The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1894-10-01
or" cried Rita that my chdr father"


il. and Piccino, with his dirty, beautitul
little face and his half inch eyelashes, dld
not seem much more serious 10 her. ne
would cost more money, of course, as She
,po,,ld have to provide for him in some way
after he had grown too big TO amuse her,
but she hard plenty of money, and she need
not trouble herself about him. She need not
see him if she did not wish TO after she
had sent him to school, or to be trained IN
10 some superior kind of servant Lazy
Aileen was not person whose conscience
Il. sturbed her, and caused her TO 1eel re-
aGsibilities. And so, after the party had
faou To explore Cerani and the things THAI
otherwise interested them, she asked Mr.
Gordon to 20 with her to the poor little
tumble-down house which Maria had point
cd out to her as the home of Piccino. Ma
ria had. in fact had a rich harvest Every
body had returned full of good things, and
Pfccnos small pocket was rich with soldi
Il am going to carry out your sugses-
ton" Lady Aileen said 10 Mr.. Gordon,
as they walked down the road.
What was it?" Mr.. Gordon asked.
THAT / should buy the child"
Indeed" said Mr. Gordon. You find
you can always buy what you have a fancy
fOr?'
Nearly always" said Lady Aileen.
knitting her handsome white forehead
little. Il have no doubt lhaI can guy
this thing | have a fancy for
1t CHANGED that she came exactly at the
right moment. AS they approached the
house they heard even louder cries and
lamentations and ratings than Piccino had
heard in the morning.
1t appeared that old Beppo had repented
his lenieucy and had come back for the
donkey. He would not let ii stay another
night EFe wanted to work it himself. He
n ic nil # roT nd
tened it to the pretty gray head already,
while Piccino's mother, Rita, wept and ges-
ticulated and poured forth maledictions. The
neighbors had come back to sympathize
with her. and ind out what would happen,
and the children had begun to cry and An
nibale to swear, so that there was such a
noise filling the air that if Lady Aileen had
not been a cool and determined person she
might have been alarmed.
But she was not. She did not wait for Mr.
Gordon to command order, but walked
straight into the midst of the alteration.
What is the mater?" she demanded in
Italian What is all this noise about?"
Then, after their first start of surprise
at seeing the grand lady who Was so plain
IN one of the rich forestieri, Rita and
all her neghborS began to explain their
wrongs at once. They praised the donkey
and reviled Annibale, and proclaimed that
old Beppo was a malefactor without soul,
and a r0bber of the widow ana the Iatner-
less.
Far better" cried Rita, that my children
should be without a father. An idle, ugly
brute, who takes their bread out of their
poor mouths. To sell their one friend who
keeps them-the donkey"
Old Beppo looked both sheepish and fright
ened when Lady Aileen turned upon him,
as he was beginning to shuttle away with
his property at the end of his rope halter.
stay where you are" she said.
"Illustrissima," mumbled Beppo. "A thou
sand excuses But have work to do, and
the donkey is mine. l have bought it. 1t IS
my donkey, illustrissima."
Lady Aileen knew Italy very well. She
drew out her purse that he might see it in
her hand before she turned away from him.
"Stay where you are" she said;. II shall
have something to say to you later"
Then she turned to Rita.
"Stop making a noise" she said, II want
to talk to you"
What could the illustrious signora have
70 say to a wretched woman? Rita wept.
All her children must starve she must
starve herself-death from colo ana munger
lay before them
mo such thing" said Lady Aileen. Il
will buy your donkey back and give you
food and fuel for the winter-for more than
one winter ifsyou will let me have what l
want"
Rita and the neighbors exclaimed in cho-
rus If she could have what she wanted
the most illustrious signora! What could
she want that howell could hold, and what
could such poor creatures refuse her?
Lady Aileen made a gesture towarS Pic
elmo. who had gone to stand by the donkey,