El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-03-28
The HeraId's
DailyShsrt Story

Menica hesitated for a moment, OBJ
serving:
What about the master?"
THE MASTER repeated Signora Ma
rianna, whose eyes flashed as If to
say: at should like to know what the
master had to do with an order given
by the mistress"
This argument was quite unanswer-
able
Menica took down the birds and hid
them under her apron. As she slowly
descended the stairs, she was, all the
time turning something over in her
own mind.
That her mistress couldn't bear the
sight of them was understandable and
the master wouldn't mind in the least;
he never did mind anything. But If her
master insisted they were excellent
eating when they smelt like that, and
he certainly must understand all about
such things, then did it not seem a
deadly sin to thrown them away when
so many people were dying of hunger;
at least If all the tales one heard were
true?
There was the portinaja, for in
stance, thin as a lamp post. all eyes
and mouth, and her five children, she
would certainly be glad to have them,
not to speak of the bones for the cat
Menica, full of joy for the kind act
she was about to perform, walked
boldly into the portinaja's lodge, and
placing the woodcock on the table
with an air, half kind and half con-
descending, said:
These are for you, my good woman
Roast them with plenty of onions, and
you will find them excellent"
Then. modest in her we'll doing, she
took herself off
The portinaja. came slowly over the
table dragging her slippers along the
ground, to see what good thing Menlca
had left there. At the sight OF these
two birds with extraordinary long
beaks she didn't quite know what 10
think. Chickens they certainly were
not, neither were they ducks. Could
! they be snipe? These she had never
seen. but she imagined they might be
like that. She bent down - examine
them more closely and sd1dcaiy Jump
ed back.
''Faugh! Why. the things are rot
ten!"
A dull red ovclpresad the w"man's
face. What did they take fe- for, any
way? The portinaja could not contain
herself any longer, she seized hold OF
the birds and ran out into the court
yard.
Paff, A well directed throw. curve
in the air, and the two birds disap-
peared over the top of the wall and
fell on the other side.
On the other side of the wall were
the rustic arbors of the bishops pal
ace
The bishop had told his cook that
very morning that cost what 1T might
woodceck was to appear on his table
that night, for he had invited the
prior of the Sacro di Gesu to dinner,
and that dignitary had particular
liking for woodcock.
The cook, to tell the truth, had so
far forgotten himself as to observe
that, short of a miracle, 1t would De
difficult. probably impossible, to OBJ
tain woodcock at that season But the
bishop had insisted so much that for
quite two hours the cook had haunted
all the poultry shops in the city, out,
alas! without success
He was returning home sad ana
downcast, when. just as he was cross
ing through the arbors, he stumbled
over the brace of the woodcock that
the portinija had flung over the wall.
Had the miracle really happened! he
bent down and. with the greatest pos
sible are lifted one up by the tail; IL
remained in his hand. while the rest
fell heavily to the ground
Just right for eating'
His eyes sparkled with JOY as ne
seized hold of the birds and hurried
off with them to the kitchen