Rodas was crafty, and he now thought of a device which under the guise of mercy would hamper the Cuban army. On May 26th he promulgated a second decree freeing all slaves who had acted or would act as guides to the Spanish army, or render any like valuable service to the government, an effort, of course, to induce the former servants of patriots to betray their masters and the Cuban army into the hands of the Spaniards. To disguise the baldness of this attempt at corruption, he also included a provision, freeing all slaves belonging to the insurgents or who had escaped to foreign countries. This provision was for all practical purposes meaningless and without any value, because the Cubans themselves who were fighting for freedom from Spain had already emancipated their slaves. Meanwhile negotiations between Sickles and the Spanish government resulted in the promulgation of a decree, which was known as the Moret law, acquiring its name from the Spanish Minister of Colonies, whose signature was one of many signed to the document, and who is reported to have had a hand in its composition. It bore date, July 4, 1870, and was promulgated by the Captain-General nearly two months later, as follows: "Superior Political Government of the Province of Cuba: "His Excellency the Regent of the kingdom communicates to me, under date of July 4th ultimo, the following law, which has been promulgated or sanctioned by the Congressional Cortes: "Don Francisco Serrano of Dominguez, Regent of the kingdom, by the will of the sovereign Cortes, to all to whom these presents shall come, greeting: "Know ye that the Congressional Cortes of the Spanish nation does hereby decree and sanction the following: "Article 1. All children of slave mothers, born after the publication of this law, are declared free. "Article 2. All slaves born between the 18th of September, 1868, and the time of the publication of this law, are acquired by the state by the payment to the owners of the sum of twenty five dollars. "Article 3. All slaves who have served under the Spanish flag or who have in any way aided the troops during the present insurrection in Cuba are declared free. All those are equally recognized as free as shall have been so declared by the superior government of Cuba, by virtue of its jurisdiction. The state shall pay their value to their masters, if the latter have remained faithful to the Spanish cause; if belonging to insurgents, they shall receive no indemnity. "Article 4. Slaves, who, at the time of the publication of this law, shall have attained the age of sixty years are declared free, without any indemnification to their owners. The same benefit shall be enjoyed by those who shall hereafter reach this age.