A Flight with the Swallows; Or, Little Dorothy's Dream

ned to her, and when she really recovered herself she fou

an old crone sitting by a wood fire. The room seemed very full, and was very hot; a smell of smoke, and dried fish, and of tar, made Dorothy gasp for breath. She was lying on

but she was seized by a pair of strong arms, and a great many word

he narrow doorway was filled with inquiring faces, and t

ps, "signorina," with which she had become familiar,

could not regain her feet. Presently she felt something warm trickling down her cheek, and then ther

and carried her to the smoking embers on the hearth; and, looking up, she saw a kindly face bending over her, and she was rocked gently to and fro, just as Ingleby h

a, è

home-take me hom

hile the rest talked and chattered, and raised their hands in wonder, and gazed down at the child with their l

g to rich English, and she would get a reward; and that she ought

gry with Baby Bob, and had refused to go to Colla. Oh, how she wished she had gone now. How she longed to say she was sorry, to kiss Baby Bob, to throw her arms round Ire

e could understand her; and at last, worn

t the little golden-haired signorina, whose head s

, "and then you will get a reward, Giulia. She is like an ang

ittle lost kid bleating fo

old church, and brightened the grey walls of the houses in

FELL FAST

to E

arms, and crooned over her the words of a hush-a-bye with which the dark-eyed boy, w

ninni,

zza di

ati, addo

ia be

h-a-bye, baby," which we

mother, sl

ty one,

hearth now shone with only a dim red eye in the middle; and still Dorothy slep

ng-needle was thrust, lay by the rough wooden bench near the small window. And Giulia did very much want to finish

child by laying her down on the bed again, and she dreaded to hear the cries

quieted by it, that she did not resist or cry when Giulia put her down on a low wooden stool; and throwing another bit of wood on the fire

k on the ceiling, and putting a big iron pipkin on the fi

wn, and wondered why Giulia had such a very wide waist, and why any one who had such a shabby pettico

ulia crumbled into it some dark bread, and finally offered it

tasted nothing since breakfast, was real

he woman who offered it to her, she said, "Grazia"-she knew that meant "Thank you"-for Francesco always said "Grazia" when he took the littl

Dorothy stop eating the orange, and she tu

lla Firenze, and how a little signorina was lost, and he held up a cru

n't you know me, Francesco? It is my lette

mps of joy and springs of de

signorina" ("Found! found! the

where I live. Oh, tell them-te

dressed-not without many expressions of profound admiration for the soft white feather and the velvet-and made ready to start with Francesco. Not alone. No; Giulia was not going to trust her to

get money for the s

some silver coins to her stock kept in the old stone pipkin in the cupboard-a store which Giulia liked to see grow, because, when her Anton was big and stro

nd on one side, and to Francesco's on the other, she tottered and tumbled about from side to side, and was not sor

bow over the sea. Just as they reached the upper road the doctor who attended Mrs. Acheson passed them quickly.

d; "has anything been h

Oh, Dr. Forman!"

hat Dorothy was safe. "Why, Dorothy," he said, "your poor mamma has been made quite ill with fright; and your nurse,

od Italian as well as his own language, the story of Dorothy's fall, the cut on her

and, Francesco, run off and try to find th

has been very, very kind to me." Then she lifted h

ia, g

. "She is just an angel, and I

ted there, for, as we all know, when we are waiting for anyone about whose coming we are anxious, we always go out to watch, and

e. So he led the way to the drawing-room, opening the door gently, and standing fo

th Mrs. Acheson all the aftern

it was to hear D

strode in, and kneeling down by the sofa where poo

d, and that the delicate English lady put her arm round the Italian one's ne

ia, g