The aegis & intelligencer., 1895-09-27
miscellaneous.
A FAIR DIVISION.

The poverty in the village was very
general, and but for Pietro Gozzolli
the keeper of the wineshop might have
lowered his blinds and pulled his door
| to.
The fishing along the Naples coast
had been bad for many weeks, and in
Basnio every man is fisherman and
every woman a fisherman wife or
| daughter. And SO the poverty was
great, and Pietro was the only man
| who still smoked a daily handful of
| cigarettes and still sat regularly in the
wineshop.
He had been to England, and had
come back with q fortune, and was i'll
| dependent of the vagaries of the fish and
the weather "Ah," sighed the vii
layers, as they placed their hands i'll
| their empty pockets, what lucky man
is Pietro, and what a rich place that
England must be!'
One day in the early spring, the news
| went about that this man of fortune was
grown Unsuitable, and was going away
| again to make more music for the for
| eigners and TO get yet more francesconi
And every fisherman was sick with envy
that he, too could not leave the barren
harbor and go to the northern El Do
RADIO. But Pietro GoZZolli alone was
possessed of the great sum that was
wanted to pay the steamboat people and
! to hire the organ.
And who would he take with him?
Which of the dark eyed village beauties
hn 70 70 lao his
and to share his gains? Many were the
| longing looks thrown to him and many
the prayers whispered to the saints by
pretty ones whose fancy saw countless
bright ribbons and sashes, the posses
sions of her who should be chosen.
A day or two more, and it was known
that Tessa Puncia was the happy girl
destined to be raised to opulence; and,
early one morning she and Pietro left
Basnio for the long, dusty walk to
Naples. And the next day they were
standing on the deck Of the steamer,
watching the shore line die out as the
sea grew deeper and bluer.
During the voyage he taught her the
words of English he remembered and
talked to her about the life in London;
how that they were to work very hard
and spend very little, that they might
have much to take home with them. And
she, still glad that she had found grace
in his sight, smiled agreement to every
thing.
A week after they had walked out of
Basino, beautiful even in its poverty,
they were citizens of the italian colony
in London, making music about the
streets during the days and passing the
nights in garnet in an evil smelling
court at the back of Saffron Hill.
Pietro was the musician, and hour
after hour for many hours he toiled at
the organ handle, now with left hand,
and now with right. Tessa carried the
tray for the offerings of the passersby,
and as she was pretty and begged with
charming smile, her apron pockets
were usually heavy with copper coin
when the evening and the time to re-
turn home came.
Then Pietro relieved her of the
weight, and counted out the pence and
took them 10 some shop near by and
changed them for silver. When there
was enough of silver. it was parted with
for gold, and something was added to
the little pile of savings.
These savings were kept in tin box,
hidden under loose board in tho cor
ner of the room. Not a very good treas
ure chest, but Pietro did not understand
the English banking system, and there
was no one in Basnio rich enough to
sendmoney to for safe keeping.
Three years went by, and the yellow
hoard was so increased that Tessa's eyes
shone and her fancy wandered as Pietro
counted and recounted it in the even
ings.
'Shall we not go home to Basnio
now?" she said as once she watched
him. "Have we not enough?"
"No, not quite enough. We will stay
this summer and so back when the
| foggy days come"
(Of course this was spoken in musical
Italian, but have brought it into Eng
| lish for the benefit of the one or two
readers who otherwise might not under
stand
Tessa pouted little at the reply,
and consoled herself by going out to
| talk to Fillipo.
Fillipo was native of Sardinia who
had lately come to London to enter the
profession of ice cream merchant. But
although it was early summer, the days
were rather cold than hot, and there
was no demand for ices either lemon
or raspberry, and Fillipo was drifting
toward bankruptcy.
His rent was owing and his barrow
mortgaged, and he wept as he told Tessa
of another unsuccessful day. And she
wept too. An exceedingly foolish thing,
for she had known Fillipo only Il month,
and Pietro, whom she had known for
years, had told her that he did not like
the young adventurer in ice cream and
that she must not talk with him.
| Nevertheless she wept, and told him
how sorry she was. And as the pity
grew in her, she thought how much
better looking he was than Pietro, and
how tired she was of the streets, and
how she longed to see the blue sea and
sky again. Would Pietro give her
share of the savings and let her go?
But no, that would not be enough for
two Oh, why was not Pietro Fillipo
and Fillipo Pietro?
How handsome he was, and he was
but boy and Pietro was more than 40.
She spoke her thoughts, and hope
came to Fillipo's face, and he took her
hand and began long, eager whisper
IL n