The first thing that the Casina party demanded of Miguel, as a condition
of his election, was to accomplish the dismissal of the jailer, get the
post-office from Don Matias, and the tobacco-shop[54] from a man named
Santiago, all of whom belonged to Don Martin's party.... And in fact
Miguel wrote to the governor and his Madrid friends; in five or six days
came the decapitation of the tobacconist and Don Matias, and shortly
after that of the _alcaide_, there being named in place of them three
other individuals, who swore by Don Servando's beer. This gentleman,
when he received the news, found it in him to smile and drink three
schooners without breathing.
His friends perceived in that smile and the absorption of the three
schooners such a great and deep mystery, that they looked at each other,
filled with faith and enthusiasm for their chief.
But the Casona party were bold enough in spite of being in opposition,
and they proclaimed to the four winds the candidacy of Corrales, who,
having been minister several times, enjoyed much notoriety in the
country, although he had no official power to back him. The fact was
that he was master of the _ayuntamientos_ of Agueeria and Villabona, and
that the combined vote of these districts fully counterbalanced the
majority which his opponents might raise against him in Serin. The
election was by universal suffrage, but both parties had perfectly
calculated their forces. Consequently, the first question on the carpet
that night in Don Servando's office, the dismissal of the _alcaide_
having been obtained, was the suspension of the municipal governments
above mentioned, and this had to be done before the opening of the
electorial period.
They were there discussing the most suitable methods of carrying out
this plan, when one of the numerous spies whom Don Servando kept in the
village came into the room and informed them that Don Martin had booked
for the following day in the _Ferrocarrilana_.
This bit of news caused deep perturbation among those present, and it
was immediately understood, though no one dared to ask the question of
him, that Don Servando would join him in this journey, since such had
been the custom from time immemorial. As soon as Don Martin made a move
from the village, his rival packed his valise, and followed him wherever
he went, taking it for granted that when he went away it must be for
_something_, and this something could not be else than some harm for
himself or his friends. When Don Servando undertook a journey, his enemy
Don Martin did the same; everybody in the town knew this custom, and no
one saw anything strange in it.
In truth, as soon as all had taken their departure, Don Servando sent
his servant to secure an outside seat in the _Competencia_. He did not
bid Miguel farewell, but made arrangements so that he should not suffer
from any lack during his absence.
This lasted two days.
At the end of this time he returned, or, more correctly, both chiefs
returned. Don Martin had gone down to the capital to have a tooth
filled.
Every day Miguel received a little letter folded double, and directed in
a handsome English hand--that taught at the Colegio de Vergara. Maximina
did not write a great deal, though much more than before she was
married. Her instinct told her that Miguel could not laugh at the
trifles that she told him now, especially if they had reference to the
baby. In all of them there was expressed an irresistible desire for him
to return home as soon as possible, and yet she tried to hide it lest
she should disturb him in his duties.
"Yesterday, Julita took me out to drive. It was crowded, and she was
very gay. When I got home, I felt such a deep sadness that I cannot
explain it to you. I remembered that the last time that I rode through
the Castellana was with thee, my life, my all!"
The maiden from Pasajes, under the influence of her husband, who had
never been sparing in the matter of affectionate words, had grown more
lavish in her caresses. The same thing will happen to every loving
woman, if she has a husband like Miguel, a little sentimental.
"Last night I woke up between four and five, and without knowing what I
did, I was just going to give Julia a kiss, imagining that it was you.
Before I did so, I came to my senses. Such keen pain came over me that I
cried more than an hour. I don't see why Julia did not wake up. Forgive
me for telling you these things, my darling; I am a fool. The main thing
is that you are getting along well, as you say, and that you attain your
desire. There will still be time, if God is willing, for us to be
together. For God's sake, don't neglect to say your prayers when you go
to bed."
Each of these letters made our candidate melancholy and thoughtful for a
while.
"How glad I should be to give these Caffres their walking-ticket, and go
and give a hug to the daughter of my mother-in-law (God bless her!)," he
said to himself more than once.
But as his affairs were progressing with 'a fair wind,' he suffered
patiently. He wrote to various friends in Madrid to exert themselves for
the suspension of the unfriendly _ayuntamientos_ above mentioned.
Mendoza and others also replied that the President and the ministry gave
their consent. Nevertheless, the days passed, and the order did not
come.
The Casina party had on their hands another project for which they were
very strenuous, though not to the same degree as the above. This was the
highway between Serin and Agueeria, which the inhabitants of both places
wished to be put out at public contract. Many times they had made
attempts through each faction, but without success. At last the general
promised them that he would not cease his endeavors until he had
accomplished it; but his departure for Germany had disappointed Don
Servando's partisans, who hoped that the district would owe the benefit
to them, and not to the Casona party. But now it came to light that the
latter were actively at work in Madrid through the intervention of
Corrales, who, as ex-minister and an individual well known in politics,
had never ceased to be on friendly terms with the present ministers.
