"THE LIGHT OF SARRIO"
A new bright day dawned upon Sarrio after the recent heavy gloom. By the
mercy and grace of God the beautiful town was now, when least expected,
provided with a press organ, which was to be biweekly, or as the
illustrious organizer expressed it, "hepdomenal." Grave obstacles and
perilous difficulties were at first opposed to the realization of the
undertaking, but the genius of the wonderful man who undertook it
overcame them all. The first difficulty was that of money. Fifty shares
of a thousand ducats each were issued for the support of the periodical.
The friends of Don Rosendo only took up nine. Don Rudesindo had five
allotted to him, Don Feliciano two, and Don Pedro Miranda, in spite of
his large income, only another two--no more. Alvaro Pena, Don Rufo,
Navarro, _et al._, excused themselves for want of funds, and that with
reason; besides, they gave the business the benefit of their brains,
which no doubt was a great thing. So Don Rosendo, with a generosity
which greatly impressed the rest of the company, was the holder of the
remaining forty-one shares.
Messengers were despatched to Lancia in search of a printing press, but
the negotiations proving fruitless, the press organizer went himself to
the town. At the end of some days he was fortunate enough to find a
printer who had been ruined for some years, and no purchaser had been
forthcoming for his broken-down, rotting apparatus which lay covered
with dust in a dark cellar. When Don Rosendo proceeded to examine it
with its owner, he could not help feeling respectful emotion, and grave
thoughts filled his mind as he contemplated it.
"Here," he said, "is lying in idleness the most influential instrument
of human progress, and this not from any fault of the owner, but through
the desertion of mankind. How much information, how much spiritual food
might it not have produced during these barren dumb years! While
barbarism and ignorance are rampant in the greater part of our country,
that printing apparatus, the only agent of their dispersion, stands
motionless for the want of a hand to work it and to bring forth from it
the secrets of science and politics."
He almost kissed and fondled the machine in his enthusiasm. The printer,
seeing his visitor so well disposed in its favor, could not be outdone,
and he declared himself so devotedly attached to the very skeleton of
his machine that he would not part with it for any money, for it had
always been the faithful companion by which he had earned his bread (and
according to report, his wine too). He descanted upon its perfections
with as much enthusiasm as if he were its offspring and indebted to it
for his life's breath; and he moreover made the solemn statement that it
printed better and cleaner than all the printing presses of the day.
Hearing these facts Don Rosendo fully concurred in the exordium on the
machine, and tried to prove to him that he ought to part with it to
prevent its wondrous qualities being lost to the world. But the more
eloquent the merchant grew, the more tender and clinging became the
printer. Finally, seeing there was no persuading the man to part with
his treasure, and he had not the heart to enforce it, he arranged for
him to go to Sarrio with it, and settle down there. He was to take a few
compositors with him, who were to teach the trade to some of the lads in
the town, and he was to be furnished with all necessary materials for
the establishment of a printing office. Folgueras, the ruined printer,
was thus to be the director and master of the concern, and his salary
was to be drawn from the journal, and according to our calculations this
proved to be twice as much as what is given in the best printing office
in Madrid. However, it is not much if we consider the merit of the
machine and the deep love professed for it by the owner.
The title of the newspaper was one of the points in which the inventive,
superior mind of Don Rosendo particularly distinguished itself. It was
called "The Light of Sarrio," a name extremely impressive and
well-sounding, and moreover testifying to its mission, which its founder
wished to be that of enlightening and dignifying the town of Sarrio.
He secretly ordered from Madrid an engraving for the head of the paper,
and on its arrival a few days later it caused rapturous delight among
the shareholders and all those who had the good fortune to see it. It
represented a seaport, like Sarrio, in the dark hours of the night--to
judge by the black hue of the sky and sea; on the left towered the
heights of an ideal mountain, upon which was seen a man, bearing a
distant resemblance to Don Rosendo, turning the rays of an enormous
lantern upon the town; round about him were the heads of several people,
and the shareholders believed in good faith that they represented
themselves, and so they felt deeply indebted to the designer.
