Little By Little, By Dint Of Questioning, I Got At
What She Meant.
There had been guai, worse than usual; the
mistress had reviled her unendurably for some fault or other, and
was it not hard that she should be used like this after having
tanto, tanto lavorato!
In fact, she was appealing for my sympathy,
not abusing me at all. When she went on to say that she was alone in
the world, that all her kith and kin were freddi morti (stone
dead), a pathos in her aspect and her words took hold upon me; it
was much as if some heavy-laden beast of burden had suddenly found
tongue, and protested in the rude beginnings of articulate utterance
against its hard lot. If only one could have learnt, in intimate
detail, the life of this domestic serf! How interesting, and how
sordidly picturesque against the background of romantic landscape,
of scenic history! I looked long into her sallow, wrinkled face,
trying to imagine the thoughts that ruled its expression. In some
measure my efforts at kindly speech succeeded, and her "Ah, Cristo!"
as she turned to go away, was not without a touch of solace.
Another time my hostess fell foul of the waiter, because he had
brought me goat's milk which was very sour. There ensued the most
comical scene. In an access of fury the stout woman raged and
stormed; the waiter, a lank young fellow, with a simple,
good-natured face, after trying to explain that he had committed the
fault by inadvertence, suddenly raised his hand, like one about to
exhort a congregation, and exclaimed in a tone of injured
remonstrance, "Un po' di calma!
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