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I am indebted to him. Yesterday marked another
anniversary of his physical death. There are
over forty versions of how it occurred, but all
concur on several details that are of great
interest.
Maceo was in the company of young Francisco
Gómez Toro, who had entered Cuba through the
west of Pinar del Rio, as part of the expedition
headed by General Rius Rivera. Previously
wounded in one arm, Panchito travelled next to
Maceo from one shore of the Mariel Bay to the
other. With them were 17 brave officers from his
general staff, a number of marines and only one
escort.
That day, the 7th, in the
camp they had improvised in the vicinity of
Punta Brava, Maceo and his officers heard the
account of Miró Argenter, author of War
Chronicles, on the events of the combat of
Coliseo, where the invading column had defeated
General Martínez Campos’ troops. For several
days now, Maceo had been suffering a high
epidemic fever and pains as a result of his
wounds.
At around 3 in the afternoon, heavy gunfire
was heard some 200 kilometres away from the camp
located to the west of Ciudad de La Habana, the
capital of the Spanish colony. Maceo is angered
by the surprise attack, as he had ordered
constant exploratory efforts, which was the
customary practice among his expert troops. He
asks for a bugler in order to give new orders,
but none was available at that moment.
He mounts his horse quickly and rides
towards the enemy. He orders that an opening be
made on the wire fence standing between him and
the attackers. Noting the enemy’s apparent
retreat, he exclaims “things are looking up”,
seconds before a bullet severs his carotid
artery.
Having heard the news, Panchito Gómez Toro
arrives at the camp, resolved to die next to
Maceo’s fallen body. He attempts to commit
suicide when he finds himself surrounded and is
about to be taken prisoner. Before this happens,
he writes a very short and moving farewell note
to his family. The small dagger, the one weapon
he carried with him besides the revolver, could
not be driven in with enough force by the one
hand he could still use. An enemy soldier, on
seeing that someone was moving among the dead,
slit his neck with a machete and nearly cut off
his head.
Maceo’s death greatly demoralizes the
patriotic troops, made up, for the most part, of
inexperienced soldiers.
On hearing what had occurred, Mambí
Colonel Juan Delgado, from the Santiago de las
Vegas regiment, set off in search of Maceo.
The enemy had been in possession of the body
and had taken its personal belongings, unaware
that it was Maceo, whose feats were known and
admired the world over.
The troops headed by Juan Delgado, in a show
of courage, rescued the lifeless bodies of the
Titan and his young aide, son of Chief General
Máximo Gómez. They buried them after long hours
of marching along the heights of El Cacahual. At
the time, the Cuban patriots did not say a word
that could give away this valuable secret.
For every Cuban, Marti’s frowning
countenance and Maceo’s withering look point to
the arduous path of duty, not to a more
comfortable life. We must read and reflect much
on these ideas.
Fidel Castro Ruz
December 8, 2007
8:05 p.m. |
