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27 - The Adventures of Pinocchio - Carlo Collodi · Classic Adventure Books Collection

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  Chapter twenty seven, the great battle between Pinocchio and his playmates. One is
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  wounded, Pinocchio is arrested. Going like the wind, Pinocchio took but a
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  very short time to reach the shore. He glanced all about him, but
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  there was no sign of a shark. The sea was as smooth as glass.
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  Hey, there, boys, where's that shark? He asked, turning
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  to his playmates. He may have gone for his breakfast, said one of
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  them, laughing. Or perhaps he went to bed for a little nap,
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  said another, laughing. Also from the answers and the laughter which followed them,
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  Pinocchio understood that the boys had played a trick on him. What now,
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  he said angrily to them. What's the joke? Oh, the joke's
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  on you, cried his tormentors, laughing more heartily than ever, and dancing
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  gayly around the marionette. And that is that we have made you stay out
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  of school to come with us. Aren't you ashamed of being such a goody
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  goody? And if studying so hard you never have a bit of enjoyment?
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  And what is it to you if I do study? What does the teacher
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  think of us? You mean, why don't you see if you study and
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  we don't. We pay for it. After all, it's only fair to
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  look out for ourselves. What do you want me to do? Hate school
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  and books and teachers, as we all do. They are your worst enemies,
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  you know, and they like to make you as unhappy as they can.
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  And if I go on studying, what will you do to me?
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  You'll pay for it? Really, you amuse me, answered the marionette,
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  nodding his head. Hey, Pinocchio, cried the tallest of them all.
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  That will do. We are tired of hearing you bragging about yourself, you
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  little turkey cock. You may not be afraid of us, but remember we
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  are not afraid of you either. You are alone, you know, and
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  we are seven like seven sins, said Pinocchio, still laughing. Did you
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  hear that he has insulted us all? He called us sins? Pinocchio,
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  apologize for that, or look out, cuck oo, said the marionette,
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  mocking them with his thumb to his nose. You'll be sorry, cuck oo.
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  We'll whip you soundly, cuck oo, you'll go home with a broken
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  nose. Cuck Oo, very well, then take that and keep it for
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  your supper, called out the boldest of his tormentors, and with the words
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  he gave Pinocchio a terrible blow on the head. Pinocchio answered with another blow,
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  and that was the signal for the beginning of the fray. In a
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  few moments, the fight raged hot and heavy on both sides. Pinocchio,
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  although alone, defended himself bravely with those two wooden feet of his. He
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  worked so fast that his opponents kept at a respectful distance. Wherever they landed,
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  they left their painful mark, and the boys could only run away and
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  howl. Enraged at not being able to fight the marionette at close quarters,
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  they started to throw all kinds of books at him. Readers, geographies,
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  histories, grammars flew in all directions, but Pinocchio was of eye and swift
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  of movement, and the books only passed over his head, landed in the
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  sea and disappeared. The fish, thinking they might be good to eat,
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  came to the top of the water in great numbers. Some took a nibble,
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  some took a bite, but no sooner had they tasted a page or
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  two than they spat them out with a wry face, as if to say,
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  what a horrible taste our own food is so much better. Meanwhile,
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  the battle waxed more and more furiously. At the noise, a large crab
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  crawled slowly out of the water, and with a voice that sounded like a
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  trombone. Suffering from a cold, he cried out, stop fighting, you
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  rascals. These battles between you boys rarely end well. Trouble is sure to
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  come to you, poor crab. He might as well have spoken to the
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  wind instead of listening to his good advice. Pinocchio turned to him and said,
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  as roughly as he knew how, keep quiet, ugly crab, It
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  would be better for you to chew a few cough drops to get rid of
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  that cold you have. Go to bed and slip deep. You will feel
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  better in the morning. In the meantime, the boys, having used all
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  their books, looked around for new ammunition. Seeing Pinocchio's bundle lying idly near
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  by, they somehow managed to get hold of it. One of the books
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  with a very large volume, an arithmetic text, heavily bound in leather.
