Pío Baroja's ‘Beizama’: A Crime Retold

This article was downloaded by: [Istanbul Universitesi Kutuphane ve Dok]On: 21 December 2014, At: 00:11Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registeredoffice: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK

Bulletin of Spanish Studies: HispanicStudies and Researches on Spain,Portugal and Latin AmericaPublication details, including instructions for authors andsubscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cbhs20

Pío Baroja's ‘Beizama’: A Crime RetoldLynn Kitchen aa All Saints Catholic School , MansfieldPublished online: 02 Nov 2011.

To cite this article: Lynn Kitchen (2011) Pío Baroja's ‘Beizama’: A Crime Retold, Bulletin of SpanishStudies: Hispanic Studies and Researches on Spain, Portugal and Latin America, 88:7-8, 233-246,DOI: 10.1080/14753820.2011.620319

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14753820.2011.620319

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the“Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis,our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as tothe accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinionsand views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors,and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Contentshould not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sourcesof information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims,proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoeveror howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to orarising out of the use of the Content.

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Anysubstantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing,systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms &Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cbhs20

http://www.tandfonline.com/action/showCitFormats?doi=10.1080/14753820.2011.620319

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14753820.2011.620319

http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

Pıo Baroja’s ‘Beizama’: A Crime Retold

LYNN KITCHEN

All Saints Catholic School, Mansfield

It is a well-known fact that Baroja re-uses material that he finds fascinatingor believes to be intriguing. It is a practice that he refers to in his memoirs. InFamilia, infancia y juventud he speaks of a neighbour who used to tell‘historias de la epoca de la guerra carlista que eran bastante interesantes ypintorescas’. He adds: ‘Algunas, a pesar de recordarlas muy vagamente, mesirvieron para las Memorias de un hombre de accion, transportandolas de lasegunda a la primera guerra civil’.1 The latter part of Baroja’s phrase isparticularly significant for it reveals an additional technique of his: theinsertion of a specific story or event into a different historical period, themovement of an episode forwards or backwards in time.

‘Silencio’, the fourth book of El cabo de las tormentas,2 was completed inMay 1931 and included as part of the trilogy La selva oscura.3 It is basedupon a mysterious crime, ‘El crimen de Beizama’, that was committed in theBasque country in November 1926. A comparison of Baroja’s portrayal of thisparticularly brutal and shocking case of double murder with the accountprovided by the press at the time would be in itself worthy of investigation.But it becomes doubly interesting when we consider that this is not the firsttime that Baroja has incorporated this specific crime within his literarytexts. In 1927 he wrote Las mascaradas sangrientas, a novel that formedpart of the Memorias de un hombre de accion. The central, and indeed mostcompelling, part of this text is that which recounts the violent murder of twowomen in an isolated house in the Basque countryside. Clearly ‘El crimen deBeizama’, which occurred in 1926, has been used by Baroja on two separate

1 Pıo Baroja, Obras completas, 8 vols (Madrid: Biblioteca Nueva, 1946�52), VII, 551.Further references to the Obras completas will be given in parentheses in the text. Owing tochanges of pagination between printings, references may vary by several pages.

2 Pıo Baroja, El cabo de las tormentas (Madrid: Caro Raggio, 1974). Future pagereferences will be to this edition.

3 The Francoist censors excluded Book two ‘El contagio’ from the Obras completasversion. This explains why ‘Silencio’ is Book three in the Obras completas and Book four in the1974 version that I am using.

ISSN 1475-3820 print/ISSN 1478-3428 online/11/007�08/000233-14# Bulletin of Spanish Studies. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14753820.2011.620319

Bulletin of Spanish Studies, Volume LXXXVIII, Numbers 7�8, 2011

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14753820.2011.620319

occasions, once in 1927 and once in 1931. The difference between them,however, is that Las mascaradas sangrientas is set, not in the contemporaryworld, but almost a century earlier in 1839. Any study of ‘Silencio’ in La selvaoscura must inevitably also encompass a study of the crime described sointricately in Las mascaradas sangrientas. Given Baroja’s procedure oftransporting events back in time it will be necessary to investigate how heuses an actual event in two separate texts set in different historical momentswithin the space of four years and how, if at all, he treats the informationdifferently when he projects a modern crime back to 1839. In what followsthe approach to the two versions of the ‘crimen de Beizama’ will be based onmy own collation of Baroja’s versions with those I found in the local press andwhich were undoubtedly Baroja’s main source of information. What becomesclear is that there are in fact two entirely different and totally contrastingportrayals given.

