Meiggs had been assisted in the rail…

Meiggs had been assisted in the rail project by his young nephew Minor C. Keith, who had taken over Meiggs's business concerns in Costa Rica after Meiggs's death in 1877.

As many as four thousand people, including Keith's three brothers, had died during the construction of the first twenty-five miles of track.

Having subsequent trouble recruiting Costa Rican laborers, Keith had eventually brought in blacks from the Caribbean islands (mainly Jamaica), Chinese, and even Italians, to complete the project.