“How noble!” sighed Rowena.
“Do you hear that?” said the widow, severely,
to her boys. “Let it be an example to
you—I mean you, Joe.”
Joe gave his head a barely perceptible disparaging
toss and said: “Et for both. It ain’t
anything I’d ‘a’ done it.”
“Hush, if you haven’t got any better manners
than that. You don’t see the point at
all. It wasn’t good food.”
“I don’t care—it was food,
and I’d ‘a’ et it if it was rotten.”
“Shame! Such language! Can’t
you understand? They were starving —actually
starving—and he ate for both, and—”
“Shucks! you gimme a chance and I’ll—”
“There, now—close your head! and
don’t you open it again till you’re asked.”
[Angelo goes on and tells how his parents
the Count and Countess had to fly from Florence
for political reasons, and died poor in Berlin bereft
of their great property by confiscation; and how he
and Luigi had to travel with a freak-show during
two years and suffer semi-starvation.]
“That hateful black-bread; but I seldom ate
anything during that time; that was poor Luigi’s
affair—”
“I’ll never Mister him again!” cried
the widow, with strong emotion, “he’s
Luigi to me, from this out!”
“Thank you a thousand times, madam, a thousand
times! though in truth I don’t deserve it.”
“Ah, Luigi is always the fortunate one when
honors are showering,” said Angelo, plaintively;
“now what have I done, Mrs. Cooper, that you
leave me out? Come, you must strain a point
in my favor.”
“Call you Angelo? Why, certainly I will;
what are you thinking of! In the case of twins,
why—”
“But, ma, you’re breaking up the story—do
let him go on.”
“You keep still, Rowena Cooper, and he can go
on all the better, I reckon. One interruption
don’t hurt, it’s two that makes the trouble.”
“But you’ve added one, now, and that is
three.”
“Rowena! I will not allow you to talk
back at me when you have got nothing rational to say.”
ANGELO IS BLUE
[After breakfast the whole village crowded in, and
there was a grand reception in honor of the twins;
and at the close of it the gifted “freak”
captured everybody’s admiration by sitting down
at the piano and knocking out a classic four-handed
piece in great style. Then the judge took it—or
them—driving in his buggy and showed off
his village.]
All along the streets the people crowded the windows
and stared at the amazing twins. Troops of small
boys flocked after the buggy, excited and yelling.
At first the dogs showed no interest. They thought
they merely saw three men in a buggy—a
matter of no consequence; but when they found out
the facts of the case, they altered their opinion pretty
radically, and joined the boys, expressing their minds
