331 
Chap. XX.—B. P.] DOG IN THE MANGER. 
be found in the Appendix, and is a fitting climax to 
the ignorance, not to use a harsher term, which has 
been the British characteristic in dealing with the 
Mosquito question from first to last. 
But before starting for Pirn’s Bay and Blewfields, 
let us have the king’s account of this Mosquito ques¬ 
tion, which has taken up no inconsiderable amount of 
diplomatic time; more than once nearly caused a war 
between England and the United States; and, proved 
after all only another instance of the dog-in-the-manger 
policy of America, as exemplified in what is called the 
Monroe doctrine—a doctrine not only essentially nar¬ 
row and selfish, but positively injurious to the in¬ 
terests of its advocates; for who can doubt that the 
stars and stripes—“the stars which enlightens the 
Avorld and the stripes which chastises it”—are destined, 
before very long, to float over the entire North 
American continent, and that they would have floated 
over States well worth annexing, if Maximilian, in¬ 
stead of being murdered, had been allowed to bring 
order out of chaos in Mexico; and English efforts to 
civilize and reclaim Central America had not been put 
a stop to by American diplomacy and filibusterism ? 
“ Since my unlucky country,” said the king, in one 
of his conversations with me, “ first became known to 
Europe, without intermission, up to the present time, 
it has concentrated more interest than any other part 
of the continent. This is in consequence of its afford¬ 
ing an easier route at certain points between the At¬ 
lantic and the Pacific than can be found elsewhere. Of 
course, as you know, there are other localities, such as 
