to injure it, but for a moment the
tide almost turned against him. The Gadfly had known where to sting;
and, though eager crowds still collected before the Cardinal's house
to see him enter or leave his carriage, ominous cries of "Jesuit!" and
"Sanfedist spy!" often mingled with the cheers and benedictions.

But Montanelli had no lack of supporters. Two days after the publication
of the skit, the Churchman, a leading clerical paper, brought out
a brilliant article, called: "An Answer to 'The Mystery of the
Annunciation,'" and signed: "A Son of the Church." It was an impassioned
defence of Montanelli against the Gadfly's slanderous imputations. The
anonymous writer, after expounding, with great eloquence and fervour,
the doctrine of peace on earth and good will towards men, of which the
new Pontiff was the evangelist, concluded by challenging the Gadfly
to prove a single one of his assertions, and solemnly appealing to the
public not to believe a contemptible slanderer. Both the cogency of
the article as a bit of special pleading and its merit as a literary
composition were sufficiently far above the average to attract much
attention in the town, especially as not even the editor of the
newspaper could guess the author's identity. The article was soon
reprinted separately in pamphlet form; and the "anonymous defender" was
discussed in every coffee-shop in Florence.

The Gadfly responded with a violent attack on the new Pontificate and
all its supporters, especially on Montanelli, who, he cautiously
hinted, had probably consented to the panegyric on himself. To this
the anonymous defender again replied in the Churchman with an indignant
denial. During the rest of Montanelli's stay the controversy raging
between the two writers occupied more of the public attention than did
even the famous preacher himself.

Some members of the liberal party ventured to remonstrate with the
Gadfly about the unnecessary malice of his tone towards Montanelli; but
they did not get much satisfaction out of him. He only smiled affably
and answered with a languid little stammer: "R-really, gentlemen, you
are rather unfair. I expressly stipulated, when I gave in to Signora
Bolla, that I should be allowed a l-l-little chuckle all to myself now.
It is so nominated in the bond!"

At the end of October Montanelli returned to his see in the Romagna,
and, before leaving Florence, preached a farewell sermon in which he
spoke of the controversy, gent