 Eventually, Miner Keith figured out that if he brought Jamaicans over from the Caribbean, they would have an easier time working on his railroad since they spoke English and were used to the climate. Hmm. Thing is, by this point, Miner Keith had another problem. He'd burned through millions of dollars and was nearly out of money. Here's author Dan Kopel again. And the Costa Rican government, which is sort of funding this thing partially, also goes broke.