| Pelagio C. Manjarrez (1886-1952) | ||
L chambres Ennisi f e | ||
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Pelagio C. Manjarrez was born on 23 March 1886 in Tochimilco, Puebla. During an eventful life spanning Mexicos revolutionary decades, he was a teacher, composer, poet, social activist, union organizer journalist and railroad man. Pelagio grew up in a middle-class family, the elder of four brothers --Froyln, David and Bonifacio -- and two sisters, Maria Luisa and Teresa. Their father, Romn, was the nephew of Bonifacio C. Manjarrez, a Catholic canon, who oficiated in Tochimilco and who founded an important library which, to the present day, remains the towns most important bibliographic resource. Don Romn was married to Mara Romano whom photographs show as still wearing dresses with bustles. |
| Pelagios brothers and sisters made names for themselves in a variety of political, social and religious fields of endeavor. Froyln was one of the State of Pueblas representatives to the 1916-1917 Constitutional Convention which promulgated Mexicos current Constitution. He later became governor of that State and thereafter, during the presidency of Lazaro Cardenas, served as General Director of El Nacional, the Mexican governments official daily journal. Froylns progressivist credentials were beyond dispute. As a constitutional delegate, he helped draft Articles 27 and 123 of the new Constitution -- the first of which mandated land-reform, the second of which established Mxicos social democratic charter. In the 1920s, he was a leading supporter of the De la Huerta revolt against conservative elements in Mexicos post revolutionary regimes which sought to fix the presidential succession. Later, he passionately defended the cause of the Spanish Republic in the pages of El Nacional and vindicated Tina Modotti, against the slanders of the right wing press following the assassination of her lover the exiled Cuban revolutionary Antonio Mella. His epitaph succinctly summarizes his lifes work: This is the tomb of Froyln Manjarrez where the flag of the Mexican Revolution can proudly wavesluxury hotels in Athens. David was a well-known agronomist dedicated to land-reform in the cause of which he lost his life while defending landless peasants. The youngest brother, Bonifacio was an engineer who worked with Pelagio in the railways until stricken down by the influenza epidemic. Maria Luisa was a teacher within the revolutionary movement who later married Gilberto Bosques, a politician and diplomat who collaborated with Narciso Bassols in making Mexico a safe-haven for Republican exiles of the Spanish Civil War and who extended Mexicos diplomatic good offices to Cuban refugees before, during and after the Cuban Revolution. His name is embossed in gold in the Puebla Chamber of Deputies. Teresa betrothed herself to God and later became a Mother Superior in the Josephine Order of nuns. Pelagio was, if not the only, the most romantic spirit of the family. However, that did not prevent him from being active in a variety of musical, social and labor organizations. In 1906, he was commissioned as an elementary school teacher by the then governor of Puebla, Mucio Martinez. That same year he received his degree in music. His thesis, Song in Primary Education, proposed incorporating song and musical notation as basic components of standard primary school instruction for all children. Upon finishing his studies, he practiced his profession in the northern state of Sonora where he became friends with Adolfo de la Huerta also a music teacher and later a prominent politician. 1908 found Don Pelagio once again in his native Puebla, working as a elementary school music teacher in San Juan Coscomatepec where two years later, in 1910, he became director of the Rural School. That same year he married Mara Contreras Sedano by whom he had four children: Gustavo, Luis, Mara del Crmen and Mara Cristina. Many years later, he would have a third son, Alejandro. 1910 also saw the outbreak of the Mexican Revolution in which Pelagio took part at the side of Col. Porfirio del Castillo operating in the Puebla and Tlaxcala regions. Trains played a critical role in the movement of troops and Pelagio was put in charge of inspecting the train connecting Mexico City and Puebla. On one trip, the train was dynamited by the Zapatistas in the vicinity of Huejotzingo. The Zapatista revolutionists made a practice of shooting the entire crew of any train they captured; but as Pelagio was lined up against the wall, he was recognized by General Fortino Ayaquica who had been a groom at his fathers ranch stables. Ayaquica pulled Pelagio out of the line and conducted him to Calpan, where the zapatista General Domingo Arenas, who was in charge of the theatre of operations, granted Pelagio a safeconduct and with it, his life. Once freed, he returned on foot to the City of Puebla, arriving two days later and discovering, to his surprise, that he was presumed dead and that memorial services were being held for him. On entering his home on the corner of West 18th and Cross of Stone Street his sudden appearance frightened , shocked, and overjoyed his family which was in the middle of saying a rosary for the repose of his soul.In the years that followed, Pelagio served as Chief of Police and Security for the State of Puebla contemporaneously with his brother Froyln holding the office of Governor. At this time (1922-1923), Pelagio also organized the State Music Band. A year later he joined the De la Huerta revolt. ERROR MSG With the defeat of the De la Huerta revolt, the family was obliged to flee the State and, in Froylns case, the country. Pelagio was forced to seek refuge in Mexico City where he remained a political outlaw and, as a result, was prevented from openly exercising his profession. Although Pelagio arranged to teach clandestinely at the Rural School of Milpa Alta, he lived with the risk of being caught and shot, as we shall see. The story of the defeat of the De la Huerta movement and of Pelagios flight to Mexico City is interesting. On orders from president lvaro Obregn, Pelagio and Froyln were apprehended in Puebla by their friend, General Juan Andrew Almazn, Commander of the Army in the State. Almazn personally informed Obregn of the arrests and the President himself responded that he had already been told that the execution had taken place thus insinuating what was to be done with the two brothers. General Almazn declined to act on such