Page:Collodi - The Story of a Puppet, translation Murray, 1892.djvu/199

 'Excuse me; but why, then, do you keep that cotton cap on your head which covers up your ears?'

'The doctor ordered me to wear it because I have hurt this knee. And you, dear puppet, why have you got on that cotton cap pulled down over your nose?'

'The doctor prescribed it because I have grazed my foot.'

'Oh, poor Pinocchio! . . .'

'Oh, poor Candlewick! . . .'

After these words a long silence followed, during which the two friends did nothing but look mockingly at each other.

At last the puppet said in a soft mellifluous voice to his companion:

'Satisfy my curiosity, my dear Candlewick: have you ever suffered from disease of the ears?'

'Never! . . . And you?'

'Never! Only since this morning one of my ears aches.'

'Mine is also paining me.'

'You also? . . . And which of your ears hurts you?'

'Both of them. And you?'

'Both of them. Can we have got the same illness?'

'I fear so.'

'Will you do me a kindness, Candlewick?'

'Willingly! With all my heart.'

'Will you let me see your ears?'