The printing press was to be set up in a storehouse of Don Rudesindo's,
to whom, of course, a rent was to be paid; and at the printing office
there was to be another room, but these plans required some
consideration before they could be carried out. The printing press was
finally set up, but not without heavy, unexpected expenses, for
Folgueras, who pretended he was furnished with all that was necessary,
had nothing at all, and they had to send to Madrid for sets of type,
have type galleys made, buy tables, etc., etc.
At last everything was in order. Don Rosendo worked like a slave, and
busied himself with the smallest details, and his talent as organizer
was more shown than ever on this occasion. He made Sinforoso Suarez
chief editor with a salary of twenty-five crowns a month, and he made
Don Rufo's eldest son manager. But the paper for printing had not come.
They had telegraphed to Madrid for a supply and it had not arrived. The
impatience of Belinchon knew no bounds. Telegrams went and came by the
electric wires. They said it was detained at Lancia--a telegram to
Lancia asking for it. Then they heard it had not left Valladolid--telegram
to Valladolid. Then that it had not left Madrid--telegram to Madrid. Don
Rosendo swore he would have no more paper from Madrid, but that he would
order it henceforth from Belgium. But disappointment changed into
delight, as it often does, when the news came that several bales had
arrived at Lancia, and were there awaiting a cart to take them to their
destination.
As the copy for the first number had been ready for some days, the
printing was immediately proceeded with, and it had to be done on an
extensive scale, for Don Rosendo intended to circulate it through the
provinces, to send it all over Spain, and even to introduce it into
foreign countries. Both he and his partners took a personal interest in
seeing the printing press started, and they never wearied of admiring
its complicated machinery, the wonderful precision of its movement, and
the marvelous velocity with which it worked, for it cast off no fewer
than two hundred copies in one hour. Its illustrious founder could not
restrain the press ardor which consumed him; he tore off his coat in the
presence of everybody, and literally put his shoulder to the wheel until
the sweat poured copiously from his manly brow. A striking instance of
enthusiasm and love of civilization to which we like to draw the
attention of the rising generation!
At last "The Light of Sarrio" appeared in great style, for its founder
had seen that the paper was good, and it was fairly well printed. The
only faulty feature was the engraving on the front page, for the
majority of the people thought that the individual holding a lantern in
his hand was a negro, instead of the respectable individual we have
mentioned. It contained a leading article in large type called "Our
Objects." Although it was signed by the staff, it emanated entirely
from the pen of Don Rosendo. The purport of the appearance of "The
Light" in the press was chiefly to defend cap-a-pie the moral and
material interests of Sarrio, to combat ignorance in all its forms, and
in the fierce battles of the press to fight unweariedly for the triumph
of the reforms that the progress of the times requires.
"The Light" maintained that the hour had struck for breaking with the
doctrines of the past. Sarrio earnestly desired to emancipate itself
from the thraldom of pettiness and conventionality; it wished to break
the bonds which had hitherto restrained it, and enter into full
possession of its own conscience and rights.
"We trust," said the writer, "that a period of moral and material
activity will date from the appearance of our publication, and that we
shall assist at one of those social reformations which mark an epoch in
the annals of the town. If our voice is successful in awakening the town
of Sarrio from its long sleep and apathy and we soon see the dawn of an
era of labor and study befitting the reform movement that we hope to
inaugurate, we shall feel amply repaid for our efforts and sacrifices."
The language could not have been more noble and patriotic, and modesty,
as usual, tempered the tone of the authoritative eloquence.
"We do not aspire," he said, "to being the vanguard in this great
battle of thought about to take place in the town of Sarrio, but we do
aspire to fighting like common soldiers, for we do expect a place in the
rear-guard. There we shall fight like good men, and if we finally fall
vanquished, we will envelop ourselves in the sacred banner of progress."
