The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-24


 His method was a miracle of sim
 plicty. He bled his patients stead fly as they grew worse, and he con- l fined their diet and drink to water,
 with which he deluged them inward | ly. He promised to teach Gil Bias,
 and entrusted him with the duty of keeping tho register of patients. ell
 Bias soon began to feel like clerk | in 8 posting office who writes down
 the names of departing passengers;
 for almost all the persons registered in Dr. Sahsrado's book were booked for the other world His register was | indeed. bill of mortality.
 The treatment being so simple, Gil | Bias was able to practice it very soon, l instead of being forced to spend years | fin studying the intricate and unintel- | ligible branches of medicine consid- cred necessary by other physicians. Dr. SanErado thereupon turned over to him those cases to which he could not attend himself, and permitted him to keep one-quarter of the fees. that he collected. This suited Gil Bias very | we'll since he retained one-third of the fees before he turned any over to his master. Thus" thought he, If arith- metic is truly honest, I get one-half I the fees"
 l A sickly season made prosperity for
 
 yer kept them so busy that they were saved from succumbing to overwork' only by the fact that their patients generally died before their third visit. | Gil Bias, who was not hardened to this systematic murdering, asked pr. san- 1 grado if 1t would not be well to try another method of treatment; but the doctor had written a book in which l he proved that blood letting and water ] drinking were the only cures for ev- erything. Therefore he could not af- ford to change his treatment. and Gil Bias and his master continued their practice till they made as many wid- l ows and orphans in six weeks as the | siege of Troy.
 One day a wealthy young widow be- came his patient, which was no. less | unfortunate for Gil Bilas than for her. | She went the way of all his patients. AS she had been just about to marry a gentleman who loved her fortune no less than herself, the cheated gall | lant tried to pay the unskillful doctor in full with six inches of cold steel. | Gil Blas hastily discarded his physi- clans gown, garbed himself in blue velvet suit, and fled from Valladolid | that night.
 He made his way to Madridl where he continued his career as a lackey. l His first master was Castillian, who was so immensely lazy that he would not even manage his estates, and there | fore turned them all into cash, which l he kept in a great chest, so that he could take a handful every day. His next master was young dandy whose greatest delight was to com pete with others of his kind in boast | Ing of his love affairs. He conceived
 the ingenious idea of having Gil Bias | forge love letter from all the rich
 beauties of Madrid. Gil Bias was kept
 busy every day writing new missives
 couched in flaming language, which
 the dandy read to his friends to their | mingled astonishment and envy. l Unfortunately a gentleman Of a dif- | ferent type happened to be present one day. Very quietly he declared that the l letters were no doubt forgeries and that Don Matthias was no doubt a pre- cious rascal The two retired with their swords, and the stranger rein forced his remarks. if he did not ex-. actly prove them. by dexterously pass ing his weapon through the young boaster.
 A oil Bias. deeply grieved at this tragic result, for which he largely was re- sponsible, hastened home as soon as he was sure Don Matthias was dead. and | gathered up all his property, packing much of his masters in with his own, | in his natural hurry and excitement Gil Bias now became steward for an actress and saw still more of life and merriment. One day he had a sudden | attack of repentance. It lasted long | enough to give him time for flight, and
 but he failed to make his fortune any | where. Whenever he amassed some | pistoIes and doubIoons by hook or creek. some one else always succeed | ed by hook or crook in relieving him. 1 Finally he decided to go to Aragon. n- h erh n | aid a young nobleman, Don Alfonso,
 who had been outlawed because he had 1 killed a man in a duel Gil Bias help.
 ed him in his flight from the police and l they fell in with two cheerful vaga- 1 bonds whose amiable weakness for
 swindling had made it necessary for l them also to hide from the alguazils.
 While they were living concealed in the mountains they saw some robbers attack a party. Don Alfonso imme- 1 diately rode to the rescue and the rest helped him, though with another pur-
 pose than his; for they lost no time
 in stripping the robbers after they had
 defeated and tied them.
 It was a lucky stroke. GAl Bias and | the two vagabonds divided 300 pistoles,
 and Don Alfonso discovered that he had rescued his sweetheart, Donna Se-
 raphina, and her fath CT, the Count of
 Poldan.
 l Don Alfonso, however, dared not let
 the Count of Poldan recognize him, for the man whom he killed was the Counts s
 son, Seraphina's brother, and 1t was the Count a most powerful grandee,
 who had set the police of Spain on the
 track of his slayer.
 So soon as the rescued ones were in safety Don Alfonso rode away again
 with his companions, and now he and Gil Bias were to discover that they
 who touch pitch must expect to be
 defled. The two rOgues had heard of good opportunity in a nearby town.
 They bought garments that enabled
 them to present the gloomy and alarming appearance of members of the
 nquisition, and thus attired entered the
 town solemnly. They left Don AL
 fonso outside of the gates to guard
 tn cir horses. and repaired to the house
 of rich merchant, who had abundant
 reasons to fear investigation from the
 Inquisition or any other authority.
 He was so frightened that he gave up
 all his keys to one of the rogues, who
 declared himself to be the Chief Com 1 missioner of the Inquisition. Then Gil
 Bias and the other took him into a
 room and questioned him in a terri 1 flying manner, until their accomplice
 had sealed all the merchants belong ings with the terrible seal of the feared | tribunal.
 When they left the house they hur-
 ried out of the town as fast as they
 could go, for the seals were all that
 they had left behind. The nimble fn-
 gers of the Chief Commissioner had
 emptied every treasure chest When l they counted their plunder in the woods
 where they stopped after their flight,