Exile (1945-1956)

EXILE (1945-1956) In March 1945, Saturnino was back in Cienfuegos, and on April 10 of that year, the arrival of the Tejera-Montejo couple was announced, whose residence they would establish at 121 Arguelles Street. On this occasion he came not in search of fortune, but seeking refuge to give peace to his life that for years suffered the humiliations of prisons and concentration camps. This time the newspaper El Comercio opened its doors to him and Tejera returned to his noble craft of fusing ideas in lead bars, and he had time to do journalism and poetry. His main occupation was a linotype mechanic, and he was called "the doctor of the madmen"17 in allusion to a film of the same name, and the crazy ones were precisely the linotypes. His life was the printing press. In addition to his work at El Comercio, he had a contract at La Correspondencia. Lincoln George, who was a colleague of Saturnino in the editorial staff of the aforementioned newspaper, relates an anecdote told by the latter upon his arrival: There he spent about three years of toil and privation, until, in agreement with another captive, they planned and managed to escape, for the prison was seated on a high height that was meandered by a river. They managed to swim across and then continue walking for several days until they reached the French border, where after interrogations and limitations they were able to stay there for a while. When the time was right, after several negotiations, he was able to take a boat to Cuba. His fellow prisoner was left there because of other processing requirements. The wife and her two children were able to embark for Cuba later in other ways.18 Of his entry into the newspaper El Comercio, he said: (...) in the life of a journalist or writer there are days of difficulty that extend to the point of despair. This is the case for many. That's why I can't introduce myself to the readers with the words of ritual, because I don't know how to write them; Nor do I want anyone to introduce me. In the passing of days I will be known. This is a man who insists on carrying with him, along all the routes, a little bit of childhood, adolescence, poetry, and a bit of mischief, perhaps no more than life has taught him. George knew him in depth, although he says that he was not his close friend, because Tejera was very sparing about his personal affairs, but he had to approach him for several reasons: firstly, it was Tejera who taught him to work on the linotype, and when Saturnino died he was able to replace him, and because the life of the fraternity united them in the same ideal. Another colleague from the editorial staff of El Comercio remembers him as "a man of strong character but affable, introverted, yes, demanding to receive the jobs and because of his efforts the administration had to buy for each linotypist a liter of milk a day, and book annual vacations on the beach; but she never heard him speak of the war." In December 1945 he moved his residence to 72 San Fernando Street, where he lived until the final days of his life. There he set up his small printing press with an old linotype that he bought from the newspaper El Comercio, at night and on Sundays he did modeling and card work for the industries of Cienfuegos. He belonged to the Graphic Arts Union of Cienfuegos and its annexes in the jurisdiction, and although he had previous experience as a union counselor, he never wanted to appear as a director. His excuse was based "on the fact that he was known as a sympathizer of the communist social movement, and since at that time the imposition of the mujalist prevailed, his presence as a leader was not opportune. Nevertheless, he offered himself as a trade union counsellor in any cause that was discussed, and in question he was asked for his opinions on matters in which the organisation was involved".21 His literary and journalistic work is extensive and varied. Among his prose works of these years, those that highlight his republican ideals stand out: In memory of Manuel Azaña, ¡Catorce de abril! 1931, April 14, Spain, A Lucky Man (dedicated to Franco), April 14; those that reveal the endearing nostalgia for his homeland and his Canary Islands, and those that address the figure of José Martí, among them: Martí in the Canary Islands and The Voice of Blood in Martí; as well as artistic, historical and literary chronicles, among which should be mentioned: "Amanecer y ocaso", "La responsabilidad histórica", "La obra artística de Hilda Bembibre", "Carlos Era: El caballero del arte", "Misión histórica y poética del Ateneo", "Caracol: eslabón entre dos épocas", "Signo: Revista de Arte"; and others, where he refers to the theme of war: "War Justice", "The Nazi Archive", "The Wounded Bird", "The Pain of Europe", etc. At this stage he returned to the activities of the Athenaeum to which he had belonged during his time as an émigré, and to the Circle of Friends of Culture, as well as frequenting the different fraternal organizations in which he gave speeches and conferences. At the Oasis Theosophical Martí he spoke on several occasions about José Martí and on the dates of