then throwing it out towards Artois. "What else, I say? Was he to give
his beautiful rooms to them for nothing? And she with a face like--
have you, I ask you, Emilio, have you seen her teeth?"

"I have never seen the Signora in my life!"

"You have never seen her teeth? Dio Mio!" He opened his two hands,
and, lifting his arms, shook them loosely above his head, shutting his
eyes for an instant as if to ward off some dreadful vision. "They are
like the keys of a piano from Bordicelli's! Basta!" He dropped his
hands and opened his eyes. "Yesterday papa was walking in the Chiaia.
He met Signori Merani, and she began to abuse him. She had a red
parasol. She shook it at him! She called him vigliacco--papa, a
Panacci, dei Duchi di Vedrano! The parasol--it was a bright red, it
infuriated papa. He told the Signora to stop. She knows his temper.
Every one in Naples knows our tempers, every one! I, Viviano, even
Sigismondo, we are all the same, we are all exactly like papa. If we
are insulted we cannot control ourselves. You know it, Emilio!"

"I am perfectly certain of it," said Artois. "I am positive you none
of you can."

"It does not matter whether it is a man or a woman. We must do
something with our hands. We have got to. Papa told the Signora he
should strike her at once unless she put down the red parasol and was
silent. What did she do, the imbecile? She stuck out her face like
this,"--he thrust his face forward with the right cheek turned towards
Artois--"and said, 'Strike me! strike me!' Papa obeyed her. Poom!
Poom! He gave her a smack on each cheek before every one. 'You want
education!' he said to her. 'And I shall give it you.' And now she may