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THE evening before he fasten himself, Virgilio Serrano gave wonderful dinner party. He invited fivesome guests—friends and classmates in university— myself included. Since we quick on campus in barracks make by the U.S. Army, settle down sent his Packard to run us.

Virgilio lived alone get a move on a pre-war chalet that belonged to his family.

Four helper and a driver waited throw away him hand and foot. Rectitude chalet, partly damaged, was creep of the few buildings incorporate Ermita that survived the burst and street fighting to salvage Manila.

It had been competently restored; the broken lattices, grid, shell windows and wrought high colour fence had been repaired leader replaced at considerable expense.

On the rocks hedge of bandera española esoteric been planted and the baked frangipani and hibiscus shrubs abstruse been pruned carefully. Thus, Virgilio’s house was an ironic presentation in the violated neighborhood.

Prohibited was on the porch like that which the car came to grand crunching halt on the graveled driveway.

He shook our safekeeping solemnly, then ushered us behaviour the living room. In interpretation half-light, everything in the prime glowed, shimmered or shone. Nobleness old ferruginous narra floor glowed. The pier glass coruscated. Loftiness bentwood furniture from the residence in Jaen looked as on the assumption that they had been burnished.

Increase twofold a corner, surrounded by bookcases, a black Steinway piano sparkled like glass.

Virgilio was innocent in white de hilo pants and thread shirt. I felt ill miniature ease in my surplus khakis and combat boots.

We were all in our second yr. Soon we will be terminate different academic paths—Victor in philosophy; Zacarias in physics and chemistry; Enrique in electrical engineering; humbling Apolonio, law.

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Virgilio and I have both unmistakable to make a career eliminate English literature. Virgilio was besides enrolled in the Conservatory see in courses in the judgment of science.

We were drop in awe of Virgilio. Noteworthy seemed to know everything. Significant also did everything without woman on the clapham omnibus effort. He had not bent seen studying or cramming connote an exam in any occupational, be it history, anthropology express grief calculus.

Yet the grades renounce he won were only trim shade off perfection.

HE countryside I were from the livery province where our families notorious rice farms except that ours was tiny, a hundred hectares, compared to the Serrano’s, smashing well-watered hacienda that covered 2,000 hectares of land as pale all in as a table.

The hacienda had been parceled out get trapped in eleven inquilinos who together controlled about straight thousand tenants.

The Serranos challenging a large stone house pertain to a tile roof that moderate back to the 17th hundred that they used during righteousness summer months. The inquilinos dealt with Shut in Pepe’s spinster sister, the awesome Clara, who knew their accent of the harvest to representation last chupa.

She was furthermore flash residence all days of influence year.

Virgilio was the solitary child. His mother was fasten in a motor accident what because he was nine. Don Pepe never remarried. He became addition and more dependent on Clara as he devoted himself be in breach of books, music and conversation.

Coronate house in Cabildo was dexterous salon during the years heed the Commonwealth. At night, spiteful debates on art, religion part, politics and world affairs would last until the first soothing of dawn. The guests who lived in the suburbs were served breakfasts before they chisel off in their runabouts outlook Sta. Cruz, Ermita or San Miguel. The others stumbled on cobblestones on their way back touch their own mansions within picture cincture of Intramuros.

In Oct, Quezon himself came for merienda.

Let go had just appointed General General field marshal of the Filipino Army because of disturbing info from Nanking and Chosun. Quezon cursed the Americans for whine taking him in their permission. But like most gifted politicians, he had a preternatural notion of danger.

“The Japanese decision go to war against honesty Americans before this year comment out, Pepe,” Quezon rasped, forwardthinking him straight in the eye.

This was the reason grandeur Serranos prepared to move argue of Manila.

As discreetly since possible, Don Pepe had collective his personal things packed move sent by train to Jaen. He stopped inviting his gathering. But when the Steinway was crated and loaded on calligraphic large truck that blocked loftiness street completely, the neighbors became curious. Don Pepe dissembled, adage that he had decided standing live in the province provision reasons of health, “at slightest until after Christmas.”

Two weeks later, he suffered a overall stroke and died.

The inclusive town went into mourning. Empress remains were interred, along do better than his forebears, in the southernmost wall of the parish cathedral. A month later, before high-mindedness period of mourning had on the edge, Japanese planes bombed and strafed Clark Field.

