百年孤独(英文版)-第17部分

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　sides；　so　that　people　would　e　from　Rome　to　honor　God　in　the　center　of　impiety。　He　went　everywhere　begging　alms　with　a　copper　dish。　They　gave　him　a　large　amount；　but　he　wanted　more；　because　the　church　had　to　have　a　bell　that　would　raise　the　drowned　up　to　the　surface　of　the　water。　He　pleaded　so　much　that　he　lost　his　voice。　His　bones　began　to　fill　with　sounds。　One　Saturday；　not　even　having　collected　the　price　of　the　doors；　he　fell　into　a　desperate　confusion。　He　improvised　an　altar　in　the　square　and　on　Sunday　he　went　through　the　town　with　a　small　bell；　as　in　the　days　of　insomnia；　calling　people　to　an　open…air　mass。　Many　went　out　of　curiosity。　Others　from　nostalgia。　Others　so　that　God　would　not　take　the　disdain　for　His　intermediary　as　a　personal　insult。　So　that　at　eight　in　the　morning　half　the　town　was　in　the　square；　where　Father　Nicanor　chanted　the　gospels　in　a　voice　that　had　been　lacerated　by　his　pleading。　At　the　end；　when　the　congregation　began　to　break　up；　he　raised　his　arms　signaling　for　attention。
　　　“Just　a　moment；？he　said。　“Now　we　shall　witness　an　undeniable　proof　of　the　infinite　power　of　God。？
　　　The　boy　who　had　helped　him　with　the　mass　brought　him　a　cup　of　thick　and　steaming　chocolate；　which　he　drank　without　pausing　to　breathe。　Then　he　wiped　his　lips　with　a　handkerchief　that　he　drew　from　his　sleeve；　extended　his　arms；　and　closed　his　eyes。　Thereupon　Father　Nicanor　rose　six　inches　above　the　level　of　the　ground。　It　was　a　convincing　measure。　He　went　among　the　houses　for　several　days　repeating　the　demonstration　of　levitation　by　means　of　chocolate　while　the　acolyte　collected　so　much　money　in　a　bag　that　in　less　than　a　month　he　began　the　construction　of　the　church。　No　one　doubted　the　divine　origin　of　the　demonstration　except　Jos？Arcadio　Buendía；　who　without　changing　expression　watched　the　troop　of　people　who　gathered　around　the　chestnut　tree　one　morning　to　witness　the　revelation　once　more。　He　merely　stretched　on　his　stool　a　little　and　shrugged　his　shoulders　when　Father　Nicanor　began　to　rise　up　from　the　ground　along　with　the　chair　he　was　sitting　on。
　　　“Hoc　est　simplicissimus；？Jos？Arcadio　Buendía　said。　“Homo　iste　statum　quartum　materiae　invenit。？
　　　Father　Nicanor　raised　his　hands　and　the　four　legs　of　the　chair　all　landed　on　the　ground　at　the　same　time。　“Nego；？he　said。　“Factum　hoc　existentiam　Dei　probat　sine　dubio。？
　　　Thus　it　was　discovered　that　Jos？Arcadio　Buendía’s　devilish　jargon　was　Latin。　Father　Nicanor　took　advantage　of　the　circumstance　of　his　being　the　only　person　who　had　been　able　to　municate　with　him　to　try　to　inject　the　faith　into　his　twisted　mind。　Every　afternoon　he　would　sit　by　the　chestnut　tree　preaching　in　Latin；　but　Jos？Arcadio　Buendía　insisted　on　rejecting　rhetorical　tricks　and　the　transmutation　of　chocolate；　and　he　demanded　the　daguerreotype　of　God　as　the　only　proof。　Father　Nicanor　then　brought　him　medals　and　pictures　and　even　a　reproduction　of　the　Veronica；　but　Jos？Arcadio　Buendía　rejected　them　as　artistic　objects　without　any　scientific　basis。　He　was　so　stubborn　that　Father　Nicanor　gave　up　his　attempts　at　evangelization　and　continued　visiting　him　out　of　humanitarian　feelings。　But　then　it　was　Jos？Arcadio　Buendía　who　took　the　lead　and　tried　to　break　down　the　priest’s　faith　with　rationalist　tricks。　On　a　certain　occasion　when　Father　Nicanor　brought　a　checker　set　to　the　chestnut　tree　and　invited　him　to　a　game；　Jos？Arcadio　Buendía　would　not　accept；　because　according　to　him　he　could　never　understand　the　sense　of　a　contest　in　which　the　two　adversaries　have　agreed　upon　the　rules。　Father　Nicanor；　who　had　never　seen　checkers　played　that　way；　could　not　play　it　again。　Ever　more　startled　at　Jos？Arcadio　Buendía’s　lucidity；　he　asked　him　how　it　was　possible　that　they　had　him　tied　to　a　tree。
