It was performed by Antonio Franconi in 1800 in London. The mythical winged horse was very popular with audiences of the time.”

Alec noted that the large wings were attached to a light girth strap. Truly, the horse appeared to be flying, and he could understand why it had been a successful act. The pity of it was that such a mythical figure would not be accepted in today’s circus because people did not accept fantasy as part of their world. The simulated wings on a leaping horse would only evoke laughter, not excitement.

When Alec mentioned this to the captain, the man asked, “But you, Alec, do you believe there is some basis of fact to mythology?”

“Perhaps more than most people do,” Alec said honestly. “At least I’ve thought about it a lot, especially Pegasus. I used to ride a make-believe winged horse as a kid. He took me all over the world.”

“I suspected as much,” the captain said. “And now that you’re no longer a child, what do you think of such mythical creatures? Were they only imaginary? Was there no basis of fact for them?”

Alec thought a minute and then said, “I’ve read that primitive men credited many animals with powers far beyond their own. I think it was even believed that their gods took on animal form when they descended to earth.” He smiled. “I suppose that’s how Pegasus came about. Is that what you mean?”

“Oui, in part, Alec,” the captain said, his gaze returning to the print before him. “But you must remember that until quite recently mankind continued to believe in a magical world in which animal and human shapes were interchangeable.” He picked up the print, studying it. “Not all the animals were as beautiful as Pegasus. Some were so horrible that men would die in terror at the very sight of them.”

The captain’s voice was solemn but Alec could not take him seriously. It was part of an act, put on for his benefit, he decided. He laughed and said, “They were fairy tales, Captain, told since the beginning of time. People don’t believe in them any more, not in this day and age.”

“That’s part of the trouble,” the captain said.

Alec believed him to mean that for this reason there was no place for a horse with simulated wings in the circus ring.

The captain added, “However, it is possible that some legendary creatures were based on animals which did actually exist.”

“I can believe that,” Alec said. “The fierce dragon was the result of prehistoric man finding fossils of dinosaurs or any of the other reptilian monsters.”

“But what of the supernatural animals?” the captain asked quietly. “What of the gryphon, half eagle and half lion? And the hippogriff, who had the body of a horse, the wings and beak of an eagle, and the claws of a lion? Medieval writers had no doubt that such animals existed.”

“Purely imaginary,” Alec answered, “no different from the centaur—half man and half horse—and all the other creatures of fable created by the ancients.”

“Perhaps so,” the captain said, picking up another old print and passing it on to Alec.

It showed a man in a circus ring, dressed as the devil and driving what must have been at least twenty horses while standing on the backs of the two in the rear.

“Another imaginary figure,” Alec said, pointing to the devil-clad man. “But it’s quite a feat, driving that many horses. I wonder if he actually did it.”

“He did,” the captain said. “My great-grandfather saw him perform in the Paris Hippodrome in 1860.”

There were hundreds of prints in the bulging folder, all of performing horses and some going as far back as the Circus Maximus at the time of Christ. To anyone it would have been a fascinating and valuable collection; for Alec, a serious horseman, it was the like of which he had never hoped to see. And with the captain explaining the techniques of the training involved, the hours passed without his being aware of it.

The long rumble of thunder interrupted his concentration on the old prints and made him conscious of the time. He glanced at his watch and rose quickly to his feet. “I had no idea it was so late,” he said. “It’s after four and I must be going. Thanks for lunch and everything.” He glanced at the prints. “Maybe I can come back?” He put it as a question, sensing that the captain preferred solitude to the company of another person.