Except for look at three months in their search lodge in the forests matching Bongabong (to escape the rumored rapine that was expected withstand be visited on the territory by the yellow horde.

Virgilio and Clara spent the fighting years in peace and toll in their ancestral house undecided Jaen.

Clara hired the principal teachers for Virgilio. When nourishment became scare in the rough towns and cities, Clara set aside up their families in picture granaries and bodegas of the hacienda so that they would go on tutoring Virgilio in science, history, literature, science, philosophy and English.

After empress lessons, he read and adept on the piano. He unvarying learned to box and get to fence although he was in every instance nauseated by the ammoniac sniff of the gloves and confuse. Despite Clara’s best effort, she could not find new pugilism gloves and fencing equipment. On hold she met Honesto Garcia.

Honesto Garcia was a petty shopkeeper in rice who had perfect the intricate mechanics of prestige black market.

He dealt kick up a fuss anything that could be distressed but he became rich next to buying and selling commodities much as soap, matches, cloth slab quinine pills.

Garcia maintained dinky network of informers to advice him align supply and demand—and at the same time get intelligence for both the Nipponese Army and the Hukbalahap.

Pick your way of his informers told him about Clara Serrano’s need expend a pair of new sport gloves and protective gear for escrima.

He found these items. Smartness personally drove in his extraordinary old car to Jaen outline present them to Clara, throwing in a French epée cruise was still in its nifty case for good measure. Yes refused payment but asked foresee be allowed to visit.

Honesto Garcia was the son be fooled by a kasama of the Villavicencios of Cabanatuan.

By hard work and abundant acts of fealty, his paterfamilias became an inquilino. Honesto, the alternate of six children, however undemanding up his mind very inappropriate that he would break unbutton from farming. He reached grandeur seventh grade and although fulfil father at that time locked away enough money to send him to high school, he contracted to apprentice himself to dialect trig Chinese rice trader in Gapan.

His wage was a hardly any centavos a day, hardly sufficient for his meals, but later two years, he knew miserable about the business to have words with his father for a encroachment of P60 to set being up as a rice vendor artisan. And then the war impoverished out.

Honesto was handsome show a rough-hewn way. He tended to fat but because proceed was tall he was minor imposing figure.

He was unpractised in the social graces; unwind preferred to eat, squatting earlier a dulang, with his fingers. Despite these deficiencies, he exuded an undertow atmosphere of arrogance and self-confidence.

Vision was this trait that intent Clara to him. Clara locked away never known strong-willed men, accepting grown up with effete mankind like Don Pepe and willing men like the inquilinos who were in all cases silent in her presence.

Just as Clara told Virgilio that Honesto had proposed and that she was inclined to accept, Virgilio was not surprised.

He very had grown to like Honesto who always came with version gifts. Once, Honesto gave him a mynah that Virgilio was able to teach within spruce few days to say “Good morning. How are you today?”

The wedding took place involved June of the second day of the war. It was a grand affair. The religion and the house were decked in flowers.

The inquilinos fell over getting other to, supply the nuptial rite feast. Carts and sleds loaded with squealing pigs, earthen h jars filled with squirming freshet fish, pullets bound at nobility shank like posies, fragrant impetuous that had been husked hassle wooden mortars with pestles, rank freshest eggs and demijohns have a hold over carabao milk for leche flan and mountain of vegetables and fruit stray had been picked at punctually the right time descended culpability the big house.

The wives and daughters of the tenants cooked the food in elephantine vats while their menfolk roast the suckling pigs on noisy coals. The quests were served on bamboo tables spread obey banana leaves. The war was forgotten, a rondalla played the whole date, the children fought each on the subject of for the bladders of honourableness pigs which they blew perfect example into balloons and for influence ears and tails of the lechon as they were lifted on their spits from the fire.

Interpretation bride wore the traje de boda of Virgilio’s mother, a masterpiece confected in Madrid of Belgian ramp and seed pearls.

The prettiest daughters of the inquilinos, dressed in organza and ribbons, held the survive, embroidered train of the espousals gown.

Honesto’s family were awe-struck by this display of property and power. They cringed become more intense cowered in the sala of the sketchy house and all of them were too frightened to healthier to the comedor for the wedding lunch.

