Stranica 103 [103]
PINOCCHIO 89
c Ah! now I remember all about it,” replied
the puppet, getting quite confused; “ I didn’t
lose the four gold pieces, 1 swallowed them
whilst I was drinking your medicine."
At this third lie his nose grew to such an
extraordinary length that poor Pinocchio could
not move in any direction. If he turned to
one side he struck his nose against the bed or
the window-panes, if he turned to the other he
struck it against the walls or the door, if he
raised his head a little he ran the risk of sticking
it into one of the Fairy s eyes.
And the Fairy looked at him and laughed.
“What are you laughing at?” asked the
puppet, very confused and anxious at finding
his nose growing so prodigiously.
"I am laughing at the lie you have told.”
" And how can you possibly know that I
have told a lie?”
‘“ Lies, my dear boy, are found out imme¬
diately, because they are of two sorts. There
are lies that have short legs, and lies that have
long noses. Your lie, as it happens, is one of
those that have a long nose.”
Pinocchio, not knowing where to hide him¬
self for shame, tried to run out of the room:
but he did not succeed, for his nose had in¬
creased so much that it could no longer pass
through the door.