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31 - The Adventures of Pinocchio - Carlo Collodi · Classic Adventure Books - Daily

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  Speaker 1: Chapter thirty one, in which, after five months of play,
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  Speaker 1: Pinocchio wakes up one fine morning and finds a great
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  Speaker 1: surprise awaiting him. Finally the wagon arrived. It made no noise,
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  Speaker 1: for its wheels were bound with straw and rags. It
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  Speaker 1: was drawn by twelve pair of donkeys, all of the
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  Speaker 1: same size, but all of different color. Some were gray,
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  Speaker 1: others white, and still others a mixture of brown and black.
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  Speaker 1: Here and there were a few with large yellow and
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  Speaker 1: blue stripes. The strangest thing of all was that those
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  Speaker 1: twenty four donkeys, instead of being iron shod like any
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  Speaker 1: other beast of burden, had on their feet laced shoes
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  Speaker 1: made of leather, just like the ones boys wear. And
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  Speaker 1: the driver of the wagon. Imagine to yourselves a little
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  Speaker 1: fat man, much whiter than he was, tall, round and
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  Speaker 1: shiny as a ball of butter, with a face beaming
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  Speaker 1: like an apple, a little mouth that always smiled, and
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  Speaker 1: a voice small and wheedling like that of a cat
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  Speaker 1: begging for food. No sooner did a boy see him
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  Speaker 1: than that boy fell in love with him. And nothing
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  Speaker 1: satisfied this boy but to be allowed to ride in
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  Speaker 1: the man's wagon to that lovely place called the land
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  Speaker 1: of toys in fat The wagon was so closely packed
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  Speaker 1: with boys of all ages that it looked like a
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  Speaker 1: box of sardines. They were uncomfortable. They were piled one
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  Speaker 1: on top of the other. They could hardly breathe. Yet
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  Speaker 1: not one word of complaint was heard. The thought that
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  Speaker 1: in a few hours they would reach a country where
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  Speaker 1: there were no school, no books, no teachers, made these
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  Speaker 1: boys so happy that they felt neither hunger nor thirst,
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  Speaker 1: nor sleep nor discomfort. No sooner had the wagon stopped
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  Speaker 1: than the little fat Man turned to lamp Wick with
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  Speaker 1: bows and smiles. He asked, in a wheedling tone, tell me,
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  Speaker 1: my fine boy, do you also want to come to
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  Speaker 1: my wonderful country? Well? Indeed I do, But I warn you,
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  Speaker 1: my dear, there's no more room in the wagon. It's full.
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  Speaker 1: Never mind, answered lamp Wick. If there's no room inside,
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  Speaker 1: I can sit on top of the coach, and with
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  Speaker 1: one leap, he perched himself there. What about you, my love,
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  Speaker 1: asked the little man, turning politely to Pinocchio, what are
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  Speaker 1: you going to do? Will you come with us? Or
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  Speaker 1: will you stay here? I stay here, answered Pinocchio. I
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  Speaker 1: want to return home, but I prefer to study and
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  Speaker 1: to succeed in life. May that bring you luck? Pinocchio
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  Speaker 1: lamp Wick called out, listen to me, Come with us,
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  Speaker 1: we will always be happy. Oh no, no, no, Come
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  Speaker 1: with us and we'll always be happy, cried four other
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  Speaker 1: voices from the wagon. Come with us, and we'll always
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  Speaker 1: be happy, shouted the one hundred and more boys in
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  Speaker 1: the wagon, all together. And if I go with you,
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  Speaker 1: what will my good fairy say? Asked Pinocchio, who was
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  Speaker 1: beginning to waver and weaken in his good resolutions. Oh,
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  Speaker 1: don't worry so much. Only think that we are going
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  Speaker 1: to a land where we shall be allowed to make
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  Speaker 1: all the racket we like from morning till night. Pinocchio
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  Speaker 1: did not answer, but sighed deeply, once twice a third time.
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  Speaker 1: Finally he said, make room for me. I want to
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  Speaker 1: go too. The seats are all filled, answered the little man.
