Under the Volcano (39 page)

   
"--saddlebags--"
   
... Cave of the Winds, seat of all
great decisions, little Cythère of childhood, eternal library, sanctuary bought
for a penny or nothing, where else could man absorb and divest himself of so
much at the same time? The Consul was awake all right, but he was not, at the
moment apparently, having dinner with the others, though their voices came
plainly enough. The toilet was all of grey stone, and looked like a tomb--even
the seat was cold stone. "It is what I deserve... It is what I am,"
thought the Consul. "Cervantes," he called, and Cervantes,
surprisingly, appeared, half round the corner--there was no door to the stone
tomb--with the fighting cock, pretending to struggle, under his arm, chuckling:
   
"--Tlaxcala!"
   
"--or perhaps it was on his
rump--"
   
After a moment, comprehending the
Consul's plight, Cervantes advised:
   
"A stone, hombre, I bring you a
stone."
   
"Cervantes!"
   
"--branded--"
   
.".. clean yourself on a stone,
señor?
   
--The meal had started well too, he
remembered now, a minute or so since, despite everything, and: "Dangerous
Clam Magoo," he had remarked at the onset of the chowder. "And our
poor spoiling brains and eggs at home!" had he not commiserated, at the
apparition, swimming in exquisite mole, of the spectral chicken of the house?
They had been discussing the man by the roadside and the thief in the bus,
then: "Excusado." And this, this grey final Consulate, this Franklin
Island of the soul, was the excusado. Set apart from the bathing places,
convenient yet hidden from view, it was doubtless a purely Tlaxcaltecan
fantasy, Cervantes's own work, built to remind him of some cold mountain
village in a mist. The Consul sat, fully dressed however, not moving a muscle.
Why was he here? Why was he always more or less, here? He would have been glad
of a mirror, to ask himself that question. But there was no mirror. Nothing but
stone. Perhaps there was no time either, in this stone retreat. Perhaps this was
the eternity that he'd been making so much fuss about, eternity already, of the
Svidrigailov variety, only instead of a bath-house in the country full of
spiders, here it turned out to be a stone monastic cell wherein
sat--strange!--who but himself?
  
 
"--Pulquería--"
   
"--and then there was this
Indian--"
       
SEAT OF THE HISTORY OF THE
CONQUEST
       
VISIT TLAXCALA!
   
read the Consul. (And how was it
that, beside him, was standing a lemonade bottle half full of mescal, how had
he obtained it so quickly, or Cervantes, repenting, thank God, of the stone,
together with the tourist folder, to which was affixed a railway and bus
time-table, brought it--or had he purchased it before, and if so, when?)
       
¡VISITE VD. TLAXCALA!
   
Sus Monumentos, Sitios Históricos y
De Bellezas Naturales. Lugar De Descanso, El Mejor Clima. El Aire Más Puro. El
Cielo Mas Azul.
       
¡TLAXCALA! SEDE DE LA HISTORIA DE
LA CONQUISTA
   
"--this morning, Yvonne, when we
were crossing the river there was this pulquería on the other side--"
   
.".. La Sepultura? "
   
"--Indian sitting with his back
against the wall--"
       
GEOGRAPHIC SITUATION
   
The State is located between 19º 06'
10" and 19º 44' 00" North latitude and between 0º 23' 38" and 0º
30' 34" Eastern longitude from Mexico's meridian. Being its boundaries to
the North-West and South with Puebla State, to the West with Mexico State and
to the North-West with Hidalgo State. Its territorial extension is of 4.132
square kilometres. Its population is about 220,000 inhabitants, giving a
density of 53 inhabitants to the square kilometre. It is situated in a valley
surrounded by mountains, among them are those called Matlalcueyatl and
Ixtaccihuatl.
   
"--Surely you remember, Yvonne,
there was this pulquería--" "--What a glorious morning it
was!--"
       
CLIMATE
   
Intertropical and proper of
highlands, regular and healthy. The malarial sickness is unknown.
   
