the +end thereof was a betrothal, by which the mother and daughter were +maddened to think that they had only hastened and aided what they had +tried to prevent. + +"Now, it is true that bad people put ten times as much strong will and +hard work into their evil acts as good folk do into better deeds, because +the latter think their cause will help itself along, while the sinners +know perfectly well that they must help themselves or lose. So the witch +only persevered the more, and at last she hit on this plan. With much +devilish ado she enchanted a comb of thorns, so that whoever was combed +with it would turn into a fly, and must remain one till the witch bade +the victim assume his or her usual form. + +"Then on the bridal morn the old woman offered to comb out the long +golden locks of the young lady, and she did so, no other person being +present, so she began her incantation: + + "'Earthly beauty fade away, + Maiden's form no longer stay, + For a fly thou shalt become, + And as a busy insect hum, + _Hum--hum--brum--brum_! + _Buzz-uz-uz_ about the room! + + "'Ope thine eyes and spread thy wings, + Pass away to insect things. + Now the world will hate thee more + Than it ever loved before + When it hears thy ceaseless hum, + _Buzz-uz-uz_ about the room!' + +"And hearing this, the bride sank into a deep sleep, during which she +changed into a fly, and so soared up to the ceiling and about the room, +buzzing indeed. + +"Now, with all her cleverness, the witch had missed a stitch in her +sorcery, for she had not combed hard enough to _draw blood_, being afraid +to wake the maid; hence it came to pass that instead of a small common +fly she became a very large and exquisitely beautiful one, with a head +like gold, a silver body, and beautiful blue and silver wings like her +bridal dress. And she was not confined to buzzing, for she had the power +to sing one verse. However, when the change took place, the old woman +rushed from the room screaming like mad, declaring that her young +mistress was a witch who had turned into a fly as soon as she had touched +her with a consecrated comb which had been dipped in holy water, and to +this she added many lies, as that a witch to avoid the holy sacrament of +marriage always changed her form, and that she had always suspected the +signorina of being a witch ever since she had seen her fly in the wind +over the Arno to the young signore. + +"But when they went to look at the fly, and found it so large and +beautiful, they were amazed, nor were they less astonished when they +heard it begin to buzz with a most entrancing strangely sweet sound, and +then sing:-- + + "'Be ye not amazed that I + Am enchanted as a fly, + Evil witchcraft was around me, + Evil witches' spells have bound me: + Now I am a fly I know, + But woe to her who made me so!' + +"And when the young signore stretched out his hand, the fly came buzzing +with joy and lighted like a bird on his finger, and this she did with +great joy whenever any of the poor whom she had befriended came to see +her, and so she behaved to all whom she had loved. And when it was +observed that the fly had no fear of holy things, but seemed to love +them, all believed in her song. + +"Till one day the young signore, calling all the family and friends +together, said: 'This is certainly true, that she who was to have been my +wife is here, turned into a fly. And as for her being a witch, ye can +all see that she fears neither holy water nor a crucifix. But I believe +that these women here, her nurse and daughter, have filled our ears with +lies, and that the nurse herself is the sorceress who hath done the evil +deed. Now, I propose that we take all three, the fly, the mother, and +daughter, and hang the room with verbena, which I have provided, and +sprinkle the three with much holy water, all of us making the _castagna_ +and _jettatura_, and see what will come of it.' + +"Then the two witches began to scream and protest in a rage, but as soon +as they opened their mouths, holy water was dashed into their faces, +whereat they howled more horribly than ever, and at last promised, if +their lives should be spared in any manner, to tell the whole truth, and +to disenchant the bride. Which they forthwith did. + +"Then those present seized the witches, and said: 'Your lives shall +indeed be spared, but it is only just that ere ye go ye shall be as +nicely combed, according to the proverb which says, "Comb me and I'll +comb thee!"' + +"Said and done, but the combing this time drew blood, and the mother and +daughter, shrinking smaller and smaller, flew away at last as two vile +carrion-flies through the window. + +"And as the story spread about Florence, every one came to see the house +where this had happened, and so it was that the street got the name of +the _Via della Mosca_ or Fly Lane." + + * * * * * + +There is a curious point in this story well worth noting. In it the +sorceress lulls the maiden to sleep before transforming her, that is, +causes her death before reviving her with a comb of thorns. Now, the +thorn is a deep symbol of death--naturally enough from its dagger-like +form--all over the world wherever it grows. As Schwenck writes: + + "In the Germanic mythology the thorn is an emblem of death, as is the + nearly allied long and deep slumber--the idea being that death kills + with a sharp instrument which is called in the Edda the sleep-thorn, + which belongs to Odin the god of death. It also occurs as a person + in the Nibelungen Lied as Hogni, Hagen, 'the thorn who kills + Siegfried.' The tale of Dornroschen (the sleeping beauty), owes its + origin to the sleep-thorn, which is, however, derived from the + death-thorn, death being an eternal sleep." + +This is all true, and sleep is like death. But the soothing influence of +a comb produces sleep quite apart from any association with death. + +Apropos of flies, there is a saying, which is, like all new or eccentric +sayings, or old and odd ones revived, called "American." It is, "There +are no flies on him," or more vulgarly, "I ain't got no flies on _me_," +and signifies that the person thus exempt is so brisk and active, and +"flies round" at such a rate, that no insect has an opportunity to alight +on him. The same saying occurs in the _Proverbi Italiani_ of Orlando +Pescetti, Venice, 1618, _Non si lascia posar le mosche addosso_ (He lets +no flies light on him). + +When I was a small boy in America, the general teaching to us was that it +was cruel to kill flies, and I have heard it illustrated with a tale of +an utterly depraved little girl of three years, who, addressing a poor +fly which was buzzing in the window-pane, said: + +"Do you love your Dod, 'ittle fy?" + +"Do you want to _see_ your Dod, 'ittle fy?" + +"Well" (with a vicious jab of the finger), "you SHALL!" + +And with the last word the soul of the fly had departed to settle its +accounts in another world. Writing here in Siena, the most fly-accursed +or Beelzebubbed town in Italy, on July 25th, being detained by illness, I +love that little angel of a girl, and think with utter loathing and +contempt of dear old Uncle Toby and his "Go--go, poor fly!" True, I +agree with him to his second "go," but there our sentiments diverge--the +reader may complete the sentence for himself--out of Ernulphus! + +On which the wise Flaxius comments as follows on the proof with his red +pencil: + + "It hath been observed by the learned that the speed of a fly, were + he to make even a slight effort to go directly onwards, would be from + seventy to eighty miles an hour, during which transit he would find + far more attractive food, pleasanter places wherein to buzz about, + and more beautiful views than he meets with in this humble room of + mine, wherein I, from hour to hour, do with a towel rise and slay his + kind. Oh, reader! how many men there are who, to soaring far and + wide in life amid honeyed flowers and pleasant places, prefer to buzz + about in short flights in little rooms where they can tease some one, + and defile all they touch as domestic gossips do--but, 'tis enough! + _Mutato nomine de te fabula narratur_!" + + + + +THE ROMAN VASE +A LEGEND OF BELLOSGUARDO + + + "From Tuscan Bellosguardo + Where Galileo stood at nights to take + The vision of the stars, we have found it hard, + Gazing upon the earth and heavens, to make + A choice of beauty."--ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING. + +Bellosguardo is an eminence on a height, crowned with an ancient, +castle-like monastery, from which there is a magnificent view of +Florence. It is a haunted legendary spot; _fate_ and witches sweep round +its walls by night, while the cry of the _civetta_ makes music for their +aerial dance, and in the depths of the hill lie buried mystic treasures, +or the relics of mysterious beings of the olden time, and the gnome of +the rocks there has his dwelling in subterranean caves. Of this place I +have the following legend from Maddalena: + + IL VASO ROMANO. + +"There was, long ago, in the time of Duke Lorenzo di Medici, a young +gardener, who was handsome, clever, and learned beyond the other men of +his kind, a man given somewhat to witchcraft and mysteries of ancient +days, for he had learned Latin of the monks and read books of history. + +"And one day when he was working with his companions in the garden of +Bellosguardo, taking out stones, they came to an old Roman vase, which +the rest would fain have broken to pieces as a heathenish and foul thing, +because there was carved on it the figure of a beautiful Pagan goddess, +and it was full of the ashes of some dead person. But the young man +suddenly felt a great passion, a desire to possess it, and it seemed as +if something said to him, '_Con questo vaso cie un mistero_.' + + "'Mine own in truth that vase shall ever be, + For there is in it some strange mystery.' + +"So he begged for it, and it was readily granted to him. And looking at +it, he perceived that it was carved of fine marble, and that the figure +on it was that of a beautiful nymph, or a Bellaria flying in the air, and +there came from the ashes which it held a sweet odour of some perfume +which was unknown to him. Now as he had, _sentito ragionare tanto di +fate_, heard much talk of supernatural beings, so he reflected: 'Some +_fata_ must have dwelt here in days of old, and she was here buried, and +this vase is now as a body from which the spirit freely passes, therefore +I will show it respect.' + +"And so he hung round the neck of the vase a wreath of the most beautiful +and fragrant roses, and draped a veil over it to shield it from dust, and +set it up under cover in his own garden, and sang to it as follows: + + "'Vaso! o mio bel vaso! + Di rose ti ho contornato. + La rosa e un bel fior, + Piu bello e il suo odor." + + "'Vase, oh lovely vase of mine! + With roses I thy neck entwine; + The rose is beautiful in bloom, + More beautiful its sweet perfume, + The finest rose above I place, + To give the whole a crowning grace, + As thou dost crown my dwelling-place + Another rose I hide within, + As thou so long hast hidden been, + Since Roman life in thee I see, + Rosa Romana thou shalt be! + And ever thus be called by me! + And as the rose in early spring + Rises to re-awakening, + Be it in garden, fair, or plain, + From death to blooming life again, + So rise, oh fairy of the flowers, + And seek again these shady bowers! + Come every morning to command + My flowers, and with thy tiny hand + Curve the green leaf and bend the bough, + And teach the blossoms how to blow; + But while you give them living care, + Do not neglect the gardener; + And as he saved your lovely urn, + I pray protect him too in turn, + Even as I this veil have twined, + To guard thee from the sun and wind: + Oh, Fairy of the Vase--to you, + As Queen of all the Fairies too, + And Goddess of the fairest flowers + In earthly fields or elfin bowers, + To thee with earnest heart I pray, + Grant me such favour as you may.' {196} + +"Then he saw slowly rising from the vase, little by little, a beautiful +woman, who sang: + + "'Tell me what is thy desire, + Oh youth, and what dost thou require? + From realms afar I come to thee, + For thou indeed hast summoned me, + With such sweet love and gentleness, + That I in turn thy life would bless, + And aye thy fond protectress be. + What would'st thou, youth, I ask, of me?' + +"And the young man replied: + + "'Fair lady, at a glance I knew, + Thy urn and felt thy spirit too, + And straight the yearning through me sped, + To raise thee from the living dead; + I felt thy spell upon my brow, + And loved thee as I love thee now. + Even as I loved unknown before, + And so shall love thee evermore, + And happiness enough 'twould be + If thou would'st ever live with me!' + +"Then the spirit replied: + + "'A debt indeed to thee I owe, + And full reward will I bestow; + The roses which thou'st given me + With laurel well repaid shall be; + Without thy rose I had not risen + Again from this my earthly prison, + And as it raised me to the skies, + So by the laurel thou shalt rise!' + +"The youth answered: + + "'Every evening at thy shrine + Fresh roses, lady, I will twine; + But tell me next what 'tis for fate + That I must do, or what await?' + +"The fairy sang: + + "'A mighty mission, youth, indeed + Hast thou to fill, and that with speed, + Since it depends on thee to save + All Florence from a yawning grave, + From the worst form of blood and fire, + And sword and conflagration dire. + Thou dost the Duke Lorenzo know; + Straight to that mighty leader go! + The Chieftain of the Medici, + And tell him what I tell to thee, + That he is compassed all about + With armed enemies without, + Who soon will bold attack begin, + Linked to conspiracy within; + And bid him ere the two have crossed, + To rise in strength or all is lost, + Ring loud the storm-bell in alarms, + Summon all Florence straight to arms: + Lorenzo knows well what to do. + Take thou thy sword and battle too! + And in the fray I'll look to thee: + Go forth, my friend, to victory.' + +"Then the young man went to the Duke Lorenzo, and told him, with words of +fire which bore conviction, of the great peril which threatened him. +Then there was indeed alarming and arming, and a terrible battle all +night long, in which the young man fought bravely, having been made +captain of a company which turned the fight. And the Grand Duke, +impressed by his genius and his valour, gave him an immense reward. + +"So he rose in life, and became a _gran signore_, and one of the Council +in Florence, and lord of Bellosguardo, and never neglected to twine every +day a fresh wreath of roses round the Roman vase, and every evening he +was visited by the fairy. And so it went on well with him till he died, +and after that the spirit was seen no more. The witches say that the +vase is, however, somewhere still in Florence, and that while it exists +the city will prosper; but to call the fairy again it must be crowned +with roses, and he who does so must pronounce with such faith as the +gardener had, the same incantation." + + * * * * * + +What is remarkable in the original text of this tale is the rudeness and +crudeness of the language in which it is written, which is indeed so +great that its real spirit or meaning might easily escape any one not +familiar with such composition. But I believe that I have rendered it +very faithfully. + +There seems to be that, however, in Bellosguardo which inspires every +poet. Two of the most beautiful passages in English literature, one by +Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and another by Hawthorne, describe the views +seen from it. The castle itself is deeply impressed on my memory, for +during the past nine months I have never once raised my eyes from the +table where I write without beholding it in full view before me across +the Arno, even as I behold it now. + +I cannot help observing that the mysterious sentiment which seized on the +hero of this tale when he found his virgin relic, was marvellously like +that which inspired Keats when he addressed his Ode to a Grecian Urn: + + "Thou still unravished bride of quietness! + Thou foster-child of Silence and slow Time, + Sylvan historian who canst thus express + A flowery tale more sweetly than our rhyme: + What leaf-fringed legend haunts about thy shape?" + +That which I have here given is truly a leaf-fringed legend, for it is +bordered with the petals of roses and embalmed with their perfume, and +one which in the hands of a great master might have been made into a +really beautiful poem. It came near a very gay rhymer at least in the +Duke Lorenzo de' Medici, whose songs, which were a little more than free, +and rather more loose than easy, were the delight and disgrace of his +time. And yet I cannot help rejoicing to meet this magnificent patron of +art and letters at so late a day in a purely popular tale. There are +_men_ of beauty who are also a joy for ever, as well as things, and +Lorenzo was one of them. + +It is worth noting that just as the fairy in this tale reveals to Lorenzo +that Florence is threatened by enemies, just so it happened that unto +Saint Zenobio, standing rapt in divine contemplation in his cavern, it +was announced that the same city was about to be assailed by cruel +barbarians, who, as Sigbert relates in his Chronicle of 407 A.D., were +the two hundred thousand Goths led by Radagasio into Italy. But they +were soon driven away by the Saint's prayers and penitence. It would be +curious if one legend had here passed into another: + + "So visions in a vision live again, + And dreams in dreams are wondrously transfused; + Gold turning into grey as clouds do change, + And shifting hues as they assume new forms." + +Apropos of Saint Zenobio of Florence, I will here give something which +should have been included with the legend of the Croce al Trebbio, but +which I obtained too late for that purpose. It would appear from the +_Iscrizioni e Memorie di Firenze_, by F. Bigazzi (1887), that the +_pillar_ of the cross was really erected to commemorate a victory over +heretics, but that the cross itself was added by the Saints Ambrosio and +Zenobio, "on account of a great mystery"--which mystery is, I believe, +fully explained by the legend which I have given. The inscription when +complete was as follows: + + SANCTUS AMBROSIUS CUM SANCTO ZENOBIO PROPTER GRANDE MISTERIUM + HUNC CRUCEM HIC LOCAVERUNT. ET IN MCCCXXXVIII NOVITER DIE + 10 AUGUSTI RECONSECRATA EST P. D. M. FRANCISC. FLOR. + EPISCOPUM UNA CUM ALIIS EPISCOPIS M. + +A slightly different reading is given by Brocchi (_Vite de' Santi +fiorentini_, 1742). + +"Of which saint, be it observed," writes Flaxius, "that there is in +England a very large and widely extended family, or _stirps_, named +Snobs, who may claim that by affinity of name to Zenobio they are +lineally or collaterally his descendants, even as the Potts profess +connection with Pozzo del Borgo. But as it is said of this family or +_gens_ that they are famed for laying claim to every shadow of a shade of +gentility, it may be that there is truly no Zenobility about them. Truly +there are a great many more people in this world who are proud of their +ancestors, than there ever were ancestors who would have been proud of +them. The number of whom is as the sands of the sea, or as Heine says, +'more correctly speaking, as the mud on the shore.' + + "'The which, more eath it were for mortall wight, + To sell the sands or count the starres on hye; + Or ought more hard, then thinke to reckon right . . . + Which--for my Muse herselfe now tyred has, + Unto another tale I'll overpas.'" + + + + +THE UNFORTUNATE PRIEST +A LEGEND OF LA VIA DELLO SCHELETRO + + + "Fear and trembling Hope, + Silence and Foresight--Death the Skeleton, + And Time the Shadow."