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- Джозеф Конрад
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- Ностромо
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- Стр. 169/274
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DURING
the
night
the
expectant
populace
had
taken
possession
of
all
the
belfries
in
the
town
in
order
to
welcome
Pedrito
Montero
,
who
was
making
his
entry
after
having
slept
the
night
in
Rincon
.
And
first
came
straggling
in
through
the
land
gate
the
armed
mob
of
all
colours
,
complexions
,
types
,
and
states
of
raggedness
,
calling
themselves
the
Sulaco
National
Guard
,
and
commanded
by
Senor
Gamacho
.
Through
the
middle
of
the
street
streamed
,
like
a
torrent
of
rubbish
,
a
mass
of
straw
hats
,
ponchos
,
gun-barrels
,
with
an
enormous
green
and
yellow
flag
flapping
in
their
midst
,
in
a
cloud
of
dust
,
to
the
furious
beating
of
drums
.
The
spectators
recoiled
against
the
walls
of
the
houses
shouting
their
Vivas
!
Behind
the
rabble
could
be
seen
the
lances
of
the
cavalry
,
the
"
army
"
of
Pedro
Montero
.
He
advanced
between
Senores
Fuentes
and
Gamacho
at
the
head
of
his
llaneros
,
who
had
accomplished
the
feat
of
crossing
the
Paramos
of
the
Higuerota
in
a
snow-storm
.
They
rode
four
abreast
,
mounted
on
confiscated
Campo
horses
,
clad
in
the
heterogeneous
stock
of
roadside
stores
they
had
looted
hurriedly
in
their
rapid
ride
through
the
northern
part
of
the
province
;
for
Pedro
Montero
had
been
in
a
great
hurry
to
occupy
Sulaco
.
The
handkerchiefs
knotted
loosely
around
their
bare
throats
were
glaringly
new
,
and
all
the
right
sleeves
of
their
cotton
shirts
had
been
cut
off
close
to
the
shoulder
for
greater
freedom
in
throwing
the
lazo
.
Emaciated
greybeards
rode
by
the
side
of
lean
dark
youths
,
marked
by
all
the
hardships
of
campaigning
,
with
strips
of
raw
beef
twined
round
the
crowns
of
their
hats
,
and
huge
iron
spurs
fastened
to
their
naked
heels
.
Those
that
in
the
passes
of
the
mountain
had
lost
their
lances
had
provided
themselves
with
the
goads
used
by
the
Campo
cattlemen
:
slender
shafts
of
palm
fully
ten
feet
long
,
with
a
lot
of
loose
rings
jingling
under
the
ironshod
point
.
They
were
armed
with
knives
and
revolvers
.
A
haggard
fearlessness
characterized
the
expression
of
all
these
sun-blacked
countenances
;
they
glared
down
haughtily
with
their
scorched
eyes
at
the
crowd
,
or
,
blinking
upwards
insolently
,
pointed
out
to
each
other
some
particular
head
amongst
the
women
at
the
windows
.
When
they
had
ridden
into
the
Plaza
and
caught
sight
of
the
equestrian
statue
of
the
King
dazzlingly
white
in
the
sunshine
,
towering
enormous
and
motionless
above
the
surges
of
the
crowd
,
with
its
eternal
gesture
of
saluting
,
a
murmur
of
surprise
ran
through
their
ranks
.
"
What
is
that
saint
in
the
big
hat
?
"
they
asked
each
other
.
They
were
a
good
sample
of
the
cavalry
of
the
plains
with
which
Pedro
Montero
had
helped
so
much
the
victorious
career
of
his
brother
the
general
.
The
influence
which
that
man
,
brought
up
in
coast
towns
,
acquired
in
a
short
time
over
the
plainsmen
of
the
Republic
can
be
ascribed
only
to
a
genius
for
treachery
of
so
effective
a
kind
that
it
must
have
appeared
to
those
violent
men
but
little
removed
from
a
state
of
utter
savagery
,
as
the
perfection
of
sagacity
and
virtue
.
The
popular
lore
of
all
nations
testifies
that
duplicity
and
cunning
,
together
with
bodily
strength
,
were
looked
upon
,
even
more
than
courage
,
as
heroic
virtues
by
primitive
mankind
.
To
overcome
your
adversary
was
the
great
affair
of
life
.
Courage
was
taken
for
granted
.
But
the
use
of
intelligence
awakened
wonder
and
respect
.
Stratagems
,
providing
they
did
not
fail
,
were
honourable
;
the
easy
massacre
of
an
unsuspecting
enemy
evoked
no
feelings
but
those
of
gladness
,
pride
,
and
admiration
.
Not
perhaps
that
primitive
men
were
more
faithless
than
their
descendants
of
to-day
,
but
that
they
went
straighter
to
their
aim
,
and
were
more
artless
in
their
recognition
of
success
as
the
only
standard
of
morality
.
We
have
changed
since
.
The
use
of
intelligence
awakens
little
wonder
and
less
respect
.
But
the
ignorant
and
barbarous
plainsmen
engaging
in
civil
strife
followed
willingly
a
leader
who
often
managed
to
deliver
their
enemies
bound
,
as
it
were
,
into
their
hands
.
Pedro
Montero
had
a
talent
for
lulling
his
adversaries
into
a
sense
of
security
.
And
as
men
learn
wisdom
with
extreme
slowness
,
and
are
always
ready
to
believe
promises
that
flatter
their
secret
hopes
,
Pedro
Montero
was
successful
time
after
time
.
Whether
only
a
servant
or
some
inferior
official
in
the
Costaguana
Legation
in
Paris
,
he
had
rushed
back
to
his
country
directly
he
heard
that
his
brother
had
emerged
from
the
obscurity
of
his
frontier
commandancia
.