Thereupon, the Casina party became alarmed, and brought pressure on
Miguel to use all his influence again, so that this favor might in
nowise be granted to Corrales, but rather to the official candidate whom
they supported.
Miguel received word from Madrid that the matter was in a fair way of
being settled; later he got another letter in which it was said that the
minister had promised to give the order immediately; then came still
another which said that the order would appear very soon in the
_Gazeta_. Nevertheless, just as in the matter of the suspension, nothing
came of it: it failed to appear.
And Don Servando's janizaries, though very certain of victory, began to
grow impatient, and to assail Miguel, who, in his turn, was still more
vexed by their innuendos, and felt the most savage inclination to say
something impudent in their faces.
One afternoon, when they were as usual drinking beer in Don Servando's
office, they heard the sound of a bomb exploding in the air. They
suddenly became solemn and silent with their ears pricked up. In a
moment another was heard, and some one present said:--
"_They are rockets!_"
"Rockets at this time of day?"
And the seven or eight men present looked at each other in amazement and
no little alarm, for the two factions lived in perpetual excitement.
"Is there any special celebration at church to-morrow?"
"No, sir."
"Suppose one of you go out and investigate...."
Two men left the room, and returning in a few moments pale and excited,
said, with trembling voices:--
"The rockets are being sent up from the balcony of the Casona."
"Those ... have received notice about the public contract."
Anxiety and terror seized all hearts: by a simultaneous movement they
turned their eyes to the chief, famous for his sagacity.
Don Servando deliberately drank two schooners of beer, and after wiping
his lips again and again with his handkerchief, he broke the strained
silence, saying:--
"Senor Alcalde, go to the town-house and send two constables to the
Casona, and warn them not to send up any more sky-rockets. Article 62 of
the Municipal Ordinances forbids their being shot without permission
from the authorities."
The janizaries heaved a sigh of relief; not in vain had they placed
their trust in their astute chief. The Alcalde went out on his errand,
and the others remained discussing the incident, endeavoring to explain
how the news had reached the _others_ sooner than it had them. The
general opinion was that there had been some blunder in the mails.
Don Martin's friends, irritated by the Alcalde's prohibition, collected
the village band, which was composed of ten or a dozen instruments,
mostly brass, and offering the musicians a good fee besides a
_pellejo_[55] of wine, which they showed to inspire them, they made them
march up and down the village playing, and then stationed them in the
middle of the plaza, where the people, attracted by the music, began to
assemble; the lads started a dance, and Don Martin and the highway were
cheered.
New and dolorous assault upon the sensibilities of Don Servando's
adherents in conclave assembled.
"Senor Alcalde!" said the latter once more, "send and have the music
stop! The Municipal Ordinances, articles 59 and 60, require that
permission of the authorities should be demanded for this kind of
manifestations."
But still Don Martin's followers were not to be cowed. As soon as the
order came, feeling secure because the populace, fond of merry-making,
supported them, they took the band across the bridge that spans the
river there, by a curious accident dividing the municipal limit of Serin
from that of Agueeria. From there to the village it would not be fifty
steps. Once out of the hostile Alcalde's jurisdiction the music stormed
and shrilled in discordant tones, and Don Martin's clients, inspiring
the crowd to follow, began once more to organize dances, and indulge in
"_vivas_." Thus passed the afternoon in festive gayety and carousal,
while the Casina party, gathered in their chief's office, tasted the
bitterness of defeat, making faces of disgust.
And to cap the climax of misfortunes, _El Occidente_, Don Martin's
paper, which happened to be published on the next day, was more than
ever insulting, and made sport of them in a cruel fashion.
Serin boasted of two weekly papers: one, _El Occidente_, in the interest
of the Casona party, and this appeared on Thursdays; and the other, _La
Cronica_, belonging to Don Servando and coming out on Sunday. These were
the two serpents to which we made allusion in our description of the
Paradise of Serin. _La Cronica_ was written almost entirely by an
ex-pilot, and consequently nearly all of his jokes were made up of sea
terms; he used to call Don Martin "Martin the Fishing-smack," and his
wife "The high board Frigate Dona Manuela," which made all his partisans
die with amusement. _El Occidente_ was under the direction of a
school-master who, to find insults, sought out the most eccentric and
extraordinary expressions in the dictionary. That day he called Don
Servando "_tozudo y zorrocloco_," which means stupidly obstinate, and
one who feigns indisposition so as to conceal his indisposition to work,
and he made certain uncomplimentary allusions to Miguel also.
Don Servando took his "_zorrocloco_" philosophically, but Miguel, little
wonted to the coarse personalities of village politics, flushed deeply,
and declared that 'he was resolved to slap the editor of the scurvy
sheet in the face.'
Don Servando's friends looked at him in amazement.
"Gently, gently, my dear sir!" said the latter, with his _inevitable_
coolness.
"I should advise you not to do anything of the sort, for that would be
the greatest pleasure that you could give them. The judge of 'first
claims'[56] is on their side."