celebration of Language Day, such as the one in 1955, where Saturnino read some emotional pages, making a brief tour of the Spanish history of the late nineteenth century, then focusing on the immense work of two geniuses of Spanish literature: Lope de Vega y Cervantes.22 He participated in and won several journalistic contests. In 1948 he won the prize of the Literary Contest of the Union of Commerce Employees of Cienfuegos with his work The Workers' Movement in Spain and in 1951 the prize of the Ateneo on Antonio Bachiller y Morales, read by its author on June 7, "DAY OF THE CUBAN BOOK" in the halls of that institution. From Cienfuegos he maintained contacts with old friends and Canarian writers such as Pedro García and Luis Álvarez Cruz. Of the latter he published a chronicle entitled "Verses that come from afar" and commented: From far away comes a book of verses "Rincón de provincia" is its title. Author Luis Alvarez Cruz, a dear friend and colleague of the chronicler. Companion in letters and companions of vicissitudes. Alvarez Cruz is an "islander" poet. A great sonnetist, who has his residence in the Fortunate Islands (Canary Islands), but his name, his verses, his magnificent numen as an Atlantic poet have already gone beyond the island's sonority to enter the literary spheres of Spain and America (...) Sonnets. Perfect sonnets fill the book. Inspiration, lofty inspiration has built them up beautifully. That is why Manuel Verdugo, the maestro, his teacher – the best sonnetist in Spain at the present time – also prologues it with an impeccable sonnet. His successor, Luis Alvarez Cruz, has done the rest. 23 In a letter dated May 5, 1952, Pedro García wrote to Tejera: Dear friend, I was pleasantly surprised by your letter, which arrived months late and when I was almost on one foot on the ship that was to take me to Seville, on my way to Madrid, where I had to go for an operation on my leg. specifically his right knee, as a result of an old wound suffered during the Spanish war. On the way back, with my leg good, I'm going to give you news... After my case was heard in Granada, I was brought here, where I had another pending. I was released in May 1945 (...) I've written a lot. I have about 6 unpublished works of poetry and I continue to work always on that axis where my life turns. I'll send you my only book published since 1936 (...) It is only from time to time that I publish anything poetic in the local newspapers, and I systematically refuse to take part in literary events. This past year has been one of great literary movement. There are some new figures of considerable interest, still in the period of formation, although they lack the right climate to devote themselves fully to the poetic adventure. 24 Later, Tejera tells him in a letter about the book Luz de Lágrimas, by his daughter Nivaria, which Clavijo Torres later sent him. Pedro García wrote to her on June 2, 1952, saying: "Your father had already told me his news. They were supposed to be something of protocol (...) I'm interested in you because of what you are (...) I was always united by a great affection for our Saturninus. We had a similar concept of the politicalsocial. He appreciated in him fine human qualities. We were distanced by conceptions of art. But our particularities were not aggressive. We held the harmony of the colors of the rainbow. The white light of friendship unified us.25 Likewise, in a letter dated April 21, 1953, Pedro García expressed to Saturnino his opinions about his daughter's book: It is an excellent book, with a potential rarely equaled. I understand that this poetry does not fit into the tastes in which you have been trained. And that is why, spontaneously, I am writing to tell you that this poetry is a true revelation within the framework of current poetic work (...) It has the size of a Storni (...) I understand that some part of the book hurts you. Don't give it more importance than any other of the same. The poem is like that and no other way. You can be happy with your daughter: her poetry makes me even more of your friend (...). 26 An enthusiastic cultural promoter, he belonged to as many committees in favor of the well-being of Cienfuegos as possible. He was a member of the faculty of the Florencio R. Velis School of Journalism and was in charge of the Chair of Typography and Linotype, from January 1953, the date on which the aforementioned institution was founded. His work as a lecturer in the social and literary circles of Cienfuegos was commendable. From his lecture entitled "The Sonnet in Contemporary Castilian Poets", offered from the tribune of the Ariel Group and at the Athenaeum, a chronicle highlighted the repercussions of the same for the audience: "It was (sic) a great day of art and the poet Tejera achieved one of his best triumphs in his long literary career; in fact, his meticulous and very enjoyable work was of extraordinary interest and will remain as one of the best cultural pronouncements that we have made in Cienfuegos.27 He fought tirelessly for local Freemasonry, to which he gave all his encouragement and effort and where his execution was