nance, then
I come out here to walk, I look at those serious mountains, so frowning
and strong, and the mere sight of them seems like a purifying flame
which cleanses me from meanness."

"I see that you are as absurd as ever, Caesar. It would never occur to
anybody to come and comfort himself with some melancholy mountains, out
here between an abandoned hospital, which looks like a leper-asylum, and
a deserted cemetery."

"Well, these mountains give me an impression of energy and nobility,
which raises my spirits. This leper-asylum, as you call it, sunken in a
pit, this deserted cemetery, those distant mountains, are my friends;
I imagine they are saying to me: 'One must be hard, one must be strong
like us, one must live in solitude....'"

They did not continue their walk much further, because the night and
the fog combined made it difficult to see the path along the
Canalillo, which made it possible to fall in, and that would have been
disagreeable.

They returned the way they had come. From the top of a hill they saw
Madrid in the twilight, covered with fog; and in the streets newly
opened between the sides of sand, the lights of the gas-lamps sparkled
in a nimbus of rainbow....

X. POLITICAL LABOURS

MONEY ON THE EXCHANGE

Although Caesar did not distinguish himself especially in Congress, he
worked hard. His activities were devoted mainly to two points: the stock
exchange and Castro Duro.

Caesar had found a partner to play the market for him, a Bilboan
capitalist, whom he had convinced of the correctness of his system.
Senor Salazar had deposited, in Caesar's name, thirty thousand dollars.
With this sum Caesar played for millions and he was drawing an
extraordinary dividend from his stocks.

Their operations were made in the name of Alzugaray, whose job it was
to go every month to see the broker, and to sign and collect the
certificates. Caesar gave his orders by telephone, and Alzugaray
communicated them to the broker.

Alzugaray often went to see Caesar and said to him:

"The broker came to my house terrified, to tell me that what we are
going to do is an absurdity."

"Let it alone," Caesar would say. "You know our agreement. You get
ten percent of the profits for giving the orders. Do not mix in any
further."

Often, on seeing the positive result of Caesar's speculations, Alzugaray
would ask him:

"Do you find out at the Ministry what is going to happen?"

"Pshaw!" Caesar would say;