The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1895-08-22
Short
Story
Corner,
THE CONVENT BELL.

attached TO a convent in Rome, of which
the sisters were becoming slowly but sure
ly fewer, because when the old nuns died
or sickness carried away one of their num-
Der none was found to replace her.
It was a mean building enough except
for its marble columns and pavement, in
which, however nearly every church In
Rome Is rich.
The facade was In bad taste and decayed
the affairs poor and tawdry, but 1t had one
supreme glory, and that was its bell. Of
all the bells far and near this had the rich
est fullest sound and sweetest tone, and as
In Rome bells seem oftener to be ringing
than silent this was no small matter to the
neighbors.
The bellringer was man of about 20
years of age, short, thin and pale, with
clean, clear cut features, such as Italians
generally have, his chin and cheeks of a
blue gray hue except the day after his
weekly shave. His bent form was incased
In long cassock, which at some remote
period might have been black, but was
now, more exactly speaking, green. His
soant gray hairs escaped from we'll worn
skullcap, and he lived alone having ap-
parently neither relatives nor friends.
Altogether only shabby, commonplace
little old man. But Sior Antonio had
two great joys in his life-few can boast
Of more than one-and these were his
snuff and his bell
The latter he was accustomed to call his
mistress, and when not occupied with
his ringing he used to stand, snuffbox In
hand, gazing adoringly at "her, his be-
loved La Catarina.
And indeed the bell looked very we'll up
there in its weather stained brick belfry.
The bronze Of which 1t was made was q
beautiful pale green, the beam to which 1t
was fixed was brilliant red and up In the
deep blue italian sky 1t made a pretty pio-
ture enough.
The boys who in Rome are no better
than other boys--indeed IL anything a lit
tie worse-were accustomed to jeer at the
poor old man as he stood gazing with
weak, dim eyes into the sun saturated
blue, but he paid no heed to them, only
muttering a few words which sounded
like, "How long9"
When Sior Antonio had occasion to
speak TO one Of the sisters about the bell,
he would do so thus:
"La Catarina does not seem so sound as
she used to be, fear, madre. I hear a
change in her voice as If she were lament
ing the good old days, and like me she Is
worse for the wear and tear of years. AS
soon as my rheumatism will let me will
climb up into the belfry and see what Is
the matter with the dear one"
Or he would say to a neighbor, How
well, Sior Pippo La Catarina goes today.
There is not another like her in Rome,
where bells are not few"
The good sisters as their revenues di-
miDished, wished to dismiss Sior Antonio
and do their own ringing themselves, but
the old man steadily refused to go, saying
1t would break his heart and when money
almost entirely failed he continued to stay
on, lonely and sad, existing no one knew
how, probably picking up few stray soldi
from strangers who came but rarely to
visit the church
But one day the eldest of the last three
sisters died, and orders came from the
Vatican for the removal of the remaining
two to another convent of the same order,
and the suppression of the church of Santa
Martorana followed. Then there was no
help for 1t. The last mass must be said
and La Catarina rung for the last time.
Sior Antonio, with tears in his eyes and
despair In his heart, once more prepared
to exercise his beloved office. He began by
pulling the rope tenderly, tenderly, and a
wall as of sorrow and farewell hoated out
from the swaying bronze.
He pulled harder, and the sound was
one of anger and lament-lament loud and
inconsolable, as of strong heart which
would rather burst than submit And the
bell swung angrily in the eternal blue,
making itself a voice. as 1t were, for Sior
Antonio's embittered feelings.
At length, almost as he was about to
pull the last stroke, loud crash startled
priest and nuns and the few women and
children gathered for the service. The red
beam had given way under the unwonted
vehemence Of Sior Antonio's arm, and La
Catarina lay in many fragments on the
belfry floor. Sior Antonio was extended in
the midst of them. A large piece of bronze
had struck him on the forehead, and he
was senseless. They took him to the hos.
pital and he was carefully tended, but he
never spoke again. On taking off his
clothes round his neck leather bag was
found containing thick gold ring with
the word "Catarina" engraved inside It,
When he died, he was hustled with many
others into the common grave.
La Catarina had called him, and he
went. Margaret Thomas in Queen.