Page:American Historical Review, Volume 12.djvu/291

The Black Warrior Affair 281 March, and April of 1854 when the situation known as the Black Warrior Affair was developed. I. The American steamer Black Warrior, one of the largest vessels engaged in the Atlantic coast transportation trade at the time, had for many months previous to February, 1854, been calling at Havana on her way to Mobile and New York City without partic- ular incident. Though more than thirty trips between New York and Mobile via Havana had been made by the steamer, shipments not billed to Cuba had never been entered in the manifest of the cargo, if we are to accept as worthy of full credence the statement of Tyng and Company, consignees of the vessel. The port regula- tions of Havana, however, were explicit on this point : all cargo, whatever might be its point of destination, must under the law be declared in the ship's manifest and pay into the royal treasury a sum fixed by law. On the morning of February 28, 1854, the Black JVarrior. with upwards of nine hundred bales of cotton for New York and four- teen passengers, passed Morro Castle and anchored in the bay be- yond. The vessel was late in arriving. She had been expected on the twenty-fifth and had been " cleared " for the day following. The company's agents were in the habit of applying for clearance papers before the arrival of the steamer in order to have done with a formality which might develop into a source of delay if post- poned. This very obvious irregularity was sanctioned by the Spanish officials. The visita de fondco (visit of inspection) was made in the usual manner by the revenue inspectors, who at the time placed in the hands of Captain Bullock an English copy of the regulations of the port.^ Revenue Inspector de Santiago, who was accompanied by the government interpreter, happened to glance into the open hatches of the vessel and discovered that a great quantity of cotton was being carried, although the ship's manifest made declaration of noth- ing but " ship's stores ". In this " heyday of filibusters " the greatest vigilance was en- joined on all Spanish officials : Pezuela, the new governor, who had been sent to Cuba because of his well-known energetic character, had undoubtedly been sufficiently warned by the feverish activities of certain adventurers in the States to take every precaution to guard the coasts and ports committed to his charge. De Santiago told ' Sworn statement of Jaime de Santiago, June 17, 1854.