The details were worked out carefully and the first cargo purchased in Jamaica and landed in New England proved a decided success. During the first two or three years the accruing dividends were invested in fruit lands in Jamaica and everything went well. Not long after, however, it was found that a West Indian cyclone could destroy a banana field and put it out of business in a very few hours. More than one field or locality in which to grow bananas on a large scale was necessary to provide against the possible failure of the crop at some other point. In the meantime another broad minded and determined pioneer in the world of progress, Minor C. Keith, a youth of 23, was trying to build a railroad some 90 miles in length from Puerto Limon to the capital, San Jose, in the highlands of Costa Rica. The greater part of this road was through dense jungle and forest almost impenetrable, with nothing in the shape of freight or passengers from which revenues could be derived until the road was completed to the capital. Mr. Keith had a concession from the Costa Rican Government, but the Government had no funds with which to aid the builder in his enterprise, and this young engineer, through force of character and moral suasion, kept his two thousand workmen in line without one dollar of money for over 18 months. Food he managed to scrape up from various sources, but the payday was practically forgotten. In the meantime, some banana plants were secured from a plantation in Colombia, and set out on the virgin soils along the roadway through which Mr. Keith was laying his rails. These grew marvellously, and not only supplied fruit for the Jamaica negroes engaged in the work, but soon furnished bananas for export to New Orleans, and thus was started a rival industry to that of Mr. Preston, on the shores of the Western Caribbean.