Nevertheless some similarities do exist between the two accounts; theselie mainly in the same reported facts that Baroja has woven into both of thestories, such as Jacinta’s attempt to poison her family. El Pueblo Vascopublishes the following details from an interview with the owner of the housein which the two women were killed:

Hace mas de dos anos, cuando tuvieron la rina Bibiana y Marıa contraJacinta, esta se puso a asar unas manzanas. Las comieron Bibiana yMarıa, pero la madre comio muy poco porque tenıan mal gusto. Marıacomio mas, aunque tambien diciendo que sabıan mal. Pocos momentosdespues empezo a vomitar y por ese motivo la madre sospecho que su hijaJacinta las habıa querido envenenar. Registro una botella que tenıan conveneno para matar ratones y se encontro con que no quedaba ya casinada, aunque hacıa pocos dıas habıa visto que la botella tenıa todavıabastante veneno.4

Baroja uses this information in Las mascaradas sangrientas: ‘La Tiburciaquiso envenenar a la Veremunda y a su madre, espolvoreando un plato demanzanas asadas con polvos para matar ratones’ (OC, IV, 498). The samedetail forms part of ‘Silencio’, although in this text the attempted poisoning isof the stepsister only (CT, 164�65). The gruesome element of this callous actis clearly deemed by Baroja worthy of inclusion in both novels.

Jacinta’s role as instigator of the murder of her mother and stepsister isalso reflected by Baroja in both texts. La Voz de Guipuzcoa reports that‘parece cosa demostrada que Jacinta Odriozola ha jugado en el drama que hacostado la vida a su madre y a su hermana el papel de inductora’.5 In Las

4 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 23 November 1926, p. 3.5 Anon.,‘El doble crimen de ‘‘Corosagasti’’ ’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 27 November 1926,

p. 6.

234 BSS, LXXXVIII (2011) LYNN KITCHEN

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

mascaradas sangrientas when Bertache recounts to la Tiburcia hisunderstanding of her role in the double murder, we learn: ‘Quiza nocomprendıa la gravedad del hecho y no pensaba que inducir a un crimenpodıa ser tan criminal como ejecutarle’ (OC, IV, 513). Clearly she paved theway for a crime to be committed. In ‘Silencio’ Baroja describes each of theprisoners held for the crime. Jacinta is introduced as ‘la principal heroına delcrimen; al parecer, la inspiradora’ (CT, 164).

With regard to the actual murderer, both of Baroja’s stories identify himas a man from a neighbouring family, as do reports in the newspaper. ElPueblo Vasco provides news about Jose Joaquın Arancegui ‘a quien JacintaOdriozola ha senalado como el autor de la muerte de su madre yhermanastra’.6 This information is reflected in ‘Silencio’ when we learnthat ‘La Jacinta afirmo la culpabilidad del mayorazgo de Arancegui’ (CT,164). In Las mascaradas sangrientas one of two local brothers, the Iturmendibrothers, is observed as he commits the crime (OC, IV, 504�05), and thebrothers are later given details by Bertache of how they carried out thekillings and of the plan that they formed (OC, IV, 513). All accounts point tothe involvement in the crime of a member or members of a family known toboth the instigator and the victims.

An additional reported fact that Baroja incorporates into both of the textsis that of one of the sisters of the Arancegui family washing bloodstainedclothing early the following day. El Pueblo Vasco provides the declaration ofthe sister who states that she was given ‘una blusa manchada de sangre queestuvo lavando en las primeras horas de la madrugada del domingo’.7 In Lasmascaradas sangrientas Maluenda, having witnessed the crime, follows laTiburcia to the house of the Iturmendi brothers where she talks to one oftheir sisters who ‘tenıa unas blusas en la mano, y lloraba’ (OC, IV, 507). Welearn that ‘Maluenda creyo ver que las blusas que lavaba la muchacha sehallaban manchadas de sangre’ (OC, IV, 507). In ‘Silencio’ when one of theArancegui sisters appears before the judge the reader is informed that ‘deesta se dijo que lavo las blusas manchadas de sangre de sus hermanos’ (CT,164). The aforementioned examples all illustrate similarities between thetwo novels based on ‘El crimen de Beizama’ as both make use of identicalfacts gleaned from the newspapers.

Further use of reported fact, however, highlights fundamentaldifferences between the two texts. Facts assimilated in Las mascaradassangrientas tend to be of a more dramatic nature as they are associatedprimarily with the protagonists of the crime and with the details of themurders. The hatred between the two stepsisters, due to the mother’spreference for Marıa, is outlined by El Pueblo Vasco: ‘Lo que sı confesoJacinta fue que tenıa verdadero odio a su madre y hermanastra, porque

6 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 30 November 1926, p. 3.7 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 9 December 1926, p. 3.

