East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1860-05-03
VOLUME |.
THE GOLD BUG.
THE GREAT PRIZE TALE.
ny EDGAR A. POE, ESQ.
(Pa5ished by permission Of j. y. Redfeld Of Netr
York, publisher Of Poes reorks.l
ICoNcLUDED.l

btance, was now ucScrlDeu, anu we apali
set to work with the spades l wa
drcadfully weary, but, scarcely under
standing what had occasioned the change
an my thoughts, felt no longer any grea
aversion fiom the labor imposed. L haC
become most unaccountably interested
hay, even excited. Perhaps there was
something, amid all the extravagant dc
meanor of Legrand--some air of fore
thought, or of delibcration, which i'm
pressed me. Idug eagerly, and now and
then caught myself actually looking, with
something that very much resembled eX-
pcctation, for the fancied treasure, the
vision of which had demented my unfor'
tunate companion. At a period when
such vagaries of thought most fully pos
scsscd me, and when we had been at work
perhaps an hour and half, we were again
interrupted by the violent howlings Of
the dog. His uneasiness, in the first in.
stance, had been, evidently, hut the re.
suit of plsyfulness or caprice, but he
now assumed bitter and serious tone.
Upon Jupitcr's again attempting to muz-
zle him, he made furious resistance, and
leaping into the hole, tore up the mold
frantically with his claws. In few Sec
onds he had uncovered mass of human
bones, forming two complete skeletons,
and intermingled with several buttons OF
metal, and what appeared to be the dust
of dccayed wooden. One or two strokes
of spade upturned the blade of large
Spanish knife, and, as we dug further,
three or four loose pieces of gold and sill
yer coin came TO light
At sight of these the Joy Of Jupiter
could scarcely be restrained but the
countenancc of his master wore an air of
extreme disappointment. He urged us,
however, to continue our excrtions, aud
the words were hardly uttered when |
stumbled and fell forward, having caught
the toe Of my boot in large ring of iron
that Law buried in the loose earth.
We now worked in good earnest and
never did | pass ten minutes of more in
tense excitement. During this interval
we had fairly unearthed an oblong chest
of wood, which, from its perfect preScrva-
tion and wonderful hardness, had plain
been subjected to some mineralizng pro-
ccss--pcrhaps that of the bi-chloride Of
mercury. This box was three feet and a
half long, three feet broad, and two and
a half feet deep. 1t was firmly secured
by bands Of wrought iron, riveted, and
forming kind Of open trellis-work over
the whole. On each side of tho chest,
near the top, were three rings of iron
six in all-by means of which firm hold
could be obtained by six persons. Our
utmost united endcavors served only to
disturb the Golfer very slightly in its bed.
We at once saw the impossibility of re-
moving so great weight. Luckily the
sole fastenings of the lid consisted of two
sliding bolts. These we drew back
trembling and painting with anxiety. In
an instant, treasure of incalculable value
lay cleaning before us. AS the rays of
the lanterns fell within the pit, there
flashed upward glow and glare, from
a confused heap of gold and Of jewels
that absolutely dazzled our eyes.
/ shall not pretend to describe the feel
ings with which / gazed. Amazement
was, Of course, predominant. Legrand
u,
spoke very few words. Jupiter's coun-
tcnance wore, for some minutes, as deadly
a pallor as it is possible, in the nature of
things, for any negro's visagc to assume.
lie seemed Observation-Disclosures.
Presently he fell upon his knees in the
pit, and, burying his naked arms up to
the elbow in gold, let them there remain,
as if enjoying the luxury of bath. At
length, with deep sigh, he exclaimed, as
if in soliloquy:
And dis all cum oh dc goole-bug dc
putty goole-bugl de poor little goole-bug
what / boosed in dat sabage kind oh
style! Amt you shamed ob yourself
nigger?--answcr me datp
1t became necessary, at last, that l
should arouse both master and valet to
the expedicncy of removing the treasure.
1t was growing late, and it behoovcd us
to make exertion, that we might get
everything housed before daylight. 1t
was difficult to say what should be done,
and much time was spent in deliberation
so confused were the ideas of all. We
finally lightencd the box by removing
two-thirds of it contents, when we were
enabled, with some trouble, to raise it
from the hole. The articles taken out
were deposited among the brambles, and
the dog left to guard them, with strict
orders from Jupiter neither, upon any
pretense, to stir from the spot, nor to
open his mouth until our return. We
then hurriedly made for home with the
chest; reaching the hut in safety, but
after excessive toll, at / o'clock in the
morning. Worn out as we were, it was
not in human nature to do more immedi-
ately. We rested until two, and had
supper; starting for the hills Immediately
aftcrward, armed with three stout sacks,
which, by good luck, were upon the
premises. A little before four we arrived
at the pit, divided the remainder of the
booty, as equally as might be, among us,
and, leaving the holes untitled, again set
out for the hut, at which, for the second
time, we deposited our golden burdens,
inst as the first faint strcaks Of the dawn !