"Haw! Haw! Haw! I can't digest straw!"
"Then eat the hay!" answered his master, who understood the Donkeyperfectly.
"Haw! Haw! Haw! Hay gives me a headache!"
"Do you pretend, by any chance, that I should feed you duck or chicken?"asked the man again, and, angrier than ever, he gave poor Pinocchioanother lashing.
At that second beating, Pinocchio became very quiet and said no more.
After that, the door of the stable was closed and he was left alone. Itwas many hours since he had eaten anything and he started to yawn fromhunger. As he yawned, he opened a mouth as big as an oven.
Finally, not finding anything else in the manger, he tasted the hay.After tasting it, he chewed it well, closed his eyes, and swallowed it.
"This hay is not bad," he said to himself. "But how much happier Ishould be if I had studied! Just now, instead of hay, I should be eatingsome good bread and butter. Patience!"
Next morning, when he awoke, Pinocchio looked in the manger for morehay, but it was all gone. He had eaten it all during the night.
He tried the straw, but, as he chewed away at it, he noticed to hisgreat disappointment that it tasted neither like rice nor like macaroni.
"Patience!" he repeated as he chewed. "If only my misfortune might serveas a lesson to disobedient boys who refuse to study! Patience! Havepatience!"
"Patience indeed!" shouted his master just then, as he came into thestable. "Do you think, perhaps, my little Donkey, that I have broughtyou here only to give you food and drink? Oh, no! You are to help meearn some fine gold pieces, do you hear? Come along, now. I am goingto teach you to jump and bow, to dance a waltz and a polka, and even tostand on your head."
Poor Pinocchio, whether he liked it or not, had to learn all thesewonderful things; but it took him three long months and cost him many,many lashings before he was pronounced perfect.
The day came at last when Pinocchio's master was able to announce anextraordinary performance. The announcements, posted all around thetown, and written in large letters, read thus:
GREAT SPECTACLE TONIGHT LEAPS AND EXERCISES BY THE GREAT ARTISTS AND THE FAMOUS HORSES of the COMPANY
First Public Appearance
of the
FAMOUS DONKEY
called
PINOCCHIO
THE STAR OF THE DANCE ---- The Theater will be as Light as Day
That night, as you can well imagine, the theater was filled tooverflowing one hour before the show was scheduled to start.
Not an orchestra chair could be had, not a balcony seat, nor a galleryseat; not even for their weight in gold.
The place swarmed with boys and girls of all ages and sizes, wrigglingand dancing about in a fever of impatience to see the famous Donkeydance.
When the first part of the performance was over, the Owner and Managerof the circus, in a black coat, white knee breeches, and patent leatherboots, presented himself to the public and in a loud, pompous voice madethe following announcement:
"Most honored friends, Gentlemen and Ladies!
"Your humble servant, the Manager of this theater, presents himselfbefore you tonight in order to introduce to you the greatest, the mostfamous Donkey in the world, a Donkey that has had the great honor in hisshort life of performing before the kings and queens and emperors of allthe great courts of Europe.
"We thank you for your attention!"
This speech was greeted by much laughter and applause. And the applausegrew to a roar when Pinocchio, the famous Donkey, appeared in the circusring. He was handsomely arrayed. A new bridle of shining leather withbuckles of polished brass was on his back; two white camellias were tiedto his ears; ribbons and tassels of red silk adorned his mane, which wasdivided into many curls. A great sash of gold and silver was fastenedaround his waist and his tail was decorated with ribbons of manybrilliant colors. He was a handsome Donkey indeed!
