International Marketing 10th Edition

Czinkota Solutions Manual

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 CHAPTER 9
MARKET ENTRY AND EXPANSION

Chapter Outline
A. Stimuli to Internationalize
1. Proactive Stimuli
2. Reactive Stimuli
B. Change Agents
1. Internal Change Agents
2. External Change Agents
C. Going International
D. Export
1. Export Management Companies
2. Trading Companies
3. E-Commerce
E. Licensing and Franchising
1. Licensing
2. Franchising
F. Foreign Direct Investment
1. Major Foreign Investors
2. Reasons for Foreign Direct Investment
3. A Perspective on Foreign Direct Investors
4. Types of Ownership

Chapter Objectives
This chapter discusses on how firms continuously progress through a process of
internationalization. It highlights the benefits and repercussions of entering international markets.
The different means for entering international markets are discussed. The chapter then discusses
the responsibilities of international intermediaries. The opportunities and challenges of
cooperative market development are explained. The chapter ends with a discussion on the means
different firms adopt to overcome market barriers.

Suggestions for Teaching

A good starting point in class is to ask students why a firm goes abroad. Surprisingly often, the
profit motive only emerges after some time. It is very useful to ask students then how firms can
evaluate international profitability before having entered the international market. Doing so
highlights the difference between perception and reality, a crucial difference often emerging
painfully for firms only after some international experience.

In the context of future student careers, it is also useful to highlight the management differences
between proactive and reactive firms. International success for the individual is likely to come
quicker in a proactive firm, and students looking for international advancement should look
toward such firms.

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When discussing the usefulness or helpfulness of external agents to the internationalization
process, it is valuable to spend some time focusing the discussion on what is expected of different
external agents, and what their comparative advantage is in delivering on all of these
expectations. If sufficient class time is available, it may be also of use to focus on the
appropriate/inappropriate role of government in export promotion. In this context, it is also
helpful to clearly interlink the model of the export development process with the concerns of
firms in the different international stages. Students need to understand that these concerns change
over time and are the result of the experience, the perception, and the information available to
management.

For both the topics of franchising and licensing, it is useful to pick several business activities and
present them to the class and suggest their internationalization. Taken together with foreign
market restrictions and different consumer needs abroad, students will quickly recognize barriers
to international expansion. Once this recognition has occurred, it should be counterbalanced by
demonstrating the successful licensing and franchising operations which exist (e.g., McDonald's,
Coca-Cola, etc.) and by guiding the students in their discussion to understand the factors which
have made these organizations such a success and have ensured their longer-term survival (e.g.,
economies of scale, thorough understanding of customers, proprietary technology, etc.).

In discussing export intermediaries, students need to fully understand the difference between an
intermediary which takes title to goods vs. an agent. It is helpful to explain the financial
implications of these two kinds of activities. Similarly, the benefits of shared expenses can be
highlighted, particularly if one allocates cost of a specific activity (such as warehousing) among
10 different firms. If the instructor or some international students in the class have experience
with large export trading companies, it is useful to spend some time differentiating these firms
and their cultural and historical background from U.S. export trading companies.

It is useful to start out the discussion of foreign direct investment by focusing on the economic
effects. Students may wish to think through what it means if money comes into an economy for
foreign direct investment purposes. This can be highlighted by contrasting the investment into an
existing firm with Greenfield investment. Useful in this context is also a discussion of national
security, where the attention of students can be directed toward corporate or government efforts
from abroad to purchase, for example, an entire industry.

The issue of ownership can then be discussed with a special focus on the need for control. A
stepwise approach can be helpful to us here, focusing on the different marketing functions, and
then exploring with the students different corporate activities which are sensitive to control. What
should be continuously stressed is the fact that, initially at least, in a joint venture, all partners
have a great interest in making the venture a great success. However, the definition of success
may vary from partner to partner.

The issue of management contracts can be particularly well covered from a service perspective. If
students understand that many economies are increasingly becoming service based, they will also
develop a greater appreciation for the fact that this service knowledge ought to be transformed
into something internationally salable.

Chapter Summary

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Exhibit 9.1 illustrates a model of international entry and expansion.

A. Stimuli to Internationalize

Exhibit 9.2 lists the major motivations to go international, differentiated into proactive
and reactive motivations. Proactive firms go international because they want to, while
reactive ones go international because they have to.

1. Proactive Stimuli

Profits provide the strongest incentive to become involved in international

marketing.
A second major stimulus results either from unique products or a technological
advantage.
Exclusive market information is another proactive stimulus.
A major proactive motivation is economies of scale. The size of the international
market may enable the firm to increase its output and slide more rapidly on the
learning curve.

2. Reactive Stimuli

Here firms respond to changes and pressures in the business environment rather than
blaze new trails.
In reaction to competitive pressures, a firm may fear losing domestic market share to
competing firms or losing foreign markets permanently to new competitors.
Overproduction is a major reactive motivation. Historically, during downturns in the
domestic business cycle, markets abroad provided an ideal outlet for high
inventories. Such market expansion often does not represent commitment by
management but rather a temporary safety-valve activity. Instead of developing an
international marketing perspective by adjusting the marketing mix to needs abroad,
firms stimulate export sales with short-term price cuts. As soon as the domestic
market demand returns to previous levels, international marketing activities are
curtailed or even terminated.
Stable or declining domestic sales, whether measured in sales volume or market
share, also stimulate firms to expand internationally.
Excess capacity can be a powerful motivation.
The stimulus of a saturated domestic market is similar to that of declining domestic
sales.
A final major reactive motivation is proximity to customers and ports.
In this context, the concept of psychological distance needs to be understood.
Psychological distance refers to the lack of symmetry between growing international
markets with respect to cultural variables, legal factors, and other societal norms.
Geographic closeness to foreign markets may not translate into real or perceived
closeness to the foreign customers because a foreign market that is geographically
close may be psychologically distant. Two major issues frame the context of
psychological distance:
• Some of the distance seen by firms is based on perception rather than reality.

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 • At the same time, closer psychological proximity does make it easier for
firms to enter markets.
Overall, the more successful international firms are motivated by proactive—that is,
firm-internal—factors. The motivations of firms do not seem to shift dramatically
over the short term but are rather stable.

B. Change Agents

Someone or something within the firm must initiate change and shepherd it through to
implementation. This intervening individual or variable is here called a change agent.
Change agents in the internationalization process are shown in Exhibit 9.3.

1. Internal Change Agents

The type and quality of management is key to a firm’s international activities.

Dynamic management is important when firms take their first international steps.
Over the long term, management commitment and management’s perceptions and
attitudes are also good predictors of export success. Also key are the international
experience and exposure of management.
A high level of commitment is crucial to endure setbacks and failure. It is important
to involve all levels of management early on in the international planning process.
Any international venture must be incorporated into the firm’s strategic management
process. It is also important to establish a specific structure in which someone has
the responsibility for international activities.
Another major change agent is a significant internal event. The development of a
new product that can be useful abroad can serve as such an event, as can the receipt
of new information about current product uses.

2. External Change Agents

The primary outside influence on a firm’s decision to go international is foreign

demand. Inquiries from abroad and other expressions of demand have a powerful
effect on initial interest in entering the international marketplace. Unsolicited
international orders are one major factor that encourages firms to begin exporting.
Customers from abroad can visit the site and place an international order, even
though a firm’s plans may have been strictly domestic. Thus, a company can
unexpectedly find itself an exporter. Such firms are called accidental exporters.
Another major change agent may actually be the competition.
Domestic distributors also initiate change.
Banks and other service firms, such as accounting offices, can alert domestic clients
to international opportunities.
Chambers of commerce and other business associations that interact with firms
locally can frequently heighten international marketing interests.
Government efforts on the national or local level can also serve as a major change
agent.