PIO BAROJA’S ‘BEIZAMA’: A CRIME RETOLD 235

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

Bibiana querıa mas a Marıa que a ella’.8 This rivalry stemming from themother’s favouritism is reflected in Las mascaradas sangrientas (OC, IV,487). A further dramatic fact concerning the stepsisters is exposed. A briefreference in the newspapers to ‘la hipotesis de que hubo, anteriormente aldoble crimen, algunos infanticidios’9 is seized upon by Baroja andincorporated into the ‘porcion de infamias’ (OC, IV, 488) that each sisteraccuses the other of in Las mascaradas sangrientas (OC, IV, 488).

Other reported facts that Baroja draws upon in Las mascaradassangrientas for their melodramatic effect are those that relate specificallyto the murders. El Pueblo Vasco delineates the circumstances of the crime:

El criminal llamo a la puerta de ‘Cogosagasti’ y salio Marıa para abrir lapuerta, en cuyo momento la saludo dandole un abrazo. Al mismo tiempo yempunando el arma homicida, la dio la terrible punalada que la hizo caera los pocos minutos sin vida.10

An earlier report also establishes precisely where she was mortally wounded:‘Ha quedado demostrado, de manera evidente, que la muerte de MarıaOdriozola fue ocasionada por haberle agredido el asesino por la espalda’.11

Baroja’s narrative of her murder in Las mascaradas sangrientas reveals thesame facts concerning where she was injured and includes the macabredetail of the murderer’s embrace of Marıa immediately prior to stabbing her.Baroja writes that the murderer ‘entro en el zaguan, y se acerco a la mujercomo para abrazarla’ (OC, IV, 504). The gruesome vision of Marıa’s body‘tendido en un charco de sangre’ (OC, IV, 505) is also taken directly from thenewspapers.12 Baroja’s description of the attempted escape of Maria’s motherwith a lamp in her hand (OC, IV, 505) is based upon a further detail gatheredfrom the press: ‘Bibiana, entonces, debio huir, llevando un farol encendido,que ha sido hallado al lado de su cadaver’.13

Use of reported fact continues to be discernible in ‘Silencio’ yet thefacts used by Baroja in this version of events tend to be more banal,connected as they are to the aftermath of the crime rather than to theimplementation of it. Nevertheless the situation of the murders in‘Silencio’ in their true era, a time of peace, adds to the dramatic impactof the crime; this impact is not diminished, as in Las mascaradassangrientas, by situating a brutal event among countless other acts ofviolence.

8 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 24 November 1926, p. 3.9 Anon.,‘El crimen de ‘‘Corosagasti’’ ’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 7 December 1926, p. 6.

10 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 3 December 1926, p. 3.11 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 21 November 1926, p. 3.12 Anon.,‘Un crimen horrendo y misterioso en Beizama’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 16

November 1926, pp. 8�9 (p. 8).13 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 16 November 1926, p. 3.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

Rumours concerning acts of cruelty to Jacinta whilst in prison arereported by the press: ‘Se ha rumoreado tercamente [ . . . ] que Jacinta estabasujeta, en su celda, por grilletes y cadenas, e incluso que se le habıan aplicadocastigos corporales’.14 Although these rumours are dismissed in the samearticle they are clearly of interest to Baroja who includes the possibility oftorture in his novel (CT, 156).

Complaints by the judge about the ‘mala fe’ of some of the witnesses thatappear before him result in the following anecdote published by El PuebloVasco about a witness called Mugica summoned before the judge to giveevidence: ‘Llego hasta el arrastrando las piernas y diciendo que estababaldado. Una vez que termino de declarar, salio cojeando igualmente; pero encuanto perdio de vista la carcel, echo a correr sin tener la menor dificultad demovimientos’.15 Such amusing facts are tailor-made for Baroja, providinghim with an entertaining episode which he uses at the same time to revealthe duplicity of the witnesses involved in the case:

Este Mugica, una de las veces, se presento ante el juez como baldado,apoyandose en un palo; afirmo que estaba reumatico; por eso no se habıapresentado a declarar al ser llamado. Despues de la declaracion salio delJuzgado cojeando ostentosamente y ası fue por la calle, y cuando llego aun sendero, en donde creyo que no le veıa nadie, echo a correr como ungamo. (CT, 165�66)

Another example of deception mentioned in the press is equally seizedupon by Baroja and used in ‘Silencio’. The newspapers outline the advantagegained by a prisoner if he requests to have a translator. It is commented thatif he has even a slight understanding of Spanish ‘puede darse cuenta delalcance de la pregunta y tener tiempo para la respuesta mientras elinterprete hace la traduccion’.16 Baroja uses this information to highlightthe cunning and dissimulation of those detained for the murders, in additionto the difficulty of establishing the truth of what had occurred. He notes,regarding one prisoner, that ‘sabe lo bastante el castellano para entender lapregunta; pero finge que no sabe; entonces el interprete le tiene que traducirla frase, y esto le da tiempo para pensar la contestacion’ (CT, 164).

