 The historian Ben Hughes commented on the novel : " The Liberator 's British <unk> , including Daniel O 'Leary , were amongst the closest figures to the general in this period . Nevertheless , they are ignored in the novel . Instead , Márquez uses the character of a fictional Colombian servant , José Palacios , as The Liberator 's final sounding board , thereby <unk> <unk> the more complex reality . " In Hughes 's view modern South American literature has played a role in cleansing the national memory of British soldiers ' assistance to The Liberator . 