The military allegorical style was very effective in the town, and it
contributed not a little to the enthusiastic reception accorded to the
paper.
In short, the article was so rich in expression, so replete with deep
remarks, and the style was so concise, that the public was at a loss to
attribute it to any one but the illustrious director--and in this it was
right.
Then the periodical contained a long article by Sinforoso on "Woman." It
consisted of two close columns of poetic prose, embroidered with all the
flowers of rhetoric, describing the sweet influence of this half of the
human race.
He maintained, in fervent language, that civilization can not exist
apart from matrimony; conjugal love is its only basis. Everything is
holy, everything is beautiful, everything is happy in the intimate union
of a young married couple. The man, rendered happy by his companion,
feels his faculties increase, and is capable of carrying out enterprises
otherwise impossible to him. The influence of the woman presses him
onward to virtue and glory; it is the sweetest and at the same time the
most powerful of social forces. Sinforoso queried with surprise, "How
could some beings consider woman inferior to man? She with her beauty,
delicacy, grace, sweetness, perspicacity, and patience is the highest
work of creation. But the mission of woman is to be a wife and mother.
Without being these she is not fully evolved, she fades like a flower
without perfume." The writer concluded by advising woman to bear this in
mind, and for no earthly consideration to consent to be voluntarily
deprived of the two conditions of her honor and glory.
This exordium on matrimony, although addressed to the fair sex in
general, was written for the special edification of a certain pretty
cigarette-maker of the Calle de Caborana, whom Sinforoso had courted in
vain for some years. The public thought that the girl would end by
accepting him, partly by reason of the poetic terms in which he made his
case clear, and partly because of the fifty reales a month which the
suitor now received for his work on the staff.
Then followed a contribution from the professor, Don Jeronimo de la
Fuente; it was a serious, violent attack on Kepler's three great laws of
the motions of the planetary bodies, or rather on two of them, for he
preserved silence on the first, which treats of the elliptical orbit of
the planets. He fiercely opposed the second, maintaining and
demonstrating by means of a most brilliant calculation that the areas
described by the radius vector are not in any degree equal to the time
employed in making them, but they concord with the attractive or
repulsive force of the celestial bodies. But the chief object of his
attack was the third law, for Don Jeronimo rejected as antiquated and
absurd the idea that the time taken for the revolutions of planets was
proportionate to the cubic feet of their distances from each other; for
he showed not merely by empty words, but by figures, that there was no
ground for such a calculation.
He announced another article for the next number, which was to establish
a new basis for the celestial mechanism which would quite smash up the
old one. In it he maintained that the stars were attracted by one pole
and repelled by another like electric bodies, and upon this great
principle he satisfactorily explained the movements of the celestial
bodies, their disturbances, and many problems which had hitherto been
deemed insoluble.
Thanks to the telescope in the window of his house, Don Jeronimo had
made a series of prodigious discoveries which set at naught all the
existing knowledge of astronomy. It was not astonishing that the learned
professor, filled with legitimate pride, exclaimed at the end of his
article:
"Down with Kepler, Newton, Laplace, and Galileo from the pedestal upon
which man's ignorance has placed them and all colossal standard-bearers
of false science! All their calculations have vanished like smoke, and
their magnificent systems are like dry leaves, fallen from the tree of
science to rot and decay."
Some verses by Periquito, the son of Don Pedro Miranda, were also
inserted that confided to a certain mysterious "G" that he was a worm,
and she a star; he a branch, and she a tree; she a rose, and he a
caterpillar; she a light, and he the shadow; she the snow, and he the
mud, etc.
There were reasons for suspecting that this "G" was a certain
Gumersinda, the wife of a corn merchant, a woman remarkable for her
stout figure, which caused her some difficulty in walking. Periquito had
a particular fancy for ladies who were plump and married. When both
these qualities were combined in one being his passion knew no bounds.
