s, mud, water, flowers, peasants, costumes,
donkeys, until he was landed in the Gran' Piazza. Whew!

'Must see the hall where the concert is to-night. Beautiful girl,
_bellisima, pfisp!_ (imitating kiss) girl from Rome; sings three pieces,
Ernani, Norma, _pfisp!_ Come along!

Smack, bang! into the hall, where the silence and presence of a select
few, including Monsignore and the Governatore in council assembled,
commanded silence: Pepe wouldn't hear of it anywheres, so again they
were in the open air; the band was playing good music in the square, the
tombola was about to commence, and contadini were busy with pencils and
tickets, ready to win the eighty scudi put up.

Tombola commenced, and Pepe at once supervised all the tickets within
reach. 'Bravo, twenty-seven! you've got it, Tonio; scratch it, my
lamb.--You haven't, Santi, _poverino mio_.--It's _non c'e_,
Angeluccio.--Ah, Bruno, always lucky.--Fifty-four, _Santa Maria_, who
would have thought it?--_Caro_ Bernardo, _only_ one more number to win
the terno!'

Somebody won the tombola at last, and Pepe told Caper he should wait for
the fireworks and the concert. 'Beautiful girl, ah, _bella_, sings three
pieces;' here he burst out with that song

_'Ninella mia di zucchero,
Prende 'sto core, ed abbraccialo;_'

not waiting for the end of which, Caper interrupted him by saying that
he should not wait for the evening, as he intended returning to Segni at
once.

'Will you?' asked Pepe. 'Oh, _bravo!_ good idea. Concert room will be
crowded to suffocation; get hot, perspire, catch cold. Fireworks
nothing. I'll go with you; great fools to wait. Here is a wine-shop; let
us refresh!'

In they went, and finished a quart, after which Pepe proposed visiting
another wine-shop, where they had some frascati, good and sweet. So he
hurried Caper along so fast through mud and narrow streets, all the way
down hill, that his feet could not begin to hold on the slippery stones,
and both went ahead on the plan of not being able to stop; at last they
reached a landing place, where the wine was sold; hastening in, they
nearly fell over a tall, splendid-looking girl, who was standing in the
hall.

'_Iddio!_ it's my _cara_ Giulia, lovely as ever. Come with us and finish
a bottle; this is our friend Giacomo, Americano, brave youth,
_allegro_!'

'It pleases me well to make the acquaintance of the Signor; I have often
seen him in Segni--'

'And _now_ you'll fall in love with h