‘We could have dug our own wells. Brought water
from the river. But no. The Government had to go and dig that big canal. Said
we had to use their water. Government water. Not ours. That was our mistake. We
should have said no at the very first. That is when we started to lose our
freedom.’ He sobs. His wife tries to comfort him. He adds ‘The water was almost
free. What could we do?’ “They just gave you the water?” I ask. ‘No we had to
pay a small amount. For “maintenance” they said. And they made us tell them how
much we would need and gave us that and a half more.’ I don’t know what to say
so I ask “did this change?” ‘Change! Change! What do you think I am talking
about?’ He starts to sob some more. ‘Now they want us to tell them what we grow
and how much water that takes. So that we don’t waste water they say. Waste! We
know what we are doing. They made us take government water. Government water! What
more can they want from us?’ And he continues to sob. But does not say anything
more finally. The food is still good. Someday I will remember the city motto. As
we finish eating Uncle and Lewis quietly get up. I say a very polite ‘good bye’
and we quickly leave. As we walk out to the truck Uncle says “water is never
just water.”
When we are back at the house and saying goodbye we
hear Ruby coming up the ramp. She flies in through the air and turning the
wheels on her boots sideway slides to a stop on the floor near us. “I hear
there was some to do in town about water” she says smiling "all that wine gone?"
We will not have to stop at Baugh on our way back.
I tell Lewis that his father in a generous man
giving Uncle that wine. Lewis says Uncle sent him up some parts he made a while ago that
got some old machinery at the vineyards running again. We will get back early so I will have some time to start to look at my journals
from Alta again. Talking with Lewis these last few days helped me remember more
to add to them.
***
After
my time in Alta was completed I had over a month before I had to be back in
Nations’ Capital to finish my school project. All I knew about the country and
why our military had to go there was what I read in the newspapers and the news
magazines and heard on the radio. And what the military told us. So I ‘learned’
enough that I would defend the mission to my fellow soldiers. How the whole Southern
Continent would become ‘de-stabilized’ and the rest. Some would give me funny
looks. Others would shake their heads. After I was back home I thought I might
be wrong. I went to the Library to read and learn more than what I thought I
knew. And at the end of my time learning I wrote a short ‘History for Willson’
so the ‘why’ of it all would make sense to me. This is what I wrote:
In a
land far to the south of The Nation on the western coast of the Southern
Continent there is a small mountain country called Alta. The most
important part of the economy and life in Alta has been the railroad. That is
what they had. The railroad was very old, built over 150 years earlier. It went
across the mountains and connected every part of the country. It connected
regions that would only otherwise find one another by travel on foot on narrow
mountain trails or the long way by sea and then by foot. Some of the lines ran
on rails that were at the edge of high mountains. The government owned and ran
the railroad. It was old but with much effort the railroad people, who passed
down the jobs from one generation to another, by building replacement parts,
and with volunteer help from a large number of the population to repair rail
beds, were able to keep the railroad operating. Some families worked for generations
in the shops that made replacement parts for the railroad. The railroad made
all commerce between the separated parts of the country possible. People would
bring their goods across the mountains to larger markets. For example sponges
from the seashore to the capital in the mountains and fruits from the mountains
to the markets in the valleys.
The
country had a railroad because it had been (and still was) the main world
supplier of ‘memory powder”, which was mined by local groups of villagers in
the high mountains. This valuable substance was essential in the manufacture of
early radios, computers, and other electric equipment. And is still used to
some extent now. When mining companies from Old World first learned about
memory powder in Alta the rulers of Alta made it a condition that the companies
help build a railroad that would connect all parts of the country. Memory
powder was so valuable in these early years, and the railroad made it much
easier to bring the powder down to the coast, that the companies agreed. The
general economy was also helped because most of the workers building the
railroad had wages to spend for the first time in their lives. Construction and
equipment was mostly paid for in the first 30 years or so of intensive memory
powder mining. And the government paid for the bonds they issued from taxes
collected from the money workers had to spend.