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  It was Pinocchio's pride among all his books. He liked that one the best,
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  thinking it would make a fine missile. One of the boys took hold
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  of it and threw it with all his strength at Pinocchio's head, But instead
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  of hitting the marionette, the book struck one of the other boys, who,
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  as pale as a ghost, cried out faintly, Oh mother, help,
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  I'm dying, and fell senseless to the ground. At the sight of
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  that little, pale corpse, the boys were so frightened that they turned tail
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  and ran. In a few moments all had disappeared, all except Pinocchio.
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  Although scared to death by the horror of what had been done, he ran
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  to the sea and soaked his handkerchief in the cool water, and with it
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  bathed the head of his poor little schoolmate. Sobbing bitterly, he cried to
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  him, saying, Eugene, poor Eugene, open your eyes and look at
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  me. Why don't you answer? I was not the one who hit you.
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  You know, believe me, I didn't do it. Open your eyes,
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  Eugene. If you keep them shut, I'll die too. Oh dear
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  me, How shall I ever go home? Now? How shall I ever
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  look at my little mother again? What will happen to me? Where shall
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  I go? Where shall I hide? Oh? How much better it would
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  have been a thousand times better? If only I had gone to school.
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  Why did I listen to those boys? They always were a bad influence.
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  And to think that the teacher had told me and my mother too, beware
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  of bad company, That's what she said. But I'm stubborn and proud.
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  I listen, but always I do as I wish, and then I pay.
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  I've never had a moment's piece since I've been born. Oh dear,
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  what will become of me? What will become of me? Pinocchio went on
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  crying and moaning and beating his head. Again and again he called to his
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  little friend, when suddenly he heard heavy steps approaching. He looked up and
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  saw two tall carabineers near him. What are you doing? Stretched out on
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  the ground, they asked Pinocchio. I am helping this little schoolfellow of mine.
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  Has he fainted? I should say so, said one of the carabineers,
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  bending to look at Eugene. This boy has been wounded on the temple.
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  Who has hurt him? N Not? I stammered the marionette, who
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  had hardly a breath left in his whole body. If it wasn't you,
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  who was it? Then? Not? I repeated Pinocchio, And with what
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  was he wounded with his book, and the marionette picked up the arithmetic text
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  to show it to the officer. And whose book is this mine? Enough?
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  Not another word? Get up as quickly as you can, and come
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  along with us. But but I come with us, but I am innocent,
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  Come with us. Before starting out, the officers called out to several
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  fishermen passing by in a boat and said to them, take care of this
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  little fellow who has been hurt. Take him home and bind his wounds.
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  Tomorrow we will come after him. Then they took hold of Pinocchio, and
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  putting him between them, said to him, in a rough voice, march
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  and go quickly, or it will be the worse for you. They did
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  not have to repeat their words. The marionette walked swiftly along the road to
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  the village. But the poor fellow hardly knew what he was about. He
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  thought he had a nightmare. He felt ill, his eye saw everything double,
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  his legs trembled, his tongue was dry, and try as he might,
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  he could not utter a single word. Yet, in spite of this
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  numbness of feeling, he suffered keenly at the thought of passing under the windows
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  of his good little Fairy's house. What would she say on seeing him?
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  Between two carabineers. They had just reached the village when a sudden gust of
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  wind blew off Pinocchio's cap and made it go sailing far down the street.
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  Would you allow me, the marionette asked the carabineers to run after my cap.
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  Very well, go, but hurry. The marionette went picked up his
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  cap, but instead of putting it on his head, he stuck it between
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  his teeth, and then raced toward the sea. He went like a bullet
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  out of a gun. The carabineers, judging that it would be very difficult
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  to catch him, sent a large mastiff after him, one that had won
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  first prize in all the dog races. Pinocchio ran fast, and the dog
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  ran faster at so much noise. People hung out of the windows were gathered
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  in the street, anxious to see the end of the contest, but they
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  were disappointed, for the dog and Pinocchio raised so much dust on the road
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  that after a few moments it was impossible to see them. End of Chapter
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  twenty seven.