The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1875-05-13
THE GREAT GOLD SECRET.

I'm ld-digger-that's about what ]
| am. You wouldn't take me for an En-
glishman, would you now? No, nor We
anyone else that knows me; but | am
| though.
How old, about, should you take me
for. Forty five, ehs Well they al
guess somewhere near that; but Pm Just
thirty seven last month. | dare say you
don't believe it; and perhaps wouldn't
believe it either if | told you that all
this wrinkling and turning gray was
done in one week. Well, 1t was, and
when ! think over it all now and
think that here / am live after il
all | can hardly believe it myself
Would you like to hear about it? Well,
sit down and make yourself comfortable,
and I'll tell you.
It's nine years ago last Valentines
Day Il remember all the dates we'll
enough, warrant ye) that l was at
Frisco with a Yankee, name of Seth
Hickman. We'd met down in Denver,
and stood by each other in a row that
happened there, and of course that drew
us together bit; and the end of it was
we agreed to go prospecting together
and share and share alike"
Seth was sharp fellow and knew all
the likeliest spots, and | could do DAVIS
work with any man in those DAYS.
though amt much to brag of now; and
the end OF 1t was we made pretty good
haul.
for a rainy day and having a spree with
the rest, and then starting off again; but
Seth didn't seem to see it at all. no.
ticed that he looked serious-like, as II
he had something on his mind, for the
first two days after we got into the
town; and on the second evening, as we
were sitting over our grog, he spoke out:
"Jim, old hoss, I'm a-gwine to tell
yew something that nary soul IN crea-
ton knows about but myself; for ii yew
hadn't been some smart with your. Der
ringer when them three skunks went for
me down in Denver, they might ha' wrote
Gone up over this child; and no man
ever did Seth Hickman good turn, nor
a bad turn neither, but what he got CO.
coanut for you (tit for tat), yew bet yure
life on thati
when | was in africa last year |
went up country a bit with my rifle, and
thar happened on an old lnjun crltter,
as old as George Washington's nurse,
livin' in hut all by himself, among the
spurs of the Andes, and | camped IN his
hut for the night.
oval, the aguardiente whisky in my
flask war leetle tew strong for him, and
he got reg'lar slowed; and when his
tongue got loosened by the Ticker he kim
out wi sich a yarn as whipped every
thing in Prescott all to fits. He said that
when the Peruvian chiefs stampeded
from CuZoo arter Pizarro took it, lot
on m got up among the mountains, car
rying their gold with 'em till they came
out on the plateau of Lake Utica; and
thar, findin' the Spaniards close on their
trail, they chucked all the gold into the
lake and skedaddled nobody knows
where. And he said that if anybody
took the trail from his hut, north and by
east, till they hit the southern end OF the
lake, and then looked out for big, three
cornered rock like a pyramid upside
down, they'd jest got to scoop in the mud
of the lake whar that rocks shadow fell
on it at sunrise, and they'd find nutf gold
to buyup all Wall street. Now we've
gotmoney enough to put thatjob through,
and if yew feel like tryin' it, I'm in"
l said done" at once and we got our
money together and slipped down the
coast TO africa as fast as the Pacific
steamer could carry US. The minute we
got there Seth went off into the hills to
| try and get hold of his old Indian for d
| guide, while l hunted about for work
mentor this was a job that needed
more hands than our own. At last got
hold of two Spaniards sturdy fel
| lows they were, and honest enough as
| Spaniards go-and then a Portigee ant
| two niggers We weren't long of buy
| ing our stores and working tackle, anc
by the time Seth came back with hi:
guide all was ready and away we went
| Seth was much too knowing a bird tC
| let on what his real game was as long al
we were within hail of the town, for i
you say "gold" there only in a whispe
those blessed Gambusinos (gold-tinders
will hear it hundred miles off. So al
that we told our gang was that we wer,
going prospecting among the lowe
ranges, as lots of fellows did every day
but when we were past the old Indian
hut and we'll up among the hills, so tina
our chaps couldn't easily turn back j
they wanted, he up and told them tn
whole story. They were rather take
aback, as well they might be, for LAX
Titica's good many days sjourney t
the northeast, among some very aws
ward morntsins, and good 1900 fee
above the sea if it's an inch. However
Spaniard (or any other man, for tina
NATTER will go pretty nearly anywher
if he once gets on the scent OF gold; s
our fellows they spoke up stoutly enoug
and said they were ready to go up to tn
lake and down to the bottom of it int
the bargain, after such a haul as thai
and of We set again.
I've seen a good many wonders in m
time, knocking about the world as "
done; bat anything like that climb u
the Andes | never saw yet. Rocks tia
seemed TO go up into the very SIX,
straight as plumb-line; beds of mos
three or four feet deep, and soft as We
vet cushion; trees two hundred feet higl
all one blaze of flowers from top TO bo
tom; leaves big enough to wrap you u
like blanket; tree-ferns big as tabl,
, cloth, all glittering like the finest silve
lace; humming- birds and monkeys an
parrots, and butterflies as broad as th
palm of your hand; waterfalls shet
, down over great black precipices thol
. sand feet high, and far away behind th
| everlasting mountains, piled one aboy
J another TIL they seemed to go right U
, to heaven Among all these enormor
things we eight men, big and strong 1
! we were, seemed of no more accouI
than lot of ants crawling on blade
grass, and | think ] never felt so sma
in my life as did then.
!, However, I hadn't much leisure
, think about ii at the time, for you can
expect fellow to have much of an ey