After
these 150 years though the government of Alta realized that the railroad was now
a slow ‘primitive’ system that could benefit from new equipment. More and more
essential parts could no longer be repaired and needed replacement. Countries
in Old World offered some help. The government of The Nation invited Alta to
send a delegation to discuss what would help the railroad and their general
economy. It was reported that Advisor Stuhl said ‘We can do some good here.’ It
was not long before the Cockh Bros were alerted of the possibilities of ‘value’
in these discussions. The Nation promised to bring better government and
prosperity to the country. To make local businesses ‘prosperous.’ Alta would be
one of the first ‘successes’ of Stuhl.
Stuhl
soon expanded the discussions to include matters of the country’s ‘military
security.’ Might they also want to ‘modernize’ their armed forces? This would
be of course of no cost to the country. And The Nation would feel much more
inclined to offer aid and knowledge if there was ‘improved security.’ And so
ambitious mid-grade military officers in Alta were invited to study at The
Nation’s military facilities. Here they learned of the dangers of ‘subversion’,
of ‘radical ideas’ and of ‘weakness’ and ‘corruption’ in popularly-elected
governments. Of the danger of ‘corruption’ of youth by ‘subversive elements’ in
the University. And of the ‘inefficiency’ in the way the railroad was run and
maintained. Of the ‘danger’ of labor unions and how to ‘discipline labor.’ Of
‘cronyism’ in the families who worked on the railroad. Of the ‘amateurism’ of
the people who volunteered their time. Of ‘lax morals’ in the population. And
the dangers of top rank officers too ‘entrenched’ in old ideas. And overall the
need for ‘duty and order’ in a modern society. And soon there was a large loan
to the Alta’s Central Bank.
The Nation also
stressed the importance of religion in a ‘prosperous modern’ society. The
Country had always had the religion of the Old World. With the large ornate
churches. Elaborate ritual in the services. The people also holding ceremonies
of the indigenous people in the churches, and markets in front of the churches.
The clergy had admitted women. Women in the ceremonies. Clergy drinks wine. So Stuhl
sent missionaries, some from “Tellin’ Bubba’s ministry (For the Least of These), to preach ‘free enterprise’ and ‘morals.’
No more drinking of spirits or wine. And the proper place for women in a ‘family
based’ society.
Soon
the young military officers of Alta trained in The Nation organized themselves
and overthrew the government. They imposed ‘private enterprise’ to solve the
country’s ‘problems.’ They “privatized’ the railroad (sold to Cockh Bros at a
discount.) The Bros closed ‘un-profitable’ lines, the ones that went to the
more remote areas. These lines soon fell into such bad repair they might never
be used again anyway. Some parts of the country were completely cut off. When
other countries protested at this injustice, the answer was that by this time
it would be much ‘too expensive’ to rebuild the lines. Alta found they would
have to use much of its primary education and public hospital funds to repay
the loan to their Central Bank.
Soon
there were revolts by the people of Alta in all outlying parts of the country. And in
some parts of the cities. The military leaders lost all battles against the determined
rebels. They called upon the Nation for military assistance to quell the ‘subversives’
before they destroyed the established order of the entire South Hemisphere
continent. And if that happened hoards of armed subversives would next come
through Sonora and invade the southern border of The Nation.
And so our military, and that meant me too, were
sent to help. I know that I do not remember everything about my time in Alta. I
did not have time to think about much then. I flew there on a plane loaded with
large boxes. I was between boxes that kept moving around and squeezing me. I was
sore and bruised even before I arrived. And I was the whole time I was there.
The plane landed at dawn. As soon as I got off I was ordered into the back of a
truck with some other soldiers and more boxes. The truck let us off near the
airport in the middle of stacks and stacks of boxes. Our job was to unpack these.
They were filled with military equipment. And with ovens and barstools and
tables and glassware for the Officer’s club. And similar for the Foreign
Officer’s Club. The ‘Foreign Officers’ being the officers in the Alta military.
I worked for almost a week there unboxing and sorting equipment. Large trucks
would then come and take it away. Several times I was knocked down by small
motor carts carrying large boxes. My time there ended when I was packed into a
truck with more boxes and taken to a military Training Base a day’s travel across
the country. This was a few miles outside of Alta’s largest city, Llano. There
we learned that we were fortunate to be in such a ‘safe’ area because of the
size of the city and the large number of military from Alta being trained. Also
our military had set up a camp about a quarter of a mile away between us and
the rebel areas in the countryside. The base is where I first met Lewis.
(continued on Page 5)
Thomas
McDonald,
Arroyo
Country, 2016 ©