The Manager, when introducing him to the public, added these words:
"Most honored audience! I shall not take your time tonight to tell youof the great difficulties which I have encountered while trying to tamethis animal, since I found him in the wilds of Africa. Observe, I begof you, the savage look of his eye. All the means used by centuries ofcivilization in subduing wild beasts failed in this case. I had finallyto resort to the gentle language of the whip in order to bring him tomy will. With all my kindness, however, I never succeeded in gaining myDonkey's love. He is still today as savage as the day I found him. Hestill fears and hates me. But I have found in him one great redeemingfeature. Do you see this little bump on his forehead? It is this bumpwhich gives him his great talent of dancing and using his feet as nimblyas a human being. Admire him, O signori, and enjoy yourselves. I letyou, now, be the judges of my success as a teacher of animals. BeforeI leave you, I wish to state that there will be another performancetomorrow night. If the weather threatens rain, the great spectacle willtake place at eleven o'clock in the morning."
The Manager bowed and then turned to Pinocchio and said: "Ready,Pinocchio! Before starting your performance, salute your audience!"
Pinocchio obediently bent his two knees to the ground and remainedkneeling until the Manager, with the crack of the whip, cried sharply:"Walk!"
The Donkey lifted himself on his four feet and walked around the ring. Afew minutes passed and again the voice of the Manager called:
"Quickstep!" and Pinocchio obediently changed his step.
"Gallop!" and Pinocchio galloped.
"Full speed!" and Pinocchio ran as fast as he could. As he ran themaster raised his arm and a pistol shot rang in the air.
At the shot, the little Donkey fell to the ground as if he were reallydead.
A shower of applause greeted the Donkey as he arose to his feet. Criesand shouts and handclappings were heard on all sides.
At all that noise, Pinocchio lifted his head and raised his eyes. There,in front of him, in a box sat a beautiful woman. Around her neck shewore a long gold chain, from which hung a large medallion. On themedallion was painted the picture of a Marionette.
"That picture is of me! That beautiful lady is my Fairy!" said Pinocchioto himself, recognizing her. He felt so happy that he tried his best tocry out:
"Oh, my Fairy! My own Fairy!"
But instead of words, a loud braying was heard in the theater, so loudand so long that all the spectators--men, women, and children, butespecially the children--burst out laughing.
Then, in order to teach the Donkey that it was not good manners to braybefore the public, the Manager hit him on the nose with the handle ofthe whip.
The poor little Donkey stuck out a long tongue and licked his nose for along time in an effort to take away the pain.
And what was his grief when on looking up toward the boxes, he saw thatthe Fairy had disappeared!
He felt himself fainting, his eyes filled with tears, and he weptbitterly. No one knew it, however, least of all the Manager, who,cracking his whip, cried out:
"Bravo, Pinocchio! Now show us how gracefully you can jump through therings."
Pinocchio tried two or three times, but each time he came near the ring,he found it more to his taste to go under it. The fourth time, at a lookfrom his master he leaped through it, but as he did so his hind legscaught in the ring and he fell to the floor in a heap.
When he got up, he was lame and could hardly limp as far as the stable.
"Pinocchio! We want Pinocchio! We want the little Donkey!" cried theboys from the orchestra, saddened by the accident.
No one saw Pinocchio again that evening.
The next morning the veterinary--that is, the animal doctor--declaredthat he would be lame for the rest of his life.
"What do I want with a lame donkey?" said the Manager to the stableboy."Take him to the market and sell him."
When they reached the square, a buyer was soon found.
"How much do you ask for that little lame Donkey?" he asked.
"Four dollars."
"I'll give you four cents. Don't think I'm buying him for work. I wantonly his skin. It looks very tough and I can use it to make myself adrumhead. I belong to a musical band in my village and I need a drum."
I leave it to you, my dear children, to picture to yourself the greatpleasure with which Pinocchio heard that he was to become a drumhead!
As soon as the buyer had paid the four cents, the Donkey changed hands.His new owner took him to a high cliff overlooking the sea, put a stonearound his neck, tied a rope to one of his hind feet, gave him a push,and threw him into the water.
Pinocchio sank immediately. And his new master sat on the cliff waitingfor him to drown, so as to skin him and make himself a drumhead.
CHAPTER 34
Pinocchio is thrown into the sea, eaten by fishes, and becomes aMarionette once more. As he swims to land, he is swallowed by theTerrible Shark.