most intense until his death. Not only in Cienfuegos, but in the different lodges of the jurisdiction, and other places in Cuba he left his vast culture. He had to his credit the "Fraternal" section in which he daily reflected the events of the fraternity in this city, where he reviewed Masonic acts, what happened in the white tenidas, biographies of masters of the Universal and Local Fraternity, conferences on Masonic writers and literati such as Rubén Darío, the father of Latin American Modernism. All his works at this stage are signed under the pseudonym of SATURNO; He also disseminated the postulates of Freemasonry through the radio program SUNDAY FRATERNAL HOUR, which he effectively inaugurated and carried out during the year 1949. On the occasion of being awarded the degree of Master Mason, Brother Ricardo Peña de Armas highlighted his gifts and qualities: Of this group, the learned companion stands out for his theosophical knowledge, a modest but highly cultured man, who already knows of the sufferings of the persecutions of Freemasonry in the lands of the Spanish dictator (...) As a man of principle and a Freemason (...) this noble brother managed to escape with his life from that hell of persecution and reach our shores, where he knows that he is esteemed and loved. Here he immediately began his work of spiritual and material reconstruction, in this very city. A man of high moral principles and profoundly fraternal, dear Brother Tejera was closely linked to all the circles of spiritual improvement, and his work has distinguished itself, and has served us and continues to guide and inspire our steps along the paths of the coordination of our fraternal values. In local journalism (...) it maintains a daily section with the title of Fraternals, which is a living hymn to our concerns and a link of more perfect and sincere unity of all fraternities. 28 On several occasions he was elected Deputy Speaker, a position which he effectively held, and by this appointment he constantly participated in the inauguration of different lodges of men and women; On one occasion she expressed the following in the Fraternal Association of the Daughters of Acacia 32: "We would like to see the fraternal feelings of man and woman harmonized, because we always think that when the soul puts a vision of love in things, we begin by finding in the disparate reciprocal resonances, as if some things made the others fruitful. as if each one reflected the others." He received constant tributes and decorations from the lodges of Cienfuegos, Palmira and Cumanayagua for his eloquent speech and fraternal work. But his greatest achievement and concern was to found, in 1953, the third Masonic Lodge of Cienfuegos "Federico Capdevila", together with other Masonic brothers; served on several First Watcher boards; He was also a Deputy and the representative for this lodge before the Grand Lodge of Cuba in Havana. For a long time he stayed away from Oddfelism and asked for his re-entry in 1955 in Jagua No. 21 of the IOOF; In his words for this reason, he said: "(...) Oddfelows can never be mere spectators, as in fictional theatre. That is why I wanted to enter the active life of oddfelismo, to be an actor of greater or lesser category, but an interpreter in the end, of the great work, of our work, of the work of all".30 By the end of 1955 he was already ill, and nostalgia and memories consumed him and made him bring to his mind his years as an émigré when they had gatherings in the old cafes of Cienfuegos. In his work "Sunday Afternoon" he puts it this way: Sunday afternoon has led me to write in a café. A modernized café. I liked it better when it had marble tables and semi-dark corners and servants without uniforms and conical sieve (...) At that time we could frequently find Hilarion, Soto, Rumbaut, López Dorticós, Alfonso Camín, etc., making literary gatherings and spirituous drinks, when one of them was bothered by the miracle of a peso in silver in his pocket. In these cafés of today, the line that separates life from literature is lost, lowering joy and sadness for literary things. We would say better, canceling them.31 On November 17, 1956 at 4 p.m., he came to the end of his life after a long and painful illness; He suffered from lung cancer and his death was certified due to functional collapse of the heart; he was imprisoned in the Sanatorium of the Spanish Colony. His remains were buried in section Y-16, of Lot No. 98, of the Pantheon of Jagua Lodge No. 21, and on November 17, 1959 they were exhumed and are still kept in the same pantheon of the aforementioned lodge, in the same section, Lot 21. His death shook Cienfuegos society and newspapers published heartfelt chronicles of his death. One chronicle said: "He had left his distant land as an expatriate, and had that pale reflection of home beyond the seas. With sincerity bordering on the idealistic, he loved the Cuban land that welcomed him into its bosom. Perhaps Cienfuegos owes him the debt of a constant and effusive love, both for the city that revived his last years with a little happiness, and for how much he loved the Pearl of the South."