It was a period of reconstruction and readjustment during which not only were old business relations renewed and reaffirmed, but many new steps taken to insure the welfare of the community. Those elements of the population which were particularly concerned with the honest and efficient management of its affairs, had during the British occupation become aware of some malpractices that had escaped their attention or to which they had become so accustomed that they did not make any effort to check them. There were always on the island rumors of corruption in this or that department. Occasionally a fraudulent functionary was tried and convicted, but the great majority of these dishonest officials escaped without ever being brought to trial. The frequent change of governors with the inevitable periods of interim administration gave unscrupulous men ample opportunity to fill their pockets at the expense of the government. Nor can it be doubted, that the governors sent over by the Spanish court were invested with a farther reaching authority than was advantageous for the colony. For they enjoyed not only a political power almost absolute, but directed the economic affairs of the colony. The governors of Cuba had in former times authority to handle the revenues and in accord with the municipal councils were wont to elect delegates to discharge these duties. In 1551 they had begun to exercise these functions as ministers de capa y espada, which means literally of cloak and sword. There were two of them for the island; they enjoyed seat and vote in the town corporations and were considered royal officials. They supervised the work of the Auditor and Treasurer and together with the Governor were judges in cases of contraband. Later there were appointed tenientes (lieutenants), one for each of the following communities, Bayamo, Puerto Principe, Trinidad, Matanzas, San Juan de los Remedios, Sancti Spiritus, and Guanabacoa, and two for Santiago de Cuba. The new ministers of the Tribunal de Cuentes (Exchequer) were provisionally endowed and the whole department hitherto in charge of the royal officers was reorganized and managed under a new system by the newly appointed Intendant. To him was probably due the new classification of the revenue rates, which was as follows: (1) Duties on imports and exports, (2) of the fleet, (3) of the armadilla, (4) of the royal Fifths (i.e. a duty of 20% on prizes, etc., paid to the Spanish government), (5) the duty on anchoring, (6) the duty on frucanga, i.e. beverages made of water and molasses, which at a later time, when the use of wine, beer, etc., became more general, went into oblivion.