went round among the different heaps, asking what they were. His eyes were first struck with a huge one of bladders, which seemed to contain mighty sounds and the voices of multitudes, and which he was told were the Assyrian and Persian monarchies, together with those of Greece and Lydia. One heap was nothing but hooks of silver and gold, which were the presents, it seems, made to patrons and great men in hopes of a return. Another consisted of snares in the shape of garlands, manufactured by parasites. Others were verses in praise of great lords, all made of crickets which had burst themselves with singing. Chains of gold he saw there which were fictitious and unhappy love-matches; and eagles' claws, which were deputed authorities; and pairs of bellows, which were princes' favors; and overturned cities and treasuries, being treasons and conspiracies; and serpents with female faces, that were coiners and thieves; and all sorts of broken bottles, which were services rendered in miserable courts. A great heap of overturned soup he found to be alms to the poor, which had been delayed till the giver's death. Heaps of twigs he saw, set with birdlime, which, dear ladies, are your charms. In short, there was no end to what he saw. Thousands and thousands would not complete the list. Everything was there which was to be met with on earth, except folly in the raw material, for that is never exported. There he beheld some of his own lost time and deeds, and yet, if nobody had been with him to make. him aware of them, never would he have recognized them as his.

They then arrived at something which none of us ever prayed God to bestow, for we fancy we possess it in superabundance; yet here it was in greater quantities than anything else in the place-I mean, sense. It was a subtle

fluid, apt to evaporate if not kept closely, and here, accordingly, it was kept in vials of greater or less size. The greatest of them all was inscribed with the following words, “The Sense of Roland." Others in like manner exhibited the names of the proper possessors; and among them the frankhearted paladin beheld the larger portion of his own. what astonished him more was to see multitudes of the vials almost full to the stopper, which bore the names of men whom he had supposed to enjoy their senses in perfection. Some had lost them for love, others for glory, others for riches, others for promises from great men, others for stupid tricks, for jewels, for paintings, for all sorts of whims. There was a heap belonging to sophists and astrologers, and a still greater to poets.

Astolfo, with leave of Saint John, took possession of his own. He had but to uncork it and put it under his nose, and the wit shot up to its place at once. For a long time afterward the paladin led the life of a wise man, until, unfortunately, a mistake which he made lost him his brains a second time.

The evangelist now presented him with the vial containing the wits of Roland, and the travelers quitted the vale of lost treasures.

66

Raving Roland" (Leigh Hunt's Transcription).

Matteo Bandello

Of a Trick Played upon Some Monks by a

Donkey

You must know that in the venerable convent of San Domenico, at Modena, Brother Agostino Moro being prior at that time, as doubtless you are aware, there happened to be an excellent preacher on the third day of Easter. All through Lent he had preached to the general satisfaction of the whole city, and was now about to take leave of his congregation with such rites and ceremonies as preachers commonly adopt. When it got about that this was the father's farewell sermon, all folk flocked to the church, so that it seemed as if the day were one of plenary indulgence. So hot and stifling had the church become with the crowd and the breath of so many men and women, that when the sermon was over-it had lasted from dinner-time to four o'clock-the friars found it passing difficult to chant vespers and compline together. Being a shrewd and thoughtful person, the sacristan opened all the doors and windows of the church to cool the air, waiting as long as he could before closing the great door, especially as at nightfall they were to bury there a man of very foul reputation, to whom, when dying, as all averred, the devil had appeared in the flesh, so that they thought he would be carried away, soul and body. When the funeral rites for this arch-sinner were ended, the sacristan closed the central door of the church, but left the one leading to the first clois

ter open, so that the church might grow cooler during the night.

That same evening a friar arrived who had been preaching in the mountains, and brought his baggage with him upon a little ass as black as pitch, which he put up in a stable hard by. But, while all slept, the donkey, I know not how, got out of the stable and strayed into the cloister, where the grass was rich and tender. Here it stopped for a while to eat its fill. Then, being thirsty perhaps, it went sniffing about till it spied the vessel containing holy water, and drank it all up, as the friars next day discovered. Having eaten and drunk, it approached the grave of the wicked man, which had been filled in with sand, and, after turning round several times, stretched itself out there to rest.

Now, at the first stroke of matins it is usual for novices to go to the choir and set books and candles in readiness for chanting the service. So, at the time stated, two boys came in to prepare all that was necessary, and, passing through the sacristy, they saw Master Jackass stretched out upon the grave. His eyes looked like two great burning coals, while his long ears seemed for all the world like a pair of horns. Darkness, that fosterer and ally of fear, the thought of the newly buried sinner, and the sight of so horrible a brute at such an hour, fairly robbed the poor timid lads of their senses, and they firmly believed that the beast was none other than the devil. So, in their terror, they fled as fast as their legs would carry them; and he who ran swiftest deemed himself very lucky. On reaching the dormitory, breathless and speechless, they met some of the friars going to the choir, among these being the master of the novices. Seeing, by the light that burns all night long in the dormitory, that the boys had come back, he asked them why they had not gone

to prepare for matins, when in great fear and trembling they told him that on the grave of the man buried overnight they had actually seen the enemy of mankind.

The good monk, by no means the most courageous of men, began to tremble with fear, uncertain whether to go down into the church or not. Just then Brother Giovanni Mascarello came up, leader of the choir, and an excellent musician. Hearing the lads' story, he boldly ran down and went into the church. Here he saw the brute crouched on the grave, with ears erect because of the noise it heard, and quickly turning his back to it, he slammed the door of the sacristy and rushed up-stairs, screaming at the top of his voice, "Fathers, it is indeed the devil, the enemy of mankind." This he repeated again and again. As you know, he has a very powerful voice, and he shouted so loud that there was not a friar in the convent who did not hear him.

At last the prior came out of his cell, and, approaching Brother Giovanni, said, "What folly is this that you say? Are you raving mad, or what is it? Be still, and do not make such a noise at this hour. In God's name, what is the matter?"

"Holy father," replied Brother Giovanni, "I am not raving mad, but I tell you that the devil is in the church, and with my own eyes I actually saw him on the grave of that wicked man whom we buried yestereve. Methinks he has come to bear away the sinner's body with him to hell! These lads here have seen him also."

Having questioned the boys, who confirmed this statement, the prior, with some of the monks whom the outcry had brought thither, went down into the church. Their imaginations being excited by what they had heard, at the sight of the ass they all firmly believed that it was the Prince of Evil.