For some time the affairs of the new kingdom progressed
favorably. In San Francisco, King James, in person, engaged four
hundred coolies and fitted out a schooner which he sent to
Trinidad, where it made regular trips between his principality and
Brazil; an agent was established on the island, and the construction
of docks, wharves, and houses was begun, while at the chancellery
in West Thirty-sixth Street, the Minister of Foreign Affairs was
ready to furnish would-be settlers with information.
And then, out of a smiling sky, a sudden and unexpected blow was
struck at the independence of the little kingdom. It was a blow
from which it never recovered.
In July of 1895, while constructing a cable to Brazil, Great Britain
found the Island of Trinidad lying in the direct line she wished to
follow, and, as a cable station, seized it. Objection to this was
made by Brazil, and at Bahia a mob with stones pelted the sign of
the English Consul-General.
By right of Halley's discovery, England claimed the island; as a
derelict from the main land, Brazil also claimed it. Between the
rivals, the world saw a chance for war, and the fact that the island
really belonged to our King James for a moment was forgotten.
But the Minister of Foreign Affairs was at his post. With
promptitude and vigor he acted. He addressed a circular note to all
the powers of Europe, and to our State Department a protest.
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