Stranica 223 [223]
PINOCCHIO 201
Then the director, to give him a lesson,
and to make him understand that it is not good
manners to bray before the public, gave him a
blow on his nose with the handle of his whip.
The poor little donkey put his tongue out
an inch, and licked his nose for at least five
minutes, thinking perhaps that it would ease
the pain he felt.
But what was his despair when, looking up
a second time, he saw that the box was pial
and that the Fairy had disappeared! . .
He thought he was going to die: his pase
filled with tears and he began to weep. No¬
body, however, noticed it, and least of all the
director who, cracking his whip, shouted:
" Courage, Pinocchio! Now let the audi¬
ence see how gracefully you can jump through
the hoops.”
Pinocchio tried two or three times, but each
time that he came in front of the hoop, instead
of going through it, he found it easier to go
under it. At last he made a leap and went
through it; but his right leg unfortunately
caught in the hoop, and that caused him to fall
to the ground doubled up in a heap on the
other side.
When he got up he was lame, and it was
only with great difficulty that he managed to
return to the stable.