Chacho the Author 329Strangely enough, his questions were mainly about
the people on the street, not my friends in government.
He wanted to know what the average person thought of
the government, what was the national mood. Was
there enough food and fuel supplies for those cities. He
even asked about communications services, and if the
news media covered the news as it really happened. He
used to bring newspaper clippings of affairs in that
country which had appeared in some American news
papers. I'd give him my unbiased impressions, knowing
he always wanted me to go into great detail. At times,
the questioning sessions left me with the feeling that he
was trying to trick me into giving him answers.
By 1972 , I was going to various South American
countries several times a year. Upon my return from
each visit, I would give Harold my reports. By January 1,
197 4, the relationships between the U.S. companies and
Peru, the country where this story takes place, had gone
sour, despite the efforts of American businesses to deal
with the revolutionary government in Peru. By that
time, I was no longer a spectator. I was taking an active
part in the negotiations, trying to save some of the
investments made by international corporations. By
then, my activities no longer seemed mysterious, but
legitimate international business, with all the headaches
that go with it.
The last time I saw the man I called Harold Barton
alive was late May, 1974, at three o'clock in the morning
at the Holiday Inn in Montreal, Canada. It was during
this meeting he asked me to return to Peru around the
middle of June that year. He wanted me to report to him
on all the disturbances that would be taking place by the
end of July, when the Peruvian government planned to
take over all the news media in that country.
It was while on this particular mission I met Rama in
the Andes Mountains.