A final interesting fact that Baroja includes in ‘Silencio’ is the existence ofseveral anonymous letters connected with the murders (CT, 159). The sourceof Baroja’s information regarding this can once again be traced to detailsexposed by the newspapers: ‘El secretario del Ayuntamiento de Beizama,senor Aguirre, que ha ayudado con gran celo a la labor judicial, recibio hacedıas un anonimo, que entrego inmediatamente al juez’.17

14 Anon.,‘El doble crimen de Beizama’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 25 November 1926, p. 8.15 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 30 November 1926, p. 3.16 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 20 November 1926, p. 3.17 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 30 November 1926, p. 3.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

Baroja’s reliance upon documented facts in the writing of both texts basedupon the Beizama crime cannot be disputed. Certain facts are included inboth novels and, where he incorporates different facts into each of the texts,those included in Las mascaradas sangrientas are inevitably more dramatic,pertaining as they do to the execution of the crime itself. Those used in‘Silencio’ are in general more light-hearted and tend to show the prisoners ina negative light. Reported information is selected to reflect the centralpreoccupation of each individual story.

Inclusion of reported facts in his novels is not, however, Baroja’s onlyapproach to the Beizama crime. Changes are also made to the informationprovided by the newspapers. In Las mascaradas sangrientas, of course, themost obvious change is Baroja’s projection of the crime back almost ahundred years to a turbulent era in order to give a vivid picture of the killing,pillaging, and bloodthirsty violence that occurred as a result of thedisintegration of Carlist forces in 1839. Baroja mentions his avid curiosityfor both past and present events simultaneously and explains his practice inthe following way: ‘No puedo dedicarme de lleno a una cosa sin sentircuriosidad por las otras; ası, mientras escribo una novela que pasa en el ano1833, necesito hablar de lo que ocurre en el presente’ (OC, V, 229). Clearly,for Baroja, the contemporary nature of current events both intrudes upon,and lends intensity and authenticity to those he is narrating in the past.

In Las mascaradas sangrientas even the most basic details are changed.Jacinta becomes la Tiburcia and Marıa is la Veremunda, her stepsister. Themurderers do not have the surname of Arancegui, but are called insteadIturmendi. In addition to changing the names of the protagonists of thedrama Baroja also changes the name of the house where the murdersoccurred. He gives it the more dramatic name of Oyambeltz, which heexplains means ‘el bosque negro’ (OC, IV, 496), instead of Cogosagasti. In‘Silencio’, however, Baroja retains the true names of the people and placesinvolved.

A particularly noticeable change is made in Las mascaradassangrientas to the scene of the daughter’s death. She is stabbed at thefront door where she dies almost instantaneously so that her mother, uponarriving ‘a la puerta del caserıo’ (OC, IV, 505), has no means of escapefrom the house other than ‘cruzando el charco de sangre y saltandorapidamente por encima de la muerta’ (OC, IV, 505). The newspapersreport, however, an entirely different version of events. According to LaVoz de Guipuzcoa, on feeling herself injured Marıa, terrified, ran towardsthe stairs inside the house. The newspaper summarizes her actions in thefollowing way:

Mari-Juana, dejando un sangriento rastro, llego al primer descansillo y aduras penas salvo el segundo tramo de la escalera, donde cayo exanime.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

Venciole el cuerpo y Mari-Juana rodo hasta el primer descansillo, dondequedo muerta en la posicion que hemos ya explicado.18

For Baroja, it is far more theatrical to centre all the action at the front doorwhere it is entirely visible to the witness hiding in a nearby hut.

Details of the mother’s death are also altered. Articles in the press notethat she ran out of the house, pursued by the murderer, who, upon reachingher, ‘le dio por la espalda dos punaladas en el costado derecho, cayendo laanciana desplomada en el lugar donde fue hallada por su hija’.19 In Baroja’sversion she, unlike her daughter, is murdered by two men whose weapon isan axe (OC, IV, 505). There is no doubt that Baroja’s intention in adaptingreported information is to heighten the horrific nature of the crime andthereby to raise questions about the nature of criminal behaviour.