C. Going International

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 For many firms, internationalization is a gradual process. Particularly in small markets,
however, firms may very well be born global, founded for the explicit purpose of
marketing abroad because the domestic economy is too small to support their activities.
There are three major methods to enter new markets:
• Export
• Licensing and franchising
• Foreign direct investment

D. Export

In some countries, more than a third of exporting firms commenced their export activities
within two years of establishment. Such start-up or innate exporters play a growing role
in an economy’s international trade involvement.
In most instances today, firms begin their operations in the domestic market. From their
home location, they gradually expand, and, over time, some of them become interested in
the international market. The development of this interest typically appears to proceed in
several stages, as shown in Exhibit 9.4.
In each one of these stages, firms are measurably different in their capabilities, problems,
and needs. Initially, the vast majority of firms are not even aware of the international
marketplace. Frequently, management does not even fill an unsolicited export order.
Should unsolicited orders or other international market stimuli continue over time,
however, a firm may gradually become aware of international market opportunities.
While such awareness is unlikely to trigger much business activity, it can lead
management to gradually become interested in international activities.
Prime candidates among firms to make this transition from aware to interested are those
companies that have a track record of domestic market expansion. In the next stage, the
firm gradually begins to explore international markets. Management is willing to consider
the feasibility of exporting. In this trial, or exploratory, stage, the firm begins to export
systematically, usually to psychologically close countries. However, management is still
far from being committed to international marketing activities.
After some export activity, typically within two years of the initial export, management is
likely to conduct an evaluation of its export efforts. If a firm is disappointed with its
international performance it may withdraw from these activities. Alternatively, it can
continue as an experienced small exporter. Success can also lead to the process of export
adaptation. Here a firm is an experienced exporter to a particular country and adjusts its
activities to changing exchange rates, tariffs, and other variables.
Firms in different stages are faced with different problems:
• Firms at the export awareness and interest stages are primarily concerned with
operational matters such as information flow and the mechanics of carrying out
international business transactions. They understand that a totally new body of
knowledge and expertise is needed and try to acquire it.
• Companies that have already had some exposure to international markets via trial
or evaluation begin to think about tactical marketing issues such as
communication and sales effort.
• Firms that have reached the export adaptation phase are mainly strategy- and
service-oriented. They worry about longer-range issues such as service delivery
and regulatory changes.
Firms who choose to export their products may do so in a number of different ways:
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 • They may export directly or use export intermediaries such as export
management companies or trading companies.
• They can also sell to a domestic firm that in turn sells abroad.
Market intermediaries specialize in bringing firms or their goods and services to the
global market. They have detailed information about the competitive conditions in certain
markets or have personal contacts with potential buyers abroad. Two key intermediaries
are:
• Export management companies
• Trading companies

1. Export Management Companies

Export management companies (EMCs) are domestic firms that perform

international marketing services as commissioned representatives or as distributors
for several other firms. They have two primary forms of operation:
• They take title to goods and operate internationally on their own account.
• They perform services as agents.
As an agent, an EMC is likely to have a contractual relationship that specifies
exclusivity agreements and sales quotas. Price arrangements and promotional
support payments are also agreed on.
For the EMC concept to work, both parties must recognize the delegation of
responsibilities, the costs associated with these activities, and the need for
information sharing and cooperation. On the manufacturer’s side, use of an EMC is a
major channel commitment.

2. Trading Companies

Today, the most famous trading companies are the sogoshosha of Japan. These
general trading companies play a unique role in world commerce by importing,
exporting, countertrading, investing, and manufacturing. Four major reasons have
been given for the success of the Japanese sogoshosha:
• These firms are organized to gather, evaluate, and translate market
information into business opportunities.
• Their vast transaction volume provides them with cost advantages.
• These firms serve large markets around the world and have transaction
advantages.
• These firms have access to vast quantities of capital, both within Japan and
in the international capital markets.
Export trading company (ETC) legislation designed to improve the export
performance of small and medium-sized firms in the United States permits bank
participation in trading companies and reduces the antitrust threat to joint export
efforts. An ETC can apply for a certificate of review from the U.S. Department of
Commerce that provides antitrust preclearance for specific export activities. Bank
participation in ETCs was intended to allow better access to capital. The relaxation
of antitrust provisions in turn was to enable firms to share the cost of international
market entry. Firms participating in trading companies by joining or forming them
need to consider the difference between product- and market-driven activities.

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 3. E-Commerce

Many companies increasingly choose to market their products internationally

through e-commerce, the ability to offer goods and services over the Web. The
growth of e-commerce has led to increased revenue for many companies. There are a
variety of ways in which companies can market their products over the Internet:
• One key option is the development of corporate websites.
• Companies can also enter e-commerce by exporting through a variety of
business-to-consumer and business-to-business forums.
There are a variety of new concerns if a firm uses e-commerce to enter the
international marketplace. Firms must:
• be ready to provide 24-hour order-taking and customer-support service
• have the regulatory and customs-handling expertise to deliver internationally
• have an understanding of global marketing environments for the further
development of business relationships
• comply with the export controls laws
• consider privacy, security, and intellectual property regulations.

E. Licensing and Franchising

1. Licensing

Under a licensing agreement, one firm, the licensor, permits another to use its
intellectual property in exchange for compensation designated as a royalty. The
recipient firm is the licensee. The property might include patents, trademarks,
copyrights, technology, technical know-how, or specific marketing skills.

Assessment of Licensing: As an international entry strategy, licensing requires

neither capital investment nor knowledge or marketing strength in foreign markets.
Royalty income provides an opportunity to obtain an additional return on R&D
investments already incurred. Licensing reduces the exposure to both government
intervention and terrorism because the licensee is typically a local company. It
allows a firm to test a foreign market without major investment of capital or
management time.
Licensing is not without disadvantages. It leaves most international marketing
functions to the licensee. As a result, the licensor gains only limited expertise and
may not even gain any advantages when it comes to market entry itself.
Licensing has come under criticism from supranational organizations, such as the
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). It has been
alleged that licensing lets multinational corporations (MNCs) capitalize on older
technology.

Principal Issues in Negotiating Licensing Agreements: The key issues in negotiating

licensing agreements include the scope of the rights conveyed, compensation,
licensee compliance, dispute resolution, and the term and termination of the
agreement.

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 The rights conveyed are product or patent rights. Defining their scope involves
specifying the technology, know-how, or show-how to be included, the format, and
guarantees.
Compensation issues may be heavily argued. The licensor wants to cover:
• Transfer costs, which are all variable costs incurred in transferring
technology to a licensee and all ongoing costs of maintaining the agreement.
• R&D costs incurred in researching and developing the licensed technology.
• Opportunity costs incurred in the foreclosure of other sources of profit, such
as exports or direct investment.
Compensation can take the form of running royalties, such as 5 percent of the
licensee sales, and up-front payments, service fees, and disclosure fees.
Licensee compliance in the agreement should address:
• Export control regulations
• Confidentiality of the intellectual property and technology provided
• Record keeping and provisions for licensor audits
• The term, termination, and survival of rights

Trademark Licensing: Trademark licensing permits use of the names or logos of

designers, literary characters, sports teams, and movie stars on merchandise such as
clothing.
Both licensor and licensee may run into difficulty if the trademark is used for a
product too far removed from the original success or if the licensed product casts a
shadow on the reputation of the licensor.

