New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-05-31
THE MOSQUITO RESERVE.
II.
BRITISH GUARDIANSHIP OVER IT.
CROWN CAPTURED BY YANKEE-THE CLAY
ToY-BULwER TREATY-GRoUNDs FOR,
ADVOCATING IT-AN UNJUST
DIPLOMATIC DUTY.
II.

| ToN-BULwER TREATY-GRoUNDs FOR
ADVOCATING IT-AN UNJUST
DIPLOMATIC DUTY.
| FROM srAyy CORRESPONDENT OF rHE TRIBUNE.
| Bluefelds, March l3.-The sceptre Of the MOS
quito Kings has been captured by Yankee anu
| been struggled out of port in hatrbox. Samuei
| d. Spellman, representing George T.. Emory ="
Sons. Of Boston, in the mahogany trade Of this
coast has obtained possession of the CROWN ana
is now carrying it North, with the intention OF
presenting il to some American museum OF an
tiouities. Before sailing for Boston he took me
into corner, opened the box, and displayed the
| crown As il was midnight and he was TO take
the steamer at the bluff in the morning, may
claim the honor of being the last witness OF the
departing glory of royalty the Mosquito coast.
| 1t is a shabby of little intrinsic value. III
is hand Of furnished silver, with red-plusn
velvet cap and lining of soiled chamois skin Inc
silver is beaten out into twelve conventional oak
! leaves with coronet clasp in front. Underneath
this line of clumsy ornament, which suggests In
vague way the moral that in the early days OF
Mosquito royalty British clubs were trumps, there
are two beaded lines with spaces in the clrclet
for alternating diamonds and seals of tortoise shell.
The jewels have been removed and probably
pawned, owing to the vicisstudes Of royalty. Each
|
consumed by the Kings of the Mosquitoes. Despoiled
of its Jewels, the crown left for safe-keep-
| ing with Queen mother, and she sold it to
trader When the lumber camps were opened in
the mahogany district Mr.. Spellman procured 1t
without the knowledge Of the Indians. SO passes
| away the glory of royalty. The Mosquito chief
remains but the crown has been seized in shrewd
| Yankee bargain.
This crown was originally bestowed by British
intrigues at Jamaica The Mosquito coast stretch
! ing from the twelfth 60 the fifteenth parallel,
distance of 200 miles, discovered by Columbus.
AS there were no indications of gold deposits, and
as the natives were degraded and impoverished,
the Spaniards made no settlements from the mouth
Of the San Juan to Cape Gracias. The coast was
neglected until the seventeenth century, when
buccaneers and pirates took advantage of its Shell
tered lagoons and safe harbors Bluefeds re-
ceived its name from Bleevelt fine old Dutch
corsair, whose hiding-place was behind the bluff.
The Indians named by the Spaniards MoscOs, came
in time to be known as Mosquitoes. Whether from
the wreck Of a slave ship upon the coast or from
the escape of runaway negroes from Jamaica and
the Spanish settlements, a hybrid race Of Indian
African breed sprang up and took possession OF
this forest coast. British traders induced party
Of chiefs to go to Jamaica and apply to the au-
thorities fol- protection. One of them was made a
King. The British subsequently occupied the
shore and raised their flag, but the Spanish Gov
eminent resented the invasion of rights based upon
original discovery BY treaties negotiated in 1888
and 1886 England abandoned all claims to any
portion of this coast but retained the privilege of
cutting logwood in what IS now British Honduras,
or Belize. When the Central American republics
revoted against Spain the English began TO tamper
anew with the Indians on this coast This silver
crown which / have described was placed on
the head of chief at Belize. This farce was re-
peated several times the soveregns invariably vim
dcating their title to royalty by remaining as
drunk as princes during their short reigns. The
coronation farce was sometimes preceded by the
baptism Of the King but invariably the silver
crown, with it's tortoise she'll jewels, brought
out and there a great feast with enough
Jamaica rum to enable all the Mosquito chiefs to
renew their allegiance to the British Crown
This protectorate was usurpation like the
settlement Of British-Honduras. The English had
abandoned their pretensions to the political con-
troll of Central America when they negotiated their
treaties with Spain. They were under moral obi
cations to scutte out bag and baggage; but
they remained on both coasts, established a set
Element in Belize, and asserted protectorate over
the Mosquito seaboard. When California and
Texas were acquired by the United States and the
construction of the Nicaragua Ship Canal was first
proposed, Great Britain took possession Of San
Juan del Norte under the pretext that 1t was in
cluded in the Mosquito region The Nicarauans |
drove out the intruders, but were subsequently |
defeated. The British reoccupied the port, and
also attempted TO take possession Of island |
in the Gulf of Fonseca the Pacific and TO con- |
troll the route of the projected Nicaragua Canal |
These complications led to the bombardment of |
San Juan del Norte by an American man-of-war
~
the nominal abandonment of the British protector
ate the Mosquito coast. The silver crown |
ceased to be a sceptrc of native authority guar
anteed by England. II was not worn after the |
treaties were made with the United States and |
Nicaragua. 1t packed away with the old |
clothes of the royal family and finally pawned |
and surrendered to Yankee trader
The sceptre has passed away but political power
remains in the hands of the Jamaica negroes and |
the Meravian missionaries. There are several
thousands Of Indians of the Rama, Wulva and Smu
tribes clustered In small communities the
banks of the rivers and the shores of the lagoons.
The independence of these tribes was nominally
guaranteed by a treaty negotiated In 1860 between
Great Britain and Nicaragua; but practically an
alien race which was amalgamated to some
extent with the Indians governs them.
This anomalous order Of so-called autonomy
was substituted for the British protectorate
which has been revived In defiance of treaties
made with Spain In 1888 and 1888. It is one of
the fantastic results of the ClaytonBulwer treaty
the most senseless diplomatic agreement into
which the United States has ever entered with
a foreign Power
The British prOtectorate over the Mosquito
coast was never recognized by the United States
Government. From 1920 to 1s4s the State De-
lit.
sions based upon compacts between the Governor
of Jamaica and tpplinG chiefs and upon mock
onations at Belize. When the canal scheme was
first preached the Indians were instigated by Brit
ish agents to take possession of the San Juan del
Norte. Nicaragua placed itself under the protec-
ton Of the United States and serious compiled
tions arose. which were temporarily adjusted by