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  Speaker 1: But are you how much I think of you? Take
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  Speaker 1: my place as coachman? Well, and you I'll walk well. No, indeed,
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  Speaker 1: I could not permit such a thing. I much prefer
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  Speaker 1: riding one of these donkeys, cried Pinocchio, And no sooner
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  Speaker 1: said than done. He approached the first donkey and tried
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  Speaker 1: to mount it, but the little animal turned suddenly and
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  Speaker 1: gave him such a terrible kick in the stomach that
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  Speaker 1: Pinocchio was thrown to the ground and fell with his
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  Speaker 1: legs in the air. At this unlooked for entertainment, the
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  Speaker 1: whole company of runaways laughed uproariously. The little fat man
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  Speaker 1: did not laugh. He went up to the rebellious animal, and,
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  Speaker 1: still smiling, bent over him lovingly and bit off half
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  Speaker 1: his right ear. In the meantime, Pinocchio lifted himself up
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  Speaker 1: from the ground and with one leap, landed on the
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  Speaker 1: donkey's back. The leap was so well taken that all
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  Speaker 1: the boys shouted Hurrah for Pinocchio and clapped their hands
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  Speaker 1: in hearty applause. Suddenly, the little donkey gave a kick
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  Speaker 1: with his two hind feet, and at this unexpected move,
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  Speaker 1: Pinocchio found himself once again sprawling right in the middle
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  Speaker 1: of the road. Again the boys shouted with laughter. But
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  Speaker 1: the little man, instead of laughing, became so loving toward
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  Speaker 1: the little animal that with another kiss, he bit off
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  Speaker 1: half his left ear. You can mount now, my boy,
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  Speaker 1: he then said to Pinocchio, have no fear. That donkey
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  Speaker 1: was worried about something. But I have spoken to him,
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  Speaker 1: and now he seems quiet and reasonable. Pinocchio mounted and
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  Speaker 1: the wagon started on its way. While the donkeys galloped
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  Speaker 1: along the stony road. Pinocchio fancied he heard a very
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  Speaker 1: quiet voice whispering to him, poor, silly, you have done
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  Speaker 1: as you wished, but you are going to be a
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  Speaker 1: sorry boy before long. Pinocchio, greatly frightened, looked about him
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  Speaker 1: to see whence the words had come, but he saw
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  Speaker 1: no one. The donkeys galloped, the wagon rolled along smoothly,
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  Speaker 1: The boys slept, lamp Wick snored like a dormouse, and
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  Speaker 1: the little fat man sang sleepily between his teeth. After
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  Speaker 1: a mile or so, Pinocchio again heard the same faint
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  Speaker 1: voice whispering, Remember little simpleton boys who stopped studying and
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  Speaker 1: turned their backs upon books and schools and teachers, in
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  Speaker 1: order to give all their time to nonsense and pleasure.
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  Speaker 1: Sooner or later come to grief. Oh, how how well
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  Speaker 1: I know this? How well I can prove it to you?
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  Speaker 1: A day will come when you will weep bitterly. Even
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  Speaker 1: I am weeping now, But it will be too late.
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  Speaker 1: At these whispered words, Pinocchio grew more and more frightened.
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  Speaker 1: He jumped to the ground, ran up to the donkey
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  Speaker 1: on whose back he had been riding, and, taking his
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  Speaker 1: nose in his hands, looked at him. Think How great
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  Speaker 1: was his surprise when he saw the donkey was weeping,
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  Speaker 1: weeping just like a boy. Ay, mister driver, cried Pinocchio,
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  Speaker 1: Do you know what strange they is happening here? This
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  Speaker 1: donkey weeps? Let him weep. When he gets married, he
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  Speaker 1: will have time to laugh. Have you perhaps taught him
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  Speaker 1: to speak? Now? He learned to mumble a few words
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  Speaker 1: when he lived for three years with a band of
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  Speaker 1: trained dogs. Poor beast, come, come, said the little man.
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  Speaker 1: Do not lose time over a donkey that can weep.
