top of the organ sat a monkey in a red cap shaking a
tambourine. Behind the group stood a yellow van, drawn by two donkeys
gayly tricked out with scarlet nets and jingling bells.

The Twins had no sooner arrived upon the scene than the music stopped,
the bear dropped upon all fours, and the monkey, hopping down from the
organ, began to leap about among the people, holding out the tambourine
for money. Then it was wonderful to see how rapidly the crowd melted
away! In a few moments the children were the only ones left. Beppo
gave his last coin to the monkey, and the woman, throwing a black look
after the disappearing crowd, ground out another tune for them on the
organ, while the monkey, to Beppo's great delight, leaped upon his
shoulder and searched his pockets with her little black paws.

The man, meanwhile, was preparing to start away. He handed the bear's
rope to his wife and, climbing to the driver's seat of the van, cracked
his whip, and shouted, "Aiou! aiou! you laggards!" to the donkeys. The
monkey leaped from Beppo's shoulder to the back of the bear, and, as the
caravan began to move, turned somersaults on the bear's back with such
wonderful agility that no boy on earth could have resisted following
her. The woman said something to her husband which the children did not
understand, though they did not know that it was because she spoke to
him in the Venetian dialect; then she turned to Beppo and said with an
insinuating smile, "Where is it that the Signore lives?"

Now here was a woman of sense! She called him Signore, as if he were
already a grown man! Beppo swelled with satisfaction and answered
promptly, "In the Palace Grifoni, across the river."

"Si, si," said the woman, which in Italian means "Yes, yes."

"We are going in that direction. Would you not like to go with us and
lead the bear?" Oh, if Teresina could have heard that! Here were
people who thought him quite big enough to lead a live bear, while she--
and Mammina, too, for that matter--thought he still should be followed
by a nurse!

Beppo leaped boldly forward, though Beppina tried to hold him back, and,
seizing the bear's rope, marched proudly along behind the van. The
woman laughed and clapped her hands. "Bravo, bravo!" she cried. Then,
turning to the panic-stricken Beppina, she said comfortingly: "The old
Ugolone will not hurt him. He is very old and as tame as a kitten.
See!" She gave the bear a slap and walked along bes