"--well, Geoff said he was a
Spaniard, for one thing--"
   
"--but what difference--"
   
"So that the man beside the road
may be an Indian, of course," the Consul suddenly called from his stone
retreat, though it was strange, nobody seemed to have heard him. "And why
an Indian? So that the incident may have some social significance to him, so that
it should appear a kind of latter-day repercussion of the Conquest, and a
repercussion of the Conquest, if you please, so that that may in turn seem a
repercussion of--"
   
"--crossing the river, a
windmill--"
   
"Cervantes!"
   
"A stone... You want a stone,
señor?"
       
HYDROGRAPHY
   
Zahuapan River--Streaming from Atoyac
river and bordering the City of Tlaxcala, it supplies a great quantity of power
to several factories; among the lagoons, the Acuitlapilco is the most notable
and is lying two kilometres South from Tlaxcala City... Plenty of web-footed
fowl is found in the first lagoon.
   
"--Geoff said the pub he came
out of was a Fascist joint. The El Amor de los Amores. What I gathered was he
used to be the owner of it, though I think he's come down in the world and he
just works there now... Have another bottle of beer?"
   
"Why not? Let's do."
   
"What if this man by the
roadside had been a Fascist and your Spaniard a Communist?--In his stone
retreat the Consul took a sip of mescal.--"Never mind, I think your thief
is a Fascist, though of some ignominious sort, probably a spy on other spies
or--"
   
"The way I feel, Hugh, I thought
he must be just some poor man riding from market who'd taken too much pulque,
and fell off his horse, and was being taken care of, but then we arrived, and
he was robbed... Though do you know, I didn't notice a thing... I'm ashamed of
myself."
   
"Move his hat farther down
though, so he can get some air."
   
"--outside La Sepultura."
       
CITY OF TLAXCALA
   
The Capital of the State, said to be
like Granada, the Capital of the State, said to be like Granada, said to be
like Granada, Granada, the Capital of the State said to be like Granada is of a
pleasant appearances, straight streets, archaic buildings, neat fine climate,
efficient public electric light, and up-to-date Hotel for tourists. It has a
beautiful Central Park named "Francisco I Madero" covered by stricken
in years trees, ash-trees being the majority, a garden clothed by many beautiful
flowers; seats all over, four clean, seats all over, four clean and
well-arranged lateral avenues. During the days the birds are singing
melodiously among the foliage of the trees. Its whole gives a sight of
emotional majesty, emotional majesty without losing the tranquillity and rest
appearance. The Zahuapan River causeway with an extension of 200 metres long,
has on both sides corpulent ash-trees along the river, in some parts there are
built ramparts, giving the impression of dikes, in the middle part of the causeway
is a wood where there are found "Senadores" (picnic-eaters) in order
to make easier the rest days to walkers. From this causeway one can admire the
suggestive sceneries showing the Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl.
   
"--or he didn't pay for his
pulque at the El Amor de los Amores and the pubkeeper's brother followed him
and claimed the reckoning. I see the extraordinary likelihood of that."
   
"--What is the Ejidal,
Hugh?"
   
"--a bank that advances money to
finance collective effort in the villages... These messengers have a dangerous
job. I have that friend in Oaxaca... Sometimes they travel disguised as, well,
peons... From something Geoff said... Putting two and two together... I thought
the poor man might have been a bank messenger... But he was the same chap we
saw this morning, at any rate, it was the same horse, do you remember if it had
any saddlebags on it, when we saw it?"
   
"That is, I think I saw it... It
had when I think I saw it."
   
"--Why, I think there's a bank
like that in Quauhnahuac, Hugh, just by Cortez Palace."
   
