Note: Translator Pauline Bancroft Flach died in 1966, less than 70 years ago. Therefore, this work is protected by copyright, restricting your legal rights to reproduce it. However, you are welcome to view it on screen, as you do now. Read more about copyright.
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32 THE MIRACLES OF AJVTICHRIST
as green as the valley was black. It was palm next
palm, vine upon vine. It was a gentleman in a
flowery dressing-gown. It was a king with a crown
on his head. It bore the whole of Diamante about
its temples.
Some time before Gaetano had a desire to take
her hand. If he only could do it. Yes, he could.
He drew her hand to him like a captured treasure.
But what should he do with it ? Perhaps pat it. If
he tried quite gently with one finger, perhaps -she
would not notice it. Perhaps she would not notice
if he took two fingers. Perhaps she would not even
notice if he should kiss her hand. She talked and
talked. She noticed nothing at all.
There was still so much she wished to say. And
nothing so droll as her story about Diamante!
She said that the town had once lain down on the
bottom of the valley. Then the lava came, and fiery •
red looked over the edge of the valley. What, what!
was the last day come? The town in great haste
took its houses on its back, on its head, and under
its arms, and ran up Monte Chiaro, that lay close at
hand.
Zigzagging up the mountain the town ran. When
it was far enough up it threw down a town gs te and
a piece of town wall. Then it ran round the
mountain in a spiral and dropped down houses. The
poor people’s houses tumbled as they could and
would. There was no time for anything else. No
one could ask anything better than crowding and
disorder and crooked streets. No, that you could
not. The chief street went in a spiral round the
mountain, just as the town had run, and along it had
set down here a church and there a palace. But
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