Of these four hundred-odd stories there are three or four of which were murmured; to be more truthful, it was not theirs, but me, who was murdered, denying me ownership of the matter. None of those included in this volume have been discussed, as far as I know, in such a concept; But I anticipate, reader, to warn you that three of those that I offer you here are not mine for the matter, and five or six are not the heritage of my inventiveness, but accounts of authentic and real cases -- what Fernán Caballero called happened. I dressed and arranged them in my own way, sometimes for pleasure and whim, others, especially when it comes to recent events, out of respect for the private life of others.