"--lots of people who don't like
the Credit Banks and don't like Cardenas either, as you know, or have any use
for his agrarian reform laws--"
       
SAN FRANCISCO CONVENT
   
Within the city limits of Tlaxcala is
one of the oldest churches of the New World. This place was the residence of
the first Apostolical See, named "Carolence" in honour of the Spanish
King Carlos V, being the first Bishop Don Fray Julián Garcós, on the year 1526.
In said Convent, according to tradition, were baptized the four Senators of the
Tlaxcaltecan Republic, existing still on the right side of the Church the
Baptismal Font, being their God-Fathers the conqueror Hernan Cortes and several
of his Captains. The main entrance of the Convent offers a magnificent series
of arches and in the inside there is a secret passage, secret passage. On the
right side of the entrance is erected a majestic tower, which is rated as the
only one through America. The Convent's altars are of a churrigueresque (overloaded)
style and they are decorated with paintings drew by the most celebrated
Artists, such as Cabrera, Echave, Juarez, etc. In the chapel of the right side
there is still the famous pulpit from where was preached in the New World, for
first time, the Gospel. The ceiling of the Convent's Church shows magnificent
carved cedar panels and decorations forming golden stars. The ceiling is the
only one in the whole Spanish America.
   
"--in spite of what I've been
working on and my friend Weber, and what Geoff said about the Unión Militar, I
still don't think the Fascists have any hold here to speak of."
   
" Oh Hugh, for heaven's
sake--"
       
THE CITY PARISH
   
The church is erected in the same
place where the Spaniards built the first Hermitage consecrated to Virgin Mary.
Some of the altars are decorated with overloaded art work. The portico of the
church is of beautiful and severe appearance.
   
"Ha ha ha!"'
   
"Ha ha ha!"
   
"I am very sorry you cannot come
me with."
   
"For she is the Virgin for those
who have nobody with."
   
"Nobody come here, only those
who have nobody them with."
   
"--who have nobody with--"
   
"--who have nobody them
with--"
       
TLAXCALA ROYAL CHAPEL
   
Opposite to Francisco I Madero Park
could be seen the ruins of the Royal Chapel, where the Tlaxcaltecan Senators,
for first time, prayed to the Conqueror's God. It has been left only the
portico, showing the Pope's shield, as well as those of the Mexican Pontificate
and King Carlos V. History relates that the construction of the Royal Chapel
was built at a cost amounting to $200,000.00--
   
"A Nazi may not be a Fascist,
but there're certainly plenty of them around, Yvonne. Beekeepers, miners,
chemists. And keepers of pubs. The pubs themselves of course make ideal
headquarters. In the Pilsener Kindl, for instance, in Mexico City--"
   
"Not to mention in Parián,
Hugh," said the Consul, sipping mescal, though nobody seemed to have heard
him save a humming-bird, who at this moment snored into his stone retreat, whirred,
jittering, in the entrance, and bounced out almost into the face of the godson
of the Conqueror himself, Cervantes, who came gliding past again, carrying his
fighting cock. "In the Farolito--"
       
SANTUARIO OCOTLAN IN TLAXCALA
   
It is a Sanctuary whose white and
embellished steeples 38.7 metres high, of an overloading style, gives an
imposing and majestic impression. The frontage trimmed with sacred Archangels,
St Francis and the epithet of Virgin Mary statues. Its construcción is made out
of carved work in perfect dimensions decorated with allegorical symbols and
flowers. It was constructed on the colonial epoch. Its central altar is of an
overloaded and embellished style. The most admirable is the vestry, arched,
decorated with graceful carved works, prevailing the green, red, and golden
colours. In the highest part inside of the cúpula are carved the twelve
apostles. The whole is of a singular beauty, not found in any church of the
Republic.
   
"--I don't agree with you, Hugh.
We go back a few years--" "--forgetting, of course, the Miztecs, the
Toltecs, Quetzelcoatl--" "--not necessarily--"
   
"--oh yes you do! And you say
first, Spaniard exploits Indian, then, when he had children, he exploited the
half-breed, then the pure-blooded Mexican Spaniard, the criollo, then the
mestizo exploits everybody, foreigners, Indians, and all. Then the Germans and
Americans exploited him: now the final chapter, the exploitation of everybody
by everybody else--"
       
Historic Places--SAN BUENAVENTURA
ATEMPAM
   
In this town was built and tried in a
dike the ships used for the conquerors in the attack to Tenochtitlan the great
capital of the Moctezuma's Empire.
   
"Mar Cantábrico!
   
"All right, I heard you, the
Conquest took place in an organized community in which naturally there was
exploitation already."