hints and decided to bring his friends before the President himself, forcing Obregn to personally decide the fate of the Manjarrez brothers. Without any prior notice, Pelagio was taken by train to Mexico City as a prisoner. Accompanied by his wife, Mara, he was bereft of money and had only the clothes on his back. Distraught by the events, his two boys, Gustavo and Luis, stowed away on board the InterOceanics cars , surrepticiously following their parents in their disgrace. During the trip, Pelagios former railroad comrades discretely alerted him to the fact that upon pulling into Mexico Citys San Lzaro station he and Froyln were going to be dragged away quickly and shot. They said that in order to give him and Froyln a chance to jump from the train, they would arrange a fake trackswitch and stall a few blocks before entering the station. The boys through the windows, the rest as they could, the party jumped away from the train and were picked up by waiting cohorts in three cars which were to take them to a hideout in the Peralvillo district. Unfortunately, during the escape, the driver of the car carrying Pelagio and his family lost track of the lead vehicle. And so, without money and uncertain of the hideouts location, Pelagio decided it was best to loose himself in the annonymity of the city. Descending on foot, he and his family made their way to the Zcalo, the citys central plaza and busiest area. There they milled about in the crowd before ultimately taking rooms in the German-American Hotel across the street from the very train station from which they had begun their flight. Froyln, joined by David, managed to make it to the hideout and on the following day, disguised as coal-merchants, they set out for Veracruz. The hotels owner hid Pelagio and his family for a month on the house as it were, since Pelagio had been a frequent guest back in the days when worked as a railroad auditor. But that protection could not last forever. Then as now, business is business and fear is fear. Pelagio and family were obliged to leave the hotel. From there, they moved to a modest house on Arista Street where Pelagio remained in hiding until -- not without risk to themselves -- Jose Vasconcelos, the Secretary of Education, and Joaqun Beristin, the Director of the Institute of Cultural Aesthetics, arranged for Pelagio to share a teaching post in Milpa Alta. In this manner, with the strawman taking his cut from the paycheck, Pelagio found work teaching. Given the circumstances, the arrangement was milk and honey. Once the passions of national politics calmed down, Pelagio returned once again to the railroads, this time as Chief Auditor of Trains and Manager in Charge of Special Cars. There, Pelagio engaged in labor polity and founded the National Union of Railway Workers, in collaboration with Alfredo Navarrete and Luis Gomez Z. Always wedded to his music, Pelagio continued to compose while at the same time becoming increasingly involved in politic music affairs. Along with Alfonso Esparza Oteo, Mario Talavera and Chucho Monje, he founded the Union of Authors, Composers and Music Editors. For the inauguration of Mexico Citys Benito Juarez Stadium, Pelagio directed a large school chorus which sang a hymn he had composed for the occasion. His dedication to both composing music and promoting musical arts and performances led him to organize and direct the Typical Orchestra of Puebla as well as to promote the National Association of Charros. With lyrics by Guz Aguila he composed and performed the musical review Puebla, City of My Loves for Pueblas Varieties Theatre. He volunteered his time to organize and direct the Military Band of the State of Puebla, as well as a number of other municipal bands in Oaxaca to the South and Torren to the North. He was also made president of the CLASA World Films Newsreel, which was watched by generations of movie goers throughout the country in the days before television. In this latter post, he developed an avante-guarde style of journalism in collaboration with his son Luis who himself later went on to a long and successful political career in Puebla as a congressman, senator and, more recently, as a municipal president and Chairman of the Puebla Childrens Welfare Organization among other activities tirelessly undertaken even in his senior years. As for Don Pelagio, over the course of his life, he composed numerous Mexican songs, marches, paso-dobles, fox trots dances, waltzes, tangos, and intermezzos, some of which, like Because I Was Kissed by You, were made in collaboration with Jaime Torres Bodet. For many years the highly popular XEW radio station began its broadcasts with one of Don Pelagios marches. Pelagio was a loving, generous and understanding father, and one of the gentlest and most doting of grandfathers. Unflagging in his friendships, he was always respectful of others. He treated both the poor and the powerful with the same respect and elegance of manner. His friends included presidents as well as barbers, gardeners, and stable boys. Those of us who knew him know why: it was his nature to give of himself. He did so constantly, cheerfully and without hesitation, but ERROR MSG never carelessly or lacking in principles. Afable and kindly, he knew how to listen and how to teach subtly and effectively. A teacher to the end, he shared his broad range of talents and experiences without stint. Not only did he teach us to love music and history, he also taught us to ride and groom horses, to tell stories, to cook, to perform magic tricks and shoot firearms. Not least, he also imparted to us his deeply imbued humanistic outlook. Perhaps it was the adversity he suffered in life and his near brushes with death that made him the wise and exceptional person he was one who was intensely vital and who could be serene and passionate at the same time. He was able to comprehend and tolerate things with that encompassing perspective which is held only by those who are granted the privilege of being fully, intensely and tharoughly human. Don Pelagio passed away in Mexico City on 31 August 1952, at 66 years of age. But his works live on today with the same vibrancy as when he first drew his pen over the blank staff lines to leave to us and generations to come, the beauty of his poetry and music as a balm to wounded souls.
Armando Labra Manjarrez Trad. Kieran C. Manjarrez
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| Vida │ Composiciones │ Letras │ Fotos │ Discografa │ Tesis | |
