Virgil And The Ugly Girl

“Though her ugliness may scare,
Money maketh all things fair.”

_Proverb_.

“_Gelt—wie lieb’ich Dich_.”—How truly I love thee! or, “Money—how I
love thee!”—_German Jest_.

There was once in Rome an ugly young lady; yes, the ugliest on earth! And, as if this were not enough, she was ill-tempered and spiteful, and in his whole course the sun did not shine on a more treacherous being. She was a true devilkin, being as small as a dwarf. However, devil or not, she was worth millions, and had the luck to be betrothed to the handsomest young man in Rome, who was, indeed, poor.

One day a certain Countess said to Virgil:

“I cannot understand how it comes to pass that such a splendid fellow is allied to such a horrid little fright—_un tal spauracchio_!”

Virgil said nothing, but he went home and took two scorpions, and by his magic art turned them into gold, and of these he made two ear-rings and sent them to the Countess, who was delighted with them, and when Virgil asked her if she liked them, answered: “_Tanta_, _tanta_, _sono molto belli_”—“Very much, they are so beautiful!”

“You said to me a little while ago,” replied Virgil, “that you did not see what the handsomest man in Rome finds to admire in the ugliest girl. It is gold, Signora Contessa, which does it all—gold which makes scorpions so charming that you wear them in your ears, and call them beautiful!”

The Countess laughed, and said: “Thou speakest truth—

“‘Gold like the sun turns darkness to night,
And fear or hatred to love and delight.
Gold makes raptures out of alarms,
Gold turns horror to beautiful charms,
And gives the beauty of youth to the old.
On earth there’s no magic like that of gold.’”