THAT night, Quentin went to look for Cornejo at the print-shop where La Víbora was published.
The shop was situated1 in a cellar, and contained a very antique press, which took a whole day to print its fifteen hundred copies.
“For the next number,” said Quentin to the poet, “you’ve got to make up a poisonous poem in the same style as those that have been published against the Alguacil Ventosilla, Padre Tumbón, and La Garduña.”
“Good. Against whom is it to be?”
“La Aceitunera.”
“The Countess?”
“Yes.”
“The devil! Isn’t she a relative of yours?”
“Yes, on the left hand side.”
“Let’s have it. What must I say?”
“You already know that they call her La Aceitunera?”
“Yes.”
“And you also know that she has no morals to boast of?”
“Yes.”
“Well, with that you’ve got it all made. As a sort of refrain to your poem, you may use the quotation3 she wears on her garters; it goes like this:[228]
Intrépido es amor;
de todo sale vencedor.”
“Very good; but give me an idea.”
“Do you need still more? You can begin with a poetic4 invocation, asking every crib in Cordova who the lady of such and such a description is; then give hers; including the fact that she wears garters with this motto engraved5 upon them:
Intrépido es amor;
de todo sale vencedor.”
“Good! For example: I’ll say that she has black eyes, and a wonderful pair of hips6, and—”
“An olive complexion7.”
“And an olive complexion ... and I’ll finish up with:
Y ésta leyenda escrita en la ancha liga,
que tantos vieron con2 igual fatiga:
Intrépido es amor;
de todo sale vencedor.
(And this legend written upon her broad garter, which so many men have seen with the same feeling of fatigue8: etc.)
“Eh? How’s that?”
“Very good.”
“All right, it won’t take a minute to finish it. What shall I call the poem?”
“To La Aceitunera.”
“It’s done. How would you like me to begin like this?:
Casas de la Morería;
Trascastillo y Murallón,
ninfas, dueñas, y tarascas,
baratilleras de amor.
[229]
(Houses of La Morería, Trascastillo and Murallón; nymphs, mistresses, and lewd9 women, second-hand10 dealers11 in love.)”
“You may begin as you wish. The idea is that the thing must hurt.”
“It’ll hurt, all right; never fear.”
Cornejo finished the poem; two days later the paper came out, and in cafés and casinos, the only subject of conversation was the Countess’ garters, and everybody maliciously12 repeated the refrain:
Intrépido es amor;
de todo sale vencedor.
The following night, Quentin was waiting for the poet in the Café del Recreo. He had made an appointment with him for ten o’clock, but Cornejo had failed to appear.
Quentin waited for him for over two hours, and finally, tired out, he started to go home. As he left the café, a little man wrapped in a cloak came up to him at the very door.
“Listen to me a second,” he said.
“Eh!”
“Be very careful, Don Quentin, they are following you.”
“Me?”
“Sí, Señor.”
“Who are you? Let’s hear first who you are.”
“I am Carrahola.”
“Aren’t you angry at me for what I did to you the other night?”
“No, Señor, you’re a brave fellow.”
“Thanks.[230]”
“Well, Señor José has sent Cantarote, the gipsy, and me to go home with you.”
“Bah! No one interferes13 with me.”
“Don’t say what you know nothing about. Take this club”—and he gave him one which he had concealed14 under his cloak—“and walk on.”
“Aren’t you armed, Carrahola?”
“I?—Look!”—and lifting aside his cloak, he showed his sash, which was filled with stones.
Quentin took the club, wrapped himself up to his eyes in his cloak, and began to walk slowly along the middle of the street, looking carefully before passing cross-streets and corners. When he reached one corner, he saw two men standing15 in the doorway16 of a convent, and two others directly opposite. No sooner had he perceived them, than he stopped, went to a doorway, took off his cloak and wrapped it about his left arm, and grasped the club with his right hand.
When the four men saw a man hiding himself, they supposed that it was Quentin, and rushed toward him. Quentin parried two or three blows with his left arm.
“Evohé! Evohé!” he cried; and an instant later began to rain blow after blow about him with his club, with such vigour17, that he forced his attackers to retreat. In one of his flourishes, he struck an adversary18 on the head, and his club flew to pieces. The man turned and fell headlong to the ground, like a grain-sack.
Carrahola and Cantarote came running to the scene of the fray19; one throwing stones, the other waving a knife as long as a bayonet.
Carrahola hit one of the men in the face with a stone, and left him bleeding profusely20. Of the three who were left comparatively sound, two took to their heels, while[231] the strongest, the one who seemed to be the leader of the gang, was engaged in a fist fight with Quentin. The latter, who was an adept21 in the art of boxing, of which the other was totally ignorant, thrust his fist between his adversary’s arms, and gave him such a blow upon the chin, that he fell backward and would have broken his neck, had he not stumbled against a wall. As the man fell, he drew a pistol from his pocket and fired.
“Gentlemen,” said Quentin to Carrahola and Cantarote; “to your homes, and let him save himself who can!”
Each began to run, and the three men escaped through the narrow alleyways.
The next afternoon Quentin went to the Casino. The newspapers spoke22 of the battle of the day before as an epic23; a ruffian known as El Mochuelo, had been found in the street with concussion24 of the brain, and a contusion on his head; besides this, there were pools of blood in the street. According to the newspaper reports, passions had been at a white heat. Immediately after the description of the fight, followed the news that the notable poet Cornejo had been a victim of an attack by persons unknown.
“They must have beaten him badly,” thought Quentin.
He went to Cornejo’s house and found him in bed, his head covered with bandages, and smelling of arnica.
“What’s the matter?” asked Quentin.
“Can’t you see? They gave me the devil of a beating!”
“They tried to do it to me yesterday, but I knocked a few of them down.”
“Well, don’t be overconfident.[232]”
“No, I’m not; I carry a pistol in each pocket, and I can’t tell you what would happen to the man who comes near me.”
“It’s a bad situation.”
“Ca, man! There’s nothing to be frightened about.”
“You can do as you like, but I’m not going out until I’m well; nor will I write for La Víbora any more.”
“Very well. Do as you wish.”
“I’ve got to live.”
“Psh! I don’t see why,” replied Quentin contemptuously. Then he added, “See here, my lad, if this business scares you, take up sewing on a machine. Perhaps you’ll earn more.”... And leaving the poet, Quentin returned to the Casino. He was the man of the hour; he related his adventure again and again, and in order that the same thing might not be repeated that night, a group of eight or ten of his friends accompanied him to his house.
