r, he was tortured by two facetious women
who were sitting beside him, and who kept on calling him "Charming,
pretty signora," and asking him whether he was married, for all he was
so young, and had nice little children, who must be the dearest little
things imaginable, &c., &c. Drops of cold perspiration stood on the
poor little creature's brow; he whimpered and whined, and cursed the
hour when he was born.

When the acting was over, Signor Pasquale waited till every one had
left the house; and as the last of the lamps was being put out, Signor
Splendiano lighted at it the stump of a wax candle, and they set forth
on their homeward way. Pitichinaccio whined and cried; Capuzzi, to his
torment, had to take him on his left arm, having Marianna on his right;
before them went Doctor Splendiano with his candle-stump, whose feeble
rays made the darkness of the night seem deeper.

While they were still some distance from the Porto del Popolo, they
found themselves suddenly surrounded by several tall figures, thickly
wrapped in cloaks. The Doctor's candle was instantly snatched from
his hand, and went out on the ground. Capuzzi and the Doctor stood
speechless and amazed. Then there fell (it was not clear from whence)
a faint reddish glimmer upon the cloaked figures, and four pale
death's-heads were seen staring at the Pyramid Doctor, with hollow,
fearful eyes. "Woe! woe! woe unto thee, Splendiano Accoramboni!" howled
the terrible spectres, in deep, hollow tones. Then one of them wailed
out, "Knowest thou me? knowest thou me, Splendiano? I am Cordier, the
French painter, buried last week; sent under-ground by thee, with thy
drugs!" Then the second: "Knowest thou _me_, Splendiano? I am Kueffner,
the German painter, whom thou didst poison with thy hellish
electuaries!" Then the third: "Knowest thou _me_, Splendiano? I am
Liers, the Fleming, whom thou didst murder with thy pills, cheating his
brother out of his pictures!" Then the fourth: "Knowest thou _me_,
Splendiano? I am Ghigi, the Neapolitan painter, whom thou didst slay
with thy powders!" Finally, all the four cried out in quartet, "Woe!
woe to thee, Splendiano Accoramboni, accursed Pyramid Doctor! Thou must
away!--away with us!--down, down under the earth! On!--on with thee!
Halloh!--halloh!" Therewith they seized the luckless Doctor, heaved him
up, and disappeared with him like the storm-wind.

Sorely as terror was like to overcome Pasquale, he collected himself,
and too