百年孤独(英文版)-第65部分

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　that　time　was　not　passing；　as　she　had　just　admitted；　but　that　it　was　turning　in　a　circle。　But　even　then　she　did　not　give　resignation　a　chance。　She　scolded　Jos？Arcadio　Segundo　as　if　he　were　a　child　and　insisted　that　he　take　a　bath　and　shave　and　lend　a　hand　in　fixing　up　the　house。　The　simple　idea　of　abandoning　the　room　that　had　given　him　peace　terrified　Jos？Arcadio　Segundo。　He　shouted　that　there　was　no　human　power　capable　of　making　him　go　out　because　he　did　not　want　to　see　the　train　with　two　hundred　cars　loaded　with　dead　people　which　left　Macondo　every　day　at　dusk　on　its　way　to　the　sea。　“They　were　all　of　those　who　were　at　the　station；？he　shouted。　“Three　thousand　four　hundred　eight。？Only　then　did　？rsula　realize　that　he　was　in　a　world　of　shadows　more　impenetrable　than　hers；　as　unreachable　and　solitary　as　that　of　his　great…grandfather。　She　left　him　in　the　room；　but　she　succeeded　in　getting　them　to　leave　the　padlock　off；　clean　it　every　day；　throw　the　chamberpots　away　except　for　one；　and　to　keep　Jos？Arcadio　Segundo　as　clean　and　presentable　as　his　great…grandfather　had　been　during　his　long　captivity　under　the　chestnut　tree。　At　first　Fernanda　interpreted　that　bustle　as　an　attack　of　senile　madness　and　it　was　difficult　for　her　to　suppress　her　exasperation。　But　about　that　time　Jos？Arcadio　told　her　that　he　planned　to　e　to　Macondo　from　Rome　before　taking　his　final　vows；　and　the　good　news　filled　her　with　such　enthusiasm　that　from　morning　to　night　she　would　be　seen　watering　the　flowers　four　times　a　day　so　that　her　son　would　not　have　a　bad　impression　of　the　house。　It　was　that　same　incentive　which　induced　her　to　speed　up　her　correspondence　with　the　invisible　doctors　and　to　replace　the　pots　of　ferns　and　oregano　and　the　begonias　on　the　porch　even　before　？rsula　found　out　that　they　had　been　destroyed　by　Aureliano　Segundo’s　exterminating　fury。　Later　on　she　sold　the　silver　service　and　bought　ceramic　dishes；　pewter　bowls　and　soup　spoons；　and　alpaca　tablecloths；　and　with　them　brought　poverty　to　the　cupboards　that　had　been　accustomed　to　India　pany　chinaware　and　Bohemian　crystal。　？rsula　always　tried　to　go　a　step　beyond。　“Open　the　windows　and　the　doors；？she　shouted。　“Cook　some　meat　and　fish；　buy　the　largest　turtles　around；　let　strangers　e　and　spread　their　mats　in　the　corners　and　urinate　in　the　rose　bushes　and　sit　down　to　eat　as　many　times　as　they　want　and　belch　and　rant　and　muddy　everything　with　their　boots；　and　let　them　do　whatever　they　want　to　us；　because　that’s　the　only　way　to　drive　off　rain。？But　it　was　a　vain　illusion。　She　was　too　old　then　and　living　on　borrowed　time　to　repeat　the　miracle　of　the　little　candy　animals；　and　none　of　her　descendants　had　inherited　her　strength。　The　house　stayed　closed　on　Fernanda’s　orders。
　　　Aureliano　Segundo；　who　had　taken　his　trunks　back　to　the　house　of　Petra　Cotes；　barely　had　enough　means　to　see　that　the　family　did　not　starve　to　death。　With　the　raffling　of　the　mule；　Petra　Cotes　and　he　bought　some　more　animals　with　which　they　managed　to　set　up　a　primitive　lottery　business。　Aureliano　Segundo　would　go　from　house　to　house　selling　the　tickets　that　he　himself　painted　with　colored　ink　to　make　them　more　attractive　and　convincing；　and　perhaps　he　did　not　realize　that　many　people　bought　them　out　of　gratitude　and　most　of　them　out　of　pity。　