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to kill him and his family. A mere two months before Breton's arrival,
they had murdered his son, Leon Sedov, in a Paris clinic; and attempts on
his own life were so likely that Rivera had installed a guard booth in
front of the Blue House. All visitors (with Rivera the sole exception)
were required to make appointments in advance, while road trips in–
volved an entourage of twelve or more in several cars. Given these pre–
cautions, the tragedy that had recently visited Trotsky, and his ongoing
preoccupations, the ten or so meetings granted Breton bear witness to
the sincere interest
"L.
D." took in his foreign guest.
When not seeing Trotsky, Breton spent his time with Rivera, travel–
ing throughout the countryside and meeting numerous Mexican intellec–
tuals. He continued to grant interviews to the newspapers, one of which
quoted him declaring that "war seems inevitable, and the most we can
hope for is that it will inspire more opponents than the last one, who
will take advantage of the situation to lead the masses in overthrowing
capitalism, of which it is the result." And he attempted to fulfill his offi–
cial duties as a lecturer: he briefly spoke at the opening of an art exhibit,
prefaced the Mexican premiere of
Un Chien Andalou,
and on May 13
delivered the first of several scheduled lectures at the Universidad Na–
cional in Mexico City, on "modern transformations in art and Surreal–
ism." Trotsky, fearing disruptions by the local Stalinists, instructed his
followers to post themselves around the amphitheater.
As it happened, Breton's first lecture proved to be his last: soon af–
terward, the rector who was sponsoring his speeches resigned, and the
embassy, preoccupied with an attempted coup against President Cardenas,
had little time to redesign Breton's schedule. Moreover, after his talk at
the university, Breton found himself the subject of several hostile articles
in the press, which dismissed Surrealism as an "ivory tower." Despite re–
buttals by Rivera, Breton was stripped of his official mission in June. He
gave one last public address, a poetry reading on June 26, and then no
more for the rest of his stay.
In the end, it was a small loss: the cancellation of further lectures
now left him free to tour Mexico and see Trotsky. During the months
of June and July, he and the exiled Bolshevik explored Toluca, Cuer–
navaca, Tenayuca, Calixtlahuaco, and other magnificent villages full of
Mexican and Indian lore . They visited the volcano Popocatepetl and
scaled the pyramids of Xochicalco. One evening, in a small town, Trot–
sky took advantage of his guests to permit himself a rare treat: going to
the movies. Despite Rivera's entreaties to keep his face covered, Trotsky
- accompanied by Natalia, Breton, Jacqueline, and a dozen bodyguards
and assistants - watched the dubbed, third-rate Western with consum-
