The Sunbonnet Babies in Italy Read online

  THE FIRST DRIVE

  The Sunbonnet Babies were now really frightened. The streets werecrowded, and the drivers all seemed to be trying to get ahead of thecarriages in front of them. They cracked their whips, they shouted toone another in loud voices, and they drove their horses as fast asthey could make them go.

  The noise and the strange faces and the stranger language might havefrightened even the Overall Boys just a little, if they had been withMolly and May.

  But no one needed to be frightened. The men in Naples are finedrivers, though they do like to make a great show about it. And thenervous little horses enjoy dashing through the streets to the soundof cracking whips.

  Everybody was jolly and happy, so the Sunbonnet Babies soon forgottheir fears and began to enjoy their first drive in Italy. Thecarriage passed along a busy street where there were many small shopsand handsome stores.

  After a few minutes Molly said, in a somewhat disappointed voice,"Why, this street looks like the streets in our city at home. Ithought it would look different in Italy."

  "Look up that side street," said her father. "Did you ever see astreet like that in America?"

  "That is not a street, father," said Molly. "That is a long flight ofstairs. But why do they build stairs out of doors?"

  "Yes, that is a street, and a very popular one, too," said her father."Naples is built on the side of a hill, you know, and many of thestreets that go up the hill are flights of steps like this one."

  "O father, may we get out and walk a little way up the street?" askedMolly. "I want to see what all those people are doing."

  "And I want to take some pictures with my camera," said May.

  _They lifted the long, white strips of macaroni highabove their heads_]

  So they quickly got out of the carriage and began climbing the longflight of steps. It was about noon, and some of the people seemed tobe eating their midday meal.

  One poor old man was sitting on a step eating some hard bread andolives. Near him were two barefooted boys who had just bought a plateheaping full of macaroni. A man stood in an open doorway cooking themacaroni over a queer little stove and selling it to the people.

  The boys had no knives or forks to use, but fingers were muchbetter. They lifted the long white strips of macaroni high above theirheads, then they opened their mouths very wide, and down it slipped.They didn't bite it, they didn't chew it, they just sucked the longpieces down their throats as fast as they could. They seemed to beracing with each other to see who could swallow the most in theshortest time.

  Molly and May watched the boys anxiously until the macaroni was allgone. Then how they laughed and clapped their hands! They thought itwas the strangest dinner and the strangest game they had ever seen.

  The boys thought it was a fine dinner. They were business boys. Thatmorning they had sold more brushes and fans than usual, so they werecelebrating by having some delicious macaroni for dinner.

  These boys made their own brushes and fans, and went about the streetsselling them. Of course Molly and May each bought one of the fans, forthey wanted the boys to have another good dinner the next day.

  As the little party walked on up the steps they saw many things thatwere strange and interesting. Little children were leaning out of thehigh windows, talking and laughing with other children in the housesacross the way.

  Women were hanging out their washing on ropes stretched from onewindow to another, and talked loudly with people who were on the stepsbelow.

  One woman stood on a narrow iron balcony in front of her window andlowered a basket by a long rope. When the basket reached the steps, asmall boy ran to it and took out a covered bowl in which he found twobig copper pennies.

  The boy carried the pennies to a man near by, who was making hot snailsoup over a small stove. The man filled the bowl with some of hisdelicious soup, and the boy put it carefully back into the basket.Then the woman drew it slowly up, up to her high balcony.

  The small boy reached the balcony almost as quickly as the basket did,for he knew that some of that hot soup was for him, and he liked snailsoup almost better than macaroni.

  _One woman stood on an iron balcony, lowered a basketby a long rope_]

  As Molly and May watched the preparations for dinner on the littlebalcony, May suddenly cried, "Look! Look! They have a big dog upthere!"

  "No, that is not a dog, it is a goat," said her father. "I suppose itlives up there with the family and gives them milk every day. Thatfamily must have more money than most of the people who live on thisstreet. They eat snail soup for dinner, they have a balcony in frontof their window, and they keep a goat."

  "Perhaps the little boy's father owns one of these small shops andmakes lots of money selling macaroni, or soup, or onions, or bread, orflowers, or roasted chestnuts," said May.

  "Well, shall we buy our dinner here, or shall we go to the hotel forit?" asked their father. "Wouldn't you like some snail soup, ormacaroni, or onions for dinner?"

  "Oh, no, no!" cried both Molly and May. "We are hungry, but we don'twant snail soup or onions."

  So they hurried back to their carriage and were soon driving rapidlyup the hill to a fine hotel, where they were to stay for several days.

  Seeing Strange Sights]