--WORDSWORTH. + + "If God were half so cruel as His priests, + It would go hard, I ween, with all of us." + +I have elsewhere remarked that there is--chiefly about the Duomo--a group +of small streets bearing the dismal names of Death, Hell, Purgatory, +Limbo, Crucifixion, Our Lady of Coughing (_delle Tosse_), The (last) Rest +of Old Age, Gallows Lane (_Via della Forca_), The Tombs, The Way of the +Discontented, {201} Dire Need, Small Rags, Fag-End or Stump, Bad Payers, +and finally, the Via dello Scheletro, or Skeleton Street. To which there +belongs, as is appropriate, a melancholy legend. + + LA VIA DELLO SCHELETRO. + +"There once dwelt in what is now called the Street of the Skeleton a +priest attached to the Cathedral, who was in every respect all that a +good man of his calling and a true Christian should be, as he was pious, +kind-hearted, and charitable, passing his life in seeking out the poor +and teaching their children, often bringing cases of need and suffering +to the knowledge of wealthier friends--which thing, were it more +frequently done by all, would do more to put an end to poverty than +anything else. + + "'But he who is in everything most human + May highest rise and yet the lowest fall; + And when a brave kind heart meets with _the_ woman, + Our greatest duties seem extremely small, + And those which were the first became the least: + Even so it happened to this gentle priest. + + "'In the old dwelling where he had his home, + Which otherwise had been most drear and dull + At morn or eve did oft before him come + A girl as sweet as she was beautiful; + Full soon they learned that both in head and heart + Each was to each the very counterpart. + + "'There is in every soul of finer grain + A soul which is in self a soul apart, + Which to itself doth oft deep hid remain, + But leaps to life when Love awakes the heart. + Then as a vapour rises with the sun, + And blends with it, two souls pass into one. + + "'And so it came that he would sometimes kiss + Her lovely face, nor seemed it much to prove + That they in anything had done amiss. + Until, one night, there came the kiss of Love, {202} + Disguised in friendly seeming like the rest-- + Alas! he drove an arrow to her breast. + + "'Then came the glow of passion--new to both-- + The honeymoon of utter recklessness, + When the most righteous casts away his oath, + And all is lost in sweet forgetfulness, + And life is steeped in joy, without, within, + And rapture seems the sweeter for the sin. + + "'Then came in its due course the sad awaking + To life and its grim claims, and all around + They found, in cold grim truth, without mistaking, + These claims for them did terribly abound; + And the poor priest was brought into despair + To find at every turn a foe was there. + + "'To know our love is pure though passionate, + And have it judged as if both foul and base, + Doth seem to us the bitterness of fate; + Yet in the world it is the usual case. + By it all priests are judged--yea, every one-- + Never as Jesus would Himself have done. + + "'Because the noblest love with passion rings, + Therefore men cry 'tis _all_ mere sexual sense, + As if the rose and the dirt from which it springs + Were one because of the same elements: + Therefore 'tis true that, of all sins accurst, + Is Gossip, for it always tells the worst. + + "'So Gossip did its worst for these poor souls. + The bishop made the priest appear before him, + And, as a power who destiny controls, + Informed him clearly he had hell before him, + And if he would preserve the priestly stole, {203a} + Must leave his woman--or else lose his soul! + + "'Now had this man had money, or if he, + Like many of his calling, had been bold + With worldly air, then all this misery + Might have been 'scaped as one escapes the cold + By putting on a sheepskin, warm and fine; + But then hypocrisy was not his line. + + "'His love was now a mother, and the truth + Woke in him such a deep and earnest love, + That he would not have left her though in sooth + He had been summoned by the Power above; + And so the interdict was soon applied, + But on that day both child and mother died. + + "'She, poor weak thing, could not endure the strain, + So flickered out, and all within a day; + And then the priest, without apparent pain, + Began mysteriously to waste away, + And, shadow-like and silent as a mouse, + Men saw him steal into, or from, the house. + + "'And thinner still and paler yet he grew, + With every day some life from him seemed gone, + And all aghast, though living, men still knew + He had become a literal skeleton; + And so he died--in some world less severe + Than this to join the one he held so dear. {203b} + + "'Yet no one knew when 'twas he passed away + Out of that shadowy form and 'scaped life's power, + For still 'twas seen beneath the moon's pale ray, + Or gliding through the court at twilight hour. + But there it still is seen--and so it came + The Via del Scheletro got its name.'" + +There is not a word of all this which is "Protestant invention," for +though I have poetised or written up a very rude text, the narrative is +strictly as I received it. There is one point in it worth noticing, that +it is a matter of very general conviction in Italy that in such matters +of Church discipline as are involved in this story, it is the small flies +who are caught in the web, while the great ones burst buzzing through it +without harm, or that the weak and poor (who are very often those with +the best hearts and principles) are most cruelly punished, where a bold, +sensual, vulgar _frate_ makes light of and easily escapes all +accusations. + +There is something sadly and strangely affecting in the conception of a +simply good and loving nature borne down by the crush of the world and +misapplied morality--or clerical celibacy--into total wretchedness--a +diamond dissolved to air. One in reading this seems to hear the sad +words of one who thought his own name was written in water: + + "I am a shadow now, alas! alas! + Upon the skirts of human nature dwelling + Alone. I chant alone the holy mass, + While little signs of life are round me kneeling, + And glossy bees at noon do fieldward pass, + And many a chapel bell the hour is telling, + Paining me through: those sounds grow strange to me, + And thou art distant in Humanity!" + + + + +THE MYSTERIOUS FIG-TREE +A LEGEND OF THE VIA DEL FICO + + + "In every plant lie marvellous mysteries, + In every flower there is a dream divine; + The fig-tree bears the measure of a life, + And, as it leaves or fruits, our lives do pass, + And all things in each other subtly blend." + + "Ha chiappato il fico--_ficum capit_."--_Old Proverbs_. + + "Quidam itidem medium digitum ostendunt, idque in Hispania adhuc + dicitur fieri, et FICA appellator, hic illudendi actus, de quo Eryc. + Puteanus, _loc. cit._, p. 70."--_Curiosus Amuletorum Spectator_, D. + Wolf, 1692. + +The following tale is, for reasons which I will subsequently explain, one +of the most remarkable which I have collected: + + LA VIA DEL FICO. + +"There stood formerly in the Via del Fico a very ancient palace with a +garden, in which there grew a fig-tree which was said to have grown of +itself, or without ever having been planted. This tree bore much fruit +of great beauty. + +"But however proud the owner of the tree was of its beauty, or however +much he might desire to have its fruit, something always strangely +occurred to prevent its being enjoyed. For when any one was about to +pluck it, there suddenly appeared a great black dog, who, seizing men or +women by their garments, dragged them away, beginning to howl and bay. +{205} And then they hurried away and let the figs alone, in order to +make the dog cease his terrible unearthly baying; for it is believed to +be an omen of death when a dog utters such sounds, it being such a +presage of disaster as when a _civetta_ or small owl hoots on the roof. + +"However, it sometimes happened that the dog did not come, but those who +took and ate the figs fared just as badly all the same. For they soon +began to feel ill and suffer dire pains, and when they had gone into +their bedrooms and laid down, there always entered a beautiful girl clad +in white, who began to whirl round (_a girarsi_) or spin, making all the +time a great buzzing sound, until horror came over them, which when she +perceived, she vanished. + +"And many tried also to lop off boughs from the fig-tree, but they were +found the second night replaced by a perfect new growth with fully ripe +fruit. And it was not the least marvel of the tree that it was always in +full leaf, with abundance of ripe figs on it, even in winter, when there +was snow on the ground. + +"One day men digging in the garden found a tablet of stone or metal on +which was inscribed: + + "'Il fico rispettate + E non la toccate,' + E non cercate + Neppure mangiarne.' + + "'Respect the tree, and let it be, + From branch to root, nor touch its fruit! + Of itself the tree did grow, + From a dog who long ago, + Enchanted by the fairies' power, + Was buried here in mystic hour; + Therefore we bid you let it stand, + And if you follow the command + You will be happy all your days, + But woe to him who disobeys!' + +"Now, the owner of the palazzo and garden was a man who had no faith in +old legends, or love for such mysteries as these, and so he said, 'It is +time to put an end to all this superstition, and I am determined to at +once see whether all my prosperity depends on a fig-tree; so do you cut +it down and tear it up, root and branch, utterly.' + +"This was at once done by the labourers, but, while doing so, they heard +sounds as of wailing and great lamenting in the earth beneath them. And +when they, astonished, asked the signore to listen to the voices, he +replied, 'Away with your superstitions; we will see this time whether the +tree will grow or return again.' + +"Truly it did not return, but passed away for ever, and with it all the +property and prosperity of the lord. For in time he had to sell all he +had, and, losing what he got, died in poverty. Then those who had to go +in the street where his palace had been would say, '_Andiamo nella Via +del Fico_,' just as they say, '_Andar per la Via de' Carri_,' but meaning +to 'go in the way of what is worthless or poverty-stricken,' and so it +was that the street came by its name." + + * * * * * + +This strange tale, which is evidently of great antiquity, and deeply +inspired with real witch tradition, has, indeed, nothing in common with +the pretty fairy stories which are so generally presented as constituting +the whole of popular narrative folklore. It was not made nor intended to +serve as a pleasing tale for youth, but to embody certain ideas which the +witch-teacher explained to the pupil. The first of these is, that the +_fig-tree_ planted under certain circumstances became a kind of Luck of +Eden Hall to its possessor. This story comes from the Etruscan-Roman +land, where traditions have been preserved with incredible fidelity. In +the olden time Tarquin the Elder planted a fig-tree in a public place in +Rome, and it was a matter of common faith that this tree would flourish +for ever if undisturbed, and that on it depended the prosperity and +preservation of the city. {207} And in India, the motherland of Greek +and Roman mythology, it was believed that whenever one of certain ancient +fig-trees died, that the reigning family would pass away. The opinion +was widely spread that the fig-tree was above all others the one of life +and destiny. In the Bagvatgeta, Krishna says of himself: "I am the +spirit, the beginning, the middle, and the end of creation. I am as the +_Aswatha_ (_pipal _or Indian fig) among trees." Hence it came that many +Christians believed that the Tree of Life in Eden was not an apple but a +fig-tree. The traditions which establish the fig-tree as being above all +others one on whose existence that of individuals, families, and states +depended, are extremely numerous and varied. "It was," remarks Alt, "not +only a symbol of fertility, but an emblem of ever-renewed and +never-extinguished _vitality_, and one of eternity, the resurrection, and +of the transmigration of the soul." On the celebrated altar in Ghent, +the Tree of Life is represented as a fig-tree (Menzel, _Christliche +Symbolik_, i. 277). This universal belief explains why the fig-tree +determines the duration and destiny of lives and families. + +It may have struck the reader as singular that those who eat of the +forbidden figs are punished by the visit of a beautiful girl who whirls +around with a buzzing sound till they are overcome by awe. Here be it +noted first of all, that the fig, like the pear, is exactly the shape of +a top, even the stem representing the peg. Now, in ancient Latin +witchlore or sorcery, extraordinary magic power, or even sanctity, was +attached to everything which made a humming or buzzing sound. It was +supposed, when properly made, with certain incantations or instruments, +to be capable of throwing people into a trance. Chief among these +instruments was the top. Thus Horace begs Crattidia to stop the +enchantment of the buzzing top (Ode xv. Book v.). + +On this subject I find the following in _Diavoli e Streghe_, by Dr. A. +Zangolini, 1864: + + "The _rombo_ {208} is an instrument not unlike the _trottola_ or + peg-top of our boys, called in Latin _turbo_, and in common language + also _paleo_. It was believed that with it in witchcraft a lover + could have his head turned with passion, or that he would be turned + at will while it spun. The same held true of other disks + (tee-totums) of wood, iron, or copper." + +This idea was extended to the hum of spinning-wheels, which aided the +conception of the Fates, and the thread of life, to the buzzing of bees +and flies, and many other variations of such sounds. Mr. Andrew Lang has +in an admirable paper shown that the _bull-roarer_ has been regarded as +so sacred among certain savages that women, or the profane, were not +allowed to touch it. A bull-roarer is so easily constructed, that it is +remarkable how few people are familiar with it. Take a common stick, say +six inches in length, tie a cord three feet long to one end, and, +grasping the other, whirl it round, with the result of astonishing all to +whom it is not familiar by its sound: + + "First it is but a gentle hum, + Like bird-song warbling in the trees, + Then like a torrent it doth foam, + And then a wild and roaring breeze." + +When vigorously spun, it may be heard of a calm evening for a mile, and +its effect is then indescribably--I will not say, as most novelists here +would, "_weird_," for I do not know that it prophesies anything, but it +is certainly most suggestive of something mysterious. + +Therefore the bayadere, with her spinning _pas seul_ and buzzing +_romore_, who appears to the eater of the figs, is the magic top in +person, her form being taken from the fig. The connection of the +enchanted dog with the tree is not so clear, but it may be observed that +there is a vast mass of tradition which makes the black dog a _chthonic_, +that is, a subterranean or under-earthly symbol, and that in this story +he comes out of the earth. This animal was a special favourite of +Hecate-Diana of the world below, the queen of all the witches. + +There is a vast quantity of folklore in reference to the fig as an emblem +of fertility, reproduction, and sensual affinity, and, on the other side, +of its being an emblem often used in proverbs to express the very +contrary, or trifling value, worthlessness, and poverty. Thus, the +barren fig-tree of the New Testament had a deep signification to all who +were familiar with these poetic and mystic "correspondences." The reader +has probably observed that in this story there is, as in a parable, a +strong intimation of symbolism, or as if more were meant than meets the +ear. + +"Remains to be said," that the putting the thumb between the index and +middle finger, which was regarded with awe by the Romans as driving away +evil spirits, was called "making the fig," or _far la castagna_, to make +the chestnut--in Latin, _medium ostendere digitum_. The same sign as the +fig to drive away devils became a deadly insult