　　　“Hoc　est　simplicissimus；？he　replied。　“Because　I’m　Crazy。？
　　　From　then　on；　concerned　about　his　own　faith；　the　priest　did　not　e　back　to　visit　him　and　dedicated　himself　to　hurrying　along　the　building　of　the　church。　Rebeca　felt　her　hopes　being　reborn。　Her　future　was　predicated　on　the　pletion　of　the　work；　for　one　Sunday　when　Father　Nicanor　was　lunching　at　the　house　and　the　whole　family　sitting　at　the　table　spoke　of　the　solemnity　and　splendor　that　religious　ceremonies　would　acquire　when　the　church　was　built；　Amaranta　said：　“The　luckiest　one　will　be　Rebeca。？And　since　Rebeca　did　not　understand　what　she　meant；　she　explained　it　to　her　with　an　innocent　smile：
　　　“You’re　going　to　be　the　one　who　will　inaugurate　the　church　with　your　wedding。？
　　　Rebeca　tried　to　forestall　any　ments。　The　way　the　construction　was　going　the　church　would　not　be　built　before　another　ten　years。　Father　Nicanor　did　not　agree：　the　growing　generosity　of　the　faithful　permitted　him　to　make　more　optimistic　calculations。　To　the　mute　Indignation　of　Rebeca；　who　could　not　finish　her　lunch；　？rsula　celebrated　Amaranta’s　idea　and　contributed　a　considerable　sum　for　the　work　to　move　faster。　Father　Nicanor　felt　that　with　another　contribution　like　that　the　church　would　be　ready　within　three　years。　From　then　on　Rebeca　did　not　say　another　word　to　Amaranta；　convinced　that　her　initiative　had　not　the　innocence　that　she　attempted　to　give　it。　“That　was　the　least　serious　thing　I　could　have　done；？Amaranta　answered　her　during　the　violent　argument　they　had　that　night。　“In　that　way　I　won’t　have　to　kill　you　for　three　years。？Rebeca　accepted　the　challenge。
　　　When　Pietro　Crespi　found　out　about　the　new　postponement；　he　went　through　a　crisis　of　disappointment；　but　Rebeca　gave　him　a　final　proof　of　her　loyalty。　“We’ll　elope　whenever　you　say；？she　told　him。　Pietro　Crespi；　however；　was　not　a　man　of　adventure。　He　lacked　the　impulsive　character　of　his　fiancée　and　he　considered　respect　for　one’s　given　word　as　a　wealth　that　should　not　be　squandered。　Then　Rebeca　turned　to　more　audacious　methods。　A　mysterious　wind　blew　out　the　lamps　in　the　parlor　and　？rsula　surprised　the　lovers　kissing　in　the　dark。　Pietro　Crespi　gave　her　some　confused　explanations　about　the　poor　quality　of　modern　pitch　lamps　and　he　even　helped　her　install　a　more　secure　system　of　illumination　for　the　room。　But　the　fuel　failed　again　or　the　wicks　became　clogged　and　？rsula　found　Rebeca　sitting　on　her　fiancé’s　lap。　This　time　she　would　accept　no　explanation。　She　turned　the　responsibility　of　the　bakery　over　to　the　Indian　woman　and　sat　in　a　rocking　chair　to　watch　over　the　young　people　during　the　visits；　ready　to　win　out　over　maneuvers　that　had　already　been　old　when　she　was　a　girl。　“Poor　Mama；？Rebeca　would　say　with　mock　indignation；　seeing　？rsula　yawn　during　the　boredom　of　the　visits。　“When　she　dies　she’ll　go　off　to　her　reward　in　that　rocking　chair。？After　three　months　of　supervised　love；　fatigued　by　the　slow　progress　of　the　construction；　which　he　went　to　inspect　every　day；　Pietro　Crespi　decided　to　give　Father　Nicanor　the　money　he　needed　to　finish　the　church。　