Naturally a new constitution was voted, by which the President was chosen for eight years; the Senate was to be selected from a list sent in to Government; the executive had power to dissolve the Chambers and to establish a Council of State to aid the Government. Power was also given for one year to change the judges and magistrates, thus to fill the bench with their own creatures. The Government was not slow to show its intentions. The first was to render the residence of foreigners impossible by passing a law of license to trade which would have been prohibitive; but through the interference of the diplomatic corps the application of this law was postponed. At the head of the Ministry was Domingue’s nephew, Septimus Rameau, who considered that “the whites had no rights which the blacks were bound to respect.” His own friends had foretold an age of peace and enlightenment when Septimus came to power, but of all the narrow-minded negroes with vast pretensions to superiority, none equalled this man. As a rule, the abler a negro is, the more wicked and corrupt he appears. But we could never discover this much-vaunted ability, though the wickedness and corruption were manifest to all. The only wise act by which Domingue’s Government will be known was the signing of a treaty of peace, friendship, and commerce with Santo Domingo; and this was brought about by foreign aid, which smoothed down the difficulties raised by the intolerable pretensions of the Haytian Ministers. As usual, when there was political discontent, the year 1875 was ushered in by a great fire in Port-au-Prince. On May 1, taking advantage of an assembly of troops to celebrate the “_Fête de l’Agriculture_,” Rameau ordered an attack to be made on the three rivals he most feared. General Brice was sitting writing in his office when the soldiers sent to murder him appeared; his bravery, however, was so well known, that they dreaded to approach him, but firing at a distance, gave him time to seize his arms and defend himself. But having only revolvers, he thought it prudent to endeavour to take refuge in the English Legation. He was wounded fatally in doing so, and died, notwithstanding the care bestowed upon him by the Spanish Consul Lopez and his wife, who were then residing there. Monplaisir-Pierre was also attacked in his own house, but being better armed, he made a long defence; he killed seventeen soldiers, wounded thirty-two, mostly mortally, and could only be subdued by the employment of artillery. Then finding he could do no more, as, severely wounded, he could not escape, he put an end to his existence. General Lorquet commanded this attack of the garrison of Port-au-Prince on two veritable heroes.