Сто лет одиночества
Chapter 4
Atdusk,whenPietroCrespiwouldarrive,precededbyacoolbreathoflavenderandalwaysbringingatoyasagift,hisfiancéewouldreceivethevisitorinthemainparlorwithdoorsandwindowsopentobesafefromanysuspicion.Itwasanunnecessaryprecaution,fortheItalianhadshownhimselftobesorespectfulthathedidnoteventouchthehandofthewomanwhowasgoingtobehiswifewithintheyear.Thosevisitswerefillingthehousewithremarkabletoys.Mechanicalballerinas,musicboxes,acrobaticmonkeys,trottinghorses,clownswhoplayedthetambourine:therichandstartlingmechanicalfaunathatPietroCrespibroughtdissipatedJoséArcadioBuendía’safflictionoverthedeathofMelquíadesandcarriedhimbacktohisolddaysasanalchemist.Helivedatthattimeinaparadiseofdisemboweledanimals,ofmechanismsthathadbeentakenapartinanattempttoperfectthemwithasystemofperpetualmotionbasedupontheprinciplesofthependulum.Aureliano,forhispart,hadneglectedtheworkshopinordertoteachlittleRemediostoreadandwrite.Atfirstthechildpreferredherdollstothemanwhowouldcomeeveryafternoonandwhowasresponsi-bleforherbeingseparatedfromhertoysinordertobebathedanddressedandseatedintheparlortoreceivethevisitor.
