The Conservatives at Castro Duro were ready to commit the greatest outrages and the most arbitrary acts so as to win by any methods.

It was known that a committee consisting of GarcÍa Padilla, Father MartÍn Lafuerza, and two Conservative councillors had gone to the Minister of the Interior to beg that CÆsar’s victory might be prevented by whatsoever means.

“It is necessary that Don CÆsar Moncada should not be elected for the District,” said Father MartÍn. “If he is, the town will remain subjected to a revolutionary dictatorship. All the Conservative classes, the merchants, the religious communities, fervently hope that Moncada will not be made Deputy.”

The committee of Castrians visited other high personages, and they must have attained their object, because the municipal government was suspended a few days later, the Workmen’s Club closed, the judge transferred, the Civil Guard was reinforced, and a police inspector of the worst antecedents was detailed to Castro as commissioner of elections.

The Governor of the Province, a political enemy of CÆsar’s, was a personal friend of his.

“For your sake I am ready to lose my future,” he had said to him, “but as for your followers, there is nothing left for me to do but knock them over the head.”

La Libertad, CÆsar’s newspaper, made a very violent campaign against GarcÍa Padilla. Ortigosa succeeded in finding out that Padilla had been tried for embezzlement, and he published that fact. The Castro News, on its side, insulted CÆsar and called him a crooked speculator on the exchange, an upstart, and an atheist.

The rapidity and violence of the Government’s methods produced an effect of fear on lukewarm Liberals; on the other hand, it moved the decided ones to show themselves all the more courageous and rash.

Moncada’s party almost immediately took on a revolutionary character. The lodge, “The Microbe,” was at work, and the most radical arrangements started there. It suited the Government and the Conservatives to have the Moncada party take this demagogic character. The commissioner had contaminating persons come on from the Capital for the purpose of sowing discord in the Workmen’s Club.

These suspicious persons, directed by one they called “Sparkler,” used to gather in the taverns to corrupt the workmen and the peasants, carrying on a propaganda that was anarchistic in appearance, but in reality anti-liberal.

“They are all the same,” they used to say; “Liberals and Conservatives are not a bit different.”

The drunkards and vagabonds were in their glory during those days, eating and drinking. Nobody knew for certain where the money came from, but everybody could make certain that it flowed profusely.

At the same time the commissioner had the most prominent workmen of the Club arrested and brought suit against them on ridiculous accusations.

THE MEETING

The Liberals tried to hold a manifestation in protest, but the commissioner and the mayor prohibited it.

The newspaper La Libertad explained what was going on, and was reprimanded.

A meeting was organized at the school; the governor had granted permission.

The school was not lighted, and CÆsar sent a man to the Capital for acetylene lamps, which were put up on the walls, and which made a detestable smell. The reunion took place at nine at night. CÆsar presided, and had San RomÁn, the bookseller, on his right, and Dr. Ortigosa on his left.

Behind them on a bench were some of the members of the Workmen’s Club.

The audience was composed of the poorest people; the rich Liberal element was drawing back; there were day-labourers with blankets around their shoulders and mouths, women in shawls holding children in their arms. Among the audience were the agents provocateurs who doubtless had the intention of making a disturbance; but the Republican bookseller ordered them thrown out of the place, and, despite their resistance, he managed to have it done.

The chief of police, insolent and contemptuous, took his seat at the table with an officer of the Civil Guard in civilian’s, who was there, he said, to take notes.

San RomÁn, the bookseller, gave CÆsar a paper with the names of those who were going to speak. They were many, and CÆsar didn’t know them.

The first to whom he gave the floor, in the order of the list, was a lame boy, who came forward on a crutch, and began to speak.

The boy expressed himself with great enthusiasm and admirable candour.

“Who is this youngster?” CÆsar asked San RomÁn.

“He is the best pupil in our school. We call him ‘Limpy.’ He comes of a very poor family. He came to the school a year ago, knowing nothing, and see him now. He says, and I think he is right, that if he keeps on studying, he will be an eminent man.”

The audience applauded everything “Limpy” said, and when he finished they hailed him with shouts and cheers. As he went back to his seat, CÆsar and San RomÁn shook his hand effusively.

STAND FAST, FELLOW CITIZENS!

After “Limpy,” various orators spoke, in divers keys: “Furibis,” “Uncle Chinaman,” “Panza,” San RomÁn, a weaver, a railway employee, and Dr. Ortigosa. The last-named let loose, and launched into such violent terms that the audience shouted in horrified excitement. CÆsar’s speech recommended firmness, and caused scarcely any reaction. The note had been given by “Limpy,” with his ingenuousness and his appealing quality, and by the doctor with the violence of his words.

The next day the Governor’s commissioner gave orders to close the school, and Dr. Ortigosa and San RomÁn were taken to jail.

POLITICAL TRICKS

It was impossible to carry on a campaign of popular agitation, and CÆsar decided to open a headquarters for propaganda next door to each voting place.

Meetings in the villages had been suppressed, because at the least alarm, or even without any motive, the chief of police, with members of the Civil Guard, went in among the people and dispersed them by shoving and by pounding rifles on their feet.

The newspapers couldn’t say anything without being immediately reported and suspended.

CÆsar sent no telegrams of protest, but he kept at work silently. He was thinking of using all weapons, including even trickery and bribes.

GarcÍa Padilla and the Government agents found this proceeding even more dangerous than the former. CÆsar offered twenty dollars to anybody that would give information of any electoral sharp practices which could be proved. The week of the election he and his friends did not rest.