2. Franchising

In franchising, a parent company (the franchiser) grants another, independent entity

(the franchisee) the right to do business in a specified manner. This right can take the
form of selling the franchiser’s products or using its name; its production,
preparation, and marketing techniques; or its business approach. The major forms of
franchising are:
• Manufacturer–retailer systems
• Manufacturer–wholesaler systems
• Service firm–retailer systems
The typical reasons for the international expansion of franchise systems are market
potential, financial gain, and saturated domestic markets. From a franchisee’s
perspective, the franchise is beneficial because it reduces risk by implementing a
proven concept.
From a government perspective, franchising does not replace exports or export jobs.
From a recipient-country view, franchising requires little outflow of foreign
exchange, and the bulk of the profit generated remains within the country.
One key franchising concern is the need for standardization, without which many of
the benefits of the transferred know-how are lost. Typically, such standardization
will include the use of a common business name, similar layout, and similar
production or service processes.
Another issue is the protection of the total business system that a franchise offers.
Once a business concept catches on, local competition may emerge quite quickly

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 with an imitation of the product, the general style of operation, and even with a
similar name.
Selection and training of franchisees present another concern. Although the local
franchisee knows the market best, the franchiser still needs to understand the market
for product adaptation purposes and operational details.
Exhibit 9.7 summarizes research findings regarding the challenges faced in
international franchising.
To encourage better-organized and more successful growth, many companies turn to
the master franchising system, wherein foreign partners are selected and awarded the
rights to a large territory in which they can subfranchise in turn. As a result, the
franchiser gains market expertise and an effective screening mechanism for new
franchises while reducing costly mistakes.

F. Foreign Direct Investment

Foreign direct investment (FDI) represents international investment flows that acquire
properties and plants. The international marketer makes such investments to create or
expand a long-term interest in an enterprise with some degree of control. Portfolio
investment in turn focuses on the purchase of stocks and bonds internationally. Portfolio
investment is of primary concern to the international financial community.
FDIs have grown rapidly.

1. Major Foreign Investors

The United Nations defines multinational corporations as “enterprises which own or

control production or service facilities outside the country in which they are based.”
This definition makes all foreign direct investors multinational corporations.
Many of the large multinationals operate in well over 100 countries. For some, their
original home market accounts for only a fraction of their sales.
Through their investment, multinational corporations bring economic vitality and
jobs to their host countries and often pay higher wages than the average domestically
oriented firms. At the same time, however, foreign direct investors often bring with
them imports on an ongoing basis.

2. Reasons for Foreign Direct Investment

• Marketing Factors: Marketing considerations and the corporate desire for

growth are major causes for the increase in FDI. Corporations attempt to
obtain low-cost resources and ensure their sources of supply. FDI permits
corporations to circumvent current barriers to trade and operate abroad as a
domestic firm, unaffected by duties, tariffs, or other import restrictions.
Firms have been categorized as:
o Resource seekers: These seek for either natural resources or human
resources.
o Market seekers: These corporations primarily search for better
opportunities to enter and expand within markets.
o Efficiency seekers: These firms attempt to obtain the most economic
sources of production.
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 A major cause for the increase in foreign direct investment is derived
demand, which is the result of the move abroad by established customers.
Large multinational firms like to maintain their established business
relationships and, therefore, frequently encourage their suppliers to follow
them abroad. As a result, a few initial investments can lead to a series of
additional investments.
• Government incentives: Governments are under pressure to provide jobs for
their citizens. Foreign direct investment can increase employment and
income. Government incentives are mainly of three types:
o Fiscal: These are specific tax measures designed to attract the
foreign investor. They typically consist of special depreciation
allowances, tax credits or rebates, special deductions for capital
expenditures, tax holidays, and other reductions of the tax burden on
the investor.
o Financial: These offer special funding for the investor by providing
land or buildings, loans, loan guarantees, or wage subsidies.
o Nonfinancial: These consist of guaranteed government purchases;
special protection from competition through tariffs, import quotas,
and local content requirements; and investments in infrastructure
facilities.
Incentives may slightly alter the advantage of a region. By themselves, they
are unlikely to spur an investment decision if proper market conditions do
not exist.

3. A Perspective on Foreign Direct Investors

Foreign direct investors, and particularly multinational corporations, are viewed with
a mixture of awe and dismay. Governments and individuals praise them for bringing
capital, economic activity, and employment and for transferring technology and
managerial skills.
At the same time, investment may lead to dependence. Just as the establishment of a
corporation can create all sorts of benefits, its disappearance can also take them
away again. Very often, international direct investors are accused of draining
resources from their host countries. By employing the best and the brightest, they are
said to deprive domestic firms of talent, thus causing a brain drain. Once they have
hired locals, multinational firms are often accused of not promoting them high
enough.
By raising money locally, multinationals can starve smaller capital markets. By
bringing in foreign technology, they are viewed either as discouraging local
technology development or as perhaps transferring only outmoded knowledge.

4. Types of Ownership

• Full Ownership: Many firms prefer to have 100 percent ownership.

Sometimes, this is the result of ethnocentric considerations based on the
belief that no outside entity should have an impact on management. To make
a rational decision about the extent of ownership, management must evaluate
how important total control is for the success of its international marketing
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 activities. Often, full ownership may be a desirable, but not a necessary,
prerequisite for international success. Commercial activities under the
control of foreigners are frequently believed to reflect the wishes, desires,
and needs of headquarters abroad much more than those of the domestic
economy. Governments fear that domestic economic policies may be
counteracted by such firms, and employees are afraid that little local
responsibility and empathy exist at headquarters. A major concern is the
“fairness” of profit repatriation, or transfer of profits, and the extent to which
firms reinvest into their foreign operations. Governments often believe that
transfer pricing mechanisms are used to amass profits in a place most
advantageous for the firm and that, as a consequence, local operations often
show very low levels of performance. By reducing the foreign control of
firms, they hope to put an end to such practices. Ownership can be limited
either through outright legal restrictions or through measures designed to
make foreign ownership less attractive—such as limitations on profit
repatriation. General market instability can also serve as a major deterrent to
full ownership of FDI.
• Joint Ventures: These are collaborations of two or more organizations for
more than a transitory period. As equity-stake participants, the partners share
assets, risks, and profits, though equality of partners is not necessary.
o Advantages of joint ventures: The two major reasons for joint
ventures are governmental and commercial. Government restrictions
are designed to reduce the extent of control that foreign firms can
exercise over local operations. Equally important to the formation of
joint ventures are commercial considerations. Joint ventures can
pool resources and lead to a better outcome for each partner than if
they worked individually. Joint ventures also permit better
relationships with local organizations—government, local
authorities, or labor unions. If the local partner can bring political
influence to the undertaking, the new venture may be eligible for tax
incentives, grants, and government support and may be less
vulnerable to political risk.
o Disadvantages of joint ventures: Problem areas in joint ventures, as
in all partnerships, involve implementing the concept and
maintaining the relationship. Joint venture regulations are often
subject to substantial interpretation and arbitrariness. Major
problems can arise due to conflicts of interest, problems with
disclosure of sensitive information, and disagreement over how
profits are to be shared; these are typically the result of a lack of
communication and planning before, during, and after the formation
of the venture. In some cases, managers are interested in launching
the venture but are too little concerned with actually running the
enterprise. In other instances, managers dispatched to the joint
venture by the partners may feel differing degrees of loyalty to the
venture and its partners.
• Strategic Alliances: These are partnerships which are arrangements between
two or more companies with a common business objective. Unlike the more
rigid joint venture, the great advantage of strategic alliances is their ongoing
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 flexibility, as they can be formed, adjusted, and dissolved rapidly in response
to changing conditions. Alliances can range from information cooperation in
the market development area to joint ownership of worldwide operations.
Market development is one reason for the growth in such alliances.
Companies must carefully evaluate the effects of entering such a coalition,
particularly with regard to strategy and competitiveness. The most
successful alliances are those that match the complementary strengths of
partners to satisfy a joint objective. Often the partners have different
product, geographic, or functional strengths, which the alliance can build on
in order to achieve success with a new strategy or in a new market. They can
then either operate jointly as equals or have one partner piggyback by
making use of the other’s strengths.
In a management contract, the supplier brings together a package of skills
that will provide an integrated service to the client without incurring the risk
and benefit of ownership. The activity is quite different from other
contractual arrangements because people actually move and directly
implement the relevant skills and knowledge in the client organization.
Management contracts have clear benefits for the client. They can provide
organizational skills that are not available locally, expertise that is
immediately available rather than built up, and management assistance in the
form of support services that would be difficult and costly to replicate
locally. Similar advantages exist for the supplier. The risk of participating in
an international venture is substantially lowered because no equity capital is
at stake.
In a dynamic business environment, alliances must be able to adjust to
market conditions. Any agreement should therefore provide for changes in
the original concept so that the venture can grow and flourish.
• Government Consortia: One form of cooperation takes place at the industry
level and is typically characterized by government support or even
subsidization. Usually, it is a reflection of escalating cost and a
governmental goal of developing or maintaining global leadership in a
particular sector. To combat the high costs and risks of research and
development, research consortia have emerged in the United States, Japan,
and Europe.