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  Speaker 1: Mount quickly and let us go. The night is cool
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  Speaker 1: and the road is long. Pinocchio obeyed without another word.
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  Speaker 1: The wagon started again toward dawn. The next morning, they
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  Speaker 1: finally reached that much long for country, the Land of Toys.
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  Speaker 1: This great land was entirely different from any other place
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  Speaker 1: in the world. Its population, large, though it was, was
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  Speaker 1: composed wholly of boys. The oldest were about fourteen years
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  Speaker 1: of age, the youngest eight In the street. There was
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  Speaker 1: such a racket, such shouting, such blowing of trumpets, that
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  Speaker 1: it was deafening. Everywhere groups of boys were gathered together.
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  Speaker 1: Some played at marbles, at hopscotch, at ball. Others rode
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  Speaker 1: on bicycles or on wooden horses. Some played at blind
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  Speaker 1: man's bluff, some at tag. Here a group played circus,
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  Speaker 1: and others sang and recited. A few turned somersaults. Others
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  Speaker 1: walked on their hands with their feet in the air.
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  Speaker 1: Generals in full uniform leading regiments of cardboard soldiers passed by. Laughter, shrieks, howls, catcalls,
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  Speaker 1: hand clapping followed this parade. One boy made a noise
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  Speaker 1: like a hen, another like a rooster, and a third
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  Speaker 1: imitated a lion in his den. Altogether they created such
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  Speaker 1: a pandemonium that it would have been necessary for you
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  Speaker 1: to put cotton in your ears. These squares were filled
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  Speaker 1: with small wooden theaters, overflowing with boys from morning till night.
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  Speaker 1: And on the wall of the houses, written in charcoal
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  Speaker 1: were words like these, Hurrah of the land of toys.
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  Speaker 1: Down with arithmetic, no more school. As soon as they
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  Speaker 1: had set foot in that land, Pinocchio, lamp Wick and
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  Speaker 1: all the other boys who had traveled with them, started
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  Speaker 1: out on a tour of investigation. They wandered everywhere, They
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  Speaker 1: looked into every nook and corner, house and theater. They
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  Speaker 1: became everybody's friend. Who could be happier than they, what
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  Speaker 1: with entertainments and parties. The hours, the days, the weeks
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  Speaker 1: past like lightning. Oh what a beautiful place this is,
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  Speaker 1: said Pinocchio each time that by chance he met his
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  Speaker 1: friends lamp Wick. Was I right or wrong? Answered lamp Wick.
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  Speaker 1: And to think that you did not want to come,
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  Speaker 1: to think that even yesterday, that idea came into your
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  Speaker 1: head to return home to see your fairy and to
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  Speaker 1: let to let her start you studying again. If if
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  Speaker 1: to day you are free from pencils and books and schools,
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  Speaker 1: you owe it to me, to my advice, to my care.
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  Speaker 1: Do you admit it? Only true friends counts? After all,
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  Speaker 1: it's true, lamp Wick, It's true. If to day I
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  Speaker 1: am really a happy boy, it is all because of you.
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  Speaker 1: And to think that the teacher, when speaking of you,
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  Speaker 1: used to say, do not go oh with that, lamp Wick.
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  Speaker 1: He is a bad companion, and someday he will lead
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  Speaker 1: you astray. A poor teacher, answered lamp Wick, nodding his head. Indeed,
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  Speaker 1: I know how much he disliked me, and how he
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  Speaker 1: enjoyed speaking ill of me. But I am, I am
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  Speaker 1: a generous person, and I gladly forgive him. Well, you
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  Speaker 1: are a great soul, said Pinocchio, fondly embracing his friend.
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  Speaker 1: Five months passed, and the boys continued playing and enjoying
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  Speaker 1: themselves from morning till night, without ever seeing a book,
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  Speaker 1: or a desk or a school. But my children. There
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  Speaker 1: came a morning when Pinocchio awoke and found a great
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  Speaker 1: surprise awaiting him, a surprise which made him feel very unhappy,
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  Speaker 1: as you shall see end of chapter thirty one