Nevertheless；　even　the　most　pitying　purchaser　was　getting　a　chance　to　win　a　pig　for　twenty　cents　or　a　calf　for　thirty…two；　and　they　became　so　hopeful　that　on　Tuesday　nights　Petra　Cotes’s　courtyard　overflowed　with　people　waiting　for　the　moment　when　a　child　picked　at　random　drew　the　winning　number　from　a　bag。　It　did　not　take　long　to　bee　a　weekly　fair；　for　at　dusk　food　and　drink　stands　would　be　set　up　in　the　courtyard　and　many　of　those　who　were　favored　would　slaughter　the　animals　they　had　won　right　there　on　the　condition　that　someone　else　supply　the　liquor　and　music；　so　that　without　having　wanted　to；　Aureliano　Segundo　suddenly　found　himself　playing　the　accordion　again　and　participating　in　modest　tourneys　of　voracity。　Those　humble　replicas　of　the　revelry　of　former　times　served　to　show　Aureliano　Segundo　himself　how　much　his　spirits　had　declined　and　to　what　a　degree　his　skill　as　a　masterful　carouser　had　dried　up。　He　was　a　changed　man。　The　two　hundred　forty　pounds　that　he　had　attained　during　the　days　when　he　had　been　challenged　by　The　Elephant　had　been　reduced　to　one　hundred　fifty…six；　the　glowing　and　bloated　tortoise　face　had　turned　into　that　of　an　iguana；　and　he　was　always　on　the　verge　of　boredom　and　fatigue。　For　Petra　Cotes；　however；　he　had　never　been　a　better　man　than　at　that　time；　perhaps　because　the　pity　that　he　inspired　was　mixed　with　love；　and　because　of　the　feeling　of　solidarity　that　misery　aroused　in　both　of　them。　The　broken…down　bed　ceased　to　be　the　scene　of　wild　activities　and　was　changed　into　an　intimate　refuge。　Freed　of　the　repetitious　mirrors；　which　had　been　auctioned　off　to　buy　animals　for　the　lottery；　and　from　the　lewd　damasks　and　velvets；　which　the　mule　had　eaten；　they　would　stay　up　very　late　with　the　innocence　of　two　sleepless　grandparents；　taking　advantage　of　the　time　to　draw　up　accounts　and　put　away　pennies　which　they　formerly　wasted　just　for　the　sake　of　it。　Sometimes　the　cock’s　crow　would　find　them　piling　and　unpiling　coins；　taking　a　bit　away　from　here　to　put　there；　to　that　this　bunch　would　be　enough　to　keep　Fernanda　happy　and　that　would　be　for　Amaranta　？rsula’s　shoes；　and　that　other　one　for　Santa　Sofía　de　la　Piedad；　who　had　not　had　a　new　dress　since　the　time　of　all　the　noise；　and　this　to　order　the　coffin　if　？rsula　died；　and　this　for　the　coffee　which　was　going　up　a　cent　a　pound　in　price　every　three　months；　and　this　for　the　sugar　which　sweetened　less　every　day；　and　this　for　the　lumber　which　was　still　wet　from　the　rains；　and　this　other　one　for　the　paper　and　the　colored　ink　to　make　tickets　with；　and　what　was　left　over　to　pay　off　the　winner　of　the　April　calf　whose　hide　they　had　miraculously　saved　when　it　came　down　with　a　symptomatic　carbuncle　just　when　all　of　the　numbers　in　the　raffle　had　already　been　sold。　Those　rites　of　poverty　were　so　pure　that　they　nearly　always　set　aside　the　largest　share　for　Fernanda；　and　they　did　not　do　so　out　of　remorse　or　charity；　but　because　her　well…being　was　more　important　to　them　than　their　own。　What　was　really　happening　to　them；　although　neither　of　them　realized　it；　was　that　they　both　thought　of　Fernanda　as　the　daughter　that　they　would　have　liked　to　have　and　never　did；　to　the　point　where　on　a　certain　occasion　they　resigned　themselves　to　eating　crumbs　for　three　days；　so　that　she　could　buy　a　Dutch　tablecloth。　Nevertheless；　no　matter　how　much　they　killed　themselves　with　work；　no　matter　how　much　money　they　eked　out；　and　no　matter　how　many　schemes　they　thought　of；　their　guardian　angels　were　asleep　with　fatigue　while　they　put　in　coins　and　took　them　out　trying　to　get　just　enough　to　live　with。　