Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-07-28
She Hrgus Daily Short Story
A Daughter of Vesuvius.-By Pierre Vincent
Copyrighted. 1908 by Associated Literary Press.

| 1t was small two edged stiIetto
that Zabetta Gemella bought at An
tonic Mordos shop in Naples, very
| tiny plaything of a stiletto; but, as
every Italian knows, the heart lies
barely two inches below the surface
and a blade that will reach that dis
lance is long enough for all practical
purposes.
| On the crucifix handle of this par.
ticular stiletto Zabetta had sworn that
it should drink the blood of either
Caesar Pine or of his betrothed, Maria
| Vincente
They were a very ancient family, the
Gemellas. One ancestor had escaped
from the eruption that overwhelmed
POmpeii and another had been mum
mified at Herculaneum. The race had
a certain fierce sturdiness inherited
from some lava born forefather before
Romulus.
They also had an unpleasant mediae-
val habit of keeping their oaths re-
gardless of consequences, as family
traditions and court records bore wit
ness. They took life seriously, as
many had found to their cost.
So when people heard that Caesar
Pine had thrown over Zabetta Gemel-
la for Maria Vincente they shook their
heads. Zabetta herself went home,
dry Tipped and fiery eyed, and at mid
night swore the sibylline blood oath.
a strange and terrible curse intrusted
to her by the muttering old crone, her
grandmother
Zabetta dwelt in the outskirts of
lBoseotrase on the slopes nearest Vesu-
vius. Her first view at dawn from her
little attic was of the purple plume and
mighty shoulders of the great volcano
heaved against the sky, and her last
glimpse at night was of the same
lplume streaming wildly across the sun
lset She knew the mountain in all its
moods and from its Nature shaped her
Town. Its heart of fire was no wilder
than that within her breast
Caesar Pine belonged to the aristoc-
racy of Boscotrase. His olive trees
were the best in the place, and did not
the choicest Lachryma Christi come
from his grapes grown on the scoriae
of Vesuvius? Caesar was dark and
handsome, fine singer and dancer, a
hard worker, good fellow all round
All the girls in the village were in love
with him.
Handsome Caesar fell in love with
handsOmer Zabetta. True, her family
was poor. But what difference did
that make? Caesar had enough fol-
both. Their betrothal soon followed
Nobody could deny that they made q
fine looking pair To be sure. some
families whose daughters would moi
have objected to occupying Zabetta's
place limited privately at the record OF
the Gemellas. But none spoke openly
remembering that same record.
All went well until Maria Vincentt
Icame to Boscotrase. Then Caesars
affection for Zabetta cooled. Not tha
Maria deliberately did anything tt
tempt the young man away. But il
soon became known through the tow
THAT Caesar and his sweetheart ha(
quarreled; next, that he was betrothet
to Maria.
Then, indeed, people shook thei
heads and some said. Poor Zabetta.
But others, who knew her family'
record better, said, Poor Caesar!"
And everybody waited to see wha
would happen.
1t was the next day after the breal
that Zabetta bought the dagger. TIL
6 lGemellas always acted promptly. Blu
she found it difficult to deciae who's
4 blood the sharp point should drink.
. Sometimes she felt it would b
a Caesars, sometimes Maria's. and o.
one black day when the two passe,
her arm in arm she determined tina
lit should be both and she had har
\ work to restrain herself from putin
y 1.-THE sentence into immediate execution
Then came the great eruption.
For generations Vesuvius. mutterin