Italian Folktales (Penguin Modern Classics) by Italo Calvino

Author:Italo Calvino [Calvino, Italo]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
ISBN: 9780141975023
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2012-07-26T04:00:00+00:00

(Rome)

101

Belmiele and Belsole

There was once a father with two such fair and beautiful children that the boy was called Belmiele, and the girl Belsole. The man’s duties as chief steward at the royal court took him away from his children, as the king lived in another town. Hearing their looks so highly praised, the king, who had never seen these children, said to his chief steward, “Since you have such a handsome son, bring him to the court, and I will make him a page.”

The father fetched the boy and left the girl with her nurse. Belmiele became page to the king, who liked the boy so much that he kept him on at the palace as page after the chief steward’s sudden death and even entrusted him with the special privilege of dusting the paintings in his art gallery. Belmiele could never dust the portraits without pausing to admire one in particular, that of a lady. Time after time the king caught him there, entranced, with his feather duster at rest.

“What’s so fascinating about that portrait?”

“Majesty, this portrait is the perfect likeness of my sister, Belsole.”

“I don’t believe you, Belmiele. I looked the world over for a lady like the one in that portrait, but I didn’t find her. If your sister resembles that lady, bring her here, and she will be my bride.”

Belmiele wrote the nurse to bring Belsole to him immediately, as the king wanted to marry her. Now the nurse, mind you, had a daughter uglier than sin and as envious as could be of Belsole’s beauty. After receiving Belmiele’s order, she set out with Belsole and her own ugly daughter. As they were to travel by sea, they all three boarded a boat.

On board, Belsole fell asleep, and the nurse said, “So that’s how it is! She has all the luck and gets to marry the king! Wouldn’t it be better if he married my daughter?”

“Indeed it would!” replied the daughter.

“Leave everything to me. I have absolutely no use for that silly creature.”

Meanwhile Belsole awoke, saying, “Nurse, I’m hungry.”

“I have bread and sardines, but not even enough for me.”

“Please, nurse, give me a tiny little bit.”

So that dreadful woman gave her a small piece of bread and some sardines, but mostly sardines and practically no bread, and in no time the girl was dying of thirst. “Oh, nurse, I’m so thirsty.”

“I have scarcely any water, but if you like, I’ll give you some salt water.”

Feeling her throat utterly parched, Belsole said, “I’ll even drink salt water.” After one sip, though, she was thirstier than ever.

“Nurse, I’m thirstier than ever.”

“All right,” replied the cruel woman, “I’m really going to give you a drink of water now.” She grabbed her around the waist and flung her into the sea.

A whale happening by just then saw Belsole in the water and swallowed her whole.

The nurse came into the king’s port, and there stood Belmiele on the pier with arms outstretched to embrace his sister. Instead, he saw that ugly face wearing a bridal veil.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.