He
had
managed
to
deceive
by
his
gift
of
plausibility
the
chiefs
of
the
Ribierist
movement
in
the
capital
,
and
even
the
acute
agent
of
the
San
Tome
mine
had
failed
to
understand
him
thoroughly
.
At
once
he
had
obtained
an
enormous
influence
over
his
brother
.
They
were
very
much
alike
in
appearance
,
both
bald
,
with
bunches
of
crisp
hair
above
their
ears
,
arguing
the
presence
of
some
negro
blood
.
Only
Pedro
was
smaller
than
the
general
,
more
delicate
altogether
,
with
an
ape-like
faculty
for
imitating
all
the
outward
signs
of
refinement
and
distinction
,
and
with
a
parrot-like
talent
for
languages
.
Both
brothers
had
received
some
elementary
instruction
by
the
munificence
of
a
great
European
traveller
,
to
whom
their
father
had
been
a
body-servant
during
his
journeys
in
the
interior
of
the
country
.
In
General
Montero
's
case
it
enabled
him
to
rise
from
the
ranks
.
Pedrito
,
the
younger
,
incorrigibly
lazy
and
slovenly
,
had
drifted
aimlessly
from
one
coast
town
to
another
,
hanging
about
counting-houses
,
attaching
himself
to
strangers
as
a
sort
of
valet-de-place
,
picking
up
an
easy
and
disreputable
living
.
His
ability
to
read
did
nothing
for
him
but
fill
his
head
with
absurd
visions
.
His
actions
were
usually
determined
by
motives
so
improbable
in
themselves
as
to
escape
the
penetration
of
a
rational
person
.
Thus
at
first
sight
the
agent
of
the
Gould
Concession
in
Sta
.
Marta
had
credited
him
with
the
possession
of
sane
views
,
and
even
with
a
restraining
power
over
the
general
's
everlastingly
discontented
vanity
.
It
could
never
have
entered
his
head
that
Pedrito
Montero
,
lackey
or
inferior
scribe
,
lodged
in
the
garrets
of
the
various
Parisian
hotels
where
the
Costaguana
Legation
used
to
shelter
its
diplomatic
dignity
,
had
been
devouring
the
lighter
sort
of
historical
works
in
the
French
language
,
such
,
for
instance
as
the
books
of
Imbert
de
Saint
Amand
upon
the
Second
Empire
.
But
Pedrito
had
been
struck
by
the
splendour
of
a
brilliant
court
,
and
had
conceived
the
idea
of
an
existence
for
himself
where
,
like
the
Duc
de
Morny
,
he
would
associate
the
command
of
every
pleasure
with
the
conduct
of
political
affairs
and
enjoy
power
supremely
in
every
way
.
Nobody
could
have
guessed
that
.
And
yet
this
was
one
of
the
immediate
causes
of
the
Monterist
Revolution
.
This
will
appear
less
incredible
by
the
reflection
that
the
fundamental
causes
were
the
same
as
ever
,
rooted
in
the
political
immaturity
of
the
people
,
in
the
indolence
of
the
upper
classes
and
the
mental
darkness
of
the
lower
.
Pedrito
Montero
saw
in
the
elevation
of
his
brother
the
road
wide
open
to
his
wildest
imaginings
.
This
was
what
made
the
Monterist
pronunciamiento
so
unpreventable
.
The
general
himself
probably
could
have
been
bought
off
,
pacified
with
flatteries
,
despatched
on
a
diplomatic
mission
to
Europe
.
It
was
his
brother
who
had
egged
him
on
from
first
to
last
.
He
wanted
to
become
the
most
brilliant
statesman
of
South
America
.
He
did
not
desire
supreme
power
.
He
would
have
been
afraid
of
its
labour
and
risk
,
in
fact
.
Before
all
,
Pedrito
Montero
,
taught
by
his
European
experience
,
meant
to
acquire
a
serious
fortune
for
himself
.
With
this
object
in
view
he
obtained
from
his
brother
,
on
the
very
morrow
of
the
successful
battle
,
the
permission
to
push
on
over
the
mountains
and
take
possession
of
Sulaco
.
Sulaco
was
the
land
of
future
prosperity
,
the
chosen
land
of
material
progress
,
the
only
province
in
the
Republic
of
interest
to
European
capitalists
.
Pedrito
Montero
,
following
the
example
of
the
Duc
de
Morny
,
meant
to
have
his
share
of
this
prosperity
.
This
is
what
he
meant
literally
.
Now
his
brother
was
master
of
the
country
,
whether
as
President
,
Dictator
,
or
even
as
Emperor
--
why
not
as
an
Emperor
?
--
he
meant
to
demand
a
share
in
every
enterprise
--
in
railways
,
in
mines
,
in
sugar
estates
,
in
cotton
mills
,
in
land
companies
,
in
each
and
every
undertaking
--
as
the
price
of
his
protection
.
The
desire
to
be
on
the
spot
early
was
the
real
cause
of
the
celebrated
ride
over
the
mountains
with
some
two
hundred
llaneros
,
an
enterprise
of
which
the
dangers
had
not
appeared
at
first
clearly
to
his
impatience
.
Coming
from
a
series
of
victories
,
it
seemed
to
him
that
a
Montero
had
only
to
appear
to
be
master
of
the
situation
.
This
illusion
had
betrayed
him
into
a
rashness
of
which
he
was
becoming
aware
.
As
he
rode
at
the
head
of
his
llaneros
he
regretted
that
there
were
so
few
of
them
.
The
enthusiasm
of
the
populace
reassured
him
.