And such was the present case. One must not think by this that the young
man was a vicious creature. The husbands of Sarrio were not disturbed
about him. Periquito was always in love, sometimes with one, sometimes
with another lady, but he never dared to address them or send a love
letter. Such courses were not in his line, which consisted chiefly in
fascinating them by his gaze. Therefore, whenever he came across one of
these fair creatures at church, or in the theatre, he first managed to
take a seat at a convenient distance, and once he had taken up his
position, he directed the magnetic power of his eyes straight at the
passive object of his experiment until she occasionally glanced at him
with an expression of surprise. The respectable matron, often not
considering herself worthy of such particular attention, would look
round and ask those with her if she had a spot on her face, or if her
hair were out of order.
Periquito was indefatigable, and went through all these performances
with the gravity they deserved. Sometimes he spent an hour or more with
his eyes fixed on one person, and often when the hour had elapsed, and
the enamored youth thought his soul must have filtered through the pores
of the obese lady to the affection of all her faculties and feelings,
this same lady would say in an undertone to her companions:
"Goodness, how that fellow Don Pedro does stare!"
How far the poet was from supposing that the star of his dreams held him
in such small account!
Sometimes, but very seldom, Periquito got a little farther. When he was
quite sure that the husband was not at home, nor even about the town, he
sent the mysterious lady a bunch of flowers which was really a
passionate eloquent letter, if the lady had only been as well versed as
he was in the language of flowers. Unfortunately, the supine ignorance
of the fair sex in Sarrio made these ingenious modes of communication
null and void. The same can be said of certain other delicate attentions
to which Periquito resorted to show his devotion. If he saw the lady
wear a blue dress, he donned a cravat of the same color, a blue striped
shirt and a blue flower in his buttonhole; and if the lady continued
wearing the same dress, he went as far as to adopt blue trousers; and if
the color were green, brown, or gray, he also followed suit. If the
unhappy lady were of a religious turn of mind, Periquito voluntarily
imposed on himself the terrible ordeal of rising early, and attending
the mass to which she went; and if on Saturday, Monday, or Thursday she
approached the sacred table to communicate, he also received the
spiritual food from the priest on the same days. If the lady had plants
in her window, Periquito promptly ascertained her hour of watering them,
and took care to pass by at that time, when he was in the seventh heaven
if perchance a few drops fell from the watering-pot on his hat. In the
small hours of the night he wandered about the house, making invocations
to the moon, and praying it might watch over the dreams of his love.
On one occasion, when he was in love with the wife of a lieutenant of
the carbineers who was ordered to Burgos, he nearly died of grief. His
mad passion inspired him with the idea of going off to get a glimpse of
her, so after writing a letter of farewell to his father and taking
twenty dollars of his savings he started for the City of the Cid; but in
Venta de Banas he unfortunately came across a married lady of the Civil
Guard who attracted him to Palencia; there he saw another lady who took
him farther, and so on, until he came back to Sarrio. This was not his
only escapade. On another occasion he went fifteen miles on foot merely
to cast an amatory glance at a certain lady as she sat at the window,
and this lady was married to a second husband.
As the final touch to this description we must add that Periquito, to
use his father's expression, ate like Heliogabulus, and yet he never
grew fat.
"The Light of Sarrio" was for our impressionable young man an admirable
means of airing the vague fancies, anxieties, joys, and distresses which
consumed his soul, and declaring himself in mysterious acrostics to all
the matrons, more or less stout, who paraded their plump forms in the
streets of the flourishing town.
Finally came the columns of "Intelligence" under different headings. The
genius of Sinforoso and the rest of the staff of "The Light" shone in
this portion of the paper. The paragraph called "Going and Coming"
referred to the visitors who had come to Sarrio in view of the
approaching festivities.
Another, headed "Sarriensians out Walking," maintained in a graceful,
sparkling style that the weather was delicious, and that the people of
Sarrio could not do better in the evening than take a turn in the
pretty, leafy environs of the town.
