"On Ascension Day a crowd gathers in the park. Here there is much gaiety, with balloons, music, and fireworks.
"At a certain time each person opens the door of his cricket's cage and frees it.
"This is an anxious moment. For, if the cricket leaps into the air, good fortune will follow the owner. But if he creeps slowly away, his poor owner will suffer bad luck.
[Illustration: THE LEANING TOWER OF PISA]
"Of course, today few people really believe this. But they still keep up the quaint old custom.
"Florence is a grey cluster of narrow streets and dignified squares. It seems to bulge with art treasures, and it has a charm of its own.
"Near Florence, in Pisa, is the curious Leaning Tower. It is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It seems to be toppling over. Yet it has stood this way for hundreds of years. Maybe it is tired."
"Is my little girl tired, too?" he asked. "Shall I put down the book?"
Tony, under the window wanted to answer, "No, no!" too. But, then, his opinion had not been asked.
"The next story is about Venice," continued the father.
"Once upon a time there lived in Italy a people known as the Veneti. They were not fish, yet they built a city in the water.
"Savage tribes had driven them from their land. They had no home. So they settled upon some small islands at the head of the Adriatic Sea. They called their island-city Venice.
"Fish were plentiful. They salted them and traded them for treasures of all kinds. People began to come from everywhere to buy these treasures. Venice became the most important market in Europe.
"St. Mark is the patron saint of Venice. To him the Veneti, or Venetians, have built a wonderful cathedral. In front stands the statue of a lion, the favorite animal of St. Mark.
"Four huge horses adorn the door. Though they are made of bronze, they have travelled widely. They have been moved to different places at many times.
[Illustration: THE BRIDGE OF SIGHS: VENICE]
"Inside, the cathedral is decorated with mosaics. They are made of bits of colored stone or glass fitted together.
[Illustration: THE DOGE'S PALACE: VENICE]
"St. Mark's Square is the largest piece of ground in Venice. The rest is water. Streets are canals. Boatmen guide long, black boats called gondolas through these canals. They sing and cry out strange signals to other boatmen.