The General in His Labyrinth by Gabriel García Márquez

Author:Gabriel García Márquez
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, azw3
ISBN: 9780141917245
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2013-12-03T00:00:00+00:00

ON WEDNESDAY, June 16, he received the news that the government had confirmed the pension for life granted him by the Congress. He wrote his acknowledgment to President Mosquera in a formal letter that was not free of irony, and when he finished dictating he said to Fernando, imitating José Palacios’ majestic plural and ceremonial emphasis: “We are rich.” On Tuesday, June 22, he received the passport to leave the country, and he waved it in the air, saying: “We are free.” Two days later, when he awoke from an hour of restless sleep, he opened his eyes in the hammock and said: “We are sad.” Then he decided to leave for Cartagena without delay, taking advantage of the cool, cloudy day. His only specific order was that the officers in his entourage should travel in civilian clothes and carry no weapons. He gave no explanation, no sign that would permit conjecture regarding his motives, and he allowed no time for saying goodbye to anyone. They started out as soon as his personal guards were ready, leaving behind the baggage that would follow with the rest of the traveling party.

On his journeys the General was in the habit of making casual stops to inquire about the problems of the people he met along the way. He asked about everything: the age of their children, the nature of their illnesses, the condition of their business, what they thought about everything. On this occasion he did not say a word, he did not change his pace, he did not cough, he did not give signs of fatigue, and he had nothing but a glass of port all day. At about four o’clock in the afternoon the old convent on La Popa Hill was outlined on the horizon. It was the season for public prayers, and from the King’s Highway they saw the lines of pilgrims like arriera ants ascending along the rugged precipice. A short while later they spied in the distance the eternal stain of turkey buzzards circling the public market and the waters of the slaughterhouse. In sight of the walls the General motioned to José María Carreño, who approached and offered his robust falconer’s stump for him to lean on. “I have a confidential mission for you,” the General told him in a very low voice. “As soon as we arrive, find out where Sucre’s gotten to.” He gave him his customary farewell pat on the shoulder and concluded:

“Just between us, of course.”

A large party led by Montilla was waiting for them on the King’s Highway, and the General found himself obliged to finish the journey in the Spanish governor’s old carriage pulled by a team of lighthearted mules. Although the sun was low, the great mangrove branches seemed to boil in the heat of the dead swamps surrounding the city, whose pestilential stink was less bearable than that of the bay, corrupted for over a century by the blood and offal from the slaughterhouse. When they passed through the Media Luna Gate a gale of startled turkey buzzards rose from the open-air market.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.