From the early days of the independence of Venezuela continual protests had been made by the representatives of the republic against the alleged encroachments of residents and officials from British Guiana. Briefly, the contentions raised by the two parties were: on the part of Venezuela, that the Dutch, to whom we were successors, had only claimed jurisdiction on the east side of the Essequibo River; on the part of Great Britain, that the Dutch had in 1759 and 1769 put forward the claim that their territory included, not merely the Essequibo River but the whole of the basin drained by that river and its tributaries. This claim was never rebutted by the authorities in Madrid. So the dispute dragged on, the British Government refusing to consent to arbitration of the boundary unless it was previously agreed by Venezuela that such parts of the Essequibo Valley as had been effectively occupied by British colonists were recognised as their territory. In April, 1895, the arrest by the Venezuelan authorities of two inspectors of the British Guiana Police on the Cuyuni River brought matters to a crisis. The inspectors were soon released, but Crespo appealed to Washington for protection against any claim for indemnity. President Cleveland took up the cause of Venezuela on the ground that any action by Great Britain would constitute an infringement of the Monroe Doctrine, and in December, 1895, sent his two famous messages to Congress, in which he declared that any forcible action by this country would constitute a _casus belli_ with the United States. For a time great excitement prevailed in Carácas, associations being formed for the boycott of British goods and for national defence. Fortunately, wiser counsels prevailed on both sides and diplomatic relations were resumed in 1897, the matter being submitted to arbitration, and finally settled by the award of the tribunal of Paris on October 3, 1899. Hardly had this long-standing and vexatious external dispute been cleared up when the prosperity of Venezuela was once again threatened by internal dissension. Cipriano Castro, a Tachiran, had in May declared his intention of avenging a real or intended slight received from the Government, and, after marching through the Andes at the head of the so-called _Ejercito Restaurador_, fighting several successful battles on the way, he entered Carácas late in October. The executive power, which he immediately assumed, was only confirmed by an _Asamblea Constituyente_ in February, 1901. In March of that year a new Constitution was decreed, whereby the presidential period was extended to six years, and Castro was duly elected to the office. In 1902 the “Matos” revolution broke out, under the general of that name; this appears to have been a genuine popular revolt, and almost proved successful when in the autumn of the year a tactical mistake on the part of the revolutionists left Castro master of the country.