Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1892-12-22
A FAMILY FEUD.

ouldl nCdi6 bHe ulScOrQS OF Ine Mon
tagues and Capulets, only, with due re
gard to the civilization of the times, in
stead of spilling blood, they spilled
money. Instead Of dead relatives, ther,
had been many lawsuits. long and en-
tangled; they went to law for spite, fol
resentment, for anger; they kept at Law
with that obstinate delight in litigation
which is one Of the joys OF proyincia
life. As usual it was a question d
trifes-a stream Of water that had takeI
wrong direction: an unruly goat thai
had leaped from the field Of one into the
field Of the other; some obscure anC
| stupid potatoes which. spreading them
selves underground. had disregarded tht
boundaries.
Upon this showered legal documents
The lawyers toiled to write in that style
Of theirs-the last relic of barbarous in
vasions; judgments were multiplied
lawsuits grews complicated. The twC
advocates rubbed their hands for JOY
and from the aspect of things were sur,
of transmitting, as d valuable inheri
tance, those quarrels to their sons. How
the enmity between Pasquali and tht
Dericca families had been caused coul(
not be clearly learned; affirmation va
ried on one and the other side. But /
was deep and declared enmity.
Being neighbors in town and i'll ths
country they frequently met. looking
askance at each other; the womer
heard mass in two different churches; Il
the Dericca girls wore blue gowns til,
Pasquali girls at once put on pink ones
in the municipal council the Pasqual
were always conservative and tht
Dericca, naturally, radical; that which
one did the other would not do for ;
thousand scudi; where one went the
other did not appear. And then gossip
evil speaking, complaints. eagerness fol
scandal, lnalignity;in short, all that out
fit of pleasing things which take place
in provincial towns between two riya
families. On the top of all this Carlo, the
eldest son of the Pasquali, and Maria
the second daughter of the Dericca
thought it best to fall in love with eacI
other.
Love in a small town has not much
variety. Usually it begins in childhood
continues amid games of blindman's
buff, is apt 10 manifest itself I'll social
dancing parties and round games and il
always ratified by the parish priest and
the mayor. These loves are recognized
superintended, established, registered in
the household comings and goings; pro
tected by grumbiing grandfathers and
by priestly uncles; loves without nerves.
without tears, without tendernesses and
fancies; something extremely calm and
slow-the crystallization of love. But
Carlo Pasquali had had the incompara-
bic fortune to pass, once, fortnight at
Naples, which made him look with scorn
upon provincial customs; and Maria
Dericca at night, by feeble lamp,
had wept over the hapless heroines
of Mastriani, and had envied them in
their fantastic passions; therefore for
these two was required an exceptional
love. First it was furtive glance; d
softly murmured word, yet heard with
singular perception by her who should
hear it; carnation pink fallen from q
balcony by reason Of the wind Of course;
sudden pallor of his, sudden blush
of hers; then. by the armed intervention
of rogue Of a fifteen year-old girl who
came with hatiron to smooth Maria i
linen and the course of true love at the
same time-a note and brief reply; 4
little letter, long letter, and finally
those voluminous epistles of eight or ten
sheets of note paper which mark the
highest point Of the folly of love.
Alas! The JOY of the young people
was brief, and sorrow rapidly arrived to
destroy it. They were seen, spied, the
news reached their respective papas, aud
all the thunderbolts of paternal wrath.
imbittered by eleven lawsuits, fell upon
the heads of the poor lovers. The bal
cony windows were closed, the bolts
were fastened on the terrace doors, the
carnation pinks on the bush were count
ed, walks were forbidden, or at least
made without previous notice, the hour
of going to mass varied each Sunday
but those two continued to love each
other.
Rebuffs, exhortations, prohibitions,
difficulties availed only to infame their
love. AT night, in the winter, Maria
arose, dressed herself, wrapped herself
in shawl, and in slippers, with bated
breath, trembling for fear, descended
the stairs to window Of the first floor;
the young friend was in the street, lean
ing against the wall So they talked
for two or three hours without caring
for the cold, the rain or the loss of sleep:
they talked without seeing each other,
from distance of five meters of alti-
tude, becoming silent at every sound
of passer, then cautiously resuming
their discourse, with the continual fear
that Maria's parents might arouse and
find her in that aerial colloquy.
But what did it all matter to thelns
They had within their hearts sunshine.
light, springtime, courage, enthusiasm.
If the king had come they would not
have moved. Instead, the brother Of
Maria, one night when he could not
sleep, arose from his bed and found the
door sjar, went down the stairs, heard
a murmur, and caught his sister III the
act. He unceremoniously barred the
shutters in the face Of Carlo, gave Maria
resounding box on the ear, and brought
her to her room. Next morning the
small window on the first floor was
walled up.
Oh, all ye faithful lovers, who grieve
amid the pains Of thwarted love, imagine
the despair Of those twol Their letters
were no longer legible, for tears blotted
the words; rows of exclamation points.
that looked like Prussian soldiers under
arms, followed the daily imprecations
against fortune, destiny, fate and other
impersonal beings incapable of resenting
them; thousand fantastic plans were
created and then rejected. Carlo would
have liked to elope with Maria. bat his
father allowed him no money, and it
woqlS have been difficult to put together
the nine lire and fifty centesimi for two
tickets for the journey to Naples; they
thought for a moment of suicide, but
found that it would not solve the diff
Guilty. Then, In the long run. their love