when made at any one, as +if he were a wizard and accursed. It had also a jeering and indecent +meaning. It has been said that the fig, as a synonym for anything +worthless, originated from the great abundance and cheapness of the fruit +in Greece, but this is very unsatisfactory, since it would apply as well +to olives or grain. + + * * * * * + +"This tale doth teach," notes the learned Flaxius, "as regards the +folklore of the black dog, that in this life most things are good or bad, +as we take them. For the black dog, Monsieur, of Cornelius Agrippa (like +that in Faust) was a demon, albeit his pupil, Wierus, records that he +himself knew the animal well, but never supposed there was aught of the +goblin in it. And this same Wierus has mentioned (_loc. cit._, p. m. +325), that one of the things which most terrify the devil and all his +gang is the blood of a black dog splashed on the wall. So in ancient +symbolism death meant life, the two being correlative, and in witchcraft +the spell of the frog and many more are meant to do deadly harm, or great +good, according to the way in which they are worked. Wherein lies an +immense moral lesson for ye all. Remember, children-- + + "'There is no passion, vice, or crime, + Which truly, closely understood, + Does not, in the full course of time, + Do far less harm than good.'" + + + + +IL PALAZZO FERONI +SHOWING HOW IT GOT ITS NAME FROM A FAIRY + + + "Ah me! what perils do environ + The man who meddles with cold iron! + Thus sang great Butler long ago, + In Hudibras, as all men know; + But in this story you will see + How Iron was sold by irony." + +One of the most picturesque mediaeval palaces in Florence is that of the +Feroni, and its architectural beauty is greatly enhanced by its fine +situation at the head of the Tornabuoni on the Piazza della Trinita, with +the magnificent column of the Medicis just before its gate. According to +Italian authority, "this palace may be called, after those of the +Praetorio (_i.e._, Bargello) and the Signoria, the most characteristic +building of its epoch in Florence. It is said to have been built by +Arnolfo di Cambio. It once belonged to the Spini, from whom it passed to +the Feroni." When I was in Florence in 1846-47, this palace was the best +hotel in Florence, and the one in which I lived. There have been great +"restorations" in the city since that time, but very few which have not +been most discreditably and foolishly conducted, even to the utter +destruction of all that was truly interesting in them; as, for instance, +"the house of Dante, torn down within a few years to be rebuilt, so that +now not one stone rests upon another of the original;" and "Santa Maria +Novella, where the usual monkish hatred of everything not _rococo_ and +trashy has shown itself by destroying beautiful work of earlier times, or +selling it to the Kensington Museum, setting up a barbarously gilt +gingerbread high altar, and daubing the handsome Gothic sacristy with +gaudy colours." To which the author of Murray's "Guide-Book for Central +Italy" adds, that "perhaps on the whole list of ecclesiastical +restorations there does not exist a more deplorable instance of monastic +vandalism than has been perpetrated here by the architect Romoli"--a +remark which falls unfortunately very far short of the truth. Such ruin +is wrought _everywhere_ at present; witness the beautiful Fonte Gaja, +"the masterpiece of Jacopo della Quercia in Siena (1402), which, since +the change of Government, was not 'restored,' but _totally destroyed and +carted away_, a miserable modern copy having been recently set up in its +place" (Hare, "Cities of Central Italy"), all of which was probably done +to "make a job" for a favoured builder. "But what can you expect," adds +a friend, "in a country where it is common to cover a beautiful dry stone +wall with plaster, and then paint it over to resemble the original +stone," because, as I was naively told, "the rough stone itself looks +_too cheap_"? Anybody who has lived long in Italy can add infinitely to +such instances. The Palazzo Feroni has, however, suffered so little, for +a wonder, from restoration, and still really looks so genuinely old, that +it deserves special mention, and may serve as an excuse for my remarks on +the manner in which ancient works are destroyed so _con amore_ by monks +and modern municipalities. I may here note that this building is, in a +sense, the common rendezvous for all the visitors to Florence, chiefly +English and Americans, since in it are the very large circulating library +and reading-rooms of Vieusseux. {212} + +There is, of course, a legend attached to the Palazzo Feroni, and it is +as follows: + + IL PALAZZO FERONI. + +"The Signore Pietro, who afterwards received the name Feroni, was a very +rich man, and yet hated by the poor, on whom he bestowed nothing, and not +much liked by his equals, though he gave them costly entertainments; for +there was in all the man and in his character something inconsistent and +contradictory, or of _corna contra croce_--'the horns against the cross,' +as the proverb hath it, which made it so that one never knew where to +have him: + + "'Un, al monte, e l'altro al pian, + Quel che, e oggi, non e doman.' + + "'On the hill in joy, in the dale in sorrow-- + One thing to-day, and another to-morrow.' + +"For to take him at every point, there was something to count off. Thus +in all the city there was no one--according to his own declaration--who +was + +Richer or more prosperous, + +Or who had enjoyed a better education, + +Or who had such remarkable general knowledge of everything taking place, + +Or more of a distinguished courtier, + +Or one with such a train of dependants, and people of all kinds running +after him, + +Or more generally accomplished, + +Or better looking-- + +"And finally, no one so physically strong, as he was accustomed to boast +to everybody on first acquaintance, and give them proofs of it--he having +heard somewhere that 'physical force makes a deeper impression than +courtesy.' But all these fine gifts failed to inspire respect (and here +was another puzzle in his nature), either because he was so tremendously +vain that he looked down on all mortals as so many insects, and all +pretty much alike as compared to himself, or else from a foolish +carelessness and want of respect, he made himself quite as familiar with +trivial people as with anybody. {213} + +"One evening the Signore Pietro gave a grand ball in his palace, and as +the guests came in--the beauty and grace and courtly style of all Italy +in its golden time--he half closed his eyes, lazily looking at the +brilliant swarm of human butterflies and walking flowers, despising while +admiring them, though if he had been asked to give a reason for his +contempt he would have been puzzled, not having any great amount of +self-respect for himself. And they spun round and round in the dance. . +. . + +"When all at once he saw among the guests a lady, unknown to him, of such +striking and singular appearance as to rouse him promptly from his idle +thought. She was indeed wonderfully beautiful, but what was very +noticeable was her absolutely ivory white complexion, which hardly seemed +human, her profuse black silken hair; and most of all her unearthly large +jet-black eyes, of incredible brilliancy, with such a strange expression +as neither the Signore Pietro nor any one else present had ever seen +before. There was a power in them, a kind of basilisk-fascination allied +to angelic sweetness--fire and ice . . . _ostra e tramontan_--a hot and +cold wind. + +"The Signore Pietro, with his prompt tact, made the lady's paleness a +pretence for addressing her. 'Did she feel ill--everything in the house +was at her disposition-- + + "'Servants, carpets, chairs and tables, + Kitchen, pantry, hall and stables, + Everything above or under; + All my present earthly plunder, + All too small for such a wonder.' + +"The lady, with a smile and a glance in which there was not the slightest +trace of being startled or abashed, replied: + + "''Tis not worth while your house to rifle, + _O mio Signor_, for such a trifle. + 'Tis but a slight indisposition, + For which I'll rest, by your permission.' + +"The Signore Pietro, as an improvisatore, was delighted with such a ready +answer, and remarking that he was something of a doctor, begged +permission to bring a soothing cordial, admirable for the nerves, which +he hoped to have the honour of placing directly in that fairy-like hand. +. . . The Signore vanished to seek the _calmante_. + +"The guests had begun by this time to notice this lady, and from her +extremely strange appearance they gathered round her, expecting at first +to have some sport in listening to, or quizzing, an eccentric or a +character. But they changed their mind as they came to consider +her--some feeling an awe as if she were a _fata_, and all being finally +convinced that whoever she was she had come there to _sell_ somebody +amazingly cheap, nor did they feel quite assured that they themselves +were not included in the bargain. + +"The Signore Pietro returned with the soothing cordial; he had evidently +not drunk any of it himself while on the errand, for there was a massive +chased iron table inlaid with gold and silver in his way, and the mighty +lord with an angry blow from his giant arm, like one from a blacksmith's +No. 1 hammer, broke it, adding an artisan-like oath, and knocked it over. +Flirtation had begun. + +"'Did you hurt yourself, Signore?' asked the lady amiably. + +"'Not I, indeed,' he replied proudly. 'A Stone is my name, but it ought +to have been Iron, lady, for I am hard as nails, a regular Ferrone or big +man of iron, and all my ancestors were Ferroni too; ah! we are a strong +lot--at your service!' Saying this he handed the cup to the lady, who +drank the potion, and then, instead of giving the goblet back to the +Signore Pietro, as he expected, meaning to gallantly drink off _les doux +restes_, she beckoned with her finger and an upward scoop of her hand to +the table, which was lying disconsolately on its back with its legs +upwards, like a trussed chicken waiting to be carved, when lo! at the +signal it jumped up and came walking to her like a Christian, its legs +moving most humanly, and yet all present were appalled at the sight, and +the Signore gasped-- + +"'I believe the devil's in it!' + +"The lady composedly placed the draught on the table and smiled +benevolently. There was something in that angelic smile which made the +Signore feel as if he had been made game of. In a rage he rushed at the +table, which reared up on its hind legs and showed fight with its +forepaws, on which there were massy round iron balls, as on the other +extremities. Truly it was a desperate battle, and both combatants +covered themselves with dust and glory. Now the table would put a ball +well in, and the Signore would counter, or, as I may say, cannon or +cannon-ball it off; and then they would grapple and roll over and over +till the Signora called them to time. At last the lord wrenched all the +cannon-balls off from the table, which first, making a jump to the +ceiling, came down in its usual position, while the balls began dancing +on it like mad. + +"At such a sight all present roared with laughter, and it was observed +that the lady, no longer pale, flushed with merriment like a rose. As +for Signore Pietro he was red as a beet, and heaved out that he had been +_canzonato_ or quizzed. + +"'Truly yes,' replied the lady; 'but henceforth you shall have a name, +for to do you justice you are as hard as iron, and Iron you shall be +called--Big Iron Ferrone--and cannon-balls shall be your coat-of-arms, +_in saecula saeculorum_. By edict of the Queen of the Fairies!' + +"Now at this all the love in the Signore Pietro concentrated itself in +his heart, passed into his tongue, and caused him to burst forth in song +in the following _ottava_, while the music accompanied: + + "'Quando vedo le femmine rammone, + Mi sento andare il cuore in convulsione, + Hanno certe facette vispe e sane, + Da fare entrare in sen la tentazione, + Oh donnina! Non siate disumana! + Di Pietro abbiate compassione! + Scusante la modestia se l'e troppo + Di questi personali non sene poppo.' + + "'When I behold thy all too lovely features, + I feel my heart in soft convulsions heaving, + Thou art the most entrancing of all creatures, + I tell you so in sooth, without deceiving, + In fact there is no beauty which can beat yours; + And Pietro loves you, lady, past believing; + In breasts like cannon-balls there's naught to blame; + But oh! I hope your heart's not like the same!' + +"But as this exquisite poem concluded with an immense sigh, there +appeared before them a golden and pearl car, in which the fairy entered, +and rising sailed away through a great hole in the ceiling, which opened +before and closed behind her, Signore Pietro remaining _a bocca aperta_, +gaping with opened jaws, till all was o'er. + +"'Well!' exclaimed the master, 'she gave me the slip, but we have had a +jolly evening of it, and I'm the first man who ever fought an iron table, +and I've got a good idea. My name is now Feroni--the Big Iron +Man--ladies and gentlemen, please remember, and cannon-balls are in my +coat-of-arms!'" + + * * * * * + +I have naturally taken some liberty as regards mere text in translating +this tale, in order to render the better the spirit of the original; but +not so much as may be supposed, and spirit and words are, on the whole, +accurately rendered. + +The reader is not to suppose that there are any traces of true history in +this fairy tale. I am very greatly indebted to Miss Wyndham of Florence +(who has herself made collections in folk-lore), for investigating this +subject of the Feroni family, with the following result--it being +premised that it had occurred to the lady that the "cannon-balls" or +Medicean pills, or pawnbroker's sign, whatever it was, had been +attributed by mistake to the Feroni. Miss Wyndham, after consulting with +authority, found that the Feroni themselves had not the balls, but, owing +probably to transfer of property, there is found on their palaces the +Alessandri shield, on which the upper half and lower left quarter contain +the Medici spheres. She also sent me this extract from the old work, +_Marietta di Ricci_: + + "The Feroni family, originally named from Balducci da Vinci, and of + peasant origin, owes its fortune to Francesco, son of Baldo di Paolo + di Ferone, a dyer of Empoli. Going as a merchant to Holland, he + accumulated a large fortune. Made known to Cosimo III. (just called + to the Grand Duchy) by his travels, he was called to Florence. In + 1673 he was made citizen of Florence, in 1674 he was elected senator, + and in 1681 appointed Marquis of Bellavista. He left a colossal + fortune, which has been kept up by his heirs to the present day. His + grandson Guiseppe was made cardinal in 1753. + + "Their arms are an arm mailed in iron, holding a sword, and above it + a golden lily in a blue field." + +This extract is interesting, as showing how a family could rise by +industry and wealth, even in one generation, by the work of a single man, +to the highest honours in Florence. And it is very remarkable that some +impression of the origin of this vigorous artisan and merchant, of +peasant stock, is evident in the tale. He is there clever and strong, +but vulgar and familiar, so that he was not personally liked. He remains +standing open-mouthed, like a comic actor, when the fairy vanishes. In +fact the whole tale suggests the elements of a humorous melodrama or +operetta, a _bourgeois gentilhomme_. + + "And should it come to pass that any read + This tale in Viesseux, his library, + In the Feroni palace, let them think + That, even in the rooms where they do read, + The things which I have told once came to pass-- + Even so the echo ever haunts the shrine!" + + + + +LA VIA DELLE BELLE DONNE + + + "The church of San Gaetano, on the left of the Via Tornabuoni, faces + the Palazzo Antinori, built by Giuliano di San Gallo. Opposite is + the Via delle Belle Donne, a name, says Leigh Hunt, which it is a + sort of tune to pronounce."