The boys had no knives or forks to use, but fingers were much better. They lifted the long white strips of macaroni high above their heads, then they opened their mouths very wide, and down it slipped. They didn't bite it, they didn't chew it, they just sucked the long pieces down their throats as fast as they could. They seemed to be racing with each other to see who could swallow the most in the shortest time.
Molly and May watched the boys anxiously until the macaroni was all gone. Then how they laughed and clapped their hands! They thought it was the strangest dinner and the strangest game they had ever seen.
The boys thought it was a fine dinner. They were business boys. That morning they had sold more brushes and fans than usual, so they were celebrating by having some delicious macaroni for dinner.
These boys made their own brushes and fans, and went about the streets selling them. Of course Molly and May each bought one of the fans, for they wanted the boys to have another good dinner the next day.
As the little party walked on up the steps they saw many things that were strange and interesting. Little children were leaning out of the high windows, talking and laughing with other children in the houses across the way.
Women were hanging out their washing on ropes stretched from one window to another, and talked loudly with people who were on the steps below.
One woman stood on a narrow iron balcony in front of her window and lowered a basket by a long rope. When the basket reached the steps, a small boy ran to it and took out a covered bowl in which he found two big copper pennies.
The boy carried the pennies to a man near by, who was making hot snail soup over a small stove. The man filled the bowl with some of his delicious soup, and the boy put it carefully back into the basket. Then the woman drew it slowly up, up to her high balcony.
The small boy reached the balcony almost as quickly as the basket did, for he knew that some of that hot soup was for him, and he liked snail soup almost better than macaroni.