Rebellion in Patagonia

Zavala initially acted as a mediator who condemned police bias and the exploitative company store system, helping secure a collective agreement. However, after being told to 'Think of Chile', implying foreign pressure and border threats from socialist or anarchist movements, he was ordered to suppress the rebellion with overwhelming force. The government and elite wanted the worker movement eliminated permanently, and Zavala executed this order through brutal military tactics, including summary executions of strike leaders and even negotiating delegations.

The opening nightmare of gunshots foreshadows Zavala's eventual role in the violence he initially tried to prevent.

The warning 'Think of Chile' was a veiled threat to Zavala, implying that the socialist and anarchist movements in Patagonia posed a risk to Argentina's borders and international relations. Chile and Britain were pressuring the Argentine government to suppress the rebellion, fearing the spread of anarchist ideology. This external pressure convinced the government to order Zavala to crush the workers by force rather than continue negotiations.

The agreement lasted only briefly because employers retaliated fiercely. They responded by firing workers selectively, denying service at company stores, and refusing to implement the agreed pay rises. The government also dismissed the sympathetic governor who supported the workers. Under pressure from Chile and Britain, the authorities began rounding up union leaders, forcing the workers into another strike that ultimately led to violent suppression.

The settlement explicitly required workers to surrender most of their seized weapons, weakening their defensive position.

The company store system was a debt bondage mechanism where landowners and employers owned the only stores in Patagonia. Workers were paid in company scrip or credits that could only be used at these stores, keeping them perpetually in debt. This system trapped workers in poverty regardless of their wages and was a major source of exploitation that the mediation led by Zavala condemned.

The anarcho-syndicalists surrendered after Zavala's forces captured the Red Council (bandits who had been attacking convoys) and executed most of the worker leaders. Facing overwhelming military force, summary executions of their delegations, and the death of their leadership, the remaining workers chose to yield rather than be completely annihilated. The brutal tactics, including forcing victims to dig their own graves, broke the movement's resistance.

The ending shows the landowners and military officers celebrating their victory over the workers by singing the English song 'For He's a Jolly Good Fellow.' This ironic moment symbolizes the victory of oligarchic power backed by foreign interests (notably British pressure) over the indigenous workers' movement. The use of an English song underscores how the ruling elite aligned with foreign powers to crush labor rights, making the victory even more bitter for the defeated workers.

The government initially supported the workers through President Yrigoyen, who sent Zavala to mediate and secure fair conditions. However, the regional elite and employers pressured the national government, and foreign powers (Chile and Britain) demanded action against the anarchist movement. The government changed course, ordering Zavala to eliminate the rebellion permanently. This shift illustrates how economic and political power from landowners and foreign interests overcame the initial support for labor rights.

The initial agreement explicitly condemned police partiality, but the government later abandoned this position under pressure.