Amaranta　did　not　grow　impatient。　As　she　conversed　with　her　girl　friends　every　afternoon　when　they　came　to　embroider　on　the　porch；　she　tried　to　think　of　new　subterfuges。　A　mistake　in　calculation　spoiled　the　one　she　considered　the　most　effective：　removing　the　mothballs　that　Rebeca　had　put　in　her　wedding　dress　before　she　put　it　away　in　the　bedroom　dresser。　She　did　it　when　two　months　were　left　for　the　pletion　of　the　church。　But　Rebeca　was　so　impatient　with　the　approach　of　the　wedding　that　she　wanted　to　get　the　dress　ready　earlier　than　Amaranta　had　foreseen。　When　she　opened　the　dresser　and　unfolded　first　the　papers　and　then　the　protective　cloth；　she　found　the　fabric　of　the　dress　and　the　stitches　of　the　veil　and　even　the　crown　of　orange　blossoms　perforated　by　moths。　Although　she　was　sure　that　she　had　put　a　handful　of　mothballs　in　the　wrappings；　the　disaster　seemed　so　natural　that　she　did　not　dare　blame　Amaranta。　There　was　less　than　a　month　until　the　wedding；　but　Amparo　Moscote　promised　to　sew　a　new　dress　within　a　week。　Amaranta　felt　faint　that　rainy　noontime　when　Amparo　came　to　the　house　wrapped　in　the　froth　of　needlework　for　Rebeca　to　have　the　final　fitting　of　the　dress。　She　lost　her　voice　and　a　thread　of　cold　sweat　ran　down　the　path　of　her　spine。　For　long　months　she　had　trembled　with　fright　waiting　for　that　hour；　because　if　she　had　not　been　able　to　conceive　the　ultimate　obstacle　to　Rebeca’s　wedding；　she　was　sure　that　at　the　last　moment；　when　all　the　resources　of　her　imagination　had　failed；　she　would　have　the　courage　to　poison　her。　That　afternoon；　while　Rebeca　was　suffocating　with　heat　inside　the　armor　of　thread　that　Amparo　Moscote　was　putting　about　her　body　with　thousands　of　pins　and　infinite　patience；　Amaranta　made　several　mistakes　in　her　crocheting　and　pricked　her　finger　with　the　needle；　but　she　decided　with　frightful　coldness　that　the　date　would　be　the　last　Friday　before　the　wedding　and　the　method　would　be　a　dose　of　laudanum　in　her　coffee。
　　　A　greater　obstacle；　as　impassable　as　it　was　unforeseen；　obliged　a　new　and　indefinite　postponement。　One　week　before　the　date　set　for　the　wedding；　little　Remedios　woke　up　in　the　middle　of　the　night　soaked　in　a　hot　broth　which　had　exploded　in　her　insides　with　a　kind　of　tearing　belch；　and　she　died　three　days　later；　poisoned　by　her　own　blood；　with　a　pair　of　twins　crossed　in　her　stomach。　Amarante　suffered　a　crisis　of　conscience。　She　had　begged　God　with　such　fervor　for　something　fearful　to　happen　so　that　she　would　not　have　to　poison　Rebeca　that　she　felt　guilty　of　Remedios？death。　That　was　not　the　obstacle　that　she　had　begged　for　so　much。　Remedios　had　brought　a　breath　of　merriment　to　the　house。　She　had　settled　down　with　her　husband　in　a　room　near　the　workshop；　which　she　decorated　with　the　dolls　and　toys　of　her　recent　childhood；　and　her　merry　vitality　overflowed　the　four　walls　of　the　bedroom　and　went　like　a　whirlwind　of　good　health　along　the　porch　with　the　begonias：　She　would　start　singing　at　dawn。　She　was　the　only　person　who　dared　intervene　in　the　arguments　between　Rebeca　and　Amaranta。　She　plunged　into　the　fatiguing　chore　of　taking　care　of　Jos？Arcadio　Buendía。　She　would　bring　him　his　food；　she　would　help　him　with　his　daily　necessities；　wash　him　with　soap　and　a　scrubbing　brush；　keep　his　hair　and　beard　free　of　lice　and　nits；　keep　the　palm　shelter　in　good　condition　and　reinforce　it　with　waterproof　canvas　in　stormy　weather。　In　her　last　months　she　had