ad first against the earthen _scaldino_, which was broken, and its
ashes scattered on the path in all directions.

When Tuttu, lying flat with only his head visible, saw this terrible
misfortune; he crawled out from his hiding-place, and taking Tutti's
hand helped him to get up, and stood courageously in front of his
grandmother.

"It was all my fault, grandmother. Don't scold him! I made him do it,
and I'm so sorry," he said, with a quiver in his voice, but Maddalena
was too angry to listen to him. She had thrown her distaff on the
ground, and was picking up the pieces of the yellow _scaldino_ to see
if it could possibly be fitted together again.

"Go in both of you to bed," she called out without looking up, "and
don't let me see either of you again to-day! Just when I had a
moment's peace too, thinking you were at the Padre's. It really is too
much."

Tutti burst into loud sobs of terror and remorse, but Tuttu took him
by the hand and, without speaking, led him away to the house.

"Why don't you cry, too, Tuttu?" asked Tutti, stopping his tears to
look in astonishment at his brother.

"I'm too old," said Tuttu. "Grandmother's quite right, we do behave
badly to her." And that was the beginning of a new era for Tuttu.

The next day as soon as he was awake, he began to think seriously over
any possible way by which he could earn enough money to buy a new
_scaldino_. He dressed hurriedly and ran off to talk it over with
Father Giacomo, and the result of the conference was a long but kind
lecture of good advice, and permission to weed in the Padre's garden
for the sum of one halfpenny for a large basketful.

Tuttu danced about with delight. "Why, I shall earn the money in no
time at that rate," he cried, "and I'll buy the best _scaldino_ in
Siena!"

He felt that he must commence work immediately, and in the evening he
staggered into Father Giacomo's, with a scarlet face, carrying a great
hamper of green stuff.

When he had a little recovered himself, he unfolded to his old friend
another plan he had thought of during the day, which he was quite sure
would please his grandmother.

"I've got a broken _fiasco_ that the gardener's given me," he said,
"and I and Tutti mean to put a bean each into it every day we are
really good. Then, at the end of the month--a whole month, mind!--we
might take it up to grandmother."

Father Giacomo highly approved of this idea, and encouraged the
children by every means in his