without taking any notice of
her. Turning quickly round and seeing her, he put his hand in his purse
and brought it out full of _zecchini_, which he was about to throw to
her.

"'"Let your money stay where it is," she cried, with her usual cackling
laughter. "What do I want it for? Am I not rich enough? If you really
want to do me a kindness, get me a new hood; this one won't hold out
much longer against wind and weather. Yes! do that, my golden little
son. But keep away from the Fontego!--keep away from the Fontego!"

"'He stared into her pale yellow face, where the wrinkles were all
twitching and working in a strange, gruesome fashion; and, as she went
on clapping her withered, "bony hands, and gabbling out, in a whining
tone, accompanied with her odd, repulsive chuckling,

"'"Keep away from the Fontego!"

"'Antonio cried,

"'"Will nothing induce you to cease your idiotic nonsense, and behave
like a reasonable being, you old witch?"

"'But the instant he uttered this, the old woman rolled from the top to
the bottom of the flight of lofty marble steps where she was sitting,
as if struck by a flash of lightning. Antonio darted up to her and
caught her in his arms, breaking her heavy fall.

"'"Oh, little son! what a terrible word you used!" cried the old woman,
in a faint, tearful voice. "Oh! kill me rather than say that terrible
word again! Ah! you do not know how dreadfully you hurt me!--me, who
bear you so faithfully in my heart. Ah! you do not know----"

"'She broke off suddenly, covered her head with the corner of her old
cloak, and sighed and whimpered as in the deepest sorrow. Antonio was
strangely moved: he took her in his arms, and carried her up the steps
to the portico of the church, where he set her down on a marble bench.

"'"You were very kind to me," he said, releasing her head from the
folds of the cloak. "You were very kind to me. It is you whom I have to
thank for my good fortune. For if you had not helped me in my dire
necessity I should have been at the bottom of the sea at this moment. I
should never have rescued the Doge; I should never have got the
_zecchini_. But even if you never had done anything for me, I feel that
I must always have a strange, strong liking for you all my days, though
that extraordinary cackle of yours and your senseless style of
behaviour often make me feel plenty of inward gruesomeness with regard
to you. The fact is, old woman, that in the days when I was gaining