Other pieces of reported information are also transformed. In Lasmascaradas sangrientas Baroja states of la Tiburcia that ‘llevaba elcamino de ser desheredada’ (OC, IV, 487). The latter also complains thather mother and sister ‘le habıan quitado dinero y tierras, helechales,gallinas y corderos’ (OC, IV, 489). Such comments, revealing resentmentand family discord, provide la Tiburcia with a possible motive for murder.This particular motive is noticeably absent in the newspaper articles. It isreported that due to disputes Jacinta decided to abandon the family homeand her mother gave her financial compensation for this as she was theeldest daughter.20 With the comment that ‘con esto se reanudaron lasbuenas relaciones, marchando Jacinta a Tolosa hara ano y medio’21 itappears that Baroja’s hints of revenge and disinheritance as motives areinfinitely more picturesque than the reality of the situation between theeldest daughter and her family. They may also be an attempt by Baroja,due to his horror of the potential depravity of the human being, torationalize or justify sentiments which are fundamentally irrational. Inreality the breakdown of social order due to the war has resulted in abreakdown of moral order, a view wholly in consonance with those of laterwriters, such as philosopher Georges Bataille or novelist William Golding,not to mention Baroja’s contemporary, Sigmund Freud.

Robbery is a further explanation for the killings expounded by Baroja. Herecounts that in her conversation with the Iturmendi brothers la Tiburciamentioned that her mother kept a large quantity of money hidden in the

18 Anon.,‘Un crimen horrendo y misterioso en Beizama’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 16November 1926, pp. 8�9 (p. 9).

19 Anon.,‘Un crimen horrendo y misterioso en Beizama’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 16November 1926, p. 9.




Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

house (OC, IV, 489). Having committed the murders the two men re-enterthe house ‘y aparecieron cada uno con dos grandes fardos al hombro’ (OC, IV,505). Later Bertache threatens to shoot the two brothers ‘si no entregaban eldinero que habıan robado en el caserıo’ (OC, IV, 513) and, when searched, theelder brother is found to have upon him ‘una bolsa llena de oro’ (OC, IV, 513).This story of hidden money, mysterious bundles removed from the house andbags of gold provides a far more gripping motive for murder than thenewspapers could uncover; a report states that ‘a pesar de haber aparecidorevuelto todo el caserıo, se considera seguro que no se cometio el crimen paraefectuar el robo’.22

A further fact that Baroja manipulates in Las mascaradas sangrientas isthe role of the dog in allowing access to the house on the night of themurders. The view reported by the press is that ‘el crimen debio ser realizadopor persona que frecuentara la casa y a quien conociera el perro para dejarlaentrar tranquilamente en el caserıo’.23 In Las mascaradas sangrientasBaroja uses the same supposition concerning the dog but subverts it sothat it points to the presence of strangers. A witness testifies that ‘durantetoda la noche del crimen estuvo ladrando el perro de casa, lo que les hizopensar que andaba gente extrana por los alrededores’ (OC, IV, 514�15). Yetat the same time Baroja remarks that this statement may have been madedue to fear of the brothers, and he adds that it was given by a friend of theirs(OC, IV, 514). Consequently he uses accounts concerning the reaction of thedog to reveal how information can be distorted so as to point to a differentconclusion. Uncertainty as to whether the dog barked or not and thesignificance of this are also alluded to briefly in ‘Silencio’ (CT, 171). Byseizing upon the role played by the dog in the drama Baroja makesinteresting use of a passing comment in the newspapers.

A further change involves the daughter who discovered their bodies.Upon making this discovery El Pueblo Vasco reports that ‘comenzo a dargritos en demanda de socorro’, adding that ‘en vista de que nadie pasaba poraquel lugar, marcho a Beizama para dar cuenta de lo ocurrido’.24 Her actionsappear entirely normal. In Baroja’s texts, however, there is no evidence thatthe daughter informs anyone of the horrendous scene that she has comeacross. In Las mascaradas sangrientas we are told that ‘contemplo a suhermanastra y a su madre, muertas, con una terrible serenidad, y despues sefue a la borda, la abrio y paso revista al ganado’ (OC, IV, 506). News of thecrime is received in the town, but there is no explicit reference as to exactlywho reported it (OC, IV, 514). In ‘Silencio’ the fact that Jacinta kept quietabout what she had seen is even more overt: ‘Vio a su madre y a suhermanastra asesinadas; recogio el ganado en la borda proxima a la casa, lo

22 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 16 November 1926, p. 3.23 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 16 November 1926, p. 3.24 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 16 November 1926, p. 3.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

que sin duda le preocupaba, y se volvio al pueblo sin decir palabra a nadie’(CT, 165). Baroja makes Jacinta a far more sinister character in his novels bypresenting her lack of reaction upon finding her mother and stepsistermurdered, her silence concerning the crime, and her disproportionateconcern for the livestock. All the aforementioned changes woven by Barojainto both texts, but particularly noticeable in Las mascaradas sangrientas,are clearly intended to highlight the apparent lack of any moral sensitivity aswell as to enhance the visual and dramatic effect of his stories.