Key Terms

Safety-valve activity: Stimulating export sales with short-term price cuts in order to balance
inventories or compensate for overproduction in the short term.
Psychological distance: The lack of symmetry between growing international markets with
respect to cultural variables, legal factors, and other societal norms; a market that is
geographically close may seem to be psychologically distant.
Change agent: Someone or something within the firm must initiate change and shepherd it
through to implementation. This intervening individual or variable is here called a change agent.
Accidental exporters: Firms which become international unexpectedly due to unsolicited orders,
such as those placed via a website, requiring export; unplanned participation in the international
market.

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Born global: Firms which are founded for the explicit purpose of marketing abroad since the
domestic economy is too small to support their activities.
Innate exporters: Exporting firms which embark on their export activities within two years of
establishment.
Awareness: The stage in corporate export where a firm gains knowledge about its international
market opportunities.
Interest: The stage in corporate export where a firm shows attentiveness in its international
activities.
Trial: In this exploratory stage, the firm begins to export systemically, usually to psychologically
close countries.
Evaluation: The stage in corporate export where after some export activity, typically within two
years of the initial export, management is likely to assess its expert efforts.
Adaptation: An experienced export firm which is able to adjust its activities to keep pace with
changing exchange rates, tariffs, and other variables in the international market.
Sogoshosha: Large Japanese trading companies, such as Sumitomo, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, and C.
Itoh.
Export trading company (ETC): Legal construct designed to encourage small and medium-
sized companies that are encouraged to participate in the international marketplace; aimed to
reduce the antitrust threat to joint export efforts.
E-commerce: The ability to offer goods and services over the Web.
Licensing: An agreement where one firm, the licensor, permits another to use its intellectual
property in exchange for compensation designated as a royalty.
Transfer costs: All variable costs incurred in transferring technology to a licensee and all
ongoing costs of maintaining the agreement.
R&D costs: Costs incurred on account of research and development of licensed technology.
Opportunity costs: Costs incurred in the foreclosure of other sources of profit, such as exports or
direct investment.
Trademark licensing: Permission for the use of the names or logos of designers, literary
characters, sports teams, and movie stars on merchandise such as clothing.
Franchising: A parent company (the franchiser) grants another, independent entity (the
franchisee) the right to do business in a specified manner.
Master franchising system: A system wherein foreign partners are selected and awarded the
franchising rights to a large territory in which they can subfranchise in turn.
Foreign direct investment: It represents international investment flows that acquire properties
and plants. The international marketer makes such investments to create or expand a long-term
interest in an enterprise with some degree of control.
Portfolio investment: It focuses on the purchase of stocks and bonds internationally.
Resource seekers: Firms that search for either natural resources or human resources.
Market seekers: Corporations primarily in search of better opportunities to enter and expand
within markets.
Efficiency seekers: Firms that attempt to obtain the most economic sources of production.
Derived demand: It is the result of the move abroad by established customers. Large
multinational firms like to maintain their established business relationships and, therefore,
frequently encourage their suppliers to follow them abroad. As a result, a few initial investments
can lead to a series of additional investments.
Fiscal incentives: Specific tax measures designed by the government to reduce the burden on the
investors and thereby attract foreign investment. They typically consist of special depreciation

13
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
allowances, tax credits or rebates, special deductions for capital expenditures, tax holidays, and
other reductions of the tax burden on the investor.
Financial incentives: Offer special funding for the investor by providing land or buildings, loans,
loan guarantees, or wage subsidies.
Nonfinancial incentives: Consist of guaranteed government purchases; special protection from
competition through tariffs, import quotas, and local content requirements; and investments in
infrastructure facilities.
Brain drain: Very often, international direct investors are accused of draining resources from
their host countries. By employing the best and the brightest, they are said to deprive domestic
firms of talent, thus causing a brain drain.
Profit repatriation: Transfer of profits, and the extent to which firms reinvest into their foreign
operations.
Joint ventures: Collaborations of two or more organizations for more than a transitory period.
Strategic alliances: One special form of joint ventures consists of strategic alliances, or
partnerships, which are arrangements between two or more companies with a common business
objective.
Complementary strengths: When one firm’s strengths (product, geographic, or functional)
complement another firm’s strengths and satisfy a joint objective.
Piggyback: One firm making use of another firm’s strength, rather than joining that firm as
equals.
Management contract: An agreement where the supplier brings together a package of skills that
provides an integrated service to the client without incurring the risk and benefit of ownership.
Research consortia: Joint industry efforts in the research and development of new products to
combat the high costs and risks of innovation; often supported by governments.

Questions for Discussion

1. Why do firms enter the global market?

The major motivations for firms to go international are:

Proactive stimuli:
• Profit advantage
• Unique products
• Technological advantage
• Exclusive market information
• Economies of scale
• Market size
Reactive stimuli
• Competitive pressures
• Overproduction
• Stable or declining domestic sales
• Excess capacity
• Saturated domestic market
• Proximity to customers and ports

2. What is meant by the term “born global”?

14
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
 For many firms, internationalization is a gradual process. Particularly in small markets,
however, firms may very well be founded for the explicit purpose of marketing abroad
because the domestic economy is too small to support their activities. Such firms are said to
be born global.

3. What relationship exists between governments and foreign investors? Why are foreign
investors important?

Students’ answers will vary.

They may sum up the entire chapter in order to show the relationship that exists between
governments and foreign investors and also to show the importance of foreign investors.
They may also visit the following link:
http://www.state.gov/e/rls/rmk/2010/146894.htm

4. Discuss the impact of the Internet and e-commerce in making a firm global.

Many companies increasingly choose to market their products internationally through e-

commerce, the ability to offer goods and services over the Web. The growth of e-commerce
has led to increased revenue for many companies. There are a variety of ways in which
companies can market their products over the Internet. One key option is the development of
corporate website.
Companies can also enter e-commerce by exporting through a variety of business-to-
consumer and business-to-business forums.
There are a variety of new concerns if a firm uses e-commerce to enter the international
marketplace. Due to international time differences, firms must be ready to provide 24-hour
order-taking and customer-support service, have the regulatory and customs-handling
expertise to deliver internationally, and have an understanding of global marketing
environments for the further development of business relationships. There are some legal
concerns for e-businesses, such as export controls laws, especially if they market
strategically important products or software. Firms must also consider privacy, security, and
intellectual property regulations.

