Legends Of Florence Part 3

"Now the priest being persuaded by the maid, really made his appearance at the Council bearing in a dish well covered with a napkin four of the finest roasted capons ever seen. And with these he advanced _in pleno concilo_, in full a.s.sembly before the Bishop.

The great man looked severely at the priest, and said:

"'Where are thy _cappa e cotta_?'

"'Excellenza, behold them!' said the good man, uncovering the dish.

'And though I say it, no better _capponi cotte_ can be had in all our country.'

"The Bishop and all round him gazed with breathless admiration on the fowls, so plump, so delicious, so exquisitely roasted, with lemons ranged round them. It was just the hungry time of day, and, in short, the priest had made a blessed happy blunder, and one which was greatly admired. There was general applause.

"'_Figlio mio_!' said the Bishop with a smile, 'take my blessing!

Thou alone of all the ministers of our diocese didst rightly understand the spirit and meaning of an episcopal edict.'"

THE LANTERNS OF THE STROZZI PALACE

"And what this man did was, as the proverb says, _mostrare altrui lucciole per laterne_-made him believe that fire-flies were lanterns-which means to deceive any one."-_Italian Proverbs_.

As all visitors to Florence will have their attention called to the Strozzi Palace, and its rings and lanterns, the following will probably prove to them to be of interest:

"The _campanelle_, or great iron rings, which are on the Strozzi Palace, were the result of rivalry with the Pitti family.

"The Strozzi built their palace first, and then the Pitti said that it would only fill a corner of their own far greater building. And when the latter was finished, the Strozzi, to be even with them, placed those magnificent _campanelle_ at the four corners, and then the great lanterns which are so exquisitely worked, and these were made by Niccol il Grosso, a very ingenious but also very poor man, who, having begun the work, could not finish it for want of money.

"One morning when this Niccolo was sitting on the stone bench of the palace, there came by an old man who was carrying some onions, and the artist begged a few of these to eat with his bread, telling him he had no money. But the old man said, 'Take them, and welcome, for a free gift, Niccol. Truly, it pains me to see an excellent artist like thee starving for want of proper patronage. Now I will lend thee a round sum, which thou canst repay me when thou art in better luck.'

"'But tell me,' inquired Niccol, greatly amazed, 'how dost thou know who I am?'

"The old man replied, 'I know thee, and that thou hast great genius (_una gran testa_), and I find thee utterly poor and unable to finish the Strozzi lanterns.

"'Now I wish to do thee a service. Go, with these onions in thine hand, and stand there in the street till the Lords Strozzi go forth, and see thee with the vegetables, and then they will ask thee why thou dost not finish the lanterns. And then thou shalt reply, "Signori, because I must sell onions, not being able otherwise to finish the lanterns, for truly all my art does not give me bread."

Then they will give thee money, and after that return to me.'

"So it happened as the old man said: the Signori Strozzi, when they came forth, found Niccol their artist selling onions, and gave him a good sum of money, and with that he went back to the old man. And they gave him a great sum indeed, for he was to make the lanterns all of solid gold, so that the palace might be far finer than the Pitti.

"The old man said, 'Never mind paying me, but put an onion in your pocket and study it.' And this he did, hence it comes that the tops of the lanterns are like onion sprouts. And Niccol seeing that he lived in a hard and cruel world, in order to be even with it, made the lanterns of iron, though the work which he put upon it was like jewellery, so fine was it, and then gilded the iron and pa.s.sed the lanterns off on the Signori Strozzi for solid gold, and was soon heard of as being very far away from Florence, in company with the good old man who had put him up to the little game (_bel giuoco_).

"But people say that after all the Strozzi were not so badly cheated, for those onion-top lanterns could not have been bought even in their time for their weight in gold, and that they are worth much more now."

It is needless to say that this ingenious tale owes its origin to the iron lanterns having been at one time gilt. These famous works of art have been copied far and wide: had the Strozzi family taken out and renewed the copyright for design on them, they might have found that the gold was a very good investment, especially in these times, when a thing of beauty brings in cash for ever. One of the latest and prettiest devices, to be seen in many shops, is a small iron night-lamp in imitation of these Strozzi lanterns.

The im-moral, or at least the concluding sentence of the tale is, "_E cos Niccol se ne fuggi a tasche piene_-And so Niccol fled with his pockets full of money." I spare the reader reflections on the history of many bankers in Florence and Rome, who during the past two years followed his example.

What is extremely interesting and original in this legend is the declaration that Niccol took the idea of the long and very singular points on the lanterns from an onion. It recalls the story of the acanthus leaf and the basket which suggested the Ionic capital. It was understood by the narrator that the old man who gave "the tips" to Niccol was a wizard.

There was much more meaning attached to the lanterns and rings, such as Niccol made, than is generally known, as appears by the following extract:

"Among the striking features of the Florentine palaces are the handsome ornaments of bronze or wrought-iron which adorn the facades of many of them. These were called _fa.n.a.li_ or _lumiere_, and were not, as one would naturally suppose, ornaments that a man might place on his house according to his individual taste, but they were the visible testimony of the public recognition of great deeds. On festive occasions, these _fa.n.a.li_ were provided with great pitch torches, whose crackling flames gave a merry aspect to the whole neighbourhood. Amerigo Vespucci addressed the account of one of his voyages to the Gonfaloniere Piero Soderini, with whom he had formerly been on intimate terms, and the latter procured a decree of the Republic, in accordance with which _fa.n.a.li_ were sent to the family palace of the Vespucci, and kept burning day and night for three days.

