"The New York Times" defended rear-admiral Bancroft Gherardi from fallout of the incident, saying that any criticism of the naval officer was "malicious". The newspaper instead blaming Frederick Douglass for the incident and describing him as " pitiable ... for a man of his reputation and position, and is one that no amount of explanation and no number of articles in the North American Review can smooth away". Upon returning to the United States in 1891, Gherardi said in an interview with "The New York Times" that in a short time Haiti would experience further instability, suggesting that future governments in Haiti would abide by the demands of the United States. Twenty five years after the incident, the United States would invade and occupy Haiti for nineteen years.