The Generals (10 page)

Is it true that your immigration conditions nowadays are extremely severe?

To apply for citizenship you must have a recommendation from at least four people who are already living in the country. Despite this, the population is still increasing.

Your visa regulations are not particularly liberal either. As a foreigner, it is impossible to get permission to live in the country for any length of time. Why is that?

It’s an economic matter. We issue visas in three categories, for fourteen days, a week and forty-eight hours. The latter service is intended for guests who use speedy communications, i.e. air travel and hovercraft, to enjoy our attractions for a shorter period.

You mean the gambling dens and brothels?

Yes, to some extent.

(The Irishwoman got her chance then.)

It appears that your country lives on the exploitation of sins and depravity
.

I would not presume to judge what are sins or depravity, except on my own account.

You cannot deny you have what someone called a comprehensive brothel system, which is considered to be the bes
 … 
I mean, the most extensive in the civilised world?

No, why should I do that? I myself organised it. What do you mean, by the way, by the civilised world?

(Then, thank heavens, time ran out. I was given thirty seconds to wind things up. The usual stuff.)

Now I’m off to bed at last. I don’t see how I can stand it here for another week. I’ll probably come home before it ends. Goodnight, your Aranca.

Major von Peters
: Is that the end at last?

Captain Schmidt
: No, not quite. The letter contains one more addition, a post-script.

Lieutenant Brown
: P.S. It didn’t work. When I tried to go to sleep, I had the most ghastly jealous vision …

Major von Peters
: Brown, for God’s sake let’s have a moment’s peace. Is it really necessary to read that out as well?

Captain Schmidt
: I consider that it is. The P.S. is quite short, but it presents a horrifying picture of the kind of exaggerated free speech and the wholly disintegrated morality which flourished under the régime, even among the women, and within the leadership.

Colonel Orbal
: This sounds interesting.

Captain Schmidt
: It is frightening rather than interesting. I am warning the court that this bit of the appendix is extremely distasteful. But it illuminates, as I said, the total lack of ordinary decency at the time and at the same time it portrays the environment in which the accused was to live in the future.

Colonel Orbal
: Yes, yes. Get going now, Brown.

Lieutenant Brown
: P.S. It didn’t work. When I tried to go to sleep, I had the most ghastly jealous vision. Darling, it’s horrible, but I must try to tell you everything. I must ask you one thing. That you try to avoid sleeping with Dana. And
if
you do (but try not to!) then tell me at once, because I’ll notice at once anyhow, I’m certain of that. I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t know, really know that it could happen so easily, some time when I was away like this, or not around.

The vision I had was just that you suddenly went over to her and stood behind her and then you suddenly undid the belt of her white overall and she stood quite still while you did it, her arms hanging down her sides. She had nothing on underneath and when you let the overall fall to the floor, she was naked and then she stepped out of her white clogs and turned round. I was afraid because now I knew you couldn’t stop. You’ve never seen her naked, but I have, several times in the sauna, when we’ve been bathing together.

I know a little about her which I don’t think you know. And I also know exactly what she looks like. She’s narrower across the shoulders and hips than I am, and slightly taller. Her breasts are much smaller, but her nipples at least three times as large as mine and dark brown. Every time I’ve seen her without clothes, they’ve stood straight up from her breasts, or straight out if you like, at least half an inch. Her skin is quite brown and from her navel downwards she’s got a string of short black hairs. You say my cunt is large, but hers is larger, at least it looks it. The hair is quite black and thick and in round tight curls. It goes further up on her stomach than on any other person I’ve ever seen. Once, about six months ago.
she fell asleep in the sauna and I sat looking at her. She was lying on her back, sleeping very uneasily, moving her thighs all the time and fumbling with her hands all over her hips and breasts. I saw exactly how she felt and why, and when she woke I asked her straight out. She said at once that she hadn’t had a man for seven months and then it was someone she didn’t even know what he looked like, someone she’d met on the beach in the middle of the night when she was out walking, because she couldn’t bear being indoors lying in bed. She said that she’d just felt dispirited afterwards and that she didn’t want to do that again. She also told me she’d been married once and had lots of affairs before she came here, but that everything had gone wrong and ended badly in some way. People had died and been destroyed all round her, and the ones she’d really wanted to be with, she’d just done harm to, and she herself had always been unhappy. When she came here she had decided to try to live without sex, and she had done so too, almost completely. What had happened on the shore wasn’t that. But it wasn’t easy, she said, and I know that only too well.

Now I’ll tell you why I had that vision, too. It seemed a bit shabby towards her, which is why I didn’t tell you before. It was last summer, when it was so terribly hot and we were in the little house down by the shore. I was busy with something in the inner room and out there you were walking to and fro in your shirt and bathing trunks, dictating something. She was sitting at the table writing and she was wearing those white clogs and that white overall. I came out to fetch something and happened to look at her. She seemed strange in some way and when she looked at me her eyes were quite cloudy. Suddenly she let everything fall from her hands and said to me: I must talk to you for a moment. She sounded hoarse and peculiar, but you didn’t notice anything, but just shrugged your shoulders and went out. She came in with me and locked the door behind her and I hadn’t a clue what was going on. She kicked off her clogs and tore off her overall. She was wearing nothing underneath. Without saying a word, she threw herself down on her back on the bed and began to masturbate. I was absolutely nonplussed (for once) and didn’t know what to do, so I went over to the window and stood there looking out. It took about ten minutes before she got an orgasm and then it went on for quite a time. Then she lay quite
still for a while and neither of us said anything until she got up and dressed. Then she looked at me and said: Sorry. I just couldn’t bear it. And I said: I understand.

I just felt bloody sorry for her and also a little ashamed too, because you and I had been together only a few hours earlier.