--HARE, _Cities of Central Italy_. + +The name of this place is suggestive of a story of some kind, but it was +a long time before I obtained the following relative to the Street of +Pretty Women: + +"In the Via delle Belle Donne there was a very large old house in which +were many lodgers, male and female, who, according to their slender +means, had two rooms for a family. Among these were many very pretty +girls, some of them seamstresses, others corset-makers, some milliners, +all employed in shops, who worked all day and then went out in the +evening to carry their sewing to the _maggazini_. And it was from them +that the street got its name, for it became so much the fashion to go and +look at them that young men would say, '_Andiamo nella Via delle Belle +Donne_,'--'Let us go to the Street of the Pretty Women;' so it has been +so-called to this day. + +"And when they sallied forth they were at once surrounded or joined by +young men, who sought their company with views more or less honourable, +as is usual. Among these there was a very handsome and wealthy signore +named Adolfo, who was so much admired that he might have had his choice +of all these belles, but he had fixed his mind on one, a beautiful +blonde, who was, indeed, the fairest among them all. She had large black +eyes, with quick glances, beautiful light hair in masses, and was always +dressed simply, yet with natural elegance. She had long avoided making +acquaintance among men, and she now shunned Adolfo; but at last he +succeeded, after many difficulties, in becoming acquainted, and finally +won her heart--the end of it all being the old story of a poor girl +ruined by a gay and great signor, left a mother, and then abandoned. + +"For four years she lived alone, by her work, with her child, who grew up +to be a very beautiful boy. Then he, noting that other children had +parents, asked her continually, 'Mamma, where is my papa?' + +"He gave her no rest, and at last she went to Adolfo and asked him what +he would do for their child. + +"He laughed at her, and said, 'Nothing. That folly is all over. +Begone!' + +"Then, in a wild passion of rage at seeing her child so despised, she +stabbed him to the heart, and escaped unseen and undiscovered. + +"Then, when the boy asked her again: + + "'Cara madre, cara madre, + Dove e lo mio padre?' + + "'Mother dear, tell to me + Where may my father be?' + +"She replied: + + "'Darling son, thy sire is dead, + Lying in an earthen bed; + Dead he ever will remain, + By my dagger he was slain. + Had he but been kind to thee, + Living still he yet would be; + Other sorrows I forgave, + With my dirk I dug his grave. {220} + +This is but a commonplace story, yet it is such as finds more currency +among the people, and particularly among girls, than many a better one. +There is a strong touch of nature, and especially of Italian nature, in +the concluding lines. + + + + +THE WIZARD WITH RED TEETH + + + "And dost thou fear to greet + The Dead with me. They graced our wedding sweet." + + --MOORE, _The Veiled Prophet of Khorassan_. + +The following ballad may be classed as Florentine, since it was in +Florence that I heard it sung, but it is not attached to any particular +place. It is one of those compositions which are either sung or simply +recited, and quite as often intoned in a manner which is neither singing +nor speaking. In such chant, when a rhyme happens to fall in by chance, +the utmost is made of it by dwelling on the word or drawling it out. +Sometimes, as in the following, there are verses of four lines each, but +only the concluding line of every verse rhymes, _i.e._, with the +preceding last line of the previous stanza: + + IL STREGHONE COI DENTI ROSSI. + + "C'era un gran signore + Che una bella figlia aveva, + Far la felice lo credeva, + Col far la maritar. + + "'Babbo, no'voglio marito, + Prendo uno soltanto, + Se si uomo coi dente rossi, + Di famelo trovar.' + + "'Figlia, non e possibile + A me mi strazzi il cuor + Avanti di morire + Vo farti tranquillo il cuor.' + + "Un giorno allor comparvi, + Un giovane assai bello, + E denti rossi li teneva, + La sua figlia, Amelia, + 'Mi dica dove ella.' + + "'Io lo vo sposare, + E con me la vo' portare.' + 'Dimmi dove la porti, + Giovane sconosciuto, + La mia figlia no ti rifiuto, + Coi denti rossi lo vuol sposar?' + + "Sposa la siora Amelia, + E se la porta via. + La casa dove sia, + Questo poi non lo sa. + + "La porta in una capanna, + Di foglie, legno, e fieno, + 'Ortello fa sapere, + Se vuoi saper chi sono. + + "'Io sono un' streghone, + Te'l giuro in verita, + La notte a mezzanotte + Io ti faccio levar. + + "'Ti porto al camposanto, + A sotterar i morti; + E se tu vuoi mangiar, + Quel sangue, bella mia, + Tu l'ai da succiar.' + + "La giovana disperata, + Piange, grida e si dispera, + Ma rimedio piu non v'era + Anche lei una strega, + Toccava diventar." + + TRANSLATION. + + "There was a grand signore + Who had a daughter fair; + He longed to see her happy, + And wished that she were wed. + + "'Oh, father! I would not marry, + I have vowed to have for my husband + One with teeth as red as coral. + Oh! find him for me,' she said. + + "'My daughter, it is not possible, + You wring and pain my heart. + Ere I die and pass away + I would fain be at peace,' said he. + + "One day there appeared before her + A knight of goodly seeming, + His teeth were red as coral. + Said the beautiful Amelia, + 'There is the spouse for me.' + + "'I will marry her,' said the knight, + 'And bear her with me away.' + 'Tell me where wilt thou take her, + Thou strange and unknown man. + I do not refuse her to thee, + But whither wilt thou roam?' + + "He married fair Amelia, + And carried her far away. + "Where is the house thou dwell'st in? + And say where is thy home?' + + "He took her to a cabin, + All leaves and sticks and hay, + 'My true name is Ortello. + To-night, at the hour of midnight, + I will carry thee away. + + "'I will bear thee to the graveyard + To dig up the newly dead; + Then if thou hast thirst or hunger + Thou mayst suck the blood of the corpses,' + To her the Sorcerer said. + + "She wept in desperate sorrow, + She wrung her lily hand, + But she was lost for ever, + And in the witches' band." + +This was, and is, a very rude ballad; its moral appears to be that +feminine caprice and disregard of parental love must be punished. It is +very remarkable as having to perfection that Northern or German element +which Goethe detected in a Neapolitan witch-song given in his Italian +journey. {224} It has also in spirit, and somewhat strangely in form, +that which characterises one of Heine's most singular songs. It +impresses me, as I was only yesterday impressed in the Duomo of Siena at +finding, among the wood-carvings in the choir, Lombard grotesques which +were markedly Teutonic, having in them no trace of anything Italian. + + "Quaint mysteries of goblins and strange things, + We scarce know what--half animal half vine, + And beauteous face upon a toad, from which + Outshoots a serpent's tail--the Manicore, + A mixture grim of all things odd and wild, + The fairy-witch-like song of German eld." + + + + +ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE + + + "Wherever beauty dwells, + In gulf or aerie mountains or deep dells, + Thou pointest out the way, and straight 'tis won, + Thou leddest Orpheus through the gleams of death." + + --KEATS. + + "Silvestres homines sacer interpres que Deorum + Caedibus et victu deterruit ORPHEUS. + Dictus ob hoc lenire tigres, rabidosque Leones." + + --HORACE. + +It may have happened to the reader, in his travels, to trace in some +majestic mountain-land, amid rocky ravines, that which was, perhaps, in +prehistoric times a terrible torrent or a roaring river. I mean, indeed, +such a furious flood as is now unknown on earth, one which tore away the +highest hills like trifles, melting them in a minute to broad alluvials, +and ground up the grandest granite cliffs to gravel-dust, even as a +mighty mill grates grain to flour. + +You trace the course of the ancient river which when young vaulted the +valley, which it had made, on either side with overhanging precipices, +which now bend like silent mourners over its grave. And it seems to be +dead and buried for ever. + +Yet it may chance that, looking more deeply into its course to see if, +perhaps, some flakes of antique gold are not to be found in the bed of +the old water-course, you hear deep in some rocky crevice far below, and +out of sight, the merry gurgle or voice-like murmur of a spring or unseen +rivulet which indicates that the river of ancient days is not quite lost +in the land. Unsuspected, like the sapphire serpent of Eastern legend, +that diamond-clear rivulet has wound its mysterious course deep in the +earth for ages, and, following its sound, you may come to some place +where it again leaps forth into sunlight--little, indeed, yet ever +beautiful. It is almost touching to see that diminished rill creeping +timidly round the feet of giant boulders which it once rent in sport from +the mighty rocks, and rolled into what were for it in its whilom power, +mere marbles. It is small now, and very obscure, yet it lives and is +ever beautiful. + +Such a stream, which I traced yesterday in an ancient gorge in the heart +of the Apennines, where the grey tower of Rocca looks down on the +mysterious Ponte del Diavolo of the twelfth century--the most picturesque +bridge in Italy--forcibly reminds me of the human stream of old tradition +which once, as marvellous mythology or grand religion, roared and often +raged over all this region, driving before it, and rending away, all the +mighty rocks of human will, now tearing down and anon forming stupendous +cliffs of observances, and vast monoliths of legend and faith. Such were +the Etruscan and early Roman cults, which drove before them and engulfed +irresistibly all the institutions of their time, and then disappeared so +utterly that men now believe that the only remaining record of their +existence is in their tombs or rocky relics of strange monuments. + +But by bending low to earth, or seeking among the people, we may hear the +murmur of a hidden stream of legend and song which, small and shrunken as +it may be, is still the veritable river of the olden time. Many such +streams are running in many lands, and that full openly on the earth's +surface, but this to which I specially refer is strangely occult and +deeply hidden, for to find it we must seek among the _strege_ and +_stregoni_, or witches and sorcerers, who retain as dark secrets of their +own, marvellous relics of the myths of the early ages. These are, in +many cases, so strangely quaint and beautiful that they would seem to +have kept something of an original perfume which has utterly perished in +the dried flowers of tradition preserved in books, or even by poets. + +This seems to me to be the case with the incantation to Orpheus, which is +now before me, written in rude dialect, which indicates, so to speak, the +depth of the earth from which it was taken. I had asked the woman who +gave it to me whether she knew such a name as that of Orpheus or Orfeo, +as connected with music. This was the reply which I received: + + ORFEO. + +_Scongiurazione a Orfeo per suonare bene uno Zuffolo_. This is the +invocation to Orpheus for him who would fain become a good player on the +shepherd's pipe. {227} + + SCONGIURAZIONE. + + "Ogni giorno io mi metto + Questo zuffolo a suonare, + Per poterlo bene inparare, + E a preso dei maestri + Per potermi fare insegnare, + Ma non so come mi fare, + Nella testa non mi vuole entrare, + A che partito mi devo apigliare: + Io non so come mi fare; + Ma tu Orfeo che siei tanto chapace + Per lo zuffolo, e il violino, + Suoni bene pur lo organino, + La chitarra e il mandolino, + La gran cassa, il trombone, + Suoni bene lo clarino, + E non 'ce uno strumento + Che tu Orfeo tu non sia + Chapace di bene suonare, + Per la musicha siei molto bravo, + E tu ai ogni potenza, + Che da diavoli siei protetto, + Dunque insegnami come fare, + Questo zuffolo va scongiurare, + Per poter bene suonare, + Questo zuffolo lo prendo, + Sotto terra io lo metto, + E tre giorni ce lo fo stare, + A fine che tu Orfeo, + Bene tu me lo facci a suonare; + Che tanto siei amante + Di suonare sarai amante, + Pur d'insegnare per quanto + Ai soferto la tua _Auradice_, + Dal inferno non potere levare, + Ma vollo lei a preghare, + Che ti aiuti questo zuffolo volere suonare, + E tu che sempre e di musicha, + Siei chapace che fino + Le bestie ti vengono ascoltare, + Orfeo! Orfeo! ti prego; + Orfeo! volermi insegnare + Questo zuffolo bene suonare, + E appena suonero, + Il maestro musicho Orfeo ringraziero, + E a tutti sempre faro, + Sapere a chi mi a dato, + Questo talento che le stato, + Orfeo dal inferno lo scongiurato, + E per la musicha o tanto, + Pasione al mio zuffolo a dato, + Lezione e lo zuffolo e un strumento + Che ne son tanto inamorato + Che dai miei vecchi era molto ramentato, + E sempre mi dicevano, + Se dinparar lo non siei chapace, + Orfeo devi scongiurare; + E cosi io faro, + E Orfeo preghero!" + + TRANSLATION. + + "Every day I try, and yet + I cannot play the flageolet; + Many masters I have sought, + Naught I learned from all they taught; + I am dull, 'tis very true, + And I know not what to do + In this strait, unless it be, + Great Orpheus, to come to thee; + Thou who the greatest skill didst win, + On flageolet and violin, + Who play'st the organ, pealing far, + The mandolin and the guitar, + Thou wak'st the clarion's stirring tone, + The rattling drum and loud trombone; + On earth there is no instrument, + Whate'er it be, to mortals sent, + Enchanting every sense away, + Which thou, O Orpheus! canst not play; + Great must thy skill in music be, + Since even the demons favour thee; + And since on this my heart is set, + Enchant, I pray, this flageolet, + And that its tones may sweetly sound, + I bury it beneath the ground; + Three days shall it lie hidden thus, + Till thou, O mighty Orpheus! + Shalt wake in it by magic spell + The music which thou lov'st so well. + I conjure thee by all the woe + Which grieved thy soul so long ago! + And pain, when thy _Auradice_ + From the dark realm thou couldst not free, + To grant me of thy mighty will + That I may play this pipe with skill, + Even as thou hast played before; + For, as the story runs, of yore, + Whenever thou didst wake its sound, + The forest beasts came raptured round. + Orpheus! Orpheus! I pray, + Orpheus! teach me how to play! + And when sweet music forth I bring, + On every chord thy name shall ring, + And every air which charms shall be + A hymn of thanks, great lord, to thee! + And unto all I'll make it known, + I owe it all to thee alone, + And of the wondrous skill I'll tell, + Which mighty Orpheus won from hell. + And by the music, and the power, + Of passion in me, from this hour + Henceforth in this sweet instrument + I shall be ever well content; + For now, I do remember well, + What 'twas my father oft would tell, + That all who would learn music thus + Must conjure mighty Orpheus, + Even as I have done to-day, + So I to him will ever pray." + +To which the manuscript adds in prose: + + "Thus the peasants do when they do not succeed in playing the + shepherd's pipe, which they esteem beyond any other instrument." + +To any one who fully feels and understands what is meant to be conveyed +by this incantation--and a great deal is expressed by passionate singing +and a deep thrilling intonation which the text does not give--my +translation will appear to be quite accurate. But, in any case, no +scholar or poet can deny that there is in it a strange depth of classic +feeling, or of old Roman romance, not strained at second-hand through +books, but evidently drawn from rude antiquity, which is as fresh in its +ring as it is marvellous. + +It may be observed as exquisitely curious that in this incantation the +peasant who wishes to become a skilled performer on the flageolet _buries +it for three days in the ground_, invoking Orpheus by what the spirit +suffered in losing Eurydice, and subsequently distinctly declaring that +he won or conjured his great musical power from Hades, which means that +by the penance and loss, and his braving the terrors of the Inferno, he +gained _skill_. This is a mighty element of the myth in all its forms, +in all ages, in every country. The burying the instrument for three days +probably typifies the three days during which Orpheus was in hell. + +It may be observed that Eurydice has become _Auradice_ in the +incantation, in which there is probably an intimation of _Aura_, a light +wind or zephyr. Air is so naturally associated with music. This, by a +very singular coincidence, yet certainly due to mere chance, recalls the +invocation to the Spirit of the Air, given by Bulwer in "The Last Days of +Pompeii": + + "Spectre of the viewless air, + Hear the blind Thessalian's prayer, + By Erichtho's art that shed + Dews of life when life was fled, + By lone Ithaca's wise king, + Who could wake the crystal spring + To the voice of prophecy + _By the lost Eurydice_! + Summoned from the shadowy throng, + At the muse-son's magic song: + Come, wild Demon of the Air, + Answer to thy votary's prayer." + +It is indeed very remarkable that in the call to the God of Music, who is +in certain wise a spirit of the air, as in that to the Spirit of the Air +himself, both are invoked: + + "By the lost Eurydice!" + +If it could be shown that Bulwer owed this poem and allusion to any +ancient work or tradition, I should be tempted to believe that the +popular invocation was derived from some source in common with the +latter. There is indeed a quaint naive drollery in the word +_Aura_dice--"Air-tell!" or "Air-declare!" which adapts it better to the +spirit of Bulwer's poem, in which the air is begged to tell something, +than to the Orphean or Orphic spell. It may be that the Orphic oracles +were heard in the voice of the wind, apropos of which latter there is a +strange Italian legend and an incantation to be addressed to all such +mystic voices of the night, which almost seems re-echoed in "Lucia": + + "Verrano a te sull' aure, + I miei sospiri ardenti, + Udrai nell mar che mormora + L'eco de miei lamenti!" + +It is worth observing that this tradition, though derived from the +Romagna, was given to me in Florence, and that one of the sculptures on +the Campanile represents Orpheus playing the pipe to wild beasts. It is +said that in the Middle Ages the walls of churches were the picture-books +of the people, where they learned all they knew of Bible legends, but not +unfrequently gathered many strange tales from other sources. The +sculptors frequently chose of their own will scenes or subjects which +were well known to the multitude, who would naturally be pleased with the +picturing what they liked, and it may be that Orpheus was familiar then +to all. In any case, the finding him in a witch incantation is +singularly in accordance with the bas-relief of the Cathedral of +Florence, which again fits in marvellously well with Byron's verse: + + "Florence! whom I will love as well + As ever yet was said or sung, + Since Orpheus sang his spouse from hell, + Whilst thou art fair and I am young. + + "Sweet Florence! those were pleasant times, + When worlds were staked for ladies' eyes. + Had bards as many realms as rhymes, + Thy charms might raise new Antonies!" + +True it is that _this_ Florence seems to have had dazzling eyes and +ringlets curled; and it is on the other hand not true that Orpheus sang +his spouse from hell--he only tried to do it. And it is worth noting +that one of the commonest halfpenny pamphlets sold in Florence, which is +to be found at every public stand, is a poem called "Orpheus and +Eurydice." This fact alone renders it less singular that such