embling, Gigi took the tambourine, and, shaking its little
bells appealingly, went about among the people. They had already begun
to scatter, with the wonderful agility of a crowd which has not paid.
Some, however, still lingered from curiosity and with the hope of a
second performance. A number of small copper coins Jingled into Gigi's
tambourine. He approached the good woman who had shown an interest in
him. She stooped down and thrust a piece of silver into his hand,
whispering,--

"It is for yourself, child. Do not give it to the cruel men! Keep it
to spend upon a feast-day, darling!"

Gigi looked at her, surprised. People so seldom spoke kindly to him!
The brown spot upon his eyelid quivered. He seemed about to cry. The
woman patted him on the head kindly.

"If they are cruel to you, I'd not stay with them," she whispered.
"I'd run away.--Hey, Beppo! Hey, Giovanni! Paolo!" she called, "we
must be off." And she turned to gather up her young ones, who were
shouting about the market-place, trying to stand upon their heads as
Gigi had done.

Gigi clasped the silver piece tightly in his hand, and went on, shaking
the tambourine after the retreating crowd. But few more pennies were
coaxed away. Presently he made his way back to the group of tumblers,
now seated on the fountain-steps.

"Well, what have you?" growled the Giant. Gigi presented the
tambourine with the few pennies rattling around somewhat lonesomely.

"Humph!" snarled Cecco. "Less than last time. Is that all?"

"A beating you get!" roared the Giant.

Gigi shivered. "No,--not all," he said. "Here is a silver piece," and
he held out the coin which the kind woman had given him.

"Ah, silver! that is better!" cried Tonio the Hunchback, with his eyes
shining greedily. "Give it here"; and he snatched it and thrust it
Into his pouch. Tonio was the treasurer of the gypsy band. But the
Giant had been eyeing Gigi with an ugly gleam.

"He was keeping it!" he growled. "He did not mean to give it up. He
would have stolen it!"

"It was mine!" cried Gigi with spirit. "She gave it to me and told me
to keep it for a fiesta. But I gave it up because--because I did not
want to be beaten again."

"You did not give it up soon enough!" roared the Giant, working himself
into a terrible rage. "You shall smart for this, you whelp! After
supper I will beat you as never a boy was beaten yet. But I must eat
first. I must get up my strength.