In doing this, while he was legally in the right, he committed a
fatal error. He had made a powerful enemy of Vanderbilt, and he
had shut off his only lines of communication with the United
States. For, enraged at the presumption of the filibuster president,
Vanderbilt withdrew his ocean steamers, thus leaving Walker
without men or ammunition, and as isolated as though upon a
deserted island. He possessed Vanderbilt's boats upon the San Juan
River and Nicaragua Lake, but they were of use to him only
locally.
His position was that of a man holding the centre span of a bridge
of which every span on either side of him has been destroyed.
Vanderbilt did not rest at withdrawing his steamers, but by
supporting the Costa Ricans with money and men, carried the war
into Central America. From Washington he fought Walker through
Secretary of State Marcy, who proved a willing tool.
Spencer and Webster, and the other soldiers of fortune employed
by Vanderbilt, closed the route on the Caribbean side, and the
man-of-war _St. Marys_, commanded by Captain Davis, was
ordered to San Juan on the Pacific side. The instructions given to
Captain Davis were to aid the allies in forcing Walker out of
Nicaragua. Walker claims that these orders were given to Marcy
by Vanderbilt and by Marcy to Commodore Mervin, who was
Marcy's personal friend and who issued them to Davis.
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