Eli and the Octopus by Matt Garcia

Author:Matt Garcia
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Harvard University Press

When Eli traveled abroad in October and November, his correspondences with Anna increased in frequency and intensity of feeling. During his visit to United Fruit’s British division, Fyffes Group, in London, Eli wrote to Anna expressing concern for her health and relief that she was finally on the mend. “I was delighted to find when I telephoned last that you absconded to an unrevealed Shangri-La to rest and recuperate,” he wrote. He kidded, “knowing you, as I think I do, I was unable to credit you entirely with such a display of good sense and I feel quite certain that the admonitions of your doctor must have influenced you strongly to take this most sensible step.” Striking a gentler tone, he added, “I hope he did not alarm you unduly.”25 From London, he had proceeded to the Canary Islands off the coast of northern Africa, where he toured fruit and vegetable plantations owned and operated by United Fruit. He reported, with a mix of pride and awe, that “we seem to own an abundance of both magnificent beach property as well as mountainous regions.”

His travels also took him to business in Germany and a wedding in Geneva for a son of Chaim Herzog—the chief of intelligence for the Israeli Armed Forces who would become Israel’s sixth president in 1983. Herzog was also the brother-in-law of Abba Eban, whom Eli had known well in New York before Eban left for a career in politics in Israel in 1959. He admitted “a lingering feeling of discomfort” in Germany and resisted flying direct on the German-owned Lufthansa to avoid patronizing a company that had served the Nazi regime during World War II. Yet he could not complain about how he was received and joked, “I even met a few Germans with a sense of humor!” Arriving back in London two days later, he felt more in his element. “I love England,” he told Anna, and “think the British are still the most civilized people in the world.” Although he spent the better part of his two-page letter reporting on connections made and business acumen shared, he returned to his opening sentiments of concern for her. “Back in the States week of [October 9] when, I hope, you will be fully restored to complete health and physically able to cope with your insatiable curiosity and your penchant for getting yourself deeply involved in your beloved causes—and everything else.”26

Anna’s replies show sincere affection for Eli but also a desire to learn more about United Brands’ business. She frequently requested financial information from him to help the union construct its negotiations strategy with the company. For example, during his visit to California following his trip to Europe, the two traveled together aboard his Beechcraft Queen Air, a small twin-engine airplane. While flying across the state, the two discussed how the company and the union might further close the gap between them. In addition to securing the use of the pilot’s camera to capture the visit, she

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