“Some one may need to ring the bell before the rope comes,” said a man. So he went into his garden and got a grapevine and hung it on the bell. It trailed the ground, but it was a very good substitute for a rope.
An old soldier lived near Atri. He had a horse which had carried him in many battles, but now that he was old and lame and was of no service to his master, he was turned out to shift for himself. He ate the grass along the roadside and nibbled at the hay through the fences. He was very thin and hungry for he could not find enough to eat.
At last he wandered into the market-place and saw that the leaves and tendrils on the vine were still fresh. He reached to get a leaf, and as he pulled at the vine the bell began to ring, “Clang! Clang!” He kept on pulling at the vine and the bell kept on ringing “Clang! Clang!”
The people rushed to see who was ringing the bell and saw the horse. Then the king came and the people told him whose horse it was. The king was in a great rage at the injustice done the old horse. His master was sent for and ordered to build a barn for him and to give him the best hay and grain as long as he lived, or else he would be turned out himself and so the old horse had justice at last.
ALL FOOLS’ DAY
(April 1st)
In which is shown the origin of April Fools, and the fact that the best joke is the one which rebounds on the joker himself.
April the first is celebrated as All Fools’ Day. Everybody must be on the lookout for some joke to be played at his expense. He might pick up a brick neatly wrapped in paper and tied with a string, or get a letter with nothing but “April fool” written on the paper. He must be on the watch so as not to be caught, for if he is and anybody calls out “April fool!” he will feel very cheap indeed.
This custom is nearly five hundred years old. It was started at the court of Burgundy in France, when Philip was Duke. There was always in those days a sort of jester, or fool, whose business was to make fun and keep the court in a good humor. Even knights had jesters or fools, and while these jesters were always funny, sometimes they were very smart.