"esperantos a language,"explained libereso. "my father speaks esperanto."

"im calabrian," exclaimed maria-nunziata.

"whats your name ?"

"maria-nunziata," she said and laughed.

"why are you always laughing ?"

"why are you called esperanto ?"

"not esperanto, libereso."

"why ?"

"why are you called maria-nunziata ?"

"it is the madonnas name. im called after the madonna and my brother after saint joseph."

"senjosef?" 

maria-nunziata burst out laughing: "senjosef! saint joseph, not senjosef, libereso!"

"my brother," said libereso, "is called germinal and my sister  omnia."

"that nice thing you mentioned," said maria-nunziata, "show me it."

"come on, then," said libereso. he put down the watering-can and took her by the hand.

maria-uunziata hesitated. "tell me what it is first."

"youll see," he said, "but you must promise me to take care of it."

"will you give it to me ?"

"yes, ill give it to you." he had led her to a corner of the garden wall. there the dahlias standing in pots were as tall as themselves.

"its there."

"what is ?"

"wait."

maria-nunziata peeped over his shoulder. libereso bent down to move a pot, lifted another by the wall, and pointed to the ground.

"there," he said.

"what is it ?" asked maria-nunziata. she could not see any-thing; the corner was in shadow, full of wet leaves and garden mould.

"look, its moving," said the boy. then she saw something which looked like a moving stone or leaf, something wet, with eyes and feet; a toad.

"mammamial"

maria-nunziata went skipping off among the dahlias in her high heeled shoes. libereso squatted down by the toad and laughed, showing the white teeth in the middle of his brown face.

"are you frightened? its only a toad! why are you frightened ? 

"a toad!" gasped maria-nunziata.