classical +incantations should exist. + +The early Christians, notwithstanding their antipathy to heathen symbols, +retained with love that of Orpheus. Orpheus was represented as a gentle +youth, charming-wild beasts with the music of the pipe, or as surrounded +by them and sheep; hence he was, like the Good Shepherd, the favourite +type of Christ. He had also gone down into shadowy Hades, and returned +to be sacrificed by the heathen, unto whose rites he would not conform. + +Miss Roma Lister found traces of Orpheus among the peasantry about Rome, +in a pretty tradition. They say that there is a spirit who, when he +plays the _zufolo_ or flageolet to flocks, attracts them by his music and +keeps them quiet. + + "Now there were certain shepherd families and their flocks together + in a place, and it was agreed that every night by turns, each family + should guard the flocks of all the rest. But it was observed that + one mysterious family all turned in and went to sleep when their turn + came to watch, and yet every morning every sheep was in its place. + Then it was found that this family had a spirit who played the + _zufolo_, and herded the flock by means of his music." + +The name is wanting, but Orpheus was there. The survival of the soul of +Orpheus in the _zufolo_ or pipe, and in the sprite, reveals the mystic +legend which indicates his existing to other times. In this it is said +that his head after death predicted to Cyrus the Persian monarch that he +too would be killed by a woman (_Consule Leonic_, _de var. histor._, lib. +i. cap. 17; _de Orphei Tumulo in monte Olympo_, &c., cited by _Kornmann +de Miraculis Mortuorum_, cap. 19). The legend of Orpheus, or of a living +wife returning from another world to visit an afflicted husband, passed +to other lands, as may be seen in a book by Georgius Sabinus, _in Notis +ad Metamorp_. _Ovidii_, lib. x. _de descensu Orphei ad Inferos_, in +which he tells how a Bavarian lady, after being buried, was so moved by +her husband's grief that she came to life again, and lived with him for +many years, _semper tamen fuisse tristem ac pallidem_--but was always sad +and pale. However, they got on very well together for a long time, till +one evening _post vesperi potum_--after he had taken his evening +drink--being somewhat angry at the housemaid, he scolded her with +unseemly words. Now it was the condition of his wife's coming back to +life and remaining with him that he was never to utter an improper +expression (_ut que deinceps ipse abstineret blasphemis conviciandi +verbis_). And when the wife heard her husband swear, she disappeared, +soul and body, and that in such a hurry that her dress (which was +certainly of fine old stiff brocade) was found standing up, and her shoes +under it. A similar legend, equally authentic, may be found in the +"Breitmann Ballads," a work, I believe, by an American author. On which +subject the learned Flaxius remarks that "if all the men who swear after +their evening refreshments were to lose their wives, widowers would +become a drug in the market." + +Of the connection between _aura_ as air, and as an _air_ in music, I have +something curious to note. Since the foregoing was written I bought in +Florence a large wooden cup, it may be of the eleventh century or +earlier, known as a _misura_, or measure for grain, formerly called a +_modio_, in Latin _modus_, which word has the double meaning of measure +for objects solid or liquid, and also for music. Therefore there are on +the wooden measure four female figures, each holding a musical +instrument, and all with their garments blowing in one direction, as in a +high wind, doubtless to signify _aura_, Italian _aria_, air or melody. +These madonnas of the four _modes_ are rudely but very gracefully +sketched by a bold master-hand. They represent, in fact, Eurydice +quadrupled. + +There is a spirit known in the Toscana Romagna as _Turabug_. He is the +guardian of the reeds or canes, or belongs to them like the ancient +Syrinx. There is a curious ceremony and two invocations referring to +him. Ivy and rue are specially sacred to him. One of these two +invocations is solely in reference to playing the _zufolo_, partly that +the applicant may be inspired to play well, and secondly, because the +spirit is supposed to be attracted by the sound of the instrument. The +very ancient and beautiful idea that divinities are invoked or attracted +by music, is still found in the use of the organ in churches. + +A large portion of the foregoing on Orpheus formed, with "Intialo," the +subject of a paper by me in Italian, which was read in the Collegio +Romana at Rome at the first meeting of the Italian _Societa Nazionale per +le Tradizioni Popolari Italiani_, in November 1893. Of which society I +may here mention that it is under the special patronage of her Majesty +Margherita the Queen of Italy, who is herself a zealous and accomplished +folklorist and collector--"special patronage" meaning here not being a +mere figurehead, but first officer--and that the president is Count +Angelo de Gubernatis. + +I believe that the establishment of this society will contribute vastly +to shake in Italy the old-fashioned belief that to be a person of the +_most_ respectable learning it is quite sufficient to be thoroughly +acquainted with a few "classic" writers, be they Latin, French, or +Italian, and that it is almost a crime to read anything which does not +directly serve as a model or a copy whereby to "refine our style." As +regards which the whole world is now entering on a new renaissance, the +conflict between the stylists and the more liberally enlightened having +already begun. + +But Orpheus, with the ecclesiastical witch-doctors, was soon turned into +a diabolical sorcerer; and Leloyer writes of him: "He was the greatest +wizard who ever lived, and his writings boil over with praises of devils +and filthy loves of gods and mortals, . . . who were all only devils and +witches." + +That Eve brought death and sin into the world by eating one apple, or a +fig, or orange, or Chinese nectarine, or the fruit of the banana tree, or +a pear, a peach, or everything pomological, if we are to believe all +translators of the Bible, coincides strongly with the fact that Eurydice +was lost for tasting a pomegranate. "Of the precise graft of the +espalier of Eden," says the author of the 'Ingoldsby Legends,' +"Sanchoniathon, Manetho, and Berosus are undecided; the best informed +Talmudists have, however . . . pronounced it a Ribstone pippin," Eve +being a rib. The ancients were happy in being certain that their apple +was one of Granada. + + "_Haec fabula docet_," writes our Flaxius, "that mysteries abound in + every myth. Now, whether Orpheus was literally the first man who + ever went to hell for a woman I know not, but well I ween that he was + not the last, as the majority of French novelists of the present day + are chiefly busy in proving, very little, as it seems to me, either + to the credit of their country or of themselves. But there are + others who read in this tale a dark and mysterious forewarning to the + effect that ladies _a la mode_ who fall in love with Italian + musicians or music-masters, and especially those who let themselves + and their fortunes be _sifflees_ (especially the fortunes), should + not be astonished when the fate of Eurydice befalls them. Pass on, + beloved, to another tale! + + "'Walk on, amid these mysteries strange and old, + The strangest of them all is yet to come!'" + + + + +INTIALO +THE SPIRIT OF THE HAUNTING SHADOW + + + "O ombra che dalla luce siei uscita, + Misuri il passo al Sole, all'uom la vita." + + "Umbram suam metuere." + + "Badate. + La vostra ombra vi avra fatto paura." + + --_Filippo Pananti_. + + "There is a feeling which, perhaps, all have felt at times; . . . it + is a strong and shuddering impression which Coleridge has embodied in + his own dark and supernatural verse that Something not of earth is + behind us--that if we turned our gaze backward we should behold that + which would make the heart as a bolt of ice, and the eye shrivel and + parch within its socket. And so intense is the fancy, that _when_ we + turn, and all is void, from that very void we could shape a spectre + as fearful as the image our terror had foredrawn."--BULWER, _The + Disowned_. + +The resemblance and the relation of the shadow to the body is so +strangely like that of the body to the soul, that it is very possible +that it first suggested the latter. It is born of light, yet is in +itself a portion of the mystery of darkness; it is the facsimile of man +in every outline, but in outline alone; filled in with uniform sombre +tint, it imitates our every action as if in mockery, which of itself +suggests a goblin or sprite, while in it all there is something of self, +darkling and dream-like, yet never leaving us. It is only evident in +brightest hours, like a skeleton at an Egyptian feast, and it has neither +more nor less resemblance to man than the latter. Hence it came that the +strange "dwellers by the Nile" actually loved both shade and death by +association, and so it happened that + + "Full many a time + They seemed half in love with easeful Death; + Called him soft names in many a mused rhyme," + +while they made of the cool shadow a portion of the soul itself, or +rather one of the seven or eight entities of which man consisted, these +being--_Khat_, a body; _Ba_, the spirit; _Khon_, the intelligence; +_Khaibit_, _the shadow_; _Ren_, the name; _Ka_, eternal vitality; _Ab_, +the heart; and _Sahn_, the mask or mummy. + +It is extremely interesting to consider, in connection with this Egyptian +doctrine, the fact, illustrated by every writer on Etruscan antiquity, +that these ancient dwellers in Italy, when they represented the departed, +or the dead, as living again on a tomb, added to the name of the deceased +the word _Hinthial_. This I once believed meant simply a ghost or +spirit. I had no other association with the name. + +I inquired for a long time if there was any such name as _Hintial_ for a +ghost among the people, and could not find it. At last my chief agent +succeeded in getting from sources to me unknown, but, as in all cases, +partly from natives of the Toscana Romagna, or Volterra, and at different +times, very full information regarding this mysterious being, which I +combine as follows: + + INTIALO. + +"This is a spirit in human form who shows himself in any shadow, {238} +and diverts himself by inspiring terror in a sorcerer, or in any one who +has committed a crime. He causes a fearful shadow to be ever present to +the man, and addresses him thus: + + _Il domone al Stregone_. + + "Vile--tu non potrai + Avere mai bene--avrai + Sempre la mia ombra + In tua presenza, e saro + Vendicato . . . {239} + + "Tu non potrai giammai + Essere solo, che l'ombra + Mia ovunque andrai + Ti seguira: tu non potrai + Essere mai solo, tu sarai + Sempre in mio potere! + + "Al mio incantesimo non avrai + Ne pace ne bene, al mio + Incanto tu tremerai, + Te e tutta la casa dove ti troverai, + Se sei in mezzo alla strada, + Tu tremerai-- + Te e tutta la terra! + + "Al mio volere tu andrai + Come cane alla pagliaio, + Alla voce del suo maestro; + Tu me vorrai + Vedere, e non mi vedrai, + Mi sentirai-- + Vedrai sola la tua ombra. + + "Tu sei cattivo e scelerato, + Tu sei avelenato, + Nel cuore e nell anima, + E piu bene non avrai, + Sei avelenato nel cuore, + E nell anima, vai, + Tu siei maladetto; + E il spirito sempre ti seguira + Ovunque tu vada!" + + TRANSLATION. + + _The Demon to the Sorcerer_. + + "Wretch! long lost in wickedness, + Thou shalt ne'er have happiness; + Though to distant lands thou'lt flee, + Still my shadow thou shalt see, + And I will revenged be. + + "Solitude thou ne'er shalt know, + Where thou goest my shade shall go, + And wherever thou mayst fly + Still the shadow will be by-- + Ne'er alone at any hour, + And for ever in my power. + + "By my spell thou ne'er shalt know + Peace or joy on earth below, + At my charm a deadly fear + Shall seize on all men standing near; + Thou shalt tremble in thy home, + Or if thou abroad shouldst roam, + Shivering with fear thou'lt be, + And the earth shall shake with thee. + + "At my bidding thou must stir, + And hasten as the vilest cur + Must hasten when his master calls, + And leave his straw amid the stalls; + And if thou wouldst gaze on me, + Still my form thou shalt not see; + Thou shalt feel when I am here, + Feel me in thy deadly fear, + Yet only see thy shadow near. + + "Thou art vile and wicked too, + Thou art poisoned through and through; + In thy heart and in thy soul, + Cursedness is in the whole, + In thy soul and in thy heart, + Poison steeped in every part. + Cursed ever! now, depart! + Yet wherever thou shalt flee + I will ever follow thee! + +"Then this man will be in terror, and he will ever see the shadow before +him by day and by night, and thus he will have no peace, and yet this is +all the time the spirit of Intialo. + +"Now, when he is thus tormented for some past misdeed, and he feels +himself haunted, as it were, by the shadow of the one whom he has +wronged, when he finds at last that he is not pursued, indeed, by it, but +by Intialo, then he shall repeat the Exorcism: + + _Scongiurazione di Intialo_. + + "Intialo! Intialo! che quando + Una persona ai preso, + O per seguitare le ingombri + Le ingombri sempre la cammina. + + "Intialo! Intialo! se libero + Il passo mi lascerai meglio + Per te sara, se non mi verrai + Lasciare ti faccio sapere + Tu sarai sempre in mio potere. + + "Intialo! Intialo! ti faccio sapere, + Se metto in opera + La mia scongiurazione, + Non ti lasciero piu bene avere, + E ogni mi a chiamata + Ti faro correre + Come chane al pagliaio. + + "Intialo! Intialo! + Ti faccio sapere + Che tu pensi a fare + Il tuo dovere, + Se ancora mi viene a tormentare + Muso di porco tu possa diventare. + + "Intialo! Intialo! + Tu siei furbo e maligno, + Ma io me ne infischio, + Perche io sono di te, + Molto piu maligno. + + "Intialo! Intialo! ti prego + Di non mi piu tormentare + Se vuoi aver bene, + Se no ti acquisterai + Delle pene--e questo sara + Il tuo guadagno. + + "Intialo! Intialo! + Con tutta la tua furberia, + Non sai ancora + Che io son protetto + Da una bella stregha + Che mi adora. + + "Intialo! Intialo! + Se piu ne vuoi sapere + Vieni sta sera, + Vieni a mezza notte, + Viene di dove sei, + Te lo faro vedere, + Vieno sotto 'quel noce + E tu lo vedrai. + + "Intialo! Intialo! + La mezza notte in punto, + Noi l'abbiamo, + E ti vedo (vedro) appogiato + Al noce che credi di vedere, + Vedere l'ombra mia, + E vedi l'ombra tua stessa! + + "Intialo! Intialo! + Dentro al mio seno + Quattro cose tengo, + Che mi fanno vedere, + E non son veduto, + Ellera, pane, + Sale e ruta, + E la mia buona fortuna. + + "Intialo! Intialo! + Non ti voglio dire, + Perche io voglio + Andare a dormire; + Ma solo ti ho fatto + Ti ho fatto vedere + Che non son' in poter tuo, + Ma tu siei in mio potere." + + _The Exorcism of Intialo_. + + "Intialo! it is known + When thou followest any one, + Be the victim whom he may, + Thou art ever in his way. + + "Intialo--hear! if free + Thou wilt leave the road to me, + Better for thee shall it be; + If thou wilt not, from this hour + I will hold thee in _my_ power. + + "Intialo! thou shalt learn + That I'm wizard in my turn; + All the power of sorcery + So about thee I will throw-- + All around, above, below-- + That thou shalt accursed be, + Held in fear and agony, + And as a dog shalt follow me. + + "Intialo! thou shalt know + What thou art ere thou canst go; + If thou comest here again + To torment or give me pain, + As thou'dst make a dog of me, + I will make a swine of thee. + + "Intialo! sorry cheat, + Filled with hate from head to feet, + Be malignant if you will, + I am more malignant still. + + "Intialo! for thy sake + I pray thee no more trouble take + To torment me, for thy gain + Will only be thy greater pain, + For so cursed thou shalt be + That I needs must pity thee. + + "Intialo! now, confess + That with all thy craftiness + Thou didst not know what now I tell, + That I am protected well + By a lovely witch, and she + Is mightier far, O fiend! than thee. + + "Intialo! ere we go, + If thou more of me wouldst know, + Come at midnight--I shall be + 'Neath the witches' walnut tree, + And what I shall make thee see + I trow will be enough for thee. + + "Intialo! in that hour + Thou shalt truly feel my power, + And when thou at last shalt ween + That on the witches' tree I lean, + Then to thee it shall be known + That my shadow is thine own. + + "Intialo! everywhere + With me magic charms I bear, + Ivy, bread and salt and rue, + And with them my fortune too. + + "Intialo! hence away, + Unto thee no more I'll say; + Now I fain would go to sleep, + See that thou this warning keep. + I am not in power of thine, + But thou truly art in mine." + +I had the belief, derived from several writers, that _Hinthial_ in +Etruscan meant simply a ghost or _revenant_--the apparition of some one +dead. But on mentioning my discovery of this legend to Professor Milani, +the Director of the Archaeological Museum in Florence, and the first of +Etruscan scholars, he astonished me by declaring that he believed the +word signified a _shadow_, and that its real meaning in its full +significance had apparently been marvellously preserved in this +witch-tradition. Too little is known as yet of the old Etruscan language +to decide with certainty as to anything in it, but should this opinion of +Professor Milani be sustained, it will appear that at least one word of +the mysterious tongue has existed till now in popular tradition. + +There will be very few of my readers who will not be struck, as I was, +with the remarkable resemblance of the terrible curse uttered by Intialo +to the invocation in Byron's tragedy of "Manfred." It is like it in +form, spirit, and, in many places, even in the very words. That there +was, however, no knowledge of the English poem by the Italian