5. Discuss the various advantages and disadvantages of full ownership versus joint ventures.

Full ownership:
Many firms prefer to have 100 percent ownership. Sometimes, this is the result of
ethnocentric considerations based on the belief that no outside entity should have an impact
on management.
To make a rational decision about the extent of ownership, management must evaluate how
important total control is for the success of its international marketing activities. Often, full
ownership may be a desirable, but not a necessary, prerequisite for international success.
Commercial activities under the control of foreigners are frequently believed to reflect the
wishes, desires, and needs of headquarters abroad much more than those of the domestic
economy. Governments fear that domestic economic policies may be counteracted by such
firms, and employees are afraid that little local responsibility and empathy exist at
headquarters. A major concern is the “fairness” of profit repatriation, or transfer of profits,
and the extent to which firms reinvest into their foreign operations. Governments often
believe that transfer pricing mechanisms are used to amass profits in a place most
15
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
 advantageous for the firm and that, as a consequence, local operations often show very low
levels of performance. By reducing the foreign control of firms, they hope to put an end to
such practices.
Ownership can be limited either through outright legal restrictions or through measures
designed to make foreign ownership less attractive—such as limitations on profit
repatriation. The international marketer is therefore frequently faced with the choice of either
accepting a reduction in control or of losing the opportunity to operate in the country.
General market instability can also serve as a major deterrent to full ownership of FDI.
Instability may result from political upheavals or changes in regimes.

Joint ventures:
These are collaborations of two or more organizations for more than a transitory period.
The two major reasons for joint ventures are governmental and commercial.
Government restrictions are designed to reduce the extent of control that foreign firms can
exercise over local operations. As a basis for defining control, most countries have employed
percentage levels of ownership.
Equally important to the formation of joint ventures are commercial considerations. Joint
ventures can pool resources and lead to a better outcome for each partner than if they worked
individually. This is particularly the case when each partner has a specialized advantage in
areas that benefit the joint venture.
Joint ventures also permit better relationships with local organizations—government, local
authorities, or labor unions. If the local partner can bring political influence to the
undertaking, the new venture may be eligible for tax incentives, grants, and government
support and may be less vulnerable to political risk.
Problem areas in joint ventures, as in all partnerships, involve implementing the concept and
maintaining the relationship. Joint venture regulations are often subject to substantial
interpretation and arbitrariness. Major problems can arise due to conflicts of interest,
problems with disclosure of sensitive information, and disagreement over how profits are to
be shared; these are typically the result of a lack of communication and planning before,
during, and after the formation of the venture. In some cases, managers are interested in
launching the venture but are too little concerned with actually running the enterprise. In
other instances, managers dispatched to the joint venture by the partners may feel differing
degrees of loyalty to the venture and its partners.

Internet Exercises
1. What programs does the Export-Import Bank (http://www.exim.gov) offers that specifically
benefit small businesses trying to export? What benefits can be derived from each?

Three programs offered by the Ex-Im Bank for small businesses are short-term export credit
insurance, working capital guarantee, and medium and long-term financing. Loan guarantees
allow small businesses that would not otherwise qualify for loans to do so. Insurance policies
add protection from loss as well as further help small businesses to qualify for loans. The
export credit insurance provided by this bank helps small businesses to expand sales and
stabilize cash flows, apart from boosting their borrowing power. The working capital
guarantee provides confidence to the lenders to provide short-term loans to small and
medium-sized businesses.

16
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
2. Use the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development FDI database (available
under the Statistics option at http://www.unctad.org) to research the foreign direct investment
profile of a country or region of your choice.

Foreign direct investment has clearly become a major avenue for international market entry
and expansion. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development FDI database
site provides information on foreign direct investment for every country. Students may be
asked to research the foreign direct investment profile of a country or region of their choice.
This would help understand what is required to circumvent current barriers to trade and
operate in that country as a domestic firm, unaffected by duties, tariffs, or other import
restrictions.

17
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
The Project Gutenberg eBook of Los apostólicos
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online at
www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will
have to check the laws of the country where you are located before
using this eBook.

Title: Los apostólicos

Author: Benito Pérez Galdós

Release date: December 11, 2023 [eBook #72373]

Language: Spanish

Original publication: Madrid: Perlado, Páez y Compañía, 1906

Credits: Ramón Pajares Box. (This file was produced from images
generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian
Libraries.)

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LOS

APOSTÓLICOS ***
Índice: I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, XIII, XIV, XV, XVI, XVII, XVIII,
XIX, XX, XXI, XXII, XXIII, XXIV, XXV, XXVI, XXVII, XXVIII, XXIX, XXX, XXXI, XXXII,
XXXIII, XXXIV, XXXV.

Nota de transcripción

Los errores de imprenta han sido corregidos.

La ortografía del texto original ha sido modernizada de acuerdo con las normas
publicadas en 2010 por la Real Academia Española.
Las rayas intrapárrafos han sido espaciadas según los modernos usos
ortotipográficos.
Las notas a pie de página han sido renumeradas y colocadas al final del párrafo en
que se las llama.
 EPISODIOS NACIONALES

LOS APOSTÓLICOS
 Es propiedad. Queda hecho el depósito
que marca la ley. Serán furtivos los
ejemplares que no lleven el sello del autor
 B. PÉREZ GALDÓS
EPISODIOS NACIONALES
SEGUNDA SERIE

LOS
A P OS T ÓL I C OS

34.000

MADRID
PERL ADO , PÁEZ Y CO M PAÑÍ A
( Su ce s o r e s d e He r n a n d o )
A R E N A L , 11
1906
Madrid. — Imp. de los Sucesores de Hernando, Quintana, 33.
 LOS APOSTÓLICOS

