Atdtda35: Almost too many to keep track of, 982-983

[Paul Nightingale]

As the new chapter opens, Frank's 'bones [are] knitting' as the revolution
fractures. If Chapter 65 has reacquainted the reader with
Stray/Mayva/Ewball, all of whom have moved on, the new chapter opens with
Frank still in Chihuahua, in spite of government advice 'to all gringos to
get their backsides across the border immediately'. When we last saw Frank
he was watching Wren leave on 930. Now, his personal history, 'attending to
his romantic and ... spiritual life' (982), is distinct from that of 'the
Madero Revolution', which has 'laps[ed] into some urban professionals'
fantasy of liberal democracy'. Back on 930 Frank notes the role of the
railway in modernisation, ie urbanisation; here, the Revolution 'ha[s] moved
on, specifically south to the Capital', with a separation of 'the people'
and Madero in 'the Presidential Palace' and 'bewitched by his new power' as
popular 'dreams ... [are] disregarded and flat-out betrayed' (982). If the
opening of this first paragraph isolates Frank as an individual, it ends by
drawing attention to the writing (ie individualisation) of popular
discontent, with 'new uprisings ... automatically labelled "Vazquista",
though Vazquez himself ha[s] fled to Texas' (thereby taking the advice that
Frank has ignored) to become 'more of a figurehead'.

The remainder of the section offers a narrative of political conflict, one
that builds on the relationship between leaders (a succession of
'figurehead[s]') and 'the people' as outlined above. The second paragraph
opens with 'the collection of drifters, road agents, mountain fighters and
bitter-end Magonistas that Frank had been running with', emphasising the
pluralist nature of this particular group. At the top of 983 'Zapata ha[s]
raised an army ... and begun a serious insurrection'. Then, Frank is
'attached to an irregular unit fighting on behalf of Pascual Orozco';
'Salazar [is] raising a small army', which 'combine[s] with troops led by
... Hernandez; and Orozco leads 'a two-thousand man army'. 

The third paragraph opens with 'this army ... quadrupled, and new
insurgencies ... reported from all around the country' and ends with Salas
in  charge of 'six thousand troops'.