witch-poet, +and therefore no imitation, is plain from intrinsic evidence. As the +question is interesting, I will here give the Incantation from "Manfred": + + INCANTATION. + + "When the moon is on the wave, + And the glow-worm in the grass, + And the meteor on the grave, + And the wisp on the morass; + When the falling stars are shooting, + And the answered owls are hooting, + And the silent leaves are still + In the shadow of the hill, + Shall my soul be upon thine + With a power and with a sign. + + "Though thy slumber may be deep, + Yet thy spirit shall not sleep; + There are shades which shall not vanish, + There are thoughts thou canst not banish; + By a power to thee unknown + Thou canst never be alone; + Thou art wrapt as with a shroud, + Thou art gathered in a cloud, + And for ever shalt thou dwell + In the spirit of this spell. + + "Though thou see'st me not pass by, + Thou shalt feel me with thine eye, + As a thing that, though unseen, + Must be near thee, and hath been; + And when in that secret dread + Thou hast turned around thy head, + Thou shalt marvel I am not + As thy shadow on the spot, + And the power which thou dost feel + Shall be what thou must conceal. + + "And a magic voice and verse + Hath baptized thee with a curse, + And a spirit of the air + Hath begirt thee with a snare; + In the wind there is a voice + Shall forbid thee to rejoice; + And to thee shall night deny + All the quiet of her sky; + And the day shall have a sun + Which shall make thee wish it done. + + "From thy false tears I did distil + An essence which hath strength to kill; + From thy own heart I then did wring + The black blood in its blackest spring; + From thy own smile I snatched the snake, + For there it coiled as in a brake; + From thy own lip I drew the charm + Which gave all these their chiefest harm; + In proving every poison known, + I found the strongest was thine own. + + "By thy cold breast and serpent smile, + By thy unfathomed depths of guile, + By that most seeming virtuous eye, + By thy shut soul's hypocrisy, + By the perfection of thine art, + Which passed for human thine own heart; + By thy delight in others' pain, + And by thy brotherhood of Cain, + I call upon thee, and compel + Thyself to be thy proper hell! + + "And on thy head I pour the vial + Which doth devote thee to this trial; + Not to slumber, nor to die, + Shall be in thy destiny, + Though thy death shall still seem near + To thy wish, but as a fear; + Lo! the spell now works around thee, + And the clankless chain hath bound thee: + O'er thy heart and brain together + Hath the word been passed--now wither!" + +The Italian poem forms, in its first and second parts, a drama as +complete as that of "Manfred," and, as I hope to render clear, one more +consistent to the leading idea, or, as critics were wont to say, "more +coherent in the unities." This idea in the one, as in the other, is that +of a powerful _sorcerer_ assailed by a fiend in the form of remorse, and +that with the most aggravating and insulting terms of contempt. In +"Manfred" the persecutor tells his victim that he shall be his own hell, +for that of all poisons his own evil heart is the worst. The Italian, +more direct and less metaphysical still, alludes, in the accusation by +the spirit, to no other punishment save that of conscience, and declares +the magician to be poisoned through and through in himself: + + "Tu sei cattivo e scelerato, + Tu sei avvelenato + Nel cuore e nell anima," + +and bids him go forth to be for ever pursued by the avenger. + +Byron's poem is entirely based on sorcery, and is intended to set forth +the tremendous mental struggles of a mind which has risen above mankind +with supernatural power, which assails him with remorse. In the first +place he simply goes to sleep; in the grand finale he resists, like Don +Juan, or, as the saying is, "dies game"--"only this, and nothing +more"--leaving all idea of an end, object, moral, or system, entirely in +the dark. "Manfred" is merely dramatic for the sake of _stage effect_, +and only excellent in impressing us with the artistic skill of the +author. Its key is art for the sake of art, and effect on anybody, no +matter who. Within this limit it is most admirable. + +In both the Italian and English poems the one persecuted makes his strong +point of departure from the discovery or knowledge that the persecuted is +not one whom he has injured, but simply a mocking and tormenting sprite. +Thus the former text declares that when he finds he is pursued simply by +Intialo, the shadow, which we may here translate "his own imagination," +he rallies with a tremendous counter-curse in which far more is meant +than meets the eye. The grand mission of the _magus_ or sorcerer in all +the occult lore of all antiquity, whether he appear as Buddha or any +other man of men, is to conquer all enemies by tremendous power won by +penance or by iron _will_. A favourite means of tormenting the enemy or +fiend is to awaken the conscience of the magician, or, what is the same +thing, to tempt him to sin, as Satan did Christ. But even conscience +loses its power when we feel that the foe is exaggerating our sins, and +only urging them for torment's sake, and especially when these sins are +of a kind which from a _certain_ standpoint or code, are not sins at all. + +And here we are brought to a subject so strange and witch-like that it is +difficult to discuss or make clear. It is evident enough in "Manfred" +that the great crime was the hero's forbidden love for his sister +Astarte. This it is which crushes him. But it does not appear from the +Italian (save to those deeply learned in the darker secrets of sorcery) +why or how it is that the one persecuted so suddenly revives and defies +the spirit, turning, as it were, his own power against him. In +explaining this, I do not in the least conjecture, guess, or infer +anything; I give the explanation as it was understood by the narrator, +and as confirmed by other legends and traditions. It is this: + +Michelet, in _La Sorciere_, which amid much lunacy or folly contains many +truths and ingenious perceptions, has explained that the witchcraft of +the Middle Ages was a kind of mad despairing revolt against the wrongs of +society, of feudalism, and the Church. It was in very truth the +precursor of Protestantism. Under the name of religion conscience had +been abused, and artificial sins, dooming to hell, been created out of +every trifle, and out of almost every form of natural instincts. The +reaction from this (which was a kind of nihilism or anarchy), was to +declare the antithetic _excess_ of free will. One of the forms of this +revolt was the belief that the greatest sorcerers were born (_ex filio et +matre_) from the nearest relations, and that to dare and violate all such +ties was to conquer by daring will the greatest power. It was the +strongest defiance of the morality taught by the Church, therefore one of +the highest qualifications for an iron-willed magician. It is specially +pointed out in the legend of Diana that she began by such a sin, and so +came to be queen of the witches; and the same idea of entire emancipation +or illumination, or freedom from all ties, is the first step to the +absolute free will which constitutes the very basis of all magic. This, +which is repugnant to humanity, was actually exalted by the Persian Magi +to a duty or religious principle, and it was the same in Egypt as +regarded "first families." The sorcerer pursued by Intialo bases all his +power to resist on the mere fact that he is beloved by a beautiful witch. +This is the Astarte of the Italian drama, or a sister--the terrible tie +which shows that a man is above conscience, and free from all fear of the +powers that be, whether of earth or air. By it his triumph is complete. +He surmounts the accusation of being without morals by utterly denying +their existence from a higher or illuminated point of view. The _magus_ +claims to rank with the gods, and if a divinity _creates_ mankind as his +children, and then has a child by a woman, he is in the same state as the +sorcerer, according to wizards. + +If any reproach attaches to the employment of such an element in poetry, +then Byron and Shelley are far more to blame than the Italian witch-poet, +who veiled his allusion with much greater care than they did, and who had +the vast excuse of _sincere belief_, while their highest aim was mere +art. The wizard-poet has his heart in this faith, as in a religion, and +he is one with his hero. Manfred is at best only a broken-down magician +who presents a few boldly dramatic daring traits--the Italian sorcerer, +who is far more defiant and fearless, conquers. "I am more malignant +than thou art," is a terrible utterance; so is the tone of affected pity +for the baffled tormentor, in which we detect a shade of sarcasm based on +overwhelming triumph. This feeling, be it observed, progresses, +_crescendo forte_, gradually and very artistically, from the first verse +to the last. Intialo has threatened to make the victim a sorry cur who +comes at a call; the sorcerer replies that he will make "a swine's snout" +of Intialo. Finally, he dares the fiend to meet him at midnight at the +great Witches' Sabbat, at the dread walnut-tree of Benevento. Here the +threats reach an ingenious and terrible climax, though the form in which +they are expressed is only quite clear to the initiated. The sorcerer +says, "When thou thinkest that thou see'st my shadow thou wilt behold +thine own," or in other words, "You who have sought to torment me by a +_shadow_ shall yourself be mocked by finding that you are only mine." +This climax of daring the fiend to meet him at Benevento, at the +tremendous and terrible rendezvous of all the devils, witches, and +sorcerers, and then and there trying conclusions with him in delusion and +magic, or a strife of shadows, while leaning against the awful tree +itself, which is the central point of the Italian Domdaniel, is +magnificently imagined. + +In Goethe's "Faust," as in Byron's "Manfred," the hero is a magician, but +he is not in either true to the name or character. The great _magus_ of +early ages, even like the black Voodoo of America, had it clearly before +him all the time that his mission or business, above all things, was to +develop an indomitable _will_ superior to that of men or spirits. Every +point is gained by _force_, or by will and penance. In real sorcery +there is no such thing as a pact with a devil, and becoming his slave +after a time. This is a purely later-Roman invention, a result of the +adoption of the mixture of Jewish monotheism and Persian dualism, which +formed the Catholic Church. In Goethe's "Faust" we have the greatest +weakness, and an extreme confusion of character. The conclusion of the +tale is contradictory or absurd, and the difficulty is solved with the +aid of a _Deus ex machina_. The hero is a sorcerer, and _there is not a +trace of true sorcery or magianism or tremendous will and work in the +whole drama_. Beautiful things are said and done, but, take it for all +in all, it is a grand promenade which leads to nothing. {251} + +In the Italian legend, brief and rude as it is, there appears a +tremendous power worked out with great consistency. The demon or spirit, +intent on causing remorse or despair (_ad affretare il rimorso_), +threatens the sorcerer with terrible maledictions. And these words, if +we regard their real meaning and spirit, have never been surpassed in any +poem. + +And we should note here that the Italian sorcerer who subdues the devil +by simple will and pluck is no Manfred or Faust drawn from the religious +spirit of the Middle Ages. He belongs to the Etruscan age, or to that of +the ancient Magi; he meets malediction with malediction, spell with +spell, curse with curse, injury with injury, sarcasm and jeer with the +same; he insults the devil, calling him his slave: + + "Perche io sono di te--molto piu maligno." + +Until in the end they change parts, and the demon becomes the one +tormented. Therefore there is in this legend, with all its rudeness, a +conception which is so grand, as regards setting forth the possible power +of man, and the _eritis sicut deus_ of modern science, that it is in +unity and fulness far beyond any variant of the same subject. + +That this is of great antiquity is clear, for out of this enchanted +forest of Italian witchcraft and mystical sorcery there never yet came +anything, great or small, which was not at least of the bronze, if not of +the neolithic age. + +Truly, when the chief character in a tradition of the old Etruscan land +bears an Etruscan name, or that of a shadow called a shadow, we may well +conclude that it is not of yesterday. So all things rise and bloom and +pass away here on this earth to winter and decay, and are as phantoms +which + + "Come like shadows, so depart." + +For a last word, "Manfred" and "Faust" are only works of art, intended to +"interest" or amuse or charm the reader, and as such they are great. +They are simply dramas or show-pieces, which also give a high idea of the +artistic skill of their writers. "Intialo" sets forth the great idea of +the true sorcerer, in which they both _fail_, and carries it out +logically to a tremendous triumph. It is the very quintessence of all +heresies, and of the first great heresy, _eritis sicut deus_. + +There will not be wanting one or two critics of the low kind who take +their hints from the disavowals of the author to declare that his book is +just what it is not, who will write that I think I have discovered a +better poet than Keats in Marietta Pery, and a far greater than Goethe or +Byron in the unknown author of the invocation to "Intialo." But all that +I _truly mean_ is that the former is nearer to old tradition, and more +succinct than the English bard--"only this and nothing more"--while in +"Intialo" we have given, as no one ever expressed it, the true ideal of +the magician who, overcoming all qualms of conscience, whether innate or +suggested, and trampling under foot all moral human conventions, rises to +_will_, and victory over all enemies, especially the demons of the +threshold. As a poem, I no more claim special merit for it than I would +for Marietta's; {253} indeed, to the very considerable number of "highly +cultivated" people who only perceive poetry in form and style, and cannot +find it in the grandest conceptions unless they are elegantly expressed, +what I have given in this connection will not appear as poetry at all. + + + + +CAIN AND HIS WORSHIPPERS +THE SPELL OF THE MIRROR--THE INVOCATION TO CAIN--THE WITCH-HISTORY OF +CAIN AND ABEL + + + "Rusticus in Luna + Quem sarcina deprimit una, + Monstrat per spinas + Nulli prodesse rapinas." + + --ALEXANDER NECKHAM, A.D. 1157. + +This is, for reasons which I will explain anon, one of the most curious +traditions which have been preserved by the Tuscan peasantry. I had made +inquiry whether any conjuring by the aid of a mirror existed--"only this +and nothing more"--when, some time after, I received the following: + + LA SCONGIURAZIONE DELLO SPECCHIO. + _When one wishes to enchant a lover_. + +"Go at midnight when there is a fine full moon, and take a small mirror, +which must be kept in a box of a fine red colour, and at each of the four +corners of the box put a candle with a pin, or with a pin in its point, +and observe that two of the pins must have red heads, and two black, and +form a cross, and note that every candle must have two tassels hanging +from it, one red and one black. + +"And within the box first of all put a good layer of coarse salt, and +form on the salt a ring or wreath of incense, and in the middle of this a +cross of cummin, and above all put the small mirror. Then take the +photograph of your lover, but not the real photograph but the negative, +because it must be on a plate of glass (_lastra di vetro_). Then take +some hairs of the lover and join them to the photograph (_sono uniti +dalla parte del quore_), and then take a fine sprig of rue. + +"And with all this nicely arranged in the box, take a boat and sail out +to sea; and if a woman works the spell she must take three men with her +only, and if a man three women and no other person. And they must go +forth at an instant when the moon shines brightly (_risplende bene_) on +the mirror. Then hold the left hand over the mirror, and hold up the rue +with the right. Then repeat the following: {255} + + INCANTESIMO. + + "Luna! Luna! Luna! + Tu che siei tanto bella! + E nel tuo cerchio rachiude + Un si pessimo sogetto + Rachiude Chaino che per gelosia + Uccise il proprio fratello. + + "Ed io che per la gelosia + Del mio amante non ho potuto + Ne bere e ne mangiare, + Ne colle amiche + Non posso conversare, + Io l'amo tanto, tanto, + E non sono corrisposta, + Quanto lo vorrei e per la sua + La sua fredezza io ne sono + Tanto gelosa non so qual' malarono + Quale malarono io commetterei, + Vado a letto non passo riposare, + Mi viene visioni che + Il mio amante mi debba ingannare. + + "Luna, Luna, mia bella Luna! + Che tanto bella siei e ben' risplende, + Ti prego volere pregare per me + _Chaino_ che per gelosia + Uccise il proprio fratello, + Ed io vorrei punire il mio amante, + Ma non farlo morire + Ma pero farlo soffrire, + Che non abbia mai bene + Ne giorno, ne notte, + Non possa ne bene ne mangiare. + E la notte non possa riposare, + E Chaino col suo fascio, + Suo fascio, di pruini, + Il mio amante dal su'letto + Puo le fare, alzare + E alla casa mia + Farlo presto ritornare! + + "Chaino! Chaino! Chaino! + Per tre volte io ti chiamo. + Ti chiamo ad alta voce, + In un punto dove si trova, + Soltanto che cielo e aqua, + E le due mie compagne. + + "Chaino! per la gelosia + Che provarti tu per il tuo fratello! + Provo io per il mio amante, + E vorrei a me farlo ritornare, + Per non allontanarsi mai piu. + + "Tu che dal alto del cielo + Tutto vedi--questa scatola + E bene preparata e tutte e quattro + Le candele o accese, tu puoi guardare, + Puoi guardare