Milonga Del Infiel

Cheater's Milonga

Milonga Del Infiel

From the desert he arrivedDesde el desierto llegó
On his horse, the cheater;En su azulejo el infiel;
He was a pampa from the tentsEra un pampa de los toldos
Of pincén or catriel.De pincén o de catriel.

He and the horse were one,Él y el caballo eran uno,
They were one and not two.Eran uno y no eran dos.
Riding bareback, he guided himMontado en pelo lo guiaba
With a whistle or voice.Con el silbido o la voz.

In his tent there was a lanceHabía en su toldo una lanza
That he sharpened meticulously;Que afilaba con esmero;
A lance is of little useDe poco sirve una lanza
Against the advantageous rifle.Contra el fusil ventajero.

He knew how to heal with words,Sabía curar con palabras,
What not everyone can do.Lo que no puede cualquiera.
He knew the paths that leadSabía los rumbos que llevan
To the secret border.A la secreta frontera.

He came from inlandDe tierra adentro venía
And returned inland;Y a tierra adentro volvió;
Perhaps he didn't tell anyoneAcaso no contó a nadie
The strange things he saw.Las cosas raras que vio.

He had never seen a door,Nunca había visto una puerta,
That human thingEsa cosa tan humana
So ancient, nor a courtyardY tan antigua, ni un patio
Nor the well and the pulley.Ni el aljibe y la roldana.

He didn't know that behindNo sabía que detrás
The walls there are roomsDe las paredes hay piezas
With their folding bed,Con su catre de tijera,
Bench, and other niceties.Su banco y otras lindezas.

He wasn't amazed to see his faceNo lo asombró ver su cara
Reflected in the mirror;Repetida en el espejo;
He saw it for the first timeLa vio por primera vez
In that first reflection.En ese primer reflejo.

The two Indians looked at each otherLos dos indios se miraron
Without changing a sign.No cambiaron ni una seña.
One - which one? - looked at the otherUno -¿cuál ?- miraba al otro
As if dreaming that he's dreaming.Como el que sueña que sueña.

Nor would it amaze himTampoco lo asombraría
To know he was defeated and dead;Saberse vencido y muerto;
To his story we call itA su historia la llamamos
The conquest of the desert.La conquista del desierto.