Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1897-10-21

Bells clashed and changed from the
| churches in honor of San Tommaso
whose festival it was, and the city
I had that aspect Of gala gayety about
! it, which is in truth common enough
! to all continental towns, but which
! seems strange to the solemn Londone1
! who sees so much apparently reason
! less merriment for the first time He
! accustomed to have his reluctant
| laughter pumped out OF him by al
! occasional visit to the theater where
| he can witness the ''original'' English
! translation of a French farce, cannot
understand why these foolish Nea-
/ Dolitans should laugh and sing and
(, shout in the manner they do, merely
| because they are glad to be alive.
! And after much dubious consideration
! he decides within himself that they
! are all rascals-the scum of the earth
and that he and he only is the true
representative Of man at his best
the model of civilized responsibility
And a mournful spectacle he thus
! seems to the eyes of us base for
| eigners-in our hearts we are sorry for
! him and believe that if he could man
! age to shake off the letters Of his in
sura customs and prejudices, he might
almost succeed in enjoying life as
much as we do!
AS I drove along I saw a small
crowd-a gesticulating, laughing
crowd, listening to an ''improvisatore"
Or wandering poet-a plump-lo0king
fellow who had all the rhymes of Italy
at his fingers ends, and who could
make a poem On any subject or an
acrostic on any name, with perfect
facility. I stopped my carriage to
listen to his eXtemporiZed verses, many
OF which were really admirable, and
tossed him three francs. He threw
them up in the air, one after the other,
and caught them, as they fell in his
mouth, appearing to have swallowed
them alI-then with al inimitable
grimace, he pulled off his tattered cap
and said:
'Ancora affamato, eccllenzai" q am
still hungryD amid the renewed laugh
ter of his easily amused audience. A
merry poet he was and without con-
ceit-and his good humor merited he
extra silver pieces [ gave him. which
caused him to wish me-"Bu0u ap-
petite I'm sorriso della Mad31 IA! p
Ga good appetite to you and a smile
of the MadonnaD Imagine the Lord
Laureate of England standing at the
corner of Regent Street swallowing
kalf-pence for his rhymes! Yet some
OF the quaint conceits strung together
by such & fellow as this improtisa-
tore might furnish material Tor many
of the so~called poets whose names
are nlysteriously honored IN Britain.
Further on l came upon group of
red-capped coal fishers assembled
round a portable stove wherein roast
ing chestnuts cracked their glossy
sides and emitted savory odors The
men were singing gayly to the thrum-
ming of an old guitar, and the song
he sung was familiar to me. Stay!
where had l heard iG?-fet me listen,
<'Sciore limune&
LIE VoSilO i&f moel aG paSS1One
Zompa llasi I1ira!"
Hal 1 remember now. When | had
crawled out of the vault through the
brigand's hole OF entrance when my
heart had bounced with glad anticjpa-
tons never to be realized-when
had believed ip the worth Of love and
friendship [ had seen the morn
ing SUN glittering on the sea, and had
though3-po0r fool!-that his l0ng
beams We're like so many golden flags
of joy tlur4 Up in heaven TO symbolic
the happiness of my release from
death and Fay restoration 20 liberty
then--7then | had heard a sailors
voice in the distance singing that
'rlsoTnello," and [ had fondly irnassirl-
ed it's impassioned lines were all for
met Hateful lmusic-most bitter sweet
ness4 | could have put my hands up
TO Ely ears to shut out the sound of it
DOW that thought OF the time when
| hHd heard it last. For then / had
possessed a heart-a throbbing. pas
siODate, sensitive thing-alige ttaJ
every emtEiOn of tenderness and af-
fec1on-n0w that heart was dead and
colo sas stone. Only its corpse went
wItA me everywhere, weighing me
down with itself to the strange grave
it occupied a grave wherein were also
buIAad so Enany dear decisions such
plaliItive Fsgrets, such pleading mem
cries, that surely it was no wonder
their small ghosts arose zrlE Sfa1r7t1sryi
NE, Saying, 'fWilt thou not weep for
this lost sweetness?" witt thou not
relent befGRe> such a reHlenb ramce9'' or
Hast thou no desire for that past de-
TghtF But TO all such inward sempta-
lions my soul was deaf and inexor-
able; justice-stern, immutable justice
was what / snught and what | meam
to have.
May be you find it hard to under
stand the possibility of scbeming and
carrying out SO prolonged a vengeance
as mine? If You that read these pages
are English, 1 know it will seem to
YOU well-nigh incomprehensible. The
temperate blood of the northerner,
combined with his open, unsuspicious
nature, has, | admit, the advantage
over us in matters of personal injury.
An EngliShman, SO | hear, is incap-
able Of n@urishing long and deadly
resentment even against an unfaithful
Wife-he is too indifferent, he thinks
it not worth his while But we Nea-
politans, We can carry a vendetta:
| through lifetime through gen.