The humour of Italy; . assisted him back to the house and left him togo upstairs alone, which he did with some difficulty, talkingdisconnectedly all the time about Lepruccio the butcherand the quantity of salt needed for the pig, and quite obli-vious of the fact that he had left the door waited a while, and then, entering softly, found the pigon the table, and carried it off between them, shaking withsuppressed laughter. It was very heavy, and they werequite out of breath when they reached the priests house. i6o ITALIAN HUMOUR. In the morning, Mastro Peppe having slept off his
The humour of Italy; . assisted him back to the house and left him togo upstairs alone, which he did with some difficulty, talkingdisconnectedly all the time about Lepruccio the butcherand the quantity of salt needed for the pig, and quite obli-vious of the fact that he had left the door waited a while, and then, entering softly, found the pigon the table, and carried it off between them, shaking withsuppressed laughter. It was very heavy, and they werequite out of breath when they reached the priests house. i6o ITALIAN HUMOUR. In the morning, Mastro Peppe having slept off his wine,awoke, and lay still a little while on his bed, stretching hislimbs and listening to the bells as they rang for the Eve ofSt. Anthony. Even in the confusion of his first awakeninghe felt a contented sense of possession steal through hismind, and tasted by anticipation the delight of seeingLepruccio cutting up and covering with salt the plumpjoints of pork. Under the impulse of this idea, he rose, and hurried out,. rubbing his eyes the while to get a better view. Nothingwas to be seen on the table but a stain of blood, with themorning sun shining on it. The pig ! Where is the pig ? cried the bereaved onehoarsely. A furious excitement seized upon him. He rusheddownstairs, saw the open door, struck his forehead with hisfists, and burst into the open air yelling aloud—calling allhis farm labourers round him, and asking them if they hadseen the pig—if they had taken it. He multiplied his com-plaints, raising his voice more and more; and at last thedoleful sound, echoing along the river-bank, reached theears of Ciavola and II Ristabilito. They therefore repaired to the spot at their ease, fully MASTRO PEPPES MAGIC. l6l agreed to enjoy the sight and keep up the joke. ? When theycame in sight, Mastro Peppe turned to them, all afflictedand in tears, and exclaimed, Oh ! poor me! They havestolen the pig ! Oh ! poor me ! What shall I do ?—whatshall I do ? Biagio Quaglia stood fo
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Keywords: ., bookauthorwerneral, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookyear1892
