Liberia ^•- 



On January ist, 1872, the veteran Joseph J. Roberts 

 was recalled to the Presidency, and served his country in that 

 capacity till 1876.^ He then refused re-election on the ground 

 of age and enfeebled health. James Sprigg Payne was elected 

 to succeed him. 



Three years' interest, it will be remembered, had been retained 

 in London out of the principal of the loan. The Liberian 

 Government were inclined to repudiate the whole transaction 

 after the deposition of Roye ; but this was not easy, as a 

 certain proportion of the loan — ^20,000 to ^27,000 — had 

 been received and spent by the republic. A Mr. Jackson 

 had succeeded Chinery as Liberian Consul-General and financial 

 agent in London, and during his tenure of the post for some 

 nine years he had attempted to do his best for the affairs 

 of the republic. After the brief reappearance on the scene 

 of Chinery, the post of Consul-General was finally conferred 

 on a Mr. Gudgeon, who was succeeded in 1891 by the present 

 Consul-General and Acting Minister Resident — Mr. Henry 

 Hayman. It was not until Mr. Hayman took up this office 

 from 1885-91 (first as Consul) that any attempt was made to 

 clear up the business of the loan. For years Mr. Hayman 

 fought his way through an extraordinary tangle of fraud and 

 the results of negligence, owing to which large numbers of 

 bonds (" to bearer ") had found their way on to the London 

 Stock Market, or to Holland, or even more remote places. 

 It is supposed that there had been negligence and malfeasance 



came to the conclusion that he liad not been to blame for the unfortunate affair 

 of the loan. Owing to Blyden's representations, Chinery acted as Consul-General 

 in London for a short period in 1880; but this step on Dr. Blyden's part (Blyden 

 was then Liberian Minister at the Court of St. James) was not confirmed by the 

 Liberian Executive. 



• He died on February 2ist, 1876, two months after leaving the presidential 

 chair. He had just attended the funeral of a colleague at which a tornado burst 

 with an awful downpour of rain. Roberts died from the chill, 



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