I further bound him to my fortunes by obtaining for him a rise of salary from the directors, "in consequence of the favorable report of his conduct received from Mr.Martin." Peaceful as matters seemed, I was not altogether at ease.

To begin with the new loan did not apparently at all improve the financial position of Aureataland.

Desolation still reigned on the scene of the harbor works; there was the usual difficulty in paying salaries and meeting current expenditure.

The President did not invite my confidence as to the disposal of his funds; indeed before long I was alarmed to see a growing coldness in his manner, which I considered at once ungrateful and menacing; and when the half-year came round he firmly refused to disburse more than half the amount of interest due on the second loan, thus forcing me to make an inroad on my reserve of forty-five thousand dollars.

He gave me many good reasons for this course of conduct, dwelling chiefly on the necessary unproductiveness of public works in their early stages, and confidently promising full payment with arrears next time.