Tradiciones fielmente conservadas, y ciertos documentos

comerciales que podrían llamarse el Archivo Histórico de la familia de
Cordero, convienen en que doña Robustiana de los Toros de
Guisando, esposa del héroe de Boteros, falleció el 11 de diciembre de
1826. ¿Fue peritonitis, pulmonía matritense o tabardillo pintado lo que
arrancó del seno de su amante familia y de las delicias de este valle de
lágrimas a tan digna y ejemplar señora? Este es un terreno oscuro, en
el cual no ha podido penetrar nuestra investigación ni aun
acompañada de todas las luces de la crítica.
Esa pícara Historia, que en tratándose de reyes y príncipes, no hay
cosa trivial ni hecho insignificante que no saque a relucir, no ha tenido
una palabra sola para la estupenda hazaña de Boteros, ni tampoco
para la ocasión lastimosa en que el héroe se quedó viudo con cinco
hijos, de los cuales los dos últimos vinieron al mundo después que e
giro de los acontecimientos nos obligó a perder de vista a la familia
Cordero.
Cuando murió la señora, Juanito Jacobo (a quien se dio este
nombre en memoria de cierto filósofo que no es necesario nombrar
tenía dos meses no cumplidos, y por su insaciable apetito, así como su
berrear constante, declaraba la raza y poderoso abolengo de Toros de
Guisando. Sus bruscas manotadas y la fiereza con que se llevaba los
puños a la boca, ávido de mamarse a sí mismo por no poder secar un
par de amas cada mes, señales eran de vigor e independencia, por lo
que don Benigno, sin dejar de agradecer a Dios las buenas dotes
vitales que había dado a su criatura, pasaba la pena negra en su triste
papel de viudo; y ora valiéndose de cabras y biberones, cuando
faltaban las nodrizas, ora buscando por Puerta Cerrada y ambas
Cavas lo mejor que viniera de Asturias y la Alcarria en el maleado
género de amas para casa de los padres; ya desechando a esta po
enferma y a aquella por desabrida, taimada y ladrona; ya suplicando a
tal cual señora de su conocimiento que diera una mamada a
muchacho cuando le faltaba el pecho mercenario, era un infeliz
esclavo de los deberes paternales, y perdía el seso, el humor, la salud
el sueño, si bien jamás perdía la paciencia.
En las frías y largas noches ¿quién sino él habría podido echarse
en brazos la infantil carga y acallar los berridos con paseos, arrullos, y
cantorrios? ¿Quién sino él habría soportado las largas vigilias y e
cuneo incesante y otros muchos menesteres que no son para
contados? Pero don Benigno tenía un axioma que en todas estas
ocasiones penosas le servía de grandísimo consuelo, y recordándolo
en los momentos de mayor sofoco, decía:
—El cumplimiento estricto del deber en las diferentes circunstancias
de la existencia, es lo que hace al hombre buen cristiano, buen
ciudadano, buen padre de familia. El rodar de la vida nos pone en
situaciones muy diversas, exigiéndonos ahora esa virtud, más tarde
aquella. Es preciso que nos adaptemos, hasta donde sea posible, a
esas situaciones y casos distintos, respondiendo según podamos a lo
que la sociedad y el autor de todas las cosas exigen de nosotros. A
veces nos piden heroísmo, que es la virtud reconcentrada en un punto
y momento; a veces paciencia, que es el heroísmo diluido en larga
serie de instantes.
Después solía recordar que Catón el Censor abandonaba los
negocios más arduos del gobierno de Roma para presenciar y dirigir la
lactancia, el lavatorio y los cambios de vestido de su hijo, y que e
mismo Augusto, señor y amo del mundo, hacía otro tanto con sus
nietecillos. Con esto recibía don Benigno gran consuelo, y después de
leer de cabo a rabo el libro del Emilio que trata de las nodrizas, de la
buena leche, de los gorritos y de todo lo concerniente a la primera
crianza, contemplaba lleno de orgullo a su querido retoño, repitiendo
las palabras del gran ginebrino: «así como hay hombres que no salen
jamás de la infancia, hay otros de quienes se puede decir que nunca
han entrado en ella, y son hombres desde que nacen».
Con estos trabajos, que hacía más llevaderos la satisfacción de un
noble deber cumplido, iba pasando el tiempo. El primer aniversario de
fallecimiento de su mujer renovó en Cordero las hondas tristezas de
aquel luctuoso día, y negándose al trivial recreo de la tertulia de
amigos y parroquianos, cerró la tienda y se retiró a su alcoba, donde
las memorias de la difunta parecían tomar realidad y figura sensible
para acompañarle. El segundo aniversario halló bastante cambiadas
personas y cosas: la tienda había crecido, los niños también. Juanito
Jacobo, ni un ápice mermado en su constitución becerril, atronaba la
casa con sus gritos y daba buena cuenta de todo objeto frágil que en
su mano caía. En el alma de don Benigno iba declinando mansamente
el dolor cual noche que se recoge expulsada poco a poco por la
claridad del nuevo día.
En el tercer aniversario (11 de diciembre de 1829) el cambio era
mucho mayor, y don Benigno, restablecido en la majestad de su
carácter sencillo, bondadoso y lleno de discreción y prudencia, parecía
un soberano que torna al solio heredado después de lastimosos
destierros y trapisondas. No dejaron, sin embargo, de asaltarle en la
mañanita de aquel día pensamientos tristes; pero al volver de la misa
conmemorativa que había encargado, según costumbre de todo
aniversario, y oído devotamente en Santa Cruz, viósele en su natura
humor cotidiano, llenando la tienda con su activa mirada y su atención
diligente. Después de cerrar la vidriera para que no se enfriara el local
palpó con suavidad cariñosa las cajas que contenían el género; hojeó
el libro de cuentas; pasó la vista por el Diario que acababan de traer
dio órdenes al mancebo para llevar a dos o tres casas algunas
compras hechas la noche anterior; cortó un par de plumas con e
minucioso esmero que la gente de los buenos tiempos ponía en
operación tan delicada, y habría puesto sobre el papel algunos
renglones de aquella hermosa letra redonda que ya solo se ve en los
archivos, si no le sorprendieran de súbito sus niños, que salieron de la
trastienda cartera en cinto, los libros en correa, la pizarra a la espalda
y el gorrete en la mano para pedir a padre la bendición.
—¡Cómo! —exclamó don Benigno, entregando su mano a los labios
y a los húmedos hociquillos de los Corderos—. ¿No os he dicho que
hoy no hay escuela?... Ahora caigo en que no me había acordado de
decíroslo; pues ya había pensado que en este día, que para nosotros
no es alegre y para toda España será, según dicen, un día felicísimo
todos los buenos madrileños deben ir o batir palmas delante de ese
astro que nos traen de Nápoles, de esa reina tan ponderada, tan
trompeteada y puesta en los mismos cuernos de la luna, como si con
ella nos vinieran acá mil dichas y tesoros... Hablo también con usted
apreciable Hormiga: pase usted... no me molesta ahora ni en ningún
momento.
Dirigíase don Benigno o una mujer que se había presentado en la
puerta de la trastienda, deteniéndose en ella con timidez. Los chicos
luego que oyeron el anuncio feliz de que no había escuela, no
quisieron esperar a conocer las razones de aquel sapientísimo
acuerdo, y despojándose velozmente de los arreos estudiantiles, se
lanzaron a la calle en busca de otros caballeritos de la vecindad.
—Tome usted asiento —añadió Cordero, dejando su silla, que era la
más cómoda de la tienda, para ofrecérsela a la joven—. Ayude usted
mi flaca memoria. ¿Qué nombre tiene nuestra nueva reina?
—María Cristina.
—Eso es... María Cristina... ¡Cómo se me olvidan los nombres!..
Dícese que este casamiento nos va a traer grandes felicidades, porque
la napolitana... pásmese usted...
El héroe, después de mirar a la puerta para estar seguro de que
nadie le oía, añadió en voz baja:
—Pásmese usted... es una francmasona, una insurgente, mejo
dicho, una real dama en quien los principios liberales y filosóficos se
unen a los sentimientos más humanitarios. Es decir, que tendremos
una reina domesticadora de las fierezas que se usan por acá.
—A mí me han dicho que ha puesto por condición para casarse que
el rey levante el destierro a todos los emigrados.
—A mí me han dicho algo más —añadió Cordero, dando una
importancia extraordinaria a su revelación—: a mí me han dicho que
en Nápoles bordó secretamente una bandera para los insurrectos de..
de no sé qué insurrección. ¿Qué cree usted? La mandan aquí, porque
si se queda en Italia da la niña al traste con todas las tiranías... Que
ella es de lo fino en materia de liberalismo ilustrado y filosófico me lo
prueba, más que el bordar pendones, el odio que le tiene toda la
turbamulta inquisidora y apostólica de España y Europa y de las cinco
partes del globo terráqueo. ¿Estaba usted anoche aquí cuando e
señor de Pipaón leyó un papel francés que llaman la Quotidienne?
¡Barástolis! ¡Y qué herejías le dicen! Ya se sabe que esa gente
cuando no puede atacar nuestro sistema gloriosísimo a tiros y
puñaladas, lo atacan con embustes y calumnias. Bendita sea la
princesa ilustre que ya trae el diploma de su liberalismo en las injurias
de los realistas. Nada le falta, ni aun la hermosura; y para juzgar si es
tan acabada como dicen los papeles extranjeros, vamos usted y yo a
darnos el gustazo de verla entrar.
La persona a quien de este modo hablaba el tendero de encajes, no
tenía un interés muy vivo en aquellas graves cosas de que pendía
quizás el porvenir de la patria; pero llevada de su respeto a don
Benigno, le miraba atenta y pronunciaba un sí al fin de cada parrafillo
Conocida de nuestros lectores desde 1821,[1] esta discreta joven había
pasado por no pocas vicisitudes y conflictos durante los ocho años
transcurridos desde aquella fecha liberalesca hasta el año quinto de
Calomarde en que la volvemos a encontrar. Su carácter, altamente
dotado de cualidades de resistencia y energía, que son como e
antemural que defiende al alma de los embates de la desesperación
era la causa principal de que las desgracias frecuentes no
desmejorasen su persona. Por el contrario, la vida activa del corazón
determinando actividades no menos grandes en el orden físico, le
había traído un desarrollo felicísimo, no solo por lo que con él ganaba
su salud, sino por el provecho que de él sacaba su belleza. Esta no
era brillante ni mucho menos, como ya se sabe, y más que belleza en
el concepto plástico era un conjunto de gracias accesorias, realzando
y como adornando el principal encanto de su fisonomía, la expresión
de una bondad superior.
[1] Véase El Grande Oriente.

