War now seemed inevitable. Benavides’ envoys had delivered the ultimatum to Charleston, and it appeared certain that Nicholson would not comply with it. But carried to the brink of war, Benavides backed down. Despite the fact that the viceroy of New Spain—for the first time in two decades—had promised him military assistance, the governor refused to take action to destroy Fort King George. [Note82: viceroy to king 3/14/1725] Reverting to the more moderate policy recommended by the council of the Indies, Benavides sent two agents to Charleston in August, 1725, to bargain with Nicholson once again. These negotiators, Francisco Menendez Marques and Captain Joseph Primo de Rivera, had instructions to settle all matters under dispute with Carolina. They were to insist on the immediate destruction of Fort King George and the recognition of Spanish claims on Georgia, but in return they were to promise reimbursement to all English slave owners whose Negroes had fled to Saint Augustine. In another step calculated to ease tensions between the two colonies, Menendez and Primo were instructed to draw up a complete list of boundary disputes with the Carolinians. This would then be sent to Europe for settlement by diplomats there. [Note 83: Testimonio 6/10/1724, 8/18/1724] The two Floridians accomplished nothing. When they presented their demands in Charleston, Nicholson and his council refused to make any concessions. The Carolinians claimed they had no orders from England to adjust boundaries or to destroy Fort King George, and without orders from the mother country, they could take no action. Nicholson also stated that the price offered for the slaves was too low. Evasive and curt, the Carolinians sent Menendez and Primo away with no clear statement of English policy on the southern frontier and with no decision on the blockhouse situated on the Altamaha. [Note 84: Certificacion de don Joseph Primo de Rivera y don Francisco Menendez Marques, 10/2/1725] (Tepaske GSF)