MARTÍN FIERRO FOR STUDENTS · THE RETURN · 1879
Canto 28 Explained: Picardía Exposes How Soldiers' Rations Disappear
A source-linked English study guide alongside José Hernández’s original Spanish poem.
What happens in Canto 28?
Picardía says he obtained a somewhat better position assisting an officer nicknamed La Bruja. He describes widespread allegations that suppliers and successive officers take portions of food rations before they reach ordinary soldiers. As the allocations move down the chain of command, almost nothing remains. Picardía also complains about poor clothing, violence and mistreatment of gauchos. He explicitly labels some accusations as camp rumors, so readers must distinguish reported suspicions from the shortages he says he observed.
Original verses: three passages worth studying
The following stanzas are taken directly from the repository's original-text corpus, without modernization. Explanations elsewhere on this page are interpretation, not translation.
Decían que estaba de acuerdoLa Bruja y el provedor,y que recebía lo pior;puede ser, pues no era lerdo.
Y sufren tanto bocaoy hacen tantas estaciones,que ya casi no hay racionescuando llegan al soldao.
Y es necesario aguantarel rigor de su destino;el gaucho no es argentinosino pa hacerlo matar.
Main characters and voices
Picardía as first-person narrator; the assistant officer nicknamed La Bruja; suppliers, commanding officers, a sergeant, a corporal and ordinary soldiers.
Literary themes to identify
Scarcity and ration distribution; alleged corruption; rumors versus testimony; military hierarchy; structural inequality and marginalization.
Gaucho vocabulary in context
raciones (food rations); proveedor (supplier); ayudante (assistant officer); cabo (corporal); sargento (sergeant); puchero (stew).
What to notice in the narration
Not every allegation is presented as firsthand knowledge: Picardía introduces part of the story as gossip about La Bruja and the supplier. The diminishing rations are the focus of his narrative satire, and the repeated transfers expose a hierarchy of power. The account should not be converted into an unqualified assertion about every frontier unit.
Related reading: The preceding canto's critique of unpaid service
Reading-comprehension and discussion questions
- How does Picardía obtain a better post at the frontier?
- Which accusations does he identify as rumors?
- What happens to food as it moves through the hierarchy?
- What are the effects on ordinary soldiers?
- How does the canto criticize the treatment of gauchos?
Support answers with details from the original canto. Different interpretations may be justified if the quoted passages and narrative context support them.
Sources and further reading
Primary source: José Hernández, La vuelta de Martín Fierro (1879), Canto 28, reproduced from the site's structured Spanish corpus. Summary and questions are original English educational commentary, not quoted authorial explanations.
Original canto · Summary of both parts · Character guide · All study guides