Down into the sea, deeper and deeper, sank Pinocchio, and finally, afterfifty minutes of waiting, the man on the cliff said to himself:
"By this time my poor little lame Donkey must be drowned. Up with himand then I can get to work on my beautiful drum."
He pulled the rope which he had tied to Pinocchio's leg--pulled andpulled and pulled and, at last, he saw appear on the surface of thewater--Can you guess what? Instead of a dead donkey, he saw a very muchalive Marionette, wriggling and squirming like an eel.
Seeing that wooden Marionette, the poor man thought he was dreaming andsat there with his mouth wide open and his eyes popping out of his head.
Gathering his wits together, he said:
"And the Donkey I threw into the sea?"
"I am that Donkey," answered the Marionette laughing.
"You?"
"I."
"Ah, you little cheat! Are you poking fun at me?"
"Poking fun at you? Not at all, dear Master. I am talking seriously."
"But, then, how is it that you, who a few minutes ago were a donkey, arenow standing before me a wooden Marionette?"
"It may be the effect of salt water. The sea is fond of playing thesetricks."
"Be careful, Marionette, be careful! Don't laugh at me! Woe be to you,if I lose my patience!"
"Well, then, my Master, do you want to know my whole story? Untie my legand I can tell it to you better."
The old fellow, curious to know the true story of the Marionette's life,immediately untied the rope which held his foot. Pinocchio, feeling freeas a bird of the air, began his tale:
"Know, then, that, once upon a time, I was a wooden Marionette, justas I am today. One day I was about to become a boy, a real boy, but onaccount of my laziness and my hatred of books, and because I listened tobad companions, I ran away from home. One beautiful morning, I awoke tofind myself changed into a donkey--long ears, gray coat, even a tail!What a shameful day for me! I hope you will never experience one likeit, dear Master. I was taken to the fair and sold to a Circus Owner, whotried to make me dance and jump through the rings. One night, during aperformance, I had a bad fall and became lame. Not knowing what to dowith a lame donkey, the Circus Owner sent me to the market place and youbought me."
"Indeed I did! And I paid four cents for you. Now who will return mymoney to me?"
"But why did you buy me? You bought me to do me harm--to kill me--tomake a drumhead out of me!"
"Indeed I did! And now where shall I find another skin?"
"Never mind, dear Master. There are so many donkeys in this world."
"Tell me, impudent little rogue, does your story end here?"
"One more word," answered the Marionette, "and I am through. Afterbuying me, you brought me here to kill me. But feeling sorry for me, youtied a stone to my neck and threw me to the bottom of the sea. That wasvery good and kind of you to want me to suffer as little as possible andI shall remember you always. And now my Fairy will take care of me, evenif you--"
"Your Fairy? Who is she?"
"She is my mother, and, like all other mothers who love their children,she never loses sight of me, even though I do not deserve it. And todaythis good Fairy of mine, as soon as she saw me in danger of drowning,sent a thousand fishes to the spot where I lay. They thought I wasreally a dead donkey and began to eat me. What great bites they took!One ate my ears, another my nose, a third my neck and my mane. Some wentat my legs and some at my back, and among the others, there was one tinyfish so gentle and polite that he did me the great favor of eating evenmy tail."
"From now on," said the man, horrified, "I swear I shall never againtaste fish. How I should enjoy opening a mullet or a whitefish just tofind there the tail of a dead donkey!"
"I think as you do," answered the Marionette, laughing. "Still, you mustknow that when the fish finished eating my donkey coat, which coveredme from head to foot, they naturally came to the bones--or rather, in mycase, to the wood, for as you know, I am made of very hard wood. Afterthe first few bites, those greedy fish found out that the wood was notgood for their teeth, and, afraid of indigestion, they turned and ranhere and there without saying good-by or even as much as thank you tome. Here, dear Master, you have my story. You know now why you found aMarionette and not a dead donkey when you pulled me out of the water."