La madurez de juicio y la rectitud en el pensar, el don singularísimo

de convertir en fáciles los quehaceres más enojosos, la disposición
para el gobierno doméstico, la fuerza moral que tenía de sobra para
poder darla a los demás en días de infortunio, la perfecta igualdad de
ánimo en todas las ocasiones, y, finalmente, aquella manera de hace
frente a todas las cosas de la vida con serenidad digna, cristiana y sin
afán, como quien la mira más bien por el lado de los deberes que po
el de los derechos, hacían da ella la más hermosa figura de un tipo
social que no escasea ciertamente en España, para gloria de nuestra
cultura.
—Los que no la ven a usted desde el año 24 —le dijo aquel mismo
día don Benigno, observándola con tanta atención como complacencia
—, no la conocerán ahora. Me tengo por muy feliz al considerar que en
mi casa ha sido donde ha ganado usted esos frescos colores de su
cara, y que bajo este techo humilde ha engrosado usted
considerablemente... digo mal, porque no está usted como mi pobre
Robustiana ni mucho menos..., quiero decir, proporcionadamente, de
un modo adecuado a su estatura mediana, a su talle gracioso, a su
cuerpo esbelto. Beneficios de la vida tranquila, de la virtud, del trabajo
¿no es verdad?... Todos los que la vieron a usted en aquellos tristes
días, cuando a entrambos nos pusieron a la sombra y colgaron a
pobre Sarmiento...
Este recuerdo entristeció mucho a la joven, impidiendo que su amo
propio se vanagloriase con los elogios galantes que acaba de oír. Eran
ya las once de la mañana, y vestida como en día de fiesta para
acompañar a don Benigno, esperaba en la tienda la señal de partida.
—Aguarde usted: voy a hacer un par de asientos en el libro —dijo
este sentándose en su escritorio—. Todavía tenemos tiempo de sobra
Iremos a la casa de don Francisco Bringas, de cuyos balcones se ha
de ver muy requetebién toda la comitiva. Los pequeños se quedarán
con mi hermana, y llevaremos a Primitivo y a Segundo. ¿Están
vestidos?
Los dos muchachos, de doce y diez años respectivamente, no
tenían la soltura que a tal edad es común en los polluelos de nuestros
días: antes bien, encogidos y temerosos, vestidos poco menos que a
mujeriegas, representaban aquella deliciosa perpetuidad de la niñez
que era el encanto de la generación pasada. Despabilados y libertinos
en las travesuras de la calle, eran dentro de casa humildes, taciturnos
y frecuentemente hipócritas.
Gozosos de salir con su padre a ver la entrada de la cuarta reina
esperaban impacientes la hora; y formando alrededor de la joven
grupo semejante al que emplean los artistas para representar a la
Caridad, la manoseaban so pretexto de acariciarla, le estrujaban la
mantilla, arrugándole las mangas y curioseando dentro del ridículo. A
cada instante acudía la joven a remediar los desperfectos que los dos
inquietos y pegajosos muchachos se hacían en su propio vestido, y ya
atando el uno la cinta de la gorra o cachucha, o abotonándole e
casaquín, ya asegurando al otro con alfileres la corbata, no daba
reposo a sus manos ni podía quitárseles de encima.
—No seáis pesados —les dijo con enfado su padre— y no sobéis
tanto a nuestra querida Hormiguita. Para verla, para darle a entende
que la queréis mucho, no es preciso que le pongáis encima esas
manazas... que sabe Dios cómo estarán de limpias, ni hace falta que
la llenéis de saliva besuqueándola...
Esta reprimenda les alejó un poco del objeto de su adoración; pero
siguieron contemplándola como bobos, cortados y ruborosos, mientras
ella, la sonrisa en los labios, reparaba tranquilamente las chafaduras
de su vestido y las arrugas del encaje, para abrir luego su abanico y
darse aire con aquel ademán ceremonioso y acompasado, propio de la
mujer española.
Entre tanto, allá arriba, en la vivienda de la familia, oíase batahola y
patadillas con llanto y becerreo, señal del pronunciamiento de los dos
Corderos menores, Rafaelito y Juan Jacobo, rebelándose contra la
orden que les dejaba encerrados en casa, en la fastidiosa compañía
de la tía Crucita.
—Ya escampa —dijo Cordero señalando al techo con el rabo de la
pluma—: oiga usted al pueblo soberano que aborrece las cadenas..
Verdad que mi hermana no es de aquellas personas organizadas po
la naturaleza para hacer llevadero y hasta simpático el despotismo.
Y dejando por un momento la escritura, entró en la trastienda
dirigiendo hacia arriba, por el hueco de la tortuosa escalerilla, estas
palabras:
—Cruz y Calvario, no les pegues, que harta desazón tienen con
quedarse en casa en día de tanto festejo.
—Idos de una vez a la calle y dejadme en paz —contestó de arriba
una voz nada armoniosa ni afable—, que yo me entenderé con los
enemigos. Ya sé cómo he de tratarles... Eso es, marchaos vosotros
marchaos al paseíto tú y la linda Marizápalos, que aquí se queda esta
pobre mártir para cuidar serpentones y aguantar porrazos, siempre
sacrificada entre estos dos cachidiablos... Idos enhorabuena..., a bien
que en la otra vida le darán a cada cual su merecido.
Violento golpe de una puerta fue punto final de este agrio discurso
y en seguida se oyeron más fuertes las patadillas infantiles de los
Corderos y el sermoneo de la pastora.
—Siempre regañando —dijo don Benigno con jovialidad— y
arrojando venablos por esa bendita boca, que, con ser casi tan
atronadora como la de un cañón de a ocho, no trae su charla insufrible
de malas entrañas ni de un corazón perverso. Mil veces lo he dicho de
mi inaguantable hermana, y ahora lo repito: «es la paloma que ladra».
 Esto lo dijo Cordero guardando en su lugar las plumas con el libro
de cuentas y todos los trebejos de escribir, y tomó después con una
mano el sombrero para llevarlo a la cabeza, mientras la otra mano
transportaba el gorro carmesí de la cabeza a la espetera en que e
sombrero estuvo.
—Vámonos ya, que si no llegamos pronto, encontraremos
ocupados los balcones de Bringas.
La joven alzaba la tabla del mostrador para salir con los chicos
cuando la tienda se oscureció por la aparición de un rechondo pedazo
de humanidad que casi llenaba el marco de la puerta con su bordada
casaca, sus tiesos encajes, su espadín, su sombrero, sus brazos, que