In Las mascaradas sangrientas Baroja uses creative details intermingledwith facts concerning the crime as a further means by which to capture theinterest of his readers. The existence of a witness to the murders is a far moredramatic way of presenting the crime, particularly as this witness,Maluenda, later recounts what he saw to both Bertache and Alvaro. Otherelements enhance the description. The spectator believes that a mysteriousthird figure is also present which he describes as a shadow or a silhouette(OC, IV, 505). His terror at being alone in an isolated area of the countrysideat night, with the killers possibly still in the vicinity, is also evoked: ‘Laoscuridad le atemorizaba’ (OC, IV, 505). Furthermore, Maluenda has doubtsabout what he has witnessed: ‘Le parecio que el hombre llevaba una caretapuesta; pero ¿era verdad o ilusion?’ (OC, IV, 504). Even the identity of thoseinvolved is questioned: ‘¿Los dos asesinos eran los Iturmendi? No lo hubierapodido asegurar’ (OC, IV, 508). Consequently Baroja’s invention of anobserver who is shaken, frightened, and not entirely certain of theaccuracy of his vision of the horrific events that have unfolded before him,serves only to heighten the tension and suspense of the narrative. It is notmeant purely as a means of solving the mystery of the crime.

In addition to the presence of an onlooker, other colourful details areadded to the reported events concerning the murders. The fact, mentioned inthe newspapers, that the weapon with which the crime had been committedcould not be found25 is used by Baroja to provide the gruesome image of thekiller returning to the body of the daughter, removing the weapon, andturning the body over: ‘Despues el asesino se acerco al cuerpo de laVeremunda y arranco el arma de la espalda y le hizo dar al cadaver mediavuelta y dejarlo boca arriba’ (OC, IV, 506). Baroja also adds the strikingdetail that ‘la muerta parecıa sonreır con una sonrisa forzada, ensenando losdientes’ (OC, IV, 506). A further bizarre detail inserted into the narrative byBaroja concerns the mysterious behaviour of la Tiburcia upon finding thather mother and stepsister have been killed. Maluenda observes her beatingwith her knuckles on the hollow tree trunks where the beehives are situated.Baroja explains this pictorial image by commenting that ‘cuando se muere elamo de la casa, hay que avisar a las abejas golpeando la colmena [ . . . ]’ (OC,

25 Anon.,‘El crimen de Beizama’, El Pueblo Vasco, 17 November 1926, p. 3.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

IV, 506). The portrayal of the crime in Las mascaradas sangrientas is clearlymore graphic than the reflective account of events portrayed in ‘Silencio’.

Having established that Las mascaradas sangrientas emerges as themore elaborate and dramatic version of the crime it is necessary to explore thepossible reasons for this. As mentioned briefly, when considering the use ofreported facts, the major difference between the two stories is essentially onenot of information but of perspective. As ‘Silencio’ is concerned primarily withthe outcome of the crime it is of necessity less graphic than Las mascaradassangrientas, which narrates both the build-up to, and implementation of, thegruesome act of double murder. All other aspects of the story are subordinateto the crime. In a violent era, amid numerous other acts of brutality, findingthe culprit for judicial purposes would not be of major importance. Barojareflects this in Las mascaradas sangrientas and notes that ‘no se hicierongrandes investigaciones para averiguar la muerte de las de Oyambeltz’ (OC,IV, 515). A scapegoat is found and the matter is dropped: ‘Luego se aceptobuenamente la tesis del pastor que se habıa escapado a Francia o a America, yno se volvio a tratar mas del asunto’ (OC, IV, 515). Consequently the crimeretains its prominent position within the text.

In ‘Silencio’ Baroja recycles the material in an entirely different way; thefocus is not upon the crime but upon its aftermath. Indeed the only referencepertaining to the murder is that upon arriving at her mother’s house Jacinta‘vio a su madre y a su hermanastra asesinadas’ (CT, 165). As a result of thisthe story centres on the process of justice; it provides an overview of the casein addition to a picture of those most closely involved in it. As such it followson from Las mascaradas sangrientas. In a time of peace, with no provocationfor the violence, finding the perpetrator and ensuring that justice is done areof paramount importance. Baroja’s focus in this text on the follow-up to thecrime illustrates this concern.

