When the legate was departed from Florence the city remained in great turmoil and in evil state. It came to pass in the month of December following that M. Corso Donati went with his followers, and they of the house of the Cerchi with their followers, to the burial of a lady of the house of Frescobaldi; and when the two parties came face to face, they were minded to assault one another, wherefore all the folk which were at the burial rose in uproar; and thus every one returned in flight to his own house, and all the city flew to arms, and each of the parties gathered a great assembly at their house. M. Gentile dei Cerchi, Guido Cavalcanti, Baldinaccio and Corso of the Adimari, Baschiera della Tosa, and Naldo of the Gherardini, with their companions and followers on horse and on foot, went in haste to Porte San Piero to the house of the Donati, and not finding them at Porte San Piero, hastened to San Piero Maggiore, where was M. Corso with his companions and assembly, and by them they were stoutly resisted and driven back and wounded, to the shame and dishonour of the Cerchi and of their followers; and for this they were condemned, both the one party and the other, by the commonwealth. A little while after, certain of the Cerchi were in the country at Nepozzano and Pugliano at their country homes and farms; and as they were returning to Florence, they of the house of the Donati, being assembled with their friends at Remole, opposed their path, and there were wounds and assaults both on one side and on the other; for the which cause both one side and the other were accused and condemned for the assemblage and assaults; and the greater part of those of the house of the Donati, not being able to pay their fine, chose imprisonment, and were put under confinement. The Cerchi desired to follow their example, for M. Torrigiano dei Cerchi had said: "They shall not overcome us in this wise, as they did the Tedaldini, eating them up by fines"; so he induced his companions to choose imprisonment, against the will of M. Vieri dei Cerchi and of the other wise men of his house, which knew the disposition and wantonness of their youths; and it came to pass that a certain accursed Ser Neri degli Abati, overseer of that prison, eating with them, set before them a present of a poisoned black-pudding, whereof they ate; whence in a little while, after two days, two of the White and two of the Black Cerchi died, and Pigello Portinari and Ferraino dei Bronci, and for this no vengeance was taken. Sec. 42.--_Of the same._ [Sidenote: 1300 A.D.] [Sidenote: Inf. x. 58-69, 110, 111.]