A worthy fellow-worker of Arango was D. José Pablo Valiente, who as Intendente organized the Royal Exchequer, and with no little risk to himself, permitted and encouraged commerce with neutral and friendly nations, regardless of still existing restrictions. He assisted in the establishment of the Consulado and the Sociedad Economica, made a gift of seven thousand pesos to the Casa de Beneficencia, encouraged the progress of public instruction and in many lawsuits brought before the Consulado played the role of a noble conciliator. With such men as these to assist him, the administration of Las Casas was soon regarded as the most glorious in the history of the island. For though Havana was the principal scene of the activities of these men, Las Casas did not fail to extend the blessing of his reforms and improvements to other communities. The towns of Santa Maria del Rosario, Santiago de las Vegas and others soon showed considerable growth; in the districts of Guanajey, Alquiza, Quivican, Managua and others, the territory under cultivation was steadily expanding; the village of Casa Blanca and the town of Manzanillo were founded, and the port of Nuevitas essentially improved. An excellent cooperator of Governor Las Casas was D. Juan Bautista Valiente, governor of Santiago de Cuba, who protected agriculture, founded primary and Latin schools, introduced a system of lighting in his city, started to pave its streets, and invested his savings in an edifice, which served to house the Ayuntamiento, the governor's and other offices and also contained the jail. The first revolution in Santo Domingo in 1791 had warned Las Casas and brought home to the administration of Cuba the necessity of looking once more after the defences of the island. He was aided in this task by the chief of the navy yard, D. Juan Araoz, who hastened the work of naval constructions, and in a short time turned out six war vessels, four frigates and a number of boats of lesser tonnage. They proved of great usefulness in the operations against Santo Domingo and Guarico during the second uprising when in order to protect Spanish interests and inhabitants there were sent from Havana the regiment bearing the name of the city and from Cuba a piquet of artillery. That revolt is so closely associated with the problem of slavery, which had become the cause of grave apprehension to the government that it will be referred to in the following chapter. The massacre of French and other colonists in that unfortunate island brought a multitude of refugees to Cuba and materially increased its population.