Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1872-09-26
FORTUNES IN LEAD.
A Lucky Lot-Buyer ana = wealthy
Hermit IA

Z" AAWCAy A/O1eUWyc6 ana u "C019nY
Hernait. "a
4 correspondent Of the New York
Tribune relates the following stories:
A few years ago 4 young man bought
g building lot in Dubuque for 5000. In
digging Tor q a'founaation he struck ore,
and Immediately called in three or feur
friends to enable him to buy the .sur-,
rounding lotA From q cave, in those
lots, which afterward made a first-olass
cellar, at an expense Of an additional
800 for labor in excavatinR, &c., he
took out $6O, 900 worth of lead, within
a fortnight. Ny informant is citizen,
of this place, and vas himself the hero
of his story. -: a.. ,... G,..: i.:;:
A. wRsTERN HER,i1T-ToM KRLLY's CAVE.
There is q shade of romance con
nected with another lead cave which i
visited. There, poor. old Tom Kelly
TSs 4ss IL ~ Sneduesssa ilisSgl1' taGSsa as III
when he had discovered his cave kept
the. fact to himself. He smelted his
own ore and carried his lead down to
the river bank secretly, until he, had
hidden in the bank about twelve
thousand dollars worth of lead.
This he shipped and went with it down
the river, reshipping it at New Orleans
and going with it to New York, where
he sold it. taking his pay in gold:
Perhaps the gold was heavier than the
lead. At all events poor Tom sat down
with his money bags to rest. and as he
vvoa a dipkv.1nnksnn o11 fo11nuy onroo
boys collected around him and began
poking fun at him. A great fear seized
Tom-a fear for his money-bags. He
snatched: them up and started to
run for the dock where bis boat WAS
lying. The boys followed, hootipg.
Tom stumbled and fell. One of the
boys ahead of the rest came. upon him.
Tom drew q knife and stabbed tn, boy
through the heart. At the trial which
ensued it was shown that; Tom Kelly
was more than h&lf csazed, and; he .vas
acquitted and kept in confinement rs q
Iunatic. Here his instincts as 4 miner
stood him in good stead he burrowed
out and escaped. Before long, Tom
was at work in his mine again, but he
was now more secretive than ever. He
built himself q stone house, where each
window was an embrasurei pointing out
of which was fixed loaded musket, and
the only man who ever got enough INTO
Toms confidence to examine the house,
says that there was also fixed musket
enffladiDg the doorway. He told this
person that he was having an iron
house made for himself that he thought
would be much more secure. In gen
eral it was but little, and only to- mere
children, that Tom ever spoke. And
there came a day, somo two years ago,
when Tom found it necessary to prepare
to go to q house where he is likely to
be permanently safe. Two brothers,
almost as unoouth as Tom himself,
came lowering about the dying man.
He asked the priest to bring q lawyer;
and when this was effected said: eli
you will send them out" pointing to
his brothers. II will tell ALL" But the
brothers would not 60 out ol
the house, and Tom died as mute as he
had lived. Application to the prope,
authorities in, New York recovered
Toms gold which he had been toe
much frightened to apply for after hif
escape. The brothers left not one
stone of the house upon another, and
they found $40, 600 in gold hidden in
and around it. Out of Toms cave
they took in addition, it is believed,
ore to value of not less than 500, 600.
They divided their treasures. as they
found gold or sold ore, by dealing out
coin or bills as if they were cards at
poker, one to each alterns tely. What
is left of Tom Kelly's real estate looks
like the debris of an earthquake.