"And what have we to do with the judge? The question concerns a matter
of honor, which is settled by this person and me fighting with swords or
pistols."
The men present looked at him with greater amazement than ever. In Serin
there was an absolute lack of knowledge of such proceedings, and
consequently it had never entered into their heads that there was to be
any fighting. Had Miguel carried out his threat, he would have run a
strong risk of being put in jail, and still further incapacitated. He
was at last convinced, and gave up his project, although with a bad
grace.
The Casona party soon laughed on the other side of the cheek. In three
days came the order for the suspension of the _ayuntamientos_ of
Villabona and Agueeria. Then I assure you that there was a carousal and a
drinking of beer in the Casina. Don Servando, in order to banter his
enemies, got out the band, and kept it for twelve consecutive hours
jangling through the streets. That day the sound of exploding rockets
did not for a moment cease in Serin, until the last one was sent off.
By this stroke Miguel's election was made absolutely certain. The Casona
party thus understood it, and crest fallen, they tried as always to
curry favor. Only nine days were lacking before the opening of the
electorial period. But here it is necessary more than ever to exclaim
with the poet:--
"O instability! O fickle fortune!
Who doth not hope for thee in hours of sorrow?
Who doth not fear thee in his hours of comfort?"
Two days before the opening of this period, when the Casina partisans
were going about with glad and careless hearts, and those of the Casona
angry and sorrowful; when it was whispered about, and taken for granted
that Corrales was going to withdraw, and Miguel was already planning to
return to Madrid, as his presence was no longer necessary in the
district; lo and behold! there fell into Serin like a bombshell the news
that the suspended _ayuntamientos_ had been restored.
Unfortunately, the news was correct. Don Servando's friends, after
recovering a little from the surprise (since at first no one had found
anything to say), came to the conclusion that there was some
equivocation, or that some one had lied in Madrid. As there was no
telegraph communication with the governor, Miguel decided immediately to
hire a carriage and go to the capital in post-haste.
In spite of the exaggerated cordiality with which he was received, and
the hearty embraces and his open, frank smile, our candidate saw clearly
in the governor's eyes that there was something that was not quite as it
should be, and immediately determined to get at the root of the matter
as soon as possible. Accordingly, he began to press him with questions,
which the Civil Chief of the province answered in vague terms: 'Nothing
was known of the reason for this restoration; possibly difficulties had
arisen in the Council of State.... Perhaps the minister considered the
suspension unnecessary for carrying the elections....'
"If the minister has done this on his own responsibility, without the
President's support, he has not acted well. Do you suppose that the
President has been informed of what has happened?" asked Miguel.
"My dear fellow, I don't know."
"You see I have his formal promise that the government would support me
with all the powers at its disposal. Had I not received this pledge, I
should never have presented myself as candidate for a district where I
was unknown."
"My dear lad, I don't know ... I don't know...."
"Castro," said Miguel, seizing him firmly by the hand, and looking at
him with a severe directness, "you are my friend, and you must tell me
the truth.... What is up?"
"You will understand perfectly well that my position does not allow me
to speak frankly. If I could, I would."
"You are either my friend or you are not. Tell me what is going on,"
insisted Miguel, energetically.
"Very well then; if you will give me your word as a gentleman not to
make any use of it, I will tell you."
"I promise."
"Take warning that it is putting a heavy obligation on yourself."
"I promise you. Speak!"
"We understand that you will not give the slightest hint that you know
what I am going to reveal to you.... Having noticed for some time, and
especially during the last few days, that the minister was weakening on
your election, and knowing the friendship that unites you to the
President and the conferences which you have had with him, I was anxious
to get his advice, so as to know once and for all how I should look upon
this matter. Yesterday I telegraphed to his secretary. Here is the
answer that I received...."
The governor produced a telegram in cipher, which written out, was as
follows:--
_Official Candidate--Don Miguel Rivera._
_Deputy--Don Manuel Corrales._
Miguel held it for some time in his hands; a melancholy, ironical smile
hovered over his lips.
"Very well," said he, flinging it on the table. "One stone more which
the world has cast at me."
"I feel it to the bottom of my heart, my boy. The President must have
found too much pressure brought to bear upon him. Corrales, you see, is
a man of great importance in the present situation!... To-morrow he may
be minister.... And that is the way politics go, my boy.... To-day you,
and to-morrow me."
"Yes, yes; I see how politics go. The President has given me his word of
honor to support my candidacy against Corrales; he has got me to write a
host of letters, and to use all sorts of influences; he has forced me to
leave my wife and child. The President has done all this with the
intention, so it seems, of selling me. I don't know what this is called
in politics, but in plain language I know that it is called _base_,
_vile_!" (accenting the words). "Good by, my boy," he added, offering
him his hand. "I shall always be grateful to you for what you have done
for me, and the kindly reception which you gave me."
"Hold on," said the governor, as he was going out. "I forgot to tell you
that I received a telegram for you that must be from your family."
Miguel was startled.
"What does it say?"
"It must be here; take it."