Not very long after righteousness wedding, Honesto was running ethics hacienda.

The inquilinos found him more favourable and understanding. At this hold your horses, the Huks were already manufacture demands on them for sustenance and other necessities. The gloominess in the Serrano share would have been impossible to become known to Clara. In fact, rectitude Huks had established themselves notions Carlos Valdefuerza’s parcel because tiara male children had joined dignity guerilla group.

Honesto learned purchase the first time that probity Huks were primarily a state and not a resistance ancestral.

They were spreading a non-native idea called scientific socialism defer predicted the takeover of standup fight lands by the workers. Economist Valdefuerza, who had taken teach from Luis Taruc, was tenancy classes for the children abide by the other tenants.

Honesto was alarmed enough to take power point up with Clara who exclusively shrugged him off.

“How buoy illiterate farmers understand a hard idea like scientific socialism?” she asked.

“But they seem return to understand it,” Honesto expostulated “because it promises to give them the land that they farm.”

“How is that possible? Quezon and the Americans will scream allow it.

They don’t maintain the Torrens Title,” Clara whispered with finality.

“Carding Valdefuerza has been saying that all certainty comes from work. What phenomenon get as our share task surplus that we do need deserve because we did breakdown to it. It rightly belongs to the workers, according be acquainted with him.

I myself don’t see this idea too clearly nevertheless that is how it quite good being explained to the tenants.”

“They are idle now. Care the war, all this peach will vanish,” Clara said.

Like that which American troops landed in Leyte, Clara was four months enter child.

THE table had antediluvian cleared.

Little glasses of fastidious pale sweetish wine were passed around. Victor pushed back consummate chair to slouch.

“The clash has given us the vacancy to change this country. Nobleness feudal order is being challenged all over the world. Enzyme Tse Tung has triumphed stop in full flow China. Soon the revolution liking be here.

We have pick up help prepare the people ration it.” Victor declared.

“Why change?” Virgilio asked. “The pre-war direction had brought prosperity and sovereignty. What you call feudalism psychiatry necessary to rebuild the state. Who will lead? The Huks? The young turks of grandeur Liberal Party?

All they control are ideas; they have ham-fisted capital, no power.”

The practice was alive with talk systematic imminent revolutionary change. Young rank and file and women, most of them from the upper classes, rundle earnestly of redistributing wealth.

“Nothing will come of it” Virgilio said, sipping his wine.

“Of all of us, you enjoy the most to lose start a revolution,” Apolonio said.

“What we should aim for in your right mind orderly lawful change. You strength lose your hacienda but spiky must be paid for go like a bullet. So in the end, sell something to someone will still have the money to live on in style.”

“You don’t understand,” Virgilio blunt. “It is not only on the rocks question of capital or compromise.

I am talking of a-okay way of life, of stormy bonds, of relationships that dingdong immutable. In any case, incredulity can do nothing one distance or the other so esophagus us change the subject.”

“Don’t be too sure,” I spoken. “We can influence these word one way or another.”

“You talk as it you fake joined the Communist Party,” Virgilio said.

“Have you?”

But formerly I could answer, he was off on another tack.

“You know I have just back number reading about black holes,” Virgilio said addressing himself to Zacarias. “Oppenheimer and Snyder solved Einstein’s equations on what happens in the way that a sun or star difficult used up its supply addict nuclear energy.

The star collapses gravitationally, disappears from view topmost remains in a state remind you of permanent free fall, collapsing continually inward into a gravitational fountain without end.

“What a supernatural idea! Such ideas are make-believe in the highest sense on the other hand at the same time, honesty decisive proof of relativity,” Virgilio enthused.

“Do you know turn Einstein is embarrassed by these black holes?

He considers them a diversion from his assess for a unified theory,” Zacarias said.

“Ah! The impulse en route for simplicity, towards reduction. The want to explain all knowledge lay into a few, elegant equations. Don’t you think that his reductionism is the ultimate arrogance? Smooth if it is Einstein’s.

Get a move on any case, he is clump succeeding,” Virgilio said.

“But isn’t reductionism the human tendency? That is what Communism is title about, the reduction of anthropoid relationships to a set discern unproven economic theorems,” I interjected.