no sabían cómo ponerse para dar a la persona un aspecto pomposo
en que la rotundidad se uniera con la soltura.
—Felices, señor don Juan de Pipaón —dijo don Benigno
observando de pies a cabeza al personaje—. Pues no viene usted
poco majo... Así me gusta a mí la gente de corte... Eso es vestirse con
gana y paramentarse de veras. A ver, vuélvase usted de espaldas..
¡Magnífico! ¡Qué faldones!... A ver de frente... ¡Qué pechera! Alce
usted el brazo: muy bien. ¡Cómo se conoce la tijera de Rouget! De mis
encajes nada tengo que decir..., ¡qué saldrá de esta casa que no sea
la bondad misma! Póngase usted el sombrero a ver qué tal cae..
Superlative... ¡Con qué gracia está puesta la llave dorada sobre la
cadera!... Esas medias serán de casa de Bárcenas... ¡Qué bien hacen
las cruces sobre el paño oscuro...! Una, dos, tres, cuatro veneras..
Bien ganaditas todas, ¿no es verdad, ilustrísimo señor don Juan?..
¡Barástolis! Parece usted un patriarca griego, un sultán, un califa, e
rey que rabió, o el mismísimo mágico de Astracán.
Conforme lo decía iba examinando pieza por pieza, haciendo da
vueltas al personaje como si este fuera un maniquí giratorio. Don
Benigno y la joven, no menos admirada que él, ponderaban con
grandes exclamaciones la belleza y lujo de todas las partes de
vestido, mientras el cortesano se dejaba mirar y en silencio asentía
con un palmo de boca abierta, todo satisfecho y embobado de gozo, a
los encarecimientos de su persona.
—Todo es nuevo —observó la damita.
—Todo —repitió Pipaón mirándose a sí mismo en redondo como un
pavo real—. Mi destino de la Secretaría de Su Majestad ha exigido
estos dispendios.
 En seguida fue enumerando lo que le había costado cada pieza de
aquel torreón de seda, galones, plumas, plata, encajes, piedras y
ballenas, rematado en su cúspide por la carátula más redonda, más
alborozada, más contenta de sí misma que se ha visto jamás sobre un
montón de carne humana.
—Pero no nos detengamos —dijo al fin—, ustedes salían...
—Vamos a casa de Bringas. ¿Va usted también allá?
—¿Yo? No, hombre de Dios. Mi cargo me obliga a estar en Palacio
con los señores ministros y los señores del Consejo para escribir all
a...
Acercó su boca al oído de don Benigno, y protegiéndola con la
palma de la mano, dijo en voz baja:
—A la francmasona...
Ambos se echaron a reír, y don Benigno se envolvió en su capa
diciendo:
—¡Pues viva la reina francmasona! El desfrancmasonizador que la
desfrancmasonice buen desfrancmasonizador será.
—Eso no lo dice Rousseau.
—Pero lo digo yo... Y andando, que es tarde.
—Andandito... —murmuró Pipaón, incrustando su persona toda en
el hueco de la puerta para ofrecerla a la admiración de los transeúntes
—. Pero se me olvidaba el objeto de mi visita.
—¿Pues no ha venido usted a que le viéramos?
—Sí, y también a otra cosa. Tengo que dar una noticia a la señora
doña Sola.
La joven se puso pálida primero, después como la grana, siguiendo
con los ojos el movimiento de la mano de Pipaón, que sacaba unos
papeles del bolsillo del pecho.
—¿Noticias? Siempre que sean buenas... —dijo Cordero cerrando y
asegurando una de las hojas de la puerta.
—Buenas son... Al fin nuestro hombre da señales de vida. Me ha
escrito, y en la mía incluye esta carta para usted.
Soledad tomó la carta, y en su turbación la dejó caer; la recogió y
quiso leerla, y tras un rato de vacilación y aturdimiento, guardola para
leerla después.
—Y no me detengo más —dijo Pipaón—, que voy a llegar tarde a
Palacio—. Hablaremos esta noche, señor don Benigno, señora doña
Hormiga. Abur.
 Se eclipsó aquel astro. Por la calle abajo iba como si rodara
semejante a un globo de luz, deslumbrando los ojos de los transeúntes
con los mil reflejos de sus entorchados y cruces, y siendo pasmo de
los chicos, admiración de las mujeres, envidia de los ambiciosos, y
orgullo de sí mismo.
Cuando el héroe de Boteros, dada la última vuelta a la llave de la
puerta y embozado en su pañosa, se puso en marcha, habló de este
modo a su compañera:
—¿Noticias de aquel hombre?... Bien. ¿Cartas venidas po
conducto de Pipaón?..., malum signum. No tenemos propiamente
correo... Querida Hormiga, es preciso desconfiar en todo de este
tunante de Bragas y de sus melosas afabilidades y cortesanías. Mi
veces le he definido, y ahora le vuelvo a definir: «es el cocodrilo que
besa».
 II

¿Por qué vivía en casa de Cordero la hija de Gil de la Cuadra?

¿Desde cuándo estaba allí? Es urgente aclarar esto.
Cuando pasó a mejor vida, del modo lamentable e inicuo que todos
sabemos, don Patricio Sarmiento, Soledad siguió viviendo sola en la
casa de la calle de Coloreros. Don Benigno y su familia continuaron
también en el piso principal de la misma casa. La continuada vecindad
y más aún la comunidad de desgracias y de peligros en que se habían
visto, aumentaron a afición de Sola a los Corderos y el cariño de los
Corderos a Sola, hasta el punto de que todos se consideraban como
de una misma familia, y llegó el caso de que en la vecindad llamaran a
la huérfana doña Sola Cordero.
A poco de nacer Rafaelito, trasladose don Benigno a la subida de
Santa Cruz, y al principal de la casa donde estaba su tienda; y como
allí el local era espacioso, instaron a su amiga para que viviera con
ellos. Después de muchos ruegos y excusas quedó concertado el plan
de residencia. En aquellos días se casó Elena con el jovenzuelo
Angelito Seudoquis, el cual, destinado a Filipinas cuatro meses
después de la boda, emprendió con su muñeca el viaje por el Cabo, y
a los catorce meses los señores de Cordero recibieron en una misma
carta dos noticias interesantes: que sus hijos habían llegado a Manila
y que antes de llegar les habían dado un nietecillo.
Lo mismo don Benigno que su esposa veían que la huérfana iba
llenando poco a poco el hueco que en la familia y en la casa había
dejado la hija ausente. Pruebas dio aquella bien pronto de se
merecedora del afecto paternal que marido y mujer le mostraban
Asistió a doña Robustiana en su larga y penosa enfermedad con tanta
solicitud y abnegación tan grande, que no lo haría mejor una santa
Nadie, ni aun ella misma, hizo la observación de que había pasado su