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The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

By VICENTE BLASCO IBANEZ Condensation by ALICE G. HIGGINS IN 1870 Marcelo Desnoyers was a lonely lad of nineteen years, living in Marseilles. A popular manifestation in favor of peace, at the first news of war with Prussia, influenced him to leave the country and he made an unforgetable trip to South America, where, after many failures and a laborious existence, he became an employee of Madariaga, the centaur. Don Madariaga's fortune was enormous. He had gained his first money as a fearless trader, and with his earnings had bought vast tracts of land, devoting them to the raising of cattle. Though he had a capricious and despotic character, he nevertheless felt a certain fondness for his new French overseer. One morning Desnoyers saved his life. "Thanks, Frenchy," said the ranchman, much touched. "You are an all-round man and I am going to reward you. From this day I shall speak to you as I do to my family."