"How much does a fiddle cost?" Rico blurted out his question in great fear and haste. The teacher's surprise and displeasure increased visibly. "I do not understand, Rico," he said, with a severe glance at the boy. "Have you come here on purpose to mock me? or have you any particular reason for asking this? What did you mean to say?" "I did not mean any thing," said Rico abashed, "only to ask how much it would cost to buy a fiddle." "You did not understand me just now,--pay attention to what I am saying. There are two ways of asking a question: either to obtain information, or simply from idle curiosity, which is foolishness. Now pay attention, Rico: is this a mere idle question, or did somebody send you who wishes to buy a fiddle?" "I want to buy one myself," said the boy, taking courage a little; but he was frightened when the angry reply came, "What! what did you say? A forlorn little fellow like you buy a fiddle! Do you even know what the instrument is? Have you any idea of how old I was, and what I knew, before I obtained one? I was a teacher, a regular teacher; was twenty-two years old, with an assured profession, and not a child like you. "Now I will tell you what a fiddle costs, and then you will see how foolish you are. Six hard gulden I paid for mine. Can you realize what that means? We will separate it into blutsgers. If one gulden contains a hundred blutsgers, then six guldens will be equal to six times one hundred,--quickly, quickly! Now, Rico, you are generally ready enough." "Six hundred blutsgers," said the lad softly, for he was quite overpowered with the magnitude of this sum as compared with Stineli's twelve blutsgers. "And, moreover, my son, do you imagine that you have only to take a fiddle in your hand to be able to play on it at once? It takes a long time to do that. Come in here now, for a moment." And the teacher opened the door, and took his fiddle from its place on the wall. "There," he said, as he placed it on Rico's arm, "take the bow in your hand,--so, my boy; and if you can play me _c, d, e, f_, I will give you a half-gulden." Rico had the fiddle really in his hand; his eyes sparkled with fire; _c, d, e, f,_--he played the notes firmly and perfectly correctly. "You little rascal!" cried the astonished teacher, "where did you learn that? Who taught you? How do you find the notes?" "I can do more than that, if I may," said the boy. "Play, then." And Rico played correctly, and with enthusiasm,-- "Little lambkins, come down From the bright sunny height; The daylight is fading, The sun says, 'Good-night!'" [Illustration: RICO PLAYED CORRECTLY, AND WITH ENTHUSIASM]