Another, "The Mayor to the Fore," was an appeal to Don Roque to have
gutters put to several houses.
Later on this section dropped the title of "Intelligence" for that of
"News to Hand," which Don Rosendo put in in imitation of "_Nouvelle a la
Main_" of the "Figaro."
The journal ended with a charade in verse.
The fiction was Don Rufo's department, and as he had been studying
French on the Ollendorf system for a year and a half, he decided to
translate for the paper the six volumes of the "Mysteries of Paris." It
is unnecessary to say that although "The Light of Sarrio" lived for some
years, it never got as far as the third volume. Don Rufo was a wonderful
translator. If he had a defect it was that of translating too literally.
Once he wrote: "The carriage went off at a quick trot, inside a lady
fair and frail."
In another passage, he said that Monsieur Rudolph passed his youth in
the perusal of the chief works of antiquity. Finally, he represented
the Countess as taking hold of the button (instead of buttonholing) of
the secretary, and this provoked so much derision from ignorant folk
that Don Rufo lost his temper and resigned the work, which then was
undertaken by a pilot who for several years had made the run to Bayonne.
The success of the first number, as was expected, was prodigious: the
article by Sinforoso, the learned dissertation by La Fuente, the
"Intelligence," and even Periquito's verses, were all read with due
appreciation by the public. But Don Rosendo's article headed "Our
Objects" made the profoundest impression on people of a serious turn of
mind. The well-turned phrases, so full of spirit and fire, the noble
thoughts, the enthusiasm for the interests of Sarrio, the frankness and
modesty that characterized it, filled their hearts with joy, and made
them feel as if an era of prosperity and well-being had dawned.
That night the band, conducted by Senor Anselmo, with his great shining
key, serenaded the staff. The front of the publishing office was
illuminated with Venetian lamps, and, as usual, the pretty light-hearted
artisans of Sarrio took the opportunity of dancing country dances and
mazurkas on the hard stones of the street. The worthy individuals who
gave voice to their admiration and enthusiasm for the staff of "The
Light" in the language of music were inspired thereto by De Rueda's
wine and cigars. Joy reigned in every heart, and overflowed in embraces
as hearty as they were spontaneous. Don Rosendo embraced Navarro, Alvaro
Pena, Don Rudesindo, Don Rufo, Sinforoso, and Don Pedro Miranda, the
printer Folgueras. The musicians embraced each other, and they all
embraced their conductor, Senor Anselmo. Outside the printing office,
Pablito, also in commemoration of the auspicious day, embraced the fair
Nieves under the shadow of a doorway, and several other lads, following
his example, openly distributed their commemorative kisses among the
happy girls.
The only thing that disturbed the general happiness was the peculiar
sadness that came over Folgueras after he had imbibed several litres of
wine. The recollection of Lancia, his natal town, suddenly occurred to
him and threw him into a state of depression difficult to describe. Just
when cheerfulness and gaiety had reached their height he called Don
Rosendo aside, and with tears assured him that life away from his adored
town was an unsupportable burden to him; better to die than lose sight
of the humble dwelling which saw his birth and the streets trodden by
his baby feet. The same week, please God, he hoped to leave Sarrio and
return to Lancia with his belongings.
On hearing this sudden news Don Rosendo turned pale.
"But, man, the next number of 'The Light.'"
"Don Rosendo, you will have to excuse me. You are a gentleman--a
gentleman knows how to appreciate the feelings of another gentleman.
One's country before everything. Guzman the Good flung his poniard to
the enemy to kill his own son. You know that well enough, eh? What do
you think of that? Riego died on a scaffold. Well! What do you think of
that? If I were in the workhouse, with not a shirt to stand up in, there
would be no need for any one to tell me anything. Do you think you will
keep me all tied like a dog to the wheel? But all sentiment dies out in
a man--the man lives, the man works, the man occasionally shows his true
self--and because he drinks a quartern, or two, or three, is he to
forget his country? Eh? What do you think of that?"