For many people it might well seem unusually stupid of me to write like this to you, but I don’t think so. I just want to tell you that it’s slightly dangerous. Now I really will go to bed. ‘Bye darling. A.

Colonel Orbal
: What page is that on?

Captain Schmidt
: Page nine hundred and twenty-two.

Colonel Orbal
: Give me that book, Carl.

Major von Peters
: Is it possible that we’ve now come to an end of all these perversions, smut and filth?

Captain Schmidt
: The appendix ends there.

Colonel Orbal
: Who was this woman?

Captain Schmidt
: Danica Rodriguez. Secretary to Janos Edner.

Colonel Orbal
: Was that the one with the moustache?

Captain Schmidt
: Exactly.

Colonel Orbal
: Oh, hell.

Major von Peters
: I must say, Schmidt, that you’re well on the way to transforming this court martial into … well, I don’t know what. I’m at a loss for words.

Colonel Pigafetta
: In that case that’s the most remarkable and fortunate thing that’s happened in this room for a long time.

Major von Peters
: What do you mean?

Colonel Pigafetta
: Nothing, of course.

Major von Peters
: I’ve noticed one very strange thing, Schmidt. During the whole of all that reading, I never heard Velder’s name mentioned once. Why is the accused sitting here at all? Because it amuses him? It doesn’t amuse me in the slightest.

Colonel Pigafetta
: The trial is in fact advancing somewhat slowly.

Colonel Orbal
: Peculiar person.

Colonel Pigafetta
: Who?

Colonel Orbal
: That Edner. That he didn’t notice anything, I mean. The woman was almost naked and just about dying of … oh, well, continue.

Major von Peters
: What with? Reading aloud?

Commander Kampenmann
: I was just thinking about something.
How did the brothels function in fact?

Colonel Orbal
: Excellently. They were still here when I came here.

Commander Kampenmann
: I meant organisationally.

Colonel Orbal
: I really have no idea about that.

Tadeusz Haller
: I can inform you on that matter. Briefly, women from abroad were found, chosen very carefully and given work-permits here for periods of three months. If they behaved well, the permit was renewed. They had a fairly good monthly salary, but a lot was demanded of them and medical control was very thorough.

Commander Kampenmann
: In other words, the State acted as procurers?

Tadeusz Haller
: That is a matter of judgement. Their salaries were tax-free.

Commander Kampenmann
: Where did the profit come in?

Tadeusz Haller
: Oh, their salaries made up only about two or three per cent of the customers’ expenses. The establishments were exclusive and the service quite advanced. If there had been a register of customers, it would certainly have astounded you.

Commander Kampenmann
: Did the country’s own inhabitants use this—er—service?

Tadeusz Haller
: It wasn’t forbidden, but presumably very seldom.

Commander Kampenmann
: Where did the women go then?

Tadeusz Haller
: The overwhelming majority were dispatched out of the country when their contracts ran out. But there were some who applied for citizenship and stayed here. Some are still here, as married women.

Major von Peters
: I request that we drop this subject immediately. It has nothing to do with Velder. Go on, Schmidt.

Captain Schmidt
: After his first thirteen months’ service, Velder was transferred to what was called the militia’s emergency corps, in which he remained for a year. During this time, he committed twelve offences, which in the detailed charge sheet are taken up under points thirty-three to and including forty-four. The charges in five cases are dereliction of duty, in three theft from military stores, and in three cases drunkenness on duty and finally in one case abuse of rank. I request that as in the earlier consideration of the first complex of offences, to be allowed to lay these before you without
further evidence. The accused’s signed confessions, witnessed on oath, are submitted.

Major von Peters
: Uhuh. Endicott, does the accused adhere to his confessions?

Captain Endicott
: He does.

Major von Peters
: Then we’ll add these to the proceedings. That’s it. That’s something, anyhow.

Commander Kampenmann
: Shouldn’t the kind of offence be described more extensively, at least briefly?

Major von Peters
: Christ, you are awkward. Theft of twenty-six packets of biscuits on sixteen different occasions, theft of a first-aid box, theft of sixteen tins of food, he’s got a good memory, I must say, drunk in action, what action for Christ’s sake?

Captain Schmidt
: The militia’s emergency corps also acted in the capacity of fire brigade.

Major von Peters
: Oh, yes. And drunkenness while on duty as a driving-instructor. Oh, hell, take this rubbish away and read it for yourself.

Commander Kampenmann
: Thank you.

Captain Endicott
: As far as the charges of theft are concerned, I should like to point out one detail, despite Velder’s confession. There were no military stores in existence as such. On special assignments, however, provisions and other consumer material were issued and it was customary that the men shared out between them what was left over.

Major von Peters
: Uhuh. Now you’ve pointed that out, haven’t you?

Captain Schmidt
: Velder, do you admit gross theft on these three occasions?

Velder
: Yes, sir.

Major von Peters
: Stand to attention.

Velder
: I’m doing my best to, sir.

Captain Schmidt
: After his service in the emergency corps, Velder was transferred to General Oswald’s bodyguard. With that, his criminal activities took on a character which was more serious and damaging to society.

Major von Peters
: We can’t cope with any more today. Mateo, let the parties right left turn forward march.

Colonel Orbal
: What? What did you say?

Colonel Pigafetta
: The parties may leave.

Major von Peters
: It’s tough on Endicott, I must say. What a bloody awful posting. And I consider we must get rid of Schmidt. I can’t stand him another day.

Colonel Orbal
: Have we finished now?

Major von Peters
: Do stop reading that book now, Mateo. Adjourn the session.

Colonel Orbal
: The session is adjourned.

Lieutenant Brown
: Those present: Colonel Orbal, Colonel Pigafetta, Major von Peters, Commander Kampenmann and Justice Tadeusz Haller. Officer presenting the case, Lieutenant Brown.