What other reasons could explain why Baroja should choose to writeabout this crime for a second time? Baroja notes in ‘Silencio’, with regard tothe murders, that ‘los periodicos de San Sebastian callaron’ (CT, 173).References in the press a month after the crime refer to this and explain thereasons behind it. The judge is quoted as saying to journalists that ‘al salirdel despacho he perdido por completo la memoria’.26 Hence it is reported that‘el senor Marroquın sigue guardando impenetrable silencio’27 and that ‘eljuez ha sellado sus labios’.28 Faced with such a complete lack of information,in addition to his innate scepticism with regard to the accuracy of newspaperreports, reflected in the view of one of the Jesuit priests (see below)that ‘estos informes de los periodicos pueden estar amanados, falsificados’

26 Anon.,‘El doble crimen de Beizama’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 14 December 1926, p.6.27 Anon.,‘El doble crimen de Beizama’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 14 December 1926, p. 6.28 Anon.,‘El doble crimen de Beizama’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 16 December 1926, p. 10.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

(CT, 159), Baroja may well have written ‘Silencio’ in order to present his ownenquiry into the aftermath of the crime.

‘Silencio’ is set out as the research of two Jesuit priests who objectivelyreview the case by speaking to those people most closely associated with itsuch as the judge, the prison doctor, the prisoners themselves, and localworkers. One of them visits, in addition, the scene of the crime in an attemptto discover the truth of what had happened. Father Robles explains to hiscolleague, Father Ugarte, their plan of action:

Yo mandare que le lleven manana al cuarto los recortes de los periodicosde la provincia que hayan hablado de ello, y usted, que tiene un espıritucientıfico de investigador, podra ver lo que hay en el fondo de ese asunto.

(CT, 158)

The research undertaken by the priests reflects novelistically the steps takenby Baroja to gain information from those people actively involved in theevents. Julio Caro Baroja notes that Baroja ‘llevo a cabo encuestas diferentesen el lugar del crimen y sus alrededores’.29 He states that Baroja ‘quiso sertestigo de vista y con el juez de la causa vio a los acusados. Ante ellos formosu propia idea’.30 ‘Silencio’ emerges, as a result of this, as a very personal,individual view of the outcome of the murders; a view gained from acombination of published facts and personal observation.

‘Silencio’ could also stem from Baroja’s dissatisfaction, five years later,that the crime remained unsolved. This disappointment is entirelycomprehensible given the hopes expressed by the newspapers in the earlystages of the case: ‘Es de esperar, sin embargo, que entre las alternativas queel sumario sufra, este cercano el dıa en que pueda senalarse a la publicaopinion el autor o autores del crimen y sus complices’.31 With ‘Silencio’ Barojacan bring the crime once again to the public consciousness whilst at the sametime highlighting the continuing lack of a solution to the murders and theconsequent lack of justice for the victims.

Writing this short story and including it within the broader trilogy on thecoming of the Republic may also be a way for Baroja to question theresolution of the case and to voice his suspicion of the existence of aconspiracy to hush up the events that had occurred at Beizama. Barojaexplains in ‘Silencio’ how all the prisoners came to be released: ‘Un par demeses despues, el fiscal de la Audiencia de San Sebastian encontro que nohabıa indicios de culpabilidad en ninguno de los detenidos; sobreseyo lacausa y echo a todos los procesados a la calle’ (CT, 174). That nobody ischarged with the crime is even more shocking in a peaceful period when

29 Julio Caro Baroja, Guıa de Pıo Baroja. El mundo barojiano, ed. Pıo Caro Baroja(Madrid: Caro Raggio/Catedra, 1987), 132�33.

30 Caro Baroja, Guıa de Pıo Baroja,106.31 Anon.,‘El doble crimen de Beizama’, La Voz de Guipuzcoa, 21 November 1926, p. 7.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

justice has no other distractions. Hence, numerous references are found inBaroja’s novel that indicate the possibility of a cover-up. The people whorequest that the two priests investigate the affair insist upon the necessity ofcensorship: ‘Ya que, afortunadamente, tenemos la Dictadura, no nos seradifıcil que el Gobierno prohıba a los periodicos que hablen de ese crimen’ (CT,157). A friend of padre Ugarte who owns a paper factory expresses hisconcern that the matter may be silenced: ‘No se si se hara el silencio en esacuestion’ (CT, 170). Baroja notes that, as feared, information concerning themurders became scarce: ‘Como temıa el fabricante amigo de Ugarte, pocodespues se dejo de hablar en absoluto del crimen’ (CT, 173). His commentthat ‘la reina madre, la Companıa de Jesus o el Gobierno de la Dictadura,solo, cada uno de ellos, o todos en colaboracion, habıan decretado el silencioacerca del crimen de Beizama’ (CT, 173) plainly states that the crime hadbeen silenced by official powers. Furthermore, he shows that those involvedin some way in the investigation were equally kept quiet:

El padre Ugarte fue enviado poco despues a Roma. El fabricante de papel,republicano amigo suyo, que decıa que habıa de gritar hasta que le oyeranlos sordos hasta que se aclarara la causa y se hiciera justicia, se callotambien. (CT, 174)