Don Rosendo called Don Rudesindo to his assistance, and they succeeded
in dissuading the printer from his course by the force of their strong
reasons, the most potent of these being a fresh bottle of Rueda wine.
After this was imbibed, the patriotic feelings of Folgueras calmed down.
Then he took another bottle, drank it, was ill, and slept.
Thoughts of glory, vague desires for undying fame, filled the mind of
the illustrious founder of "The Light of Sarrio" by the time he retired
to rest. After extinguishing the light, they recurred over and over
again until they took some definite form. Don Rosendo was moved at the
thought of the possibility of his memory being perpetuated by a tablet
put up in the Consistorial buildings. This ambitious thought made him
tremble with joy and delight between the sheets. Being a modest,
sensible, magnanimous man, he tried to expel the idea, but it returned
to his mind with additional clearness. He saw the white marble, he saw
the gold letters, he clearly deciphered the graven lines:
"Tribute of gratitude from the town of Sarrio to her enlightened son,
Don Rosendo Belinchon, indefatigable champion of her moral and material
progress."
His mind, filled with these brilliant forecasts, could not easily
succumb to Morpheus; nevertheless, he finally slept with a smile on his
lips. A progressive angel, ready for these emergencies, beat his wings
over his brow through the night watches and gave him pleasant dreams.
The next morning found him in the cheerful frame of mind befitting a man
who has seen his efforts crowned with enviable success. He performed his
toilet to the humming of scraps of song, he took chocolate with his
family, gave a glance at the national and foreign newspapers, and
without cutting his usual bundle of toothpicks, he went out to ascertain
what effect the first number of "The Light" had produced upon the town.
He was received at Graell's shop with effusion, he was congratulated on
his article, which he modestly tried to disclaim, and the talk about the
paper was long and eager.
What most excited the enthusiasm of the frequenters of the cafe was to
think that Nieva had not yet arrived, nor would it arrive for some time,
at a similar state of advancement. And Don Rosendo, not a little elated
with these eulogies, promised to take active measures in favor of all
that was asked of him. One requested that the deep ruts of the Calle de
Atras should be mentioned; another that a lamp should be put outside his
house; another that some pills should be recommended; another, that
serenades should not disturb the hours of sleep, etc., etc. Don Rosendo
assented to all, knitted his brows and extended his open hand in a
valedictory fashion. The journal would settle it all. Woe to him who ran
counter to the reforms of the press! He had often held forth on
toothpicks to the assembly of respected matrons of the town generally
gathered in Dona Raffaelo's shop, but "The Light" was the subject of his
discourse to-day. The fiction portion seemed to have met with the most
favor from the fair sex; Don Rosendo told them the next number would be
much more interesting, and then he withdrew.
A party of sailors by the port were loud in their congratulations, and
they hinted that the harbor was very dirty and required dragging.
"It shall be done--it shall be done," said Don Rosendo, and he went off
full of a solemn sense of his omnipotence, and, seeing the large curling
waves in the distance, he even asked himself if it would not be a good
thing to ask them, by means of the press, to moderate their uncalled-for
excitement. At the approach of the dinner hour he directed his steps
homeward, meditating on the grave responsibility he would incur before
God and man if he did not use his great power for the prosperity and
improvement of his native town. On arriving at the Rua Nueva, he met
Gabino Maza. The choleric ex-officer greeted him very politely, asked
after his family, and made the kindest inquiries after the health of
each member; then he talked for some time on the possibility of the cold
northeast wind soon changing into a warm, southwesterly one, asked when
the next ships would start for America; he then complained of the dust
on the roads, which made walking unpleasant, spoke of the price of
codfish, and the news of the Newfoundland cod fisheries, but Rosendo
naturally expected him to mention the paper. Nothing of the sort. Maza
did not make the slightest allusion to it. This began to upset our
friend and made his position painful. The conversation passed from one
subject to another without bearing at all upon the press. At last Don
Rosendo, showing his gleaming teeth, said somewhat abruptly:
"Have you not received 'The Light?' One of the first copies was sent to
you."
