In 1868, the Central Republican Board of Cuba and Puerto Rico was founded. The group organized expeditions to Cuba, offering supplies to movements that supported the independence of Puerto Rico and Cuba. Founded by José Francisco Basora, a Puerto Rican revolutionary and friend of Ramón Emeterio Betances, the group had connections within the wealthy sugar industry in the larger antille. Bonds for quantities of 100, 500 and 1,000 pesos were printed between June 1 and November 1, 1869, in order to cover the expenses of the two planned revolutions. On August 17, 1869, the board issued notes in denominations of 1, 5, 10 and 20 "pesos", these were produced to establish an affordable alternative to the bonds. All of these issues circulated throughout North and South America as well as the Caribbean. Although they were widespread in the Spanish processions, their use was kept clandestine to avoid imprisonment by the royal authorities. However, none of them was redeemed due to the failure of the Ten Years' War and Little War in Cuba. On December 17, 1866, Maria Christina of Austria signed a decree which authorized the auctioning of a railroad in Puerto Rico. In 1888, Ivo Bosch y Puig, an engineer from Catalonia, received the concession to put the project in march. In Madrid, Bosch y Puig established the "Compañía de los Ferrocarriles de Puerto Rico" (lit. "Puerto Rico Railroad Company"). During this decade, Charles Skipper and East produced 5-"peso" banknotes in England, which were circulated after receiving the signatures of Bosch y Puig and an unidentified associate.