"I laugh at your story!" cried the man angrily. "I know that I spentfour cents to get you and I want my money back. Do you know what I cando; I am going to take you to the market once more and sell you as dryfirewood."
"Very well, sell me. I am satisfied," said Pinocchio. But as he spoke,he gave a quick leap and dived into the sea. Swimming away as fast as hecould, he cried out, laughing:
"Good-by, Master. If you ever need a skin for your drum, remember me."
He swam on and on. After a while, he turned around again and calledlouder than before:
"Good-by, Master. If you ever need a piece of good dry firewood,remember me."
In a few seconds he had gone so far he could hardly be seen. All thatcould be seen of him was a very small black dot moving swiftly on theblue surface of the water, a little black dot which now and then lifteda leg or an arm in the air. One would have thought that Pinocchio hadturned into a porpoise playing in the sun.
After swimming for a long time, Pinocchio saw a large rock in the middleof the sea, a rock as white as marble. High on the rock stood a littleGoat bleating and calling and beckoning to the Marionette to come toher.
There was something very strange about that little Goat. Her coat wasnot white or black or brown as that of any other goat, but azure, a deepbrilliant color that reminded one of the hair of the lovely maiden.
Pinocchio's heart beat fast, and then faster and faster. He redoubledhis efforts and swam as hard as he could toward the white rock. He wasalmost halfway over, when suddenly a horrible sea monster stuck its headout of the water, an enormous head with a huge mouth, wide open, showingthree rows of gleaming teeth, the mere sight of which would have filledyou with fear.
Do you know what it was?
That sea monster was no other than the enormous Shark, which has oftenbeen mentioned in this story and which, on account of its cruelty, hadbeen nicknamed "The Attila of the Sea" by both fish and fishermen.
Poor Pinocchio! The sight of that monster frightened him almost todeath! He tried to swim away from him, to change his path, to escape,but that immense mouth kept coming nearer and nearer.
"Hasten, Pinocchio, I beg you!" bleated the little Goat on the highrock.
And Pinocchio swam desperately with his arms, his body, his legs, hisfeet.
"Quick, Pinocchio, the monster is coming nearer!"
Pinocchio swam faster and faster, and harder and harder.
"Faster, Pinocchio! The monster will get you! There he is! There he is!Quick, quick, or you are lost!"
Pinocchio went through the water like a shot--swifter and swifter. Hecame close to the rock. The Goat leaned over and gave him one of herhoofs to help him up out of the water.
Alas! It was too late. The monster overtook him and th
e Marionette foundhimself in between the rows of gleaming white teeth. Only for a moment,however, for the Shark took a deep breath and, as he breathed, he drankin the Marionette as easily as he would have sucked an egg. Then heswallowed him so fast that Pinocchio, falling down into the body of thefish, lay stunned for a half hour.
When he recovered his senses the Marionette could not remember where hewas. Around him all was darkness, a darkness so deep and so black thatfor a moment he thought he had put his head into an inkwell. He listenedfor a few moments and heard nothing. Once in a while a cold wind blewon his face. At first he could not understand where that wind was comingfrom, but after a while he understood that it came from the lungs of themonster. I forgot to tell you that the Shark was suffering from asthma,so that whenever he breathed a storm seemed to blow.
Pinocchio at first tried to be brave, but as soon as he became convincedthat he was really and truly in the Shark's stomach, he burst into sobsand tears. "Help! Help!" he cried. "Oh, poor me! Won't someone come tosave me?"
"Who is there to help you, unhappy boy?" said a rough voice, like aguitar out of tune.
"Who is talking?" asked Pinocchio, frozen with terror.
"It is I, a poor Tunny swallowed by the Shark at the same time as you.And what kind of a fish are you?"
"I have nothing to do with fishes. I am a Marionette."
"If you are not a fish, why did you let this monster swallow you?"
"I didn't let him. He chased me and swallowed me without even a 'by yourleave'! And now what are we to do here in the dark?"
The Adventures of Pinocchio Page 11
