I have just read an extensive biographical synthesis about Mayor Rius i Taulet written by a doctor in History. He claims that the president of the United States, Grover Cleveland, attended the inauguration of the Columbus monument.
It is not a surprise to find this manifest error, since the published statement in this sense is taken as true and they limit themselves to repeating it without further ado. It is not worth investigating, since credible suspicion immediately arises if one asks oneself some logical questions.
Since 1888 was an election year, was it wise to waste time with a long trip to Barcelona for such a trivial reason for American interest? It was also not logical for him to visit the Exhibition, open until December. His presence would have been commented on with no little relevance in the press, as was highlighted by the kings of Portugal and Sweden and the Prince of Wales.
I believe that the confusion was caused by the wording of the tombstone hanging inside the entrance to the monument. Here is the literal transcription:
“
A hasty reading of the term “represented”, reinforced by “finding”, surely caused the aforementioned confusion.
I suspect that the author of the writing of the inscription on the tombstone was the influential high-ranking official Carles Pirozzini, a decisive figure in the cultural sector of the time. The text does not lie, but it provides a subtle ambiguity in the case of a hasty reading, very typical of the place in which it is displayed. The proof is that it gave rise to the urban legend.
The journalistic chronicles report the presence of the queen regent sitting on a throne, the president of the Council of Ministers (Sagasta was accompanied by the heads of Development, Navy and War), the American ambassador and the mayor of Genoa.
Mayor Rius i Taulet and President Sagasta took the floor.
The solemn act ended with the trustee of the Italian city placing a large wreath at the foot of the monument on the side facing the sea.