questo specchio, + E se tre parole pronunzierai + Tutti i pruini che ai + Nell' fascio delle legne che adosso, + Sempre porti potrai, + Potrai farli passare + Nel corpo, e nel cuore + Del mio amante, + Che non possa dormire e sia + Costretto a vestirsi, + E venire a casa mia, + Per non andarsene mai piu. + + "Con questo ramo di ruta + Lo bagno nel mare, + E bagno le mie due compagne + Che pronunzierrano queste parole + Tale [secondo il nome] colla ai uta + Di Chaino vai dalla tua amante + Per non lasciarla mai piu. + + "Se questa grazia mi fai + Fai alzare un forte vento, + E poi spengere le candele. + Chaino! Chaino! Chaino!" + + THE INVOCATION. + + "Moon! O moon! O moon! + Thou who art always fair, + Yet holdest in thy ring + One of such evil name, + Because thou holdest Cain; + Cain who from jealousy + His own born brother slew. + + "I too through jealousy + Of one whom I still love + Can neither drink nor eat, + Nor even talk with friends, + I love so much--so much-- + Yet am not loved again + As I would fain be loved. + Through his indifference I + So jealous have become, + I do not know what sin + I would not now commit; + I cannot sleep at night + For dreams in which I see + Him faithless unto me. + + "Moon, moon, O beauteous moon! + As thou art fair and bright, + I pray thee, pray for me; + _Cain_ who from jealousy + Slew his own brother born, + As I would punish well + The one whom I yet love, + Yet would not cause his death, + So may he suffer thus: + May suffering be his lot + By day as in the night, + May he not eat or drink, + Nor may he sleep at night! + + "May Cain who bears the bunch + Upon his back, of thorns, + Stand by my lover's bed, + And make him rise from sleep + And hasten to my home. + + "O Cain! O Cain! O Cain! + Three times I call to thee, + Call with my loudest voice, + Just as I find myself + Between the sea and sky, + And my two friends with me. + + "Cain, by the jealousy + Which once thy brother caused, + And which I now endure, + For him whom still I love, + Make love return to me + And never leave me more. + + "Thou who from heaven on high + Seest all things, here behold + This casket well prepared! + The mystic tapers four + All lighted, look on them! + Then in this mirror look. + Then if thou wilt but speak + _Three words_--then all the thorns + Which on thy back thou bear'st, + All in a bundle bound, + Will pass into the life, + The body and the heart + Of him whom yet I love, + So that he sleep no more, + And be compelled to rise, + Compelled to clothe himself, + And hasten to my home, + Never to leave me more. + + "Now, with this branch of rue, + Which I dip in the sea, + I sprinkle both my friends, + That they may speak these words: + That ---, {259a} by the aid + Of Cain shalt seek thy love, + And never leave her more. + + "If thou wilt grant me this, + Cause a high wind to blow, + Extinguishing the lights. + O Cain! O Cain! O Cain!" + +Before proceeding further, I would explain that the use of a photograph, +which must be a negative on glass, instead of being, as was suggested to +me, a modern interpolation, is, strangely enough, a proof of the +antiquity of the rite. In the old time, a picture or portrait painted in +transparent colour on glass was held up to the moon that its rays might +pass through it and enchant the subject. And among the Romans, when one +had a portrait of any one cut on diaphanous stone, it was used in the +same way. I had in my possession once such a portrait-gem, {259b} and a +fine needle-hole had been bored through the right eye so as to blind the +original of the likeness. And I had a friend who lived in Russia, who +discovered that a person who hated him had obtained his photograph, and +pricked holes with a very fine needle in the eyes to blind him. The +negative of a photograph on glass would very naturally occur as a +substitute for a picture. But what is most important is that this +mention of the translucent negative proves fully that the whole ceremony, +in its minutest detail, has actually been preserved to this day, and that +the incantation, long as it is, exists as I have given it, since every +line in it corresponds to the rite. And as I know that it was gathered +by a witch and fortune-teller among others, and carefully compared and +collated, I am sure that it is authentic and traditional. + +Fifty pages are devoted by the Rev. T. Harley in his "Moon Lore" to the +subject of the Man in the Moon, and since the book appeared in 1885 there +have been great additions to the subject. This human being is declared +by myths found in India, and especially among the Oriental gypsies, in +Ireland, Borneo, Greenland, and South America, to be a man who is +punished by imprisonment above for incest with his sister the sun. As he +wanders for ever over the heavens, just as gypsies wander on earth, they +claim him for their ancestor, and declare that Zin-gan (or gypsy) is +derived from two words meaning sun and moon. _Kam_, the sun, has been +varied to _kan_, and in gypsy the moon is called _chone_, which is also +_t-chen_, _chin_, or _sin_. But the point lies in this, that Cain was +condemned to be a "a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth," which gives +much apparent strength to the idea that Cain, whether Shemitic or Aryan, +was, for a great crime, or as chief of sinners, imprisoned in the moon. + +This sufferer, in different legends, has been represented as a +Sabbath-breaker, as Judas Iscariot, as Isaac, and many more +transgressors, almost always with a _bunch_ or _bush_ of _thorns_, for +which there has been literally no real explanation whatever. This I will +now investigate, and, I think, clearly explain. + +Dante in two places speaks of the Man in the Moon as Cain, and as if it +were a very popular legend (_Inferno_, xx. 123): + + "Ma vienne omai che gia tiene 'l confine + D'ambedue gli emisperi, e tocca l'onda + Sotto Sibilia, Caino e le spine + E gia iernotte fu la Luna tonda." + + "But now he comes who doth the borders hold + Of the two hemispheres, and drive the waves + Under the sibyl, Cain, with many thorns. + And yesternight the moon was round and full; + Take care that it may never do thee harm + At any time when in the gloomy wood." + +This twentieth canto is devoted to the sorcerers in hell, and ends with +allusion to the full moon, the sibyl, and Cain, as allied to witchcraft, +prediction, and sin. When the moon is full it is also "high tides" with +the witches, now as of yore: + + "Full moon, high sea, + Great man shalt thou be: + Red dawning, cloudy sky, + Bloody death shalt thou die." + +Dante again mentions Cain in the moon, in the _Paradiso_, ii. 50: + + "Ma ditemi, che con li segni lui + Dio questo corpo, che laggiuso in terra + Fan di _Cain_ favoleggiare altrui?" + + "But tell me now what are the gloomy marks + Upon this body, which down there on earth + Make people tell so many tales of Cain?" + +To which Beatrice replies by a mysterious physical explanation of the +phenomenon, advising him to take three _mirrors_ and observe how the moon +is reflected from one to the other, and that in this manner the _formal +principio_, or first creative power, passes from light to darkness. The +reader will here remember that with the witches the _mirror_ is specially +devoted to conjuring Cain. + +It is worth noting that a _spechietto_, or small looking-glass, was +specially (Barretti) "a little mirror placed at the bottom of a jewel +casket." + +I would now note that the _thorns_ which Cain carries signify, not only +in modern Italian, but in old Roman sorcery, the sting of hatred and of +jealousy. It is a most apparent and natural simile, and is found from +the crown of thorns on Christ to the Voodoo sorcery in Western America. +Miss Mary Owen knew a black girl in Missouri who, as a proof of being +Christianised, threw away the thorn which she kept as a fetish to injure +an enemy. But in early times the thorn was universally known as +symbolical of sin, just as Cain was regarded as the first real sinner. +Therefore the two were united. Menzel tells us in his _Christliche +Symbolik_ (Part I. p. 206) that it is a legend that "there were no thorns +before the Fall; they first grew with sin, therefore thorns are a symbol +of the sorrow or pain which came from sin." Of all of which there is a +mass of old German myths and legends, which I spare the reader, for I +have endeavoured in this comment to avoid useless myth-mongering in order +to clearly set forth the connection between Cain, his thorns, and the +moon. + +That the conjuring the moon with a mirror is very ancient indeed appears +from the legend drawn from classic sources, which is thus set forth in "A +Pleasant Comedie called Summer's Last Will and Testament. Written by +Thomas Nash. London, 1600": + + "In laying thus the blame upon the Moone + Thou imitat'st subtill Pythagoras, + Who what he would the People should beleeve, + The same he wrote with blood upon a Glasse, + And turned it opposite 'gainst the New Moone, + Whose Beames, reflecting on it with full force, + Shew'd all those lines to them that stood behinde, + Most pleynly writ in circle of the Moone, + And then he said: 'Not I, but the newe Moone + Fair Cynthia persuades you this and that.'" + +In the "Clouds" of Aristophanes the same idea is made into a jest, in +which Strepsiades thus addresses Socrates: + + "_Strepsiades_. If I were to buy a Thessalian witch, and then draw + down the moon by night, and then shut her up in a round helmet-case + _like a mirror_, and then keep watching her-- + + _Socrates_. What good would that do you, then? + + _Strepsiades_. What! If the moon were not to rise any more + anywhere, I should not pay the interest. + + _Socrates_. Because what? + + _Strepsiades_. Because the money is lent on interest." {262} + +These instances could be multiplied. What I have given are enough to +show the antiquity of the conjuration; and I also venture to declare that +any Italian scholar who is familiar with these formulas of sorcery will +admit that, making all due allowance for transmission among peasants, the +language, or words, or turns of expression in this incantation denote +great antiquity. + +The next paper or tradition on the subject of Cain, which, as every +phrase in it indicates, was taken down from an old dame who at first +slowly recalled forgotten sentences, will be to many more interesting, +and to all much more amusing than the first. It once happened that an +old gypsy in England began to tell me the story of the ghostly baker of +Stonehenge and the seven loaves, but, suddenly pausing, he said: "What's +the use of telling that to _you_ who have _read_ it all in the Bible?" +There is, however, this trifling difference, that I am not sure that my +Italian witch friends knew that Cain and Abel are in the Bible at all. +The Red Indian doctor, whose knowledge of the Old Testament was limited +to its being good to cure neuralgia, was far beyond the _contadini_ as +regards familiarity with "the efficacy of the Scripture." + +This is the witch-tale as written word by word: + + ABELE E CHAINO. + +"They were two brothers. Abel greatly loved Cain, but Cain did not love +so much the brother Abel. + +"Cain had no great will to work. + +"Abel, however, on the contrary, was greatly disposed (_si ingegnava_) to +labour, because he had found it profitable. He was industrious in all, +and at last became a grazier (_mercante di manzi_). + +"And Cain also, being moved by jealousy (_per astia_), wished to become a +grazier, but the wheel did not turn for him as it did for Abel. + +"And Cain also was a good man, and set himself contentedly to work, +believing that he could become as rich as his brother, but he did not +succeed in this, for which reason he became so envious of Abel that it +resulted in tremendous hate, and he swore to be revenged. + +"Cain often visited his brother, and once said to him, 'Abel, thou art +rich and I am poor; give me the half of thy wealth, since thou wishest me +so well!' + +"Then Abel replied: 'If I give thee a sum which thou thyself couldst gain +by industry, thou shouldst still labour as I do, and I will give thee +nothing, since, if thou wilt work as I do, thou wilt become as rich.' + +"One day there were together Cain, Abel, and a merchant, whose name I +forget. And one told that he had seen in a dream seven fat oxen and +seven lean. And the merchant, who was an astrologer or wizard, explained +that the seven fat oxen meant seven years of abundance, and the seven +lean as many years of famine. + +"And so it came to pass as he foretold--seven years of plenty and seven +of famine. + +"And Cain, hearing this, thought: 'During the seven years of plenty Abel +will lay by a great store, and then I will slay him, and possess myself +of all his goods, and thus I will take care of myself, and my brother +will be dead.' + +"Now, Cain greatly loved God; he was good towards God, more so than Abel, +because Abel, having become rich, never spoke more unto the Lord; and +Abel would gladly have become a wizard himself. + +"Then Cain began to think how he could slay Abel and become a merchant in +his place, and so went forth to cut wood. + +"One day he called his brother Abel, and said to him: 'Thou art so rich, +while I am poor, and all my work avails me little.' And with that he +gave Abel a blow with a knife, and dressed himself in his garments, and +took a bundle of thorns on his back, and thus clad he took Abel's place +as merchant, believing that no one would recognise him as Cain. + +"And while thus buying and selling he met the merchant-wizard who had +foretold the seven years of famine and of abundance. And he said, 'Oh, +good day, Abel,' to make Cain believe that he was not discovered. But +the oxen who were present all began to chant in chorus: + + "'Non chiamate questo, Abele! + E Chaino, non lo vedete, + Per la gola della monete + Il fratello ammazato, + E dei suoi panni e vestito. + O Chaino or siei chiamato + Alla presenza del gran Dio, + Che a morte ti 'a condannato + Che di richezza eri assetato.' + + "'Do not call that person Abel; + It is Cain, do you not see it? + Cain who, for the greed of money, + Treacherously slew his brother, + And then clad him in his garments. + Now, O Cain! thou wilt be summoned + Speedily unto the presence + Of the Lord, who has condemned thee + Unto death for thy great avarice.' + +"Cain came before God. + + "'O gran Dio di clemenza + Voi che siete grande, buono, + Velo chiedo a voi perdone, + Per il bene vi ho valuto, + Un instante vi ho dimenticato + Ma ne sono molto pentito, + Di aver ammazato + Abele il fratello mio.' + + "'O great God of endless mercy, + Thou who art so good and mighty, + Grant, I pray thee, grant me pardon + For the good I did while living! + Truly once, but for an instant, + I forgot myself, but deeply + I since then have long repented + That I slew my brother Abel.' + +"But God replied: {265} + +"A punishment thou shalt have because thou didst slay thy brother from a +desire to become rich. Likewise thou didst meddle with witchcraft and +sorceries, as did thy brother. And Abel made much money and was very +rich, because he did not love God, but sorcerers. Albeit, ever good he +never did evil things, and many good, wherefore God pardoned him. But +thou shalt not be pardoned because thou didst imbrue thy lands in human +blood, and, what is worse, in thy own brother's blood. + +"The punishment which I inflict is this: + +"The thorns {266} which thou didst put upon thy brother are now for thee. + +"Thou shalt be imprisoned in the moon, and from that place shalt behold +the good and the evil of all mankind. + +"And the bundle of thorns shall never leave thee, and every time when any +one shall conjure thee, the thorns shall sting thee cruelly; they shall +draw thy blood. + +"And thus shalt thou be compelled to do that which shall be required of +thee by the sorcerers or by conjuring, and if they ask of thee that which +thou wilt not give, then the thorns shall goad thee until the sorceries +shall cease." + + * * * * * + +This is clearly enough no common popular nursery tale, such as make up +collections of Tuscan tales or popular legends, gathered from pious or +picturesque peasants. Through it all runs a deep current of dark heresy, +the deliberate contravention of accepted Scripture, and chiefly the spell +of sorcery and deadly witchcraft. It is a perfect and curious specimen +of a kind of forbidden literature which was common during the Middle +Ages, and which is now extremely rare. This literature or lore was the +predecessor of Protestantism, and was the rock on which it was based. + +There have always been in the world since time began certain good people +whose taste or fate it was to be invariably on the wrong side, or in the +opposition; like the Irishman just landed from a ship in America, who, +being asked how he would vote, replied, "Against the Government, of +course, whatever it is," they are always at war with the powers that be. +With Jupiter they would have opposed the Titans; with Prometheus, +Jupiter; as early Christians they would have rebelled against the Pagans, +and as heretics, Orientalised Templars, Vaudois, illuminati, sorcerers, +and witches, they would have undermined the Church, never perceiving that +its system or doctrine was, _au fond_, fetish, like their own. Among +these rebels it was long the rule to regard those gods or men who were +specially reviled by their foes or oppressors as calumniated. Even Satan +was to them "the puir deil;" according to the Taborites, an oppressed +elder brother of Christ, or a kind of Man in an Iron Mask kept out of his +rights by Jehovah the XIV. These discontented ones deified all who had +been devilled, found out that Jezebel had been a _femme incomprise_, and +the Scarlet Woman only an interesting highly-coloured variant of the +ancient hoary myth of Mademoiselle or Miss Salina the Innocent. When +Judas was mentioned, they solemnly remarked that there was a great deal +to be said on both sides of _that_ question; while others believed that +Ananias and Sapphira had been badly sat upon, and deserved to be +worshipped as saints of appropriation--a cult, by the way, the secret +observance of which has by no means died out at the present day--several +great men being regarded in Paris as its last great high priests. + +The Cainites, as known by that name to the Church, were a Gnostic sect of +the second century, and are first mentioned by Irenaeus, who connects +them with the Valentinians, of whom I thought but yesterday when I saw in +a church a sarcophagus warranted to contain the corpse of St. Valentine. +They believed that Cain derived his existence from the supreme power, but +Abel from the inferior, and that in this respect he was the first of a +line which included Esau, Korah, the dwellers in Sodom and Gomorrah, the +worshippers of Ashtoreth-Mylitta, or the boundless sensualists, the +sorcerers, and witches. + +Considering what human nature is, and its instincts to opposition, we can +see that there must have been naturally a sect who regarded Cain as a +misjudged martyr. Abel appeared to them as the prosperous well-to-do +bourgeois, high in favour with the Lord, a man with flocks, while Cain +was a tiller of the ground, a poor peasant out of favour. It must be +admitted that in the Book of Genesis, in the history of the first murder, +we are much reminded of the high priest Chalcas in _La Belle Helene_, +where he exclaims, "_Trop de fleurs_!" and expresses a preference for +cattle. It is the old story of the socialists and anarchists, which is +ever new. + +The witches and sorcerers of early times were a widely spread class who +had retained the beliefs and traditions of heathenism with all its +license and romance and charm of the forbidden. At their head were the +Promethean Templars, at their tail all the ignorance and superstition of +the time, and in their ranks every one who was oppressed or injured +either by the nobility or the Church. They were treated with +indescribable cruelty, in most cases worse than beasts of burden, for +they were outraged in all their feelings, not at intervals for +punishment, but habitually by custom, and they revenged themselves by +secret orgies and fancied devil-worship, and occult ties, and stupendous +sins, or what they fancied were such. I can seriously conceive--what no +writer seems to have considered--that there must have been an immense +satisfaction in selling or giving one's self to the devil, or to any +power which was at war with their oppressors. So they went by night, at +the full moon, and sacrificed to Diana, or "later on" to Satan, and +danced and rebelled. It is very well worth noting that we have _all_ our +accounts of sorcerers and heretics from Catholic priests, who had every +earthly reason for misrepresenting them, and did so. In the vast amount +of ancient witchcraft still surviving in Italy there is not much +anti-Christianity, but a great deal of early heathenism. Diana, not +Satan, is still the real head of the witches. The Italian witch, as the +priest Grillandus said, stole oil to make a love-charm. {269} But she +did not, and does not say, as he declared, in doing so, "I renounce +Christ." There the priest plainly lied. The whole history of the witch +mania is an ecclesiastical falsehood, in which such lies were subtly +grafted on the truth. But in due time the Church, and the Protestants +with them, created a Satanic witchcraft of their own, and it is this +after-growth which is now regarded as witchcraft in truth. + +Cain-worshippers and witches seem to have been all in the same boat. I +think it very likely that in these two traditions which I have given we +have a remnant of the actual literature of the Cainites, that +Gnostic-revived and mystical sect of the Middle Ages. But I doubt not +that its true origin is far older than Christianity, and lost in earliest +time. + +One last remark. We are told in the tale that Abel, having become rich, +"cut" the Lord, or would speak to him no longer. I suppose that he +dropped the synagogue and _Yom kippur_, and became a _Reformirter_, and +his children in due time _Goyim_. Also that he wanted to become a +wizard, which may be a hint that he was "no conjuror." But it is +seriously a proof of the naivete, and consequent probable antiquity of +the tale, that these details are not "wrote sarcastic," nor intended for +humour. And it is also interesting to observe how impartially the +narrator declares that Cain was "a good man," and how he, in pleading his +own cause before the Lord, insists that in killing Abel he only +inadvertently forgot himself for an instant. One almost expects to hear +him promise that he will not do it again. + +It is a striking proof of the antiquity of this tradition of Cain, as I +have given it, that the witch or wizard sympathy for the first murderer +is in it unmistakable. The sending Cain to the moon, instead of hell, is +understood to be a mitigation of his sentence. In his work on magicians +and witches, A.D. 1707, Goldschmidt devotes many pages to set forth what +was believed by all the learned of his time, that Cain was the father of +all the wizards, and his children, the Cainites, the creators of the +_Gaber_, fire-idolators, Cabiri, magic soothsaying, and so forth. So the +tradition lived on, utterly forgotten by all good people, and yet it is +to me so quaint as to be almost touching to find it still existing, a +fragment of an old creed outworn here among poor witches in Florence. + +"Sacher Masoch," a Galician novelist, informs us in a romance, "The +Legacy of Cain," that the Cainites still exist in Russia, and that their +religion is represented by the following charming creed: + + "Satan is the master of the world; therefore it is a sin to belong to + Church or State, and marriage is also a capital sin. Six things + constitute the legacy of Cain: Love, Property, Government, War, and + Death. Such was the legacy of Cain, who was condemned to be a + wanderer and a fugitive on earth." + +I have another apparently very ancient conjuration of a mirror, in two +parts. It is of the blackest witchcraft, of the most secret kind, and is +only intended to injure an enemy. + +From an article in _La Rivista delle Tradizione Popolare_ of July 1894, +by F. Montuori, I learn that in a little work by San Prato on "Cain and +the Thorns according to Dante and Popular Tradition," Ancona, 1881, which +I have not seen, the history of Cain is given much as told by Maddalena. +What is _chiefly_ interesting in the version of Maddalena is, however, +wanting in all the folklore on the subject collected by others; it is the +manifest trace of Cainism, of sympathy with the first murder, and in its +heresy. This opens for us a far wider field of research and valuable +historical information than the rather trivial fact that Cain is simply +the Man in the Moon. + +Merk in _Die Sitten und Gebrauche der Deutschen_, gives (p. 644), from +Wolf, a strange legend which is nearly allied to Moon worship by witches, +and the mirror: + + "There was a man in Kortryk who was called Klare Mone (bright moon), + and he got his name from this. One night when sleeping on his + balcony he heard many women's voices sweetly singing. They held + goblets [there is some confusion here with _glaserne Pfannen_ or + glass panes in the roof from which the man looked; I infer that the + witches drank from "glass pans," _i.e._, metallic mirrors], and as + they drank they sang: + + "'We are drinking the sweetest of earthly wine, + For we drink of the clear and bright moonshine.' + + "But as the man approached them, 'with a club to beat or kill them, + all vanished.'" + +"Which fable teaches," as the wise Flaxius notes, "what indeed this whole +book tends to show--that few people know or heed what witches ever really +were. Now, that this boor wished to slay the sorceresses with a club, +for drinking moonshine, is only what the whole world is doing to all who +have _different ideas from ours_ as to what constitutes enjoyment. So in +all history, under all creeds, even unto this day, people have been +clubbed, hung, tortured, and baked alive, or sent to Coventry for the +crime of drinking _moonshine_!" + +And so this volume ends, oh reader mine! + + "So the visions flee, + So the dreams depart; + And the sad reality, + Now must act its part." + _Ite_, _lector benevole_, + _Ite_, _missa est_. + + * * * * * + + _Printed by_ BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO. + _Edinburgh and London_ + + + + +Footnotes: + + +{3a} _Nel miglio salotto di recevimento_. This is all an accurate +picture of old Florentine customs. + +{3b} _Necessita fa la vecchia trottare_. On which proverb Matteo +Villani comments as follows: "And thus he truly verified the saying of +Valerius Maximus, that 'the wants caused by human weakness are a common +bond of security,' all of which is briefly expressed in the French +proverb, 'Need makes the old woman (or old age) bestir herself.'" +Valerius Maximus was the prototype of Guicciardini. + +{8} "Chiese alla regina di dormir seco." Which was certainly very plain +blunt speaking, even for the time. + +{14} "Le cattive nove volano, +Le male son sempre vere; +Prima l'annunzio, poi malanno, +Chi me ne da una calda, e chi una fredda." + + --_Italian Proverb_. + +{15} The_ cappa_ is a cloak with a hood or "capuchin;" a _cotta_ is the +stole worn by Catholic priests. + +{21} _Folletto_. This, which meant originally an airy tricksy sprite, +is now applied not only to fairies and goblins in general, but also to +every kind of supernatural apparition. I have a book in which even +comets are described as _folletti_. + +{23} Redi's _Bacco in Toscana_ is known to the most ignorant in +Florence, there being very cheap editions of it constantly sold. + +{24} "Can a _horn_ play second fiddle?" inquires Flaxius. "This comes +of trying to improve on the simple Italian text." + +{27} _Zoccoloni_ or _Zoccolanti_, sandalled friars of the lowest order, +who are indeed common beggars. + +{31} The partial inscription referred to is still on the column. + +{33} This is strikingly like the ceremony for the same purpose used by +the ancient Romans, the object in both being to frighten away evil +spirits. _Vide_ "Etruscan Roman Remains," by C. G. Leland, p. 305. + +{43} Una vecchietta, tutta Gesu e Maria. + +{47} I have elsewhere explained that the _fata_ in these traditions is a +witch or sorcerer become a spirit. + +{48a} It may be conjectured from this context that the child was partly +human in form, perhaps like the Pig-faced Lady, or not more swinish than +William of Ardennes in face. + +{48b} Truly she was, to use a really ancient phrase, "ready to go the +whole hog." It is said that Mahomet told his disciples that there was +one part of a pig which they must not touch; but as he did not specify +what it was, they among them devoured the entire animal. + +{50} "Symbola Heroica," Antwerp, 1583. + +{63} Raised footway, high curbstone, causeway, bench. + +{67} "D'una gran purga bisogna avete, +E questa purga davero dovete +Farla all' anima, cosi guarirete!" + +{71} It appears from this story that La Certosa was "even then as now" +visited by strangers as one of the lions of Florence. + +{77a} This word is apparently allied to _Marrano_, an infidel Moor, +miscreant, traitor, or to _amaro_, bitter or painful. + +{77b} A peculiarly Florentine word. _Renajo_, sand-pit, a place so +called near the Arno in Florence (Barretti's Dictionary). I can see +several of these _renaioli_ with their boats from the window at work +before me as I write. _Vide_ "The Spirit of the Arno." + +{82} "Echoes of Old Florence," by Temple Leader. + +{83} Like Proteus, the evasive slippery nature of water and the light +which plays on it accounts for this. + +{92} "Well, yes, I think you might; +A cart of hay went through this afternoon." + +I believe this is by Peter Pindar. The Italian proverb probably +suggested it. + +{94} _Rizzar l'uovo di Pippo su un piano_. "To do a difficult thing, or +achieve it by tact and skill." This hints at the egg of Columbus. But +Columbus set the egg upright by breaking its end, which was not a fair +game. Any egg can be set on end on a marble table (I have done it), by +patient balancing, without breaking. + +{96} "Florentine Life during the Renaissance," by Walter B. Scaife. +Baltimore, 1893. + +{98} The diavolino of Gian di Bologna is of bronze, but popular +tradition makes light of accuracy. + +{103} This is supposed to be addressed to another, not to the fairy. + +{108} _Ucellato_, caught like a bird, or, as they say on the +Mississippi, "sniped." + +{126} The reader may observe that these popular names of Oratorio and +Orto are most likely to have given the prefix _Or'_. + +{150} _Ha tanta lingua che spazzarebbe un forno_, _o un cesso_. Said of +virulent gossips. + +{152} _Mago_, which, like _magus_, implies more dignity than magician or +sorcerer. + +{153} "The Mugnone, whose course has been shifted to the west, formerly +flowed into the Arno, through the heart of the city."--_Murray's Handbook +for Travellers in Central Italy_. + +{155} _L'anguilla si rizzo in piedi_--"The eel rose upon her feet." +This will remind the reader of some of the difficulties experienced by +Gothic artists in depicting Eve and the Serpent. + +{156} There is much confusion here. It appears that the fairy made the +fountain now in the Signoria, and that Biancone saw this in a vision. + +{158} This refers to the satyrs who are among the bronze figures below +Neptune. + +{161a} I here omit a long, detailed, and wearisome account of the +research, which, however, indicates the accuracy with which the tradition +had been preserved, and the full belief in it of the narrator. + +{161b} A kind of cruel pillory. + +{162} In allusion to seeing it from behind the squares formed by the +grates of iron before prison windows. + +{164} Landucci, 233, cited by Scaife. + +{171} Una medichessa. + +{177} Not a fairy here, but a witch of a certain degree. + +{180} Si la Messa de Villani era finito. + +{181} E appunto hora comincia quella delle puttane, pero caminate, che +farete a tempo con l'altre. + +{189} Nella guerra d'amor, che fugge vince. + +{196} Viene tutte le mattine +Colle sue belle manine. + +Though very rude, even to illiteracy in _form_, the train of thought is +here very gracefully managed in the original. + +{201} So called because criminals passed through it on their way to +execution. + +{202} "Da qualche bacio +Vi chascha il _vero_ bacio d'amor." + + --_Original_. + +{203a} "Altrimenti +L'avrebbero levato il collare."--_Original_. + +{203b} "In una altra stella +Per raggiungere la sua bella."--_Original_. + +{205} _Faceva il verso del lupo_, the deep baying which is a subject of +superstition in all countries. + +{207} Friedrich, "Symbolik der Natur." + +{208} A humming-top. + +{212} The Philological Society (_Circolo_), has also its rooms in this +building. + +{213} Perche si rendeva alle persone troppo triviale--A graphic sketch +of a character who would be peculiarly offensive in a highly patrician +community. + +{220} "Col mio pugnale ammazato, +Col pugnale e sotterato." + +{224} Since writing the foregoing, I have found in _Am Urquelle_, vol. +vi. 3, May 1895, a legend credited to a book by A. Bondeson, _Historic +Gulbar pa Dal_ (Stockholm, 1886), or a story entitled "The Lover with a +Green Beard," which is much the same in incident as this. The editor, H. +Feilberg, notices the affinity of this and other tales to the Vampyre and +Burger's "Leonora." + +{227} _Zufolo_--a rude flageolet, such as is still commonly played by +the shepherds all over Italy. + +{238} _Il suo spirito lo fa presentare qualunque ombra_, that is, in any +or varied shadow; a _haunting_ shade, and not strictly the mere shadow of +the one who is haunted. + +{239} That which here follows of the invocation was obtained +subsequently by my agent, I think, from another source. What precedes is +evidently only a fragment. + +{251} The concluding portion of this chapter is taken from the Italian +original paper read by me at the first meeting of the Italian Folklore +Society in the Collegio Romano, Rome, November 20, 1894. + +{253} These references to Marietta Pery are in regard to a certain +Italian poetess, of whose work I originally intended to give specimens in +this book, but which were omitted as want of space did not permit their +insertion. I hope to include them in another volume of legends.--C. G. +LELAND. + +{255} Such incantations are _intoned_ or chanted in a very peculiar +style, so that those who can only hear the sound know that it is a magic +spell. Therefore they must be expressed very accurately to the letter. +It may be observed that there is a contradiction in the original MS., +which here speaks of _three_ companions, and subsequently of two. I +believe the latter to be correct. + +{259a} Here the name of the lover is pronounced by the friends. + +{259b} Now in possession of Mrs. January of St. Louis, Missouri. + +{262} "Moon Lore," p. 152. + +{265} I have no doubt that originally all the spoken parts of this +narrative were sung. + +{266} Thorns here plainly mean suffering, _Fasio di pruini che ai messo +al tuo fratello_. + +{269} It is amusing that this stealing oil wherewith to make +love-charms, which was denounced so bitterly as damnable sorcery at one +time, and frequently punished by death, _i.e._, by burning alive, is now +tacitly encouraged by the priests. There are churches about Rome in +which the oil is placed where it may be stolen or taken, it being +understood that a _soldo_ or two shall be left to pay for it. + + + + +***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LEGENDS OF FLORENCE*** + + +******* This file should be named 32786.txt or 32786.zip ******* + + +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: +http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/3/2/7/8/32786 + + + +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. 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