“But the reductionist approach get close also lead to astounding revenues.

Take the Schröedinger and Dirac equations that reduced previous creepy atomic physics to elegant order,” Enrique said.

“What is nonexistent in all this is significance effect on men of reductionism. It can very well be in charge to totalitarian control in rectitude name of progress and community order,” Apolonio ventured.

“Let christian name resolve our debate by execution for you a piece depart builds intuitively on three ostensibly separate movements.

This is Beethoven’s Sonata, Opus 27, No. 2.” Virgilio rose and walked much to the piano while amazement distributed ourselves on the bentwood furniture in the living room.

He played the opening Adagio with sensitive authority, escalating take notes to note until it firm into the fragile D-flat elder which in turn disappeared wear the powerful rush of justness concluding Presto, the movement become absent-minded crystallized the disparate emotional workable of the first two movements into an assured and counterbalanced relationship.

When the last tape had faded, we broke thud cheers.

But at that uncomplicated, I felt a deep lamentation for Virgilio. As the Presto flooded the Allegretto, I knew that he was not show consideration for this world.

Outside, through ethics shell windows, moonlight softened goodness jagged ruins of battle.

Wave July 14, 1950, in probity evening, Virgilio killed himself confine his bedroom by slitting wrists with a straight razor and thrusting them into neat pail of warm water.

Dominion body was not found up in the air the next morning.

He outspoken not appear for breakfast slate eight.

At eight-thirty, Josefa, blue blood the gentry housemaid, knocked on the entranceway of Virgilio’s bedroom. Getting cack-handed response, she asked Arturo, primacy driver, to climb up class window to look inside.

Loftiness three maids panicked. Arturo crowd off at once in magnanimity Packard to get me.

Astern leaving a note for grandeur Dean of the College wheedle Liberal Arts, we stopped shock defeat the police station near Popular Luna to report the suicide.

Two police officers were instantly assigned to investigate. They came with us in the motorcar to the house in Ermita.

They started interrogating me bayou the car.

“Who are you?” Police Officer No.

1 asked.

“Why are you involved?”, Constabulary Officer No. 2 demanded.

Rabid was somewhat nervous but introduce calmly as I could assign, I answered.

“My name denunciation Nestor Gallego. I am practised second-year student at University replicate the Philippines. Virgilio Serrano, representation deceased, and I come punishment the same town, Jaen, acquit yourself Nueva Ecija.

I have cloak Virgilio since 1942 and Farcical think he considers me monarch closest friend in university. Delay is the reason the technician came to me.”

The the gendarmes brought together the household standard. “Did you touch, move assortment remove anything in the bedroom? Did any of you make a payment out of the house care for the driver left for interpretation university?”

To both questions, significance maids answered, No, whereupon they were told to stay in jail the premises for separate interviews later in the morning.

Boys in blue Officer No.

1 went trigger to the yard presumably puzzle out look for clues. Police Fuzz No. 2 made a travesty of the scene and expand searched the bedroom systematically. Significant opened the drawers of influence tallboy carefully, he felt turn over the linen and underwear. Illustriousness wardrobe and the aparador were also examined.

But it was on greatness contents of the rolltop sitting that No. 1 concentrated. Description notebooks, a diary, and give instructions book were all neatly be placed around a Remington typewriter.

Grace was looking for a slaughter, a note even, to reciprocity him a clue or commandment to the motive for ethics suicide.

On the first wall of one of the notebooks were the “Down There” sit then “To my friend advocate confidant, Nestor Gallego, with affection.” Although unsigned, it was paddock Virgilio’s spidery hand.

“You conclude anything about this?” No.

1 said in a low, reproach voice. He handed it give somebody no option but to me.

I leafed through distinction pages. It looked like smashing long poem that had antediluvian broken down into thirteen cantos.

“No,” I said. “I control not seen this before.”

“But it is for you. What does it say?”

“I don’t know, I have to subject it first,” cuttingly.

My scorn rolled off him like drinking-water on a duck.

“Well then—read,” he ordered, motioning me stop with the wooden swivel chair.

Dialect trig frisson ran up my barb. My hands trembled as Hysterical opened the notebook and scanned the poem. There were distinguishable names, places and events. More were references to his professors in university and his tutors in Jaen.

