the violence coming. Lieutenant Byrd looked back along the road, but he couldn’t see any bunch of goddam tanks. The only thing he could see that was being held up besides the General’s armored car was one seep, or amphibious ieep, which did not seem to be in a hurry.
Here it came. General Marvin shouted: “Throw that goddam cart off the road.”
Colonel Middleton, Lieutenant Byrd and the nice boy from Massachusetts ached all over with regret, but there was nothing they could do but obey. The driver stopped the car. The three got out. They held up the seep and enlisted the puzzled aid of three sergeants who were riding in it.
The six men walked forward on the road with the bass aria of General Marvin’s anger ringing in their ears. They did not have to run to catch up with the cart. That was another thing about the mule of Errante Gaetano which he liked. The mule was good and slow. “It is a mule,” he would say, “which lives in the present and is not always trotting into the future.”
Errante stirred in his sleep. The thunder of his dream was the most beautiful and most continuous thunder he had ever heard.
The six men surrounded the cart. Colonel Middleton reached up to waken Errante, but the General’s roars grew louder. “What are you doing?” he bellowed. “I told you to throw the goddam thing off the road.”
“We were just going to wake this fellow up and get him off first,” Colonel Middleton shouted back, but the shout was weak because he knew what the answer would be.
“Serve him goddam right. Throw him too. Just turn the whole goddam thing over.”
There was no protest from any of the six men. The only thing which was said was muttered by Lieutenant Byrd: “The old man hasn’t been getting enough sleep lately.”
Colonel Middleton went to the head of the mule and guided it to the side of the road. He directed the other five men to take positions on the left side of the cart and to lift together when he gave the signal.
General Marvin roared: “Come on, get it over with. What a bunch of goddam softies. Get it over with.” Colonel Middleton gave the signal. The five men lifted.
In his dream, Errante rose up above the nine-foot fish and soared off into space. The sensation was extremely pleasant.
The cart groaned. The right wheel crumbled around the axle. The whole weight of the thing rolled slowly over into the ditch, and the shafts twisted and upset the mule, and the mule, which had always feared ditches on the right, screamed to find itself falling into what it had feared.
Errante hit the earth hard. He woke up, but what with his dazedness, his drunkenness, his surprise and his natural stupidity, he was unable to do anything except roar wordlessly.
General Marvin was still roaring too. “Serve the sonofabitch right,” he shouted. “Holding up traffic. Trying to stop the goddam invasion.”
A new fury rushed up the General’s cheeks. “Middleton,” he shouted, “shoot that goddam mule.”
Colonel Middleton’s blood froze. He shouted back: “Do you think it’s wise, sir?”
The General shouted: “What’s that? Goddamit, what’s that?”
Colonel Middleton knew it was hopeless but he shouted again: “I said, do you think it is wise, sir?” Trying to reason with any man, and especially with this man, at two hundred feet and the top of one’s lungs was not rewarding work.
The General shouted: “Goddamit, Middleton, you trying to stop the goddam invasion too? Do what I say.” So Colonel Middleton pulled out his Colt and fired three shots into the head of the screaming mule.
All this was accomplished before Errante Gaetano was able to shape his roaring into words. He stood there in absolute amazement at the shooting.
General Marvin shouted: “Let’s go, goddamit, can’t spend all day here
The men got back into the armored car and the seep. As they started up, General Marvin said: “Got to teach these people a lesson. Take me to the mayor of this goddam town,
Here it came. General Marvin shouted: “Throw that goddam cart off the road.”
Colonel Middleton, Lieutenant Byrd and the nice boy from Massachusetts ached all over with regret, but there was nothing they could do but obey. The driver stopped the car. The three got out. They held up the seep and enlisted the puzzled aid of three sergeants who were riding in it.
The six men walked forward on the road with the bass aria of General Marvin’s anger ringing in their ears. They did not have to run to catch up with the cart. That was another thing about the mule of Errante Gaetano which he liked. The mule was good and slow. “It is a mule,” he would say, “which lives in the present and is not always trotting into the future.”
Errante stirred in his sleep. The thunder of his dream was the most beautiful and most continuous thunder he had ever heard.
The six men surrounded the cart. Colonel Middleton reached up to waken Errante, but the General’s roars grew louder. “What are you doing?” he bellowed. “I told you to throw the goddam thing off the road.”
“We were just going to wake this fellow up and get him off first,” Colonel Middleton shouted back, but the shout was weak because he knew what the answer would be.
“Serve him goddam right. Throw him too. Just turn the whole goddam thing over.”
There was no protest from any of the six men. The only thing which was said was muttered by Lieutenant Byrd: “The old man hasn’t been getting enough sleep lately.”
Colonel Middleton went to the head of the mule and guided it to the side of the road. He directed the other five men to take positions on the left side of the cart and to lift together when he gave the signal.
General Marvin roared: “Come on, get it over with. What a bunch of goddam softies. Get it over with.” Colonel Middleton gave the signal. The five men lifted.
In his dream, Errante rose up above the nine-foot fish and soared off into space. The sensation was extremely pleasant.
The cart groaned. The right wheel crumbled around the axle. The whole weight of the thing rolled slowly over into the ditch, and the shafts twisted and upset the mule, and the mule, which had always feared ditches on the right, screamed to find itself falling into what it had feared.
Errante hit the earth hard. He woke up, but what with his dazedness, his drunkenness, his surprise and his natural stupidity, he was unable to do anything except roar wordlessly.
General Marvin was still roaring too. “Serve the sonofabitch right,” he shouted. “Holding up traffic. Trying to stop the goddam invasion.”
A new fury rushed up the General’s cheeks. “Middleton,” he shouted, “shoot that goddam mule.”
Colonel Middleton’s blood froze. He shouted back: “Do you think it’s wise, sir?”
The General shouted: “What’s that? Goddamit, what’s that?”
Colonel Middleton knew it was hopeless but he shouted again: “I said, do you think it is wise, sir?” Trying to reason with any man, and especially with this man, at two hundred feet and the top of one’s lungs was not rewarding work.
The General shouted: “Goddamit, Middleton, you trying to stop the goddam invasion too? Do what I say.” So Colonel Middleton pulled out his Colt and fired three shots into the head of the screaming mule.
All this was accomplished before Errante Gaetano was able to shape his roaring into words. He stood there in absolute amazement at the shooting.
General Marvin shouted: “Let’s go, goddamit, can’t spend all day here
The men got back into the armored car and the seep. As they started up, General Marvin said: “Got to teach these people a lesson. Take me to the mayor of this goddam town,
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