The Underdogs by Mariano Azuela Read Free Book Online Page B

listening to the stories Venancio recounted from some of the most charming episodes in The Wandering Jew . Many, lulled by the barber’s sweet voice, dozed off and began to snore. But Luis Cervantes, after listening attentively to the story, which ended with some strange anticlerical comments, said emphatically:
    â€œTha’s admirable. You have quite a beautiful talent.”
    â€œIt’s not that bad,” Venancio replied, himself quite convinced of it. “But my parents died, so I was unable to go on and continue my studies.”
    â€œThat does not matter in the least. Once our cause is victorious, you will be able to obtain your degree very easily. Two or three weeks of serving as an attendant at a hospital, a good recommendation from our leader Macías . . . and you shall be a doctor. You have such skill that it will all come as easy as a game to you!”
    From that night on, Venancio differentiated himself from the others by no longer calling him curro . Instead, it was Luisito this and Luisito that.

XI
    â€œListen, curro, I was wantin’ to tell ya a little somethin’,” Camila said one morning when Luis Cervantes entered the hut to get some boiled water to cleanse his foot.
    The girl had been restless for several days. All the attention she had been lavishing on him and her countless insinuations had finally started to annoy the young man. He suddenly interrupted his task, stood up, looked straight into her eyes, and replied:
    â€œWell, okay. What did you want to say to me?”
    At that point Camila felt her tongue turn into a wet rag and was unable to say anything. Her face lit up as red as madroño 1 berries; she shrugged her shoulders, and bent her head forward until her chin rested on her bare chest. Then, without moving, she cast her gaze, as steady as an idiot’s, at the wound on the young man’s leg, and said in a very weak voice:
    â€œLook at how purty it’s a-healin’ already. It looks as purty as a Spanish rose.”
    Luis Cervantes knit his brows with evident anger and turned his attention again to his treatment, and ceased paying her any more heed.
    When he finished, Camila had disappeared.
    The girl was nowhere to be seen for three days after that. Señora Agapita, her mother, was the one who received Luis Cervantes when he came to their hut, and she was the one who boiled the water and the strips of linen for him. He was very careful not to ask anything about the girl. But three days later Camila was back again, with even more beating around the bush and lavishing attention upon him than before.
    Distracted, Luis Cervantes treated Camila indifferently, which only served to further embolden the girl. She finally spoke up again:
    â€œListen, curro . I was wantin’ to tell ya a little somethin’. Listen, curro . Just one thing. I’d like you teach me the words to ‘La Adelita.’ 2 So that . . . Can ya guess what for? So I can sing it and sing it when ya all leave, when ya’re no longer ’round, when ya’re already so far away, so far . . . that ya won’t even remember me no more.”
    The effect of her words on Luis Cervantes was like that of a steel point scratching against glass.
    But not noticing, she continued as ingenuously as before.
    â€œWell, curro, if ya only knew. If ya was to see how mean that ol’ man leader of yours is. First of all there’s what happened to me with ’im. Ya know that this Demetrio doesn’t want no one but my mamma to make ’im his food and no one to take it to ’im but me. Well, okay, so the other day I go in with his atole, 3 and guess what that ol’ devil goes and does? Yup, sure ’nough, he reaches out and grabs my hand and squeezes it hard, real hard. Then he starts to pinch my legs and my behind. Ah, but ya shoulda seen what I did then! I says then: ‘Whoa there, ya’re worse than bad! Lay still, stop that! Ya’re worse than