"The most beautiful of all the Florentine _fa.n.a.li_ . . . are those which adorn the corners of the famous Strozzi Palace. They are of wrought-iron, and were made by a smith who enjoyed a local celebrity, not only on account of his masterly work, but also because he carried on his business on a strictly cash basis; nay, went further, and refused to work for any one who did not prepay, in part at least, for his order. Thus he received the name of _Caparra_, or Earnest-money."-_Florentine Life_, by W. B. Scaife, p. 58.

There is one thing in this legend which alone would seem to guarantee its being an authentic or old tradition. In it Niccol appears as a man who is eminently grasping, and who takes care to get his money in advance.

And he was in reality so noted for this, that, as Scaife declares, he went further than dealing on a cash basis-and so got the nickname of Caparra, or the Pledge-so well did he know the value of cash. _Il martel d'argento rompe le porte di ferro_, or-

"A hammer of silver, as we see, Breaks the iron gates of poverty."

THE GOBLIN OF LA VIA DEL CORNO

"Oh for one blast of that dread horn, On Fontarabian echoes borne, When Roland brave and Olivier, And every paladin and peer At Roncesvalles died."-_Walter Scott_.

"The Korrigan who ever wears a horn."

The Via del Corno is a narrow street pa.s.sing from the Via del Leone. I have found the following story in reference to the origin of its name, which, if not authentic, is at least amusing and original:

LA VIA DEL CORNO.

"There was in what is now known as the Via del Corno an ancient palace, which a long time ago was inhabited only by a certain gentleman and a goblin. {21}

"Nor had he any servants, because of all who came, none remained more than one day for fear of the _folletto_. And as this spread far and wide, people kept away from the Via del Corno after dark; but as this also kept away thieves, and the goblin did all the house-work, the master was all the better pleased. Only on one point did the two differ, and that was the point of morality. Here the goblin was extremely strict, and drew the line distinctly. Several times, as was the custom in those wicked days, the Signore attempted to introduce a lady-friend to the palazzo, but the goblin all night long, when not busied in pulling the sheets from the fair sinner, was industriously occupied in strewing nettles or burrs under her, or tickling the soles of her feet with a pen; and then anon, when, sinking to sleep, she hoped for some remission of the tease, he would begin to play interminable airs on a horn. It is true that he played beautifully, like no earthly musician, but even enchanting airs may be annoying when they prevent sleep.

"Nor did the lord fare the better, even when, inspired by higher motives, he 'would a-wooing go.' For one lady or another had heard of the goblin, and when they had not, it always happened that by some mysterious means or other the match was broken off.

"Meantime the life led by the Signore was rather peculiar, as he slept nearly all day, sallied forth for an hour or two to exercise, go to a barber's, make his small purchases, or hear the news, supped at a _trattoria_, and then returning home, sat all night listening to the goblin as he played divinely on the horn, or blew it himself, which he did extremely well, toped and hob-n.o.bbed with his familiar, who was a great critic of wine, and, as the proverb says, '_Buon vino fiaba lunga_-Good wine, long tales'-they told one another no end of merry and marvellous stories; and as _il vin fa cantare_, it makes man sing, they also sang duets, solos, and glees. And when the weather was ill, or chilly, or rainy, or too hot, they cured it with Chianti, according to a medical prescription laid down in sundry rare old works:

"Nebbia, nebbia, mattutina, Che ti levi la mattina?

Questa tazza di buon vino, Fatta d'una marzamina, Contra te sia medecina!'

"'Cloudy sky i' the morning early, What will make you vanish fairly?

Ah! this goblet of good wine, Essence of the blessed vine, Shall be for thee a medicine!'

"Then they played chess, cards, cribbage, drole, ecarte, Pope Joan, bo, brag, casino, thirty-one, put, snip-snap-snorem, lift-em-up, tear-the-rag, smoke, blind-hookey, bless-your-grand-mother, Polish-bank, seven-up, beggar-my-neighbour, patience, old-maid, fright, baccarat, _belle-en-chemise_, bang-up, howling-Moses, bluff, swindle-d.i.c.k, go-it-rags, ombre or keep-dark, morelles, go-bang, goose, dominoes, loto, _morra_ or push-pin. And when extra hands were wanted they came, but all that came were only fairy hands, short at the wrist, the goblin remarking that it saved wine not to have mouths, _et cetera_. Then they had long and curious and exceedingly weighty debates as to the laws of the games and fair play, not forgetting meanwhile to sample all the various wines ever sung by Redi. {23} So they got on, the Signore realising that one near friend is worth a hundred distant relations.

"Now it befell one night that the goblin, having seen the Signore take off a pint of good old strong Barolo very neatly and carefully, without taking breath or winking, exclaimed with a long, deep sigh:

"'Thou art a gallant fellow, a right true boon companion, and it grieves me to the heart to think that thou art doomed to be drowned to-morrow.'

"'Oh you be-doctored!' replied the Signore. 'There isn't water enough in the Arno now to drown a duck, unless she held her head under in a half-pint puddle.'

"The goblin went to the window, took a look at the stars, whistled and said:

"'As I expected, it is written that you are to be drowned to-morrow, unless you carry this horn of mine hung to your neck all day.

"'Quando ti trovi nel pericolo, Suona questo corno piccolo, E tu sarai salvato, Non sarai affogato!'