The weekly Butte record., 1862-01-25


It was night for hearing. too. He felt for bis
lantern, and got out his steel TO strike light.
Having dropped his flint, in cropping about TO
fud it, be forgot the direction in which be had
stood and, when he had got upon his feet again,
after an unsuccessful search. he felt himself so
utterly at a loss, that, after walking few steps
with his hands stretched out before him, be
determined to wait for the morning, rather
than risk fall over one of the slippery rocks
in his attempt to return home.
When he had sat there for some time, the
rain began to fall in large drops. these were,
however, but the splashes from the backet-fulls
which were soon poured upon his head. The
wind, too, was loosed at the same time and
rushed on him with such violence that, though
he dare not search for shelter lest he should fall
over the rock, he was glad TO sit down on a
large stone which he felt at his feet The first
fash of lightning, however, showed him the
chapel itself not more than ten yards Off He
CROPPED towards it Immediately in the gloom
with his hands stretched out before him, right
glad when he felt its rough stones. The wall
once found, he soon discovered the path with
his feet, and, when he got home, was glad to 60
to rest at once.
He had not slept many hours before he was
aroused to visit dying man in one of the
neighboring houses. Hurrying on his clothes,
he FASTENED TO the place, where a crowd was
gathered about the door, many of them drip
ping from the sea. The storm which he had
seen the evening before, had grown into ter.
rible tempest. during which a ship had been
driven on the rocks and utterly wrecked. All
the crew were drowned but one man whom
they dragged out of the surf, and carried 10
Derby Haven. He had apparently, however,
been saved from death in the water TO die on
the land, for, he was so grieyously bruised and
cut by the rocks on which he had been thrown,
that life was ready to leave him altogether
When Father Kelley came in, be found him
lying on the floor, wrapped up in such dry
clothes as the people had at hand. He had
begged them to fetch the priest. His back lie
said, was broken, and be knew he could not
live another hour; so the people fetched Fa-
ther Kelly, as We have seen, and left the two
alone together.
Father" said the dying man, will you
hear the confession of pirate and murderer p
The priest, seeing there was no time to lose,
signifed his assent, and, kneeling down by his
side, bent his ear to listen.
Then the man, with strange breaks and
rambling in his speech, told him of murders out
in the wide seas, and horrible recollections of
cruelty and rapine.
1--WE took Spanish ship some weeks ago"
added the man, and came in here to water, it
being safe place when I-God forgive my
soul Il committed my last crime and stole
from the captain box of gold he had taken
out of the Spaniard. Another man and l
were in the secret. We brought it with US,
and buried it in the graveyard of your little
chapel, intending to make our escape from the
skip on the first opportunity, find our way over
here, and enjoy the booty we had got"
ITO whom did it belong ?" asked the priest.
"God knows" replied the man, " to me,
now, l suppose Those who owned it, can use
it no more the ship from which the captain
took it, went down with all on board-we
burned her."
"What was her name q asked Father
Kelly.
Name? ?" said the dying man. "There
take the gold and shrive me have confess
ed,'
Without another word, he died The people
buried him, and gathered up some few pieces
of timber from the wreck of his ship. but
nothing came ashore to show whether she was
laden or not. They never knew her name, nor,
for a great while, what she was-the priest not
conceiving himself bound to tell even so much
of what be had heard in the confession. Many
years afterwards, the whole story was found in
book which the priest left after him when he
died.
The words, Take the gold " haunted the
good father long, after the man who died in
ultering them had been committed to the
ground. The chapel was finished but not fur
nished the fulfllment of the dream was in-
complete. Many a night the priest lay awake
arguing with himself the lawfulness of a search
among the graves for the treasure which he
had no doubt was hidden there. Suppose he
could find it, should he credit the pirates word
about the death Of the owner? Could he con
scientiously appropriate it, not indeed to his
own use, but to that of the chapel? He tho't
of the sentence which fell on those who put
unhallowed fire in their censers he thought of
the accursed thing found in the Jews tent,
which brought trouble upon the whole people
to which he belonged. Then, again, it looked
as if the sin attached to the appropriation of
this gold. had been punished in the persons of
the pirates who had taken it. 1t looked as if