adjust disputes with traders who claimed certain tracts of land, was
equally successful, and France, under Louis Napoleon, presented him with
arms and uniforms for the equipment of the Liberian troops. In 1852
Prussia also extended her friendship, soon followed by Brazil and the
free Hanse towns. In 1862, the necessity for cautious dealing with the
race question having passed away, the United States government at last
formally recognized the Republic, and Holland, Sweden, Norway, and Hayti
formed treaties in 1864. The consent of Portugal and Denmark in 1865,
and of Austria in 1867, brought Liberia into treaty relations with
nearly all the leading commercial nations.

The internal condition of the Republic during the first decade was one
of unprecedented growth and prosperity. The Colonization Society in
America was in a flourishing condition, and gained friends on every
side. Its receipts for the ten years were not far short of a million
dollars; and this generous means permitted the transportation, in the
same period, of over five thousand chosen emigrants. The accession of so
large a force of laborers added a new stimulus to the activity awakened
by self-government. Many new settlements were formed and all the older
ones received an infusion of new strength. Agriculture, especially the
cultivation of the great staples, rice, coffee, sugar and cotton, made
rapid progress; while commerce was stimulated by the establishment of
regular monthly lines of steamers between England and various points on
the coast, the first of which was started in 1853. The enterprise of
Holland soon added still other lines. Communication with America was at
the same time facilitated by the regular trips of a large vessel built
for the purpose, the gift to the Society of Mr. John C. Stevens of
Maryland.

At the close of his fourth administration President Roberts decided to