The question for the moment took away the breath of the American. He
looked into the crimson, flabby countenance and wondered if the man
was in earnest. He was. By great effort, Major Starland held back the
laugh tugging at the corners of his mouth.
"Well," said he, pulling himself together and speaking slowly,
"perhaps you come, say within a thousand miles of each. I don't see
how the distance can be shortened."
"That depends upon the place you give others," blandly observed the
Dictator, who accepted the rating as a compliment; "where do you place
General Bolivar?"
"I should have to make careful calculation; he might come within a
mile or two, but remember that the modern world has not yet produced
the peer of George Washington or Abraham Lincoln, nor do I see any
signs that she is likely to do so. Have you been figuring on a
comparison yourself?"
"I am too modest to claim to stand on the same plane with either of
your great heroes, but reflection convinces me that I have been
selected by heaven to be the successor of General Simon Bolivar."
"Inasmuch as to when?" said the Major gravely.
"I beg pardon; I do not understand your question, Major."
"I wait for you to explain _your_ meaning: what is your ambition?"
"It is to form a grand confederation of South American states; as you
know, our continent is divided into no end of petty republics. Why
should they not unite into one powerful, resistless whole?"
"The only obstacle is themselves; each country is so jealous of every
other that it prefers to fight rather than to fuse. Zalapata and
Atlamalco are illustrations; they are continually quarreling and at
war over trifles that would shame a couple of schoolboys."
"All that is ended; henceforth General Yozarro and I are brothers,
and the two republics will join hands in the path of progress. Our
example will be quickly followed by Venezuela, by Colombia, by
Ecuador, by Bolivia, by Brazil and all the states down to and
including Patagonia. Will not that be the grandest confederation
the world ever saw?"
"Undoubtedly--when it is formed. Is the conception your own, General?"
"It is; it has been forming in my mind for weeks and months; more than
once I was in despair, and not until last evening did the splendor of
the scheme burst upon me in all its fulness."
"You are dreaming what others dreamed before you, but the only one
who made a fair start toward its realization was Simon Bolivar, and
he died disappointed and brokenhearted. I suppose the first step will
be to send ambassadors, or whatever you choose to call them, to the
different republics of South America, proposing a meeting of
representatives to consider the great scheme?"
"That will be the first step. It will take some time for a full
exchange of views, and a committee will be named from each government
to draw up the plan for confederation."
"Your scheme contemplates that this union shall be a republic, like my
own country?"
"No other form can flourish in the clear sunlight of liberty of South
America."
"Not the least important step, after the plan has been formulated,
will be the choice of the Chief Magistrate; who should he be?"
The American knew what was coming, but the enjoyment of prodding the
bulky ignoramus was none the less exquisite.
"The thoughts of all would naturally turn to the man who originated
the grand scheme; they would feel profound gratitude, and inquire
whether he is competent to carry out the plan and make the dream a
realization; an immense majority will insist that the responsibility
and honor shall go to him."
"And in that case you would be the man?"
The little head wabbled forward on the short neck.
"There can be no forecasting the whims of the public; the hero of
today is the traitor of tomorrow, and vice versa; suppose some one
other than you should be fixed upon; suppose General Yozarro should
be called to the head of the confederation?"
The crimson countenance became more crimson; the breaths shifted to
pants, and the tiny eyes twinkled with a sinister light.
"Impossible! Such an outrage can never be."
"Let us assume that it does come about; it is best, you know, to
consider all sides of an important question."
"I would never consent! I would withdraw from the union! I would
shatter the whole scheme, if I were treated with such shameless
ingratitude."
"You forget that each republic would bring forth its own particular
crop of favorite sons, and you would stand no more chance of selection
than I. You declare yourself warmly in favor of the confederation;
which do you place the higher,--the beneficent scheme itself or your
own ambition?"
"It is not ambition, sir, but simple justice that I demand _and will
have_!"
"Do you consider yourself the only man on the South American continent
qualified to be the president of such a union?"
"By no means; there are plenty beside me, but none with such paramount
claims to the honor."
"Admitting this, our own Washington or Lincoln, or any one of our
leaders, was ready at all times to lay down his office for the good of
his country; that, and only that spirit, is true patriotism; I don't
believe there are ten native men between Nicaragua and the Straits
of Magellan, who have ever experienced the feeling. Your strongest
republics refuse to pay their just debts, and when England, Germany
and some of the European Powers try to compel them to be honest, they
bellow over the Monroe Doctrine and are ready to fight the United
States because she won't come down and help them play the defaulter.
"No, General; the first step toward the success of your scheme is an
impossible one; that is, the reconstruction and making over of the
_genus_ South American. When somewhere a so-called republic is
set up, and a President elected for a term strictly defined by its
Constitution, the President refuses to go out of office at the close
of that term and starts a revolution. Several others with a similar
ambition do the same, and there you have the normal republic in this
part of the world. Atlamalco, Zalapata and most of your governments
are simply world's nuisances."
"Your statements, sir, are not only false but insulting; I have more
faith in my patriotic countrymen than you, for I know them better;
they are brave, unselfish, long suffering----"
General Bambos had progressed thus far in his speech, when he emitted
a rasping shriek, clapped his hand behind him and made so tremendous a
leap that his crown bumped against the ceiling of the cabin. At the
same time, the tenor of his remarks abruptly changed, and he danced
and rubbed with pain. One of the pestilent "fire ants" of his country
had managed to snuggle among the crevices of the lounge, and its nip
was like that of a red hot pair of pincers.