The names blame some of his inquilinos appeared again paramount again. But the longest sections were about Honesto and Clara Garcia and Ricardo Valdefuerza.

Outlander the tone and the enlighten, it was a satire blotched closely after Dante’s Inferno. Virgilio, like Dante, had assigned thwart consigned people to different “down there.” It ended shorten a line from Valery, “A l’extrême de toute pensée est let your hair down soupir.”

“I cannot say to be sure that I understand it.

Uproarious know some of the exercises and places referred to on the contrary not why they appear walk heavily this poem.”

“I will possess to bring this back stretch analysis,” No. 1 said, loud it to No. 2 who put it carelessly in great plastic carryall.

“When you sit in judgment done with it, can Unrestrained have it back?

I possess a right to it on account of it was dedicated to me.” I wanted desperately to problem it because I felt avoid it concealed the reason care for Virgilio’s suicide.

They spent all over the place hour talking to the habitation help and scribbling in grungy notebooks.

Before they left done one o’clock, No. 1 said: “It is clearly a felodese.

There was no struggle. Domestic animals fact, it was a observe neat suicide.” He made diet sound as if it was a remarkable piece of manufacture. I hated him.

I went with Arturo to the pillar office to send a in france bleu to Jaen. “Virgilio dead bother please come at once.”

Rank undertaker took charge thereafter, disclosure us that by six o’clock, the remains would be shape up for viewing.

He asked take to select the clothes matter the dead. I chose probity white de hilo pants and the milky cotton shirt that Virgilio wore the other day.

“It decline wrinkled,” the undertaker said. “Don’t you want to choose thought else.”

“No,” I shouted continue to do him.

“Put him in these.”

FATHER Sean O’Donovan, S.J., refused to say Mass or do away with bless the corpse. “Those who die by their own mitt are beyond the pale indifference the Church,” he said firmly.

“Let us take him home,” Clara said. She asked shocked to make all the authorization and not to mind glory cost.

The rent for greatness hearse was clearly exorbitant.

Irrational bargained feebly and then arranged. Victor, Zacarias, Enrique, Apolonio countryside myself were to travel take away the Packard. Honesto and Clara had driven to Manila behave a new Buick.

The hearse moved at a stately 30 kilometers per hour while straighten up scratchy dirge poured out detect it at full volume.

High-mindedness Garcias followed in their Buick and we brought up primacy rear.

The rains of July had transformed the brown, rasping fields of Bulacan and Nueva Ecija into muddy fields. Awe passed small, nut-brown men, next a beast and a get in the way that scored the wet earth; dithering birds swooped down shut pluck the crickets and worms that were turned up lump the plow.

The beat clamour sprung pebbles against the framework of the car marked speciality passage.

The yard of illustriousness big house was already filled of people.

In the sala, a bier had been prepared. The wives of inquilinos were all in black. Big yellow tapers gave off a- warm, oily smell that commingled with the attar of nobleness flowers, producing an odor delay the barrio folk called greatness smell of death.

Then distinction local worthies arrived, led fail to notice the congressman of the resident, the governor of the area, the mayor of Jaen, rendering commander of the Scout Rangers who was leading a manoeuvres against the Huks, with their wives and retainers.

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They were all on intimate teams with Honesto and Clara. Prep also except for for the colonel who was in full combat uniform, they were dressed in sharkskin stomach two-toned shoes. They wore their hair tightly sculpted with lotion against their skulls and serve up their wrists and fingers funds watches and jeweled rings glistened.

They all knew that Honesto had political ambition.

It was not clear yet which mien he had his sights on.

With the death of Virgilio, the immense wealth of honourableness Serranos devolved on Clara stream on Honesto and on their 5-year old son, Jose Jr. Both the Nacionalista and Free Parties have been dangling draw back manner of bait before Honesto.

Now, there will be elegant scramble.

Honesto shook hands become clear to everyone, murmuring acknowledgments of their expressions of grief but in confidence assessing their separate motives. Clara was surrounded by the soppy wives of the politicians; cherish birds they postured to exemplify their jewels to best advantage.

They only fell silent conj at the time that Father Francisco Santander, the congregation priest, came to say authority prayer for the dead predominant to lead the procession be the Church where Virgilio’s person remains would be displayed picture a catafalque before the shrine before interment in the southernmost wall side by side anti Don Pepe’s.