At one of the polls in Carrascal, where CÆsar had a majority, the tile bearing the house-number had been changed by night. The real voters had to wait to cast their votes in one place, and meanwhile the urn was being filled with ballots for the Government candidate at another place.

In the hamlet of Val de San Gil, another trick was tried; the polling place was established in a hay-loft to which one went up by a ladder. While the villagers were waiting for the ladder to be set up, the urn was being filled. When the ladder was put into place and the voters went up one by one, they found that they had all voted already. As the ladder was narrow, they had to go up singly, and it was not likely they would have ventured to protest. Besides, there were a number of ruffians in the place, armed with sticks and pistols, who were ready to club or to shoot any one protesting.

In spite of all, CÆsar had the election won, always supposing that the Government did not carry things to the limit; but at the last moment he learned that more Civil Guards were going to come to Castro, and that the Government agents had orders to prevent Moncada’s victory by any method.

In the evening on Saturday, CÆsar was told that the commissioner was in a tavern, with others of the police, giving out ballots for illegal voters. CÆsar went there alone, and entered the tavern.

The commissioner, on seeing him, grew confused.

“I know what you are doing,” said CÆsar. “Be careful, because it may cost you a term in prison.”

“You are the one that may have to pay by going to prison,” replied the inspector.

“Just try to arrest me, you poor fool, and I’ll shoot your head off!”

The police inspector jumped up from the table where he was seated, and, as he went out, he let one of the ballots fall. CÆsar looked over the men who were with the police inspector; one of them was “Sparkler.” Some days before he had come to Moncada’s headquarters to offer to work for him, and he was the director of the contaminating persons sent to Castro by the Government.

A CLANDESTINE MEETING

When he returned to the headquarters, they told him there was a meeting in “Furibis’s” tavern at nine that night. CÆsar got there a little later than the time set. The place was gloomy, and had some big earthen jars in it. They had put a table at the back of this cave, and an acetylene light illuminated it.

Those present formed a semicircle around the table.

CÆsar knocked at the tavern, and they opened the door to him; a workman who was speaking delayed his peroration, and they waited until CÆsar had reached the table and got seated. The atmosphere was suffocating. Everything was closed so that the Civil Guards would not see the light through the windows and suspect that there was a meeting being held there. The workmen were, for the most part, masons, weavers, brickmakers. There were women there with their little ones asleep in their bosoms. The air one breathed there was horrible. It looked like a gathering of desperate people. They had learned that their arrested comrades had been beaten in the prison, and that San RomÁn and Dr. Ortigosa were in the infirmary as a result.

EULOGY OF VIOLENCE

The excitement among those present was terrible. “Limpy” was the most strenuous; he was in favour of their all going out that moment and storming the jail.

When they had all spoken, CÆsar got up and asked them to wait. If he won the election the next day, he promised them that the prisoners should be freed immediately; if he did not win and the prisoners remained there...

“Then what is to be done?” said a voice.

“What is to be done? I am in favour of violence,” answered CÆsar; “burning the jail, setting fire to the whole town; I am ready for anything.”

At that moment he really did think he had been too lenient.

“Man’s first duty is to break the law,” he shouted, “when it is a bad law. Everything is due to violence and war. I will go to the post of danger this very second, whenever you wish. Shall we storm the jail? Let’s go right now.”

This storming of the jail didn’t seem an easy thing to the others. One might try to climb down the hill and surprise the prison guards, but it would be difficult. According to “Furibis,” the best thing would be for ten or twelve of them to go out into the street with guns and pistols and shoot right and left.

At this disturbance the Civil Guard would come out, and that would be the moment for the others to enter the jail and drag the prisoners out into the street.

Some one else said that it seemed better to him for them to approach the Civil Guards’ quarters cautiously, kill the sentinels, and take possession of the rifles.

“Decide,” said CÆsar; “I am ready for anything.”

CÆsar’s attitude made the excited ones grow calmer and understand that it was not so easy to storm the jail.

It was about eleven when the meeting at the tavern ended. They had decided to wait and see what would happen the next day, and they left the place one by one.

“We will escort you, Don CÆsar,” several of them said.

“No. What for?”

“Remember there are people who might attack you. ‘Driveller’ Juan is at large in Castro.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“That bully can’t do anything to me.”

AT NIGHT

CÆsar went out of the tavern, pulled down his hat, and wrapped himself in his cape. He had not brought the motor, to avoid being recognized. It was a cloudy night, but still and beautiful.

Before they got out of the town a small boy came up to CÆsar.

“‘The Cub-Slut’ sent me to tell you to come to her house; she wants to speak to you.”

“I will go tomorrow.”

“No. You must come now, because what she has to say is very important,” shouted the youngster.

“Well, I can’t go now.”

The youngster protested, and CÆsar continued on his way. “Limpy” and “Uncle Chinaman” followed him. CÆsar was walking in the middle of the highway, when, about half way home, a man on the run passed him. No doubt he was going to give some signal.

“Limpy” and “Chinaman” shouted over and over:

“Don CÆsar! Don CÆsar!”

CÆsar halted, and “Chinaman” and “Limpy” ran up to him.

“What’s going on?” asked CÆsar.

“They are lying in wait for you,” said “Limpy.” “Didn’t you see a man go past running?”

“Yes.”

“We are going to stay with you. We will sleep at your house,” said “Chinaman,” “and if they attack us, we will defend ourselves.”

He showed a pistol which he carried in his sash.

The three walked on together, and as they passed a little grove in front of the palace, a shadow passed by, crawling, and fled away.

“He was there,” said “Chinaman.”

They went into the house. Amparito, with the old nurse, was praying before a lighted image.