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.
Full resolution (JPEG) - On this page / på denna sida - Second book - X. Falco Falcone
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
Below is the raw OCR text
from the above scanned image.
Do you see an error? Proofread the page now!
Här nedan syns maskintolkade texten från faksimilbilden ovan.
Ser du något fel? Korrekturläs sidan nu!
This page has been proofread at least once.
(diff)
(history)
Denna sida har korrekturlästs minst en gång.
(skillnad)
(historik)
FALCO FALCONE
30 7
And the workmen on Etna asked themselves:
“ Who will protect us against Falco ? He is terrible.
Even the soldiers tremble before him.”
They remember that Falco Falcone is now an old
man. He no longer plunders post-wagons; he does
not carry off land-owners. He sits quiet generally
in the quarry near Diamante, and instead of robbing
money and estates, he takes money and estates
under his protection.
He takes tribute from the great landed proprietors
and guards their estates from other thieves, and it
has become calm and peaceful on Etna, for he allows
no one to injure those who have paid a tax to him.
But that is not reassuring. Since Falco has
become friends with the great, he can all the more
easily destroy the railway.
And they remember the story of Niccola Galli,
who is overseer on the estate of the Marquis di San
Stefano on the southern side of Etna. Once his
workmen struck in the middle of the harvest time.
Niccola Galli was in despair. The wheat stood
ripe, and he could not get it reaped. His workmen
would not work; they lay down to sleep at the edge
of a ditch.
Niccola placed himself on a donkey and rode down
to Catania to ask his lord for advice. On the way
he met two men with guns on their shoulders.
“Whither are you riding, Niccola?”
Before Niccola had time to say many words they
took his donkey by the bit and turned him round.
“You must not ride to the Marquis, Niccola?” —
“Must I not?” —"No; you must ride home.”
As they went along, Niccola sat and shook on his
donkey. When they were again at home the men
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>