Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1872-02-03

har, and dats bout sixty or seventy
years done gone. Dis am de oldest mig
ger live, s'pects, massa."
Finding Quimbo incorrigible, / soon
changed the subject, and asked him if
he not begin to think he was mistaken
about the DEVILS Notch" being on
this side of the island.
Dunno, massa," replied he, "seems
to me that we's been knocking around
long enough, and | guess we must done
passed it,
"And is it the 'Divil's Notch in
the Pine Island yees is after finding,
may be so bould as to ask p queried
our Irishman, who had heard our con
versation.
Yes, it is, Mike" replied; "do
you know anything about it ?'
"lt's this much know about il" said
he it's tin years or more since lot of
gntlemen like yerself, yer honor, made
up company and hired me to go with
them to the Isle of Pine to hunt for
goold, which they said the bloody pirate
Lafittc had buried on shore at the
Divel's Notch
"And did you find the place and the
gold" interrupted, eargerly.
And it's that I'm comm to-" con-
tinued he. "We found the Divel's
Notch, but divel piece of goold at all :;
and we all went back to Havana, and
the dirty spalpeens chated out of me
pay, and divil cint did iver get for
all that dug in tho dirty sand on the
blasted island nearly whole month for
them, and got the faver, and me back
broke intirely, the dirty blackguarda
that they were and it's the head of ono
of them that broke afterwards with
me shillalah, so | did"
"Well, Mike" | asked, "can you tell
us where the Notch is ?"
"Sure and its past it ye are, and we
were past it when ye first struck the
Pine Island. Yell know it when yees
see it, for the first thing that yees see
is dvil of big stone nose that stands
upon the shore right torninst the
Notch"
Possessed of this information sought
the Professor and Col. Haywood, whom
| found with the captain. We talked
over the matter and agreed to put about
for the point where we first touched the
island and then coast northward on the
western side. We put back to the cut
ter, and | went aboard of her and asked
the captain if he would sell a few articles
and tools which wanted, stating that
the tug machinery had become disabled,
and that we should be obliged to return
to our starting point. lie supplied me
with few of the things which | pre-
tended to need, and we left, going off
with difficulty, as | had previously so
adjusted the machinery that it labored
heavily, and we made but little head
way. When out of the cutters sight,
however, it got right in jitiy, and we
were soon around to the place where we
touched the island at first, and from
that point we coasted along toward the
north, closely observing all inlets and
coves. On the second day old Quimbo,
who had been looking through the
glass, suddenly exclaimed,
"Dar she is dat's de place; dat rock
right ober dar T.
We headed for the rock indicated, and
soon the glass revealed the outlines of
huge nose in the rocky ledge, and as
we drew nearer this became still more
distinct and well defined, until the form
and every detail of Roman nose be-
came as clear and shapely Though in
huge proportions) as if it had passed
through the sculptor's hands. But we
were interested in the nose only as
landmark, and in short time were at
anchor in beautiful little bay, with
shrubbery extending down to within
about half mile of the waters edge,
while behind this rose majestically the
rocky ledge and lofty pines. 1t being
nearly night when we arrived, we con-
cluded to wait with such patience as
we could command until another day
before going ashore. If | slept little
the night l dream of old Pedro, slept
none at all during this, and it seemed
interminably long. All nights come to
an end, however, and this was no ex-
ception. In the morning, bright and
all arrangements the night before.
Mike and Quimbo were to remain on
board to take care of the tug (they sup
posed that we were really prospecting
for marble), while we should go to the
hill and select specimens. We took
hammers and chisels openly, and the
professor his trusty magnet secretly.
We went through the shrubhery, which
was but narrow belt, and then inter
vened strip of sand which reached
nearly to the rocks. We went to the
ledge and Clipped off several speci-
mems, then turned to the business in
hand in earnest. One hundred steps
from the Nose was-not pine tree
but the base of large pine tree, the
trunk of which was nearly imbedded in
the sand. Here Professor Aldrich pre-
pared and suspended his magnet. 1t
was moment of suspense to us. Could
we believe our eyes? The lower end of
the cord inclined to the south. To
make sure we applied the test plumb.
There was no mistake-the magnet
hung at least one degree from per-
pendicular line toward the south. We
held our breath and looked at each
other without speaking for moment.
At length the professor said in low
tone,
1t is very near, or else it is a large
amount, possibly both"
We now moved the magnet one hun
dred steps south and again suspended
it, and after a few more slight altera-
tions of position, the Professor said that
the treasure was directly beneath,
doubtless very near to the surface.
With our tools we set to work removing
the sand, and at n depth of two or three
feet struck a fiat stone which proved to
be about eighteen by thirty inches
square. We got hold of one side of it