THE HORSE THAT AROUSED THE TOWN

By Lillian M. Gask

A wise and just monarch was the good King John. His kingdom
extended over Central Italy, and included the famous town of Atri,
which in days gone by had been a famous harbour on the shores of
the Adriatic. Now the sea had retreated from it, and it lay inland;
no longer the crested waves rolled on its borders, or tossed their
showers of silver spray to meet the vivid turquoise of the sky.

The great desire of good King John was that every man, woman and
child in his dominions should be able to obtain justice without
delay, be they rich or poor. To this end, since he could not
possibly listen to all himself, he hung a bell in one of the city
towers, and issued a proclamation to say that when this was rung a
magistrate would immediately proceed to the public square and
administer justice in his name. The plan worked admirably; both
rich and poor were satisfied, and since they knew that evil-doers
would be quickly punished, and wrongs set right, men hesitated to
defraud or oppress their neighbours, and the great bell pealed less
often as years went on.

In the course of time, however, the bell-rope wore thin, and some
ingenious citizen fastened a wisp of hay to it, that this might
serve as a handle. One day in the height of summer, when the
deserted square was blazing with sunlight, and most of the citizens
were taking their noonday rest, their siesta was disturbed by the
violent pealing of the bell.