Journal of Italian Translation

Santi Buscemi / Luigi Capuana 67
THE GOLDEN ORANGES
by Luigi Capuana
It is said that there was once a king, who had a magnificent
garden behind his royal palace. Every type of tree could be found
in the garden, but the rarest and most valued was the one that
produced golden oranges.
When the season for the oranges arrived, the king ordered a
sentry to guard it night and day. And every morning he came down
himself to inspect the oranges with his own eyes to make sure that
not even one leaf was missing.
One morning, he went into the garden and found the sentry
asleep. He looked at the tree…The golden oranges were gone!
“Oh, wretched sentry, you will pay with your head.”
“Majesty, it is not my fault.” A goldfinch landed on a branch
and began to sing. He sang, and sang, and sang so much that my
eyes became heavy. I drove him from that branch, but he then flew
to another. He sang, and sang, and sang so much that I could not
fight off my sleepiness. I drove him from that branch too, and as
soon as he stopped singing, my sleepiness disappeared. However,
he then perched on the top of the tree and he sang, and sang, and
sang. I have been sleeping until this very moment!”
The king did not hurt the man.
The next season, he placed the prince himself in charge of
guarding the tree.
One morning he went into the garden and found the prince
asleep. He looked at the tree…the golden oranges were gone!
Imagine his anger!
“What? Even you fell asleep?”
“Majesty, it is not my fault,” said the prince. A goldfinch
landed on a branch and began to sing. He sang, and sang, and
sang so much that my eyes became heavy. I told him, “Traitorous
goldfinch, don’t fool with the prince!” But he simply mocked me:
“The prince is falling asleep! The prince is falling asleep.” “Traitorous
goldfinch,’ I said, ‘don’t fool with the prince!” But he simply
mocked me: ‘The prince is falling asleep! The prince is falling asleep!’
And he sang, and sang, and sang…I have been sleeping until this
very moment!”