During　the　waking　hours　when　the　accounts　were　bad。　they　wondered　what　had　happened　in　the　world　for　the　animals　not　to　breed　with　the　same　drive　as　before；　why　money　slipped　through　their　fingers；　and　why　people　who　a　short　time　before　had　burned　rolls　of　bills　in　the　carousing　considered　it　highway　robbery　to　charge　twelve　cents　for　a　raffle　of　six　hens。　Aureliano　Segundo　thought　without　saying　so　that　the　evil　was　not　in　the　world　but　in　some　hidden　place　in　the　mysterious　heart　of　Petra　Cotes；　where　something　had　happened　during　the　deluge　that　had　turned　the　animals　sterile　and　made　money　scarce。　Intrigued　by　that　enigma；　he　dug　so　deeply　into　her　sentiments　that　in　search　of　interest　he　found　love；　because　by　trying　to　make　her　love　him　he　ended　up　falling　in　love　with　her。　Petra　Cotes；　for　her　part；　loved　him　more　and　more　as　she　felt　his　love　increasing；　and　that　was　how　in　the　ripeness　of　autumn　she　began　to　believe　once　more　in　the　youthful　superstition　that　poverty　was　the　servitude　of　love。　Both　looked　back　then　on　the　wild　revelry；　the　gaudy　wealth；　and　the　unbridled　fornication　as　an　annoyance　and　they　lamented　that　it　had　cost　them　so　much　of　their　lives　to　fund　the　paradise　of　shared　solitude。　Madly　in　love　after　so　many　years　of　sterile　plicity；　they　enjoyed　the　miracle　of　loving　each　other　as　much　at　the　table　as　in　bed；　and　they　grew　to　be　so　happy　that　even　when　they　were　two　worn…out　old　people　they　kept　on　blooming　like　little　children　and　playing　together　like　dogs。
　　　The　raffles　never　got　very　far。　At　first　Aureliano　Segundo　would　spend　three　days　of　the　week　shut　up　in　what　had　been　his　rancher’s　office　drawing　ticket　after　ticket；　Painting　with　a　fair　skill　a　red　cow；　a　green　pig；　or　a　group　of　blue　hens；　according　to　the　animal　being　raffled；　and　he　would　sketch　out　a　good　imitation　of　printed　numbers　and　the　name　that　Petra　Cotes　thought　good　to　call　the　business：　Divine　Providence　Raffles。　But　with　time　he　felt　so　tired　after　drawing　up　to　two　thousand　tickets　a　week　that　he　had　the　animals；　the　name；　and　the　numbers　put　on　rubber　stamps；　and　then　the　work　was　reduced　to　moistening　them　on　pads　of　different　colors。　In　his　last　years　it　occurred　to　him　to　substitute　riddles　for　the　numbers　so　that　the　prize　could　be　shared　by　all　of　those　who　guessed　it；　but　the　system　turned　out　to　be　so　plicated　and　was　open　to　so　much　suspicion　that　he　gave　it　up　after　the　second　attempt。
　　　Aureliano　Segundo　was　so　busy　trying　to　maintain　the　prestige　of　his　raffles　that　he　barely　had　time　to　see　the　children。　Fernanda　put　Amaranta　？rsula　in　a　small　private　school　where　they　admitted　only　six　girls；　but　she　refused　to　allow　Aureliano　to　go　to　public　school。　She　considered　that　she　had　already　relented　too　much　in　letting　him　leave　the　room。　Besides；　the　schools　in　those　days　accepted　only　the　legitimate　offspring　of　Catholic　marriages　and　on　the　birth　certificate　that　had　been　pinned　to　Aureliano’s　clothing　when　they　brought　him　to　the　house　he　was　registered　as　a　foundling。　So　he　remained　shut　In　at　the　mercy　of　Santa　Sofía　de　la　Piedad’s　loving　eyes　and　？rsula’s　mental　quirks；　learning　in　the　narrow　world　of　the　house　whatever　his　grandmothers　explained　to　him。　He　was　delicate；　thin；　with　a　curiosity　that　unnerved　the　adults；　but　unlike　the　inquisitive　and　sometimes　clairvoyant　look　that　the　colonel　had　at　his　age；　his　look　was　blinking　and　somewhat　dis