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this time it chanced that Viola had the opportunity to return the kindness shown to her by the friendly musician, whose house had received and sheltered her when first left an orphan on the world. Old Bernardi had brought up three sons to the same profession as himself, and they had lately left Naples to seek their fortunes in the wealthier cities of northern Europe, where the musical market was less overstocked. There was only left to glad the household of his aged wife and himself, a lively, prattling, dark-eyed girl, of some eight years old, the child of his second son, whose mother had died in giving her birth. It so happened that, about a month previous to the date on which our