"Dear me! I think it did come to the house yesterday, but I have not
opened it yet," returned Maza with affected indifference. "Don Rosendo,
will you come and dine with me? Good-by, till then."
Don Rosendo stood for an instant rooted to the ground, feeling as if a
bucket of cold water had been thrown over him. The blood rushed
violently to his face, and he almost staggered home. The unexpectedness
of the blow made him feel it much more keenly. When the shock had passed
off, he fell into a violent passion against that--he could not resist
calling him anything less than a malicious and despicable creature. He
arrived home in a deplorable state of agitation, and although he took
his seat at the table and made violent efforts to calm himself, his
digestion was so thoroughly upset that he recoiled from all food. He was
gloomy and silent during the meal; a sarcastic smile occasionally
wreathed his lips, and he murmured: "The villain!"
Finally his wife, who was upset on her own account, ventured to say:
"What is the matter, Rosendo?"
"Nothing, Paulina; but envy causes a lot of wickedness in the world,"
was the short, bitter reply.
Having given utterance to this profound remark, he remained in a state
of comparative repose, leaning back in an armchair to collect his
thoughts; and after the expiration of half an hour he once more sallied
forth in the direction of the Club. On entering the cafe Gabino's voice
fell upon his ears, shouting as usual upstairs. From the staircase he
thought he heard him talking of the periodical and calling it "a solemn
farce." His heart jumped, and he entered the room agitated and upset. At
the sight of him Maza, who was gesticulating in the centre of a group of
men, put on his hat with a sudden gesture, and took a seat upon the
sofa.
Don Lorenzo and Don Feliciano Gomez greeted the newcomer with a certain
embarrassment, and with some shamefacedness, all of which confirmed Don
Rosendo in his suspicion. He hid his feelings as much as possible, and
striving to assume a cheerful demeanor he began talking of the current
news. Conversation then took its natural course, and confidence was
restored. But the engineer Delaunay, as artful as he was malignant,
turned the conversation upon the newspaper, and in the lisping tone that
he affected, said, with an ironical smile, to the founder:
"What little contributions are you preparing for the next number, Don
Rosendo?"
"You will see when it comes out," returned the chief editor, who knew
there was a joke underlying the question.
"Here, in Don Feliciano," continued the engineer with the same smile,
"you have a stanch defender."
"If he defends me it is because somebody has attacked me," returned
Rosendo with increased asperity.
Nobody said a word. Silence reigned for some time, until it was broken
by Belinchon making a casual remark to Don Jaime, and the conversation
was resumed. But the blow had only been momentarily averted; thunder was
in the air and soon became audible.
Maza was consumed with the desire to tell Don Rosendo that the paper was
a humbug, and the latter was not less anxious to tell Maza that he was a
malignant fellow. Thus both took advantage of the first opportunity of
communicating these polite remarks. The dispute lasted more than two
hours. Maza tried to restrain himself because of Don Rosendo's superior
position, and besides, he owed him fifteen thousand reales. The founder
of "The Light" also considered it prudent not to give full expression to
his thoughts. Nevertheless, for better or for worse, all came out for
the edification of the notabilities who ranged themselves on one side
or the other of the contending parties. It must be confessed that the
minority was on Maza's side. The West Indians, neutral, as usual in
these disputes, occasionally appeared, cue in hand, at the door of the
billiard-room to listen to the arguments of the disputants and gain some
light on the subject. For those discussions were very improving, as they
taught them many terms and phrases unknown to them; and thus they were
less shut out from even a superficial interest in the many problems of
life. It was unfortunate that their devotion to billiards prevented
their always listening.