The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1874-05-08
PIRATES TREASURE.
Search for q Million Dollars in Geld
And OF the Spirits Invoked.

From the st. Louis Democrat
Mention was made several days
ago of q persistent search ther
in progress by half q dozen meI
= for large sum of gold. said tc
have been buried by three Spanish
=, pirates, over a hundred years ago
! in a cave near the site of Old Fort
= Bellefontaine, within to or three
| miles of the mouth of the Mis-.
souri, river.
Since then q Democrat reporter
, has met Mr.. Harvey Douglass,
and obtained from him some
further particulars of the popular
/, legend of the hidden treasure, and
the efforts made from time to
time to find the precious coins.
The name of
BELLEFoNTAINE
is associated in the minds of most
of our citizens with the cemetery
a short distance north of the city
limits. The name, however, is de-
rived from a large and beautiful
fountain that gushed from the
side of high rocky bluff on the
Missouri river, about three miles
above it's confluence with the Mis-
sissippi. A United States fort
was built in early times upon the
plateau resting upon this bluff,
and the fountain was walled up
and supplied a well about sixty
feet deep, that was dug on the
bluff. This old fort of Bellefon-
tame was a noted place in early
times, before Jefferson Barracks
were established. 1t was from
this spot that Gen. Pike, the dis
coverer of Pixies Peak, set out on
his expedition to the Rocky
Mountains. It was here that Cap
tain Long, Gen. Wilkinson, Gen.
Ashley, and other explorers of
Western wilds, rendevoused and
obtained their outfits. 1t was
here that Lewis and Clark obtain
ed guides and supplies for their
perilous expedition to the Colum-
bla river. The old graveyard at
the fort contains the bones of
many army officers, noted in their
day as Indian fighters, but their
tombs have crumbled or been re-
moved by subsequent settlers, and
used as hearthstoned or door stills,
and but few vestiges of them re-
main. The wooden buildings
have long since rotted down, and
the bricks and stones of the
chimneys and hearths have been
carried away. The old well has
been filed, and the beautiful foun-
tain allowed to gush in it's ancient
channel under the bluff. Nothing
remains to remind the visitor that
the spot was formerly the dwelling
place of armed men, of Indian
runners and French voyageurs.
Among the officers of the army
who were stationed at Bellefon-
tame in the days of its glory, was
Col Martin Douglass, the father
of Mr.. Harvey Douglass, of this
city. When q boy, Harvey often
heard his father speak OF popu-
lar belief existing at that time
that large amount of gold was
/
THREE SPANISH PIRATES,
who lived in the woods near the
Spanish Ponds. The pirates were
executed for their crimes, and
died without divulging the hiding
place of their ill-gotten treasure.
The belief was that the gold
was hidden in q cave in the low
ground bordering the Missouri
river, and that this cave was sub
sequently filed up by an overflow
OF that uncomfortable stream,
which acted as badly q hundred
years ago as it does now. Many
of the early settlers in the Floris-
SAINT Valley firmly believed in the
existence of this treasure of the
pirates, and not q few of them
made efforts to find it. Mr.. Hard
eshell, Mr.. Denny, the Withintons,
the Musicks, some of the Martins,
; and others, dug and hunted fol
days and weeks around the spot
where the gold was said to be con-
cealed; but if any of them found
it, they never told of it. Be that
;; as it may, the money has been
searched for from time to time fol
more than fifty years, and the
search is still in progress. Hal
a dozen men have, for the past
six months, been busily engaged
in digging holes and trenches
near a spring, and they are just as
confident of ultimately unearth
ing the treasure as the hoy who
was out of meat was that he would
; dig out the woodchuck.
Among these gold seekers are ;
i family of butchers named Witten
brock, who appear to be believer
in Spiritualism, and have been in
!; structed by a clairvoyant woman
: how to proceed. They sent al
I the way to Memphis for this me
u dunn or sleeper" as they cal
q her, she told them that if the,
J. would get Harvey Douglass to g
to the spot with them, and follov
II certain directions, they would Ger
y tainly succeed. Douglass had n
e faith in the story of the pirates
u treasure, and refused at first t
10 take any part in the search; bu
y the Wittenbrocks implored hin
II with such earnestness, assurin
him that the sleeper" woman Ia
D described the spot so accuratel
II that they had no doubt of he
L truth, that he felt his faith som'
u what awakened, and reluctant
+ consented to join the expedition
10 The party set out in the ate
IN noon, and arrived at the destini
u ted place after dark. It was
p sultry night in August, and I'll
: heat was oppressive, added I
50 which the stings OF millions {
Sc mosquitoes rendered q sojurn
ne the bottom almost insupportabl
e It was a moonless night, and Il
'e- stars looked dimly through Il
us dull blue sky, while the voice
70 the whip-poor-will and the distal
u hooting of the owl added to Il
u solemnity of the scene. II
treasure was said to be on land b
'n- longing to Lucas, and colon
~ man, who had lived there as
ne slave, was taken along as a guI6
BIZ The instructions OF the clairvo
ne ant required the observance of t
av sTRIcTEsr SILENCE
is on the part Of the seekers. ]
be word was to be spoken, else t
ma charm would be broken. Th
.le- left the wagon near the roadsi'
It and craWled on all fours int
to thicket, and there waited furtl
be developments.
. =.