ad of the
house he saw a marble stone, on which were engraved these sad words:

HERE LIES
THE CHILD WITH THE BLUE HAIR
WHO DIED FROM SORROW
BECAUSE SHE WAS ABANDONED BY HER
LITTLE BROTHER PINOCCHIO

I leave you to imagine the puppet's feelings when he had with difficulty
spelled out this epitaph. He fell with his face on the ground and,
covering the tombstone with a thousand kisses, burst into an agony of
tears. He cried all night and when morning came he was still crying,
although he had no tears left, and his sobs and lamentations were so
acute and heart-breaking that they aroused the echoes in the surrounding
hills.

And as he wept he said:

"Oh, little Fairy, why did you die? Why did I not die instead of you, I
who am so wicked, whilst you were so good? And my papa? Where can he be?
Oh, little Fairy, tell me where I can find him, for I want to remain
with him always and never leave him again, never again! Oh, little
Fairy, tell me that it is not true that you are dead! If you really love
your little brother, come to life again. Does it not grieve you to see
me alone and abandoned by everybody? If assassins come they will hang me
again to the branch of a tree, and then I should die indeed. What do you
imagine that I can do here alone in the world? Now that I have lost you
and my papa, who will give me food? Where shall I go to sleep at night?
Who will make me a new jacket? Oh, it would be better, a hundred times
better, for me to die also! Yes, I want to die--oh! oh! oh!"

[Illustration: An Immense Serpent Stretched Across the Road]

And in his despair he tried to tear his hair, but his hair was made
of wood so he could not even have the satisfaction of sticking his
fingers into it.

Just then a large Pigeon flew over his head and, stopping with distended
wings, called down to him from a great height:

"Tell me, child, what are you doing there?"

"Don't you see? I am crying!" said Pinocchio, raising his head towards
the voice and rubbing his eyes with his jacket.

"Tell me," continued the Pigeon, "amongst your companions, do you happen
to know a puppet who is called Pinocchio?"

"Pinocchio? Did you say Pinocchio?" repeated the puppet, jumping quickly
to his feet. "I am Pinocchio!"

At this answer the Pigeon descended rapidly to the ground. He was larger
than a turkey.

"Do you also know Geppetto?" he asked.

"Do I know him! He is my poor papa! Has he perhaps