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There was a man who was very stingy.
Since his boyhood he had began to work in the fields, and he even worked as a day laborer when they called him.
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Ci stave n'ome chi era tante sctinge.
Già da vaglione aveve cuminzate a lavurà ncampagne e ive pure a jurnate quanna l'onne chiamave.
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He began to save his money, and sometimes, to economize, he didn't even buy a slice of bread for his evening meal. |
Cuminzette accuscì a metteze da parte li solde e, qualche volte, p'arisparaggnè, nin z'accattave manche na felle di pane pi magnereze la sere. |
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Little by little, he bought a goat, then a sheep, and little by little he became the owner of many parcels of land and many animals. |
Chiene chiene z'accattette na crape, po' na pèchere e, na nzè a la volte, addivintette lu pruprietarie di tanta terre e tante animale. |
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| Since he was a miser, before he did anything, he always asked: - Does it cost any money? - And if the answer was yes, he didn't do it. |
Siccome però era sctinge, prime di fa qualunca cose, addummanave sempre - Zi paghe? - e si jonne arispunneve ca scine, nin la faceve. |
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If he asked someone to help him in the fields, he always paid the helper less than he owed him, or with some excuse (for instance, that the work had not been done well) refused to pay.
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Si tineve l'aiute ncampagne, li pagave sempre di mene di chille chi javeva dà oppure, mitteve na scuse (per esempie ca lu lavore nin era state fatte bbuone) e nin li pagave pi nniente.
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| When he decided to get married, he went to speak to a priest, and the first thing he asked was: - Does it cost to get married? - And since the priest answered yes, he began to barter about the money he had to pay, and he only got married when the priest agreed to accept the price he was willing to pay. After a while, however, he kicked his wife out of the house because, according to him, she spent too much money, and so he lived alone. |
Quanna z'arisulvette d'accasàreze, iette a parlà nchi lu prete e la prima cose chi j'addummannette fu: - Zi paghe pi spusàreze? - E siccome lu prete jarispunnete ca scine, zi mittette a tiriè sobbre a li solde chi javeva dà e zi spusette solamente quanna lu prete i facette lu priezze chi diceve isse. Doppe na nzegne, però, caccette la moglie da la case picchè, seconda isse, i spinneve troppa solde e cuscì arimanette sol'isse. |
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| When he became old, he only had left two nephews who would come to visit him, but since he was afraid that they would steal from him, sometimes he didn't even let them into the house. |
Quanna zi facette viecchie, iere arimaste sole li nipute chi l'onne ive a truvà, ma siccome aveve paure chi i zonne piglieve la robbe, cierte volte nin li faceve manche ntrà dentre a la case. |
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As he was dying, the nephews sent for the priest to give him the last rites. When he saw him enter, he quickly asked:
- What are you doing here? -
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Quanna zi stave pi murì, li nipute, onne mannette a chiamà lu prete pi fareje dà l'uoglie sante.
Come lu vidette ntrà, subbite l'ome jaddummannette:
- Chi ci fiè tu ecche? -
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- I came to give you confession and the Holy Oil. - Answered the priest. |
- So minute a cumbissarete e a dàrete l'uoglie sante. - Jarispunnette lu prete.- |
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At that point the old man opened his eyes wide and asked:
- How much does the Holy Oil cost? -
- Nothing! - Answered the priest.
The old man then rested his head on the pillow, and happily said to the priest:
- Then you can pour all of it! - |
A culle punte lu viecchie allariette tante d'uocchie e addummannette:
- E zi paghe l'uoglie sante? -
- None! - Arispunnette lu prete.
Lu viecchie allore appuiette la cocce sobbre a lu cuscine e, tutte cuntiente, dicette a lu prete:
- Allore mìtticile tutte quante! - |
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| The anecdote, which vaguely reminds of a short story of Giovanni Verga, was usually told to those who, with a parsimonious behavior toward others, approached avarice. Moreover, the sentence "Must one pay for the Holy Oil? " is still used today when one is about to conclude a deal which is not totally advantageous. |
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