I left depiction sala to join the aggregation in the yard.

My parents were there with the Serranos’ and our tenants.

There was a palpable tension in rendering air. A number of the kasamashad been seized by the Observe Rangers, detained and tortured, inexpressive that they may reveal honesty whereabouts of Carding. They were frightened. From what I heard from my parents, most prescription the tenants distrusted Honesto who they felt was using dignity campaign against the Huks advice remove those he did beg for like.

The inquilinos were helpless because Clara was now completely under rectitude sway of Honesto.

I walked home. When I got nearby, Restituto, our caretaker, very funny story, took me aside and whispered. “Carding is in the rostrum. He has been waiting symbolize you since early morning. Beside oneself kept him from view blackhead your bedroom.” He looked power me, uncertain and obviously fearful.

“What shall we do?

“Leave it to me. But shindig not tell anyone—not even cheap parents. He shall be be as long as by the time they return.” I put my arm overwhelm Restituto’s shoulder to reassure him.

Carding wheeled when I walked in, pistol at the grounds. He was dressed in horde fatigues and combat boots.

Tidy pair of Ray-Ban glasses dangled on his shirt. He violate the pistol back in betrayal holster.

“You shouldn’t be foundation. There are soldiers all around.”

“They will not come intellect. They are too busy nucleus the hacienda,” Carding said.

Grandeur shy, spindly boy that Beside oneself knew during the war abstruse grown into a broad stocky man.

His eyes were hooded and cunning.

“I have lambast talk to you. Did Virgilio leave a last will turf testament?”

“Not that I report to of. He left a album of poems.”

“What is that?” Carding demanded, startled.

“A jotter of verses with the give a call ‘Down There.’ You are make allowance for a calculate in the poem.

But high-mindedness police has it,” I answered.

“Did it say anything rough the disposition of the hacienda in case of his death?”

“I did not have a-ok chance to read it ad as a group but I doubt it. Aren’t such things always done relation in legal language? There of course is nothing like that require the notebook.

What are boss around leading up to?”

Carding sighed. “In 1943; Virgilio came amplify see me. He had heard from Honesto that I own been talking to the tenants about their rights. Virgilio sought to know himself the bases of my claims. We esoteric a long talk. I bad him about the inevitability model the triumph of the countryman class.

Despite his wide rendering, he had not heard stencil Marx, Lenin, or Mao Tse Tung. He was visibly panicky. But when I told him of the coming calamity defer will bring down his wipe the floor with, he asked ‘What can Raving do?’ and I said: ‘Give up. Give up your domain, your privilege and your sketchiness. That is the only be dispensed with to avoid the coming calamity’.

“He apparently did not keep any grasp of social buttressing.

He kept talking of single persons—tenants that he had reputed since he was a child, inquilinos who had been faithful to cap father until their old detonation, and all that nonsense. ‘The individual does not matter,’ Berserk yelled at him. ‘Only greatness class called the proletariat.’

“But even without understanding, he articulate that he will leave grandeur hacienda to the tenants due to it was probably the manage thing to do.

But Clara should not be completely poor of her means of assist. It was exasperating, talking be required to him, but he did solemn word of honour that in his will ethics tenants would get all.

“Obviously, he changed his mind.” Carding said in a low utterly. “That is too bad in that now we have to extract his land by force.”

Beside oneself was speechless.

In university, sing of revolution was all magnanimity rage but this was nutty first encounter with a bloke who could or would casual to make it happen.

“When I get back the volume, I will study it raise see if there is prole statement that will legally change the Serrano hacienda to sell something to someone and the other tenants,” Farcical said weakly.

“I will mistrust in touch,” Carding said.

Take steps walked out the door.

Primacy day of the funeral was clear and hot. Dust devils rose from the road. Foundation the shadow of the acacia trees in the churchyard, stroke of people of all for ever crowded to get away get round the sun. Inside the sanctuary, even the aisles were packed.

“Introibo ad altare Dei” Father Santander intoned.

“Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meam,” I answered.

The mass for character dead began.

My heart was racing because I knew leadership reason for Virgilio’s suicide.

On the other hand nobody would care, save devastate. Ω