From that period until the present time, the affairs of the island have been a matter of constant interest and frequent anxiety in Washington.  Fear of British acquisition of the island appears to have subsided about 1860, but there were in the island two groups, both relatively small, one of them working for independence, and the other for annexation to the United States.  The great majority, however, desired some fair measure of self-government, and relief from economic and financial burdens, under the Spanish flag.  The purchase of the island by the United States was proposed by President Polk, in 1848; by President Pierce, in 1854; and by President Buchanan, in his time.  Crises appeared from time to time.  Among them was the incident of the Black Warrior, in 1854.  Mr. Rhodes thus describes the affair, in his History of the United States: 

“The Black Warrior was an American merchant steamer, plying between Mobile and New York, stopping at Havana for passengers and mail.  She had made thirty-six such voyages, almost always having a cargo for the American port, and never being permitted to bring freight into Havana.  The custom of her agent was to clear her ‘in ballast’ the day before her arrival.  The practice, while contrary to the regulations of Cuban ports, had always been winked at by the authorities.  It was well understood that the Black Warrior generally had a cargo aboard, but a detailed manifest of her load had never been required.  She had always been permitted to sail unmolested until, when bound from Mobile to New York, she was stopped on the 28th of February, 1854, by order of the royal exchequer, for having violated the regulations of the port.  The agent, finding that the cause of this proceeding was the failure to manifest the cargo ‘in transit,’ offered to amend the manifest, which under the rules he had a right to do; but this the collector, on a flimsy pretext, refused to permit.  The agent was at the same time informed that the cargo was confiscated and the captain fined, in pursuance of the custom-house regulations.  The cargo was cotton, valued at one hundred thousand dollars; and the captain was fined six thousand dollars.  The United States consul applied to the captain-general for redress, but no satisfaction was obtained.  A gang of men with lighters were sent to the ship under the charge of the commandante, who ordered the captain of the Black Warrior to discharge her cargo.  This he refused to do.  The commandante then had the hatches opened, and his men began to take out the bales of cotton.  The captain hauled down his flag and abandoned the vessel to the Spanish authorities.”

The news of the incident created great excitement in Washington.  President Pierce sent a message to Congress, stating that demand had been made on Spain for indemnity, and suggesting provisional legislation that would enable him, if negotiations failed, “to insure the observance of our just rights, to obtain redress for injuries received, and to vindicate the honor of our flag.”