JК
Sharpes Devil :: Корнуэлл Бернард
Страница: 58 из 209"Are the townspeople affected? Or just the garrison? Surely someone has thought to ask that simple question, have they not?"
"I don't know, Your Excellency," the hapless Medical Officer replied.
"Then find out! I want answers! Answers! Is it the food? The garrison's water supply? The air? Or just morale?" He stabbed a finger at the Medical Officer. "Answers! Get me answers!"
It was an impressive display, yet Sharpe felt unconvinced by it. It was almost as if Bautista was going through the motions of government merely so that no one could accuse him of dereliction when his province vanished from the maps of the Spanish Empire. He was, Sharpe thought, a young man full of self-importance, but so far Sharpe could see no evidence of anything worse—of, say, the cruelty that made Bautista's name so feared. The Captain-General had resumed pacing up and down before the small and redundant fire, stabbing more questions into his audience as he paced. How many cattle were in Val-divia's slaughter yards? Had the supply ships arrived from Chiloe? Was there any news of Ruiz's regiment? None? How many more weeks must they wait for those extra guns? Had the Puerto Crucero garrison test-fired their heated shot, and if so, what was their rate of fire? How long had it taken to heat the furnace from cold to operational heat? General Bautista suddenly whirled on Sharpe and pointed his finger, just as if Sharpe was one of the subservient officers who responded so meekly to each of Bautista's demands. "You were at Waterloo?" The question was rapped out in the same tone that the General had used to ask about the monthly sick returns.
"Yes, sir."
"Why did Napoleon lose there?"
The question took Sharpe somewhat by surprise, despite Marquinez having warned him that the Captain-General was fascinated by Napoleon and his battles. Did Bautista see himself as a new Napoleon, Sharpe wondered? It was possible. The Captain-General was still a young man and, like his hero, an artillery officer.
"Well?" Bautista chivied Sharpe.
"He underestimated the British infantry," Sharpe said.
"And you, of course, were a British infantryman?" Bautista asked in a sarcastic tone, provoking more sycophantic laughter from his audience. Bautista cut the laughter short with a swift chop of his hand. "I heard that he lost the battle because he waited too long before beginning to fight."
"If he'd have started earlier," Sharpe said, "we'd have beaten him sooner." That, Sharpe knew, was not true.
"I don't know, Your Excellency," the hapless Medical Officer replied.
"Then find out! I want answers! Answers! Is it the food? The garrison's water supply? The air? Or just morale?" He stabbed a finger at the Medical Officer. "Answers! Get me answers!"
It was an impressive display, yet Sharpe felt unconvinced by it. It was almost as if Bautista was going through the motions of government merely so that no one could accuse him of dereliction when his province vanished from the maps of the Spanish Empire. He was, Sharpe thought, a young man full of self-importance, but so far Sharpe could see no evidence of anything worse—of, say, the cruelty that made Bautista's name so feared. The Captain-General had resumed pacing up and down before the small and redundant fire, stabbing more questions into his audience as he paced. How many cattle were in Val-divia's slaughter yards? Had the supply ships arrived from Chiloe? Was there any news of Ruiz's regiment? None? How many more weeks must they wait for those extra guns? Had the Puerto Crucero garrison test-fired their heated shot, and if so, what was their rate of fire? How long had it taken to heat the furnace from cold to operational heat? General Bautista suddenly whirled on Sharpe and pointed his finger, just as if Sharpe was one of the subservient officers who responded so meekly to each of Bautista's demands. "You were at Waterloo?" The question was rapped out in the same tone that the General had used to ask about the monthly sick returns.
"Yes, sir."
"Why did Napoleon lose there?"
The question took Sharpe somewhat by surprise, despite Marquinez having warned him that the Captain-General was fascinated by Napoleon and his battles. Did Bautista see himself as a new Napoleon, Sharpe wondered? It was possible. The Captain-General was still a young man and, like his hero, an artillery officer.
"Well?" Bautista chivied Sharpe.
"He underestimated the British infantry," Sharpe said.
"And you, of course, were a British infantryman?" Bautista asked in a sarcastic tone, provoking more sycophantic laughter from his audience. Bautista cut the laughter short with a swift chop of his hand. "I heard that he lost the battle because he waited too long before beginning to fight."
"If he'd have started earlier," Sharpe said, "we'd have beaten him sooner." That, Sharpe knew, was not true.