If, as Baroja appears to indicate in ‘Silencio’, the desire exists amongcertain factions to suppress details concerning the crime, what reasonscould possibly explain this course of action? The reflection of the violencelatent in tiny villages could be felt by some to reflect badly on the localpeople and thus require concealment. Basque magazines of the time choseto keep silent about the crime, justifying their decision by explaining that‘esas cosas son para silenciar’.32 Speaking of the Spanish press theydeclared that ‘lo que han dicho esos periodicos es ofensivo y deshonrosopara hombres y familias honorables y no tienen derecho a eso. Deberıansaber que es pecaminoso y punible el hacer perder su buen nombre alprojimo’.33 Baroja’s indication in this short text of a conspiracy of silencesupported by the authorities is beyond doubt: ‘Por la paz o por lo que fueratodo el mundo callo en Guipuzcoa. La consigna clerical se cumplio enabsoluto. Silencio, silencio y silencio’ (CT, 174). By concentrating upon theoutcome of the crime and the lack of punishment of the guilty partiesBaroja emphasizes that in order not to stir up trouble in Guipuzcoa, or forsome unknown reason, justice has been overlooked.

In conclusion, a comparison of both texts reveals that the two versionscoincide in Baroja’s use of factual detail in general and, in some cases, in his

32 Santiago Aizarna, Crımenes truculentos en el Paıs Vasco: artıculos (Donostia:Librerıa Baroja, 1987), 139.

33 Aizarna, Crımenes truculentos en el Paıs Vasco, 140.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

use of identical reported facts. Both stories also hold the same view of whoincited and who committed the crime with, in ‘Silencio’, even the judge (CT,162), the prison chaplain (CT, 161), and the Jesuit priest (CT, 172) allconvinced of the guilt of the two brothers. Consequently both portrayalsrender the denouement of ‘Silencio’, with the release of the prisoners, evenmore disconcerting. In both cases the crime is used as a basis around whichto construct the stories; use of an actual crime allows Baroja to evade havingto invent one, but does not inhibit fictional elaboration.

However, the titles of both novels hold the clue to the key differencesin perspective. There are radically different points of view within eachpresentation. Las mascaradas sangrientas, with its emphasis on blood andviolence and the very vivid image of the masks, is centred upon the crimeitself and a highly creative story is woven around it which involves manychanges in reported facts. The title that Baroja gives to his later story,‘Silencio’, focuses attention upon the unadorned, factual outcome of thecrime; the impenetrable wall of silence that has been erected around it.Consequently ‘Silencio’ reveals the more public side of the tragedy and init Baroja exploits different material such as his interviews with the judgeand with the principal suspects. It also reveals a more judgmental side toevents with its inherent reminder that this brutal crime remains not onlyunsolved, but possibly covered up. Even Baroja’s moral outlook is revealedin different ways in each text. In Las mascaradas sangrientas, the morefictional account, Baroja invents justice for the elder brother by conferringinsanity upon him; in ‘Silencio’ he protests against the very real lack ofany genuine, concrete justice.

Diverse ways of presenting the information are also evident. In Lasmascaradas sangrientas Baroja is more distanced from the material, giventhat the account of the crime is told by Paco Maluenda to Alvaro and isrewritten by Leguıa; the story is passed through several people. In‘Silencio’, however, Baroja is closer to the material and in it he offershis own interpretation of events based upon his research; it is a morepersonal, albeit unofficial and unauthorized, view of the outcome of events,possibly inspired by his own frustration at the lack of an acceptable result.

By highlighting different information in each text and by treating thesame information in different ways each time, in addition to setting thestories in two distinct eras, it is clear that Baroja has a somewhatdifferent concept of the two novels as genres and that his method ofpresentation when using a real event in fiction changes when he fits thatevent into a distant historical context as opposed to its true setting in thevery recent past. Las mascaradas sangrientas is without doubt thenovelesque story of a violent crime in a time of violence whereas‘Silencio’ is clearly presented from a different angle; it is a critique of


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

the action of the authorities in handling a recent crime and in freeing thesuspects in an age where answers and retribution are both expected andrequired. Baroja’s use of documentary material is therefore made to servedifferent purposes. His versatility in using the same basic information indifferent ways and from different perspectives is an essential part of hisreinterpretation of Realism.


Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Ista

nbul

Uni

vers

itesi

Kut

upha

ne v

e D

ok]

at 0

0:11

21

Dec

embe

r 20

14

Pío Baroja's ‘Beizama’: A Crime Retold

Documents

Transcript of Pío Baroja's ‘Beizama’: A Crime Retold