the two old men had been in correspondence for some time but as yet without the pleasure of meeting / thus it was they knew of the similarity of their lives / not to say their lives were similar / far from it / one living and working midst a splendid mosaic encrusted city / attended by two boys / one his pupil / the other his musician / the other old man a boxmaker / clandestine artist / his pupil which he thinks a boy a deaf mute monkey / its mate blinded in infancy and trained to play the flute he likewise thinks a boy / the boys chatter of the immanent arrival of the guests / fugitives from the pressures of iconoclasm / old man and two boys / boys from outside the city / they smack their lips hungrily / the old man carefully prepares to greet his colleague / sorting through his illuminations / putting them in the carousel / then the knock on the studio door / the two old men were alike as two brothers / the boys looked at each other and then looked at the monkeys again / burst into laughter / gaily dancing / pair off / flutes skippin almost soon theys through tha door / pupil shakes hands with pupil / instant surge o hilarity / our host unburdens the weight from the shoulders of his guest / best sit down / talk some time / flutes trillin on tha balcony / Angelino in the kitchen / after supper dimmed the lights and gazed at illuminations / in a few days they would be allocated a studio of their own / rumour has it we are to be neighbours / across the street