THE PIRATES OF SEGXA. 371 



by a popular festival, occurring sometimes once, some- 

 times oftener in the year; usually in the autumn or 

 spring. " In order that," says an old chronicler of 

 the time, "the heat being less great at those sea- 

 sons, the blood of the combatants should not be- 

 come too heated and the fight too dangerous." " Also 

 on cloudy days," says the same authority, " that the 

 spectators might not be molested by the sun ; and on 

 Sundays or Saints' days, that the people thereby 

 might not be hindered from their occupations." On 

 these occasions one of the numerous bridges was 

 selected as the scene of the mock combat that con- 

 stituted the chief amusement of the day. The quays 

 afforded good standing-room to the spectators ; and 

 here, under the inspection of aediles appointed by 

 the people, the two parties met, and disputed for 

 supremacy in a battle, in which, however, no more 

 dangerous weapons than fists were allowed to be 

 brought into play. 



It was not the populace alone that divided itself 

 into these two factions. Accordingly as the palaces 

 of the nobles stood on the one or the other side of the 

 canal, were their owners Castellani or Kicolotti, al- 

 though their partisanship existed but in jest, and only 

 showed itself in the form of encouragement to their 

 respective parties ; whereas with the lower orders the 

 strife, begun in good-humour, not unfrequently turned 

 to bitter earnest, and had dangerous and even fatal 

 results. In the wish, however, to keep up a warlike 



