The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1882-02-09

uc 10y WUIAcu " lOuB tlLlG tTylHk tO
dig out with the points Of pair Of com.
passes the piece that had been inserted
In the mallet.
"Let mo look q It." said Uncle ST.
mon I'm aieard you Il bend the points
Of my compasses."
Looking at the end Of the mnllct he
SAID 1.-THE man that fnyed that piece
In was workman. Better lot 1t alone.
doubt Il IL can DO got out without bor-
ing" :.
said tho boy. Its hollow, know il
is. / don't believe but what there's
something in there"
"Hand the thing to me-" said Skip
per Harding, and after looking Mt il II
moment he said "rhc boys right, I'm
clio Simon; that mallet's hollow; il il
wasn't you'd never have picked il up
adrift, unless II was in boat or on q
raft"
II certainly did take ii out OF water
twenty fathoms deep, between Eagle
island and Drunken ledge but why do
you any that ?"
because that mallet's made Of linkum
vitee iiynum rifGl. Twill sink III
WHteT ike blOHc ~ ~ ID sum- AthCVSI
could have floated."
"The handles white ash. Wouldn't
the handle float il ?"
mo, it wouldn't begin to-"
Uncle Simon put the mnllet in wise,
and with chisel loosened and removed
the wcdgc-shaped piece that had been
so nicely fitted in, when large cavity
appeared, stuffed with oakum.
After pulling out the oaknm, he took
the mallet from tho wise, and, striking
the end on the bench, out came a large
number Of gold coins, which rolled
over the bench and on TO the floor.
"What DO they? what be they 2"
shouted John kilgore-who had never
seen a gold coin-picking up one Of
them, at which he gazed with lilating
eyes. md then tried his teeth ON it.
English sovercigns," replied tho
skipper.
go, :. Sc they real goold, like granny's
- reckon they are great deal bet
ter gold than Your grannys beads. At
any rate, every one Of EN- is worth nj
most S."
The coins were forty in number. On
examining the cavity, il was evident that
they had occupied but small part oft,
the rert being taken up with piece Of
clean new duck, which had been laid
next to the metal, and with oaknm.
mo wonder it floated, with NIL that
hollow. That's the way We fix our
lobster buoys when they get water
soaked.
"Now, skipper, in your younger days
you've followed the sea, and been in
foreign parts, but I've been only fish
crman. / want You to give me your
candid opinion. Who did that gold he
long To? aud what could possess any per.
son that they should put money in such
place rs that?"
"Well. its my opinion that the money
belonged to som. ships carpenter: most
likely the carpenter Of man-of-war, he.
cause merchant vessels don't often carry
a carpenter. Most likely that was his
money-box. He knew nobody would
think Of looking i'll mallet for his
money, and that piece was fayed in 40
neat that before the varnish was washed
off no person would be likely to observe
Ii.
~ knew an old Swedc, carpenter,
that went for years in one vessel, and he
had place mortised in timher-head,
where he kept his money, and nobody
knew it till he got able to stay ashore,
and then he took 1t out l expect the
vessel this poor fellow WAS in was lost,
and he with hea You'll have to keep
the money. Yon cmt find any owner for
tits, ~ You did for the other.
q shall try; l shall put up writing
on the school house and on the meeting
house, and tell the seleetmen.
That mallet might have drifted
sovrrr,gns in II, / expect il Dclonged %
some English man-of-w wars man. It's
my belief and judgment you'll never find
an owner for il though Of course it's
your duty 10 try"
"Skipper Harding, il Uncle Simon
tries and don't find M owner for the
money, whose will it he then? 7" asked
the hoy.
His; and when the rlghtiul owner
had done with it, IL was for Simon and
it was for no other person to find"
"Coulin't anybody else find il p
"No; and what establishes me moro
in that belief is that. though / never
knew or heard Of his finding that mallet
till came in here this morning, / re-
member the time very well. because we'd
'lotted to 60 together rock-fishing that
day to Drunken Ledge: hut was called
away to Small Point to look Mt vessel
We thought Of bnying."
Coming back, ran foul Of that
same drift-stuff. and let the main sheet
fiy, thinking III roll the sails up and
get part Of It. But / changed my mind,
trimmed the sheet down again, and kept
on. had been home about two hours,
when in came Uncle Simon with part Of
that stuff"
"That's the very day found the NAL
let, the day We set To 20 together and
didn't. and remember You said I'd got
your drift-stuff when came in.
Had gone to taking III the wood. 1
should have found the mallet, but it
was not thus To be it was Tor you,
Simon. You wouldn't take ANYTHING
from the North Yarmouth folks, cause
You said you didn't want to be paid to
do right. and this tune the ocean took
the matter in hand. 1t is my belief that
the winds and waves had their orders to
whom to carry that piece Of wood"
Skipper Harling never had occasion
to change the OPINION 80 emphancally
expressed, as. after due notice given, no
person ever appeared to prove his laM-
full claims to the money Youths Cons-
Probable Fate of Lieut.. lie Long.
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