Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-03-16
IN NICARAGUA.
WANDERING In THE TROPICS AND
THEIR ATTRACTIONS.
Some Interesting Items of the Re-
gion, ana Concerning Mosquito
"A Negro King
sspeclaf Correspondence of the REooRD- UNION.
gLEwFIELDs (Mosquito Terri, I
March z 1899

NsN ~
States because it borders apon the pro-
posed ship-canal, this portion of Nicaragua
is almost complete terra incognita tie the
world at notwithstanding that Eng
land and Spain fought over two or three
hundred years, varying the monetony of
the contest by an occasional bout With the
United States on the same subject. His
tory is almost silent concerning It, telling
US only that Columbus sighted the Mos
quito coast in 1902, followed during the
next hundred years .hy several ether Span
ish voyagers-every one of whom claimed
to be the original discoverer.
In 1858 an old Dutch pirate named
Esquemeline visited it, and two years later
published very queer book, detailing all
the particulars of his " discovery" and in
IVA French pirate, De Lussan, pub
lished his discovery of it. For more than
century it was the general rendezvous of
English buccaneers and flibusters, all Of
whom were on intimate terms with the
successive Governors of Jamaica, and
shared with them their spoils. When the
wars with Spain were brought to close, so
that it vas no longer possible to eonnive at
freebooting, these enterprising worthless
determined to obtain possession of ii in be-
half of the British crown.
1t would be tedious to enumerate the
ludicrous series OF events by which these
English "agents many Of them ex-
buccaneers, but acting under orders
pressed their pretended rights to this Mos
quito coast Under the British protect
crate, one negro after another was crowned
King" and Upheld in his office until the
farce ended by the death of three eensecu-
tive maiesties, from oyer-indulgence in
Jamaica rum. Sir Hans Sloan relates how
one of these black Kings" was taken to
Jamaica for the purpose of educating him,
and that his royal highness escaped the
les ons by climbing to the top of "a tree
In the spring of 1925 a miserable Great
IRE was selected from among these saw
ages, and invested 10y the English stimuli
taneously with his first pair of brooches
and the title of King" Robert Charles
Frederick Las this Sambo was respect
fully addressed by the British agents-im-
mediately after donning the imperial pur-
pie Tor, rather, blue jeans), proceeded to
make over the entire coast of Nicaragua,
Belize and Honduras to a company of
capitalists, receiving in pay for this prince
ly grant several barrels of Jamaica rum
and bundle of cotton pantaloons. Those
barrels of rum, fortunately, proved too
much for the delicate constitution of Rob-
ert Charles Frederick l., and before giving
up the ghost he again transferred his King
dom to Colonel Mcdonald, Superintend-
ent OF Belize. His son, George William
Clarence" succeeded to the purple and
was duly proclaimed King, while the Gov
errors of Nicaragua and Honduras, on
behalf of their distressed people, were
making earnest but vain appeals to Great
Britain for redress.
In 1S4S two British war vessels steamed
into the harbor of San Juan del Norte,
tore down the Nicaraguan flag, and
changed the old name to that of Gray
town, which it now bears. They also
seized Tigre island, in the bay of Fonsrea,
on the western side of Nicaragua, with a
view to securing both ends of the inter-
oceanic route then proposed; but the latter
scheme was in a measure thwarted by our
energetic countryman, Hon. E. G.. Squier,
who was then Charge to Central America
Had our Government reasserted and en-
forced the Monroe doctrine with its Gus
tomary promptness, the vexed questions
down here would long before have been
settled; but that precious document, the
Bnlwer-Clayton treaty, bobbed up like
Banquo's ghost at every fresh outrage on
the part of Britain. Not until 1860 was a
permanent and sensible arrangement
made, giving the islands and their depend
encies to the Republic of Honduras, and
this Mes Iuitia coast to Nicaragua.
The grants made by Robert Charles
Frederick l., the drunken negro King, to
the New York company of spectators,
were taken to Europe, and actually made
the basis of two or three attempts at
colonization, all of which, however, ter
minated with the death of the deluded
emigrants from fever and other diseases of
the tir7ra caiieate Finally the grants
found their way to New York, and into
the hands of Mr.. III. L. Kinney, who pur-
chased them conditionally, and set on foot
that short-lived enterprise known as the
Kinney Expedition" In the autumn of
90, this gentleman, accompanied by a
number of eager adventures, availed
themselves of the grants and privileges
thus purchased, proceeded TO Gray town,
and at once commenced the execution of
their plans. Owing to difficulties then
existing between officers of the Accessory
Transit Company" and the citizens of
Graytown and vicinity, Mr.. Kinney and
his company met with unforeseen difficult
ties and discouragements; and though
their leader was soon afterward made
Governor, most of the Kinney Colony )"
one by one deserted, to join the forces of
General Walker, the iilibuster, who by
this time was making great pretensions in
Nicaragua, and at last Governor Kinney
himself departed in haste, "between two
days." with his name Endorsed on another
mans passport.
Mosquito proper, beyond narrow strip
of swampy coast, is one Of the loveliest
countries under the sun-a regular ideal
Acadia, with the bluest skies, the balmiest
airs, the grandest mountains, and endless
summer, without excessive heat The lat
ter fact is owing to its mountainous char
acter, the western portion being traversed
by lofty chaia striking across the country
from north to south, furnishing the source
of several important rivers, all of which
flow into the Caribbean Sea. The largest
of these are the Ronyan and Aguan rivers,
the Quinto, Segovia and Eseondida.
The remarkably fertile soil produces the
most luxuriant iropic vegetation, includ-
ing all the staples of the West Indies.
immense quantities Of mahogany and
other valuable timber, dye woods, drugs,
etc. Along the sea the hot and humid
coast is unhealthy enough to kill even
Jamaica negro; but in the highlands il is
about like New England May from year to
year, and so salubrioas that the natives
find it difiicult to die at the good old age
of ninety years. In fact they don't seem
to die here-they wither up and dry.
like walking mummies. Though doubtless
they have them somewhere, have not yet
seen cemetery in Mosquito; but have
seen people who are known to be more
than one hundred years old, and met one
man who looked to be seventy, who begged
me to look up his grandfather, living near
Blewfiekls.
Valuable Minerals are said 10 xbound in
the interior OF the territory, and all along
the coasts great quantities of the finest
tortoise shell are found. About the only
Inhabitants are TIE native Mosquitiars-
an active and daring race for Central
Americans, tolerabiy expert in the use of
firearms.
Land cannot now be bought within the